"Rrah—aaah—!!"
She ground her teeth and let out a roar packed with bottomless unwillingness.
The deep-blue radiance swirling around her suddenly blazed at her command, surging like a tidal wave. Power drove her body forward in a mad rush.
That question buried deep in her heart—
If, even after gaining all these advantages, I can still lose… then what do I do?
The answer arrived with it:
Then I stake everything—body and soul.
No matter what happens after this—I only want—!
That fighting spirit, fierce beyond limit, became willpower that overflowed Super Creek's every vein and bone.
Suddenly—
A body already pushed to the edge by her Domain found a new, even greater wellspring.
Transitional True Blooming.
It was the late Senior Year of Super Creek's career—the cusp of her brightest peak. And now she burned away the last of her growth, even shaving off a slice of that coming peak, to buy a single instant of power—enough to stand against Inari One.
But…
The footsteps behind her didn't falter. They grew clearer. Heavier.
From a god's-eye view, the red and blue streams both seemed to accelerate a second time. But the red grew deeper, more domineering—like a leviathan of the abyss opening a maw to swallow the sky, inch by inch devouring the blue.
The gap shrank mercilessly.
Until—shoulder to shoulder.
"Not bad at all, Super Creek!"
A crisp voice cut through the roaring wind.
Inari's voice.
Super Creek jerked her head aside. Reflected in scarlet light, that face was wild, exultant—yet there was no mockery, no scorn. Only the thrill of equals crossing blades and… the purest respect for strength.
"To push me this far—you're pretty tough!"
Inari laughed, and from that small frame the well without bottom rose higher still.
She no longer ran neck and neck with Super Creek.
She—passed.
"—!!"
Super Creek's pupils pinpricked.
Right before her eyes, the scarlet figure pulled away—half a step, one full step—unstoppable.
She had given everything, burned the future itself—and still, she could not slow this tyrant from Oi. Not even a fraction.
Why…
Helplessness and humiliation flooded her mind like icy tide. The flame that had pushed her past the limit guttered, doused by a bucket of winter water, ready to die out at any moment.
Her body screamed in pain and fatigue like nothing before. The borrowed strength she'd forced out early was savaging her in return.
Her speed… was dropping…
…
In the stands—
"Creek…"
Fumino's fingers had gone white from clenching; nails dug deep into her palms, and she felt no pain. Her lips trembled; her eyes swam with feelings she had no words for.
There was unwillingness. There was ache. But most of all, it was a deep, immeasurable helplessness.
The Fumino who was always calm and prepared for anything seemed, from behind, a little desolate.
…
On the terrace—
"…It's over."
Symboli Rudolf shut her eyes. She could not watch.
The brutality of this race had surpassed all she imagined.
Super Creek had done everything a person could—more than that, even.
But… the opponent was stronger.
That was all.
Beside her, Kuroha's expression was just as grave.
Transitional True Blooming—a forbidden path where a racer burns her future to grasp power now.
If an ordinary girl tried it, the price at best was months of recuperation; at worst… the end of a career.
But perhaps because of the Panacea Kuroha gave Super Creek before the summer break, her state wasn't as dire as it should have been.
Unless…
Kuroha's gaze sank toward the figure who seemed to have accepted defeat.
…
On the course—
The scarlet figure ran alone, tossing the pack far behind. The finish drew near.
She would once more, in crushing fashion, declare her dominion.
However—
In the instant everyone believed the result was sealed—
"…Not yet."
A faint voice, steady as bedrock, sounded from behind.
Inari blinked and glanced back on reflex.
The blue that should have been shattered—flared again.
Super Creek's eyes were shot with blood from the overdraft; her vision blurred. Yet her gaze was brighter than ever.
It was the light of one who had thrown away everything—abandoned all else—to uphold a single conviction.
She let go of thought, let go of calculations—even let go of the thirst to win.
She held only one last, simplest idea:
—I cannot stop here.
The deep-blue Domain that hovered on the edge of extinction flared with its final, most dazzling glow.
Thoom—KRAK—!!
The flagging speed—rose again, like a miracle.
Battered head to toe, the warrior refused the ground—dragging a broken body into one last, death-or-glory charge at the king ahead.
"—Super Creek! She hasn't given up! She's coming again!!"
The commentator's ruined voice burst into an impossible shout.
All across the stands, people rose to their feet.
They witnessed a miracle.
They witnessed a champion who, even after being broken, ignited her soul to mount an impossible counterattack.
"Ah… haha… ha—haha!"
For the first time, surprise flickered across Inari's face.
An instant later, surprise turned to joy.
She could feel it—that will chasing her had refined into something even purer.
…
Final 100 meters.
Scarlet and deep blue tore toward the line—their thunder shaking the finish.
Even as the blue fell behind, it never slackened.
And at last—
"Finish!"
"The autumn Tenno Sho winner—Inari One!"
"The Tyrant from Oi, following Tamamo Cross, completes a second Spring–Autumn Tenno Sho double—back-to-back crowns!"
Blue, in the end, couldn't catch red…
Even though a chasm that once felt unbridgeable had been carved down to three lengths…
Plap…
After the line, Super Creek's legs gave way and she dropped to her knees on the track, gasping hard.
Big beads of sweat fell; something hot blurred her eyes.
She looked up, trembling, at the big screen.
Her lips pressed thin.
"Again… I lost…"
Even after all of that…
"Mm…"
Her whole body quivered. A heavy knot of grievance and doubt rose in her chest. A choked sob escaped—and she forced it down.
But the surge blew through her dam an instant later.
"Mm… mmm—aaah—aaah—!"
Head bowed, Super Creek kept wiping her eyes, but the flood wouldn't stop.
Her muffled sobs were small things, swallowed by the crowd's roar.
"…"
Inari watched from not far away.
This time, she didn't go to lift Super Creek.
Even she, not the most delicate soul, understood—the brown-haired girl needed quiet.
…
(End of Chapter)
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