The stubborn struggle of the Hopeful Stakes had ended, but the storm it created in the umamusume world had only begun.
The final moments of the broadcast—Silence Suzuka's desperate commitment and Special Week's monstrous pursuit beyond all common sense—were engraved deeply into the heart of every spectator.
Afterward, Suzuka's life-burning Great Runner strategy and Special Week's impossible chase became the subject of conversation everywhere.
"That race was incredible! That's exactly the kind of competition I want to see!"
"Suzuka burned herself out, but she was the real winner! That running, that intensity—I could feel it even through the screen!"
"No, isn't Special Week the real monster? Did the physics engine break during her acceleration over those final meters? That completely violated Newtonian mechanics!"
Television, the internet, and magazines overflowed with analysis, features, and retrospectives about the race. The two central figures shone like twin stars across the sky of Japan's racing world.
Some dismissed it as another false campaign to "manufacture a god," a publicity stunt created by capital.
Others believed it might genuinely mark the beginning of a golden age.
Whatever the truth, Japan's racing world had been quiet internationally for several years. These two umamusume of the new era had unquestionably changed the direction of the wind.
Many people overseas continued to dismiss the excitement as another piece of exaggerated Japanese promotion. Yet calm professionals also discovered the recording and rated the race extremely highly.
Several world-class Trainers wrote on their social accounts that the talent of Special Week and Silence Suzuka was a treasure belonging to the world. They argued that the girls should receive superior training in powerful racing nations such as Britain or the United States, and that anything less would waste their gifts.
At the center of the storm, however, there was a strange tranquility.
On an old course scattered with layers of pine needles behind Tracen Academy—
"Huff... huff..."
Special Week wore a simple training outfit. Sweat covered her forehead as she performed short shuttle runs. Her face showed none of the delight expected after winning a GI, nor any agitation from the media surrounding her. There was only intense concentration.
Invitations from television programs? Rejected.
Interview requests from reporters? No time.
A special fan meeting? Perhaps next time.
To Special Week, that sensational race was merely one point in her long career. Winning was good, but nothing more. It marked only an early signpost, and the "finish" she wanted to reach still lay far away.
She also remembered the aura Silence Suzuka released at the end of the race. It had been extremely faint, almost impossible to notice, but Special Week's instincts still smelled danger.
"Was that the thing I've been searching for?"
Special Week thought of the realm she had always tried to enter, yet consistently missed by a fraction.
It was a state that had appeared in the *Uma Musume* manga and novels of her previous life.
A realm called ZONE.
Its basic result was simple and brutal: it allowed an umamusume to display strength beyond her limits.
ZONE also possessed skill-like effects. Every awakened umamusume developed a different ability. It was far more than a simple explosive awakening.
An umamusume with ZONE and one without it were essentially different forms of life.
According to Special Week's knowledge, ZONE had three stages.
At the basic stage, an umamusume could enter a state of total concentration during a race and release an aura approaching her true strength.
The advanced stage could be considered the genuine opening of ZONE's door. At this level, the user entered an explosive state and broke through her physical limits, causing her performance during the race to surge beyond her ordinary maximum stats.
At the ultimate stage, the runner formally entered ZONE's domain. She retained the abilities of the first two stages, gained an additional skill-like effect, and greatly reduced ZONE's consumption.
Special Week currently stood at the basic stage.
More precisely, she had naturally entered it years ago when she first awakened [Wildness]. Through later training and her own talent, she had reached the point where she could draw upon the power whenever she wished.
Despite years of effort, however, she had never entered the advanced stage.
The burst produced by Wildness looked similar to advanced ZONE and could even be more powerful. Special Week nevertheless understood that she had made no further progress within ZONE itself.
During their race, Silence Suzuka had stepped into that realm before her.
That was why Special Week believed her victory offered no reason for celebration.
She knew she had not truly overcome Suzuka as an opponent.
When Silence Suzuka returned to the course, the power she had obtained would make her even stronger.
Would Special Week still defeat her then?
Of course. She could and must!
Special Week possessed absolute confidence in that answer, but she did not blindly assume her chance of victory was 100 percent.
She had never genuinely confronted that legendary power. Therefore, she had to become stronger. Only then could she guarantee victory when she met Suzuka again.
"I'm still one step short..."
Her training ended.
Special Week stopped, wiped away her sweat, and looked up at the sky.
What did ZONE—that legendary divine realm—truly feel like?
"I'm still not strong enough."
Special Week clenched her fist.
At that moment, her phone rang. Her mother was calling from Hokkaido.
Special Week's grave expression melted instantly.
She stopped what she was doing, walked to the chair holding her belongings, and picked up the phone.
"Hello~ Is that Spe? Did you miss your mother?"
"Yes."
"Really? Has my Spe been eating properly? Are you resting enough?"
"Mm. I'm eating and resting properly."
Her mother's voice was filled with affection and concern.
Special Week's own expression softened.
Only before her mother did she temporarily put aside her obsession with perfection and become more like an ordinary girl her age.
They spoke for a long time—about training, food, friends, and dreams.
Ordinarily, Special Week would regard such subjects as unimportant and a waste of her time. When her mother asked, however, she listened patiently to every lecture and answered the questions, despite never being especially talkative.
"Then do your best, Spe. If I have time for your next race, I'll come watch in person. We'll stop here for today. Remember to go back and rest early. Don't secretly train too late."
"All right."
After ending the call, Special Week's gaze became determined again.
She put her cap back on and began another round of training.
The evening sun stretched her shadow far across the ground.
As for her mother's instruction to rest more?
Didn't Special Week understand her own body? She was nowhere near the point when rest became necessary. This body still contained plenty that could be squeezed out of it.
*Body, obey me. We're training harder!*
Unlike the tranquility surrounding Special Week, Silence Suzuka's world smelled of disinfectant.
A private hospital in Tokyo.
"Reckless! Completely reckless!"
Hana Tojo's furious voice echoed through the hospital room.
She looked at the pale Silence Suzuka in bed, then at Nishizaki Ryuya standing silently nearby. Her anger nearly erupted.
"Nishizaki! What kind of Trainer are you? Didn't you understand Suzuka's physical condition? You were gambling with her entire career!"
Nishizaki lowered his head and accepted the reprimand.
Hana was right.
The consequences of Suzuka's completely unrestrained Great Runner effort were far worse than expected. The doctor said that proper recuperation would prevent lasting damage, but recovering from such total exhaustion would take a long time.
Suzuka would even have to miss the year's upcoming races.
A race like the Satsuki Sho gave an umamusume only one chance in her life.
Missing it meant losing that chance forever.
"I'm sorry."
Those were the only words Nishizaki ultimately offered.
Hana looked at him with bitter disappointment.
"I told you long ago that a Trainer's responsibility is to protect her runners, not drive them onward!"
For once, Nishizaki offered no opposing opinion.
This time, he had genuinely gone too far.
Fortunately, Suzuka would run again. Had she suffered a major lasting injury, he might truly have wanted to die.
Yet he understood that he could not change. He could never be as "correct" as Hana. Even if he returned to that moment and faced Suzuka's desperate request again, he knew he would make the same choice.
On the bed, Silence Suzuka quietly listened to them argue.
She knew she had worried her former Trainer.
But she felt no regret.
That race had brought her closer to her "dream" than anything before it.
She had seen that scenery and experienced the pleasure of surpassing her limits.
Even if the price was lying in a hospital bed, she considered it worthwhile.
"Ms. Tojo. Trainer."
Suzuka's voice was hoarse but exceptionally firm.
"Please don't argue. I... wanted to run that way. So please don't blame Trainer."
Hana looked at her and opened her mouth, only for the words to become a long sigh.
She walked to the bedside.
"You foolish girl... do you truly have no regrets?" Hana asked softly.
Silence Suzuka shook her head, a faint smile appearing on her lips.
"None. Because... I saw it."
"I saw... the scenery that belongs only to me."
Suzuka closed her eyes. The final moment of the race appeared again within her mind.
The wind roared past her ears. The world overturned ahead. Only the finish line remained, shining with unprecedented brilliance.
In that instant, she had obtained freedom and release unlike anything she had known.
Hana did not approve, but she could not deny Suzuka's feelings or the way she had chosen to confront them.
When her gaze moved to Nishizaki, however, her expression darkened again.
Hana had long known that umamusume were creatures like this. That was precisely why these children needed Trainers and professional teams to supervise them. Yet Nishizaki, Suzuka's Trainer, had failed to fulfill that restraining responsibility.
"Nishizaki, we'll have a proper conversation at the usual place later."
"...All right."
Nishizaki knew he could not escape what awaited him. He had no intention of trying.
The race's aftermath also changed the fates of its other participants.
For Crimson Blaze, it had been a nightmare.
The speed she had once taken pride in looked like a child's game before Silence Suzuka.
Before Special Week, it had meant even less.
The profound helplessness drove her into isolation and doubt.
"Am I... really suited to running?"
She stared at herself in the mirror with confusion in her eyes, remembering her former dreams and all her past effort.
Seiun Sky also seemed to become a different person.
The girl who had always been proud and lazy stopped idling after that race. She arrived at the training grounds early every day and remained until late. Unprecedented seriousness and determination appeared in her eyes.
Royal Glory was later seen weeping bitterly before her family's racing display.
Some runners lost confidence because of the race and sank into decline. They failed to display their former talent in later competitions, gradually vanished from public sight, and eventually left the umamusume world.
Others did not surrender so easily.
Seiun Sky's response was especially remarkable.
She had shown almost nothing during the Hopeful Stakes, and her finishing position had been poor. Few people remembered her name afterward. Only a small number of fans who had already taken an interest continued following her.
After the race, Seiun Sky disappeared from attention for another two months before entering two consecutive competitions.
She won them both with ease.
At the Hopeful Stakes, Special Week and Silence Suzuka's brilliance had completely obscured her. Like an uncut jewel hidden beneath the light of those two geniuses, she had seemed almost invisible. Once the dust settled, that jewel finally began revealing its radiance.
She controlled the rhythm of each race with calm, proud confidence, then dealt her opponents a fatal blow at the end.
Only then did people make an astonishing discovery.
The umamusume who had been completely suppressed in the Hopeful Stakes was herself an undeniable genius.
Her light had merely been covered by two monsters who shone too brightly.
"See? I told you I'm very strong too."
Standing on the winner's podium, Seiun Sky winked mischievously at the camera.
Grass Wonder's injury finally healed, and she announced her return to racing.
The former champion had lost considerable time to injury.
Her return added another heavyweight contender to an already fiercely competitive racing world.
"I will reclaim everything that belongs to me."
Grass wrote only one sentence in her comeback statement, but it carried indisputable confidence.
Her teammate and fellow newcomer, El Condor Pasa, also made her debut.
The international student displayed terrifying strength.
Her running combined power and violence. She claimed an enormous margin approaching 200 meters and won with ease.
The dominant performance reminded many spectators of Grass Wonder.
"So strong! On the surface, she doesn't look inferior to Silence Suzuka or Special Week at all!"
"My word, has another monster appeared?!"
"Are all the rookies monsters nowadays?!"
El's emergence ignited the fans' enthusiasm again.
Japan's umamusume world entered a flourishing age filled with voices and excitement.
Several geniuses had appeared at once, giving every race something worth watching.
El Condor Pasa stood on the winner's podium and looked at the cheering crowd with pride.
She knew this was only the beginning of her career.
More distant goals and glorious dreams awaited her.
Through her strength, she had made everyone remember her name.
Another runner had inherited the blood of a world-class umamusume—King Halo.
She completed her debut and declared her objective: the highest honor in Japanese umamusume history, the Classic Triple Crown!
King Halo lived up to her name. Her birth was distinguished and her bearing elegant.
Her family possessed an extraordinary reputation in the racing world.
Many people had watched her even before her debut.
Her bold declaration before the race attracted even more attention.
However—
Her debut performance was unsatisfactory.
She possessed a magnificent appearance, but failed to create the same visual impact as the other new stars. She showed almost no oppressive strength during the race, disappointing many spectators.
When she later announced her ambition to claim the Classic Triple Crown, online reactions were pessimistic.
"King Halo finished seventh, and she still says that?"
"Don't make me laugh. With Special Week and Silence Suzuka here, how could a third crown possibly go to her?"
"Even Seiun Sky, who won those last two races, looks stronger than she does."
Most users did not believe in her.
In an arena where strength ruled, pedigree and reputation could sometimes be worthless.
Strangely, however, King Halo's support on the Association's voting page was not low.
A group of spectators who enjoyed the drama seemed determined to keep her from being eliminated.
They laughed online.
"The forum costs us nothing. Why not give her a vote and watch the show?"
"Besides, she's beautiful. What if she actually wins? That would be even more entertaining!"
Amid this mocking atmosphere, King Halo's support remained at a respectable level.
Reading the comments frustrated her, but she refused to admit defeat.
She knew she had to prove herself through strength.
She would train harder and force everyone to look at her differently.
Time passed little by little.
Tracen Academy approached the Classic season.
Special Week no longer needed to enter qualifying races. After the Hopeful Stakes, she was unquestionably the present "king" of her generation—the strongest, at least for now. Her fame and popularity votes stood far ahead of the rest, easily satisfying the entry requirements.
She could focus entirely on preparing for the Satsuki Sho.
Behind Tracen Academy lay one of its hidden training areas.
One day, a new umamusume arrived.
She was short, with long black hair.
Appearing there for the first time, she looked restrained and anxious.
"Um... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to intrude on your private training ground."
When she noticed Special Week looking at her, she apologized nervously in a timid voice.
Special Week paused, then shook her head.
"It's fine. This isn't my private training ground. It's a public area that anyone can use."
The slender umamusume sighed in relief.
"I see..."
Special Week studied her.
She knew this umamusume.
This was Rice Shower, the girl who would later be known as the "Black Assassin."
At present, Rice Shower was merely an unknown runner at the fringes.
She had managed to enter Tracen Academy, but her introverted personality caused her to underperform in mock races. Her academic grades were not particularly good either. No Trainer or team had invited her, so she came alone to the back mountain, hoping to find somewhere she could train without disturbing anyone.
"Do you... train alone too?"
Rice Shower looked at Special Week with curiosity.
She recognized Special Week because the girl attracted so much attention. Yet instead of training on the professional grounds, Special Week had also come to this remote place.
Special Week nodded.
"...Then I should leave so I don't disturb your training."
Rice Shower saw that Special Week did not seem eager to speak. Unable to find another subject, she decided she should not continue bothering her and prepared to say goodbye.
Special Week stopped her.
"You can train here too."
"...I really can?"
Rice Shower halted and asked hesitantly.
Special Week said nothing more.
Her meaning was already clear.
She had no intention of speaking much with Rice Shower either.
Special Week had discovered that although the abandoned school course looked old, someone maintained it carefully. The training equipment was simple but complete. The uneven surface lacked the smoothness of the ordinary grounds, yet was better for developing balance and explosive power.
She had heard that the academy might have deliberately allowed this place to fade from public attention.
Its staff knew there would always be umamusume who received no recognition at first because they matured late or suffered from other circumstances. This place existed for those "overlooked gems"—somewhere they could quietly gather strength and wait for the day they blossomed.
Special Week had never intended to drive anyone away.
Besides, this had originally been Rice Shower's training ground.
Special Week had simply reached it earlier because her circumstances had changed.
When Rice Shower saw that Special Week had stopped paying attention to her, she actually relaxed.
Her eyes brightened, and a faint smile appeared on her face.
"...Thank you very much!"
...
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