The noon sun hung high over the Tracen Academy cafeteria, filling the sprawling hall with the clamor of clinking cutlery, lively chatter, and the ambient heat of summer.
Diamente sat at a quiet corner table, methodically cutting into her lunch. Opposite her, a group of energetic younger trainees was practically bouncing in their seats. Almond Eye, Lucky Lilac, and Lys Gracieux, members of the generation slated to debut even later down the road, were clustered together, their eyes sparkling with unbridled excitement.
"I still can't believe it…" Lucky Lilac gushed, resting her chin in her hands. "It happened to both of ya' on the exact same night?"
"It's so cool..." Lys Gracieux murmured, staring in awe at the two figures standing by the edge of their table.
Rey de Oro and Kiseki had just arrived, carrying their trays. But anyone looking at them could tell immediately why they had missed the morning's early track drills.
They were noticeably taller and bigger.
Their postures carried a sudden, defined athletic density, their limbs longer, their presence carrying the distinct, intimidating aura of fully developed umamusume.
In the world of Umamusume, it was a phenomenon known well to everyone: the miraculous blessing of the Three Goddesses.
At almost random moments during a runner's developmental phase, an extreme growth spurt would occur overnight, signaling that their body was finally ready to endure the grueling demands of high-level competition.
Maturation. That's what the phenomenon is called.
Diamente set her fork down, her sharp eyes sweeping over the two of them. She had been wondering why they were absent from Team Arcturus's morning roll call.
"You two..." Diamente began, her tone measured as the realization settled in. "Your maturation phase has arrived."
"It did, Dia-chan," Rey de Oro replied, pulling out a chair and sitting down with a grace that seemed even more pronounced now. He offered a faint, satisfied smile. "I'm sorry for missing the morning class' drills, Dia-chan. We spent the early hours getting ourselves cleared."
"Right! We went straight to Dr. Tachyon's lab," Kiseki added, rolling his shoulders as if still adjusting to the sudden increase in muscle mass and stride length. "She ran a full suite of tests on both of us, after all."
"And?" Almond Eye leaned forward, her eyes wide with anticipation. "What did Dr. Tachyon say?!"
"The results were conclusive," Rey de Oro said smoothly. "Our physical frames have stabilized, so we're being officially transferred to the High School Division at the start of the next term."
"Which means," Kiseki grinned, a fierce spark igniting in his eyes, "we're eligible for the November recruitment period. We can officially pick our trainers and prepare for our debuts next year!"
"That's amazing!" Lucky Lilac cheered, clapping her hands. "You guys get to race so much earlier than us!"
"Do your best for all of us!" Lys Gracieux chimed in, her voice brimming with admiration for her older peers.
While the younger girls buzzed with enthusiasm, Diamente remained quiet, her gaze drifting down to her own hands.
Transferred to High School... November recruitment...
As a transmigrator carrying memories of a past life inside this Umamusume body, a sudden, sharp knot of anxiety tightened in Diamente's chest. It wasn't just the natural competitive urge to run that clawed at her. It was something far more time-sensitive.
She knew the timeline. She knew the exact span of years her seniors had on the turf.
Kitasan Black... Real Steel… Satono Crown…
They were the titans currently dominating the center stage. Kitasan was already deep into her campaign, gearing up for the Kikuka Sho. Real Steel was right on her heels.
If Diamente's own maturation period arrived too late, if her body insisted on taking its sweet time as a late-bloomer, she would miss them entirely.
The thought was suffocating. What value was there in dominating her own Classic generation if the legendary figures she revered and longed to challenge had already hung up their cleats and retired before she ever stood on the same track?
She didn't just want to win her own races in a vacuum; she wanted to test her steel against them. She wanted to line up in the gates beside Kitasan Black and others while they were at their absolute peaks.
"Dia-chan?"
Rey de Oro's quiet, perceptive voice snapped her out of her deep thoughts. He was watching her intently, noticing the rare flicker of tension in her usually calm demeanor.
Diamente closed her eyes briefly, taking a slow, steadying breath to force the surging urgency back into the depths of her mind. When she opened them, her mask of composure was firmly back in place.
"It is a significant milestone, Rei-chan, Kiseki-chan," Diamente said softly, offering a polite nod to both of them. "Congratulations to you both. You've earned the right to step onto that stage."
"We'll be waiting for you in the High School Division, Diamente," Kiseki said, his tone turning grounded and earnest. "Don't take too long."
"I won't," Diamente smiled as she replied quietly.
She looked out the cafeteria window toward the sun-drenched tracks outside, where the echoes of her seniors' footsteps still seemed to linger. Her body might be taking its time, locked in the slow, agonizing process of a late-bloomer, but her heart was already racing against time itself.
==== 🐎Legend Changer🐎 ====
Summer at Tracen Academy's coastal training camp was relentless. The sweltering heat radiating off the track did nothing to slow down the rhythmic, thunderous pounding of hooves against the dirt.
The scent of salt water hung thick in the warm air, mixed with the sharp smell of churned grass and sweat.
At the edge of the secondary track stood Belno Light, holding a stopwatch tightly as the sun reflected off her glasses. As the assistant trainer heading Team Arcturus, the sub-team formed under Team Spica, she bore the responsibility of overseeing the developmental regimen for Diamente.
"35.8 seconds on the final furlong!" Belno called out, her voice clear over the breeze.
"Good form, Diamente-chan! Keep your shoulders relaxed through the turn!"
Symboli Diamente brought her stride to a smooth, controlled glide along the outer lane.
Her breathing was steady, her heart beating in a strong, measured rhythm. Yet as she wiped a bead of sweat from her forehead, her gaze instinctively drifted toward the adjacent lane.
There, two fellow pre-debut trainees were tearing through a high-intensity developmental drill.
Rey de Oro ran with a razor-sharp, effortless elegance like a natural aristocrat on the turf whose innate talent was already blazingly obvious. Beside her, Kiseki sprinted with raw, explosive power, every step driven by an unyielding stamina that stood out even among top-tier recruits.
Though they were still a year away from their official debuts and their eventual Classical campaign two years later, their unwrapped potential after their maturation period was staggering.
Diamente watched them closely, her sharp eyes taking in every detail of their biomechanics.
Rey de Oro's fluid weight transition... Kiseki's massive stride length...
In her past life's knowledge, the Classical Season of 2017 would be defined by these very names of Al Ain, Rey de Oro, and Kiseki.
They were built to mature rapidly, destined to make immediate waves the moment they stepped onto a professional track.
And then there was herself.
Diamente looked down at her hands, flexing her fingers slightly. As a Symboli, expectations were naturally sky-high.
Yet, physically, she was a late-bloomer. Her body was growing on a much slower trajectory than her future contemporaries.
While Rey de Oro and Kiseki were already displaying their physical capabilities, Diamente was still building the basic frame required to support her lineage's true power.
"Comparing yourself again, Dia-chan?"
Belno's soft voice broke Diamente's focus. The assistant trainer walked over, offering a folded towel and a cold sports drink.
"Thank you, Belno-senpai," Diamente said, taking the bottle. She took a slow sip before looking back toward the track. "I wasn't comparing. Just merely observing them, that's all."
"Your eyes say otherwise," Belno said with a gentle, knowing smile. She stepped up to the railing, watching Rey de Oro pull away in a brilliant burst.
"For the two of them to become like this after they started maturing, they're quite an exceptional bunch. It's only natural to feel a sense of urgency when you see others in your age group adapting so quickly before their debut."
Diamente fell silent for a moment. Her usual composed facade didn't slip, but her tone carried a quiet weight.
"My physical growth curve is delayed compared to theirs." Diamente replied, "Right now, they hold the clear advantage towards their immediate conditioning. If I force my pace to match their current outputs, my joints and muscles definitely won't sustain it."
"Precisely," Belno agreed, her expression turning serious yet encouraging. "And that's why I'm supervising the training regiment that you made. Growth isn't a race to see who reaches the peak first, Diamente-chan. It's about how high your peak actually is when you finally get there."
Belno clicked her clipboard, showing a line graph detailing Diamente's stamina retention and muscle density over the last three months.
"Look at your data," Belno pointed out. "Rey de Oro and Kiseki are sprinting up a steep hill right now. You? You're laying a massive concrete foundation. Your maturation period will come much later, but when it does, your ceiling will definitely far surpass standard conditioning those two have."
Diamente looked at the data. The line was a slow, steady incline. Quite undramatic, yet undeniably rising.
'She's blooming quite late,' she thought to herself.
Just then, the sound of energetic footsteps echoed from the main track facilities. Kitasan Black was finishing a brutal long-distance interval set, sweat glistening on her skin, yet her stride remained powerful and focused.
With the emotional weight of the Derby behind her, Kitasan was pouring everything into her conditioning for the upcoming Kikuka Sho alongside McQueen who's her practice partner for the day. Her eyes carried a fiery, newly rediscovered resolve.
Across the field, Gold Ship was busy trying to surf on a wooden kickboard on dry land while Daiwa Major and King Kamehameha cheered her on, keeping the atmosphere lively.
Seeing Kitasan running with such clear purpose reinforced what Diamente had realized at the Takarazuka Kinen: The future isn't a fixed script anymore.
Rey de Oro and Kiseki might debut earlier and grab the early spotlight of their generation. They might look impressive in training today.
But Diamente was not bound by impatience. Her delayed maturation wasn't a handicap but a prolonged preparation for something far greater.
But in her mind right now, her feelings still hold that longing for something.
"Diamente-chan!" Kitasan called out, waving energetically as she slowed to a walk along the apron. "How are your drills going?"
Diamente looked over at Kitasan, then back at Belno, who gave her an approving nod.
"They're progressing well, Kita-senpai," Diamente called back, her voice carrying a quiet, unshakable confidence. "Are you ready for the hill repeats after lunch, Senpai?"
"Of course!" Kitasan grinned, her smile bright and completely free of her former mask.
Diamente turned back to face the track where Rey de Oro and Kiseki were finishing their cooldown. The road to their 2017 Classical year was still long, and while her future rivals were already sprinting toward their horizon,
Diamente was perfectly content taking her time.
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