When El Condor Pasa was little, she wasn't the fearless fighter she is now. She was timid, tearful, often mocked as a coward—a nuisance everyone avoided.
Her father, the world's strongest luchador, was admired and relied upon by all. But his daughter turned out weak and weepy—a crushing disappointment.
Trapped in her own self-doubt, El Condor Pasa stopped meeting people's eyes. Even a passing glance made her flinch and want to curl up in some dark corner, wishing her father had a braver daughter instead…
This went on until one day, after finishing some family matters, her father found her hiding in her room. Without a word, he handed her a luchador mask and said:
"This is the mask of the world's strongest masked wrestler! When you wear it, El Condor Pasa, you too are the strongest!"
At that moment, the timid, tearful little Condor disappeared forever.
From that day on, fierce, decisive, and fast as the wind—the strongest Uma Musume, El Condor Pasa, was born!
Determined not to disappoint her father's faith in her, and to prove herself worthy as the daughter of the world's top luchador, El Condor Pasa swore upon that mask: she would become the world's strongest Uma Musume and make her name known across the globe.
With her extraordinary strength and talent, she joined Rigil, Tracen Academy's top team, alongside Symboli Rudolf and Air Groove. Their trainer, Azuma Hana—a stern, bespectacled woman with a frosty aura—was one of Tracen's elite trainers.
Azuma's tough, high-intensity coaching was a perfect match for El Condor Pasa's burning drive to grow stronger no matter the cost.
No matter how exhausted she felt, how much her muscles screamed, or how desperately she wanted to rest, one touch of her father's mask—one reminder of everyone's expectations—was enough to reignite her spirit. She'd force herself through training routines that would have broken an ordinary Uma Musume.
After all, she was aiming to be the strongest in the world. How could her training be the same as everyone else's?
So El Condor Pasa never complained, never questioned orders, even when she ended up in the infirmary again and again. She simply pressed on, pushing every negative thought aside with raw determination.
She believed her days would always be like this—grueling, but fulfilling.
Until one day.
After finishing her usual training, passing the Statue of the Three Goddesses, she saw him.
"Everyone, look over here! Look at me! I've got an announcement! I'm handsome!"
Before the statue, a mysterious young man raised both arms and shouted with such unshakable confidence that every Uma Musume nearby turned to look.
El Condor Pasa was no exception.
His boldness reminded her of her father—those blazing moments in the ring when he'd lift his arms high after victory and roar to the crowd.
The man didn't look strong—slim, delicate, the kind of person who'd fall over from a push—but still, there was something about him she couldn't ignore.
Warmth.
Gentleness.
A strange comfort that slipped past the armor she'd built around her heart and touched the fragile part she thought she'd buried for good.
He vanished soon after, but his image lingered in her mind—a quiet, persistent temptation that gnawed at her resolve to stay strong.
After that day, even touching her mask didn't help as much. She could still force herself to move, but her body's fatigue and pain refused to be ignored.
It terrified her. How could she go on meeting everyone's expectations—how could she prove herself—if she couldn't suppress her weakness anymore?
But she didn't tell her father. She thought she'd grown enough to stand on her own. She couldn't lean on his protection forever.
So she made a decision: she would find that mysterious man herself—and crush him in a wrestling match, the one thing she was most confident in.
She believed that once she defeated him, the "demon" in her heart would vanish, and she'd return to her invincible self.
About a week ago, she used every ounce of her strength to defeat her roommate Grass Wonder—who usually kept her in check—and won the right to wrestle anyone she pleased on campus. She wouldn't stop until she found the man who had shaken her heart.
But even after challenging nearly every trainer at Tracen, she still hadn't found him…
"…"
El Condor Pasa stared down at yet another unfamiliar trainer, collapsed and foaming at the mouth, then lowered her head and touched the mask on her face.
Lately… I can't even find the motivation anymore…
"Papa, I… don't think I can hold on…"
She crouched down, burying her face against her knees. Her horse ears drooped, her tail hung limp—her spirit completely deflated.
Just like when she was a child, mocked as a crybaby, hiding in her room, pretending she didn't exist, quietly crying to herself.
She didn't know what to do. Without her mask's strength, how could she ever become the strongest Uma Musume in the world?
Right now, she wished her father could appear beside her—so she could stop thinking, stop struggling, and simply rely on him again.
But at the same time, she hesitated. If she accepted his comfort, wouldn't that mean she was still that weak little girl from before?
Lost in that spiral of doubt, El Condor Pasa stayed there, unmoving, unable to lift her head.
Then—a deliberately loud, oddly androgynous cough broke the silence.
"Ahem."
"Ahem, ahem, ahem!"
As if trying to make sure she noticed.
"Hm?" El Condor Pasa looked up.
Before her stood a strange figure, wrapped head to toe in black.
He looked vaguely familiar, though she couldn't remember from where.
"…Is there something you need?" she asked weakly.
Right now, she didn't even feel like wrestling.
"It's nothing big, it's just…" The cloaked figure spread his hands, planted them on his hips, and declared, voice ringing with confidence:
"I'm here to challenge you."