"Good, keep pushing!" Chief Kitahara's voice boomed from my side.
I was leaning down, trying to kiss my own knees. With my body folded almost completely in half, the tension in my Achilles, calves, thighs, and hindquarters was killing me. It felt like with just one gentle touch, the tension would snap. But I kept pulling my hands, which were stuck grabbing my feet, and with that, I leaned lower and lower.
In this try, Oguri-san did not help me. As my Make Debut was only three days away, I had to show the results of my own training. Plus, Oguri-san also had her own Summer Dream Trophy League race coming up shortly after my debut, so we each had our own hands full.
"Gggaahh, almoooosssttt, huffff," I pushed any air left in my lungs out of my body so I could reach my goal.
It was getting closer every day, the gap between my lips and my knees. But alas. It was still a bridge too far.
"Haaaah," I sprawled down from my sitting position, my muscles quivering. Just a few millimeters were left. I had almost gotten it.
"Great work," Chief said, showing me a thumbs-up. "Though you haven't really reached our goal yet, you are ready." He continued, "As I said earlier, these next few days will only be for polishing things here and there. We need to make sure your fatigue is completely gone and your condition is perfect by race day. So, no sneaking out for self-training or being a night owl, alright?"
"Roger," I said while heaving for breath.
"Great. Now, you and Oguri can do a parallel run for two laps. After that, let's see your Ideal Strides in a solo run. And Oguri, after Ko-kun is done, it is your turn."
"Un," Oguri-san and I nodded.
As our races would be on turf, we had moved our training to the turf track last week. As for why I chose to run on turf for my debut, it was because the longest Make Debut race available was on turf. On dirt, the longest was a Mile race, while on turf, the longest was a Medium 2000-meter race. Though it was far below my ideal distance compatibility, we had to make do with what was available and build our strategy around it.
"Alright, start," Oguri-san said, and our parallel run began, our strides falling into a synchronized rhythm.
"So, how do you feel, Ko-chan?" she asked, her eyes fixed forward.
"Honestly, I am quite nervous," I answered in between breaths.
"Just that? I thought you would say you were not sure," she said, a hint of a surprise in her voice.
"Well, if I said that, you would tell Tamamo-san, and the next time we meet, she will make me do embarrassing things again," I scoffed.
"You are still not getting over it? She left quite a mark on you, huh," Oguri-san snickered.
"The first time was shouting inside a ramen store. Next was inside the Canteen. And the worst was during our morning jogging, when I was forced to jog around the city while singing a hymn about being the best in the world. I don't even know the hymn! She must have made it up on the spot back then!" My face dimmed, remembering that mortifying experience.
"Yeah," she said, putting a hand to her mouth to stifle a laugh. "As for the last one, she was inspired by a war movie you recommended to her. Knowing that makes it even funnier."
"Kuh… after all that, I've vowed to quickly solve my uncertainty in any way possible, or at least I will not show it outwardly."
"That is one step forward, I guess."
"Thanks to her, yeah," I said quietly.
"Well, you should be fine for your Make Debut," she said with an easy conviction. "You can do it."
"I have to win," I said, my voice filled with a determination. "I, who have never won any race so far, want to take that first-place finish. Not just for me, but for the Chief, for you, for Team Arcturus. I don't want any skeptics to doubt Chief's ability again because I could not perform well. The Chief is a great trainer, our trainer. I don't want to drag him down after all he has done for me." I looked at him as we passed by. He was diligently preparing the equipment for our next session.
"I see," She nodded contemplatingly, and continued, "My old friend once said, you can't climb a mountain without a summit, without a goal it will be difficult to put your heart into what you are doing. You, who already have one, just need to always remember that goal, and you can push further than you initially thought."
"Push further.." I murmured.
"We are almost done, don't go into your think tank right now," She immediately cut my way into my mind. As expected of the captain of Team Arcturus, she knew how to deal with me already.
"Alright, we rest a bit, but keep your body warm up," Chief instructed as we finished our laps. "After that, Oguri, you stay on the finish line. Here is a stopwatch. And Ko-kun, you can go all out, but don't forget everything you have learned."
I nodded. I would be running at the Nakayama Racecourse inner circuit in the second race. Our strategy for this race was to keep running on the outside lane, especially on the corners. Running on the inner lane would require significant braking to enter the corner and a harder kick to exit it. Cornering on the outer lane was gentler, and with my acceleration, I would be able to exit it faster.
After Chief was ready, and we had rested enough, I went to the starting line. Oguri-san was already standing at the finish line, stopwatch in hand.
Huff. Alright. I settled into my starting posture and nodded to the Chief. He nodded back, and together with a click from his stopwatch—
"Go!"
I dashed forward, a wake of displaced air behind me.
It was a 2000-meter solo run, clockwise. Though this track had no slope, we tried to get it as similar as possible to my Make Debut race later.
I passed the 400-meter mark. I was exiting the first corner and entering the second. I had projected a full field of runners in front of me. Among them were the up-and-coming generational stars I had heard so much about my ears had grown calloused, complete with their traits and characteristics on the track that the Chief and I had gathered. Right in the pack just in front of me, there were King Halo with her brown hair waving about and Grass Wonder with her serene atmosphere surrounding her. In the main pack further forward, El Condor Pasa had quickly positioned herself as the race's pace-setter, followed by Tsurumaru Tsuyoshi and Special Week, their fighting spirit emanating from each of their steps. At the very front, Seiun Sky with her deceptive strides led the way.
"If you saw the summit, you can push yourself further." Huh? I see what you meant, Oguri-san. It was truly eye-opening.
It's rather intoxicating.. hehe.. Even just from my mental projection, this race already felt so exciting!
800 meters. I was exiting the second corner as I picked up my pace and scaled up my output to the maximum of Gear one. I accelerated until I joined the rear pack from the outside. I kept up with them on the straight and increased the frequency of my strides. Along this backstretch, I engaged Gear Two. As expected of Grass Wonder and King Halo, they had separated themselves from the other late surgers and were steadily approaching the main pack.
1200 meters. I was entering the third corner back in my Gear one for better acceleration. I was able to keep my position on the outer periphery of the rear pack. It was time to burn my fuel a bit for a short burst and tapped Gear one top speed. Utilizing the centrifugal force, I broke out from the pack to catch up with Grass Wonder and King Halo. The main pack was slowing down, and those two were already at their tails.
1600 meters. I kept my outside lane as I was exiting the fourth corner with ninety percent Gear one output, my long and powerful kicks digging down and pushing me forward with massive momentum. The last spurt and the final stretch were coming. I had a good enough middle placement so far. With this, I didn't need to worry that I couldn't catch up. Seiun Sky was still looking good on her feet. The same was true for El Condor Pasa, Special Week, and Tsurumaru Tsuyoshi. Those four had enough fuel, of course they did. Just like me, all the other runners were ready for the last spurt.
1700 meters. I hit the final straight and increased my output back to Gear one top speed. The wind slapped my face, my legs burned, and my oxygen-starved brain screamed, but I knew I could go for much longer. I had much to prove! As the outermost runner, I ran down the wing with my Gear Two engaged after accumulating more turnover rate. And here came my last spurt. I kept moving my legs faster and faster, running with a speed that would have been unbelievable to my past self. But that was not only me; the others were also fast. Some were even faster than me.
King Halo and Grass Wonder easily overtook the main pack. El Condor Pasa, Special Week, and Tsurumaru Tsuyoshi were chasing down Seiun Sky for first place. The field was merging, and those six came up on front.
I saw them, all of them. If I could just increase my turnover rate more, I could overtake them. I wanted to feel that. I wanted to defeat them. That was why—
"Arrrrggghhhh! Faster, damnit!" I yelled, as if to pour all of my strength and will into my legs.
I felt it. Between the steps of my overreaching legs, I found the momentum. A momentum that was faster than ever before. The momentum that was the key to upshifting to the next gear.
"Gooo! Copenhagen!" I heard the Chief's voice from the sideline. Yes, that was it. Go. That simple order. So go, my legs. Carry me faster!
"Noooot yeet!" I screamed, the sound raw and desperate.
I saw those six in front of me. Almost within reach.
250 meters left. 150 meters left. 100 meters left.
Just a little bit more. The momentum was there, I could feel it. But it was not quite enough. I needed a faster momentum, a faster frequency. Not just my legs, but my torso, my arms, my shoulders, my hands—I needed them to move alongside that momentum. It needed to be a smooth, swift mechanism, like every infantryman moving in a disciplined formation, like every volley of cannon fire in a constant bombardment. I had to move in harmony, a harmony of speed and swiftness.
75 meters. 50 meters. 25 meters.
I almost reached it. But almost was not enough.
Finish line.
Those six phantoms finished before me. I did not care who finished first, but I could not get past them. And my desired momentum for my Ideal Strides was still not there. I still could not tap into that speed. My whole body felt fried, but my heart felt cold. I had lost again. Even against my own delusions, I still lost.
"Hah… hah… hah…" I was heaving laboriously. I felt my legs go limp, not because I did not have the energy, but because the feeling of defeat, again.
"That was… quite something," I heard the Chief's voice by my side.
"Un," followed by Oguri-san's quiet agreement behind him.
"How's… the time…?" I barely managed to ask, still using my hands on my knees to prop my body up.
"Your new personal record," Chief said, his voice holding a note of surprise. "You just cut off a clean two seconds from your previous record."
"Hahaha… at last, something good to hear," I said with a weak smile.
"That was a strong last spurt," Oguri-san added.
"But that's not enough…" I answered bluntly, my face pointed towards the turf below.
"You're right. You can do much more than that."
"Ack!" I suddenly felt something hit the space between my ears. I looked up and saw the Chief had just chopped my head with his right hand. It did not hurt, but it was still shocking.
"Listen, Copenhagen," he said, his voice serious as he looked straight into my eyes. "You can do much more than that. You can always do much more. As your trainer, and the one who is always watching after you, I guarantee you can. You can be faster than anyone in your generation. You can be faster than King Halo, Special Week, Seiun Sky, and anybody else. I believe in you."
"We believe in you," from his side, Oguri-san added with her gentle smile.
Yeah, I might not be able to do that now. But with them around, I was sure I could run faster soon. I believed so.
"Thank you, Chief. Thank you, Oguri-san," I replied with the best smile I could muster.
"Your serious expression while running is scary," Chief said with a smirk. "Your smile is the best for this old man's heart, after all."
"Really?" I asked.
"Yeah, you were so serious that I thought somebody ate the corn pudding that you saved in the fridge for later," Oguri-san said.
"That is oddly specific… but yours is scary too, Oguri-san. Your nickname says it all."
"Alright, great work, Ko-kun. You can rest for now. In five minutes, please go to the finish line with this stopwatch. Is that enough rest?"
"It is fine. Thank you, Chief."
After my rest was up, I went to the finish line. It was Oguri-san's turn for an 1800-meter run, counter-clockwise, the same as the Dream Trophy race she had entered. I had initially thought she would enter the dirt division, but she had gone to the turf Mile division instead. Well, she had won the URA Finale in the Mile division, with Meek-senpai finishing second, so it should not have been that shocking.
She ran as a Pace Chaser now, or from her pacing, it looked like it. She was still fast, even after her peak period. She ran swiftly, as if she were flying, but her powerful stomps left quite marks along the track. And her last spurt was like a two-staged rocket, with each stage faster than the one before.
The result? She also broke a new personal record, as if she didn't want to lose after watching my previous run.