Footsteps? How could that be! Is she catching up?
Dicta Striker's eyes widened instantly, her breathing rhythm faltering for a moment.
At a time like this? I've already given it my all in this sprint! How could any Uma Musume close such a gap and catch up to me in the final stretch?
Gritting her teeth, she fought to keep her focus, trying to push for even more speed.
But she was just an Uma Musume, after all. Her zone wasn't all-powerful—a body of flesh and blood had its limits.
I can't accelerate anymore. I've hit my limit.
Though within her zone Dicta Striker couldn't feel her own discomfort, there was no overcoming the body's ultimate constraints.
All she could do now was maintain her current pace, acutely aware of the growing clarity of the noise behind her.
Footsteps, panting, the sharp sound of air being torn—and that calm, pitch-black atmosphere, as if ready to drag her into an endless abyss.
"Slow."
Suddenly, those words reached her ears, making Dicta instinctively turn toward the voice.
There, Platinum was sprinting at a blistering pace, a look of clear irritation on her face—nothing like her usual calm and lazy self.
"I want to finish this race quickly. I'm not feeling well right now."
Noticing Dicta's gaze, Platinum spoke as evenly as she could.
"Damn it…"
To Dicta, those words were nothing short of blatant mockery. And what was frustrating was that she had no way to refute it.
While 2000 meters was her ideal distance, that didn't mean she had anything left in the tank after running it.
Her best distance only meant it was where she could most easily leverage her strengths to secure a win.
As for stamina? With just over 100 meters left to the finish line, she was truly running on empty.
But Platinum?
Dicta wasn't foolish—being able to speak at a moment like this was proof that Platinum's cardio was far from its limit.
She still had energy to spare.
"Goodbye."
With those words, under Dicta's unwilling and disbelieving gaze, Platinum cleanly overtook her and charged ahead.
"I lost…?"
Her eyes dazed, fixed on the figure ahead, Dicta could only feel the absurdity of the world and her own ridiculousness.
What did she know about life's harsh realities? What did she know about how high the sky or how thick the earth is?
Those phrases now felt like they were mocking her.
Watching the dark aura spreading forward, the moment she sensed it, Dicta understood exactly what it was.
Platinum and she were "on the same side."
They both possessed a zone.
"That's just insane."
Dicta sighed. "She hasn't even undergone Maturation yet, and she's already stepped into this world."
"With that kind of talent, no wonder racing is just a place for her to cash in. I was the idiot."
With that resigned sigh, Platinum and Dicta crossed the finish line one after the other.
Platinum led by about three horse lengths—a crushing victory.
The outcome was within Ardan's expectations, but Sakura Chiyono O clearly hadn't seen it coming.
She and Dicta were close; she knew very well how strong Dicta was. And in this race, she could tell Dicta had given it her all.
After all, even that unsettling aura had emerged—there was no way she'd held back.
Yet even so, Dicta still couldn't defeat Centaurea, who had a delayed start.
Sakura Chiyono O couldn't even bring herself to imagine—what kind of monster was hiding beneath that adorable young girl?
How old was she even? Did she start maturing in the womb or something?
Sakura Chiyono O couldn't comprehend it.
"Alright, let's not just stand here. We should go check on them."
Ardan tugged lightly at Chiyono O's large kimono sleeve, snapping her out of her thoughts.
"Right, let's go, Ardan."
With that, she darted off toward the track, completely forgetting about Ardan's mobility issues.
So, with a slightly strained smile, Ardan carefully made her way over to the two of them.
Well, three now—Sakura Chiyono O had already reached their side.
"Dicta Striker, are you okay?"
Chiyono O ran up to Dicta, who was leaning against a post and breathing heavily, looking at her with deep concern.
"Hah, hah, what's with that, hah, look?"
Finally catching her breath, Dicta nearly choked when she saw Sakura Chiyono O's expression—one that screamed, "I'm worried you can't handle this."
"I'm not that petty! So I lost one race—it's not like I've never lost before. Why are you making that face?"
Annoyed, Dicta grabbed two tufts of Chiyono O's sticking-out hair and started tugging lightly.
"Stop! Don't pull my hair! It hurts!"
Chiyono O immediately squirmed in agony, twisting her body but not daring to struggle too much for fear of yanking her own hair.
Nearby, Platinum was also breathing a little heavily—it seemed the race hadn't been a complete walk in the park for her either.
Just then, Ardan, whom Chiyono O had left behind, finally made her way leisurely to Platinum's side.
"How are you doing, Centaurea-chan?"
She asked, smoothing out Platinum's rumpled clothes as she spoke.
"Not bad. She's a lot stronger than those four little sisters of yours."
Letting Ardan tidy up her race-mussed outfit, Platinum enjoyed the moment of rest.
But when answering Ardan's question, she thought for a good while before settling on an accurate description.
Clearly, Ardan found that description both amusing and a little exasperating.
"It's fine saying it in front of me, but Centaurea-chan, you mustn't say things like that in front of Ryan, Dober, or the others."
Ardan spoke with a hint of seriousness.
"If they heard something like that, they might not hold it against you, but they'd definitely blame themselves for being so weak. If they overtrain on their own and get hurt, it would be a real problem."
"Understand?"
After finishing with the clothes, Ardan began smoothing out Platinum's disheveled hair as she reminded her.
"Got it. I won't say a thing."
Platinum let out a tired yawn and responded lazily.
"Good."
Satisfied, Ardan nodded.
By the time they finished talking, Dicta had walked over as well.
Her legs were a bit unsteady, but overall, she was fine.
After all, 2000 meters was still a comfortable distance for her.
"So… I jumped to conclusions earlier. With your ability, making money through races would be easy. I'm sorry for underestimating you."
Dicta scratched her hood sheepishly, her tone dejected.
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T/N: Gacha x Multiverse Fic Up!
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.