"It's time for the [Sapporo Kinen]!"
The Sapporo Racecourse erupted with cheers of tens of thousands. They had all watched half a dozen previous races before this one, but their enthusiasm hadn't died down in the slightest. After all, considering what was coming up next, it wouldn't be wrong to say that the [Sapporo Kinen] was the 'main course' many of them had come here for!
At the announcer's call, today's runner began entering the track one by one. Each brought about their own waves of cheers, but none of them looked happy or excited.
After all, this race's outcome had already been decided from the start.
"The second favorite—No.3, Mejiro Ardan!"
"And here comes today's favorite—No.7, Dicta Striker!"
The moment those two arrived on the track, the crowd exploded with cheers. Their enthusiasm was incomparable; after all, those two were members of the Generation of Miracles, and the [Takarazuka Kinen] that happened a few months back remained fresh in many people's minds. The sheer dominance they had over whatever tracks they ran in was unquestionable.
That difference served as a soul-crushing pressure for many others, and many other umamusume had chosen to quietly retire after realizing that they could never compare to these legendary figures.
And today, the other runners paled with fear as they saw Dicta and Ardan step onto the field without their usual cheer and banter. They walked onto the track like soldiers ready for war, and seeing that these two incredibly powerful umamusume clearly intended to run without holding back, they fell into even greater despair.
But only a few understood that Dicta and Ardan's caution was more than warranted.
After all,
"I'm winnin' this, senpai!" Inari One said, her foxlike grin stretched ear to ear as she stood before the two with no fear.
The 9 other runners heard Inari's words and remained quiet. Though privately, many of them scoffed. None of them had heard Inari's name before, which meant that she was just some no-name umamusume, while Dicta Striker and Mejiro Ardan were two of the most popular umamusume Japan had ever seen. "Did this upstart really think it's going to be that easy?" Was what many of them thought.
Which only made the shock that followed even greater.
Ardan giggled, though the dangerous glint in her eyes had only grown. "Let's have a good race, Inari-san."
Dicta smirked back. "I ain't letting you pass me that easily, rookie."
"All runners are to head for their gates!"
There was no time for them to ponder. Snapping out of their thoughts, the other umamusume quickly made their way to their gates. Many glanced towards Dicta and Ardan in fear, but now some also glanced at Inari, wondering why this no-name umamusume was able to incite such responses from two members of the Generation of Miracles.
But none of them were novices. Even though the prospect of winning became impossible the moment Dicta and Ardan stepped onto the Turf, none of them stepped back. They'd come here to face the titans of today's generation, and they would do so with pride.
If only they knew that they would be the first to bear witness to something even greater.
"The race is about to begin…!"
The world grew quiet. Time seemed to freeze for a moment, the world left trapped in a liminal moment that looped over and over. The winds turned stale, and the midsummer sun seemed to gleam brighter than ever.
And then,
BANG!
"The gates have opened!"
All 11 umamusume charged out of the gates in unison. The crowd's cheers sang once more—a siren song to the start of this year's [Sapporo Kinen].
But suddenly, orange sparks burnt behind Dicta's back, and her eyes burnt like magma as she immediately fired her first {Yellow Bullet}. Her foot stomped onto the Turf with terrifying power, and Dicta surged so far ahead of the pack that it almost looked as if she was attempting a Great Escape.
"Dicta Striker accelerates!? S-She's taken the lead–"
"Mejiro Ardan is following her!"
Ardan took a deep breath, and with the strength of a raging {Moskstraumen}, she began her own advance. She weaved around the pack like water down a river, and before anyone could even understand what was going on, Ardan had taken 2nd place as she began her chase for the escaping bullet.
Of course, Dicta wasn't actually attempting a Great Escape—the [Sapporo Kinen] might only be 2000 meters, but even she didn't have the stamina to fully back that up. She wasn't a freak like Blossom Star or Super Creek. Instead, she'd just adopted the pace she'd taken back in the [Takarazuka Kinen], even if it meant she had to use up all her {Yellow Bullets} prematurely.
But she had to. This was the only way she could try to capture that fleeting glimpse she'd seen a day before.
"Sky Grind is now in 3rd place, with Huston Brace and Cinema Ghost trading for 4th!"
"Inari One surges to 6th place!"
While many despaired at the way Dicta and Ardan shrunk into the distance, Inari One was different. A manic shine had filled her eyes, and her foxlike grin looked almost insane to those who ran close to her.
But Inari gave no mind to the thoughts of others.
Because how could she not know what this was? She'd watched that incredible recording countless times, and having ran against the likes of Oguri Cap and Blossom Star, she knew full well that Dicta and Ardan truly treated her like peers. They were going all out, even going so far as to retake the same grueling pace as the [Takarazuka Kinen], and they did so because of her.
At that moment, what else could Inari feel but joy?
At first, it was a few, flickering embers that sparked behind her as she ran. Then, abruptly, those embers then expanded into a raging blaze. Those too close to her immediately felt like their insides were being boiled, and they gasped as they were forced to slow down.
But it didn't end there.
Just as Inari reached the second corner, those flames expanded even further, growing larger and more terrifying. And suddenly, the only thing the other runners could see was a massive vortex of fire, intent on claiming anything that dared stand in its way.
Domain Awakening—
{Foxfire Flare}!
Inari One's grin turned feral as her pupils sharpened into slits. "LET'S DO THIS!"
"Inari One is accelerating! She's taken 3rd place…!"
At that moment, Dicta and Ardan outsped every other runner on the track, and the gap between them and the rest of the pack had stretched to a mind-boggling 17 lengths.
Yet even they could feel the heat spurred by that baleful foxfire surging around Inari One, and Dicta let out a pained chuckle as she shot her third {Yellow Bullet}. But the boost she expected never came; the pull of Inari's Domain was simply that powerful, so much so that her {Yellow Bullet} was only enough to offset the slowness everyone had been afflicted with.
A complicated smile came onto her lips. "She's gonna get far." She whispered.
But she wasn't letting the rookie catch up that easily!
With a powerful roar, Dicta Striker accelerated one last time as she fully emptied her chamber. Clumps of dirt and Turf were flung behind her, carved from the track with each powerful step she made.
Mejiro Ardan's eyes widened slightly as she saw her friend use her final {Yellow Bullet} so suddenly, but her eyes then narrowed. She swiftly evaded the incoming rain of dirt, and knowing that her friend had emptied her chambers, the thin veil of water surrounding her grew into a raging whirlpool as she accelerated forward with all her might.
Far behind, the 8 other runners could only watch in despair as Inari One shot forward like a rocket, her spirited laughter echoing like the accursed wailing of ghosts as foxfire burnt around her like a pyre.
Initially, they'd expected that this race would become a race for two: an all-out battle between Dicta Striker and Meiro Ardan.
But it'd become a race for three instead!
"Dicta Striker is approaching the third corner, with Mejiro Ardan not far behind!"
"But Inari One is quickly chasing them! The distance between them is shrinking by the second!"
"Who will take home today's crown!?"