"What an incredible sight! Gold Ship, who was late out of the gates, has now surged to the front of the pack with her astonishing explosiveness and physique! At this moment, only Seiun Sky can keep up with Gold Ship's pace!"
"The situation is now quite clear! This time, the winning Uma Musume will be born from between the two Uma Musume, the first and second favorites!"
The commentator's voice brought the atmosphere of the entire Racecourse to its peak. A short distance of 1600 meters might still be somewhat unsatisfying for Japanese Uma Musume race enthusiasts, but the sudden emergence of Gold Ship pushed this originally uneventful race directly to the pinnacle of confrontation!
Everyone was anticipating whether this Uma Musume, who was clearly late out of the gates and only chosen as the second favorite because of the "Gold" family name, could perform a thirteen-horse overtake despite her slow start!
"What an astonishing Last Spurt… Even I, the Overlord, have to admit it."
However, in the stands at this moment, under Gold Ship's fierce burst, even Opera O, who had always maintained her confident demeanor beside Wada, couldn't help but be surprised. But she quickly regained her usual confidence, laughing heartily:
"Hahahahaha! Indeed! Someone deemed worthy by my Trainer couldn't possibly be an ordinary individual! I, the Overlord, have now remembered this name. This will be one of the most threatening challengers on my path to becoming Overlord!"
"H-how terrifying… A Last Spurt like that, has Gold Ship really not undergone any training?"
And Doto, beside her, was also startled by Gold Ship's terrifying explosiveness. Although that Last Spurt wasn't as powerful as hers or Opera O's, one must remember that Gold Ship had been very lax with her training before this.
An Uma Musume who had barely trained, without any guidance, completely relying on her own judgment to unleash such an astonishing Last Spurt—this was very dangerous. A Last Spurt places immense pressure on every Uma Musume; one misstep could lead to a fracture. Therefore, it's best to master the technique and method before unleashing it.
But on Gold Ship… Doto couldn't see a trace of technique. It was purely a physical maneuver, without skill, almost entirely instinct—relying on her own judgment and physical ability, she was racing in the most simple and crude manner!
There was even no discernable running style, completely without method! What Uma Musume would suddenly burst in the middle of a race? She wouldn't have the stamina to sprint in the final straight!
"Oni-chan, if this continues, Gold Ship will run out of stamina to sprint."
At this moment, not only Doto but also Curren Chan noticed something amiss. She couldn't help but say to Trainer Ikezoe beside her with some concern, "Her stamina and explosiveness are indeed terrifying, but without endurance training, even a 1600-meter distance must be quite challenging for her, right?"
"…To be honest, I don't know either."
However, unexpectedly, Trainer Ikezoe's expression remained as calm as ever. Watching Gold Ship's current pace and method, it was as if he was transported back to the first time he rode Gold Ship—although the stamina management at that time was controlled by Trainer Ikezoe, Gold Ship also completely disregarded convention in that race.
Their synchronization was very difficult. Even before the Debut Race, Trainer Ikezoe had continuously worked with Gold Ship, attempting to find a rapport. However, by the Debut Race, Trainer Ikezoe had given up and let Gold Ship decide her own running style. He only chose to manage Gold Ship's stamina.
And doing so, dramatically led to winning the Debut Race, which even Trainer Ikezoe himself hadn't expected—but it was precisely because of this that he initially told Gold Ship, in situations where she couldn't master a running style, to simply not choose one.
Relying on Gold Ship's physical ability to set the pace for this race was, in fact, the most likely way for Gold Ship to win. In terms of technique, Gold Ship, who hadn't trained much, couldn't be a match for these systematically trained Uma Musume. But when it came to the Gold Family's innate physical ability… even without training, Gold Ship could still overpower these Uma Musume who were barely at Debut Race level.
Was Gold Ship struggling? Of course she was. Under the premise of a late start, she still had to overtake so many Uma Musume and burst, maintaining the struggle until the final sprint. Even Gold Ship, without training, found it quite challenging.
But if Gold Ship was tired, others would only be even more tired. Trainer Ikezoe could guarantee that the Uma Musume named Seiun Sky, after her rhythm was thrown off by Gold Ship's burst, would definitely have no stamina left to overtake Gold Ship again… "Ha—ha—"
And just as Trainer Ikezoe expected, Seiun Sky, who was now a horse-length behind Gold Ship, no longer had the stamina to burst at the appropriate point as she and her teacher, Representative Chihaya, had planned during training.
To catch up with Gold Ship, Seiun Sky had prematurely exhausted her stamina, but her burst was completely not on the same level as Gold Ship's—because she ran in the leading position, her stamina consumption was greater than Gold Ship's, and her burst didn't last as long as Gold Ship's. This immediately put her at a complete disadvantage.
Watching Gold Ship's back, Seiun Sky gritted her silver teeth, an indignant desire to catch up surging in her heart, but her stamina could no longer support her in doing so.
"No! No! I have to catch up!"
"My teacher—she's watching me! She's still watching me win this race!"
Seiun Sky kept shouting in her heart, trying to awaken a Miracle with her belief—and it actually had some effect. Her pace became a bit more determined than before, and she slightly closed the distance with Gold Ship.
However, this slight reduction in distance instead alerted the struggling Gold Ship, who thought Seiun Sky still had the stamina to overtake her.
"Tch!" The exhausted Gold Ship at this moment seemed to release a trace of her true nature. Her face showed none of her previous meekness and timidity, but rather dissatisfaction and an expression as if she had been provoked—though mostly covered by her mask, making it hard to discern.
But Seiun Sky's actions at this moment made Gold Ship nervous. She herself no longer had the stamina to continue sprinting. If Seiun Sky overtook her, then she would lose!
But Gold Ship, of all people, did not want to lose to Seiun Sky—the one who caused her to be late out of the gate!
No choice, she had to use that move, to scare her!
Thinking this, Gold Ship's hand pulled down her mask, revealing her face, which the Oldest Sister of the Gold Family had described as the "Golden Tyrant" during races. Then, with a sudden turn of her head!
"Don't compete with me!"
"!"
At this moment, Gold Ship's ferocious expression during the race made the unprepared Seiun Sky's heart pound, and her pace almost instinctively slowed.
This… a huge Presence, as if if she were to overtake, this fellow would chase after her and bite her!
"—oyster!"
Finally, Seiun Sky's last psychological defense was broken by Gold Ship's "intimidation." Her speed almost instantly dropped, carrying a heart full of unwillingness and resentment, she was defeated under the oppressive Presence of the "Golden Tyrant."
At this moment, the distance between Gold Ship and Seiun Sky suddenly widened. Under the other's unwilling gaze, she ran towards the finish line once more!
And this time, no one could obstruct her victory anymore.
"Crossing the finish line! What a spectacular race! The second favorite, Gold Ship, won this race without a doubt! She surpassed Seiun Sky by three horse lengths, winning this Debut Race!"
"Clap, clap, clap, clap."
At this moment, Symboli Rudolf and her companions, who were seated, also rose and applauded along with the surging crowd. Air Groove, while clapping, slowly spoke to Symboli Rudolf beside her:
"President, what is your evaluation of Gold Ship's debut?"
"…Unmethodical, reckless." Symboli Rudolf used two derogatory terms to describe Gold Ship's race this time. It was completely unlike the magnificent race she had imagined, almost a comprehensive disaster.
There was no technique to speak of, a straightforward expenditure of stamina, and finally, she even used her still-undeveloped "Presence" to pressure her competitors. It could be said to be a quite bullying way of racing.
"…But perhaps, this is why Trainer Ikezoe values her," Symboli Rudolf said with a faint smile. "Tyrant, if this is the Tyrant's way of racing, then perhaps… in the future, Uma Musume will face an extremely oppressive opponent."
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