"...I lost? "
As I passed the finish pole and slowed down so I wouldn't strain my legs, I heard Sirius Symboli's voice behind me, murmuring those words.
When I turned back, Sirius Symboli, who had been standing there in a daze, collapsed onto her knees as if sinking into the turf, supporting herself with both hands as she gasped for breath.
I wiped the sweat running down my face with the sleeve of my gym jacket and slowly adjusted my breathing. Alright—now I've successfully brought Sirius Symboli down to her knees. From here is round two, I told myself while walking toward her, urging myself forward. How should I get Sirius Symboli to keep moving forward—to persuade her, or maybe push her harder? What should I do...
Honestly, this is my bad habit from my past life: when some strange switch flips, I stop thinking about consequences and dive headfirst into whatever is in front of me. As my head cooled down after the run, it scolded me, warning me about my own nature. I couldn't help but regret that habit a little—former bosses and colleagues had pointed it out to me so many times in my previous life.
And to make things worse, now that I'm a horsegirl, my fighting spirit attribute only amplifies that bad habit further.
On the turf, the only sounds were my footsteps and Sirius Symboli's rough breathing. The normally annoying sound of cicadas and that lukewarm summer wind—somehow neither reached us, as if the world had suddenly decided to read the mood.
"...Did you come here to mock me?"
When I approached her—still on her knees—Sirius Symboli looked up at me and muttered that.
The confident Sirius Symboli I knew from the game wasn't there at all.
But that made sense.
Because the Sirius Symboli in front of me was not data made of 0s and 1s. She was still early in her development, emotionally unstable, capable of smiling, getting mad, crying, hurting—someone with real feelings, a horsegirl who was alive, just like any human being.
"Hey, Sirius Symboli—how does it feel to challenge someone full of confidence... and lose?"
"H‐Hey, Nature…"
Rudolf-senpai, who arrived at the same time, tried stopping me, bewildered. But I raised my right hand toward him signaling, don't say anything further.
Then I took out an aroma cigar from my pocket—something I had completely forgotten about during the race. The box was crushed from running with it in my pocket, and the cigar was bent, but I didn't care—I put it between my lips and lit it with my zippo.
"Are you frustrated that you lost? Do you hate that you were pathetic? Or did you already give up thinking it couldn't be helped?"
As I exhaled white smoke, I asked her. Come on, my vocabulary. Work, my acting skills. Don't let her detect how I actually feel. Come on, facial muscles—give me your best imitation of a mocking smile even though I don't want one.
"Tell me, Sirius Symboli. What are you thinking right now?"
Hurting someone—even as an act—truly hurts the heart. People always say "steel yourself," but I never want to actually carry out something like this if I can avoid it.
Rudolf-senpai didn't interrupt. Maybe because I'd stopped him earlier… but more than that, the faint smile on his face told me he had already figured out what I was trying to do.
"...I…"
"Don't get cocky, little girl. There are many, many others in this world with your level of skill."
As Sirius Symboli murmured, I pressed in, cigar still in my mouth. Those words were ones Ten Point had once said to me. Compared to that legendary horse, my intimidation was nothing—but counting my previous life, I've lived more than twice as long as Sirius Symboli. I'll compensate for my lack of intimidation with age... and tobacco-scented smoke.
"Sirius Symboli—there are horsegirls who will outrun you. Horsegirls who will run ahead of you. Horsegirls who will overtake you. Horsegirls who will leave you behind."
I thought of my classmates: Mejiro Ryan, Air Groove, Silence Suzuka. All of them were just as much great horses as Sirius Symboli.
Sure, there are horsegirls who run without caring about others—like Silence Suzuka, and Takion, whom I've never met yet. They run to see the view at the front, or to push their own physical limits. They fight with themselves—but that doesn't mean they ignore everything outside of racing like Sirius Symboli is doing now. They talk, compete, learn, and challenge themselves continuously.
If Sirius Symboli raced against them right now—could she win?
Of course not.
"Look at me, Sirius Symboli. And look around you. Your rival isn't just Symboli Rudolf."
When I said that, she raised her face. She didn't have that cocky expression from earlier, but at least—finally—her eyes were truly looking at me.
"Finally, you're seeing me, Sirius Symboli."
I put out the cigar early—even though more than half remained—and knelt down, aligning my eye level with hers, making sure my smile was gentle this time.
"Up until a moment ago, you weren't seeing me. No, you weren't seeing anyone—not me, not any other horsegirl. The only one you were seeing was Symboli Rudolf. Am I wrong?"
I softly took her hands into mine, wrapping them gently.
"Wanting to beat someone, wanting to surpass someone—that's normal. That's what horsegirls do. You wanting to beat Symboli Rudolf, wanting to surpass her—that's wonderful."
"What do you know about me?"
"I don't know. I'm not you. I'm Nice Nature. I can't become you, Sirius Symboli."
"Tch, then! —"
"But you know"
"?!"
I cut off her voice, stood up slowly, and the not-yet-risen sun cast my shadow across her, covering her in darkness.
"But, Sirius Symboli—what I can see, is that right now you've lost sight of your true dream."
"...My true dream?"
"Yes. Symboli Rudolf is strong, that's true. I even lost to her too…
Winning against Rudolf is indeed amazing.
But—is your real dream simply to defeat her?
Is Sirius Symboli's dream something so small that beating Symboli Rudolf is enough to satisfy it?"
Dreams, to a horsegirl, are their origin point. Their feelings, emotions, and condition drastically affect their racing ability. Back in my previous life, I thought the motivation system in the game was unnecessary—but now that I've become a horsegirl, I think I understand.
It sounds unscientific—but when a horsegirl's conviction is strong, she breaks her limits. Trainers—Okino-san, Hana-san, Minamisaka-san, and all the others—recognized that idea even without scientific proof. That strength of conviction—its source is what I call the origin.
Though honestly? It's really nothing grand.
Something like:
"I want to win a big race." "I want to be Japan's best."
For humans, that would be like:
"I want to be a soccer player." "I want to be an idol."
Small. Naive. But bright and precious.
Horsegirls enter Tracen Academy to make that dream real. Some eventually see reality, realize their limits, and leave—but those who keep climbing earn their ticket to G1—the Everest of horsegirl achievements.
In-game, G1 registration seemed casual. In reality, it was anything but.
Sirius Symboli was the same. Even if twisted, even if forgotten, there must still be something—small, naive, but glowing at her origin.
"..."
Sirius Symboli's eyes wandered as if searching. I waited silently—sweet traces of the cigar lingering faintly.
"...You've really said it."
Finally, after she found her answer, she closed her eyes once and smiled—not the arrogant smirk she had earlier, but a predatory grin. A lion about to hunt. And I thought—yes, she truly is related to Symboli Rudolf.
"You're the first one. The first fool to say it's just something as small as beating Symboli Rudolf. Anyone who's ever faced her never thought or said something like that."
"I have my own dream. And for that dream, I'll beat anyone—even Rudolf, even Ten Point. I'll aim for it regardless.
And Sirius Symboli—you're the same, aren't you?"
"Yeah. That's right. Why the hell did I forget? What I aimed for, what I admired—was never just 'defeating Rudolf.'"
"Then tell me again, Sirius Symboli—what is it you're thinking?"
Menacing grin still on her face, she stood up from the turf. The Sirius Symboli from before the race was gone.
"Fine, Nice Nature. I'll tell you—I'm aiming for the world. I'll leave this tiny island nation and make the world know I exist.
I am Sirius—the brightest star."
Confident, bold—those words were truly fitting. That was how the real Sirius Symboli lived. The girl inheriting that soul shone like a first-magnitude star.
"That's an amazing dream. And right now, you shine far brighter than you did earlier."
"One day, I'll devour your brilliance too. So prepare yourself."
"If we're horsegirls, shouldn't it be our legs we prepare?"
"Heh... true enough."
With jokes mixed in, Sirius and I finally did something we couldn't do earlier—we reached out our right hands, and shook.
A simple handshake—but proof that she finally saw me.
"Sirius Symboli, you can just call me Nature."
"Then call me Sirius. If you say Symboli people will confuse me with that other one over there."
"Nice Nature." "Sirius Symboli." "I'll win next time." "I'll win next time."
Smiling at each other, we said those words.
Later, I learned from Rudolf-senpai's father that Sirius came from a single-parent home. Her mother passed away when she was young due to illness. Her father works as a high-ranking URA official—busy, strict, and raising Sirius alone is why her rough manner of speech developed.
Apparently, Sirius and I reported what happened ourselves. Symboli main family scolded her as the house head ought to—but in the end they said children's fights are children's fights. So it was resolved peacefully.
However, her father—exactly as strict as described—scolded her loud enough that I could hear it clearly through the phone when Sirius called him via Uma-phone. And for some reason, I ended up receiving her father's apology.
When Sirius handed me the phone, I accidentally said,
"This is Nice Nature, Sirius's friend."
And immediately after that...
"MY SIRIUS HAS A FRIEEEEND!!!"
He shouted so loud the speaker distorted.
I don't know what to say—main family, branch family… are the Symboli household just like this in general?
Sirius, holding her head in embarrassment—Rudolf-senpai too—while her father continued celebrating through the phone.
It was complete chaos.