Even though it was just a Pre-Open race, many spectators had come specifically for the event due to Seiun Sky's brilliant performance during her debut.
Additionally, Nakayama Racecourse is as prestigious as Tokyo Racecourse, so its popularity was by no means low. This combined to create a high-energy atmosphere.
Inami led Starlight through the crowd toward the athletes' private tunnel.
They picked up the standard racing uniform— a simple red and white set with numbers pinned to the front and back: Red shorts, small suspenders, and a plain white short-sleeved top.
After collecting and changing into the racing gear under the guidance of the staff, Starlight stepped onto the inspection platform. After being relentlessly photographed by reporters and cameramen, she stepped down, looking quite drained.
At the commentary booth, a green-haired woman with glasses was none other than the announcer, Misato Akasaka. At this moment, she was introducing the contestants while hyping up the crowd.
"Alright, let us welcome the top-ranked favorite of this race, Seiun Sky!"
"She is the Uma Musume who won her debut race with an absolute lead of six lengths. I believe her figure was etched into the memories of many spectators that day. Let's see what kind of performance Seiun Sky will bring us in this race."
In the front row of the stands, Inami clenched her fists, looking nervously at Starlight, who was warming up on the track.
"Wow~ Starlight-chan, do your best!!! Just dash out there and run!!"
Suddenly, a bright cheering voice rang out beside her, nearly giving Inami a heart attack.
"Eh? You... you're Daitaku Helios?"
"Gu-heh! I didn't realize I was already famous enough for that? Are you a fan? Want an autograph?"
"I'll pass. I'm actually Starlight's Trainer."
"Is that so! Then let's cheer for Starlight together! I'm her bestie! Yeah-hey~"
"Will all contestants please enter the gates in order!"
As the announcer's voice echoed, the stands erupted in cheers once again. They were almost entirely cheering for Seiun Sky. After all, she was the most popular Uma Musume on the field.
Meanwhile, on the top floor of the stands, inside a VIP room, Symboli Rudolf sat on the sofa watching the projected screen. Her fingers tapped rhythmically on her arm.
If she had said she would come to watch Starlight's race before and stopped interacting with her, she might have forgotten, but after that practice match two weeks ago, she was definitely going to watch this race.
Back on the track, Starlight in Gate 5 had already entered. Two spots away was Seiun Sky in Gate 3. Glancing at the cramped space in front of her, Sky started feeling a bit reluctant to go in.
"Ah~ our Seiun Sky is having some gate-entry difficulties, will the track staff please assist."
However, this was only a minor interlude. Once all the Uma Musume were in their gates, the red light at the starting point flashed, signaling the start was imminent.
Starlight waited inside the gate. It was very quiet, and she could clearly hear her own heartbeat. Taking a deep breath, she focused all her concentration.
The moment the green light flashed— Bang!
The gates swung open, and the Uma Musume surged out in a swarm. The sound of rhythmic thumping, like muffled thunder, echoed across the entire racecourse.
Immediately, Seiun Sky, having taken a good position with a two-length lead, moved straight to the front. Her Front Runner and Pace Chaser tactics were both quite exceptional.
However, to trigger her Unique Skill, she had to be in the lead.
Of course, Starlight wasn't sure if she even had a Unique Skill yet.
What she did know was that she was in a bit of a dilemma, to trigger her own skill, she had to find a pack of runners to dive into.
But in the early stage, everyone was maintaining a staggered, spread-out formation. There was no "pack" to dive into at all.
"I'll just have to look for an opening."
With that thought, she gradually slowed her pace, dropping from her original third position down to fifth.
"The condition feels good, the sunlight is just right— looks like I can take this race easily, nehe. Then I can take a leave of absence and sleep beautifully in the dorms," Seiun Sky remarked to herself, looking up at the distant blue sky.
She glanced back slightly. The data of all the contestants was etched into her mind.
As they passed the first corner, Seiun Sky began to deliberately slow her pace, using this tactic to disrupt the rhythm of the Uma Musume following closely behind.
"Ah, Seiun Sky is already leading by three lengths! It seems her momentum is incredibly strong today. If nothing unexpected happens later on, the championship is already within her grasp."
After the race entered the middle leg, Seiun Sky looked back once more. Seeing that all the competitors had begun to fall into a chaotic rhythm due to her change in pace, she let a faint smirk tug at the corners of her mouth.
"Well then, let's just escape all the way to the end..."
As they cleared the second corner, she applied power to her legs and immediately began to surge ahead.
"Here it comes, here it comes, here it comes!!! Seiun Sky has chosen to accelerate during the middle leg, and the gap is now gradually widening!"
'Is she that confident? Accelerating in the middle leg...'
Starlight glanced around. She felt that triggering her skill was her only chance to win. The problem was how to actually activate it.
After pondering for a long while, she looked at the second and third-place runners. Because they hadn't managed their rhythm well, their speeds were now fluctuating inconsistently.
Starlight's eyes lit up. The trigger condition for her skill was to charge into a cluster— any would do— and she had tested the threshold for this trigger many times.
She could be said to be quite proficient in its application.
"Currently, there are no surprises on the track... wait, is Contestant Number 5, Divine Starlight, starting to exert herself?"
The announcer sounded surprised, followed by a tone of confusion. The crowd shifted their gaze from the leader, Seiun Sky, toward Divine Starlight, who had moved to the outside.
"She must be accelerating. It looks like the subsequent competition will be exciting— wait, no, what is she doing?"
Starlight had swung from the outside to the space between the second and third-place runners, and then she began changing lanes while decelerating. This forced the other two Uma Musume to change their speeds in response as well. She was behaving like a total "stick in the mud" just to stir things up.
"Hell yeah! Just like that, Starlight— let the race descend into chaos— !!"
This behavior was perfectly in line with a track drifter like Daitaku Helios. Beside her, Inami was also bewildered, not yet understanding what her trainee was up to.
Suddenly, just as they were about to enter the final corner, the situation on the field underwent a subtle transformation.
The two Uma Musume beside Starlight slowed down along with her. At the exact moment they entered the turn, these three Uma Musume merged with the runners following behind, forming a boxed-in structure.
Inami's eyes widened in shock. The scene from the practice match two weeks ago flashed through her mind. Starlight had also tried to dive into a crowd back then.
The only difference was that this time, because there were fewer contestants and Seiun Sky had disrupted the pacing, there was no "crowd" on the track to begin with.
That was why Starlight had specifically set the stage herself.
In the VIP box, Symboli Rudolf naturally saw through her intention as well.
"Though the method is different, the goal she seeks is the same. Is it a skill she comprehended herself? Or something else..."
"The race reaches the final corner! Currently, Seiun Sky is leading by a distance of five lengths. Contestant Divine Starlight appears to be boxed in due to a lapse in judgment!"
"It seems there is no longer any suspense in this race!"
'No. Until she crosses the finish line, the suspense... remains.'
Having cleared the corner, Starlight had now met the trigger conditions for her skill. Her bangs began to part, and as her hair fluttered, those golden eyes— resembling six-pointed stars— lit up with a faint glow.
Her power and speed received a significant boost. Combined with her weighted training over the past few days, breaking through a containment of this level was as easy as a fish taking to water.
Her gaze pierced through a faint gap, locking onto the silhouette of Seiun Sky ahead.
Divine Starlight exerted force through her legs, aimed for that gap, and with a bang, she burst through.