Unlike the Kikuka Sho in past years, which had always been full of suspense and debate, this year's race felt as though the result had already been decided before it even began. Online and off, wherever you listened, there was only one voice:
The Emperor had already won this race. People might as well start celebrating the birth of a Triple Crown champion right now.
Among this year's Umamusume, the one seen as Rudolf's strongest rival—Bizen Nishiki—had already shifted over to mile and sprint races. Everyone had seen how strong Bizen Nishiki was. But if even an Umamusume like that had failed to keep up with Rudolf, then the rest of their generation hardly needed mentioning.
Kagura could not really understand this habit of popping the champagne before the race was even run. Even though public opinion had already tilted completely toward the conclusion that Rudolf could not possibly lose, Kagura had not relaxed her preparations in the slightest. Before race day, she had still gone to Kyoto Racecourse herself and walked the course several times to confirm the track conditions.
By now, some of the staff at the major racecourses around Tokyo recognized her from how often she came out to inspect the track, and thanks to Inari Kagura having made a name for herself in racing lately, a few staff members had even asked her for autographs while she was out doing course checks.
——Look on the bright side. The race starts today, everyone else is already celebrating, and you're still worrying over here?
It's Rudolf-ojousama's first time tackling a distance like this. Her form in training proves she can handle it... but I still can't quite stop worrying.
Looking at the question floating on her phone screen, Kagura shook her head. It was not that she lacked faith in Rudolf. As her supporter, though, her job was to clear away every obstacle that might stand in Rudolf's path to victory. She had to make sure Rudolf stepped onto the track in flawless condition, with nothing holding her back and no reason to hesitate.
For that reason, she had even worked herself so hard over this past stretch that she had fallen asleep in Tojo's office several times, only to wake up groggily later in Rudolf's dorm room. She could no longer remember how many times Rudolf, Ardan, and Nice Nature had all told her to get proper rest. In her memory, she always answered with next time for sure.
And yet that "next time" had still not come by the day of the race.
Just before heading out, while making her final preparations in the ready room, Rudolf rose from her seat after finishing her gear check and looked over at Kagura beside her.
"You've really worked too hard for me these past few days. You still have your own race to prepare for, and yet you've poured so much of your energy into me."
Thinking back on every victory she had taken since her debut, Rudolf could not help recalling that behind each one of them, Kagura had always been there, quietly supporting her from the shadows.
Perhaps, with her own strength alone, winning those races had always been a matter of course.
But Kagura's support had turned those rightful victories into effortless ones.
Every race, Rudolf had been able to step onto the track in the best condition possible. And it was precisely because Kagura was there that she and Tojo had found the courage this year to attempt both the Kikuka Sho and the Japan Cup.
"It's nothing. As long as you can step onto the track without a care in the world and win, Rudolf-ojousama, that's the best reward I could ask for."
Kagura smiled at her. The fatigue from staying up late the night before was still visible on her face, and the sight of it made Rudolf's chest tighten.
Bending slightly, Rudolf placed a hand on Kagura's shoulder and patted it gently before asking in a soft voice,
"I'll bring the victory back for you... Kagura, after the race is over, come stay at the Symboli Household for a few days."
"Huh? But you still have the Japan Cup to prepare for, Rudolf. If I'm not there..."
"I'll go back with you. After everything these past weeks, I'm tired—and you're even more tired than I am. You really need to rest. Promise me this: if I win, you are not allowed to work anymore for a while. You're going to take a proper break. All right?"
As she said it, Rudolf's hand slid from Kagura's shoulder, up along her neck, until it cupped her face. Then she gave her cheeks a few gentle squeezes.
She knew perfectly well that if Kagura stayed at school, she would never rest obediently.
There was only one way to make her do it:
Send her back to the Symboli Household and let Speed keep an eye on her.
"Ah..."
Cornered like that by Rudolf, Kagura found herself unable to answer for a moment. Only after a long pause did she nod.
Only then, after thoroughly petting her little Umamusume to her satisfaction, did Rudolf straighten up and push open the door leading to the entry tunnel.
"Then it's settled! Once I win, you're going back to rest properly!"
"AND NOW THE TOP FAVORITE, RUDOLF, IS ENTERING THE TRACK—SHE LOOKS TO BE IN EXCELLENT FORM TODAY AS WELL! IT FEELS LIKE SHE ALWAYS MANAGES TO STAY AT A FULL HUNDRED PERCENT. INCREDIBLE!"
"IT REALLY DOES. IT SEEMS RUDOLF MUST HAVE AN EXCEPTIONALLY CAPABLE SUPPORTER BEHIND HER—BUT EVEN NOW, NEITHER RUDOLF NOR HER TEAM HAS RELEASED ANY INFORMATION AT ALL ABOUT THAT SUPPORTER."
"WELL, WITH A SUPPORTER THAT GOOD, IF HER IDENTITY WERE MADE PUBLIC, TRAINERS AND UMAMUSUME WOULD PROBABLY COME SWARMING IN FROM EVERYWHERE. THAT WOULD BE A BIT TROUBLESOME FOR THE SUPPORTER, WOULDN'T IT?"
The host and commentator sounded like they were up there doing a comedy routine. Stepping out of the dim entry tunnel and onto the track, Rudolf lifted her head to look at the clear sky, then let out a long breath.
Kagura has already cleared every obstacle out of my way... I can't lose. And I won't.
This was also Rudolf's first time attempting a distance like this. To be honest, she was still not entirely free of uncertainty. Kagura had adjusted her racing style to fit the course. She had completed the distance in training multiple times already. Even so, Rudolf believed there was no such thing as certainty in racing. Until the very last moment, she could not allow herself the slightest lapse.
"That feeling is..."
The Umamusume already waiting in their starting gates suddenly felt a pressure descend over them. One by one, their ears shot upright. The crowd was loud, the host's voice even louder, yet through all that noise they could still hear the footsteps approaching.
Step by step.
Each footfall was steady and powerful, and every one of them seemed to hammer against their hearts, filling them with an involuntary sense of dread.
"Hah..."
The sound of a gate opening came, and all the Umamusume heard someone enter the stall.
""…SOUND PERSO IS THE LAST TO LOAD. NUMBER EIGHTEEN, SOUND PERSO, IS IN. THE FIELD IS READY."
Neither the commentators nor the audience could feel what the runners on the track were feeling. Only the Umamusume racing knew how much pressure now hung over the field.
With the last entrant loaded, Rudolf lowered herself into her starting stance.
Clack!
At the sharp sound of the gates opening, Rudolf burst out cleanly—but before she had even managed a few strides of acceleration, the disordered mass of Umamusume breaking from the stalls ahead of her clogged the lane so badly that she had no choice but to check her speed. Her brow twitched. This was without question the most chaotic, ugliest break she had seen in all her racing career. Nearly every runner seemed to have suffered some bizarre degree of slow start, and the whole field had come apart in utter disarray.
"THE GATES ARE OPEN! ALL RUNNERS... UH... OFF TO A RATHER SCATTERED START? WHAT IN THE WORLD HAPPENED THERE?"
"FORTUNATELY, THE RUNNERS HAVE ADJUSTED QUICKLY! NUMBER TWO, LONG HAYABUSA, BREAKS OUT FIRST AND TAKES THE LEAD!"
The host and commentator both sounded a little rattled by the messy opening, but at least one runner had immediately recovered and surged free, and the rest soon found their rhythm and positions as well.
"THE FIELD IS BEGINNING TO STRETCH OUT NOW. RIKISAN POWER FOLLOWS RIGHT BEHIND LONG HAYABUSA, WITH SUZU MACH IN THIRD!"
"BEHIND SUZU MACH ARE CALSTONE EDEN AND MR. LE MANS, ALONG WITH SOUND PERSO AND SEA BLACK!"
"AND UP TO THIS POINT, WE STILL HAVE NOT SEEN RUDOLF!"
"...This is bad, Rudolf..."
In the stands, Kagura—who had been a little sleepy—was jolted wide awake by that disastrous, tangled break. Rudolf had clearly been affected by the chaos as well. There was no sign of her at the front of the field now. This had already gone beyond the tactical plan they had originally laid out.
Did they all break so badly that they ended up jamming each other?
During the past stretch, Kagura had passed along to Rudolf some of the techniques Eclipse had taught her for maintaining rhythm and fighting for racing room. At the time, both of them had thought those skills might never actually come in handy. Now, all Kagura could do was pray Rudolf had not forgotten them.
Listening to the host and commentator, Kagura was almost certain both of them were Rudolf fans. Honestly, they had been calling the entire race as though Rudolf were the center of the universe. And the broadcast director had to be a Rudolf fan too, because even with Rudolf buried well behind the leaders, Kagura could still find her almost instantly on the big screens—one camera was staying locked on Rudolf the whole time.
"This really isn't looking good..."
Maruzensky, seated behind Kagura with her arms around her, frowned as well. Something had clearly gone wrong out there. Under normal circumstances, Rudolf should never have been that far back. All they could do now was hope that this was a deliberate adjustment she had made based on the situation. Maruzensky trusted Rudolf's judgment in the moment.
"I still can't push forward yet..."
Running near the rear of the field, Rudolf studied the conditions ahead. The fight for position in front was fierce this time. Even if she tried to force her way up now, setting aside whether she could break through at all, at this distance it was simply not something she could afford to gamble on carelessly.
Good thing I trained for a situation like this... Though honestly, where did Kagura even learn techniques like these? I've never seen her get boxed in, and I've never seen her fight anyone for position on the course... aside from that one time with Shinzan-senpai...
The strategy Rudolf was using right now was exactly the one Kagura had taught her before. The two of them had once thought this technique might never be needed, and today's accident made Rudolf profoundly grateful they had prepared for it anyway. If she had not trained for a scenario like this, maybe she could still have found a solution through pure instinct—but she certainly would not have been able to stay this calm.
"RUDOLF ENTERS THE FINAL STRAIGHT OF THE FIRST LAP STILL SITTING IN THE MIDDLE-REAR OF THE PACK! THERE'S STILL NO SIGN THAT SHE INTENDS TO MOVE UP!"
Of course Rudolf could hear the commentary, but she could not let herself get impatient. Using an energy-saving style, she stayed tucked behind the pack and entered the final straight of the first lap. From the stands along the track, she could hear applause and people calling out for her.
No need to rush. Falling behind for a while is just part of setting up a better overtake later!
Naturally, she wanted to answer her fans' expectations.
But if she really gave in to that urge and forced her way up now, Rudolf did not doubt for a second that she would collapse before the finish.
Whenever she felt uncertain, some offhand remark Kagura had made during training would suddenly float back into her mind. Only then had Rudolf realized that Inari Kagura was actually rather fond of casually dropping little gems. She had heard plenty of sharp one-liners and bits of wisdom from Kagura, not just about racing, but about how to live one's life off the track too. It was hard to imagine those words coming from a child who had only just turned twelve this year.
At this point, that clever little girl had nearly become Rudolf's second brain.
To conserve stamina, Rudolf adjusted her position and edged slightly closer to the inside.
"RUDOLF IS MAKING A MOVE—SHE'S SHIFTING INWARD! IS SHE BUILDING UP FOR SOMETHING?"
"SINCE THE NIIGATA KINEN LAST YEAR, RUDOLF HAS TAKEN SEVEN WINS FROM SEVEN STARTS WITHOUT DEFEAT. CAN SHE EXTEND THAT GLORY HERE, BECOMING AN UNDEFEATED EIGHT-FOR-EIGHT TRIPLE CROWN CHAMPION?"
The instant Rudolf finally made even the slightest move, the host and commentator sounded noticeably more excited. By now, Rudolf felt as though those two had spent the entire race staring at her alone. Every little motion she made was being caught and called out immediately.
"Rudolf made the right choice. She's still looking for an opening. The front is still a mess—everyone's fighting for room. If she forces herself in there now, she'll only get trapped."
Watching Rudolf remain calm and continue holding to her original rhythm, Trainer Tojo finally let her furrowed brow ease a little. It looked as though Rudolf had now read the situation clearly and made the correct choice.
Everyone in the stands was still on edge.
To put it bluntly, this was without question the hardest race Rudolf had run since the start of her career.
There were simply too many uncertain elements in this race, and with the chaos and repeated mishaps up front, even Kagura—who had originally wanted to lean on Maruzensky and catch a quick nap—had had every trace of drowsiness blasted clean out of her. If anything, she was even more awake now than she had been when they first arrived.
Thank goodness Rudolf didn't force her way up earlier... that would've been bad...
As Kagura watched the race, she also imagined what she herself would do if she were in Rudolf's position and needed to make the right decision.
And then she realized something.
When she was the one advising somebody else, she could think things through perfectly well.
But when it came to herself... every single time she ran into a problem like this, her first instinct was always to blast around the far outside.
Am I relying on the far outside a little too much?
"LONG HAYABUSA STILL LEADS THE FIELD—RUDOLF IS ABOUT TO HIT THE UPHILL CLIMB INTO THE THIRD TURN! HOW WILL SHE HANDLE THIS SLOPE, SEEING IT FOR THE FIRST TIME?"
"GOLD WAY IS COMING UP FROM RUDOLF'S OUTSIDE! ALL THE RUNNERS HAVE BUNCHED TOGETHER AT THE TOP OF THE HILL!! THE SITUATION IS EXTREMELY CHAOTIC!!"
At the crest of that chaotic slope, because the Umamusume were all fighting for position while still trying to stay within the rules, a chain of chance events opened a narrow gap in Rudolf's line of sight.
Now!
Seizing that fleeting opening, Rudolf adjusted her position and began raising her speed, using the downhill section to her advantage—
"RUDOLF IS MAKING HER MOVE! THIS IS THE DOWNHILL—DOES SHE MEAN TO BREAK THROUGH ON THE INSIDE!?"
"Hah... sorry, but I can't lose to any of you. Not when I need to let 'my' Support Umamusume get some rest..."
Every Umamusume on the track heard that soft mutter from somewhere behind them.
And in the next instant, the terrifying pressure that had once descended over them at the starting gates came sweeping over the field once again.
"THE RUNNERS HAVE PASSED THE FOURTH TURN! NISHINO RAIDEN BREAKS FREE FIRST!! NO—RUDOLF IS OUT TOO! RUDOLF IS ACCELERATING!!"
"WHAT A VICIOUS FINAL SPURT! AN ABSOLUTELY VICIOUS FINAL SPURT! RUDOLF IS CUTTING DOWN THE GAP AT ASTONISHING SPEED!! SHE'S PASSED HER!! RUDOLF HAS OVERTAKEN THE LEADER, NISHINO RAIDEN!!"
"Yes!!"
For her classmates, who had spent the whole race tense and worried, finally seeing Rudolf break free and seize the lead let them breathe again at last.
Though what nearly made Kagura lose it was the commentator suddenly letting out an enormous, heartfelt "Yes!!" right in the middle of the call. Even though she felt that was maybe not the most professional thing to do, she still could not help laughing.
"RUDOLF HAS THE LEAD!! RUDOLF HAS THE LEAD!! THE ENTIRE KYOTO RACECOURSE IS ROARING!!"
"LIKE A CRIMSON SUN BLAZING THROUGH THE MIST OVER KYOTO RACECOURSE, SHE SHINES WITH OVERWHELMING BRILLIANCE!! RUDOLF—CROSSES THE LINE!! AN UNDEFEATED TRIPLE CROWN CHAMPION AFTER EIGHT STRAIGHT VICTORIES!! AN IMMORTAL RECORD IS BORN HERE TODAY!!"
The instant Rudolf hit the finish line, the entire racecourse erupted. Even the voices of the commentator and host were swallowed by the roar, while the tote board lit up with the margin between her and second place:
Three lengths.
Breathing hard, Rudolf crossed the line and saw her companions watching not far away. Her eyes found Kagura immediately.
Kagura was wearing a relieved, radiant smile now, waving at her with pure happiness.
That smile made Rudolf freeze for the briefest moment.
Her steps faltered slightly, and she raised a hand to wave back in Kagura's direction.
Then, like a child proudly asking for praise, she lifted her arm high toward Kagura and held up three fingers.
---
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