[Here's the 2nd extra chapter]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"'Is it possible for me to become one of the strongest racehorses of my generation?' Hmm…"
"…So you think it's unlikely? I see, I understand."
"Why would you think that?"
"…Chief Kitahara, you were clearly hesitating, right? That must mean that compared to seniors like Oguri Cap, I'm still far behind. But I'll work hard."
"Then I think you've misunderstood."
"…Eh?"
"I hesitated not because you're not outstanding, but because in Eisei, we never discuss vague, airy topics like that."
"Vague…?"
"Mm. Simply put, rather than discussing how strong someone might be in the end, both us trainers and the girls like Oguri Cap focus on one thing—doing the day's training well. That's all."
"Just that…"
"Here—maybe you have run alongside the others a few times, but you've never taken part in actual training. During this training camp, you can personally experience it. Maybe then you'll find your answer."
"...Brian-chan? What are you thinking about?"
Inside a seaside villa room, Oguri Roman's puzzled voice brought Narita Brian back to reality.
"Ah… nothing."
Narita Brian shook her head reflexively. "I was just wondering… what kind of training is waiting for us today."
She didn't feel like she was lying. After all, what she had been thinking about was indeed related to that.
That talk had happened two days ago.
She hadn't asked Chief Kitahara that question because she wanted a definite answer.
She simply wanted to know what she looked like in the eyes of a trainer as talented as him.
She had already decided—no matter what answer she received, she would give her all during the training camp.
But she hadn't expected the answer he gave her to be—training itself.
That response reminded her a little of her school teachers—the eldest ones always said things like that.
Elders at home did too.
She once asked her grandmother why.
Her grandmother had said: veteran trainers and horsegirl had seen many geniuses in their lives—more geniuses whose careers ended unexpectedly.
Having witnessed so much, of course their view of things became less simple, less optimistic.
And so Brian began to grow curious about Kitahara himself.
Why did such a young-looking trainer speak like an old veteran?
She also grew more curious about Eisei's training—what exactly made it so special that it could produce horses like Oguri Cap?
She had already arrived with Eisei at the training camp—on the coast of Nagoya City.
And just on the first day, she could sense something unusual.
The seaside villa was a luxurious resort, but had been completely transformed into a full training center.
And aside from them, there were no other guests—as if the entire place had been reserved.
This must have taken a very long time to prepare. Normal teams couldn't do something like this so efficiently.
And the arrangements reflected that too.
Brian had thought they would need time to set everything up.
But yesterday was nothing but a relaxing day—beach activities, bonfire dinners—and everyone acted like this was normal.
Which meant everything had already been planned perfectly.
All she knew was that she wasn't the only outsider joining this training camp—Tokai Teio and Mejiro McQueen were joining too.
All this increased her curiosity.
As the two girls changed clothes, Roman answered her question.
"That kind of training… even I can't say."
Roman wore matching "Kurissura pajamas" like her sister. Pulling off the pajamas, revealing her still-growing body, she rummaged in her suitcase.
"Normal training I can explain. But training camp? This is the first time even for us."
"Even Onee-chan doesn't know. She's never experienced a training camp like this before."
"So, sorry Brian-chan… oh, right! There is something I should tell you."
In Brian's confused gaze, Roman pulled out a black bracelet.
"Brian-chan, wear this."
"Eh? This is…?"
Brian examined the bracelet—simple, black, looking like rubber but harder, slightly metallic.
"This is a training band. I'll help you put it on, okay?"
Brian nodded, and Roman carefully fitted it around her wrist.
"A training band? What's special about it?"
Roman adjusted it with great care. Brian smiled at how gentle she was.
"It looks like a normal band, but it can measure way more than standard ones."
"More?"
"Mhm. Things like physical composition, strength levels, heart rate, neural reaction speed—stuff like that."
Brian froze.
"Th-that many!?"
Roman quickly corrected:
"But it's not that the band alone can measure all that. It just sends a signal."
"Then Kyoko-neesan and Light-neesan's equipment receives the signal, combines it with other tests, and produces the full data."
"It's called the Nine Major Indicators."
"Form, strength, breathing, core, heart rate, flexibility, neural response, limb control, and balance."
Brian was stunned.
"This… isn't taught in school at all…"
Roman shook her head.
"Nope! It's not unique to us. These indicators exist in universities and labs already—normal research results."
"But—"
"But…?"
Brian leaned in.
"But only we use them this way."
Roman continued:
"Other trainers don't buy this much equipment. Without the gear, they can only measure with basic tools—and the data is inaccurate."
"Digitizing racehorses and racing… that's the world's future direction."
"Uncle Kitahara says it all the time. I don't really understand 'digitization'… maybe he means this detailed data."
"Digitization…"
Brian touched the band again, deep in thought.
She recalled that yesterday Kitahara and the others had been busy checking equipment for hours.
Probably because of this.
Before she could ask, a knock came.
"Roman, Brian, are you awake?" Oguri Cap's voice called.
Roman rushed to open the door.
"There you are. Let's go eat breakfast."
"They said the plan is all set, but first you'll all do wind tunnel testing."
"It's tiring, so eat a lot at breakfast."
"Y-yes!"
Brian froze.
Wind tunnel…?
Even more shocking—
Oguri Cap said the training would be "tiring."
Brian had run with Eisei's horsegirl many times.
No matter the intensity, they never said they were tired.
What kind of training could make someone like Oguri Cap say such a word?
Her heart thumped.
Breakfast ended, and Brian finally saw the "wind tunnel."
Because training time in camp was longer, Kitahara had arranged for the heavy equipment from next to the academy to be flown in—at enormous cost.
A whole warehouse in the resort had been remodeled to house them.
Oguri and the others were used to it.
Brian, Teio, and McQueen were stunned.
"W-what in the world is this!?"
Tokai Teio ran in circles around the gigantic wind tunnel, sparkling eyes full of excitement.
"Do we run inside!? Do we get blown!? How does it work!?"
Mejiro McQueen scolded her:
"Teio, please calm down. You're delaying training."
But her own eyes were shining with curiosity as she looked it over.
Kitahara calmly stepped forward.
"I'll explain everything soon. For now, Yuzuhara, Komiyama, Kyoko—help Teio, McQueen, and Brian find their machines."
"Follow the usual testing procedures but lower the intensity. First, gather their baseline data."
"Roman, you're with Light. You two already know how to operate it—start your tests."
With natural authority, Kitahara ordered the room into motion.
Then he turned to Oguri and the veteran team members.
"I'm sending your training schedules. While you read them, I'll go over arrangements."
He handed out the forms.
"Back in Europe, I told you already: you're the strongest in Japan. Tamamo proved it in the Takarazuka."
"But measured by world standards, you still have notable weaknesses."
"And your use of Fields has far more room to grow."
"This training camp has two main goals: patch the weaknesses and master new methods of using Fields."
"The Field part can wait—President Rudolf should arrive later. She's coming to relax and also to discuss Field development."
"For now, your first task—starting today—is fixing your weak points."
When Kitahara finished speaking, Oguri Cap and the others were all looking down at the sheets in their hands, their faces showing a mix of troubled and strange expressions. Kitahara smiled slightly and glanced through them one by one.
"Oguri Cap, what you need to improve are your endurance and mental stamina."
He spoke to Oguri Cap in a deep voice:
"Up until now, the longest race you've run was the 2,423-meter Epsom Exchange Race. Other than that, you've never done any longer-distance racing."
"In terms of long-distance adaptability, you're not as good as Super Creek, Tama, or Inari."
"Even in regular training, your long-distance results are clearly behind those three."
"In that sense, you're the same as Ardan."
"The truth is that you have more than enough physical strength—your food intake alone proves you can absolutely run 3,000 meters. The problem is that you haven't fully mastered how to convert that food intake into endurance."
"In other words, precise energy distribution."
Kitahara sighed helplessly.
Endurance, at its core, is simply the precise allocation of limited stamina.
Both humans and horsegirls convert food into measurable amounts of energy each day. That energy is finite.
Judging from the data, Oguri Cap, who eats ten bowls of rice in one meal and still calls that 80% full, absolutely has the stamina needed for long-distance races.
But her level of energy control wasn't high—certainly not as high as Super Creek and the others.
Her natural strength was high, and she was extremely earnest.
Because of that, she often spent far more stamina per stride than necessary during both training and racing. She struggled with "saving strength when it's time to save strength."
Meanwhile, with superior control, Super Creek and the others effectively conserved more stamina with every step. Over 10 or 20 meters, the difference wasn't obvious. Even at 2,000 or 2,400 meters, the difference wasn't dramatic.
But over longer distances, Kitahara, Komiyama, Yuzuhara, and the other trainers all agreed that Oguri Cap had little chance of defeating Super Creek, Tamamo Cross, or Inari One.
At least right now, she had almost no chance.
"So, in this training camp, Oguri Cap, you must improve your stamina control."
Kitahara concluded.
"I don't mind strengthening that, but…"
Oguri Cap held the sheet in both hands, staring at it for a moment before raising her head, looking like she was about to cry."Why does it have to be swimming…?"
The moment she said that, Little Bay and the others immediately looked at her with sympathy, unable to resist snickering.
Kitahara's assigned special training for Oguri Cap was simple: swimming.
The only unusual part was that the swimming distances would gradually increase.
There were several small islands off the shallow coast where the camp was held; some were a few kilometers apart, some around 10 km, and some even farther.
According to the plan, Oguri Cap would first swim between the nearer islands, then gradually increase the distance.
Swimming was already a standard method for horsegirls to build endurance. Tracen Academy had its own pool, and Eisei's regular training also included swimming.
But there was one problem:
Oguri Cap was bad at swimming.
Even now, she still used a kickboard during swim training.
And even with a kickboard she struggled. Her training plan explicitly said "gradually remove kickboard assistance," which only made her even more distressed.
But after careful analysis, Kitahara and the others believed there was no physical reason Oguri Cap couldn't learn to swim—her physical data showed no innate disadvantage.
The fact that she struggled with such a common training method puzzled the other trainers—but Kitahara had a theory.
He suspected it was due to her "parallel world counterpart."
He couldn't explain the mechanism, but the parallel reflections between horsegirl and original horse were extremely obvious.
For example, Just A Way's obsession with gray horses existed in both worlds.Or Gold Ship's bizarre personality.
[Fuck, they made Stego Gold Ship's roomamte instead of Just A Way]
Many other cases existed.
Oguri Cap's swimming issue was the same—the original Oguri Cap in the other world wasn't good at swimming either, and even ran away from water training when staff weren't watching.
In the game version, she used a kickboard during swim training, and during seaside camps she only played near the sand and wouldn't go into the water.
Kitahara believed this was some sort of metaphysical "resonance" between horsegirl and horse.
But regardless of the cause, he didn't believe it was unchangeable.
This world's Oguri Cap had already competed in—and won—two of the three Classic races. That alone showed that the "parallel fate" wasn't absolute.
If even destiny could be changed, then swimming was hardly an issue.
"I know you don't like swimming, but it's the most efficient and effective way to improve your stamina control and endurance."
Without sugarcoating or comforting her, Kitahara spoke directly—because that was what Oguri Cap responded to best.
"Swimming has the highest cost-performance ratio among all sports in terms of improving physical ability."
"Because of buoyancy, swimming avoids the gravitational stress caused by running. Joint pressure is lower, and injuries are less likely."
"The water's pressure and resistance provide gentle but effective strengthening—better than weighted training—for heart-lungs, metabolism, muscle development, and immunity."
"But for you, the most important thing is stamina control."
"Running uses the whole body, yes, but it focuses mostly on the legs."
"Swimming requires perfect coordination of arms, legs, and torso, ensuring even energy distribution. Only through that can you precisely allocate every bit of stamina."
As he spoke, Kitahara glanced from Oguri Cap's gradually determined face to Little Bay and the others, who were now also deep in thought.
"Honestly, Oguri Cap—your stamina is the best among you all. If the five of you were to do a continuous long-distance run, you would be the last one standing."
"But races aren't marathons. A race requires compressing all stamina into a limited distance for maximum speed."
"In that case, at under 2,500 m, you have a huge advantage. Even though you're still a Classic-year Horsegirl, Tama and Inari, who are older, might not be able to beat you consistently."
"But once you go beyond 2,500 m—for example, the Spring Tenno Sho—they have an overwhelming edge."
"You would start losing speed between 2,500 and 2,600 meters because your stamina would already be depleted from waste."
"The Kikua Sho is the same."
He looked directly into Oguri Cap's eyes.
"Don't forget—the 3,000-meter Kikua Sho is a long-distance race."
[That's why Equinox is a distance Merchant]
"You have enough stamina. Your appetite proves it."
"But without fine control, you waste enormous amounts of stamina every race."
"And not just in races—you move around more in daily life than Super Creek and the others. So you waste energy constantly."
"Right now there's just a little over three months left until the Kikka Sho…"
"No—there's only a little over three months left."
"If you can't master stamina control in these three months, you'll have very little chance in the Kikua Sho."
Kitahara had long thought about this, but he didn't hesitate.
Oguri Cap didn't need soft words like "believe in yourself" or "keep trying and you'll win."
She was always hardworking, confident, and believed she would win.
What she needed was direction.
And Kitahara, knowing how things unfolded in the other world, knew which direction was correct.
"…I understand, Kitahara."
Oguri Cap took a deep breath, clenching her fists.
"Swimming, right? Fine—then even if I drink seawater until I'm full, I'll keep swimming!"
…That determination was good, but something about the phrasing sounded wrong.
Kitahara, who had been touched by her spirit for a moment, immediately went speechless.
Super Creek and the others also froze for a moment before bursting into quiet laughter.
"Well, thinking about drinking seawater… that's so Oguri," Tamamo Cross rubbed her nose. "But fine! Since Oguri's fired up, I'm not losing either!"
"Don't worry so much, Oguri," Ardan smiled. "I also need to improve my endurance. My training sheet also includes swimming."
"So I'll swim with you."
"Really? Thank you, Ardan."
Oguri Cap smiled gratefully, then paused.
"Listening to you and Tama, it sounds like our training plans aren't the same?"
The others also blinked and looked at their own sheets.
"…Isn't it obvious? You all have different weaknesses."
Kitahara sighed again, but continued patiently.
"But of course, there are shared elements."
"For example, Oguri needs better stamina control, Ardan needs endurance—swimming helps both."
"I'll explain all of it later. For now, I'm not finished with Oguri."
He turned back to her.
"In addition to stamina control, Oguri, you also need to improve your mental processing ability."
"In your past races, you always prepared several strategies beforehand, picked one before the race, and relied on instinct during the actual run."
"But I've emphasized this repeatedly—long-distance or high-intensity races don't only require stamina, speed, and strength. Mental ability is just as important."
"When exhausted, your mind becomes foggy and your awareness dulls. In that state, only Aldan among you can still judge race conditions accurately."
"Tama, Inari, and Super Creek attempt to analyze the race, but in that state, they simply don't have the ability."
"And horsegirls like you, who rely on instinct—your instincts become inaccurate at that level of exhaustion."
"Conveniently, the training camp will be far more intense than usual. After training, you'll be much more tired."
"At that time, you won't rest—you'll answer Roman and the others' training questions."
"That is your mental training."
This arrangement was devised by Kitahara, Komiyama, and the others.
The two groups of horsegirls naturally needed different schedules. Their time had to be staggered.
So to ensure the seniors had time to teach Brian, Teio, and McQueen, they would use their fatigued state after training.
The fatigue wasn't as intense as a real race's total shutdown, but still enough to challenge their minds.
By teaching and advising juniors, Oguri and the others would gradually adapt to analyzing and judging while tired.
They didn't need to reach extremely high mental ability—just higher than their opponents.
And Kitahara was certain no other trainer in Japan used such methods. Most trainers only focused on race-oriented training and would never involve horsegirls who hadn't debuted yet.
Compared to the swimming explanation, Oguri and the others had no objections this time.
"Next is Super Creek's special training."
Kitahara turned to Creek.
"Your weaknesses are similar to Ardan's—slow acceleration and insufficient top speed."
"Of course, this is relative to Oguri and the others. Compared to horsegirls outside Eisei, both of you still have clear advantages."
"And the cause…"
He paused, cleared his throat, and coughed twice.
"Cough… well… it's because your glute muscles aren't strong enough."
The moment he said that, all the horsegirls' expressions turned awkward.Little Bay and Aldan blushed bright red.
Girls were still girls—talking about butts like this was embarrassing.
But Kitahara quickly restored his composure as a professional trainer, pretending he didn't see the girls glancing at each other.
"You two originally had leg issues, so both I and Kyoko focused heavily on strengthening your leg muscles."
"That process took a great deal of time and effort, but the results are clear."
Kitahara felt relieved.
In the parallel world, both Creek and Ardan had careers plagued by leg problems—nothing like their current state.
Creek's foot inflammation delayed her debut, kept her from the Satsuki Sho and Derby, and she only got into the Kikua Sho by lottery.
Ardan ran the 1988 Derby, but broke a bone afterward and had to rest for a year.
Worried that this world might follow the same fate, Kitahara had intentionally focused on strengthening their legs.
Now, with long effort from the entire team, their leg conditions were no longer inferior to the others.
But even so, in training and races, their power output still lagged behind Oguri, Inari, and even Tama.
In the Epsom Exchange Race, this weakness became glaring—they couldn't match the acceleration or top speed of Tony Bianca and Moonlight Lunacy.
Those European horsegirls also had leg issues once but still had superior power output, which pointed to a training deficiency.
The team spent a long time analyzing the cause and, after speaking with Symboli Rudolf, Maruzensky, and others, finally identified it:
The glutes.
"This was our oversight. We trained your overall muscles and your legs, but didn't give enough attention to your glutes."
Kitahara spoke with a hint of self-blame.
"The glutes are extremely important for running. Squats and deadlifts are meant to train that area."
"When running, the gluteus maximus extends the hip; this external rotation generates powerful forward propulsion."
"A thick glute muscle also absorbs shock when the heel lands and plays a major role in balance."
"That's why Oguri and Inari have such explosive power—their glute muscles are very well developed."
"Both trained heavily in dirt races early on, which naturally strengthened them."
"Tama's balance is also due to this—her trainer's predecessor arranged high-level glute training."
"So in this training camp, Creek, Ardan—you two will receive focused glute training."
Just as Kitahara was about to continue, the horsegirls suddenly erupted in noise.
"Oh! I think my glutes are a bit firm… I never really checked… wait? Creek, why are you touching me??"
"Mmm, yeah, it's firm… ah—nothing, I just never really paid attention to glute training… kyaa! Ardan?!"
"Hehe, sorry Creek, didn't mean to scare you… wanna feel mine too?"
"I—!"
"Inari One! Don't touch people randomly!"
"I think Tama's glutes feel similar to mine… wah! Tama don't come over!"
"Don't run! I'm touching you back!"
In an instant, the Eisei horsegirls exploded into a chaotic "glute inspection circle."
"…Have you all turned into little kids like Tokai Teio?"
Kitahara was both amused and exasperated.
"We're still in training!"
"Get yourselves together!"
(End of Chapter)