Meanwhile, in Team Spica's room, they were watching the live broadcast.
"Is it just me, or is McQueen's expression wrong? That's not the face of a runner who just made a mistake," Vodka pointed out.
But Daiwa Scarlet retorted: "If that's not a mistake, what is? You don't really think a horse girl can finish the Kikuka Sho running like that, do you? Or do you actually believe that dream was real? A horse girl like that doesn't exist!"
"No, you can't be sure about that." Vodka chose to trust her intuition.
Although she didn't know if the current McQueen was possessed by the McQueen from the dream, her intuition as a horse girl told her that this McQueen was terrifying. Just watching her figure on the TV felt like facing a wild beast.
Special Week was nibbling a carrot on the side. Hearing her friends argue, she said innocently to her friend on the video call, "Suzuka-san, you feel it too, right?"
Silence Suzuka, also watching the live broadcast on the video call, heard Special Week and nodded. "Me too. The feeling I'm getting from McQueen right now is very strong."
Gold Ship, watching the race, heard their conversation. Her ears twitched, but she didn't say anything, just kept watching the race with a sharp gaze. In reality, though, her mind was starting to wander.
Why can't I, Gorshi, feel anything?
Although she felt more relaxed because of Special Week and Silence Suzuka's conversation, the moment she relaxed, all sorts of strange thoughts flashed through Gold Ship's mind.
The race entered the corner.
Mejiro McQueen showed no sign of slowing down.
Just then, a dark cloud suddenly drifted overhead. With a dull clap of thunder, it suddenly began to pour rain.
"This sudden downpour is making the track even more difficult! Can the runners' stamina handle such an abrupt change? Still in the lead is this runner—Mejiro McQueen. But is this really okay? She still shows no intention of changing her tactic. Is this confidence, or has she given up? The number one favorite, Mejiro Ryan, is currently here..."
It's over.
Okino's eyes were completely hollow.
Even the heavens were against McQueen!
If there was a sliver of hope before, now even that was gone.
And in the Spica clubroom, everyone was silent.
Teio, having just taken a shower, walked into the clubroom with a gloomy expression. Her luck today was terrible. Her race this morning was in the rain, and after coming back and showering, she got caught in the rain again on the way to the clubroom. Was the rain god picking on the great Teio today? How annoying! She was soaked again.
"Sorry everyone, I'm late. Has the race started?"
"..."
The room was silent. No one answered Teio's question.
"Everyone?"
Tokai Teio sensed the strange atmosphere. For this to happen, there was no other possibility except that something had gone wrong in McQueen's race. She immediately grabbed a small stool and went to the TV. The first thing she saw was the screen split into two camera feeds. McQueen was so far ahead that when she came out of the corner, the other runners were still fighting for position in the corner. The network had no choice but to use two cameras to show both.
"This?"
Tokai Teio looked at the screen and instantly understood why everyone was silent. Worry filled her eyes. What on earth is McQueen doing?
"I don't know either!"
Miss Rice Cake (original McQueen) watched the downpour and also broke down.
"Stop! Stop, I'm begging you! This is my real body, it's not a dream! My body can't meet your demands..."
But her voice couldn't get through at all.
'It's raining?'
Mejiro McQueen looked at the sudden downpour. If this were her usual running style, she would choose to slow down and conserve stamina.
And this body's stats were worse than her original body's. This meant that even on a clear day, her stamina, even with her skills, could only barely support her running style. Not to mention it was suddenly raining. The turf would get heavier after absorbing water, requiring even more stamina—
'Lose? Don't be ridiculous!'
Conserve stamina?
Unnecessary!
'There is no one on this track who can catch me.'
This thought appeared in her mind like an instinct. Even though she hadn't paid any attention to the other runners' strengths, this was different from any race she had run before. From the moment she started, she felt as if she was dominating the entire track. This race was destined to be her run, and hers alone, from the very beginning!
"Mejiro McQueen is not slowing down! She's still running wild! It seems she has truly given up..." The commentator's pessimistic review continued.
This made Mejiro McQueen clearly understand the difference between the two worlds. In her world, because she had shown her "Great Escape" in her debut, no one questioned her running style in subsequent races. But here, no such horse girl had ever appeared, so no one believed this running style could actually exist.
Since it's like that—
'Then let me completely shatter your understanding.'
Like a flash of light piercing the rain!
Mejiro McQueen broke the track record.
A small flame erupted in her left eye, and the shockwave around her body turned into a deep purple aura. The gap between her and second place was now over twelve horse lengths, and it was still widening. The pack behind her had been completely left behind!
As the race progressed, the voices of doubt slowly began to fade. The gap was just too big. Even if people's instincts told them she would gas out at the end, looking at the massive lead on the track, they felt a powerful shock. It was both stunning and terrifying, like being thrown into a freezing lake in winter. Their bodies couldn't help but shudder.
The other runners' moods also gradually shifted from 'watching a show' to panic. They kept telling themselves that McQueen's running style would definitely fail in the end, that she might not even have the stamina to reach the finish line. But when they realized they could no longer see what was ahead of them due to the heavy rain and fog, they started to feel that something was wrong.
"Wh-What is this running style?!"
The commentator's voice trembled. He sensed something strange, but he couldn't be sure, because it defied common sense. This was a 3000-meter race! How could any horse girl run at full speed all the way to the end?
Such a thing had never happened since this track was built. He didn't believe it, and no one else would believe it!
The entire stadium was silent.
The only sound in the empty stadium was the commentator's voice. There wasn't a peep from the stands. It was as if everyone had forgotten how to breathe, just staring in shock at the figure dashing through the heavy rain, their gazes sucked in as if by a black hole.
Mejiro McQueen could no longer hear the footsteps behind her. This was the first time in a race she had felt the suffocating sensation of her stamina running out. But her steps did not stop. This suffocating feeling couldn't stop her desire for victory. And now, the final corner was right in front of her. Past that corner, she would see the finish line. Although her stamina was nearly gone, she couldn't help but smile. This feeling wasn't bad at all.
Besides, "nearly gone" meant there was still some left, didn't it? In that case, the result was already decided. Driven by McQueen's strong will, the purple aura showed no sign of extinguishing. Its color only grew more intense in the rain and fog, so much so that even the TV broadcast was capturing this extraordinary phenomenon.
Entering the final corner.
Mejiro McQueen's horseshoes seemed to flash with a golden light.
Skill, activate!
Mejiro McQueen was already gasping, but her footsteps were still strong. Her aura, though like a flickering candle, stubbornly burned at its limit. That light was so clear in the rain and fog.
As she went through the corner, people saw her speed finally seem to drop. As she entered the straight, it looked as if she could barely lift her legs. Was her rampage coming to an end?
Seeing this, many people let out a sigh of relief. While this horse girl's run was stunning, it was really hard on the heart.
Under her purple hair, the corners of McQueen's mouth turned up in a joyous smile. Her face was filled with elation. Her light purple eyes turned a vivid red. The moment the flame in her left eye went out, a flash spread from her feet—
At the same time, a breeze swept across the track, blowing the dark clouds away. The sun, after the rain, shone down on Mejiro McQueen.
"BANG!"
Against everyone's expectations.
Mejiro McQueen's steps did not stop.
Instead, along with the fresh breeze after the rain, she entered her final sprint.
She wasn't slowing down—she was accelerating!
Even faster than before!
[On the Name of the Strongest]
This skill could increase Mejiro McQueen's speed by 1.5 times, but its stronger effect was to lock her remaining stamina for the last 10 seconds!
In other words, no matter how little stamina McQueen had, as long as she had any left, she could keep running for these last 10 seconds. As for whether she could drag her exhausted body through those 10 seconds, that was up to her. The skill didn't lessen the physical or mental burden; it just locked that last bit of stamina. But clearly, this feeling of burning out wasn't a debuff for McQueen at all. Instead, it sent her into a frenzy.
When they saw Mejiro McQueen launch her final sprint, the audience couldn't hold back any longer. The entire stadium rose to its feet.
They stared at the figure in disbelief.
"Mejiro McQueen IS STILL SPRINTING!"
The commentator's excited roar burst out. He felt he must be drenched in sweat. When he saw Mejiro McQueen's final sprint, he was so shocked he almost fainted!