"Huh?"
Feeling the gaze from the monster behind her—a gaze that wanted to devour everything—the smile on Maruzensky's face instantly vanished. Why was that "Cinderella" targeting her?
She knew the effect of Oguri Cap's domain.
She had originally assumed Oguri Cap would definitely target Mejiro McQueen, who was in first place. She never expected Oguri to choose her as the target. Although she couldn't understand Oguri's reasoning, Maruzensky knew she had to escape!
Oguri Cap's domain was "Devour." If she got caught, she would lose for sure. Therefore, she had to get away before Oguri Cap caught her!
A red aura flared up around Maruzensky.
Her domain's aura couldn't compare to the monsters behind her, but her domain was just that: pure. It was a domain that simply strengthened her own speed, unlike the monsters behind her who were all thinking about how to deal with their opponents. Sometimes, she felt that Symboli Rudolf's and the others' domains were just too extreme.
"Maruzensky is starting to make a move! But there's still some distance between her and first place. Can she catch up? Oguri Cap is moving too! What terrifying explosive power!"
On the track, Oguri Cap's entire body emitted a dark-black ripple. Her fierce eyes seemed to have transformed into a black hole capable of swallowing everything. That powerful explosive force even tore up the turf from the track. She began her burst at almost the exact same time as Maruzensky. This monster had completely locked onto the "supercar" in front of her, ready to devour even Maruzensky's domain and turn it into fuel for her own advance.
'This is bad!'
Maruzensky felt her body crying out, and she instantly understood it was because she had been following Mejiro McQueen in the Great Escape earlier. She had already pushed her body to its limit. The domain she unleashed now didn't achieve the effect she had anticipated. Even more troublesome, Oguri Cap was charging at her from behind.
'It's over! I'm gonna crash and burn!'
A trace of panic appeared on Maruzensky's usually composed face. But her opponents weren't about to care about her feelings. On the contrary, they would only take cruel advantage of her weakness!
Oguri Cap charged forward without mercy. Her prey had entered her hunting range. The gray monster devoured her prey without a hint of hesitation!
Maruzensky felt what little stamina she had left suddenly drain away. Her domain collapsed instantly. The expression on her face was one of pure panic.
She had just come here to have fun, so why did it end up like this?
"Maruzensky is losing speed! Oguri Cap has successfully passed Maruzensky to take second place, and is now chasing the first-place Mejiro McQueen!"
After devouring Maruzensky's stamina and domain, Oguri Cap's condition undoubtedly became even more terrifying. Her powerful explosive force was, little by little, closing the distance on Mejiro McQueen.
The Maruzensky behind her was distracted for only a moment before she was once again overtaken, this time by Symboli Rudolf. A portion of her strength was plundered yet again. In an instant, she could only watch in horror as her speed plummeted. It looked as if she were running backward, presenting an extremely comical scene for the audience.
'You were too careless, Maruzensky.'
Symboli Rudolf hadn't expected that her friend, whom she considered a great rival, would fall to this state. It could only be said that Maruzensky's attitude toward this race was not serious enough. If Maruzensky had been even a little bit careful, she wouldn't have ended up in this situation, much less been so easily devoured by Oguri Cap's domain.
Having fallen this far, it was uncertain if Maruzensky could even finish the race. After taking the one-two punch from Oguri's and her domains, it was hard to say how much stamina Maruzensky had left. She might just collapse from exhaustion.
As Maruzensky lost speed due to lack of stamina, the runners at the front reached the final corner.
Mejiro McQueen, leading by three lengths, entered the corner first. Following her was the monster Oguri Cap, having completed her "devour." Symboli Rudolf had also caught up. Having plundered her way up, Symboli Rudolf had an absolute advantage in speed. Whether it was the current first-place Mejiro McQueen or the post-devour Oguri Cap, both were currently slower than Symboli Rudolf. As for Tamamo Cross, who entered the corner in fourth, although she had kept up with the race, she looked like merely an accompanying runner. Her speed and explosive power were no match for the front three.
'Cinderella, your rampage ends here!'
Symboli Rudolf gradually caught up to Oguri Cap. Her running form, like a textbook model, exerted unparalleled power. She appeared at Oguri Cap's side. Oguri Cap gnashed her teeth, staring at the Emperor. Though she desperately wanted to stop Symboli Rudolf's advance, she couldn't. In both speed and power, she was inferior to Symboli Rudolf in this state. The Emperor at this moment was in her complete form. Her domain's strength was no longer on an ordinary level. Even an Oguri Cap who had "devoured" was no match. She could only watch helplessly as Symboli Rudolf passed her.
'...'
Oguri Cap trembled all over with agitation.
But she couldn't catch up.
The distance between Oguri Cap and Symboli Rudolf was being pulled apart, bit by bit. Although Oguri Cap's speed hadn't dropped much, Symboli Rudolf had become even stronger by "plundering" her while passing. Rudolf's speed was already set to exceed Oguri's; add to that this effect, and the gap between them became an absolutely irreversible situation!
This was Symboli Rudolf's domain. Once she passed you, you could never hope to catch up, because she would grow stronger, and her opponent would grow weaker.
At this moment, Tamamo Cross, in fourth place, was not in a good mood either. She realized she couldn't catch any of the three people in front of her. Although Oguri Cap had been overtaken by the Emperor, her domain was still active—and it was a domain that had devoured Maruzensky's power. Tamamo Cross could not outrun Oguri Cap in this state.
So, forget winning; she couldn't even get into the top three!
"I can't accept this result!"
She ran her heart out, and this was the result? Tamamo Cross found it unacceptable. But she had no choice. The facts wouldn't waver just because of her feelings. And none of the three in front showed any sign of losing speed.
"There's a change in the race! Symboli Rudolf has now moved into second place! Oguri Cap has fallen to third! Still in first is Mejiro McQueen, but Symboli Rudolf, right behind her, is closing in!" Akasaka announced excitedly. Although this race had surpassed all her prior knowledge, its level of excitement was also beyond anything she'd seen. This was a fierce battle between first-class horse girls.
They're just too strong! Breaking records seems as easy as drinking water for them. If this weren't just a school event, it might have been enough to shock the world.
Symboli Rudolf looked at Mejiro McQueen ahead, a smile playing on her lips.
'Alright, I've caught up. Can you give me any more surprises, McQueen?'
Although she wanted to see Mejiro McQueen show more, her steps didn't slow in the slightest. Instead, she was seriously aiming to overtake Mejiro McQueen as they came out of the corner!
Symboli Rudolf believed she had already won this race.
Mejiro McQueen's strength was indeed formidable. To be able to display such power even in [McQueen]'s body... if it were her main body, Rudolf felt she might have actually lost. But there are no "ifs" in racing. The winner of this race would be her, the Emperor!
'Nice pressure.'
Mejiro McQueen felt the aura of Symboli Rudolf's domain behind her, but her expression remained largely unchanged.
Although Symboli Rudolf's performance was splendid, it seemed this was its limit. She discovered that her own domain, combined with her skills, could produce an effect even stronger than the limit she had originally envisioned.
If Symboli Rudolf's aura could affect her, she might have felt a little troubled. But Symboli Rudolf couldn't do that. Because she was unaffected by gating, Symboli Rudolf's aura couldn't even land on her. Just like how Oguri Cap's domain couldn't lock onto her. As long as she didn't want it to, she would not be affected by an opponent's skill effects.
'Looks like this is it,' thought Mejiro McQueen & Symboli Rudolf.
It was time to decide the winner!
Symboli Rudolf wore a confident smile. She was already anticipating what kind of expression she would see on Mejiro McQueen's face when she passed her.
But in the very next moment, Symboli Rudolf saw a seven-colored (rainbow) flash appear on Mejiro McQueen's body. She immediately recognized it as the skill Mejiro McQueen had used at the end of the Kikka Sho.
'You managed to save that skill until now?!'
Symboli Rudolf was shocked. She didn't expect Maruzensky and the others to have failed to bait out this move from McQueen earlier. But if Mejiro McQueen hadn't used this move before now, how could she have maintained that speed for the entire race? Her performance at the Kikka Sho wasn't this exaggerated!
'No, it's not just that move!'
After the flash on Mejiro McQueen's body shone, her domain's aura surged. Her posture leaned forward, and—under Symboli Rudolf's shocked expression—she unleashed an even greater burst of acceleration. The gust of wind generated in that instant blew Symboli Rudolf's hair into disarray.
"Mejiro McQueen unleashes her last spurt! Entering the final straight!"
In the stands, Montjeu couldn't help but stand up when she saw this.
Symboli Rudolf had lost!
The entire student body and staff watched the scene in shock.
Symboli Rudolf was being left behind. Mejiro McQueen's final last spurt was as powerful as a phantasmal, god-like speed.
On the final straight, Mejiro McQueen was all alone!
Symboli Rudolf, who had chased so aggressively all this way, was now reduced to mere background scenery. The distance between them was widening at an extremely rapid pace. Everyone stared, stunned, as Mejiro McQueen crossed the finish line.
On the display screen, the final results were shown.
The second-place Symboli Rudolf was eight lengths behind the winner!
It wasn't just a loss. This result could only be called a crushing defeat.
Everyone at the venue was so shaken by this result that they couldn't recover for a long time. There wasn't even a cheer for the winner. There was only a deathly silence, silently declaring the birth of this new "strongest"!
It wasn't until one horse girl stood up excitedly and began to clap that the people snapped back to reality. Gradually, a thunderous cheer erupted.
Trêve, the horse girl who had clapped first, said to Montjeu: "Teacher, that is the opponent I will challenge in the Japan Cup! Wonderful! I've completely fallen for her! I will definitely make her remember me at the Japan Cup!"
"..."
Montjeu was speechless.
I brought you here to defeat her, not to become her fan!
...
For every 100 power stones, you get 1 bonus chapter!
When we hit 10 reviews, I'll release another bonus chapter too.
Get 20 chapters ahead on - P.a.t.r.e.o.n "RoseWhisky"