For once, every member of Rigil had gathered in the team's area at the training grounds.
Trainers and umamusume in the surrounding areas could not stop looking over. Rigil's movements had startled them. They could not imagine what kind of event required the team to mobilize in full.
Even every member of the Student Council was present.
On Rigil's side, Hana Tojo was explaining the reason for the gathering to the members who did not yet understand the situation. Once they learned the full story, many of them gave curious looks to the perfectly calm Special Week.
Arguing with the Trainer on her first day was one thing. Deciding to leave the team the instant they disagreed was another. Even at Tracen Academy, where eccentrics gathered in droves, someone like her was unique. Then, when summoned before the Student Council and confronted by the [Emperor]'s majesty on her second day, she had refused to surrender and had boldly challenged the Student Council instead.
Everyone found Special Week's behavior impressive.
Incredible.
She might have been the first person in Tracen Academy's history to accomplish such a thing.
No one voiced an opinion about the conflict between Special Week and the Trainer. Other than Special Week handling her departure a little too aggressively, partnerships ending over such disagreements were not especially rare at Tracen Academy.
It was merely the first time this had happened to Rigil. No member had ever withdrawn from the team before.
Only one person reacted differently.
Silence Suzuka looked at Special Week with a trace of envy.
She envied Special Week's courage. Suzuka could never have acted so boldly herself. She had found the courage to reach a decision only after meeting Spica's Trainer and being persuaded by him.
Special Week was different. The instant she became dissatisfied, she had decided to leave Rigil without considering anything else.
Suzuka did not believe she possessed that kind of courage and confidence.
"That is the situation. Air Groove and Special Week will now have their duel," Hana Tojo explained.
She turned to Special Week.
"Special Week, you have no objection to the terms of the duel, correct?"
Hana had difficulty believing that someone with Special Week's personality would obediently honor the agreement after losing. If Special Week refused to accept defeat, there was little Hana could actually do. Tracen Academy's regulations ultimately favored its umamusume.
Special Week looked entirely serious.
"No objection."
Of course she would honor the agreement.
Provided Vice President Air Groove could genuinely defeat her.
She looked toward Air Groove.
But the possibility of that was zero!
Air Groove could not help laughing.
How could she fail to understand the look in Special Week's eyes?
This girl genuinely regarded the Empress as an easy target. Air Groove had originally considered holding back a little so Special Week's defeat would not look too humiliating. Now, however, it seemed she would have to win decisively.
She would show this little rookie—
The title of Empress was no empty boast!
Their auras collided in the air.
Everyone's expressions grew more serious.
"The Vice President is serious!"
Grass Wonder looked worried.
But the situation had already developed this far. Judging from Special Week's expression, she intended to face the Vice President seriously. This would certainly be a "race" worth anticipating.
Grass could only hope Special Week would understand through this contest...
Air Groove might no longer be at her peak, but she was still not an opponent a rookie fresh into Tracen Academy could resist.
*Spe...*
Grass gazed affectionately at Special Week.
El Condor Pasa watched Grass from beside her, rendered speechless. Looking like that, how could Grass possibly claim she wasn't biased? Spe was about to quit the team, yet Grass was still worrying that she might lose?
From the perspective of a Rigil member, shouldn't she naturally want Spe to be defeated?
That was the logical position. Even so, El did not want to see Special Week lose here either. Spe was the rival who had defeated her. Instinctively, El did not want anyone else to beat her before she could take revenge.
And El understood how powerful Special Week was.
"Don't worry. Even against the Vice President, Spe won't lose."
El was not as openly partial toward Special Week as Grass.
But she had more faith in Special Week than Grass did.
"Seriously? You have that much confidence in Special Week?"
Hishi Amazon overheard their conversation and could not help offering a warning.
"I hate to discourage you, but if Special Week is only as strong as what she has shown so far, she can't win. The Vice President is taking this duel seriously, and the Trainer and President deliberately selected a course that favors her."
"..."
Was that something she should be admitting?
El had not expected them to exploit a course advantage as well. The Trainer and President genuinely intended to crush Spe.
Still, she disagreed with Hishi Amazon's assessment. What did her senior mean by "only as strong as what she has shown so far"? Had she ever witnessed Spe's full strength?
El had not seen it either, but she knew Special Week was still hiding something. She had observed Spe over the past few days.
Spe was no naive fool. She would never be unaware that the conditions of this duel worked against her. Yet she remained completely confident. That meant she was certain she could win.
El declared without hesitation, "No. I still think Spe has the better chance."
"Heh. Then let's wait and see."
Hishi Amazon was equally confident in her judgment.
Fuji Kiseki declined to express an opinion. In truth, she could understand El's position because she could not see through Special Week either.
Narita Brian prepared to observe the duel with complete concentration.
After all, a full-strength contest between Rigil members was rarely seen.
Taiki Shuttle, who had only just returned, remained on the sidelines watching.
Hana Tojo and Symboli Rudolf discussed the match together.
Both had confidence in Air Groove.
Maruzensky and Silence Suzuka stood beside the track. They were serving as judges, though strictly speaking, Suzuka alone had been assigned the duty. Maruzensky had come over of her own accord.
"Suzuka, when you looked at Spe just now, there was longing in your eyes, wasn't there?"
"..."
Silence Suzuka looked puzzled by her senior's question.
"You've been getting rather close to someone outside the team lately."
Suzuka's eyes changed instantly.
That reaction gave Maruzensky her answer.
"Honestly, neither you nor Spe ever makes things easy."
She had not suspected Suzuka originally. Maruzensky knew about the conflict between Suzuka and the Trainer, but without Special Week's incident she might never have imagined that Suzuka would consider leaving as well.
After what happened with Special Week, however, Maruzensky had begun wondering whether Suzuka also intended to withdraw.
"Think carefully, Suzuka. The Trainer you've been consulting recently belongs to Spica, and his reputation is hardly good."
He had even been sent to detention. Maruzensky did not like defining people through rumors, but the stories she had heard left her speechless.
"..."
Silence Suzuka remained quiet.
She knew about those incidents.
There was genuinely no way to defend the Trainer on that point.
Maruzensky did not press the matter. She simply did not want Suzuka making an impulsive decision in the heat of the moment. If Suzuka thought it through seriously and still reached the same conclusion, Maruzensky would not oppose her. She would support her instead.
It was the same with Special Week. When Maruzensky saw that the girl would not retreat even before Symboli Rudolf's "judgment," she had quietly changed sides and begun supporting her.
"Are you both ready? We're about to begin."
Maruzensky voluntarily took over Suzuka's task.
Suzuka was clearly in no state of mind to perform it.
Standing behind her, Silence Suzuka watched Maruzensky with guilt over her senior's concern.
But her decision remained unchanged!
She already knew that her dream could never be realized in Rigil. That left only one thing she could do.
Leave Rigil!
Hana Tojo suddenly felt uneasy.
She frowned at the two figures on the starting line.
"Why? Do I actually think Air Groove might lose today...?"
She had no idea that another one of her "treasures" had also decided to run away.
On the track, Special Week and Air Groove answered Maruzensky at the same time.
"I'm ready."
"Mm."
Maruzensky smiled and nodded.
She took out the starting pistol, then said something to Special Week before giving the signal.
"Do your best, Spe. Big Sis will be cheering for you."
Special Week's expression froze slightly.
Beside her, Air Groove could not suppress a sigh.
"Hurry up and start the race, Maruzensky, or I'll have you replaced!"
"All right, all right. I'm starting."
Maruzensky retreated a short distance.
Air Groove and Special Week immediately entered racing mode.
The next moment, the starting pistol fired.
Two figures burst onto the track!
Neither gained an advantage at the start.
Air Groove regarded the result with surprise.
She had expected her own start to be better. Everyone knew Special Week had not yet adapted to Central's environment. Yet in little more than a day, Special Week had already improved this much.
Her talent was frightening.
Air Groove's pupils contracted.
People said she was no longer at her peak. She sometimes thought the same herself, but...
She still refused to accept it so easily!
Especially if accepting it meant losing to a mere rookie!
Her blood began to flow faster.
In an instant, Air Groove entered a state of extreme speed.
Within a single breath, the two went from running side by side to one leading the other.
Special Week's expression grew solemn as she watched the golden afterimage left above the turf by Air Groove's footsteps.
So this was the Vice President's strength.
Her mastery of skills belonged to an entirely different level from El Condor Pasa's current ability.
This was a senior-grade umamusume.
Interesting!
Special Week had joined Rigil partly for opportunities to learn from umamusume of this level. She had not expected to receive one just before leaving the team. If Rigil's training philosophy had not genuinely been unsuitable for her, she would have hated to surrender access to these resources.
For now, she would experience the strength of a senior-grade umamusume firsthand.
Do not disappoint me, Air Groove-senpai!
They quickly cleared the first straight.
After establishing a temporary lead over Special Week, Air Groove did not continue accelerating. Instead, she stabilized her rhythm. Unlike El, she would never allow Special Week to dictate how she ran.
Special Week tried to close the distance and pressure her, but Air Groove's stride remained unmoved. She seemed to be saying that she could pull away again whenever she wished.
Special Week considered passing her, then abandoned the idea.
She understood her present weakness: she still lacked experience and familiarity with the environment. That was why she chose a strategy from the rear, giving herself more room to observe and adjust her tactics. If she rushed to the front too early, she would become like El, unable to see what was happening around her.
"Spe?"
Watching from outside the track, El was confused.
That had clearly been a perfect opportunity to pass!
"Both of them handled it perfectly," Fuji Kiseki explained from nearby. "Air Groove ignored Special Week's pressure to preserve her performance across the entire race. For the same reason, Special Week chose to remain in the position that currently benefits her more."
She could see that El, as a newcomer, still lacked racing experience.
"So that's it."
El suddenly understood.
She remembered her earlier duel.
She had lost precisely because she had failed to consider such things.
"As expected of Spe. She can even fight the Vice President on equal terms."
El spoke with admiration.
Hishi Amazon immediately poured cold water on her enthusiasm.
"Heh. You're wrong. Special Week should have passed decisively back there. She's still underestimating the Vice President."
"Hm?"
El looked at Fuji Kiseki in confusion.
This time, Fuji Kiseki did not answer directly. Her expression was grave.
"Keep watching. You'll understand soon."
She knew Hishi Amazon was right.
Special Week's judgment had not been mistaken, but her opponent was the Vice President—not someone she could defeat merely by avoiding mistakes herself.
They passed through the second turn without incident.
Special Week and Air Groove entered the third straight, the middle stage of the course, one behind the other.
Less than two lengths separated them.
It was a dangerous gap for the runner in front.
At that moment, however, Special Week sensed something wrong with the Vice President's presence. The instant they entered this section of the course, Air Groove's aura had begun to feel faintly dangerous.
"What is it?"
Special Week's expression did not change, and she suppressed the unease in her heart.
No matter how she examined the situation, the current pace favored her.
Then what was causing this sensation?
Ahead of her, the tension in Air Groove's mind finally eased.
When Special Week had closed in earlier, Air Groove had genuinely felt a little worried. But she knew she could not waver then, so she deliberately acted unconcerned.
Special Week had taken the bait.
"Hmph..."
"Now it's my turn."
"I'll show you how the Empress runs!"
Air Groove's aura surged.
Golden light flickered across her racing shoes.
...
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