Time seemed to stretch, as if everything was being pulled into slow motion. While Seiun's leg muscles worked with heavy, steady intensity, she surged towards the 1200-meter marker standing tall beside the track fence. The wind slapping against her face and cheeks felt like it was squeezing her, forcing her to focus even more with every passing second.
"We're getting close to the final corner!! The four runners are closing in! The gap is being squeezed tighter and tighter!!"
The announcer's voice shook as if making the stands tremble along with it. From an original lead of 4 lengths, it was now down to just about 2. The shadows of her rivals stretched long, creeping closer to her back like claws ready to snatch the lead in a blink.
But what appeared on Seiun's face... was a subtle smile at the corner of her lips, no different from someone who already knew an ambush was coming. It wasn't fear. It wasn't anxiety. It was an expression that might make one think she was playing a teasing game.
'Here they come... I knew you'd do this from the start of the track.'
The heavy, rhythmic footfalls of the four other Uma echoed steadily, no different from an army closing in to corner its enemy. They used a pacing acceleration, gradually moving up as the leader maintained her speed not surging, not panting, not making a sudden burst... as if waiting for something.
But Seiun knew exactly why they were choosing to pressure her now. The 1200–1400 meter stretch was when frontrunners often started to expend significant energy. If pressured heavily here, they could lose their rhythm or accelerate too early, exhausting themselves before the final turn. It was a moment where, if the pacers could overtake, they could almost decide half the outcome. Seiun laughed inwardly.
'You think I'll panic or lose my rhythm like that? Trainer specifically trained me to handle this exact moment.'
Her breathing remained steady. The force of her feet hitting the ground didn't waver in the slightest, even though the pressure from behind was so palpable it felt like a wave of heat rising up to strike the nape of her neck.
Her gaze locked onto the straight ahead, calculating the timing of the final curve in her head like a program written before she even stepped onto the track. And in that second, memories from training surfaced vividly, as if the scene before her shattered to reveal another layered behind it.
---
The scene was the secluded training field Hayato had dragged her to on a drizzly day. He stood with his arms crossed at a slanted curve on the muddy, soggy dirt path.
"You can't be an ordinary runner, Seiun."
His tone was serious in a way he didn't often use.
"If you want to win real races, remember this: explosive speed at the start isn't everything. But explosive speed 'at the end' can finish off anyone, no matter how many."
Back then, Seiun was still panting and exhausted, her voice cracking.
"But running that fast for that long is so short, Trainer... by the end of the curve, I'd be almost out of energy..."
Hayato raised a finger and tapped her forehead.
"That's because you're using it at the wrong moment, Seiun."
"This explosive power is meant to be used to 'Destroy' in one go, not doled out bit by bit. You use it when they think you're closest to exhaustion... That's when no one can catch up."
---
The training scene snapped back to the present in an instant. Seiun's breathing changed slightly, becoming calmer even as the pressure doubled.
'Right... not yet.'
'Right now, I have to let them think I'm slowing down.'
'Then... finish it in one go.'
The announcer's voice boomed over the track again.
"1400 meters!! The four behind have closed the gap to just a single length!! Seiun Sky is being heavily pressured!!"
But just then, the camera captured Seiun's face clearly the face of someone confident, unshaken, unfazed. The small smile at the corner of her lips seemed to declare silently:
'Come on in... the real deal is in the next corner.'
The chaotic roar of the audience shook the very ground. As Seiun's figure plunged into the final curve, the outer fence whipped past her vision in a long blur. She increased her speed slightly, just enough according to plan to mislead those behind into thinking she was getting anxious and trying to escape, thus losing her rhythm.
The footfalls of the other Uma struck the ground with heavy thud, thud, thuds, chasing closely. Their rhythm was so solid she could almost feel the heat of their breath touching the nape of her neck. Seiun glanced back with just her tail, enough to see the four rival Uma splitting up, trying to open lanes inside and outside to overtake. But she smiled faintly a teasing smile, even as they chased her to the very tip of her tail.
"Come on... get a little closer."
She murmured under her breath, like an invitation meant to trick them. The crowd began rising to their feet almost in unison. The announcer's voice was nearly hoarse from shouting.
"The group behind is closing in!! The gap is less than *half* a length!! Seiun Sky is being squeezed hard!!"
But for Seiun, this wasn't being cornered... This was the golden moment. The hidden smile widened a fraction. Her blue eyes glinted sharply, like a tiger waiting to pounce on prey running straight at it.
The final 400 meters. The killing stretch.
Her breathing changed in a fraction of a second. Her shoulders dropped slightly to find the balance point for weight transfer. The muscles in her thighs and calves tensed until the lines were clearly visible, like steel wires pulled taut. She gritted her teeth a little... and then—
THUMP!!
The sound of her foot slamming into the track was louder than any step before.
It was the signal of the "Spring Release."
The moment full weight was transferred to her soles, the muscles in her back and front exploded with power simultaneously. She shot forward like an arrow drawn back to its absolute limit and finally released. Seiun's body surged away from the group of rivals in an instant. The sudden, drastic increase in speed was almost an illusion, causing many spectators to gasp in disbelief.
"Seiun Sky!! She's accelerating!! Accelerating without holding anything back!!"
Her speed truly tore away.
From half a length—it became one length in a blink.
From one length—it became two.
From two—it kept increasing.
The four other Uma tried to accelerate in response, but their rhythm simply couldn't match this explosive burst.
The wind force Seiun created slammed into their faces, yet they pushed on fearlessly, their legs driving down with heavy, earth-shaking thrusts as if trying to push the world itself backward.
In the final 300 meters, she began leaving them behind by more than three lengths.
The wind whistled so loudly around her ears she could barely hear the cheers. She gritted her teeth, leaning her body along the track's curve, using her lightweight, perfectly balanced form to pierce through the resistance without looking back.
In that second, Seiun's heart pounded as if trying to burst from her chest. All thoughts were crushed by a single command: *Run to the limit! Victory is ahead!* The footfalls of the other Uma sounded chaotic behind her, but to her, they were sounds being left behind step by step until almost no trace of pressure remained.
Hot breath rushed from her lips as she thrust herself forward like an arrow released from a fully drawn bowstring. The track ahead shrank to a single straight line. The white finish line seemed to be calling her, challenging her, telling her to charge at it with all her life.
The roar of the crowd vibrated into her ears like waves crashing on a shore. But Seiun wasn't listening anymore. She felt the wind whipping her cheeks like tiny needles, the heat flowing through her leg muscles, and the frantic rhythm of her heart, racing beyond control.
Then, in the final moment before the finish line, she unleashed her last burst of speed like wings spreading wide. No hesitation. No energy held in reserve. Not even a thought of falling. She crossed the finish line in a state that felt almost like treading on air for a fleeting moment.
The stadium announcement and the crowd's triumphant roar erupted simultaneously. The giant scoreboard lit up instantly. Her name and number—Number 5—were displayed so prominently they were almost blinding. Even more so was the time shown beside it fast enough to make one's heart race after a blink, though not fast enough to touch the existing, lofty record.
But what made everyone turn their heads wasn't the time... it was the gap she had created.
The other Uma who had chased her seemed thrown into another world. The distance Seiun had opened wasn't just a lead... it was a tear, a separation of a different magnitude, something few could believe with their own eyes. Some girls were still gasping for breath, and even before they crossed the finish line, they knew that trying to catch Seiun had been futile since the latter half of the race.
Seiun slowed to a stop, sucking in a deep, forceful breath. Sweat trickled down her temples before she broke into a wide grin, her whole body trembling with excitement and pride.
"I did it..."
Her voice shook as she spoke, then she raised her hands above her head like a child who had just clutched the most important victory of her life. Even without breaking a record, the image she had created was powerful enough to make the entire stadium remember the girl in Number 5, who ran like a wind that had sharpened into a streak across the sky, showing everyone clearly that she was born to stand in front, not behind anyone.
---
As the other Uma finished one by one and the race concluded, Seiun walked, her breath still hot and ragged, back into the tunnel, heading for the competitor's lounge to prepare for the winner's concert that would begin in just a few minutes. The sound of her shoes hitting the floor still carried the excited rhythm of her emotions.
When she opened the door, she saw Hayato already waiting, leaning against the wall. He looked up at her immediately, as if knowing her timing perfectly.
"Oh, you're here, Seiun."
His voice was calm but clearly tinged with satisfaction. Hayato gave a small, broad smile before asking directly, without beating around the bush.
"So, how does it feel? Winning by such a crushing margin that no one could even come close."
Seiun, still panting slightly, looked up and smiled back. Her grin was so wide it was obvious her excitement from the victory hadn't faded. She lifted a hand to wipe the sweat from her cheek before replying without overthinking it, her voice still carrying a hint of breathlessness at the end of her sentence.
"Well... it's good. This feeling is second only to getting a full night's sleep, Trainer."
She laughed softly, stretching to relieve the tension from her all-out sprint moments ago. Her eyes still sparkled with the thrill of someone who had just seized a beautiful victory.
Hayato raised an eyebrow as if to say, *Is that really your answer?* But he couldn't help but smile.
"I guess that means it's really good, since if you could choose, you'd probably just sleep all day, right?"
Seiun made a face as if to argue, but couldn't hold back her smile.
"Well, yeah... But this is good too. Winning like this... it's like a weight lifted off my chest."
She clenched a fist once, as if still feeling the tremor from her final explosive burst of speed.
"All that training... it really worked perfectly. Thank you, Trainer."
Hayato nodded slightly and gave her a light shove on the shoulder.
"Well then, save that joy for later. You've got a concert to do next. Don't space out and fall off the stage, understand, Seiun?"
"I'm not that clumsy!"
She retorted immediately, but her face flushed faintly, like someone not a hundred percent confident. Together, they walked deeper into the lounge, preparing for the next stage that awaited them...