The afternoon sun was quite blinding.
Starlight, breathing slightly hard, lay on the lawn with her hand shielding her eyes.
Looking through the gaps between her fingers, she narrowed her eyes and sighed with emotion.
"Summer is almost here again... I wonder what kind of fun things the summer training camp will have this time..."
Da-da-da—
The sound of footsteps trampling the lush grass approached from the distance, and Starlight's horse ears twitched.
She sat up slightly and looked up to see an orange-haired Uma Musume dressed in a vibrant red training suit, her slender legs striding powerfully past.
As the sound of the wind whistling past her ears subsided, Starlight couldn't help but remark: "Suzuka-chan's speed is getting more and more ferocious~"
"Indeed. It seems she has realized a stride that belongs uniquely to her..."
Beside her, Ryo Nishizaki stood with one hand in his pocket, similarly moved by the orange figure in the distance.
"So, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be training the Uma Musume of Team Spica?"
"Now, now, Starlight-chan, seeing Suzuka-chan running like that, don't tell me you don't have the urge to test your skills against her?"
"Our Suzuka-chan really wants to have a race with you."
As Ryo Nishizaki finished speaking, Silence Suzuka ran up to the two of them.
Having happened to overhear the conversation, her ears perked up.
Suzuka's eyes shimmered with a bright light as she looked at Starlight expectantly. "Starlight-chan..."
Blinking, Starlight found it difficult to refuse Suzuka. She gave Ryo Nishizaki a side-eye and let out a sigh.
"Sigh... Fine, sure. I'll run a lap with Suzuka-chan then."
Rising at a leisurely pace, Starlight brushed the dust and grass from her clothes, placed her hands on her hips, and waved them off.
"Excellent! Ahem! Everyone, Starlight and Suzuka are going to have a match. If you're interested, come have a look!"
Ryo Nishizaki clapped his hands, shouting toward the other members of Team Spica waiting behind him.
"What?! Starlight-senpai is going to race Suzuka-senpai..."
"I want to see! I want to see!" Vodka, who had been in the middle of squats, immediately stood up and ran over upon hearing this.
"Suzuka-chan and Starlight-senpai... I'm so excited." Special Week murmured as she ran over as well.
"Then I'll go have a look too." Mejiro McQueen climbed up from the ground and turned to leave.
On the opposite side, Gold Ship quickly grabbed McQueen's hand.
"Onegai~! McQueen-chan— finish this game of chess with me, okay? I'll do anything!"
Mejiro McQueen looked down at the ash-haired Uma Musume next to her, her tone cold and distant.
"You... didn't we agree to train together? These past few days, all the other Uma Musume have been working hard, but you..."
"Besides making me fly kites with you, being a poster girl for a yakisoba stall, and playing these tabletop games, where is the intention to train!? You really only think about yourself."
With that final sentence delivered flatly, McQueen ignored Gold Ship, shook off her hand, and walked briskly toward Starlight.
"No! McQueen-chan—" With teary eyes, Gold Ship reached out and cried out in mock agony.
"What's this? Starlight-senpai and Suzuka-senpai are racing? I'm interested too!"
Tokai Teio, who had just finished changing into her training suit in the clubroom, heard the news from afar and came skipping over on her small legs.
Suddenly, however, a tall figure blocked her path.
"Hehehehe... Teio-chan~"
"Wh-What do you want, Gold Ship..."
"Naturally, I have a favor to ask you~"
Seeing the mischievous glint in the other's eyes, Tokai Teio crossed her arms and stepped back.
"Yamero!"
"Don't be nervous, Teio-chan..."
After a bit of a scuffle, Tokai Teio managed to use her agile footwork to escape Gold Ship's encirclement.
By the time she reached Special Week's side, Starlight and Suzuka were already prepared at the starting line.
The two were running a Mile distance of 1800 meters. The weather was clear.
Seeing they were ready, Ryo Nishizaki held up his stopwatch, took the lollipop out of his mouth, and spoke.
"Ready... Go!!"
Whoosh—
Thump—
In an instant, all that remained in their wake was a howling gale, along with blades of grass and clumps of soil that had been crushed and kicked into the air.
One orange and one silver figure galloped across the turf at lightning speed.
The other Uma Musume who were training were naturally drawn to these two figures.
They stopped in their tracks, either clearing the way or standing still to watch.
Tojo Hana noticed them as well and shouted down to Grass Wonder, who was still in the middle of her training session.
"Grass Wonder, stop for a moment. Silence Suzuka and Starlight are having a match."
The rest of Team Rigil standing beside Tojo Hana also stopped their warm-ups upon hearing this, straightening up to look toward the track.
"Starlight-chan…"
Breathing slightly hard, Grass Wonder slowly moved off the track, her eyes fixed on the figures rapidly approaching.
Back on the field, Silence Suzuka watched the turf blurring past her. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of the silver figure trailing slightly behind her.
A faint smile played on her lips.
'Starlight-chan's presence is so distinct, so comforting…'
"But I won't give up this view to you, Starlight-chan!"
With a furrowed brow, Silence Suzuka lowered her stance and leaned forward.
Driven by her immense speed, her ponytail actually drifted mid-air, parallel to the ground.
Zip!
Watching the orange figure diagonally ahead accelerate again, Starlight's golden eyes shimmered.
She increased her speed as well, pressing hard on the pursuit.
In terms of pure speed alone, the current Suzuka wasn't far behind Starlight. Combined with her array of Great Escape skills, she managed to hold her own against Starlight for the time being.
Seeing that they were about to enter the middle leg after clearing the turn, Starlight's lips curled into a slight smirk.
"I didn't plan on using any other tactics anyway. Come then, 'Otherwordly Front Runner', feel my own power!"
As she spoke, Starlight's lead foot slammed onto the straightaway turf.
Bang!
A crisp, clear sound rang out as Starlight shifted her stride.
The rhythmic, penetrating sound of her footsteps began to echo across the training field, reaching the ears of every Uma Musume present.
If the first impression of Suzuka's movement was the lightness of a leaf drifting in the wind, then Starlight was that same leaf imbued with a sharp edge, turning it into a lethal hidden blade.
Holding his binoculars, Ryo Nishizaki watched the duel between the two runners with a look of shock.
This kind of pure speed provided the most intense sensory experience possible.
A few beads of sweat rolled down his forehead, he didn't even notice the lollipop in his mouth was about to fall out.
"Woah, that's incredible! Who's going to win?" Daiwa Scarlet asked, her voice a mix of nervousness and anticipation.
"Hard to say. Right now, Suzuka-senpai is about half a step ahead of Starlight-chan, but we're only in the middle of the race."
Reaching the final corner, a gentle breeze swirled around Silence Suzuka, carrying green leaves as a faint golden energy radiated outward.
Yellow Skill: [Second Wind]
Blue Skill: [Moxie]
Gold Skill: [Shrewd Step]
In a flash, Suzuka activated three skills. Her stamina recovered, and her speed saw a significant boost.
Within just a few breaths, Suzuka had pulled ahead of Starlight by about two lengths.
However, Starlight was not flustered. She watched the distancing figure with total composure as a golden light similarly erupted around her body.
Yellow Skill: [Shrewd Step]
Red Skill: [Flustered Front Runners]
Variant Blue Skill: [Energy Recovery & Acceleration]
As her skills activated, Starlight's speed began to close the gap with Silence Suzuka. Bursts of dazzling light applied pressure all around Suzuka.
Before even exiting the turn, Starlight's figure had already caught up to Suzuka and was now leading by half a length.
"Suzuka passed Starlight! No! Wait! Starlight has overtaken Suzuka again!" Ryo Nishizaki muttered to himself as he witnessed the intense back-and-forth.