As expected, Gotham Song could already picture tomorrow's newspaper headlines.
Miss Gentildonna dominates completely, Almond Eye utterly defenseless?!
Well, headlines like that were bound to appear. Even if they didn't, Gotham Song wouldn't take responsibility for it—after all, it wasn't like she was the one editing such sensational things.
But still, the fierce battle at the end of the race moments ago… really was something.
Gotham Song still vividly recalled that final scene. Almond Eye was practically burning herself alive, launching an attack so ferocious it bordered on absurdity.
Her ignited Zone brimmed with aggressiveness. Yet, even so, Gentildonna met it head-on with the most straightforward and dignified response imaginable.
If your trump card is only your Zone, then it's nowhere near enough…!
Gentildonna ignited her own Zone in reply. In that final hundred meters, the two Uma Musume surged past their limits, racing side by side, utterly indistinguishable from each other.
But that inability to tell who was leading—was nothing but a complete illusion…
It lasted for just a brief moment. When the finish line appeared mere dozens of meters ahead, when the light of victory over Gentildonna finally seemed within grasp… Almond Eye suddenly fell half a length behind.
Her determination still burned fiercely, and her speed hadn't even dropped much. But at that moment, what had truly reached its absolute limit—something beyond salvation, even by sheer force of will—what exactly was it?
Endurance.
Due to Gentildonna's arrogant yet irresistible challenge, Almond Eye had already expended far more stamina than originally planned—so much more it was beyond endurance itself.
She'd launched her final move more than a thousand meters too early!
It wasn't that Almond Eye lacked skill. On the contrary, holding onto her pace almost perfectly until the finish line was already astonishing enough. Yet…
Yet, in the end, it was endurance that dragged her down, leaving her unable to keep pushing forward any longer…
Under Almond Eye's despairing gaze, Gentildonna accelerated once more, flames around her blazing even brighter, mercilessly, as if purposefully showing Almond Eye the cruel truth:
Not a shred of mercy was left!!!
Almond Eye—utterly defeated.
Though the final margin was only a short half-length, nowhere near as shocking as the crushing five-length gap in the previous Oka Sho, Almond Eye felt something deeper, something more terrifying in the core of her heart.
Last time, her defeat was due to Gentildonna's unexpected tactics; she could still rationalize it, still grit her teeth. But what about this time?
Did Gentildonna use any unexpectedly clever strategy today? No. Everything was clear as day. Almond Eye even held the advantage right up until Gentildonna launched her counterattack…
This time—it was a purely fair and square competition.
Unacceptable, unacceptable, unacceptable…! How can anyone accept something like this…!?
At the very end, on the glittering Winner's Concert stage, Almond Eye stood behind Gentildonna as her backup dancer. As she stared at the Uma Musume who had defeated her, her heart filled with an uncontainable bitterness, piling up, almost exploding outward.
Sooner or later… sooner or later, Gentildonna! I'll utterly destroy you! I'll make you my backup dancer… no, I'll make it so that you're not even worthy of sharing the stage with me! I'll make you gaze upon my dancing from below the stage…!
...
Gotham Song saw Almond Eye's barely hidden struggle clearly from the audience, but she couldn't care less about such things.
Putting aside whether Almond Eye could defeat Gentildonna while Gotham Song herself was still around—even if there was a chance, and honestly it wasn't that low—that would be something for later.
Although that did sound a bit like giving up or slacking off, but…!
Today's undisputed winner was Gentildonna alone. There was only one name at the top of the Oaks Stakes: Gentildonna, not you, Almond Eye!
Gotham Song watched the Winner's Concert from below the stage. To be honest, Almond Eye's condition seemed frighteningly bad compared to the last Oka Sho, despite the gap narrowing. But Gotham Song had no particular thoughts on this. She simply recorded her Uma Musume's dance, preparing afterward to welcome Gentildonna back to Mejiro Manor.
Still, now that the Oaks Stakes had thoroughly concluded, what should she do next?
It wasn't like Gotham Song had nothing else to do… well, alright, perhaps she really did have an abundance of free time each day—at least at the moment?
According to her own racing schedule, Gotham Song's next race would be the Breeders' Cup.
Well, see? There was something scheduled, wasn't there? How could she be that free?
The issue was—the Breeders' Cup was a year-end event…! And what month was it right now?
Late May, dammit! There was a full half-year, enough time to do whatever she wanted. Maintaining racing form didn't require extra intensive training either. From Gotham Song's own perspective, she wasn't merely "somewhat free"—she had so much free time that she had to look for something to occupy herself with…!
So then, what was the most important thing right now?
As she boarded the car hand-in-hand with Gentildonna, perhaps it was time to start preparing Gentildonna's strategy for the final leg of the Triple Tiara—the Shuka Sho?
Gotham Song had already begun collecting all relevant data.
Kyoto Racecourse… a two-thousand-meter course, huh… Somehow, it still seemed advantageous for Gentildonna? Sure, the distance might suit Almond Eye's strengths more overall, but still.
Kyoto Racecourse had its famous slopes, a killer endurance test designed to torment one's soul, right?
When they got home, she'd definitely have Gentildonna ramp up slope training. After all, her own Uma Musume had such monstrously gifted stamina—letting it go to waste would be criminal…!
Sitting in the car, Gotham Song hadn't considered every detail just yet, but the broad outlines of the strategy had already taken shape in her mind. All that remained was to properly review today's race footage, right?
"Donna-chan, how did the race feel? This straight-up battle against Almond Eye in the Oaks Stakes."
"It was… quite easy? When Almond Eye-san accelerated to catch up and activated her Zone, she was already staking her life on that moment. So I made sure to keep myself from getting dragged into her desperate pace."
Truly excellent judgment. On the racecourse, Gentildonna was so calm she didn't even feel like a rookie Uma Musume…
Normally, even after identifying an opponent's weakness, Uma Musume often got impatient, especially in situations like the last stretch, where Gentildonna and Almond Eye actually ran neck-and-neck.
Yet her own team's Uma Musume was so reliable—once given instructions, she would execute them perfectly to the very limit…
Gotham Song unconsciously lifted her hand, and Gentildonna, sensing her Trainer's intentions, gently lowered her head.
Thus, for the first time—and indeed, the first person ever—Gotham Song placed her palm atop her own Uma Musume's head, gently stroking hair whose silky softness bordered on excessive.
"But… I did notice one thing. Almond Eye-san seems even more obsessed with defeating me now."
"Is that so? Then Donna-chan, does that obsession frighten you at all?"
Gentildonna blinked. Perhaps thinking that the head patting wasn't enough, she pressed one hand against the car door, using the leverage to move even closer to Gotham Song.
Huh, strange… Did Donna-chanever want to be this close before…?
"Not at all, Trainer-sama. Rather… you could say it excites me?"
Excited to be cornered, chased, and targeted by her opponent like this… If Almond Eye was easily defeated, wouldn't that be incredibly boring…?
Gentildonna wasn't afraid of challenges—she absolutely didn't fear any challenge at all. Rather, for an Uma Musume like her, who chased after absolute strength and held complete confidence in herself—
Having no challenge would be far more unbearable, right?
Don't be so boring now… hehe.
Clearly, Gentildonna's expression had become quite terrifying, but Gotham Song didn't particularly mind. Instead, her own calmness made her sink into deep contemplation once again.
So that's why Uma Musume really were incredible. Clearly such terrifying beings, yet she felt no discomfort whatsoever. After all, this was simply what Uma Musume were…
"However, Trainer-sama, may I ask a favor?"
"A favor? Go ahead, I'm listening."
Gentildonna raised the corners of her lips, like a devil baring her fangs.
"As for the tactics in the Shuka Sho—leave it all to me. Trainer-sama only needs to review the final result to see if it's acceptable."
I want… to personally tear apart everything Almond Eye has, using my own methods.
"I see… if that's what Donna-chan wishes, then I'll allow it."
Perhaps Gentildonna had a rather nasty side in this sense, didn't she? Gotham Song thought inwardly.
Yet was there any reason for her to refuse? After all, it wasn't as if she would totally ignore or refuse to help. It was simply handing over the initiative to Gentildonna herself.
Besides, she was looking forward to it, wasn't she?
Looking forward to seeing just what kind of strategy Gentildonna could show her… As a Trainer, how could she not eagerly anticipate her Uma Musume's growth?
Growth of the Uma Musume on her own team!
...
At around the same time Gentildonna was still discussing these matters with Gotham Song, Almond Eye quietly left the venue alone. She returned to her own home, turned on the lights, and then curled herself tightly into a corner of the room, arms wrapped around her knees.
Honestly, the drop in expectation was too severe. When she first stepped onto the racetrack, she had been chasing after Gotham Song as her goal. But now—forget challenging Gotham Song, she couldn't even surpass Gentildonna's strength right now…
At least, that was how things looked at this moment.
How did things end up like this…?
When she lost at the Oka Sho, Almond Eye hadn't felt anything particularly deep. She'd merely felt frustration, unwillingness to accept it… How could she ever accept defeat that came from an unexpected, explosive strategy like that?
But well, a loss was still a loss. Almond Eye had accepted her defeat at the Oka Sho rather cleanly and thoroughly. Gentildonna's brilliant tactics had crushed her so completely that there wasn't even a hint of room for struggle—she could only watch helplessly as the opponent crossed the finish line.
As a future legendary Uma Musume, Almond Eye naturally had the courage to accept her own defeat.
But the problem was, losing due to tactics at the Oka Sho was perfectly normal—but this time…!
What about this Oaks Stakes?
Unlike last time's sudden explosive attack, Almond Eye couldn't exactly say she'd had a complete advantage in this race. Still, at least before Gentildonna started accelerating, hadn't Almond Eye been the Uma Musume on the track with the greatest advantage?
No matter how one looked at it, the one who lost shouldn't have been her, right?
The legendary Trainers invited by the URA had clearly said before the race—as long as she stuck tightly to Gentildonna, not giving her any room for sudden acceleration like at the Oka Sho, then with Almond Eye's superior speed advantage, victory at the Oaks Stakes would absolutely, without question, be hers.
But what about the result?
Almond Eye really did stick closely to Gentildonna's pace. She had gripped onto her firmly, securely, never once allowing herself to fall behind. Yet even then—even after completely adhering to every precaution and reminder she'd received before the race—
She still lost.
Completely different from being defeated by tactics in the Oka Sho, Almond Eye had lost purely through raw ability this time. Utterly and undeniably crushed beneath her opponent's feet.
The contrast was too painful…
A powerful and confident Uma Musume like Almond Eye would naturally never assume failure before a race. That kind of mindset had its advantages—it allowed her to remain steady and powerful on the track, reducing fluctuations from her mental state. But what was the cost?
The cost was that once she actually faced defeat, the resulting backlash would be even more severe, dragging her deeper into pain and misery.
If it had been an ordinary Uma Musume, perhaps this wouldn't be such a big deal. After all, objectively, many had experienced numerous defeats. But for Almond Eye—who had enjoyed smooth sailing her entire career, yet now stumbled one after another in two races she'd believed she could certainly win—the experience of adjusting to defeat was utterly, in every sense, unfamiliar territory.
Lowering her head onto her knees, Almond Eye curled her normally proud, full figure into a small ball in her room. She began thinking—how exactly should she face the next race? How should she approach the coming Shuka Sho?
What if… she lost to Gentildonna again?
For the first time in her life, Almond Eye tasted an emotion completely unfamiliar to her.
The fear of defeat.
---
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