"It seems there's been an accident?! Nakayama Festa has suffered a collision and appears to be bleeding!"
"But Nakayama Festa's pace hasn't stopped! She's still running!"
At this moment, the originally extremely excited announcer's tone finally showed a hint of panic. After all, any injury to a horse girl on the track was an extremely serious matter for the racecourse, especially since a large-scale dangerous incident had just occurred a while ago.
A few months ago, a major incident that shook the Japanese horse girl community occurred in a race. Not long after the race started, when the horse girls came to the first turn, a collision occurred while they were fighting for the advantageous position on the inside lane. And several horse girls were squeezed together during the collision and fell to the ground, and even retired from the race due to injury.
Because of this serious incident, the JRA officials attached great importance to it and severely punished the horse girls and trainers who had directly or indirectly caused this large-scale accident. Many horse girls were banned for several months, and even the racecourse where this race was held was closed for several months for internal rectification and punishment.
For this reason, the JRA had also vigorously given a second test on the "correct response to dangerous incidents" to the staff of all the racecourses in Japan, which had caused everyone at the racecourse to complain, and the announcer also had a deep impression of it.
But now, what surprised the announcer, the audience, and even the horse girls in the race was that she had no intention of withdrawing from the race because of this accident—no, it should be said that she didn't even have the thought of slowing down!
She still had to run, running on despite the double blow of being injured and being hit! She didn't even hesitate for a moment because of the bleeding. On the contrary, she became more and more excited and crazy!
Yes, she's definitely crazy! At this moment, all the horse girls on the track, including the most stable Mejiro McQueen, had such a thought in their minds!
"Crazy? If you treat madness as an obstacle, then it only shows that you are different from us!"
Beside Rudolf, at some point, Stay Gold, whose inner flame had been ignited by her performance, at this moment, as if telepathically, her emotions also became extremely亢奋!
Under the slightly horrified gazes of Rudolf, C.B., and Tokai Teio, she saw that her eyes, which seemed to be burning with dark flames, were filled with the same madness as her on the track, and her face had a gratified smile as she said, word by word, "Madness, anxiety, fear... all the negative emotions that are regarded as a huge threat by ordinary horse girls are the best stimulants for us Gold Family horse girls!"
"Even if everyone is different, but they will also turn these emotions into the driving force to move forward, and crush all obstacles with crazy wildness!"
"This is the Gold Family! This is the strength of the Gold Family's horse girls! You finally learned it, you finally mastered it! Nakayama!"
With that, under the incomprehensible and horrified gazes of everyone around, she, while letting out a hair-raising and creepy laugh, had two lines of clear tears slowly flowing from her eyes. This "silver medal collector," the first horse girl of the Gold Family to go into battle, even when she was crying with joy, she was so incomprehensible.
But it didn't matter. She knew that she didn't need more people to understand her. It was enough for the people she cared about to know her intentions... for example...
Stay Gold, who was laughing up at the sky, after calming down, turned her gaze to the not-far-away, extremely nervous, but tightly gritting his teeth, his hands gripping the railing and forcing himself not to interrupt his charge's performance, Kitano Ryuichi. A gentle smile that no one had noticed once again appeared on her face.
"...As expected, I didn't misplace my trust in you, Kitano."
And not far away, Mejiro Palmer, who now had almost the same thoughts as her, after seeing her on the track, even though her head was bleeding, but was still roaring and running forward, as if she had turned all of herself into a burning grit, she understood that the result of this race was already set.
"McQueen has lost. She will be surpassed by her. Even if not, she will be penalized after the race. Whether it's in terms of strength or result, she has lost this time."
"Kitano Ryuichi... what a miracle worker. Your second evaluation... is excellent."
With words only she could hear, a mysterious smile hung on her face as she walked alone to the exit. She was now certain of his outstanding talent as a trainer—not only in terms of his ability as a trainer, but also in his excellence as a trainer in instilling his will in his charge.
Of course, she knew that her posture was forced out by Oguri. But she knew even better that she had been using matters concerning him to provoke her, to force her into such a "desperate situation."
And after being injured, she did not stop, but rushed forward even more aggressively—in this, if there was no support from the belief of certain victory born from him, she did not think that the Gold Family, with such sensitive nerves, would be indifferent to such a collision and quickly adjust her state.
"So, two tests have been approved. The test prepared for you is only the last one."
Before leaving, she also couldn't help but turn her head slightly and cast her gaze at her sister, who was staring intently at the track, and her presumably naughty and proud daughter. A hint of unknown excitement flashed in her pupils, and her mysterious smile also quietly widened a few points...
"—My dear sister, this is your last chance. Before I have finished my test on him, you still have a chance to snatch him back."
But if you can't seize such an opportunity... then this time, whether it's from the family or from my own selfishness, I will not let you have him anymore.
...
Excitement, pain, joy, torment...
Was this a torment to herself, or a moment she should enjoy? Nakayama Festa had no time to think about these. She only knew that the finish line was right in front of her, but her legs and feet had already started to hurt and ache. Although there was no sign of a fracture, she could feel the feeling of overdraft after exceeding her limit.
She knew very well that although she was skilled at gambling and was a master in analyzing data and cheating, as a gambler, she had always lacked the most needed characteristic of a gambler—luck.
The lack of luck had also made her lose more than win in gambling. But she enjoyed it. Because every time she started to get carried away and put up the biggest bet, she would often be the one who won!
An all-in showdown was always her best bet! This was also the same on the racetrack.
In this race, she had placed three heavy bets. She was gambling, a big gamble—"gambling that he would not come and interrupt her crazy state," "gambling that she would not fall on the inside lane of the heavy track," and "gambling that she could definitely break through her limit and burst out with all her potential"!
Each of these three bets had a very small probability of winning. But as long as she won all of them, then she could definitely win this gamble and take back all the chips she had lost in all her previous defeats with her own hands!
Facts proved that she had won the bet! She had successfully avenged her shame, cleared away all her previous shame, and had won her first G1 race!
"What a thrilling gamble... you're also an excellent gambler, Mejiro McQueen."
"But it's a real pity. This time, I won."
In the intersection, her body finally stepped over the finish line one step ahead of her! Blood, sweat, and tears, at this moment, with her confident smile, dripped onto this racecourse...
"She's crossed the line! Nakayama Festa! It's actually her?! The ninth favorite! Incredible! She defeated Mejiro McQueen! As a classic year horse girl, she has won the championship of the Tennō Shō (Autumn)!"
"Second place is Mejiro McQueen, third is Mejiro Ryan, fourth is Silence Suzuka—now, we see that the deliberation light is on. We need to re-evaluate the ranking!"
However, this time, perhaps because her injuries were too obvious, the deliberation committee had already repeatedly watched the video of that dangerous collision. A moment later, with the staff sending a deliberation result to the commentary booth, the announcer quickly announced the final verdict of the deliberation.
"After deliberation, Mejiro McQueen had a very obvious diagonal run after passing the final turn. It has been judged as a dangerous act that seriously obstructed the path of the subsequent horse girls. After discussion, the deliberation committee has decided to lower her race result from second place to eighteenth place."
The moment the announcer's verdict was read out, the entire audience was in an uproar. However, for this result, she herself was not surprised, but she still closed her eyes with a little regret and took a long time to calm down.
...Forget it. On the bright side, at least I didn't do the victory pose after I thought I had won, and then was judged to have committed a foul and had my ranking lowered, right? She also temporarily made up an excuse to comfort herself, but she still sighed a long sigh, feeling sorry for this victory that should have been won.
"But I didn't lose unfairly. After all, her last sprint was really too strong. Even without this collision, I might not have been able to win."
She murmured to herself and also turned her gaze to her, who was bleeding from her head on the side. Watching her wretched appearance, but who, under the uproar of the entire field, still raised her fist high and let out a victorious roar, she also couldn't help but show a relieved smile.
As expected, the horse girls of the Gold Family are really not to be underestimated. This is truly a "gambler who seeks life in death."
"This time, it was my defeat. But next time, on the track of the Arima Kinen, I will personally take back today's defeat."
She took the initiative to approach her. Faced with her, whose blood seemed to have stopped due to the recovery ability of a horse girl, she also, after a dignified bow, issued a declaration of war to her with a full fighting spirit.
This was her recognition of the other party as her true rival. At this moment, she had acknowledged her as the third formidable enemy worth her attention in this era, besides Tokai Teio and Gold Ship!
"Let's meet again in the Arima Kinen, gambler who seeks life in death. Next time, I will definitely make you lose everything."
"—Then let's give it a try."
Faced with her outstretched hand, she also smiled and shook hands with her. Soon, the stands also, because of the current scene, finally broke into applause and cheers again, giving the revived her the treatment she deserved as a winner.
However, it was at this very moment that a strange, wicked smile suddenly appeared on her face. Just as she was wondering, she only heard her warn, word by word, "Because of me, I have caused you to be injured. I am very sorry. I will come to your door to express my apology another day."
"It's just that, given that you are about to be injured a second time, I will take my leave first."
"Eh?"
And faced with her, who had chosen to leave the moment she had let go, she had not reacted at first. It was not until she found that the surrounding horse girls were all looking behind her with strange gazes that she finally came back to her senses and subconsciously turned her head.
And when she found that he had quietly stood behind her, his eyes staring at her, this gambler, who was as fierce as a beast on the racetrack, actually did not dare to look him straight in the eye and chose to flee the scene at the first moment!
With her understanding of him, she certainly knew that he was definitely angry! He, who could not stand to see his charge have an accident and had repeatedly told her about the safety issues of the race, upon witnessing her running to win the race with a bleeding head, would definitely have his blood pressure explode and be half-dead with anger!
And so, after weighing the pros and cons, she had chosen to run at the first moment. I can't fight back, but can't I run? I'll just apologize after his anger has subsided a bit...
However, just as she was thinking this, she, who had just taken a step, suddenly felt her legs go weak, and her whole body almost fell down uncontrollably...
But just as she was about to kneel on both knees and fall down helplessly, he, who seemed to have guessed this situation, with his quick eyes and hands, at the first moment, wrapped his arms around her waist and forcefully supported her limp body.
"Gold Ship, Spe-chan, give me a hand."
His words fell, and soon, they also, at the first moment, supported her body. He couldn't hide his worried expression. He half-squatted down and looked at her lowered face. After confirming that she was still conscious, he also breathed a sigh of relief.
"How are you? Festa? Is there any place that is very uncomfortable?"
"...It's nothing. I just feel a little tired."
And she, who had overdrawn her stamina and belatedly felt the strain, also felt completely exhausted and began to sweat. But she still forced a smile and strenuously extended her hand to touch the wound on her forehead.
"You see, I'll be fine. This little wound, with a horse girl's recovery ability, will soon... ah..."
"What's wrong?" He saw her fall into a daze and subconsciously asked a little nervously. And he only saw her hand fumbling around the edge of her knit cap...
It was probably when she had hit the railing that her knit cap had also been torn by some uneven places on the railing. A small and not-so-small hole had appeared on her knit cap. Her beloved knit cap was torn, and her mood also couldn't help but be a little gloomy. She answered in a low voice, "It's torn here."
"Honestly, this is my favorite hat..."
"It's okay. I'll help you mend it. I guarantee it will look the same as usual."
And from their hands, he took her. He let her hand rest on his shoulder. His heart, which should have been full of complaints and worries, was dissipated by her words, and he could no longer be angry.
"Now, as a winner, is there anything you want to do, Festa?"
"Yes... how about a winner's exit ceremony?" She saw that his anger had subsided, and her heart was also relieved. To liven up the atmosphere, she also followed his words and answered half-jokingly.
However, after her words had fallen, he had actually thought about it with particular solemnity. The next moment, she only saw his body slightly descend. The next moment, with a feeling of weightlessness, the scenery in front of her was also a blur!
And when she had come back to her senses, she was already, under the watchful eyes of everyone, being held in his arms in a princess carry!
In a daze, her mind went blank. Then her whole face turned red as if it was bleeding. Her original weakness was also swept away, and she said with a red face, "What are you doing?! This is a racecourse! Your body has just gotten a little better and you're trying to be a hero?!"
"Hey! Are you listening to me! You bastard! I'm going to fall! How are you so bad at holding people?!"
"Heehee, how interesting~" And not far away, Gold Ship, who was witnessing her being carried away from the racecourse by him, also said to the crowd around her with a smiling face. It was just that she seemed to have deliberately not noticed that in the entire field, besides her, who was completely unconcerned, everyone, after witnessing him carrying her away, had different expressions...
And the most dangerous gaze came from a certain prospective undefeated Triple Crown in the stands. Tokai Teio, who had witnessed this scene, her dark eyes also flashed. Her slightly pursed lower lip and her raised eyebrows all became the kindling for the flames of displeasure and jealousy that were about to burst out of her eyes...
....
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