Among all the Twinkle Series races Oguri Cap had run before, the fastest opening 1000 meters she had ever experienced was merely in the 59-second range. That was already considered quick—but 58.5 seconds was an entirely different realm.
This was a 2400-meter, middle-to-long-distance G1. A first 1000 meters at 58.5 seconds was more than enough to make any Uma Musume running near the front feel a chill crawl up their spine. Yet in the eyes of Shuta An and Symboli Rudolf, neither Oguri Cap nor Super Creek would be shaken by this so-called "super-high pace."
"What a joke," Shuta An scoffed quietly when he heard the live commentator's doubts. He pursed his lips in faint displeasure. "Oguri deliberately let the runaway runners get far ahead. She didn't press them at all. On paper the pace looks insane, but in reality, Oguri's own 1000-meter pace is closer to the 60-second range. That's completely within her comfort zone."
—
Just as Shuta An had judged, once the pack entered the straight opposite the grandstand, Oguri Cap settled into a position slightly to the right-rear of Folkqueen. She couldn't fully enjoy the slipstream anymore—but in exchange, she ensured something far more important: her acceleration path would not be blocked later.
At the same time, the psychological pressure on Folkqueen quietly intensified.
From the New Zealand Uma Musume's perspective, she only needed to tilt her head slightly to glimpse Oguri Cap's gray figure looming behind her. That presence alone forced her to divert part of her attention, constantly monitoring Oguri Cap's movements.
Oguri Cap, meanwhile, was completely unbothered.
She had already noticed that the Uma Musumes on her right—the outer lane—were tangled in their own positional disputes, with no intention of cutting in to seal her path.
"That's right," Oguri Cap murmured inwardly. "It's the Japan Cup now. There's no reason for everyone to focus on me alone."
—
By the time the entire field entered the back straight, Shuta An remained seated on the sofa, calmly holding the coffee Berno Light had handed him.
"When we're about to enter the next bend," he said evenly, "Oguri needs to shift a few steps outward and break free from the pack."
Berno Light raised an eyebrow. "So early? At this pace, those two runaway Uma Musumes will lose speed sooner or later anyway."
"That's precisely why," Shuta An replied patiently, turning his head toward her. "Once Eve Binty and Thief Crow start decelerating, they have no obligation to open a lane for the runners behind them. If Oguri doesn't break out early, she'll be the one getting blocked."
He took a sip of his coffee.
"Folkqueen understands this too. She'll probably change lanes later as well."
Setting the empty can down, Shuta An continued, his tone growing sharper. "Look at the data alone, and this race screams ultra-high-speed, front-loaded pace. But once everyone realizes that, they all choose the same thing—let the runaway runners burn each other out, and pile up behind."
"If no one actively moves forward to secure position," he concluded, "they'll be in serious trouble once they hit the final straight."
"For example…" Berno Light's eyes flicked across the screen. "Inari One?"
"Exactly." Shuta An narrowed his eyes. "Inari One is used to trailing, so she naturally stayed back this time too. On the surface, that's not wrong—but she overlooked one thing. With how this race is unfolding, staying too far behind means being swallowed by the pack. Even without anyone targeting her, she'll be buried by sheer traffic once they enter the final straight."
Berno Light nodded slowly. "No wonder Ann kept insisting Oguri take a forward position. It looks dangerous at a high-speed pace, but once the runaway runners are left to fight among themselves, the pace experienced by the front group is actually very manageable."
"When analyzing a race," she murmured, "you can't let numbers blind you."
—
And just as they were about to enter the final bend—
Oguri Cap stepped outward again.
Two clean strides.
In an instant, she widened the gap between herself and Folkqueen, slipping free of the partial obstruction.
Folkqueen, who had been watching Oguri Cap the entire time, naturally noticed the move. Yet she did not follow diagonally to block her. She took it lightly, confidence unshaken.
"I'm not afraid even if you accelerate from behind," she thought coolly. "I won't let you catch me. And if I chase outward now—"
Some instinctive warning stirred within her. Recognizing the risk, Folkqueen chose restraint—allowing Oguri Cap to create space.
—
"How can she be so careless?!" Folkqueen's Trainer clutched his head in despair. "You said Oguri Cap was your biggest threat! Why aren't you blocking her now?!"
—
Shuta An noticed Folkqueen's restraint and sighed faintly.
"As expected…too much race experience," he admitted with a wry smile. "This trick won't work on her."
"Eh?" Berno Light turned toward him. "Did Ann prepare something there?"
"I wanted to bait Folkqueen into shifting outward," Shuta An explained, "then have Oguri use her balance to cut sharply back inside. That would've forced Folkqueen to block Super Creek instead."
He shook his head. "The idea came from Folkqueen's Mackinnon Stakes at Flemington. She won that race, but her balance through sharp, high-speed bends was poor. I thought I could exploit that weakness here."
"Unfortunately," he concluded, "she knows herself too well."
A pause.
"It also means Super Creek avoided a dangerous situation."
—
"But we've already entered the bend," Berno Light murmured. "There's less than 1000 meters left. When will Oguri accelerate?"
"Only after entering the final straight."
Shuta An stood up.
His gaze no longer rested on the TV screen. He walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, intent on witnessing what came next with his own eyes.
"My heart's beating faster," he said softly.
"Me too," Berno Light pressed a hand to her chest, eyes fixed on the distant finish line marker.
"Oguri's comeback race…" she whispered with certainty. "…will be a victory."
Before entering the final straight, Eve Binty and Thief Crow—the two Uma Musume who had forced an ultra–high-speed pace of 58.5 seconds per kilometer in this Japan Cup—finally began to lose speed. The lead they had carved out with sheer recklessness was swallowed up at an alarming rate by the pursuing pack.
Oguri Cap, having already shifted diagonally outward, was no longer concerned about being blocked by the two who were now decelerating. On the inside, Folkqueen was likewise unimpeded.
"When I catch them," Folkqueen calculated calmly, "I'll just step one lane inward and launch a decisive assault. That's how I've always overtaken opponents back home. I've tested it in training—Tokyo Racecourse can handle it. There's nothing to worry about."
Even so, Folkqueen never loosened her vigilance. Her greatest concern remained the presence behind her—Oguri Cap.
—
As they were about to enter the final straight, Oguri Cap suddenly took another step outward—started cornering and using the centrifugal force of the bend to throw herself forward. Despite her past injury, her explosive power—untouched and uncompromised—erupted in full. In an instant, she closed the distance to Folkqueen, even gaining half a horse length.
Folkqueen refused to yield.
Her resume of mile G1 victories was no bluff; her explosiveness was equally world-class. Less than a second after Oguri Cap accelerated, Folkqueen responded, surging forward with ferocity and reclaiming the half-length she had just lost, using the advantage of the inner lane.
The two Uma Musume now ran neck and neck.
—
In this moment, the most unfortunate was Super Creek, who had been following Oguri Cap closely all along. Because Oguri Cap had shifted outward twice, Super Creek was forced even farther outside to secure her own acceleration space.
She didn't dare gamble on the narrow gap between Folkqueen and Oguri Cap. Super Creek wasn't familiar with Folkqueen's racing habits, and if she attempted to cut through only to have Folkqueen suddenly close the door diagonally, she would be forced to brake.
Even a brief deceleration would be fatal—she would immediately be swallowed by unaffected opponents behind her.
So Super Creek chose caution over risk.
—
Farther back, Inari One, running at the tail of the pack, also prepared to break out and accelerate—only to realize the grim reality.
"I won't make it…" the Edo-accented Uma Musume clenched her teeth. "At this rate, by the time I move all the way to the outside, there won't even be 200 meters left. There's no room to chase."
Her eyes hardened.
"Damn it—I didn't account for this kind of final-straight development."
With no other choice, Inari One abandoned the idea of breaking out and plunged straight into the mid-pack, attempting to tear her way through by force.
—
After bypassing Eve Binty and Thief Crow, Folkqueen and Oguri Cap charged side by side toward the Japan Cup finish line. With 400 meters remaining, neither had gained even the slightest advantage.
"Then I'll have to use that," Folkqueen decided. "I only revealed it at the very end of the Mackinnon Stakes. My secret weapon."
Resolute, the Uma Musume from New Zealand finally withdrew part of her attention from Oguri Cap and turned it inward.
Concentrate. Transcend limits.
In her perception, her body seemed to be sealed within a cage—one formed by the very drink that bore her name. And then—
She broke free. Effortlessly. Naturally. As if she had done so countless times before.
The next instant, Folkqueen's eyes snapped open. Her speed surged once more, violently enough to leave Oguri Cap behind.
"Using a Zone against someone without one might be unsporting," she thought coolly, "but I sacrificed too much vacation time. I'm going back with a victory."
She glanced sideways at Oguri Cap once—then fixed her gaze ahead and charged toward the finish.
—
Inside the private box, Berno Light was stunned.
"What—what just happened?! She accelerated again?! Oguri's falling behind!"
Shuta An wrapped an arm around her waist and tightened his hold, his voice calm and steady.
"Don't panic," he reassured her. "Oguri can catch up. This is within both her expectations—and mine."
Yet inwardly, his thoughts churned.
It's been so long since she last unfolded her Zone—can she still do it? She always struggled with it before.
Oguri Cap hadn't raced for over half a year. Race intuition and Zone proficiency weren't things that could be trained in isolation. So as the Japan Cup entered its decisive clash against Folkqueen's Zone, Shuta An could only comfort Berno Light—and silently cheer for Oguri Cap.
—
The moment Oguri Cap felt herself being left behind, she understood.
"It's the same as Tama" she realized. "She's unfolded her Zone."
Yet Oguri Cap did not panic.
"Although I haven't raced for more than half a year—"
Her calm came from a simple truth—
"During these six months of forced rest from tendinitis, I kept daydreaming. I replayed every race I had with Tama last year—again and again. Every time, I relived how I broke the deadlock and won."
"And the Japan Cup—I've reviewed it countless times recently."
A sharp light flashed in the eyes of Japan's current strongest Gray Uma Musume.
She didn't need preparation. She didn't need buildup. With a single thought, she re-entered—
And instantly re-engaged Folkqueen, seizing the upper hand.
Folkqueen's eyes filled with disbelief. She couldn't understand why the opponent who had already been pressuring her would suddenly emit an aura equal to—no, even stronger than—her own after she unleashed her Zone.
"W–What… is this?!"
Behind them, Super Creek, and the even more distant Inari One, could only watch in despair.
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