Teio immediately rushed toward the spectator stands; it was clear she was very excited.
"Vodka and I will head over too."
Daiwa Scarlet pulled Vodka and walked toward Teio.
Gold Legend looked toward McQueen.
"...I'm going to see Ryan first. Please excuse me, Classmate Legend."
McQueen walked gracefully toward the backstage area.
As for Gold Ship, she was already on the stands selling yakisoba as a vendor.
"Great, I'm the only one left again. Being busy is good."
Even in her disappointment, Gold Legend did not forget to make a joke.
"The Derby that only the luckiest Uma Musume can win?"
Gold Legend gazed at the racetrack and muttered to herself.
"Rather than saying 'the luckiest Uma Musume wins the Japanese Derby,' it's more accurate to say—the Uma Musume who burns up her luck wins the Japanese Derby."
A dignified voice came from behind her.
Gold Legend turned her head to look—it was Symboli Rudolf.
It made sense; it wasn't surprising that a high-level event like the Derby would attract the Student Council.
"Greetings, President."
"Ah, greetings, Classmate Legend."
The two Uma Musume greeted each other.
"President, what did you mean just now?"
Gold Legend asked curiously, recalling Rudolf's previous words.
"Since Japan introduced the Graded System, excluding this year's Derby, more than half of the Derby Uma Musume have been plagued by injuries," the President explained, her expression calm but her words tinged with regret. "Many Uma Musume were forced to rest or even retire due to injuries after the Derby, and even those who could continue racing were significantly weaker than before. That's why I say, rather than the luckiest Uma Musume becoming the Derby winner, it is that they burned up their luck to attain the position of Derby winner."
Speaking of which, Teio is one of them too.
Gold Legend thought.
"Would you like to come to the Student Council's special seats? Consider it my thanks for looking after Teio," Rudolf said with a smile, extending an invitation to Gold Legend.
"...Should I go call Teio and the others over?"
"Teio would probably prefer to feel the atmosphere of the Derby up close."
Recalling her first meeting with Teio, Rudolf showed a doting father's smile.
"So, what is your answer, Classmate Legend?"
"It would be my honor."
...Following Rudolf to the exclusive seating area of the Tracen Student Council, Gold Legend looked around curiously.
"This is not the best viewing position for the race itself, but the field of view is the widest, suitable for watching the overall situation."
Rudolf introduced calmly.
"President, you're here. Hello, Classmate Legend."
Air Groove greeted Rudolf, nodded to Gold Legend, and seemed unsurprised by Gold Legend's arrival.
"Wow, you're here too, junior?" A familiar Osaka accent caught Gold Legend's attention.
"Tamamo-senpai, Oguri, you two came as well." Gold Legend turned and saw two familiar figures.
"Eeek, Little Legend only sees little Tamamo and little Oguri Cap—totally missed Big Sister here."
A soft pressure came from behind.
"My bad—could you get off me, Sister Maruzensky?"
Gold Legend answered with dead-fish eyes.
"So you're the rookie Rudolf has her eye on? Hi, I'm Mr. CB—just call me Senmei."
The dashing, handsome Uma Musume greeted Gold Legend.
"Hey, little colt, you made it too," the Dorm Head called over.
"Oh, so you're the promising newbie? I'm Amazon—come duel me sometime!" the other Dorm Head chimed in.
"Honestly, Brian, come say hello too."
The Emperor gave her Student Council a helpless shake of the head and beckoned the last member over.
"…I'm Narita Brian. Hello."
Brian, a stalk of grass between her lips, offered the greeting.
"Is the whole Student Council here now?"
After exchanging hellos, Gold Legend asked Rudolf curiously.
"After all, this Derby has the largest crowd in history."
Rudolf explained with a sigh.
"Largest?"
"196,971 people—thanks to Oguri Cap," Air Groove added, rubbing her brow.
Gold Legend glanced at Oguri Cap, who waved while slurping yakisoba she'd bought from Gold Ship.
"All right, the race is about to start—take your seats."
Without letting Gold Legend ask more, the Emperor gave the order… One by one the Uma Musume entered the gates as the announcer introduced the runners.
"Who do you think will win?"
Rudolf suddenly asked Gold Legend.
How should I know?
Gold Legend was speechless; she only recognized two of the racers below—Mejiro Ryan and Ines Fujin.
Still, to save Rudolf's face, she answered offhand, "Ines Fujin."
"I thought you'd pick the top favorite, Mejiro Ryan," Rudolf said with a smile.
"Why? Ines Fujin is a Front Runner—do you really think a Front Runner can take the Derby?" Air Groove asked in disbelief.
After all, no Front Runner had won the Derby in fifteen years.
"If I had to say… intuition?"
Gold Legend vaguely recalled that Ines Fujin was a Derby winner.
In her past life she'd never pulled Ines Fujin's card, so the memory was hazy.
"Intuition, huh? I'll be watching," Rudolf said, settling in as the race began.
Ines Fujin shot to the lead.
"Once you're in front, a Front Runner's only enemy is herself," Maruzensky commented, giving Gold Legend a lesson even while watching.
"Over the Derby distance, a Front Runner is under huge pressure—it's a high-speed war of attrition," Air Groove explained.
"Can she really hold this pace?"
Tamamo Cross watched the track with worry.
Ines Fujin kept setting the pace, leading by two or three lengths at the midway point.
"This is brutal!" Narita Brian frowned.
The blistering tempo Ines Fujin set was rare even for a Derby.
"At this speed, will they have anything left for the stretch?"
Air Groove asked anxiously.
"The straight at Fuchu—Tokyo Racecourse—is 526 meters; that's where the race will be decided," Rudolf judged.
Gold Legend stayed silent, captivated by the scene on the track.
"So dazzling…"
She murmured as she watched the girls battling it out.
"Here it comes," Oguri Cap said.
The field hit the final straight.
"White Dacheng—the Satsuki winner that year—has been chasing Ines Fujin the whole way; at this pace he must be spent," Narita Brian said, watching White Dacheng grit his teeth behind Ines.
"Mejiro Ryan's launching her move,"
Tamamo Cross warned, eyes on the rear.
"From the outside on the straight—impressive," Senmei Representative, a closer herself, admired.
"Looks like the winner will be one of those two—rumor has it they're roommates,"
Rudolf said, delighted.
"They're from our Mihono dorm," Amazon declared proudly.
"But Ines Fujin is clearly fading—the race looks over," Narita Brian said, regretful.
"Not necessarily," Gold Legend pointed. "Look!"
On the track, Ines Fujin shook off her pursuer.
"That's—"
The Emperor rose, stunned.
"Zone," Oguri Cap added.
"It's decided," Gold Legend said.
"The winner—Ines Fujin!"
The commentator's voice rang out in excitement, and the stands erupted in deafening cheers.
Two hundred thousand spectators chanted in perfect unison.
Ines! Ines! they shouted.
From this race on, every winner will probably get a call like that—though I wonder how many Horse Girls will ever earn that honor, Fuji Kiseki said with a smile as she watched the frenzy on the track.
Yes… Rudolf answered, staring blankly at the record flashing on the giant screen.
A new record, Oguri Cap added, expression unchanged.
Truly, every era brings forth its own geniuses, Rudolf sighed.
Gold Legend stood transfixed, gazing at Ines Fujin's spent figure.
For a long while, she said nothing.