The moment Liberty Island realized she could hear Panthalassa's voice without the other girl ever parting her lips, her mind drifted back to her first mock duel against Dream Weaver.
Back then, Dream Weaver had explained the true essence of a Zone.
"A Zone... is an extension of an Uma Musume's will."
Liberty Island finally understood the weight of those words. The voices she heard weren't literal shouts echoing across the turf; they were the raw intentions of her rivals, channeled through a spectral link.
The nature of that link required no explanation—it was the Zone itself.
During their earlier sessions, Dream Weaver's primary goal had been to guide and pressure Liberty Island.
To ensure her lessons hit home, she had chosen to shout her instructions aloud rather than rely on the subtle resonance of a mental link.
Because of that, Liberty Island had remained oblivious to the Zone's communicative properties. She certainly hadn't encountered opponents of that caliber during her run through the Triple Tiara.
Yet, being able to overhear their exchange was proof that Liberty Island was only a heartbeat away from manifesting her own Zone.
If she weren't, the wills of Panthalassa and Iresine's wouldn't be vibrating so clearly within her mind.
"Wahahahaha! Is that the pathetic wail of the weak I hear?"
"To be the one who witnesses the peak of my Great Escape... well, you can't say you lost to a nobody!"
Just as Liberty Island grasped the truth of the dialogue, Panthalassa's arrogant laughter rang out again, clearly mocking the disdain Panthalassa had just sensed.
As a powerhouse from France, Iresine wasn't about to let a slight like "weakling" slide. She roared back through the mental link.
"You brat!"
"Heh, if you've got the spine for it, come and get me!"
Liberty Island stole a glance at the girl to her left. Though visibly fuming, the French runner gritted her teeth and refused to rise to the bait again. Despite her fury, she kept her wits about her.
She knew that as a Pace Chaser, she couldn't afford to surge forward recklessly just because someone hurt her pride. Doing so would mean falling right into Panthalassa's trap.
In competitive sports, using trash talk to tilt an opponent and disrupt their rhythm is a classic move.
However, in Liberty Island's experience, such antics were usually reserved for the pre-race buildup. She never expected to see psychological warfare deployed so aggressively in the heat of a sprint.
So this is what it's like to compete among G1 elites, she thought.
It isn't just a test of physical prowess and technique. It's a siege on your mental fortitude. One moment of weakness, one slip in concentration, and you make an irrational call that costs you the crown.
Liberty Island had secured her status as an Undefeated Triple Tiara winner, and her strength was undeniable.
Yet, her rivals in the Triple Tiara had offered so little resistance that she was effectively a stranger to this level of high-stakes friction.
She was much like Narita Brian after winning two legs of the Triple Crown. Because the gap between Brian and her peers had been so vast, she hadn't faced a "real" opponent until she met Dream Weaver at the Kikuka-sho.
Her Zone had been stalled, stuck at the threshold for lack of a true challenge.
Liberty Island was in the same boat. The Triple Tiara hadn't provided the crushing pressure needed to awaken her Zone. However, she had one advantage Narita Brian hadn't: the VR simulation chambers.
Between dueling the legends of history and sparring with the mechanical Uma Musume ST-2 and Dream Weaver, she had learned to adapt quickly.
When her taunts failed to provoke a second reaction, Panthalassa stopped trying.
While some theories suggested the Great Escape worked by inducing panic and stamina loss in the chasing pack, Panthalassa preferred the purity of the run itself.
Much like Dream Weaver once did, she simply wanted to outrun the world.
As Panthalassa fell silent, a heavy stillness returned to the track. Each Uma Musume executed her strategy with surgical precision. The formation remained locked.
In a lesser race, these G1 athletes might have attempted something daring or aggressive. But not at the Japan Cup. When nine G1-level peers share the same turf, every mistake is a scent picked up by eight hungry predators. In this environment, stability was the most rational path to victory.
The Japan Cup covers 2,400 meters, spanning four turns and three straights.
The opening straight from the gates is 325 meters long. Seventy-five meters after entering the first turn, the race shifts into the middle phase.
From that point until the final turn, the girls have to cover 1,265 meters. During this stretch, there is zero margin for error.
The pressure was even more suffocating within the pack. Including Liberty Island, there were six G1-level girls using the Pace Chasing strategy. In this cluster, if anyone faltered for even a second, their position would be snatched instantly. Surrounded by titans, "not messing up" was the only definition of success.
This logic-driven stalemate turned the atmosphere oppressive.
Until the final turn arrived, these elite runners wouldn't—and couldn't—make a move. Maintaining one's composure while waiting for the perfect window was the ultimate test of this Japan Cup.
Outside the track, however, the spectators were anything but bored.
Panthalassa's Great Escape was a sight to behold. As she rounded the second turn and tore into the second straight, her fully unleashed Zone sent her speed skyrocketing.
She had opened a staggering eight-length lead over second-place!
And the gap was widening. Before the second straight ended, Panthalassa looked poised to extend that lead to ten lengths.
Faced with such a high-octane performance, every eye in the stands was glued to her. No one could help but marvel at such a breathtaking, cinematic style of racing.
"Panthalassa! Panthalassa is still accelerating! Neither Equinox nor Liberty Island can even catch a glimpse of her shadow! Is this battle of the successors going to end with her Great Escape?!"
"Not a chance."
Listening to the announcer's sensationalist commentary, Sea the Stars let out a cold, dismissive snort.
"I've watched Panthalassa's races. She can't maintain that velocity for 2,400 meters. Her speed will dip once she hits the third turn. By the time they reach the final straight, that gap will have shrunk to three or four lengths at most."
"And Equinox's closing kick will devour those three or four lengths in the blink of an eye."
Sea the Stars turned toward Dream Weaver. "She's trying to mimic your old style. It's a shame her specs aren't quite there; she can't fully recreate the brilliance you had back then."
Dream Weaver didn't take the bait. She simply kept her gaze fixed on the track and spoke softly.
"Just watch the race."
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.