Three years later…
It had been years since that race.
Ever since then, Rush had continued to participate in the school race every year, gradually building a reputation for herself.
Over time, she became one of the names people expected to see at the front. She even managed to win once, while Murashi claimed another victory in a different year.
Meanwhile, Mary never joined the race again after that single appearance. Her father believed she had already proven enough by participating once.
Her next objective had always been clear—the Entrance Exam Race of Tracen Academy, the gateway before stepping onto the national stage.
As for Urara, she still barely managed to reach fourth place in the qualification races. However, she had improved by a large margin thanks to the occasional training sessions she had with Rush, Lidden, and Young.
But as more years passed, Urara spent less time with Rush. Rush had become busier, surrounded by more people and responsibilities, and had even been assigned a trainer. Slowly, the time she shared with Urara, Young, and Lidden became rarer.
Meanwhile, Lidden consistently qualified for the races every year, though she never managed to reach the podium. She always placed just outside it—fourth.
Young, however, had completely lost the mobility of her legs and had been in a wheelchair for a year ever since.
Now it was their final year.
Their homeroom teacher had distributed forms asking about their future plans—which academy they intended to pursue after graduation.
Sitting at her seat, Urara stared down at the form.
Her arms crossed as she grumbled to herself.
"Erm..."
"What should I do…"
Then, Young and Lidden arrived beside her desk.
"Urara, wh—what are you doing? You still haven't filled out your form yet?" Lidden asked.
"No…" Urara replied, shaking her head. "I want to be the greatest Umamusume, but I don't actually know where to begin!"
"Well… maybe you can sign up like Lidden in the local school?" Young suggested from her wheelchair with a shrug. "I mean, it's pretty close for us to reach that level of racing."
"Whoa! Does that mean I'm going to be on a national level and potentially be on television for everyone to see?!" Urara beamed as she turned toward them.
Young and Lidden exchanged awkward looks, scratching their heads.
"Well… not really."
"It's more like a regional race, and possibly at most we can get on the local channel…?" Young added with an uneasy smile.
"Oh…"
Urara crossed her arms again, thinking deeply.
"Then, I should go look for another school!" she declared. "I want to be on television so everyone can cheer me on if I ever start racing!"
She puffed her cheeks slightly while continuing to think.
"I wonder where I should go…"
Until—
"What, Mary, did you really aim for Tracen Academy?!" one of the classmates gasped.
"It's a school literally for elites!" another exclaimed.
"I mean, based on Mary's level, there shouldn't be any major issue. After all, Mary is already on the national level in terms of her performance," another girl added proudly.
Meanwhile, Mary, as usual, ignored them completely and continued filling out her form.
Nearby, Urara tilted her head.
"Tracen… Academy?" she muttered. "What is that?"
"Well…" Young replied from her wheelchair, "As they said, it's a school filled with elites. One where small Umamusume like us shouldn't even think about…"
"Yo—you wouldn't even be considered if your performance was subpar to the general elites. Only the top of the top are allowed," Lidden added nervously. "Mean—meanwhile, someone like Mary Jane, her enrollment shouldn't be difficult given her performance in our school."
"And matter of fact," Young continued, "even Umamusume like Sky or Murashi wouldn't be considered. It just shows how stringent this academy is in picking its students."
"It's also one of the only schools that procured students who were allowed to compete in national races, including G1 races. Even international…!"
Upon hearing that, Urara's eyes sparkled.
"Whoa!" she beamed.
"That sounds exactly like the school I wanted!"
"Didn't you hear us…?" Young replied, her left eye twitching slightly. "It's not really the school for us… Especially with our current performance."
"But who knows!" Urara responded brightly. "If you never try for it, you will never know whether they accept you or not!"
"And I believe my performance on the track shouldn't be an issue!" she added, puffing her chest proudly.
Young and Lidden exchanged glances before letting out small laughs.
"Well… you can try," Young said with a shrug.
"Bu—but if you ever reconsider, I wouldn't mind sharing our next school!" Lidden added. "It's better to have one more person I know to race with! Like we did last year!"
Urara nodded enthusiastically.
"Yeah! It was genuinely fun!"
"But…" Urara added quietly, "I still haven't got the chance to race Mary-chan…"
"Mary…?" Young said, raising a brow in confusion.
Urara nodded.
"Yes! Mary-chan! I promised to race her, and if I win, we can be friends again!"
"But… that still hasn't happened…" Urara murmured as her head lowered.
"Well, she never did race again after the first race you guys shared," Young added.
Urara then interrupted,
"And Rush-chan, too! I barely had a chance to hang out with her ever since our first race together!"
"Well, who could blame her?" Young replied with a shrug. "She's been busy ever since she was recognized by the school."
"She doesn't even have time for us nowadays… She was even assigned to the committee for the race this year," Young gestured toward Rush's empty seat.
"Ye—yet Mary Jane was still here… I wonder why..." Lidden added, her eyes drifting toward Mary.
"Well, I heard her father forbid her from attending any more race-related events at our school besides training," Young continued.
"I wonder if her father even thinks about letting her genuinely enjoy racing… or if it's only about winning…"
As Young kept talking, her voice slowly faded into the background.
Urara had turned toward Mary.
"Mary-chan…" Urara thought.
"It's already the last year for us to spend in the same school together…"
Her fist clenched slightly.
"I still haven't gotten the chance to race against you…"
"And I don't want us to end like this!"
"Maybe at Tracen Academy, we'll finally have a chance to race against each other and win!"
"So we can continue where we left off last time…"
"So we can still be…"
"...friends."
As Urara continued in her thoughts... Suddenly—
"Urara~!" a voice chimed, poking her cheek.
Urara startled and quickly turned toward the voice.
The moment she saw who it was, her face lit up.
"Rush-chan!"
"Hello!" Rush greeted with a smile. "How is my Urara doing?"
"Well!" Urara replied excitedly, jumping to her feet as if she hadn't seen Rush for years—given that they hadn't truly spent time together since their race.
"I found the school I want to attend! And I know I will fit right in!" she declared proudly, lifting her form and holding it up in front of Rush.
"Oh! Really? Let me see, let me see!" Rush said as she took the form.
The moment her eyes scanned it, she widened them in shock before letting out a small chuckle.
"No way! Urara, you really want to attend Tracen Academy?!"
Urara nodded vigorously.
"Yes! It's the perfect school for us after all!"
"I see…" Rush murmured as she continued reading the form.
"Remember our promise?!" Urara said eagerly. "Our journey to the URA's race?!"
"It's finally our chance to do it!" she added, her fist hovering proudly in front of her chest, "Let's go together, too, Rush-chan!"
"Well…" Rush stared at the form for a moment longer before handing it back to Urara. "I'll pass."
"W— What…?!" Urara froze. "Bu—but we promised that we're going to be in a big league together! And become the greatest Umamusume together!"
"Come on, Urara… It's been years," Rush said with a shrug. "You should've dropped it and been realistic by now."
She sighed, "When are you going to wake up and face it? You know we're never going to join a school this prestigious."
"Well!" Urara quickly interrupted. "If you never try, you never know if we could join the school this pre… pra… prest… presta… prestagous!"
"Prestigious," Rush corrected.
Urara tried again.
"Pre… pri… pre… pretigonous!"
"Never mind that!" Urara protested. "But Rush-chan!"
"I'm sorry, Urara," Rush said with a sigh again. "But I'll pass... I'll just join a school that's more likely to our standard…"
"I mean, you can try. I won't judge you for that. But be realistic, Urara. The moment they see our portfolio, it's straight to the bin."
"Besides… even I wouldn't be considered a candidate…"
"And you…?" she dragged dramatically, implying that if she couldn't, why should she.
A silence then fell between them.
Until Rush continued,
"Anyway," glancing at her watch, "you should've just followed Lidden and joined the local school. It's more your standard."
Suddenly—
"Oh, I'm late! I gotta run now! See you guys again another time, okay? Buh-bye!"
With that, as quickly as she arrived, she stepped away.
And with only a few seconds, she was already gone.
Meanwhile, Urara remained standing where she was.
Her hands clutched the form tightly.
Her head lowered slightly as her body trembled.
"Be realistic…?" she muttered quietly.
"But I am being realistic…" she continued softly.
"Realistic to our promises…"
"Ignore her," Young said gently from her wheelchair. "Just do what you want to do… I mean, Sky has changed a lot lately. She's become more confident… blunt, even."
"If Ur—Urara believes she can do it! Then you should just do it!" Lidden added quickly.
"After all, Urara is Urara! She always finds a way through the darkest tunnel and comes out brighter than ever!"
"And even if you fail," Young continued with a small smile, "we'll still be waiting for you at another school anyway."
Young looked at her.
"So… what will it be… Urara…?"