[RUN!!!]
The thunderous roar in the video drew all the horse girls into its atmosphere.
Treve was utterly absorbed now, eyes locked on the figure in front.
That lowered body, those steps that ground all pursuers to dust.
That gaze that clung to victory, the stance like a beast—
"Not just fast," Treve murmured.
In her eyes, this runner's figure was a gale that blew everything away, while her final kick was thunder that could split the earth.
She was unlike anyone Treve had seen.
"An explosive way of running… So there's a horse girl like this?!"
Treve watched as the runner suddenly detonated at the end, leaving afterimages in the video as she dumped the field and blasted through the finish.
Light blazed in Treve's eyes like never before.
Now, Treve had a single thought left:
"I really, really want to race this horse girl!!!"
————————————
"Grandma Heide!"
Treve ran home to find her only kin.
She looked at the white-haired elder with longing in her eyes. Bowing deep, she said:
"I'm sorry, Grandma Heide! I know I just said what I said, and going back on it isn't right."
"But I still want to ask you… um, um—!"
Treve hesitated, wanting to voice her wish, but fearing scolding, she couldn't bring it out.
A warm hand settled on her head; Grandma Heide smiled:
"Say whatever you want, little Treve. I don't recall teaching you to dither."
"Mm—!" Treve nodded hard, then raised her head to meet the old woman's eyes:
"I said earlier you should use that money for dentures—but now… please give it to me!"
"I've seen someone I must meet no matter what—someone I must run against—so I want to go to Japan!"
"..."
A beat of awkward silence. Treve shrank a bit under the lack of answer.
"Um… Grandma Heide?"
"Treve, how do you think I'll respond?" Grandma Heide sighed and helped her up.
"Uh… you'll scold me?" Treve ventured.
Whack. A fist bonked her head.
"Idiot!!!" Grandma shook her fist, fuming. "What grandma scolds her granddaughter for this!"
"When you looked at me like that, how could I not understand—take it!"
She fished out the money again and shoved it into Treve's hands. "If you want to run, I'll back you with everything. Wasn't that our promise?"
"..."
Treve clenched the worn, oil-smudged notes—clearly saved up bit by bit over the years.
"Mm!"
She said nothing more—only looked at her supporter and, holding back tears, nodded hard.
————————————
"Look, see?" Hotoyama Scarlet pointed at the petite figure on-screen. "There's your camerawoman."
In the video, someone called the girl over to get a bit of training on the course; flustered, she set down her camcorder and even forgot to switch it off before trotting out.
Sitting by Hotoyama, Stardust Mirage had, without realizing, stopped moving her chopsticks.
The orange-haired girl in the frame was already flying down the practice course. She landed only on the balls of her feet, light as a whisper.
But though she was near top speed, the three huddled around the tablet could hardly hear any footfalls.
As if her soles weren't touching the ground—just skimming the turf.
"Not just fast," Stardust Mirage murmured.
In her eyes, this horse girl seemed to have slipped earth's gravity entirely—running as if in space.
She was unlike anyone Stardust Mirage had seen.
"A run with such airy buoyancy… So there's a horse girl like this?!"
Scarlet lit flared in her red eyes:
"I really want to race this girl!"
"Impressive, huh?"
As the girl in the clip kicked for home, the video ended. Hotoyama Scarlet lifted the tablet and asked her charge:
"Even without Noble Clan's footage, there's a good chance Treve will come on this exchange. Are you ready?"
"No! So let's train right now!"
Stardust Mirage shouted, fired up.
The video had lit her completely; she wanted to spend every second training.
She wanted to be stronger!
She'd never imagined she'd crave improvement this much someday.
Only a week remained before meeting the European squad. But—even one point of stats, if she could raise even one, she'd be stronger!
"What sudden nonsense. You're too much," Hotoyama Scarlet sighed, karate-chopping her and shoving the stack of trays toward her. "First finish eating."
"Once I finish, we can train? Then I'm eating now!"
El Condor Pasa stared as Stardust Mirage, mid-sentence, scooped food into her mouth at a furious pace. Each set-meal could feed her on its own, yet one by one they vanished.
After a while, Condor came to and sighed, "No wonder… a second coming of Oguri Cap. Even the way you eat is the same."
"If you don't speed up when you eat with Oguri Cap, she'll wipe the place clean!"
Stardust Mirage downed everything at top speed, then wiped her mouth.
"You also eat a lot. Condor's full after one," El Condor Pasa said.
"Watching Oguri Cap eat—who wouldn't get hungry?" said Stardust Mirage.
Condor immediately recalled the days when the cafeteria was buffet style and Oguri Cap unleashed herself, and nodded.
"Alright, since we're done, let's start afternoon training!" Hotoyama Scarlet slapped Stardust Mirage's back and stood.
"In short, as for the possible practice race later… I'll handle the tactics to deal with Noble Clan and Treve. You two do paired runs this afternoon!"
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