Meanwhile, in the hospital, Mejiro McQueen, who had not yet been discharged, looked much better after resting for two days.
Although she still seemed to lack energy, at least her expression didn't look as pained.
For these past two days, Tokai Teio had been spending most of her time staying by McQueen's side, listening to her as well as taking care of her, trying to make her cheer up.
However, despite Teio's best efforts, McQueen herself was somewhat listless, spending most of her days in the hospital just lying motionless in bed.
At first, Teio thought McQueen was depressed because her leg was injured, but after a re-examination, it was confirmed that McQueen had not sustained any injury at all.
From what Teio vaguely understood from the doctors; the general meaning was that the problem McQueen was suffering from was not physical, but psychological.
Facing this conundrum, Teio's little head had no good solution, and so resorted to continuously give encouraging words to McQueen, though her indifferent reaction made Teio very anxious.
Fortunately, on the second day, the Mejiro sisters had arrived, which seemed to cheer McQueen up a little more, with Teio also feeling much relief.
It was also on this day that Teio received a notification from Imanami.
Once Teio finished reading the message, her eyes brightened and she immediately stood up on the stool she was sitting on.
"McQueen! Let's watch TV! There's something you absolutely must see!"
"Teio... I don't want to watch baseball right now, didn't I tell you earlier?"
McQueen in the hospital bed let out a light chuckle, showing that her condition has indeed improved.
Surrounding her bed were Mejiro Ryan, Bright, and Palmer, who were acting as if they were protecting the most precious thing in the world.
Mejiro Ardan and Dober were also very worried about McQueen, but Ardan was still needed to manage things at the Mejiro Family while Dober was currently at a convention that was quite far away, needing some more time before she could visit McQueen.
Thus, they could only have the rest of their sisters relay McQueen's condition.
"That's right, Teio. And there aren't any big baseball matches happening in the next few months anyway."
Mejiro Ryan, though understanding Teio's good intention, still said so.
"No, no! It's an Uma Musume race!"
Tokai Teio shook her head, not knowing how to explain it right now, but still turning on the TV on her own.
"Everyone must watch this race! Trust me, it's definitely worth it!"
"Wait, Tokai Teio..."
Mejiro Bright and Palmer on the side immediately reacted and tried to stop Teio.
With McQueen's current state, they were worried that if she was made to think about 'races' or 'running' right now, she would quickly fall back into sadness.
In fact, these sisters had already discussed it beforehand and decided not to mention anything about racing during their visit.
However, now, Tokai Teio had suddenly decided to show McQueen an Uma Musume race, which could be considered an even bigger taboo!
Watching her action, the Mejiro sisters were also confused by why Teio, who was always considerate, would suddenly decide to do something like that.
Still, they were still a few steps too late; Teio had already turned on the TV and tuned to the channel.
As the TV screen buzzed to life, the scene at the Nakayama Racecourse was slowly being displayed.
"WeeeeeeeLLLCOME EVERYONE, TO THE NAKAYAMA RACECORUSEEE!!!!"
"I have to say, it's truly bustling today! The entire racecourse is packed to the brim with spectators! This atmosphere has truly elevated the excitement of this GIII race to an unprecedented level!"
"...Wait, aren't those our classmates? And so many of them too?"
Luckily, it seemed Teio's sense of timing was particularly good today.
As soon as she tuned into the channel, the scene in the broadcast immediately caught everyone's attention.
Mejiro Ryan looked at the stands that were being displayed on the TV and said with a slight surprise,
"What's going on? Why did everyone from Tracen go to watch this race? Isn't this a GIII? Actually, the amount of people here might even surpass a GI, right?!"
"What's happening? Did President Rudolf or T.M. Opera O suddenly join this race or something?"
Because they were too worried sick about Mejiro McQueen, Ryan and the other sisters did not have the mind to check Tracen's forums, so they naturally knew nothing about it.
Sure enough, even McQueen's attention was drawn, and she couldn't help but ask,
"Did Sweep Tosho debut...? No, Trainer Ikezoe definitely wouldn't let her compete."
"Is that Deep Impact senior here...? No, she got suspended... So what's going on?"
Despite her doubts, what was currently being shown on TV was undoubtedly real, with the people in the room able to see the conspicuous Tracen Academy uniforms scattered across the stands.
It was almost like a fan club cheering on their favourite Uma Musume, yet that was usually reserved for GIs, not GIII races like the one they were viewing now.
If a Hall of Fame Uma Musume was racing, such a scene might only elicit a sigh of emotion, but there was no way such an Uma Musume would run in a GIII at a time like this right?
As the Mejiro sisters tried again and again to think of a plausible reason, the only conclusion they came to was that this was completely incomprehensible.
Just then, as the Mejiro sisters were raking their brains, the camera quickly shifted to a drone's perspective— now, they could see the Uma Musume beginning to enter the gates.
"Now, the Uma Musume are starting to enter the gates, and the first to enter is— Of course, the favourite of this race!"
"The mysterious Uma Musume who is challenging a GIII race directly without even participating in a Maiden Race— GOLD SHIIPPPPP!!!"
"...Eh? Ehhh???? EEEEEHHHHHHHH????!!!!" X4
Accompanied by the commentator's voice, the camera rapidly zoomed in on Gold Ship's face, eliciting a fear induced exclamation from the four Mejiro sisters which echoed through the ward.
"Gold Ship! GOLD SHIP! HOW??!!! WHY???!!!!"
"W- wait, genuinely? Is she actually on the track? Is this really not just a poor Uma Musume who Gold Ship put up to prank everyone?"
"Erm... I- I sure didn't expect Gold Ship to appear in a race one day♪"
Compared to the shock Mejiro Ryan, Palmer and Bright were showcasing, Mejiro McQueen directly had her mouth agape.
After maintaining nothing but a sad-tinted calm expression for the past few days, it seems that the shock of Gold Ship actually racing was enough to break through that icy wall.
McQueen's wide eyes looked for every conceivable flaw in the Gold Ship on screen; however, although a bit different from Gold Ship's usual mischievous self, that posture, those eyes... it was undoubtedly Gold Ship.
Though shocked beyond belief, McQueen quickly recovered and murmured to herself,
"Gold Ship... racing? Is this Trainer's request?"
"...Are you here to clean up after my mess and restore our team's honour?"
"If that's the case... you must perform well."
Tokai Teio, hearing McQueen's words, opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end, she silently closed it.
...
Returning back in time a little, Gold Ship was starkly different today.
Firstly, she immediately noticed the prickling stares of the people in the stands, as well as the extreme cautiousness her opponents had towards her.
However, Gold Ship knew this would happen the moment she chose this route, so she didn't feel any fear.
As she was stretching a little, she paused slightly as she unconsciously looked towards a specific spot in the stands.
There, Imanami, who had been standing with the rest of Team Miracle, noticed Gold Ship's gaze, and gave her a gentle nod.
With Imanami's encouragement, Gold Ship's initially serious demeanour quickly found a wide smile blooming on it.
The very next instant, her steps suorddenly changed.
Just a short distance from the starting gate, Gold Ship's long legs suddenly began to move in an extremely orderly, yet unusual gait, as if showcasing how flexible her legs were.
In a rather dance-like mannerism, step by step, she awkwardly approached the gate...
"He~he~ Chowa!"
Finally, with a strange battle cry, Gold Ship suddenly started moonwalking before directly backflipping into the gate.
The nearby staff members who saw this were instantly intimidated by Gold Ship's Gold Shippiness and wisely chose to avoid her.
"Is she... imitating Mich@#l J@!#son...?"
"It's Gold Ship."
The people from Tracen Academy didn't even bat an eye at Gold Ship's weird flair when entering the gate, they have long grown desensitized to anything Gold Ship related.
But having a weirdly cool gate entrance wasn't enough to win; races depend on strength.
Thus, everyone was extremely focused on what came next.
The mysterious, self-proclaimed alien from Tracen Academy... just how strong was she in terms of an Uma Musume?
"That idiot... I really don't want to associate with her."
Besides Orfevre, who was holding a camera that looked similar to three other Uma Musume, Tosen Jordan's face became red from embarrassment, directly covering her face with her hands.
"Orfevre, she's your little sister, right? How strong do you think she is? Can she win?"
"...To be honest, Tosen, I really don't know."
"Huh? You're her older sister, and you don't know how strong she is?"
"Really, really— Gold Ship has never run at full strength before. Let alone me, even Oldest Sister probably doesn't know how strong Gold Ship is!"
Such conversations were not only happening between Orfevre and Tosen Jordan, but also in many other places too.
However, the Uma Musume from the Gold Family, when asked by those who recognized them, gave very consistent answers, all saying in unison:
"I don't fucking know."
...
"...Don't know? She must be an interesting one. Even I can't tell how strong your little Gold Ship is."
In a secluded corner, Deep Impact, now wearing a more competent disguise, watched the race as she spoke with Stay Gold beside her.
"But really, you're supposed to be the head of the Gold Family! What kind of a lazy bum are you to not know about these things?"
"Shut up, I was the one who took care of my sisters when we were young."
Faced with this common accusation, Stay Gold quickly deployed her usual retort to divert attention away from the fact that she was, indeed, a lazy bum.
"...Returning to the topic, Gold Ship is probably monstrously strong for her level. I doubt anyone except that Tokai Teio could match up to her."
"Still, Gold Ship's biggest enemy has always been herself. The only way she can win this race is if she actually wants to win."
"So, Deep Impact, just wait and see. You'll bear witness to the pinnacle of our Gold Family's pride."
CLANG!
"And the Uma Musume are off! All of them had a— OH! What is this?!"
"Gold Ship had a slow start— nay! She hasn't even left the gate at all! What in the Three Goddesses happened?!"
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That's Gold Ship's Technique™!!!
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If you spot any errors, feel free to comment about it and I will fix it as soon as I can.