As the Horse Girls fought for the lead, surging forward in a nearly straight line, a reddish-brown figure caught Maruzensky's eye.
She recognized the girl instantly; after all, she was a junior of her own bloodline.
However, Maruzensky wasn't watching Eperlan out of personal favoritism. At this moment, she was the Vice President of the Student Council, traveling far and wide to scout exceptional new talent for Central. She wasn't just Eperlan's family senior, and she would never let personal feelings interfere with her official duties.
What caught Maruzensky's attention was Eperlan's posture. It was slightly unusual—her center of gravity was pressed low, clearly signaling an intent to seize the lead. From a bloodline perspective, the tactic that best suited their family's strengths should have been a "Leader" (Senkou) style. Why was she fighting so hard for the "Escape" (Nige) position?
Was it because this was a mile race, and her stamina and endurance could comfortably handle this distance? Or was Eperlan so supremely confident in her own strength that she wanted to win using such a high-spectacle tactic?
Maruzensky thought of Fujimaru Ritsuka and Oguri Cap. She stroked her chin, musing: Or is it because Oguri Cap is so overwhelmingly powerful that little El has no choice but to find a different path to victory?
Normally, a Trainer would do everything possible to prevent Horse Girls from the same stable from competing in the same race.
Maruzensky sighed softly, a smile playing on her lips. "You really are full of surprises, Fujimaru-kun."
On the track, the reddish-brown figure crouched slightly, her right foot slamming into the ground. The girl's body seemed to coil like a recurve bow pulled to its limit.
Even from the VIP seats, Maruzensky could feel the explosive force radiating from Eperlan. A gale rose from the flat ground, sweeping outward in all directions with a roar!
The race had only just begun, but in a flash, Eperlan found the perfect line. After bursting thirty meters out from the gate, she boldly shifted lanes, cutting into the inner rail and firmly securing the lead!
"Eperlan! She overcame the disadvantage of being drawn in the far outside gate, using incredible explosive power and speed to seize the initiative! She's moving like a runaway freight train!"
At any time, switching lanes is a high-stakes decision. If one misjudges and accidentally obstructs another Horse Girl's acceleration, they risk disqualification regardless of whether they caused a pile-up or what place they finished in.
Lane changes are only permitted when one is certain they will not hinder anyone else.
Fortunately, Eperlan pulled it off.
Nay, she did more than that. After securing the lead, she cranked the pace up to a stable yet oppressive level, beginning to dictate the tempo for the entire field.
She wanted to show the world the true beauty of the "Escape" tactic. She was going to flee to the other side of the world!
Seeing that bold reddish-brown back, the other Horse Girls accelerated. No one wanted to be left in the dust. In sprints and mile races, a significant gap usually meant certain defeat!
The girls felt the pressure, subconsciously gritting their teeth and tensing their nerves as they quickened their pace. They wanted to bite onto Eperlan's tail, desperate not to let her slip away.
But they couldn't!
At that moment, a near-identical thought flashed through the minds of the competitors: Too fast! That girl is way too fast! Is this... the power of Maruzensky's bloodline?
As Eperlan maintained her aggressive lead, the other girls quickened their steps and redistributed their stamina, trying to keep up. But they soon discovered the harsh truth: Eperlan was running at a pace they simply couldn't match.
"Two horse-lengths, three lengths... Heavens, the gap is still widening! Is this the true worth of a Maruzensky junior?! She's a supercar on the dirt!" the commentator shouted, bordering on hyperbole.
Maruzensky chuckled, murmuring to herself, "It's not quite that exaggerated. It's the result of little El's hard work and Fujimaru-kun's excellence and dedication. Both were essential. Little El, today you are unintentionally making my own reputation for 'personal instruction' look very good."
It was a bit awkward, but in Japan, whenever a Horse Girl succeeded, the public consensus usually went like this: Rather than the Trainer's coaching, it's mostly because the girl's bloodline is superior, right?
In Japan, the cult of bloodline was pervasive. Awkwardly, the West was no different.
Compared to the "invisible" work of a Trainer, spectators preferred to believe their own eyes, giving most of the credit to the Horse Girl running on the track.
Then again, from the perspective of "the Horse Girl's running brings glory to the stable, and there is no victory without their all-out effort," they truly did deserve the lion's share of the credit.
After all, they were the ones on the track, using their own legs to achieve results.
Just as the pack began to "red-line" and the pace accelerated, one Horse Girl made a choice that surprised many spectators who expected her to win—she didn't fight for the lead. She didn't even speed up.
Someone in the crowd screamed:
"Go for it, Oguri Cap!" "Don't lose to her! Show the world the power of the Gray Monster!" "..."
Oguri felt that being supported was a happy thing, but sometimes, she just found the crowd noisy. Like right now.
Oguri took a deep breath. She still didn't accelerate, instead allowing the Horse Girls who were pushing themselves to pass her. Soon, she had dropped to third-to-last.
This sight made the trio from Kasamatsu gasp. They waved their Oguri Cap plushies frantically, trying to cheer her on. Soon, they noticed two people who weren't joining in the panic, and they immediately crowded around Double Bell Luster, putting the poor girl under immense pressure.
"W-what are you doing?" After six months of experience, Luster wasn't worried about Oguri at all; she was only breaking a sweat because of her current situation.
She grumbled inwardly: Everyone wants to support Oguri, and that's a good thing, but a race has to be run at one's own pace. Blindly following someone else's rhythm is an easy way to lose.
Thinking this, Luster almost wanted to scold the three of them: Wait, you've been debut Horse Girls for half a year now. You usually have a decent understanding of race tempo. Why can't you remember that now?
The trio didn't dare "attack" Fujimaru Ritsuka, but they could "pressurize" Double Bell Luster. They wanted her to join their side of the panic.
Seeing this, Ritsuka chuckled and stepped in to help Luster. "Oguri is maintaining her own rhythm. She's chosen the most stable tactic and hasn't let El's pace influence her. This is a good thing; everyone should be happy for her."
Then, he intentionally adopted a lecturing tone toward Double Bell Luster: "Luster, I know you want everyone to master knowledge and skills through independent thinking, but we're off the clock right now. Let's not be so strict."
He pretended to scold Luster, but he was actually bailing her out, framing her social anxiety as a "test" for the trio's analytical skills.
Furthermore, his words were a nudge to the trio: You guys need to pay more attention. I've said it so many times—you can't blindly follow the pace. Maintaining your own rhythm is the most important thing.
This was the gap between ordinary Horse Girls and the truly powerful ones. Even with the same instruction, the execution was worlds apart.
Hearing Ritsuka say this, the trio looked embarrassed. They huddled around Luster, pretending nothing had happened, acting as if they had only wanted to watch the race with her from the start.
In the midst of the frantic pace, Oguri Cap was like a gray fish, skillfully avoiding the initial bumps and chaos, allowing herself to sit in the middle-back of the pack.
Her gaze was sharp as a hawk's, constantly scanning the situation ahead. Eperlan was running steady and fast, with a gap of nearly seven horse-lengths from second place. Because they were trying too hard to catch Eperlan, the other girls' strides were becoming erratic, which only increased their stamina consumption.
Oguri remembered Ritsuka's teaching:
"If you can't stay calm during a race and instinctively follow your opponent's pace, your body will try to follow its habits while your brain tries to change them. This leads to a brief internal struggle. Your stamina and focus will be heavily drained, and even your mental state will suffer."
Wasn't the current situation exactly what the Trainer had described?
Though Oguri had seen similar developments before, no matter how many times it happened, she marveled at Ritsuka's foresight. She thought: The Trainer really is amazing. He's definitely the number-one Trainer in the world!
But while she thought this, Oguri didn't forget she was in a race. Her ears twitched incessantly, trying to catch the sound of hoofbeats from both the front and the back. She heard it clearly—a rhythm that was distinct from the overall pace coming from behind her. It was Fujimasa March.
Oguri raised an eyebrow. She could clearly feel March's gaze. She knew March was staring at her intently.
As it happened, when evaluating their hometown rival, both girls had reached the same conclusion: She is observing everything, sensing everything, like a predator assessing the hunting grounds before striking.
Fujimasa March was one horse-length behind Oguri. She, too, was in no rush to move forward. At a glance, she looked like Oguri's shadow.
And that was largely the case. March's eyes were locked onto Oguri. Aside from checking the pack ahead to maintain her overall situational awareness, she was looking almost exclusively at Oguri.
She stared at Oguri's back, her swinging arms, her alternating legs—trying to construct a specialized model in her mind to analyze everything about her rival.
She wanted to defeat Oguri. She had to understand her completely!
March was waiting. Waiting for that perfect moment to exert her power—the moment Ritsuka had simulated countless times!
Up front, Eperlan was under immense pressure. The headwind was one thing, but the pressure from the other Horse Girls was even more severe.
As the distance opened up, the ordinary girls could no longer use speed fluctuations or physical crowding to disrupt her rhythm. But they could use their innate or acquired special powers.
[Leader's Agitation], [Pacesetter's Hesitation]...
One after another, flashes of unseen red light erupted from the other girls. They wove into invisible hands, slamming down toward Eperlan!
The girls' gazes were as sharp as blades, as if they wanted to hollow Eperlan out from the inside!
But Eperlan was like an ancient reef standing by the sea. No matter how the waves crashed against her, she remained immovable!
Her breathing rhythm didn't falter for a second. Her pace was terrifyingly stable. Instead, it was her agitated rivals who began to show signs of fatigue from overexertion. A sense of "insurmountable" panic began to rise in their hearts, further breaking their rhythm.
In this invisible clash, the race proceeded steadily and fiercely. The 800-meter marker flashed by.
When few were paying attention, the silver-gray figure in the middle-back of the pack began her move.
Oguri Cap accelerated inch by inch. She galloped along the outer track, steadily overtaking her rivals one by one. Every pass was so natural, yet carried a strange, undeniable weight.
In the stands, the audience's cheers grew louder as her rank rose. The trio clenched their hands, their faces glowing with excitement.
Gradually, only the final 600 meters remained. The final corner was right in front of them.
The Horse Girls all knew it: after this long, sweeping curve lay the final straight. Those last three hundred meters were the key to victory.
Even though they were starting to feel the strain and were drenched in sweat, the girls gritted their teeth and forced their legs forward. At this point, worrying about whether Eperlan still had stamina was pointless. Focusing on themselves and running to the very end was all that mattered.
Because their focus was so heavily taxed, they didn't notice Oguri's movements until the commentator screamed her name. Only then did they realize the severity of the problem: their opponent wasn't just Eperlan, but Oguri Cap as well!
But by then, Oguri had already cleared most of the "obstacles" ahead. Only five horse-lengths remained between her gaze and the leading Eperlan. That was an abyss between Eperlan and the ordinary girls, but to Oguri, it was far from insurmountable.
Oguri moved forward steadily, closing the gap with Eperlan bit by bit.
Eperlan also sensed this rapidly approaching presence. It felt different from all the previous opponents—it felt like being chased by a mountain.
Without a moment's hesitation, Eperlan threw the remainder of her stamina into the fray. She no longer maintained her steady pace; she accelerated with everything she had!
Everyone realized: The final showdown had begun!
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Musume: Oguri Cap Grand Order (122 Chapters – Ongoing)
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