The race officially began.
The instant the starter's flag dropped, two figures shot forward at the same time.
Akihara Tōru's eyes lit up.
Urara's start was perfect.
At this moment, the Focus skill displayed astonishing effectiveness.
That posture, that rhythm, that explosive burst of power in the very first instant—
it even reminded Tōru of Smart Falcon's performance in that mock race the other day.
Half a length.
Urara had already taken a half-length lead over Triangle Laurel right out of the start!
"What…!?"
Triangle Laurel's eyes widened at the result as well.
She knew exactly how unbelievable that was.
Ever since the last race, when she had fallen three-quarters of a length behind in the opening phase, she had devoted herself to practicing her starts.
Every morning, while the other horse girls were still asleep, she was already standing on the training track.
Over and over, she drilled her starting stance.
Again and again, she corrected the timing of her push-off.
She had even gone out of her way to study the movements of front-runners famous for their starts, engraving every detail into her muscle memory.
All of that effort had brought about a qualitative leap in her opening burst.
She had been certain that if the current version of herself raced the Urara from that day, the one to seize the advantage at the start would definitely be her.
And yet—
[That girl… improved this much too!?]
A surge of disbelief rose in Triangle Laurel's chest.
But she quickly suppressed it.
[It doesn't matter… the start is only the beginning… the real contest will be decided in the final stretch!]
As a late-running horse girl, Triangle Laurel knew full well that her true strength lay in her finishing kick.
If she could not create separation at the start, then she would stick to the original plan.
Lie low in the rear. Conserve stamina. Wait for the final burst.
So she chose to restrain herself and remain behind Urara.
Meanwhile—
this time, after taking the lead, Urara did not feel as lost as she had last time.
She remembered the words her trainer had whispered in her ear before the race.
"This time, I want you to sprint with everything you have from the very start."
"Eh!?"
"No holding back. No hesitation. From the moment the race begins, go all out and charge forward."
"But… if I do that, won't my stamina run out really fast…?"
"It'll be fine."
Her trainer's voice had been utterly serious.
"Trust me, Urara. As long as you can maintain your lead until the very end, you will win."
[If Trainer says so… then Urara has to do it!]
The pink-haired horse girl clenched her teeth and drove her legs harder.
She accelerated.
Not a gradual buildup, but an all-out sprint from the very beginning!
One length.
Two lengths.
Three lengths.
The gap between Urara and Triangle Laurel widened at a speed visible to the naked eye.
"…!?"
Triangle Laurel's brows knit together.
[What is she doing?]
They were still in the early phase of the race, and the distance between them had already been sufficient.
Yet Urara had accelerated early.
At first, Triangle Laurel assumed Urara was simply mishandling the pace because she was unaccustomed to leading.
After all, in the previous race, Urara had almost lost her balance before the final turn because she had forced herself to imitate Smart Falcon's finishing form.
For a horse girl unfamiliar with front-running, that sort of mistake was perfectly normal.
Four lengths.
Five lengths.
But as the distance kept increasing, Urara still showed no sign of easing off.
Those pink eyes burned with an unbelievable radiance, every step firm and unwavering.
At last, Triangle Laurel realized something.
[Could it be… Urara is doing this on purpose?]
The image of Tōru pulling Urara aside to speak before the race flashed through her mind.
Those whispers she had strained so hard to overhear and failed to catch.
Those whispers that had made Urara gasp in surprise.
[Could this… be the strategy that trainer deliberately prepared before the race?]
[Using Urara's starting advantage to go all-out from the opening, then preserving that lead until the finish?]
Triangle Laurel's expression turned grim.
[But even over 800 meters, the shortest possible distance, the stamina cost of sprinting the whole way is absurd, isn't it?]
Even she could not imagine herself doing something like that.
Once the leader ran dry and entered deceleration, overtaking them should be inevitable.
[This strategy… is far too reckless…]
Triangle Laurel analyzed silently.
[As long as I keep my pace steady and launch my finishing kick after she burns herself out—]
Six lengths.
Seven lengths.
Eight lengths.
The gap continued to widen.
It looked like it might stretch to nine lengths, maybe more.
Rationally, she knew this was the opponent's tactic, and that all she had to do was wait quietly for the pink-haired horse girl to exhaust herself and slow down.
But as the distance became more and more outrageous, one thought inevitably took over her mind.
[What if she knows I'd think that… and deliberately did the opposite? What if she's trying to build an overwhelming lead before I react?]
The face of that trainer—slightly… only slightly handsome, really—flashed through her mind.
Triangle Laurel could no longer hold back.
[I can't wait any longer!]
She bit down hard and drove power into her legs, beginning to accelerate.
Her golden twin-tails whipped violently in the wind, and her emerald eyes blazed with refusal to lose.
The gap between the two horse girls began to shrink, little by little.
Seven and a half lengths.
Seven lengths.
Six and a half lengths.
In terms of raw finishing speed, Triangle Laurel was clearly stronger than Urara.
That was a difference in ability. A difference in talent.
Even after Urara's notable gains through friendship training, she still could not match Triangle Laurel in absolute finishing power.
Five lengths.
Four lengths.
Three lengths.
The gap kept shrinking.
And up ahead, Urara's steps were beginning to grow heavy.
[Faster… just a little faster…]
[Urara can't lose… can't disappoint Trainer…]
The pink-haired horse girl pushed desperately, but she could feel her stamina vanishing at terrifying speed.
The cost of sprinting all-out from the beginning was even harsher than she had imagined.
Two lengths.
One and a half lengths.
The race entered its final phase.
The final turn loomed just ahead.
And then—
Urara's stride suddenly faltered.
It was the signal of a body that had reached its absolute limit.
Her premature sprint had completely drained her stamina.
Her legs felt as heavy as if they had been filled with lead, every step demanding enormous willpower.
Her breathing turned ragged and chaotic, as if a fire were burning inside her chest.
Her vision blurred, and all she could hear was the pounding of her own heartbeat.
[No more… Urara… really can't…]
[My body… is so heavy…]
[My legs… won't lift…]
This was a stall.
When a horse girl's stamina was wrung dry, her body entered precisely this state.
Her speed would plummet, her movements would become sluggish, and even maintaining balance would grow difficult.
For any horse girl, it was the most despairing moment of all.
Because no matter how strong your will, no matter how much you refused to lose—
your body had stopped obeying you.
Triangle Laurel noticed it at once.
A surge of fierce delight rose in her heart.
[There it is! My chance!]
[I knew it… there was no way she could sustain an all-out sprint the whole race!]
[Now, as long as I launch my final burst—]
Yet just as she was about to complete the overtake—
her own legs weakened too.
"—!?"
Triangle Laurel's pupils contracted.
[How… can this…]
Only then did she realize that in order to chase Urara down, she too had started her finishing run early.
That acceleration, far beyond a normal pace, had devoured a tremendous amount of stamina as well.
And now—
she too was nearing her limit.
[Damn it… damn it, damn it, damn it…]
[I was so close…]
[Why… why are my legs…]
Both horse girls' speeds began to collapse sharply.
The thrilling chase had turned into a battle of willpower.
Both gritted their teeth and forced themselves onward.
Both had reached their physiological limit.
Every step felt like walking on a blade.
Every second felt like war against their own bodies.
Half a length.
That was the distance between them now.
A gap that, for an ordinary horse girl, should have been trivial to overcome now felt like an impossible chasm separating Urara and Triangle Laurel.
Urara still held the slightest lead, but her steps were on the verge of collapse.
And although Triangle Laurel kept trying to close the distance, the progress had become so tiny it could barely be seen.
Both of them knew it.
Whichever one fell first, the other would take the race.
[Urara… can't…]
[Really can't… anymore…]
The pink-haired horse girl's awareness began to blur.
She could no longer even see where the finish line was.
She only knew…
she had to keep running.
She only knew…
she must not stop.
But her body… truly had…
And then—
"Run, Urara——!!!"
A voice cut through the haze clouding her mind.
It was her trainer's voice.
The voice of the trainer who belonged to her alone.
Urara's eyes flared wide.
Those pink eyes, which had been dimming into emptiness, burst alight again.
[Trainer… is cheering for Urara…]
[Trainer… is watching Urara…]
[Urara… can't disappoint Trainer…]
[Urara absolutely cannot lose!!!]
A new force surged into her body from somewhere unknown.
A power that transcended the limits of flesh.
A power born from their bond.
A power that came from the trainer who believed in her.
Urara launched one final sprint.
Her legs began to move again, every step impossibly firm.
That body which had been about to crumble seemed, in this moment, to blaze back to life.
"No way——!!!"
Triangle Laurel, equally close to collapse, stared in disbelief.
[She should've had no stamina left… then why can she still…]
[What kind of grit is this…?]
[Is this… what it means to have a trainer?]
She wanted to chase her down, but her legs no longer responded.
All she could do was watch—
as that pink-haired horse girl, carrying exhaustion all over her body, carrying an unyielding will, carrying her trainer's expectations—
crossed the finish line first.
-------
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