The race had reached the decisive moment, and the crowd's excitement surged once again. Seiun Sky, who had been leading, was already running out of stamina. Her speed began to drop, and Tokai Teio started to push forward, closing the gap between them.
"Damn it!"
Letting out an unwilling shout, Seiun Sky glanced at Tokai Teio as she drew alongside her. Sweat covered her face, her stamina clearly drained, but compared to Sky, Teio still had plenty left.
"Hehe, I'm going ahead~"
With a bright voice, Tokai Teio surged past her.
"Tokai Teio is accelerating! Tokai Teio is accelerating! Tokai Teio has taken the lead!"
The commentator's voice echoed across the track. Powerful strides, flexible ankles, and no sign of fatigue even after running over a thousand meters, Tokai Teio moved forward with light, effortless steps.
Behind her, Special Week gathered her strength. She knew Tokai Teio. When she first transferred, Teio had shown her around the school. She would often come find her during meals too, and the two had grown fairly close.
Once, Special Week had asked why Teio kept going to the student council room. Her answer had been simple.
"I want to become someone like the President. I want to be like her, the one they call the Emperor. She's my dream and my goal."
Back then, Special Week had felt the strength of her will, and the overwhelming ability that came with it. Tokai Teio's determination was something to be respected, but Special Week had no intention of losing this race.
She glanced back at Fujiwara Shirayuki, who was looking at her as well. Their eyes met. Yes, that's right. They had already promised to give this race everything they had.
"Shirayuki, I'm going in!"
Special Week murmured to herself. Taking a deep breath, she drove her foot hard into the ground. Her strong build and powerful physique kicked in, and her speed rose another level. Overtaking the runner ahead, she charged straight toward Tokai Teio.
"She's accelerating! Right behind Tokai Teio, Special Week is accelerating as well!"
At this moment, among the three, only Shirayuki remained behind. Five lengths, six lengths…
In the stands, Fujiwara Chiya watched the race, breathing heavily. The exhaustion from Shirayuki's run seemed to transfer to him. She was still six lengths behind Tokai Teio. Her remaining stamina was still sufficient, but she intended to use it all at once.
At the moment she exited the final corner.
The track's turn was long, with a wide radius. Accelerating there would force her to move outward, making her run an extra five to six meters. Most trainers would have their runners accelerate at that point. Due to centrifugal force, runners naturally slowed down during turns to avoid being pushed outward, so it was considered a safe place to make a move.
But Shirayuki chose the opposite approach. She would accelerate after the turn, relying entirely on her own advantage. Her natural flexibility, combined with the running form she had trained herself to master.
The instant she cleared the corner, Shirayuki lowered her body sharply, leaning forward. The closer her body was to the ground, the lower her point of force, the longer the motion path, and the greater the acceleration.
With a posture almost parallel to the ground, she burst forward. Her white figure became a streak, instantly cutting past two runners ahead.
"What is that…!?"
Drawn by the sudden change on the track, Hishi Amazon reacted.
"It's Fujiwara Shirayuki! Fujiwara Shirayuki! The race has entered the final stretch, and Shirayuki is making her move!"
In the stands, Narita Brian watched with a branch in her mouth, letting out an intrigued sound.
At this moment, Shirayuki resembled a white wolf. Her arms drove forward, her powerful legs pushing off the ground like a beast in motion, her sharp eyes locked onto her prey.
Thud!
Her foot struck the ground with force as she surged ahead. There was no need to hold back anymore. She only needed to unleash everything she had.
Hearing the sound, Special Week and Tokai Teio both turned their heads at the same time, and saw the white beast closing in.
"Shirayuki!"
"What!?"
They reacted with excitement and shock. Tokai Teio's eyes widened. Did she save all her stamina until now? Unbelievable. How could she hold back that long?
Tokai Teio could already feel her breathing growing heavier. Even though she had made the right call earlier, chasing Seiun Sky had cost her a lot of stamina. She was nearing her limit.
"I'm Tokai Teio! There's no way I'm losing here!"
She shouted loudly, pouring out the last of her strength. Beside her, Special Week also entered her final sprint.
Shirayuki kept her promise and gave it everything, so I can't fall behind either!
The three of them had completely broken away from the rest of the pack and entered the final acceleration.
"Only fifty meters left to the finish! Who will take the victory! Tokai Teio, Special Week, or Fujiwara Shirayuki!"
The entire crowd roared.
This is the limit of my speed!
Staring at Tokai Teio just ahead, Shirayuki clenched her teeth. Her legs had reached their limit. She could no longer increase her stride, only maintain a position half a length behind.
But there was still one way. A method that did not rely on step frequency.
Enduring the burning pain in her lungs, Shirayuki forced herself to think, recalling the unbelievable burst of speed Narita Brian had once displayed.
Gather all the strength into one leg, then launch forward. Only by doing that could she break past her physical limits.
With that thought, Shirayuki gathered everything she had. Her body bent so low it was nearly parallel to the ground, her calf muscles tightening as she prepared to gamble everything.
"Trainer Fujiwara!"
A sudden scream rang out. Fujiwara Chiya was abruptly pulled into someone's arms and fell backward.
In that instant, his vision flashed with the image of himself vaulting over the railing before being dragged back. At the same time, Shirayuki lost her balance. Her foot missed the ground, the power she had gathered tore up a patch of turf, and she slid across the finish line, collapsing forward onto the track.