In the evening, Hayakawa Tazuna came to the training ground. When Fujiwara Chiya saw her, he froze for a moment. She was not wearing her eye-catching green office uniform. Instead, she had changed into a set of training clothes, and her brown ponytail swayed gently behind her.
As expected, Hayakawa Tazuna was an Uma Musume. Her tail had been hidden inside her clothes, but she was still wearing that green hat on her head. It was as though this alone was something she would never compromise on, to the point that Fujiwara Chiya almost thought the hat was her true body.
"What is it, Chiya? Why are you looking at me like that?"
"This is my first time seeing you in training clothes," Fujiwara Chiya murmured.
How should he put it? Hayakawa Tazuna already looked far younger than her age, and once she put on training clothes, that impression became even more obvious. If someone did not know her, they would definitely mistake Hayakawa Tazuna for a student.
"It suits you pretty well."
"Hehe, this is still my training outfit from when I was a student."
Hayakawa Tazuna smiled. She had not expected that there would be another day when she stepped onto a racecourse.
After not wearing it for so long, she realized the training outfit had become a little tight, especially around the chest. It felt slightly difficult to breathe.
"If Tazuna is an Uma Musume, how were your results?"
"Mm... I suppose they were fairly good."
Up until now, she still did not know what defeat felt like.
Fujiwara Chiya pinched his chin. He felt as though he had never heard Hayakawa Tazuna's name among Uma Musume. But every year, there were so many people participating in races. It was impossible for him to remember them all. Especially considering Hayakawa Tazuna's age, when she was racing, he had still been a student and had no time to pay attention.
After thinking it through, Fujiwara Chiya nodded.
Although it had been quite a long time, and Uma Musume would enter a decline period after passing their prime, so Hayakawa Tazuna's strength should have fallen quite a bit by now, she should still be more than enough as Shirayuki's training partner.
Soon, Shirayuki, who had changed clothes, walked over. Because Tazuna needed to conceal her identity for reasons she had not explained, her training with Shirayuki could not be seen by others. That was why they had chosen this empty time.
"Good evening, Shirayuki-san."
"Good evening, Tazuna-san."
"There's no need to add 'san.' Just call me Tazuna-nee."
Hayakawa Tazuna smiled. Given her relationship with Chiya, there was no need for formal honorifics.
"T-Tazuna-nee..."
"Mm-hm. Then let's wait for Chiya's signal and begin our race. The distance will be one thousand eight hundred metres."
"All right."
"And Shirayuki, remember to prepare yourself to go all out. Otherwise, I won't be able to properly see your cornering, and I won't be able to give suggestions."
"Go all out? Tazuna-nee... my strength isn't weak."
"I know. That's exactly why I said it."
If Shirayuki's strength were too weak, going all out would be meaningless.
Fujiwara Shirayuki narrowed her eyes. Hayakawa Tazuna still had that gentle smile, but she remembered that when Tazuna had suggested a race earlier in the afternoon, her body had given off an indescribable pressure. It had even made Fujiwara Chiya tremble. Perhaps Tazuna was stronger than she looked.
Thinking of this, Shirayuki took a deep breath. She was an Uma Musume preparing to enter a graded race. If she could not even beat a retired runner who had been away from racing for so long, that would be far too embarrassing. Even though making Tazuna lose might damage her pride, Shirayuki had to defeat her.
So please forgive my rudeness, Tazuna. When the time comes, Chiya can apologize to you.
The two of them stood at the starting point and slowly assumed their starting stances. At that moment, Shirayuki suddenly heard a strange sound coming from Tazuna beside her. Her finger joints made crisp popping sounds, and the dirt under her feet rose slightly.
For no reason, Shirayuki suddenly felt nervous. On Chiya's side, he also swallowed unconsciously.
The instant he gave the starting signal—
The ground trembled.
Bang!
Fujiwara Shirayuki felt something fly past in front of her eyes. By the time she landed from her start, Hayakawa Tazuna had already opened a one-length gap.
Are you kidding me!?
Shirayuki's eyes widened. Chiya had even forgotten to press the stopwatch.
Her start was among the best of the new generation. Even compared with Teio and the others, she was not inferior. Even Triple Crown winner Narita Brian had praised her start. And yet that start, which Shirayuki had always been quite proud of, had been beaten by a full length!
How was this possible?
Hadn't Tazuna long since passed her prime? Why did she still possess such overwhelming power? She had even far surpassed Shirayuki.
After a brief moment of shock, Shirayuki quickly adjusted herself and chased after Tazuna. Now was not the time to wonder why Tazuna was so strong. As an active runner, how could she lose to a retired Uma Musume?
Fujiwara Shirayuki quickened her pace and followed Hayakawa Tazuna's steps closely.
Tazuna's emerald eyes glanced backward.
As expected, after not training for so long, her body had become much stiffer. If this had been her peak, just the start alone would have been enough to create a gap of one and a half to two lengths.
But form was something that could be found again once one started running.
The feeling of stepping onto the racecourse again was simply wonderful. Her heart, which had not felt this way in a long time, began beating violently. In Hayakawa Tazuna's mind, the thought of completely throwing her opponent behind her gradually surfaced. She wanted to use her strength to overwhelm the other runner.
But very quickly, Hayakawa Tazuna forcefully suppressed that impulse.
No. She is Chiya's cousin. I can't bully her too much. If I ruin her confidence, that would be bad. Shirayuki still has a race in a few days. If what I do causes the siblings to lose that race, then my sin would be far too great. The Director would definitely come argue with me.
So today, she would place a few shackles on herself.
Hayakawa Tazuna closed her eyes. When she opened them again, her steps instantly became heavier, as though invisible weights had been bound to her.
Imagination training.
It was an extremely difficult training method that required great talent. Through powerful imagination, an Uma Musume could make her body produce actual feedback. In the past, when Hayakawa Tazuna had no training equipment, she had used this method.
Hayakawa Tazuna felt the pulling force under her feet and stepped heavily onto the ground. Her soles sank deep into the turf.
Running behind her, Fujiwara Shirayuki saw Hayakawa Tazuna's speed gradually stabilize and secretly let out a breath of relief.
It seemed that the earlier start had consumed quite a bit of Tazuna's strength.
That made sense. If she still had this kind of strength after so long since her prime, then why work as the Director's secretary? She might as well become his Uma Musume.
Soon, the race entered the turn. Fujiwara Shirayuki adjusted her body, but at that moment, she suddenly felt a certain gaze.
That gaze seemed to pierce through her body, as if seeing her completely.
Startled, Shirayuki searched for the source of the gaze. Very quickly, she realized that the sensation was strongest from Hayakawa Tazuna.