T/N: Just want to say a HUGE thank you to Dersbyth for joining my membership program, I really appreciate the support, it really means the world to me and would need the support so i can continue working on these fics, again dude, thank you so much!~ (づ ᴗ _ᴗ)づ♡
Chapter 70
Amid the thunderous cheers filling the stands, Special Week's voice rang out loud and clear.
"Amazing! Kita-chan, you were incredible! First place! Three straight wins! Kita-chan, you're the best!"
She jumped up and down excitedly, waving her arms wildly even though the black-haired girl on the track raising both hands high probably couldn't see her.
"Hey! Kita-chan! I saw everything! That was such an awesome race!"
Her voice gradually grew hoarse from all the shouting. She rubbed her throat, coughed a few times, then glanced sideways with a slightly embarrassed smile.
"Cough… Sorry, Trainer Yasui. I got way too excited… I didn't scare you, did I?"
Only then did she notice something odd.
Yasui Makoto wasn't looking at her. He wasn't shouting excitedly like everyone else either.
The young trainer wore an indescribable expression on his face. He was breathing hard, gripping the railing in front of him so tightly his knuckles turned white, eyes locked on Kitasan Black down on the track.
Special Week tilted her head, growing a little worried.
"Um… Trainer Yasui? Are you okay…?"
She asked several times before Yasui Makoto finally snapped out of it and turned toward her.
"Huh? Oh… I'm fine."
He gave a small smile and waved it off, then started packing up his binoculars and other tools. He pointed toward the passage behind the stands.
"I'm heading over to check on Kitasan Black's post-race exam. Want to come along, or would you rather stay here and watch the rest of the races?"
Special Week hesitated for a moment.
She had sensed something strange in Yasui Makoto's mood.
When she first learned from Daiwa Scarlet and Vodka that Kitasan Black had already debuted, she had been overjoyed. And when she heard her junior had won her first two races and was about to run her very first graded race, she immediately decided to come all the way from Hokkaido to Tokyo.
Along the way she had also looked up information about Yasui Makoto.
She didn't know much about trainers, but she figured anyone who could become one at such a young age had to be impressive, especially since he had already guided Kitasan Black to two straight victories.
When they finally met in person, she could tell right away that his observation skills were outstanding. His race strategy was just as bold as her friends had described.
She had visited Nakayama Racecourse many times during her own racing days and cheered for plenty of seniors and friends here. The little grassy spot by the underground passage exit was actually a hiding spot she and her friends had discovered together.
They used to hide there to surprise their juniors, and they had never once been caught. This time she had come alone, still planning to do the same thing, but Yasui Makoto had spotted her instantly.
As for the race tactics, even though she hadn't raced in a while and spent most of her time helping her mom on the ranch, she could tell that the positioning pressure Kitasan Black used in the second half was no ordinary move for a rookie.
That kind of tactic demanded incredibly precise distance control, accurate stamina judgment, perfect race awareness, and a lot of experience.
She herself had only started mastering it around the time of the Satsuki Sho, and it wasn't until right before the Japanese Derby that she felt confident using it properly.
Yet Kitasan Black had pulled off the exact same tactic in the latter half of today's race. It wasn't perfect yet, but it had clearly worked.
Kita-chan… Is she really that much of a genius? Or is it because of Trainer Yasui's planning? Probably both, right…?
While she was thinking that, Special Week had assumed Yasui Makoto was every bit as impressive as she had imagined.
So why had he made that strange face earlier? It couldn't be that he was unhappy about Kitasan Black winning… could it?
Still puzzled, she followed him a few steps before she couldn't hold back any longer.
"Trainer Yasui… are you really okay?"
"…Hm? Oh…"
Yasui Makoto turned around, saw the worried look on her face, and paused for a second before smiling gently and shaking his head.
"It's nothing. I was just thinking about some things… Let's go check on Kitasan Black's exam first."
Special Week had still been a little concerned, but the moment she saw his smile she felt relieved.
He's probably already thinking about her next race or reviewing today's experience. What a responsible trainer, she thought to herself.
After the race came the usual health check. Yasui Makoto and Special Week went together to the medical room to hear the results.
Just like the previous two times, Kitasan Black's check-up showed no problems at all.
However, when Yasui Makoto compared the post-race data with the last two races, he noticed her stamina consumption was clearly much higher this time.
That was to be expected.
Graded races were on a completely different level from Pre-OP and OP races, not just in prize money and fan requirements, but especially in how fiercely competitive they were.
The positioning pressure Kitasan Black faced early on, the pincer attack near the end of the middle stage, and the all-out chase after the final bend… none of those had appeared in her first two races, or at least not to this intensity.
Those kinds of battles consumed a huge amount of stamina and mental energy too. Of course, mental energy was really just another form of stamina.
For now, Kitasan Black's stamina usage in a graded race was still well within acceptable limits. Yasui Makoto felt relieved, but he also started quietly thinking about how to adjust her future training and race schedule.
He didn't mention any of that to Kitasan Black yet. After giving her plenty of encouragement and telling her to rest well, he and Special Week headed to the racecourse dining hall for dinner, then returned to the stands.
This was also the perfect spot to watch the Winner's Stage.
Every racecourse was designed this way.
Right in front of the stands was a large open area. The outer edge was the racetrack itself.
The huge inner field was normally open to visitors, but the day before a race it was closed off so the stage infrastructure could be set up.
While the horse girls rested and prepared after the daytime races, the lifting platforms, giant screens, speakers, fireworks, and everything else were put into place.
When night fell, the screens lit up, neon lights flashed, and colorful glow sticks waved across the stands.
The same track that had been the scene of fierce competition just hours earlier now transformed into a dazzling concert venue.
The moment the Winner's Stage began, the entire racecourse, or rather the entire concert, exploded with cheers that matched any race earlier that day.
One spectacular song and dance performance after another lit up the stage.
And when it was time for the horse girls who had run in the day's headline race, Kitasan Black and the others stepped out, pushing the whole show to its absolute peak.
The emcee's voice rang out perfectly, guiding the excitement.
"Share in the joy of victory with the horse girls who fought so hard to win. This… is the Winner's Stage!
Everyone, please give them your loudest cheers!
The first song of the night, standing at center stage… is Kitasan Black!"
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T/N: Congrats Kita-chan!
Bonus chapters
200 - Stones
400 - Stones
600 - Stones
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