At some point, a fierce wind rose across the track. It came in a sudden howl, whipping up the hair that hung by Offside Trap's cheeks.
Behind her, El Condor Pasa and Air Groove could both feel an overwhelming pressure building within the chestnut-haired girl in front of them. That earlier moment of restraint had clearly been preparation for this final explosion.
The student council vice president shot a stunned glance to the side. The 800-meter marker stood there with brutal clarity, and all Air Groove felt was disbelief.
This horse girl—this one who had infuriated her before the race—had actually begun her final drive from the 800-meter point.
The grandstand ignited at once. Silence Suzuka's presence on the track was already overwhelming enough that every runner behind her seemed diminished by comparison. But then people began to notice something was wrong.
Behind Silent Hunter, one horse girl was closing in at astonishing speed.
The look on Silent Hunter's face changed instantly. Already suffering from the strain of failing to catch Silence Suzuka and from the heavy toll on her stamina, she now felt an even more crushing pressure bearing down on her from behind, as if it meant to tear her apart.
Are they all insane?!
She cursed inwardly and tried to pump her arms harder, but it was useless.
All she saw was a flash of chestnut hair streaking past her vision, and in the next instant that horse girl had already widened the gap.
[Whole Body and Soul]
The 600-meter marker flashed past at her side. Offside Trap did not adjust her breathing. Slipping back tight against the inner rail, she fixed her eyes on Silence Suzuka, who had already entered the final straight. In Offside Trap's vision, Suzuka was little more than a distant point.
But Offside Trap could already see the path that would let her seize her.
Lowering her body even further, she felt power flood into her the moment she passed the 600-meter marker. Her speed surged upward once again with shocking intensity.
Head lowered, body blurring like an afterimage, she made the cheers in the stands falter all at once. Even Silence Suzuka's fans seemed to realize, in that very moment, that something was wrong.
They could smell danger in the air.
"The field has reached the third turn! Silence Suzuka is first past the 600-meter marker, with Silent Hunter still behind her by more than ten lengths! Silence Suzuka! Silence Suzuka is just too fast!"
"The field behind is trying to close, but Silence Suzuka is already running in open air—she's already in open air! But behind Silent Hunter—my God! Offside Trap is accelerating hard! She's already gone past Air Groove and El Condor Pasa, erasing a six-length gap in one burst! Right in front of Silent Hunter, Offside Trap is launching her move here!"
"The pack behind is bunching up now! Mejiro Bright and Goyo Lawyer are trying to break through from the outside, but at the end of the fourth turn, Offside Trap has also crossed the 600-meter marker! Up ahead, Silence Suzuka is already approaching the 400-meter marker—there's still more than a hundred meters between them! And behind Offside Trap, the field is rapidly closing! Everyone is accelerating now, but the two in front—the two in front are just too fast!"
"Silence Suzuka—Silence Suzuka has crossed the 400-meter marker! Silence Suzuka has crossed the 400-meter marker! Final 400 meters! Final 400 meters! Can the horses behind catch her?! Even with such an enormous gap, she still holds nearly ten lengths over Offside Trap—but, but!"
"Offside Trap accelerates again! Offside Trap accelerates again! The challenger has appeared—but can the new queen in front defend the glory of her reign?! Final 300 meters! Silence Suzuka is still holding on, and her speed still hasn't dropped—but the closing speed from Offside Trap is outrageous!"
In Offside Trap's sight, the distant point ahead gradually stretched into form. The green racing outfit against the green turf. Her breathing grew heavier, and the pounding of her heart seemed to echo across all of Fuchu Racecourse, drowning out every murmur from the stands.
She could hear the cheers meant only for Silence Suzuka. The hopes of the crowd were like a giant hand, pushing Silence Suzuka faster toward the finish.
No such force pushed Offside Trap from behind.
Behind her, every opponent other than Silence Suzuka was staring at her back.
They all wanted to hold her. They all wanted to pass her.
But she refused.
And they would never get the chance.
Up on the high platform, Tojo Hana was too stunned to speak. The horse girl who had still looked strained just to keep up with the main pack in the Takarazuka Kinen was now launching a full assault on Japan's highest honor.
And only four months had passed in between.
What exactly did you do?
The question burning in her heart was the same one on the other side of the platform in Rudolf's mind.
Her hand gripped the railing so hard it trembled. Rudolf Symboli could no longer calm her breathing as she watched Air Groove utterly powerless behind Offside Trap, and as the usually composed face of Silence Suzuka finally began to twist.
It was the first time all year Rudolf had seen such an expression on Suzuka's face.
The prodigy who had always looked invincible, as though victory were hers by right, was finally showing the panic beginning to spread inside her.
Those increasingly rapid footsteps were like the monster in a horror story drawing closer and closer to the bedside, raising an enormous scythe and bringing it down toward Silence Suzuka.
This was the hope selected by Rudolf, by the student council, by JURA—the one meant to challenge the world.
And yet now, before she had even stepped beyond Japan's borders, she was being challenged by someone no one had deemed important.
In the front rows of the stands, the members of Spica no longer knew what to say. Some were still calling Silence Suzuka's name. Some were shouting warnings for her to watch behind. Their once-unified cheers had broken apart completely, leaving only Nishizaki Ryuu drawing one deep breath after another.
All around him were spectators supporting his horse girl. It should have filled him with infinite reassurance.
But the moment that horse girl glanced sideways toward the crowd, his heart seemed to stop.
The look in Offside Trap's eyes in that instant was nothing like the gaze she'd worn on the day she agreed to become Shinji's horse girl.
Blankly, he followed the line of her sight and turned to Terazumi Shinji.
And he saw a smile appear on the man's face.
That smile stood in sharp contrast to the anxiety and alarm on the faces of the surrounding spectators, and it sent a chill straight through Nishizaki's skull.
The man gave a small nod.
She saw his smile.
She saw that nod.
Narita Brian beside him seemed to be shouting something at her, but Offside Trap could no longer hear it.
Looking through him, she seemed to see everything the two of them had shared over this past stretch of time. She saw herself writhing in pain under the pouring rain. She saw herself staggering through those cruel training sessions. She saw herself in those sweet memories, smiling in happiness.
She had not wanted to betray herself.
So she had endured until now.
Her trainer had told her that the disastrous late break in the Kyoto Daishoten would be the final trial before she reached the summit.
She had never doubted him.
Because she knew she was going to the summit.
The view from the mountaintop—it was her turn to claim it.
"Final 200 meters! Final 200 meters! Silence Suzuka still holds the lead, but Offside Trap behind her—Offside Trap's pursuit is ferocious! She's right on top of her now! Six lengths—five lengths! Can Silence Suzuka hold on?! Can Silence Suzuka hold on?! The final 100 meters are right in front of them!"
Offside Trap's breathing was ragged now. After a 700-meter sustained drive, her stamina was finally beginning to run dry.
Even so, she decisively maintained her stride.
Something filled her heart—a quiet certainty telling her to believe in herself. Even if her stamina was gone, even if her body was no longer fully under control, her conviction that she would win would carry her through the final hundred meters.
She chose to believe in herself.
"The battle behind is fierce, but it will no longer threaten the front two! Offside Trap and Silence Suzuka! Final 100 meters! A four-length gap! Silence Suzuka is still holding on, but Offside Trap's speed isn't dropping! Offside Trap's speed isn't dropping!"
"Can Silence Suzuka escape? Charging from behind is Offside Trap! Charging from behind is Offside Trap! Can she catch her? Can she catch her?!"
Silence Suzuka forced her aching legs onward, trying to get closer and closer to the finish.
There at the finish she could see everything: her trainer and teammates smiling, her dream of America, the celebration of all her fans.
She was carrying so much on her shoulders.
And she believed she had a duty to fulfill all of it.
Her eyes stayed fixed ahead. She did not dare look back at the distance between herself and Offside Trap—until, right there at the finish line, she saw another figure.
A fiery red racing outfit.
Beneath the streaming hair was Offside Trap's face.
At last, unable to suppress the fear boiling up inside, Silence Suzuka turned her head just slightly. She only wanted to see where Offside Trap was at this final moment before the line—how much distance still separated them.
And she crashed straight into a pair of eyes blazing with killing intent.
They were Offside Trap's eyes.
Silence Suzuka had been utterly unprepared.
Because she had only just turned her head—
"Final 50 meters! Final 50 meters! Offside Trap—she's caught her! Offside Trap has caught her! Another miracle on Fuchu's final straight! It's Offside Trap! It's Offside Trap!"
The eyes she had seen in that instant vanished just as quickly.
That figure flashed past Silence Suzuka's frozen gaze—
and past the finish line as well.
"Offside Trap crosses first! Offside Trap wins! Offside Trap wins! This was never luck, never a fluke—it was absolute, undeniable strength! When everyone doubted her, Offside Trap chose to believe in herself, and with an unbelievable finishing burst, she seized the new queen who had already begun her reign!"
"Everyone said Silence Suzuka was unbeatable—but Offside Trap says this: after 600 meters, there are no cowards!"
"From a horse girl who couldn't buy a single graded-stakes win to the conqueror of the Tenno Sho Autumn—we so often say that as long as the old era lingers on, the new era can never arrive. But Offside Trap has conquered Fuchu with her performance! The old era has not yet faded—and yet the horse girl called 'old era' has only now begun her brilliance!"
Shock spread through the grandstands.
Offside Trap had no attention to spare for it.
She barely managed to catch the Narita Brian who threw herself at her in celebration. Once she steadied herself and avoided collapsing, she looked toward Terazumi Shinji in the very front row, almost as though asking for praise.
Meeting her gaze, the man gave a nod of approval.
And Offside Trap could no longer suppress her smile. A laugh spilled out of her.
Then came Akasaka Misato's final cry.
"1:55.7—a new record has been born! 1:55.7!"
Hearing it, Offside Trap looked up at the giant screen. The time displayed in the lower right corner made her eyes widen.
Narita Brian, still holding her, saw that change in expression. Her smile carried both tenderness and admiration.
"An unbelievable time, Offside Trap. This was the one blow that released all the frustration you've carried for years."
"Behind her, Silence Suzuka finishes second. El Condor Pasa takes third…"
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter116)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter82)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter144)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 118
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 111
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 80
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 112
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 80
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 74
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 48
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 50
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 47
Uma Musume: From Beginner 42
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