Currently, in the middle of the racecourse, three umamusume lined up shoulder to shoulder. One heavily focused, one grinning ear to ear, and one exuding untamed elegance. These three were very clearly lining up for a race.
It was Avalon, Don, and Violet. That much was clear to the small crowd that had gathered. It seemed like the Don Quixote fanclub had summoned reinforcements, and word spread faster than expected.
Among the crowd, sitting in a wheelchair, was a much more mature looking umamusume. Long silver hair, grey eyes to match, one blocked by an eyepatch, and most distinctly, only one arm. She seemed like an uma that's seen it all, and now here she was, watching a low level umamusume race.
"Sigh~" Her name was Christmas in Berlin, Chris for short. A retired racer, now umamusume trainer. While you could call her a trainer, she didn't have a single trainee under her care. Why? It's complicated.
She was here to watch a race out of pure boredom anyway, not like she had anything else to do, and it was Wednesday, the local courses were closed. So she was here, wasting her time.
And as the crowd grew, so did the suspense.
Don's trainer, who was overseeing her training, had given the go ahead and said, "I'll count you down, just line up for me." Needless to say, she was a saint to be able to deal with the 'knights' antics.
2000 meters. Not too long, not too short, perfect conditions.
"Ready~?"
Don's trainer began to count down, the three umamusume braced and lowered their stances slightly.
"Get set~"
Avalon's eyes gleamed a beautiful blue, Don's a smoldering amber, and Violet, a precise and efficient purple.
"Go!"
—
As soon as the trainer gave the signal, the three figures pressed into the ground with unprecedented force and burst into a sprint under the afternoon sun.
Boom-!
It didn't take long for each of the three to position themselves. Don was out front, tailed by Violet.
"Whoaaaa!"
"So fast!"
"Go Don go!"
"Violet!!! Do your best!"
The crowd cheered for the two leading umas with unkempt enthusiasm, leaving the one in third completely in the shadows.
In the very back by about 7 lengths and increasing was Avalon. Considering her stats, it was clear that compared to someone like Violet, who was in her classic year and highly experienced, or Don, who was considered such a person's rival, Avalon was the weakest.
All of her physical stats were way lower, she had no way to get in front to control the pace, nor did she have enough stamina to go full tilt with these prodigies.
So why did she agree to this mock race? Well, first of all, it was merely for fun. There were no stakes in a practice match and Avalon hadn't had her daily run yet, so why not right?
She also wanted to see how she stacked up against the top brass of the incoming classic year umas.
So, with the calmness of a person taking a leisurely stroll, Avalon gladly let the two take the lead while she took an end-closer role.
Soon enough, the first corner came up and Don effortlessly continued to accelerate through it, smiling heartily while she did so.
But even while she accelerated, Violet managed to stick to her like… tape. Elegantly sticking behind her, refusing to let up. She had a surprisingly calm look on her face as well, it was clear she was rather experienced with Don's pacing.
The two managed to pass the first corner with no trouble at all. In fact they went even faster, the level of acceleration was staggering.
They were already onto the second corner, lowering their centers of gravity and leaning in a pivot toward the railing, clearing it with relative ease.
Meanwhile, Avalon (who was about 15 lengths behind), was running at an average pace for an uma of her level. She had just cleared the first corner and was currently on the second.
'Miss Don's even faster than Violet. I wonder what her speed is…' Avalon forgot to use her Insight on Don because of the sudden challenge, so she was naturally curious, 'I'll check after this.'
At this point, Avalon had just about cleared the second corner and was about 18 lengths away from the two who were spearheading a lead.
On the second straight, Don hadn't slowed down, she was more than prepared to keep accelerating until the only one in a definitive lead was her.
Violet wasn't slacking either, adamantly staying on Don's heels, the two clearly hadn't reached their limit just yet.
Then all of a sudden, Don began to slow down, not of her own volition, but from an outside force.
"...!" Her feet felt heavy and the ground felt stickier, her body began to feel drained of strength. She knew what was happening.
Violet had used her unique skill [Venom Strike].
A skill that allowed Violet to drain a substantial amount of stamina from a singular runner she targets. If Avalon could make a comparison, she would say it's like a certain blue-rose closers signature move.
Violet's face remained as focused and controlled as it was when the race started, which slightly confused Don.
'Tis but the second straightaway, and thou art already invoking thy skill? Hm… usually thou wouldst save it for the final stretch…' Don was skeptical, but she wasn't one who backed away from a challenge.
"Very well, then! If thou insisteth upon such fervor, I too shall answer in kind and unleash mine skill upon this very field!" Don said laughing and then she activated her own unique skill.
La Aventura Ideal!
Don's speed began to drastically increase, even Violet's debuff couldn't hold her completely, breaking ahead from the Dark haired uma.
Don's vision was clouded in illusion, speeding up in a daze of delusions.
Violet's boost in stamina made her able to stick to Don barely, but she was about 2 1⁄2 lengths behind.
Don effortlessly cleared the third corner with no trouble at all, and the fourth corner wasn't much of a problem either.
While these two were clearly racing with the intent to kill, almost 30 lengths away, was currently in awe at how fast her seniors were moving.
'Should I start accelerating now…?' As it stood, Avalon had no real race experience, but from what she's seen, 30 lengths isn't good.
So she sped up, clearing the second straight with a practiced efficiency, lowering her body to an unprecedented level.
28 lengths
25 lengths
22 lengths
The third corner was absolutely skipped, Avalon was incredibly close to the railing, almost touching it.
19 lengths
15 lengths
13 lengths
No one had noticed the little golden black streak quickly approaching the headliners just yet. They were busy watching the spectacle up front take place.
The two were about a quarter into the final straight duking it out in a blaze of speed. Avalon on the other hand, had just finished the fourth corner, still rapidly accelerating.
12 lengths
11 lengths
10 lengths
"Huh? Hey isn't that…"
"There was a third uma on the track, right?"
"Whoa she's moving FAST!"
The crowd had finally noticed the black haired umamusume rapidly approaching the two spearheads in front.
9 lengths, 600m.
8 lengths, 500m.
7 lengths, 400m.
'I won't make it at this rate. Those two are truly strong…' Avalon sincerely complimented her seniors, she was likely going to lose, 'They've already used theirs, it'd be rude if I also didn't use my skill.'
Sword in the stone!
Caliburn!
All of a sudden, Avalon launched her final assault, gliding across the turf like a legend reborn.
5 lengths, 300m
The crowd was in awe at her speed, more so than the two battling for first. The two in question also noticed the little uma's sudden appearance. Violet was shook, but Don laughed away, slowly increasing the gap between them.
3 lengths, 200m
The three umas stopped holding back, running at full tilt, accelerating at a terrifying velocity.
1 length, 100m
The last 100 meters and Avalon was right on the two genius' tails, and still accelerating!
Even Don, who was confident the entire race, faltered slightly. Violet was already running at her best, she couldn't keep up much longer.
Even so, neither of them intended to lose.
0 lengths, 70m
Neck and neck, shoulder to shoulder, the three ran with all their might as fast as they possibly could to victory.
"HAAAAAAAH!!!!"
"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!"
"I REFUSE TO LOSE!!!"
50m
The three were all still in one crowded mess of umamusume, but Avalon just barely managed to push out of the pack, albeit slightly.
30m
Avalon began to move ahead in a final spurt. She was very clearly taking the lead now, the crowd cheering her name.
10m
Avalon was a length ahead.
0m, Finish!
Avalon crossed the finish line first, followed by Don and Violet finishing in a tied second place.
…
…
…
"WHOAAAA!!!"
"SO COOL!"
"AND SHE'S JUST A JUNIOR YEAR UMA?!"
After a moment of stunned silence, the audience roared in cheer for Avalon. She had won, just as she had expected.
And then reality blurred into the illusion.
—
Everything you just read was a lie, from the moment Don's trainer said 'Go.' You had been reading a false reality.
Avalon didn't win. She came third, with a 54 length trail… here's what really happened:
1st straight: Avalon got a bad start and ended up 10 lengths behind the two.
1st corner: Violet and Don kept accelerating, Avalon was left 15 lengths behind.
2nd corner: The two in front left Avalon completely in the dust by 20 lengths.
2nd straight: The two celebrity umas stopped holding back and started going even faster, leaving Avalon a staggering 36 lengths back.
3rd & 4th corner: same story as the first two, except Avalon was almost completely out of stamina trying to keep up.
Final straight: The Umas activated their unique skills, Violet's debuffs didn't affect Don and she simply kept accelerating to the finish, winning by half a length.
…Avalon crossed the finish line and instantly fell to the ground in exhaustion, then the dream you just saw moments ago, played in her head.
Avalon lost… rather spectacularly.
"Dost thou see now?! So long as the radiant sun hangs high above us, defeat shall never once find its way unto me!" Don said with a goody grin.
"Haah… Right… Haah… Right…" Vi was too out of breath to argue with this fool, turning to see if Avalon had crossed the line.
Only to see a girl on the ground laying as flat as a board!
"Is she… okay?" Violet asked.
"Most likely, she exhausted herself in a desperate attempt to catch up. Worry not—after a brief respite, she shall surely recover!" Don responded delightfully.
"Haah…" Violet could only sigh, walking up to Avalon asking, "Ava~ are you alright?"
But all Violet got in return was incoherent mumbles like "hehe~" or "I'm the strongest."
Many legendary umamusume have died on track, but Avalon may be the first to have fallen asleep on one!
—
END OF CHAPTER
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