Misfortune actually wasn't exactly "unlucky"—after all, she was a deity and could control her own misfortune level, always keeping it precisely at zero. Thus, there was never any situation like "She was originally kind-hearted but gradually twisted and blackened due to extreme misfortune, finally becoming evil and wanting to destroy the world."
Her nature was exactly that of her beloved villain, Dio—a born bad seed who found joy purely in others' suffering. A truly evil goddess. Unfortunately, Misfortune wasn't very smart; she lacked an imposing presence and was easily deceived.
Misfortune also had a symbiotic sister who was, at the same time, her eternal rival—Fortune.
Because of their differing personalities and views on humans and Uma Musume, the two had been fighting constantly since birth. However, since the efficiency of collecting Misfortune Energy far outclassed Fortune's Hope Energy—Fortune could toil for ten days or half a month and still gather less energy than Misfortune did with a single afternoon nap—Misfortune always had the upper hand.
She particularly loathed Uma Musume—those gentle, radiant beings blessed by the Three Goddesses. Just thinking about those Uma Musume running races to bring hope and happiness to the world filled her with disgust.
Her method of spreading suffering across the world was simple: first, kidnap the Three Goddesses, then send countless clones across the globe to wreak havoc. By ensuring Uma Musume suffered endless accidents on the racetrack, she would push misfortune to its ultimate limit, plunging the world into a permanent curse.
Every time she saw Fortune collapse in despair, helpless to stop yet another parallel world from falling to eternal misfortune, Misfortune felt incomparable delight.
But what Misfortune hadn't expected was that over a month ago, Fortune—perhaps broken by repeated failures—had lost her confidence and decided to slack off entirely.
Not only did Fortune stop interfering with Misfortune's global rampage, she even summoned a servant for amusement and spent her days teasing him.
This lulled Misfortune into letting down her guard. She even allowed herself to be drawn into teasing that servant alongside her sister...
But when Misfortune finally gathered all her clones for a dramatic Wild West showdown against Fortune's servant, she realized too late—it was a trap! Fortune had used the last of her strength to seal Misfortune deep beneath Tracen, forcing her to wait three whole months before breaking free!
Since being sealed, Misfortune had no choice but to lie underground, slowly regaining her strength while enduring the endless bickering of Daiwa Scarlet and Vodka above her.
She could tolerate their daily arguments and constant praise of Fortune's servant—the one who had defeated her twice. After all, once she broke free, those noisy Uma Musumes would be the first to suffer.
But what Misfortune absolutely couldn't stand was that today, even that servant had joined the farce. Right before a genuine evil goddess like her—who took pleasure in the suffering of Uma Musume—he dared to pretend to be a villain?
Fine, if he could act well, she might have considered stealing Mizuno from Fortune and making him her own servant…
But what was this awful performance supposed to be? This gentlemanly fool who looked ready to star in a harem anime was supposed to be a villain?!
Her patience at its end, Misfortune immediately dispatched Clone #12581—the one most resistant to sealing—to deliver a decisive blow to Fortune's servant while Fortune herself still lay dormant.
Misfortune gathered all the power she'd accumulated over the month, forcing Clone #12581 through the seal's cracks and onto the surface…
"Please stop insulting villains already!" Clone #12581 snapped, voice sharp with fury.
"?" The squabbling group froze at the sound, turning to see a sinister woman, wreathed in dark aura, slowly emerging from the ground.
"What the—?" The three Uma Musume didn't recognize Misfortune, and seeing her translucent body slip through solid earth, they blinked in confusion, unsure if it was real.
Only Mizuno, who had seen Misfortune's true form before, reacted instantly.
"Misfortune?!" he blurted, his expression hardening in alarm.
Didn't Fortune say it would take her three months to recover enough to break the seal? How was she here after barely one?
Panic rising, Mizuno tried to call out to his ally for help:
[Mizuno]:Fortune, what's going on? How did your archenemy respawn early?!
But no matter how much he called, there was no answer—Fortune must have still been asleep, her energy spent repairing his body.
"This is bad…" Mizuno muttered, watching beads of sweat roll down his temple as Misfortune's spectral form emerged, already three-quarters solid.
He had beaten Misfortune twice before only thanks to Fortune's Hope Energy charm. Without Fortune's power, he had no way to resist a goddess who embodied misfortune itself.
"Hehe~" Misfortune chuckled mockingly, watching Mizuno's tense face through her mask.
She knew Fortune couldn't help him now—that was exactly why she sent this clone.
Weak though it was, resistant to seals and easily dispersed by Hope Energy, it was more than enough to handle one powerless human.
Capturing Mizuno now meant capturing Fortune herself.
Then she could lock Fortune in a dungeon and torment her at will—and claim Mizuno as her servant to play with however she pleased.
Once those two were her toys, nothing would ever stop her from destroying worlds again!
"Kekekeke—" Misfortune cackled, her laughter dripping malice. Compared to Mizuno's earlier fake villain laugh, this was the real thing—cold, bone-deep, and utterly terrifying.
The black aura around her thickened as her body fully solidified.
"!" Daiwa Scarlet, Vodka, and Gold Ship froze, overwhelmed by her sinister presence.
Even as a clone, Misfortune radiated power that far outstripped anything these young Uma Musume could face. The malice in her aura was directed squarely at them.
Gulp… Mizuno knew all too well what she could do. Without Fortune's help, she could crush him like an ant.
Normally, when facing a hopeless fight, Mizuno's go-to strategy was obvious—run.
However—
"…" He glanced at the three Uma Musume beside him.
Before escaping, he had to make sure these girls were safe.
"Let me go first," Mizuno said softly to Vodka, still holding him. His tone was calm, but firm.
"Eh? Ah, okay…" Vodka released him, dazed.
Free again, Mizuno stepped protectively in front of them, his body tense.
Seeing his seriousness, Gold Ship immediately understood that this shadowy woman was no illusion.
"Mizuno-dono…" she murmured, removing her ornate mask, her voice trembling. "She's not human… or Uma Musume… but some kind of unstoppable evil, isn't she?"
Mizuno didn't answer, just took a step forward and waved back at them.
"This is personal. Don't worry, I'm strong—I'll win. Go on ahead, I'll catch up later."
"That's definitely a death flag!" Gold Ship shot back instantly.
"Evil…" Daiwa Scarlet and Vodka trembled, but instead of retreating, stepped up beside Mizuno.
"We're not running," Vodka said firmly. "If the Mysterious Gentleman were here, he'd do the same."
"Yes!" Daiwa Scarlet raised her fists. "He'd never back down from evil!"
"Gah! How could I possibly charge in right now?!" Mizuno yelped.
"You?" Both girls turned to stare at him.
"Ah—I mean, if I were the Mysterious Gentleman, I'd definitely retreat first…" Mizuno mumbled awkwardly.
They narrowed their eyes suspiciously.
Mizuno whistled, looking away—
"Keke—" Misfortune smirked, suddenly struck by a wicked idea.
"Let me show you the true face of the Mysterious Gentleman you've been searching for—he's right behind you, dressed all in black, hiding every inch of his skin!"
The two Uma Musume spun around immediately.
Mizuno froze mid-step, stiff as if time itself had stopped—
"Him?!"