Malice was flowing.
As Eclipse entered the gate, dense blackness dyed the entire racecourse. Black fog, almost tangible, spread endlessly across the ground, exuding an unsettling, terrifying aura.
No one in the stands was discussing anything anymore. As for the Umamusume on the track, fear rose from the bottom of their hearts. Their consciousness blurred slightly, and their bodies began to tremble on their own.
The black fog clearly had no physical substance. It was only the manifestation of some concept, and yet they felt as though they had sunk into a mire. Forget running—even lifting a leg felt unbearably difficult.
Then, after that eerie silence had continued for who knew how long, the crisp sound of the gates opening broke it, announcing the start of the race.
CLANG—!
The instant the gates opened, the black figure shot out, almost scraping past the gate. The tremendous force stirred the dense black fog, as though raising a towering black wave.
But that was not the most terrifying part. Compared to the phenomenon she caused, her speed stirred up an even greater wave in the eyes of those who understood racing.
That gate speed, that acceleration, and that terrifying force...
Close to the highest record in history? No—far beyond it.
In this world, the fact that Umamusume possessed extraordinary physical ability was already accepted common sense, but even Umamusume had a general upper limit to their physical ability.
And yet every quality Eclipse was displaying now far exceeded the limits of this world's Umamusume in every aspect. Every step she took refreshed everyone else's understanding.
Compared to Eclipse's terrifying performance, the Umamusume behind her, though all of them were also among the best of this generation, performed poorly. They could even be called pitiful.
Under the influence of the black fog, forget running at full strength. Right now, even reacting quickly after the start and avoiding a serious late start was a challenge.
This was not because they were not outstanding. Quite the opposite. It was precisely because they were among the most outstanding Umamusume of this generation that they could even move their legs under the black fog's influence.
Otherwise, if they had been replaced by Umamusume with even slightly weaker resistance to pressure, forget running—they might not have even remained conscious under the black fog's influence until the race began.
On one side was a monster whose every ability far exceeded the highest records in history. On the other were girls whose abilities were already inferior, and who were now being affected by the black fog besides. Some started late, some fell behind. Naturally, a gap appeared.
And it was widening rapidly.
Although the race had only just begun, everyone watching realized that perhaps it was already over. Perhaps even earlier, the moment Eclipse decided to enter the Satsuki Sho, the result had already been decided.
The Satsuki Sho was two thousand meters in total, but before even a tenth of the race had passed, Eclipse had already opened a huge lead over second place.
Perhaps some people were still pinning their hopes on her running out of stamina. After all, after Eclipse forced her way into the Satsuki Sho, many people had grown curious about what qualified her to participate in a race of this level and looked through her record. Naturally, they had found that she often lost speed during the final sprint, allowing those behind her to close the gap.
Unfortunately, this time, Eclipse did not intend to "lose speed" again.
As a creation born from malice, to keep her from being driven mad and going out of control by the malice she bore, the Three Goddesses had personally gouged out her "heart." Their original intention was to prevent her from being affected by malice, but at the same time, it also made her lose the ability known as "emotion."
That was why she always seemed so indifferent to many things. It was not because she was naturally detached or anything of the sort, but because she fundamentally lacked the ability to care about others.
Powerful, cold, and efficient—a machine. A vessel meant to kill and contain a new god.
That was the purpose for which the Three Goddesses had originally designed her.
But clearly, the current Eclipse had already deviated sharply from the track the Three Goddesses had prepared for her.
Although from the very moment she was born, the Three Goddesses had already discovered that this creation had exceeded Their control, They were not completely incompetent. They had contingencies in place for the possibility of Their creation going out of control.
But it was at that very moment that a boy covered in mud passed through the forest. He had only wanted to see whether there were any wild vegetables nearby that he could dig up and eat. Instead, he encountered a small black Umamusume.
They lifted their heads and looked at each other.
The instant their gazes met, everything was quietly rewritten.
Eclipse did not hate running. She simply felt there was no need.
She herself understood how strong she was. She was already an existence beyond standard specifications, and with the blessing of the goddesses' power and the condensation of malice, her terror was enough to amaze even the Three Goddesses.
She did not crave victory either. Not because she was uncompetitive, but because victory was within easy reach. As long as she wanted it, she could win any race, from beginning to end.
Strength was certainly a good thing, but at the same time, it made her lose the desire to pursue victory. The emotions she lacked further prevented her from feeling the joy of victory. Instead, because the gap between her and everyone else was too great, she even found racing more boring than spacing out.
But even someone like her had something she cared about.
Even without feelings, even unable to answer love, even with the hole in her chest mocking her incompleteness at every moment.
Over all these years, the things accumulated bit by bit, even if they still could not give rise to any emotion, were enough to become instinct. They had even been written into the logic of her thoughts.
She would not feel sadness, nor would she feel anger, but that did not mean she would tolerate others harming the only thing she cared about.
Quite the opposite. Precisely because there were so few things she could care about—because she did not even possess the ability to care—the single speck of light in her palm became all the more precious, allowing not the slightest slander from anyone else.
THUD—!
A quarter of the race had passed. On the silent track, Eclipse's foot came down heavily.
Weeds were crushed. The ground trembled. A terrifying force erupted from where her horseshoe struck the earth, raising her already common-sense-defying speed by another large margin.
The race no longer had any meaning.
Looking at Eclipse, who had only covered a quarter of the course yet was already ahead of them by who knew how much, these proud daughters of heaven, each among the finest Umamusume of their generation, even began to feel the urge to give up.
Struggling was meaningless. No matter how hard they worked, the gap between them and her was widening at a visible rate.
Their past glory became a joke. Their heavy steps felt as though they had been filled with lead. Even their consciousness gradually sank into the black fog, as though they could hear someone whispering to them, urging them to stop here.
You can't win...
Give up...
None of this means anything...
Their consciousness gradually blurred. Their steps gradually slowed.
Within the dense black fog, the Umamusume behind Eclipse gradually gave up struggling, their eyes growing emptier and emptier.
But just as the black fog was about to blind their eyes and seep into their hearts, points of light began to shine through the darkness.
Agnes Tachyon stepped forward, colors like a flood of data swirling around her. Eclipse in the distance was reflected in her eyes, and her expression was serious and focused.
Manhattan Cafe followed closely behind. Flames seemed to burn within her golden pupils. Though her gaze was fixed on Eclipse in the distance, it was as though she was not looking at Eclipse at all, but chasing after something else. Faint ripples spread through the air around her.
And beside the two of them, Tokai Teio looked at Eclipse in the distance, her pace growing faster and faster. The unwillingness and longing on her face were unmistakable, and faint traces like blue currents of electricity gradually surfaced around her.
That was Domain, a performance trance/zone.
In reality, for certain reasons, the Umamusume on Kitahara's team basically all met the conditions to open a Domain. This was especially true of those Umamusume he had personally "adjusted"; in this area, they possessed an innate advantage.
And now, setting aside Agnes Tachyon, who had long since opened her Domain, both Manhattan Cafe and Tokai Teio had actually already been standing at the edge of a half-formed Domain. They simply lacked the stimulus to make them take that final step.
Because of Nice Nature's special training, the three of them had far greater resistance to this flowing malice than the others. After regaining their clarity, stimulated by the black fog and the agitation of the emotions within them, the thing known as Domain naturally spread outward.
And because of the black fog's stimulation, the three Domains had undergone some subtle changes compared to before. Not only did they perform better, they did not oppose one another. They even began faintly linking together.
Within boundless darkness, within endless malice, the Domains opened by the three of them connected as one. They were like torches lit in the night. Although they could not burn away the darkness, they lit the road ahead, giving the others courage to keep going.
The black fog was dispelled. The shackles were removed. Color gradually returned to the eyes of the remaining Umamusume. They did not even have time to feel fear afterward before they began running at full strength again.
Perhaps they no longer had any hope of victory. Perhaps they were destined to lose. But no matter what, they had to keep running. None of them had ever thought of giving up.
In fact, after they faintly regained clarity from the black fog, faint specks of light in various colors also began to appear around them.
Although they were not enough to form a Domain, and could at most be considered tiny ripples born from surging emotion, they were still enough to stir faint waves. They merged into the barrier that blocked the black fog, expanding its range even further.
And it was not only the range that expanded. After those specks of light merged into the barrier, the Umamusume inside the barrier seemed to feel something awakening within their bodies.
After breaking free of the black fog, they had not merely returned to normal. They even felt lighter than ever before, their steps more agile, and their speed and condition while running far sharper and faster than at any point in the past.
This sudden, peculiar scene drew the eyes of the audience. When they noticed the condition of those Umamusume, this sight, like heroes charging at a Demon King, finally broke the silence that had reigned ever since the black fog descended.
"Keep going!"
"Charge forward!"
"Don't give up, girls!"
Blessings and encouragement rang out. The goodwill gathered bit by bit into ripples, making even the black fog inside the racecourse seem to fade by a great deal.
But it was precisely then that Eclipse, who had been leading in front by who knew how much, glanced at the distance to the finish line and nodded faintly to herself.
The warm-up was about done. Time to open her Domain.
Although before the race began, Yayoi Akikawa had said that Eclipse's Domain was rather frightening, and many people had subconsciously assumed that the black fog was the manifestation of Eclipse's Domain, that was not actually the case.
That terrifying black fog was not Eclipse's Domain. It was simply a part of her from birth, the spread of pure malice. The reason it had not appeared normally was that she had always been doing her best to restrain it. What was happening now was not the opening of a Domain either. She had merely loosened her restraint and removed the weight she carried.
As for her true Domain...
Eclipse closed her eyes, then opened them.
Nothing about her changed. It was only that after she opened her eyes, the light inside the venue suddenly dimmed by a great deal.
'Ah, she's gotten serious.'
'I hope this doesn't leave too deep a trauma on those girls.'
'You two, stop slacking off and hurry up with the cleanup preparations!'
As the three voices faded away, someone in the racecourse finally noticed the change in the light. But before anyone could make a sound, the next instant, dense darkness swallowed everything.
It was not black fog, nor was it malice. If one had to describe it, it was as though some enormous object had moved between the world and the sun, absorbing every source of light and plunging everything else into darkness.
And not only within the venue. After true darkness descended, the united barrier that had obstructed the black fog also shattered in an instant like a bubble.
"It's over."
Standing within the darkness, Kitahara gazed at Eclipse on the track and murmured softly.
"One horse leads; all others lose their light."
That was Tracen's school motto.
But in truth, that sentence had another reading. It was only that ever since the Three Goddesses stripped away the concept of "Eclipse," no one had been able to remember it.
"Eclipse leads; all horses lose their light."
As Kitahara's words ended, Eclipse also stopped on the far side of the finish line. After coming to a standstill, she turned her head and looked toward Kitahara in that secluded corner.
After looking for quite some time, Eclipse turned back toward the Umamusume still running on the track, still trying their hardest to chase her. Then she waited a while longer, until they crossed the finish line, before turning and leaving the track.
Then, after who knew how much more time had passed, once every Umamusume had finished running, the judge on the high platform finally barely came back to his senses. He printed out the data recorded by the high-speed camera and, in a trembling voice, read out that number.
"First place, Eclipse."
"Ahead of second place by..."
"One hundred eighty-four lengths."
---
T/N: ahhh so thats why the motto changed, its because the goddesses stripped away the concept of ECclipse
also ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY-FOUR LENGTHS?
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