As if she were trying to escape something, Dream Weaver no longer paid the phantom any mind.
She averted her eyes from that gaze—heavy with sorrow and pity—and bit her lip, desperately trying to wring one last spark of strength from her body to ignite Kindling Flames.
But she failed once again. This broken shell of a body no longer held the potential to summon a miracle.
Miracles have always belonged to the young, to those in the spring of their lives.
This body, which had tasted defeat at the Arc de Triomphe countless times, was no longer young.
The world is always cruel to the aged; thus, the searing heat of a miracle turned its back on Dream Weaver, leaving her with nothing but the bone-chilling winter rain of a December in Paris.
Her fuel was spent. No matter how many times she floored the accelerator, there was no response.
"We were never Uma Musume blessed by the gods," the phantom said softly. "We aren't like Shinzan—someone who can simply step onto the track and reclaim their full power as if it were merely something left in storage."
"Shut up! I was the winner of that duel! So what if they're blessed? My Divine Blade can cut through the gods themselves!"
Dream Weaver let out a ragged howl, trying to drown out the voice.
She tried to ignite the flame one more time, but an irrepressible wave of weakness washed over her, making it impossible to even keep her eyes fully open.
"The Divine Blade is indeed the sharpest edge on the turf."
"But even she cannot outrun time. No matter how keen the blade, there will eventually come a day when it rusts and rots away."
The phantom's voice drifted clearly into Dream Weaver's ear, unstoppable despite her screams.
"But I caught up to time once!"
"Yes. But it was only for a moment."
"The boost from Kindling Flames and the acceleration from the downhill gave you a fleeting second where you surpassed time. But time never stands still. She simply waits to overtake you the moment you slow your pace."
"Look. Isn't she right behind you now?"
Instinctively, Dream Weaver looked back in the direction the phantom pointed.
Sea the Stars' silhouette was a blur through the curtain of rain. To Dream Weaver's fading vision, the figure looked like a ghost—as if the phantom of time itself was truly about to run her down.
The opponent's shadow loomed closer and closer, the sheer pressure of it making Dream Weaver feel like she was suffocating.
"The arrogance of youth or the hope for the future makes you feel like you can run infinitely fast. Like the legendary Uma Musume, Eclipse—where your shadow can't catch you, light can't catch you, and time can't catch you."
"But you've known from the very beginning that Eclipse is just a myth. In that moment when you used Kindling Flames and rode that momentum, you became the strongest in the world... but you still couldn't outrun time."
The phantom's eyes were filled with grief. She watched Dream Weaver as she struggled through the agony to use Kindling Flames, every step a heart-wrenching pang of torture, yet still pushing forward.
"Agnes Tachyon's formula is bordering on a miracle; it can restore your physical condition as if reversing time itself. But you are not a young Uma Musume. Your body has no untapped potential left to trigger. What you are burning to trade for power isn't potential—it's your life force."
"That is why Kindling Flames cannot be maintained for the whole race. That is why your bone snapped halfway through. Because the life force remaining in your body is no longer enough to buy another miracle."
"Deep down, you've known this since the start."
"Knowing... means I should just give up?"
The double exhaustion of body and spirit left Dream Weaver without even the strength to roar in this nearly frozen world.
After one final, failed attempt to spark the flame, she finally responded in a low, raspy whisper.
"If that were the case... I should have given up back when I faced T.M. Opera O. No, I should have quit during my debut against Tokai Teio. Why would I have struggled all the way to this day?"
"So what if it's time? Even if I can't run anymore, I'll use my hands to drag her back. If my hands lose their strength, I'll use my teeth. Even if I have to crawl to the finish line in the ugliest way possible, like a common maggot, I will never give up."
Watching Dream Weaver, who looked ready to sprint until she literally rotted away, the pity and sorrow in the phantom's eyes reached a breaking point.
She reached out, her fingertips brushing across Dream Weaver's brow, which was furrowed in pain.
"Is it worth it?" she asked, her voice soft and slow. "Aside from you, no other Uma Musume would verge on death time and time again on the track, struggling through such agony."
"Racing and winning are nothing but pain to you now. If that's the case, why persist?"
"You've done enough. You don't have to hold on anymore. Leave the mission of this Script World to Liberty Island or Hishi Miracle. Go back to reality, use your accumulated strength to easily win every race except the Arc de Triomphe, and live a happy life with the prize money. You can leave this place that only brings you suffering."
"Your goal at the start was just to get into a good university and find a high-paying job to repay your mother, wasn't it? You can do all of that now."
"You don't need to step onto the turf for the sake of others anymore. Go and start a life that belongs only to..."
"No."
Dream Weaver gritted her teeth. The word seemed to take every ounce of strength she had left, but she forced herself to cut the phantom off.
"This... is my story. This... is my stage."
"I am... an Uma Musume. I want to be here... I only want to be here... to seize... the victory that belongs to me!"
Perhaps due to internal bleeding, Dream Weaver felt her chest burning hot, as if her very heart were on fire.
"An Uma Musume, huh?"
The phantom murmured, pulling her fingers away. Her gaze toward Dream Weaver now held something unreadable, a layer beyond just pity and sadness.
"If you are an Uma Musume, then you really shouldn't feel pain because of running."
"King Halo found the happiness of reconciling with her mother."
"Everyone in Kasamatsu found the happiness of moving forward."
The Northern family finally touched the glory they were so proud of."
"Mejiro Ardan can finally stand on the track once more."
"Even the world, once suppressed by the European racing circle, has begun to change because of you."
"You have fought for the happiness of many, and the real world has become a place where every Uma Musume can find joy."
"Now, Dream Weaver, it's time for you to find your own."
The moment the words fell, the star ornament on Dream Weaver's chest suddenly flashed. It was the "Star of Stars" she had put on before the race.
In that moment, within the item description that Dream Weaver could not see, the text of the Star of Stars underwent a change.
--+--
[Star of Stars]
[Effect: Triggers once per race. Replaces the Life Force required for all skills with Willpower.]
[Note: "Go and run. This is a world where everyone can find happiness." — The girl, who never thought about bringing victory to herself, waved a red ribbon toward the stands, while three ordinary Uma Musume sitting in the audience watched her with smiles.]
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.