The dialogue between Dream Weaver and the phantom flickered and vanished in an instant, but her sudden, sharp drop in speed was obvious enough that many watching from outside the track noticed it immediately.
"Dream Weaver's pace is falling off—is she at her limit?! Sea the Stars! Sea the Stars is closing the gap!"
"As expected, it was just too much. What a pity. If the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe wasn't being held on such a heavy, rain-soaked track today, or if her opponent wasn't Sea the Stars, perhaps Dream Weaver really could have broken the curse of the Arc."
"There's nothing to be done; she truly gave it her all. Looking at the speed data coming in from the course, Dream Weaver actually broke the world record. To surpass her own peak after being away from the spotlight for nearly two years is already a miracle."
"It's just... her opponent is Sea the Stars..."
The commentator's heavy sigh echoed through the room. Sakurako Kazehaya bit her lip so hard it bled, the plushie in her hands long since squeezed into a mangled, distorted shape.
Everything had looked so promising just a moment ago.
They were so close to winning, only to face the same failure as so many previous Arcs?
She couldn't accept it.
"The Great Escape... is it over...?"
Watching the fading streak of crimson light on the track, Panthalassa's expression was more dejected than ever before.
"I guess it really is impossible. Even you can't win against time," Vela Azul whispered against the glass. She closed her eyes, thinking that she couldn't hide in her fantasies anymore; it was time to go confirm the date of her retirement ceremony with her trainer.
"Master..."
Liberty Island gripped the armrests of her seat instinctively, her strength so great the plastic nearly snapped.
She stared at that crimson light as it was slowly reeled in. A mix of sorrow and fury surged within her, making her want to bolt onto the track and block the opponent herself.
But she couldn't.
Just as Dream Weaver couldn't decide the outcome of the Japan Cup for her back then, Liberty Island, sitting in the stands, could offer no help to the Dream Weaver on the track now.
Before, even if she couldn't beat Equinox, she could at least work twice as hard to train herself. But now, she could only watch helplessly as her beloved mentor was about to be overtaken.
"Trainer..."
Once again, Hishi Miracle felt that crushing sense of powerlessness. Seeing Dream Weaver lose to the passage of time again filled her with unprecedented self-reproach.
If not for her—if she hadn't pushed so hard to win the Kikuka Sho—her trainer would have had more time to recover. Maybe then, she wouldn't be losing to time once more.
Agnes Tachyon said nothing. She only nervously gripped her oversized sleeves, which had grown significantly longer.
Having been through it herself, she saw the situation more clearly than Liberty Island or Hishi Miracle: the reason for Dream Weaver's sudden plunge in speed wasn't lack of stamina, but injury.
By her calculations, while the potential-activating formula had its side effects, it shouldn't have been enough to cause a fracture. Otherwise, Agnes Tachyon would never have used it.
But for some reason, the reality on the field had deviated wildly from her data.
Just like her past self, Dream Weaver had met an accident on the turf.
"It's my fault..."
Tachyon whispered. The thought that she had caused Dream Weaver to suffer that same agony on the track made the guilt feel like a suffocating weight on her chest.
While everyone else was sick with worry over the state of the race, one person let out a massive sigh of relief.
Shotaro Akutsu practically collapsed into his chair. The explosive speed Dream Weaver had displayed earlier had terrified him into silence.
In those brief moments, he had already envisioned several scenarios where his reputation was ruined because of his pre-race comments.
But fortunately, she was still that Uma Musume burdened by the curse of the Arc. His career as a streamer wouldn't have to end today after all.
Feeling as though he'd escaped a plummet off a cliff, Akutsu flashed a relaxed smile. He forced himself to look composed, as if everything was going according to his plan.
"Didn't I say Dream Weaver couldn't pull it off? Losing so many times at the Arc with a Great Escape and she still hasn't learned her lesson. Some people just never learn; they forget the past the moment the sun comes up, don't they?"
"Alright, no need to watch anymore. As a professional commentator, I can make the call right now."
"This Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, without a doubt, will end in Dream Weaver's fail—"
The word "failure" died in his throat, the first syllable hanging in the air for several seconds.
It wasn't that Akutsu was trying to build dramatic tension. His brain had simply gone completely blank from shock.
Because on the screen, the track at the Arc was playing host to an utterly inconceivable scene.
On the turf, Sea the Stars narrowed her eyes. The crimson streak was drawing closer and closer; she could already calculate exactly how many seconds it would take to blow past her.
"Her speed is dropping, yet she isn't using her Zone to stop me. Has her stamina faded so much she can't even deploy it?"
"I see... so even she grows weak with time..."
After a brief moment of sentiment, a look of grim determination flashed in Sea the Stars' eyes.
"The world's number one Uma Musume, the brightest star in my mother's eyes... I can finally claim those titles for myself, fairly and squarely."
Taking one last look at the slowing Dream Weaver—whose posture was already wobbling, clearly holding on by sheer willpower—Sea the Stars spoke in her heart.
"Dream Weaver, you have my respect. I doubt I will ever forget you as long as I live."
"It's a pity, but the winner of this Arc is still—"
SCHHHHHHHHHIIING!
A hum so massive it felt like it could slice through the entire curtain of rain suddenly resonated across the track. An instinctive sense of mortal peril shrieked through Sea the Stars' mind. Her eyes went vacant, but her body reacted to the terror in a blind reflex.
Her footfall shifted instantly. Her perfectly flawless running line and form twisted into a distorted mess as she jerked away.
The acceleration she had been building plummeted as a result of this sudden evasion.
A second, maybe two—facing that blade that felt as if it would cleave her in half the very next moment, Sea the Stars lost all sense of time.
She could only watch as the crimson light she was supposed to overtake pulled away with a speed that defied logic.
Confronted by a scene that violated every law of common sense, Sea the Stars—along with everyone watching—fell into a state of paralyzed shock.
But Sea the Stars was a world-class Uma Musume after all. She regained her senses quickly.
However, once she truly felt just how dangerous that "blade" was, she couldn't help but let out a low snarl.
"You've got to be kidding me... how is this even possible?!"
--+--
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.