BANG!
"The gates have opened!"
Eighteen umamusume burst forward the moment the gates slammed open. The turf thundered as dozens of steps crashed onto the dirt one after another, sending tufs to short grass and small chunks of dirt into the air.
Some umamusume immediately began racing forward, trying to immediately take the lead for themselves. A few others remained far behind, both to conserve their strength and to gain a better view on the eventual environment that would form once every runner had settled into their positions.
Mejiro Ardan herself fell more into the latter category, settling comfortably in the 11th place. She kept her breaths steady as she ran, her eyes having never left the one target she couldn't afford to look away from.
Belno Light raced forward, taking 5th out of eighteen runners. Once she made it clear that she was running as a pace chaser, a few umamusume began closing around her, almost forming a wall to block Belno's movements. But Belno showed no surprise at their actions, and simply continued running forward as the first corner approached.
Ardan narrowed her eyes. She knew full well the blockade that'd formed would do little against Belno. She'd seen first-hand how easily Belno had dismantled her obstructions back in the [Japan Dirt Derby]—there was no reason why she couldn't do the same in this race as well.
"W-We've entered the first corner!?"
"Just what is this pace!?"
She could hear the crowd's distant murmurs, but Ardan ignored it all. Instead, she narrowed her eyes as she focused on the runners in front of her.
Indeed, they'd reached the first corner far faster than usual. She could see that a few of the other runners were quite confused, yet incapable of doing anything but to continue running. Belno Light herself seemed unbothered, her gaze locked forward to the few Frontrunners that ran in front of her.
She continued to ponder, trying to see just what this strange feeling in her chest was,
Then, just as they entered the second corner, she realized what it was.
Belno had maintained pressure on the Frontrunners from the very start of the race, forcing them to continue slowly accelerating lest they let Belno overtake them. And by doing so, they were forcing the rest of the group to run at a pace far faster than normal, causing them to burn through their stamina.
Belno was not exempt from this, but she suspected that this was a calculated risk she was taking.
Ardan kept her breaths light—steady. Her steps across the turf were deliberately soft to minimize the impact on her knees. But her muscles remained tense, prepared like a coiled spring ready to extend at a moment's notice.
Because she couldn't do what she'd done back in the [Aoba Sho]. Trying to compete in a battle of wits against the Tactician would only invite defeat. Instead, she needed to turn all those plans she'd made inwards—turn herself into the hidden weapon she'd then use to strike down all the other participants in the race.
Surprisingly, her relative silence seemed to unsettle the other runners around her as well. They seemed to be expecting her to do something, their worries growing as she continued her silence.
Hmm. Perhaps that was an avenue she could explore further.
"Incredible! We're already halfway through the second straight!"
Further ahead, Belno Light maintained her pressure on the Frontrunners, disallowing them from slowing down in the slightest. She could see the fatigue building in the runners surrounding her. They'd likely never expected that she would've maintained her pressure from the start, much less increase it as time went on.
She wasn't exempt, of course. She could feel the slight burn building in her legs. But she'd trained for this—practiced with Blossom Star to make sure she had enough stamina for the eventual face-off against Mejiro Ardan.
Her eyes gleamed of amber as she smiled sharply.
"We've entered the third corner!"
"Oh? Some umamusume are beginning to slow down!"
Ardan narrowed her eyes. It seemed the constant pressure had finally cracked some of the runners. Those who were attempting to block Belno were starting to tire. It wasn't enough for their formation to break apart just yet, but the cracks were now obvious to see. It would only take the lightest of disturbances to shatter it completely.
Which meant it was time.
She took a deep breath as she focused. The world around her fell away as she grasped all the strength she'd been saving up through the entire race, now sharpened into a singular surge. Her heartbeat echoed loudly within her chest, the rhythm similar to that of the crashing waves she'd become familiar with during the summer camp.
Unseen by most, a bluish wind seemed to trail behind her calves. Meanwhile, all the other Late-Surgers she was running with suddenly felt their legs stiffen, weighed down by an opposing force they could not see.
It was as if an invisible ocean had suddenly appeared around them!
She took another breath.
And then the earth broke apart as she surged forward.
"Mejiro Ardan begins accelerating!"
"Other runners are trying to keep up, but Mejiro Ardan doesn't let up!"
Belno's thoughts staggered for a moment when she felt that foreign force invade the atmosphere, and her eyes narrowed as she felt an unseen force grapple onto her legs, causing her to slightly slow down. She glanced to her left just to see Ardan surging forward. At this rate, it wouldn't be long before Ardan would overtake her.
Her smile grew.
Fine then!
"We're entering the third-!"
Belno raised her leg, and stomped. The earth thundered from the immense force, and the invisible whirlpool was sent flying away as the turf beneath her feet trembled. Her legs were unshackled, and she took a deep breath as she felt her building exhaustion vanish entirely.
It was as if the earth itself had rejected the pull of the ocean.
Meanwhile, the umamusume who'd surrounded her had also felt the invisible force that'd slowed them down. That pull had vanished when Belno made her move, but before they could feel any relief, they gasped as an intense weakness struck them. Whatever energy they'd been desperately conserving was drained entirely, and some of them had to slow down to stop themselves from stumbling.
The blockade gave way, and Belno's eyes burnt with amber as she accelerated.
"Belno Light also begins accelerating!"
"I-Incredible! Belno Light and Mejiro Ardan have taken the lead!"
Ardan smiled grimly. As she suspected, Belno had easily broken past the blockade that'd formed around her. Even more worrying was the fact that Belno didn't seem tired in the slightest. Was her stamina truly that exaggerated!?
Belno silently grit her teeth. She'd timed her move just as Ardan had caught up to ensure her thundering stomp would also unsettle her, but it seemed that plan had fallen through. Ardan wasn't bothered in the slightest, and now she was using all the strength she'd conserved.
The other umamusume could only watch in awed horror as the two surged forward, leaving them all behind. Those that'd remained in the back of the pack could still feel the ghostly pull that'd slowed them down, while those that'd ran in front were still shaking from the exhaustion they felt from trying to match Belno's pace.
And as the two stars of this race left them all behind, they couldn't help but be reminded of why those two were part of the Generation of Miracles.
It was like watching a clash between the Ocean's waves and the quaking of the Earth; a [Moskstraumen] against a [Final Gambit].
"It's the final straight!"
"Mejiro Ardan and Belno Light are neck-and-neck!"
Ardan screamed as she pushed forward with all her might. Every step across the turf left her legs quaking, but she didn't dare slow down. She might have been born with legs of glass, but that wouldn't stop her from running! She'd show the world that she was worthy of being a Mejiro!
Belno grit her teeth as she ran, her chest nearly perpendicular to the ground to minimize air resistance. Her muscles were stretched to their limit, but she asked for even more from them. Just like how she had grown since her loss at the [Aoba Sho], so too had Ardan improved leaps and bounds since then. And right now, she wanted nothing more than to beat this umamusume she saw as her rival!
400 meters. 300 meters. 250 meters-!
"The last 200 meters! Mejiro Ardan and Belno Light remain neck-and-neck!"
"It's hard to tell who's truly taken the lead…!"
For them, the rest of the world didn't matter. The cheering audience faded into white noise, the rest of the racecourse melded into nothing. All that was left was them and this turf they ran on—stretching into the infinite. There, just 200 meters away, was the finish line.
And at that moment, both umamusume only had one thought-
More than anything, regardless of what came after, they wanted to win!
So they ran. Ran with all their might, their hearts and brain and legs working in perfect synchrony.
Ardan ran. Despite the fervent pace, her breaths remained steady, controlled. Her heart pulsed with fire, much like an engine that moved to power her legs. Every step she made caused her legs to flare with pain, but this time, the pain wasn't as sharp as it used to be. It was softer, almost pleasant.
Belno ran. Her legs moved with bestial strength, causing the ground below to thunder with each step. All the lessons she'd learnt during the summer camp, all the help she received from her team; they all came to play here. This was her [Final Gambit], and she burnt through all the stamina she had to spare!
200 meters. 150 meters. 100 meters!
Neither of them let up. They continued racing forward. The gap between them and the other runners grew even more exaggerated; so much so that by the time the others were halfway through the final straight, Belno and Ardan were only 50 meters away from the finish line.
Then, within that last, mystical 50 meters, Belno saw something. Something monumental, something that forever etched itself into her mind.
And then-
"Mejiro Ardan and Belno Light cross the finish line!"
The moment they did, the rest of the world came rushing back. Ardan gasped as she quickly began slowing down, trying her best to soften her own steps. She winced with every movement she made, but she didn't collapse. She remained standing tall, her eyes fixed at the still unlit scoreboard.
On the other hand, Belno didn't even seem to register the fact that the race was over, only slowing down when she noticed that Ardan had stopped running. Instead her mind was dominated by that thing she saw. That impossibly tall wall that seemed to bar her from reaching even higher speeds.
The seconds ticked by as more umamusume crossed the finish line, but none of them were joyful. Instead they all turned towards the unlit scoreboard, waiting for the moment when the winner of the race would be decided. The audience was similarly quiet, simmering with tension as the footage of the race was being reviewed.
And then-
"We have reviewed the captured footage, and we have determined the winner of this race!"
The scoreboard flickered to life. And there, the name on the very top was-
"Congratulations to Belno Light for taking 1st place!"
A second of silence passed, and then the audience cheered.
.
.
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AN: Delayed this chapter to fix up some mistakes I noticed.