「Alright, folks. It's 'bout time for the race to begin!」
As the world grew quiet, I opened my eyes to gaze down the track. It was Early March now—Winter was slowly melting into Spring, and the surroundings reflected that. The trees, previously barren, were starting to regain their leaves. The patch inside the looping track began regrowing its grass. The scent of Winter's lingering chill mingled with the earthiness of the upcoming Sprint.
And without me knowing, a smile stretched across my face, breaking through despite the 'Hero' persona I'd adapted. I could not help it; the blazing inferno raging inside me refused to be dampened.
Because, for the first time, I felt something as I returned to the tracks.
I was born wrong; that was a fact. Despite being an umamusume, I never really found any care in running. The so-called itch to run that many uma experienced had been an unknown sensation to me, and even now, I still didn't quite understand that.
But as I stood in my gates, counting down the seconds towards the moment when the gates would open, I found myself understanding that anticipation a little better. After months of being away, I could now feel a growing excitement over the fact that I could once again run in a race, and that I'd do so with the one I love in the audience.
And thus, to deliver anything less than my all would be unacceptable!
BANG!
「And they're off!」
The gates slammed open, and all 13 runners were blindsided when I shot forward, accelerating so quickly that I almost seemed like a blur to those who weren't watching closely. Even Nasr el Arab, who'd been warily watching me from her own gate, couldn't help but watch in wide eyes as I burst forward at near-maximum speed, immediately leaving everyone behind.
「I- that's-! What an absolute nutter, folks! Blossom Star runs forward as an Escape Artist!」
「By the Goddesses! She's leavin' everybody behind!」
No. I wasn't done yet, Mr. Announcer!
I took another deep breath, and at that moment, I felt for that well of strength within my chest; the metaphysical container for all my Skills. I reached into it, and grabbed onto one of the strongest Skills I now had in offer—one of the few Skills I'd managed to gain on my own without the Skill Shop's assistance.
{Tyrant's Advance}
When in the lead by a huge margin early-race, further lengthen the lead by further increasing velocity and acceleration at the cost of stamina.
My foot slammed into the ground, and the earth itself trembled, as if some great monster had suddenly appeared. My vision sharpened, and my bright blue eyes shone like burning stars as I rocketed forward even further, causing the already massive gap to grow even further.
The announcer was going crazy as he saw the giant lead I now had, and the crowd was going wild too. But I could barely hear them, their voices cut away by the sound of the winds I was cutting through as I made my {Tyrant's Advance}.
As the name implies, it was a Skill I learnt by training under Secretariat. She didn't run a Great Escape like I did, but her insane power easily allowed her to whenever she wanted. And after combining her teachings with my observations about Oguri's monstrous steps, this Skill spontaneously appeared in my System.
Though in truth, this was a Skill I could only use in shorter races that didn't require as much Stamina. The Skill didn't go in-depth into it, but that increasing Stamina consumption was actually pretty substantial. Even I could feel my chest constrict slightly due to the sheer Stamina consumption that Skill caused.
But thankfully, this race was only 2000 meters long, which meant I could go all out.
「Ladies and gentlemen, I'm in complete shock! I-I don'know what I'm seein' anymore!」
「Blossom Star leads by over 16 Lengths! Nasr el Arab's accelerating, but she just can't catch up!」
Nasr grit her teeth as she watched my figure continue to shrink into the distance.「This is gonna be an upset…」She whispered, her lips pulled into a grim smile as she passed by the spot where I used my {Tyrant's Advance}. She'd only seen it briefly, but she'd seen the large hole my running shoe had carved into the dirt.
And at the moment, after glancing back to my still-shrinking figure, she knew that this somewhat less-known G1 would cause an absolute uproar.
「Blossom Star's reached the third corner! This race's become hers alone!」
I took a careful breath as I began turning to follow the curving track. Right now, I could feel my whole body burning—most of my Skills were now ready to be used. And like the devil, they whispered at me, egging me to use them all to reach the absolute maximum speed possible.
But I denied them. I'd already felt what would happen when I used so many Skills at the same time. And I had no plans on getting injured just after I'd recovered.
So I approached the fourth corner, my eyes burnt bright blue, and I activated a carefully selected list of Skills
{In Body and Mind}, {Front Runner Savvy ◎}, {Leading Charge}, {Professor of Curvature}, {Mold Breaker}, and lastly-!
{Starlit Crown}!
The air around my legs seemed to warp, as if heated by some invisible source. The Dirt track, still wet from the morning due, somehow cracked in several places as if the moisture inside them had been sapped away. The cleats beneath my shoes dug deep into the earth, and with a deep breath, I grit my teeth as I kicked forward with all my might.
「Blossom-, she's gone-, my goodness! Blossom Star accelerates once more, folks! She still ain't satisfied at all!」
「The outcome is clear! That lead ain't shrinkin' anytime soon!」
Far behind, Nasr had a bitter smile as she ran forward. I'd completely disappeared from her sight by that point, with me having entered the final straight while Nasr was still in the middle of the third corner.
She was undoubtedly at her best condition today, and she'd ran with all her might. The other runners were easily behind her by more than 10 lengths. By all rights, that power should've been more than enough to net her the victory in this race.
But that strength was far from enough to catch even a fleeting glimpse of that soaring comet.
…Haha. Should'a kept a more careful eye when she registered to run in this race.
She sighed softly.「Sorry ma'.」She whispered, smiling sadly as she continued to run.「Looks like I ain't bringin' home the grub today.」
「Blossom Star's nearin' the finish line, folks! She's almost there…!」
Every step I took brought me closer towards that finish line, but I didn't give it much thought. The race, the approaching victory—that meant little to me right now.
Because more than anything, from the very first moment I burst forward from the gate, I'd been running against that now-familiar phantom umamusume. This time, she'd fittingly taken the shape of Silence Suzuka, as if to see if my own Great Escape could compare to that future prodigy.
Yet, things were different this time. Normally that phantom would've left me far behind, with me only being able to catch a glimpse of their figure as they faded away. But this time-!
「And she's done it! Ladies and gentlemen, we have ourselves another winner of the [Santa Anita Handicap]!」
「An absolute crushing victory by Blossom Star, with a staggering lead of just over 19 lengths!」
I took a small breath and carefully slowed down once I passed the finish line. The crowd was going crazy over my victory, and my ears rang a little from the sheer volume of their cheers.
Yet I couldn't find it in me to smile.
Instead, I turned away from the stands and clenched my fists. I was almost there! If the race had been longer, if I'd activated more Skills during that final spurt, I could've finally made an attempt to catch up to that fleeting phantom! I was so damn close, and though I'd won, the only thing I could feel was a deep bitterness.
…But there wasn't much I could do about that. I could only try again at a later date.
So I took a deep breath to school my frustration, and once my expression had returned to normal, I turned to the cheering audience. Their cheers grew even louder as I finally turned their way, and I gave them all a confident smile. Then, as that smile grew to a daring grin, I pointed my finger at the audience, as if asking them to challenge me. The crowd laughed and cheered at my perceived challenge.
But that challenge had never been for them. My eyes had never been on them.
Instead, I'd firmly pointed at the one person I'd been running with for nearly 2 years now, and my eyes softened as I saw Oguri clapping along with the audience.
Come on, I told her without words. I'm here. Catch up to me.
And though Oguri said no words, the smile she returned was more than enough.
.
.
.
The thing is, I didn't really think about that gesture in the slightest. All I wanted to do was to show Oguri that my injury was now in the past—that I would continue growing stronger and faster, and that I'd always be there to run with her no matter the circumstances.
But at that moment, whether by coincidence or deliberate control, the camera recording the race live for the television had been pointed at just the right angle for it to seem as if I'd pointed directly at the camera.
Suddenly it looked like I was practically declaring my return to anyone who'd been watching. And without me knowing, the American press suddenly had a new story that would soon circulate throughout the country.
Alas, I wouldn't notice this until much later.