Stung by Minamizaka's 'slander,' Barbatos felt as if her innocent, young, and pitiable heart had been wounded.
She decided to channel her grief into appetite, planning to soothe her melancholy by devouring a few more takoyaki balls.
"So, about your upcoming races, Barbatos, any thoughts?"
After conveying Symboli Rudolf's message, Minamizaka asked.
For Uma Musume competitions, there are often pre-requisite fanbase conditions before entering the G-series races.
The requirements differ for G3 to G1 races. If an Uma Musume doesn't have enough fans for a G1 race, she can still qualify by participating in a specific preliminary race.
Currently, Barbatos faced no obstacles. Even for G1 races, her existing fanbase was large enough to register directly. The only question was, was she ready to run a G1 now?
When it came to scheduling races, other trainers might just assign them without question.
But Minamizaka wouldn't. He preferred to consult his Uma Musume, especially Seiun Sky and Barbatos.
What if they decided to skip the race and laze around? He'd have to find an excuse and explain it to the race committee.
"As for races..." Barbatos thought for a moment. "Next week at Nakayama Racecourse, besides the Hibiscus Stakes, are there any other races I can join?"
"Other than the Hibiscus Stakes, there's a 1200-meter turf newcomer race the next day—the Canna Stakes." Minamizaka scrolled through the files on his phone, sounding surprised. "Don't tell me you're thinking of...?"
Could it be that Barbatos, who used all her training time to slack off, was now actively seeking out races? He found it hard to believe.
"If possible, I'd like to enter that race."
She'd already promised Seiun Sky she'd cheer for her debut race.
So, why not run a race at Nakayama Racecourse herself? Her current skill level was probably enough to clear the newcomer races undefeated, much like Grass Wonder did back in the day.
Before the Winter Dream Cup, she needed to synthesize the 'Dead Man's Plate' and create another piece of equipment. That would give her a much better chance of winning.
Just then, a takoyaki ball was popped into her mouth from the side. She ate it and waited for Minamizaka's reply.
"Of course, you can."
Minamizaka agreed immediately. He felt heartened to see Barbatos taking such initiative towards racing. It seemed the Winter Dream Cup was really putting pressure on her.
Was she planning to gain more experience by running more races to face those legendary Uma Musume?
If that was the case, maybe she wouldn't skip the training sessions he planned next? A tear of almost paternal pride welled up in Minamizaka's heart.
"For the upcoming schedule, try to pick races with larger fields. Two or three races a month should be about right."
"If there are G-series races available, I'll enter those. That way, by the end of the year, I should be ready for G1 level races, right?"
Barbatos laid out her requirements. Her 'ready' wasn't just about eligibility to participate, but about being qualified to win.
For her, no matter the race grade, the gold reward for defeating other Uma Musume was the same.
But she also needed experience facing stronger opponents. Just as she'd thought before, she didn't want to keep running newcomer races until she was unbeatable before moving up to the G-series.
As for the G1 races at year's end, she remembered there were three, all in December: the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies, the Asahi Hai, and the Hopeful Stakes.
With the sheer number of newcomer, G3, and G2 races, only the most dedicated data-focused Uma Musume could remember them all.
"Two or three races a month? Understood."
Minamizaka pondered this. He didn't press the issue about running a G1 at year's end. After all, it was rare for Barbatos to show such positive initiative.
Even if she lost, it would build experience and prevent her from being completely crushed by a potential major loss in the Winter Dream Cup.
He picked up his phone and registered Barbatos for the Canna Stakes next week, then began browsing through the upcoming race schedule.
If she demonstrated the same dominance in the Canna Stakes as she did in her debut race, then Barbatos would definitely have what it takes to compete in the G3 series.
"Hey, look at this!"
Nice Nature placed her phone on the meeting table, sliding it to the center. She had been about to cast a vote for Seiun Sky in the popularity poll when she saw a trending news push notification.
[Main Protagonist of This Generation?! A Legend from Debut & Rigil's New Uma Musume!]
The latter two parts of the headline seemed mismatched, but the 'Rigil' name preceding the new Uma Musume made all the difference! Rigil was Japan's strongest team, boasting the largest number of legendary Uma Musume!
'Legend from Debut' naturally referred to Barbatos. The new Rigil Uma Musume was El Condor Pasa, who had just run her debut race.
And preceding them both were the words 'Protagonist of This Generation.' What kind of Uma Musume deserved such a title? The legendary ones did. They overshadowed all the other brilliant, talented Uma Musume of their generation, just like protagonists in novels or anime!
Looking back, such reports weren't unheard of, but they usually only appeared after an Uma Musume had demonstrated her strength and won a G1 title, to build hype and boost broadcast ratings.
But this time, it was happening to Barbatos and El Condor Pasa, two newcomers who had just finished their debut races!
While you could argue that technological advancement and the times progressing led to increasingly exaggerated headlines, it still meant all Japanese horse racing fans were now focusing on Barbatos and El Condor Pasa, wondering what made them worthy of being called the protagonists of this generation!
Barbatos felt like she'd been stabbed in the back.
A trending topic about her alone might have faded in a few days.
But adding El Condor Pasa to the mix meant that unless they faced each other in a race to determine the winner, or unless another Uma Musume emerged to overshadow them both, the discussion and hype could persist indefinitely.
She had wanted to keep a low profile until her G1 debut, but it seemed fate wasn't giving her that chance.
"El-chan and B-chan are both amazing, but I feel my debut won't be any worse than yours!" Urara declared confidently, feeding Barbatos another takoyaki ball.
Twin Turbo slammed the table and stood up. "Yeah, me too!"
Their infectious energy instantly lifted the atmosphere in Team Canopus.
Matikanetannhauser reached out and touched the comments section of the trending topic.
Some comments opposed the idea, others favored King Halo or Special Week, some supported Grass Wonder or Silence Suzuka more strongly, and there were debates over whether Barbatos or El Condor Pasa was better.
Two comments stood out, yet had garnered many likes:
"Barbatos: 'Hehe, flying's faster than running.'"
"I'm a reincarnator, just a bystander's perspective, but honestly? I was at the Winter Dream Cup that day. We witnessed the Grand Starfall!"
Another comment, the one with the most nested replies, was probably: "If she's a legend from her debut, shouldn't Barbatos have her own title by now?"
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, 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.