"Being this famous means every Uma Musume has me in their sights."
"Guess popularity's really just a debuff after all."
Backstage at Tokyo Racecourse, Barbatos muttered under her breath after finishing her pre-race preparations and heading toward the track.
"This kind of treatment is practically on par with what the Emperor and Oguri Cap faced back in their day."
Of course, she didn't regret asking her Chinese stream followers to vote for her back then. After all, she thoroughly enjoyed the feeling of being the one to electrify the entire stadium.
She stamped her feet lightly, confirming her shoes were fine and wouldn't cause any issues during the race.
Finally, she took one last glance at her phone.
Ordinarily, she'd just wait after her entrance without another look at her phone, but now… she didn't quite know what she was hoping to find.
The screen lit up and dimmed as she refreshed it repeatedly, but nothing new appeared.
Over the backstage speakers, a voice announced, "All participating Uma Musume, please enter the track!"
Just as she was about to set her phone down and head out, a notification flashed on the screen—an unread LINE message from Seiun Sky.
Opening it, she found yet another infuriatingly short voice message, barely two seconds long.
"Barbatos, do your best!"
The roar from the grandstands faded into background noise in her mind, leaving only the familiar echo of Seiun Sky's voice ringing in her ears.
A smile unconsciously touched her lips. So this was what she'd been waiting for.
Her fingers flew across the screen as she typed a bland reply.
"Got it."
She listened to the pre-race cheer one more time, placed the phone on the changing room table, and pushed the door open.
Everyone marking me?
Think you can keep up?
--+--
Filing into the starting gate alongside the other Uma Musume, Barbatos studied her competitors.
In her predecessor's memories, before even taking Tracen Academy's entrance exam, she could only watch these Uma Musume race on streams, dreaming of one day becoming a Uma Musume who could run in Grade series races herself.
And now, here she stood, on a Grade series stage, competing against numerous G3-level Uma Musume.
As all the Uma Musume settled into the gates and the race was about to begin, Barbatos took a soft breath. "Your trainers must've told you to focus entirely on marking me during this race, right?"
Some of the Uma Musume looked startled, others puzzled.
They had indeed received such instructions from their trainers, but why would Barbatos bring it up now?
Was she pleading? Or something else? Don't blame us—blame your own overwhelming popularity!
"Are you scared already?" one Uma Musume asked.
"Yeah, a little," Barbatos admitted, mimicking El Condor Pasa's trademark confidence. "After all, if all of you focus on me and I still win, it might leave some psychological scars."
Pre-race trash talk?
The Uma Musume competing at the G3 level were no fledglings from the beginner races anymore.
Nearly every one of them had at least ten or more races under their belt; they were rarely affected by such words when it came to their performance.
Or did Barbatos truly believe she could win under their collective marking? Or was she trying to make them abandon their strategy?
But… that was impossible.
As Uma Musume, they had to follow their trainers' pre-race arrangements.
Since their trainers had given the order to "mark Barbatos thoroughly," they wouldn't change tactics mid-race.
The starting gates burst open.
Fifteen Uma Musume surged onto the track!
"All fifteen Uma Musume have left the gates, a flawless start from everyone!"
"Barbatos has fallen to the very back—has she chosen a come-from-behind strategy even in this G3 race?"
Running at the rear, Barbatos could easily see the positions of everyone ahead. They had practically sealed off every route to the inner track.
Which meant, in this Saudi Arabia Royal Cup, she'd have to run dozens of meters more than anyone else.
This marking was indeed much tighter than what she'd faced in her debut race.
If she really wanted to break through the marking of over a dozen Uma Musume, it'd be simple—just use Hecarim's ultimate and charge straight through. All the Uma Musume would be terrified, utterly breaking their defensive formation.
But just as she'd thought from the start, that skill absolutely could not be used against Uma Musume.
Doing so would only send the terrified Uma Musume to their deaths mid-race.
So, all she could do now was attempt a break from the outermost lane in the latter half, even if it meant running extra distance early on.
So far, whether her debut race, her second beginner race, or this Saudi Arabia Royal Cup, all had been mile-length races.
Many outsiders had likely guessed, based on her performances, that she probably couldn't handle middle-distance, let alone long-distance races.
That powerful sprint ability of hers seemed sustainable only for short bursts, the type that drained stamina intensely.
So, forcing her to run dozens of meters extra through marking could, to some extent, weaken her sprinting power.
For a normal Uma Musume, that would indeed be the case.
But! The reason she didn't run middle or long distances was that her skill duration didn't allow it!
Based on her stamina, she might indeed slow down in the latter half of a long-distance race, but middle-distance was perfectly manageable under normal conditions!
"600 meters to go! Barbatos is still under heavy marking from all competitors!"
"Can she surge to the front at the last moment?!"
"400 meters left, approaching the fourth turn!"
The race caller's voice boomed, tension gripping the entire audience.
At that moment, a red streamer, invisible to others, began forming behind Barbatos.
After two races, [Dead Man's Plate] was fully stacked, its passive maxed. Her speed climbed another notch as she began moving toward the outermost part of the track.
[Highlander] and [Ghost] activated simultaneously!
Her explosive power left imprints on the turf as she shot forward, displaying speed that completely surpassed the peak of G3-level Uma Musume!
No fancy tricks! No intricate techniques!
Barbatos didn't try to weave through their marking—she bolted straight for the outermost lane, utterly disregarding their defensive efforts.
At her full speed, even if another Uma Musume tried to shift outward to mark her, it'd be impossible!
In the commentator's booth, the race caller slammed the table and stood, eyes fixed on the track.
"Incredible! Ignoring all marking attempts! Barbatos chooses to break through from the very outside! She's now in tenth place!"
"Eighth… fifth!"
"She doesn't run like she's only had two beginner races! This is like a Uma Musume who's raced at the G1 level!"
The co-commentator chimed in, "Barbatos is even faster than she was in her beginner races. It seems even collective marking can't stop her march to victory."
"Final 300 meters! Barbatos has overtaken everyone from the outside!!"
"Bar-ba-tos wins by a landslide!"
"A huge victory by eight lengths over second place! She claims her third consecutive win!"
"Barbatos is unstoppable!"
Crossing the finish line, Barbatos raised her arms, bathing in the crowd's cheers, savoring the glory that belonged solely to the victor.
--+--
On another track, El Condor Pasa, also heavily marked by all Uma Musume, demonstrated strength that crushed the G3 competition, similarly overtaking from the outside to claim victory.
She won by a massive seven-length margin.
In the commentator's booth.
The commentator sighed in admiration. "As expected, the prerequisite for marking someone is having strength on the same level!"
"What do you mean?"
"El Condor Pasa's and Barbatos' abilities have already surpassed the G3 level of Uma Musume."
--+--
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.