After walking onto the Track and finishing warm-ups with the two, Kagura walked to what seemed to be the starting line and stopped. She couldn't make out the exact position of the starting line, only hearing that the place with the standee of an unknown Uma Musume was the starting point.
"Weather clear, grass, Track conditions good, 1600 meters."
Tojo Hana was reciting something next to the Racecourse. Kagura generally understood; it seemed to be describing the Track conditions and training distance.
Kagura remembered that she had also run 1600 meters with Speed Symbol before. That distance wasn't even close to her physical limit. Thinking about it, her stamina was much stronger than before.
Looking at Maruzensky and Rudolph Symbol standing with her, for some reason, Kagura felt that they both looked full of fighting spirit, which gave her a strange sense of pressure.
'I remember I was supposed to run a couple of laps to get some exercise, right?? Are you two always so serious about training!?'
Inari Kagura, with a head full of black lines, tried hard to avert her gaze and not pay attention to the two strange people emitting an eerie aura, focusing instead on the Racecourse in front of her, waiting for Tojo Hana's starting command.
Tracen's Racecourse was a bit different from the Symboli Family's. The Symboli Family's grass was soft and comfortable to run on, but it wasn't ideal for exerting force. Tracen's Racecourse was much harder. While this hard grass allowed for solid exertion, it wasn't as friendly to the feet.
The moment the whistle blew, Rudolph Symbol and Maruzensky burst out like arrows from a bow. Inari Kagura, however, was clearly half a beat slower, and she was already a body length behind at the start.
"Such a severe delay… Well, that's right, she seems to be a child who has never trained or attended an Uma Musume school…"
Tojo Hana had actually already received some information about Inari Kagura from Rudolph Symbol. She naturally wanted to pay more attention to the Uma Musume who had piqued Rudolph Symbol's interest so much. This nominal training session today was not only her idea but also Rudolph Symbol's wish.
She originally thought Kagura would wait in the back and look for an opportunity to push forward, but Kagura quickly made a move that surprised her—despite being a body length behind at the start, she actually accelerated with all her might and forcefully overtook Rudolph Symbol from the outer lane on her right side!
"This child… is she a Runaway?"
Tojo Hana frowned. In terms of race rhythm, trying to fight for first place with full effort after a delayed start and being blocked in the back was not a wise move. She originally thought Kagura just wanted to rush to the front, and then she would slow down once she reached the leading position. However, after Kagura passed the two, there was no sign of her slowing down; the gap was instead widening!
"No, this speed, is she going for a Great Escape??"
Watching the distance between Kagura and the two widen, Tojo Hana revealed an expression of disbelief.
A Little Horse Girl who hadn't even undergone full development attempting a Great Escape sounded like a fantasy. Little Horse Girls' stamina and stride length were inferior to Uma Musume after full development. Even if they chose the 1600 meters she had completed before to accommodate her, maintaining speed would be a big problem if she tried a Great Escape.
"Oh, oh… Is this the legendary Great Escape!"
Rudolph Symbol, chasing behind Kagura, felt a little excited. She was also staring intently at Kagura in front of her. Seeing such a running style indeed gave her a surprise.
"Oh my… I actually lost the lead to a child… But if she keeps accelerating like this, this child's stamina…"
Maruzensky, running ahead of Rudolph Symbol, still maintained her usual relaxed demeanor, but she had already increased her speed to avoid being left too far behind. Now, she and Kagura were almost three body lengths apart. If the distance widened any further, and if Kagura didn't lose speed, this senior of hers would be in a bit of danger. She didn't want to lose face in front of a junior she had just met.
As for Inari Kagura, who was running at the very front, she actually had no competitive thoughts and hadn't observed her surroundings at all. She was simply following her running instincts. She felt there was no one else nearby and ran comfortably without any worries. The feeling of excitement made her unconsciously quicken her pace.
"Running like this occasionally isn't bad…"
Kagura ran while contemplating whether she could ask Speed Symbol to borrow the grass Track for a couple of laps whenever she had free time in the future. Running freely like this for a while seemed to release a lot of the day's unpleasantness and stress. Anyway, she didn't have a phone to play with now, so why not go for a couple of laps?
The 1600-meter distance wasn't long. After a little over a minute, Kagura had already rounded the last bend and entered the final long straightaway. With her previous experience, she knew that 1600 meters still wouldn't push her to her physical limit, so as she entered the final straight, she sharply lowered her stance and then increased her speed even faster than last time.
"!"
Tojo Hana couldn't help but slightly open her mouth. She had originally thought Kagura would lose speed by now, but Kagura not only didn't slow down at all but accelerated significantly again!
"A Great Escape, and… she can still accelerate at the end? A Little Horse Girl who hasn't undergone full development?"
For these things to appear in a Little Horse Girl who wasn't even old enough to enter a Racecourse seemed completely wrong. Tojo Hana felt that even if Inari Kagura were taken to run a Graded Race now, she could hold her own against professional athletes, and might even place. Although she still had a gap compared to the two seniors behind her, she was already above many Uma Musume.
"No wonder Rudolph cares so much about her… Such talent, it's a good thing there are no other Trainers in this area right now…"
If Inari Kagura's performance just now had been seen by other Trainers, it would probably attract many people to surround her and ask her to sign a 담당contract (Trainer contract), and she probably wouldn't be able to leave for a while—who would have thought she wasn't even a student here, but just a passing Uma Musume who came to visit Tracen today?
As expected, the two who had been relentlessly sticking to Kagura also began to significantly increase their speed after entering the final straight. Kagura's current erratic running style certainly couldn't compete with those two seasoned professional athletes. Whether in terms of awareness of competing for the Track or speed, she was still quite lacking. Soon, the two had closed the distance to half a body length, then overtook Kagura.
"They both run so fast…"
Looking at the two Uma Musume who passed her, leaving only a rush of wind, Kagura expressed her heartfelt admiration. She had no intention of accelerating further to catch up. She continued at her own pace, maintaining her current speed towards the finish line.
Rudolph Symbol and Maruzensky reached the finish line almost simultaneously, while Kagura arrived two body lengths behind. After crossing the finish line, Kagura, breathing a little heavily, adjusted her breath to calm her rhythm.
"Phew… Maruzen, you're as imposing as ever. Kagura, you ran so hard just now, are you feeling alright? Are your feet okay?"
"Little sister, you ran so hard just now, don't your feet hurt?"
Knowing that this Little Horse Girls had just experienced a breakout run completely unsuited for her age, both seniors approached her with concern, asking how Kagura felt. It wouldn't be good if Kagura got injured during this training session.
They had all witnessed Kagura's strength just now. As Rudolph Symbol had said before, Kagura was indeed a very promising child. Even if she didn't win against them in the end, her talent was evident from that one lap.
"Mmm~ I'm fine, thank you for your concern."
Kagura, in a great mood after exercising, smiled and nodded at the two. Maruzensky looked as if she wanted to hug her but held back, while Rudolph Symbol reached out and gently rubbed Kagura's small head twice.
This training race had fully confirmed her suspicions. Kagura undoubtedly possessed excellent talent. Even though she and Maruzensky weren't going all out, for an Uma Musume who hadn't yet fully awakened her abilities, Kagura was only left behind by a little over two body lengths, which was indeed quite good.
After confirming her suspicions, the next questions were Kagura's own wishes and how to ask her grandmother for her. Rudolph Symbol had heard from the maids at home that Kagura had been serving Speed Symboli very well recently, earning Speed Symboli's affection. She wondered if she would be willing to let Kagura go.
'The child doesn't seem to mind me bringing her to school to interact with other Uma Musume. Maybe I can find a way to bring this child to Tracen… Even if she's not old enough yet, it would be good for her to get familiar with these common things in advance.'
Looking at Inari Kagura, who was surrounded by Tojo Hana and Maruzensky, being asked various questions, Rudolph Symbol made a decision in her heart.