It was an indescribable feeling.
The moment she crossed the finish line, Fujiwara Shirayuki felt as though her soul had been lifted to a higher place. Bathed in the applause and cheers of the crowd, she looked up at her name on the screen and felt as though she had stepped into another life.
"Shirayuki..."
Special Week called her name.
Crystal-like sweat shone beneath the sun. Her cheeks were flushed with a damp redness, and there was a trace of frustration at the corners of her mouth.
But more than anything, there was joy.
The joy of having raced together, of having given everything they had.
Spe-chan was smiling.
She was smiling, with moved tears mixing together with her sweat. Seeing that expression, Shirayuki could no longer restrain the emotion welling up in her heart.
She stepped forward and hugged her.
"Spe-chan, thank you for racing with me."
It was a feeling deeper than words or actions.
A feeling that belonged only to Uma Musume and Uma Musume.
A race was a connection between two souls.
Fujiwara Shirayuki had felt it. During that race, her heart and Spe-chan's had resonated together.
"Eh... Eh!? Shirayuki!"
Realizing she had been hugged, Special Week waved both hands around in flustered confusion. But after hearing Shirayuki thank her, she froze for a moment.
In the end, she reached out and hugged Shirayuki back tightly.
"Me too, Shirayuki. I had so much fun running this race."
Since the day she was born, this was the first time she had ever raced like this with a friend, running together without holding anything back.
Before she knew it, the dream she once had quietly came true.
The broadcast camera cut to the two of them, and the entire crowd erupted into thunderous cheers.
In front of the television, Tokai Teio immediately jumped up.
"What are you doing!? What are you doing!? A winner is supposed to properly humiliate the loser! Shirayuki, hurry up and humiliate Spe-chan seriously. Say, 'You'll never catch up to me in your whole life!' Say it already!"
Grass Wonder still wore her eternal, unchanging smile.
She was smiling, but her eyes were terrifyingly cold. Beside her, El Condor Pasa suddenly got goosebumps all over. After glancing at Grass Wonder, she swallowed nervously and quietly scooted toward the edge of the sofa.
Touching her cheek lightly, Grass Wonder watched Special Week hug Shirayuki back.
For once, she agreed with Teio.
Yuki-chan, if you won't humiliate Spe-chan, then I may have to humiliate you instead.
Back at the racecourse, the spectators loudly celebrated Shirayuki's victory.
"Congratulations! Congratulations on the win, Snow Dancer!"
"That was an amazing race!"
"You two better be happy together!"
Hearing one particularly strange shout mixed in with the rest, Mejiro Dober's cheek twitched rapidly.
Although Shirayuki had won, what was this ending supposed to be? What were these spectators making a fuss about?
"Perfect match! Perfect match!"
Not far away, two men waved glow sticks enthusiastically.
Mejiro Dober wanted nothing more than to take off her shoe and throw it straight at their faces.
The surrounding voices grew louder and louder, and soon they reached Shirayuki and Special Week's ears.
"There... there seem to be some really intense voices mixed in..." Special Week said, her face red.
"Y-Yeah..."
Shirayuki awkwardly looked away.
The two of them became embarrassed and let go of each other.
How should she put it?
After the race, her emotions had run too high, and she had completely lost control of them. OP races were stepping-stone races for Uma Musume, and their winners were one in a hundred. Now, Shirayuki had entered that group.
A faint pride stirred inside Fujiwara Shirayuki.
The key to this race had been making the right decision. At the final line, Twin Turbo had been less than half a length away from her. If Shirayuki had hesitated for even one more second, the winner would have changed.
Speaking of Twin Turbo...
Shirayuki looked at the blue-haired girl who had been lying on the ground without moving for quite some time.
Did she die again?
"Frustrating... This is so frustrating!"
The moment that thought appeared, Twin Turbo suddenly crawled up from the ground. She was filthy all over, her face covered in dirt.
It felt like every time Shirayuki saw Twin Turbo, she looked like this.
"I lost. Turbo's frustrated...!"
Even though she shouted in dissatisfaction, the corners of Twin Turbo's mouth would not stop turning upward. She looked extremely happy.
"Shirayuki, don't think this means Turbo will submit! One day, Turbo will eliminate you, challenger, and then go find Teio!"
She placed both hands on her hips and made a grand declaration.
Fujiwara Shirayuki replied, "As expected of someone aiming for Teio. You really can't be underestimated. Let's race again next time, Turbo!"
"Yeah!"
That energetic response instantly lifted Twin Turbo's mood.
"Once I go back and train some more, next time I'll full-throttle escape all the way to the finish line! Shirayuki, you just watch the glorious figure of the great Turbo! Hahaha!"
Twin Turbo threw her head back and laughed.
While several of them were making promises to meet again in future races, Mejiro McQueen stepped forward.
She called Shirayuki's name, her expression serious.
"Shirayuki. I lost this race. But in the next race... in the next Twinkle Series race, I will absolutely take victory back. Prepare yourself."
Fujiwara Shirayuki's eyes shifted.
Mejiro McQueen's words were extremely serious, even somewhat heavy.
"I accept your challenge."
After receiving that answer, Mejiro McQueen flicked her hair and turned away from the racecourse.
Before leaving, she cast one last glance at Special Week and Twin Turbo.
They were also Shirayuki's defeated opponents, and yet at this moment, both of them were smiling happily as they spoke with her.
You lost the race. So why can you still smile?
Mejiro McQueen had no desire to smile right now.
She had realized the gap between herself and Shirayuki. Not only in terms of ability, but also experience. Shirayuki possessed experience she did not have. That alone meant McQueen was at a disadvantage in tactics and strategy.
She needed races.
More races.
Only through that could she defeat Shirayuki.
Only through that could she protect the honor of the Mejiro family.
As her gaze followed Mejiro McQueen leaving the racecourse, Silence Suzuka eventually shifted her attention back to Special Week at the finish line.
During the race, she had also cheered loudly for her. Unfortunately, her voice had been buried under the noise of the people around her.
She did not know whether Special Week had heard her or not.
Silence Suzuka hugged her arms.
From a distance, she watched Special Week's smiling face.
Whether she had heard it or not probably made no difference.
After all, Special Week had run so happily.
Yes.
So happily...
Even though Special Week was smiling, Silence Suzuka felt strangely hollow inside.
Together with everyone else, she had offered Shirayuki her congratulations and celebrated her victory.
But the more she did so, the more an indescribable feeling settled in her heart.
"It's settled, Shirayuki! You're not allowed to refuse Turbo's challenge!"
"Yes, I understand."
"Good! Then I'll reluctantly recognize you as Turbo's second rival! First you, then Teio, then the whole world! Turbo will battle the entire world!"
She dramatically raised both hands.
"I'm not handing Shirayuki over to you! Next time, I'm definitely the one who'll win!"
"No, it'll be Turbo!"
"It'll be me!"
"Spe-chan, the spectators are still watching..."
Fujiwara Shirayuki stepped forward to stop Special Week from arguing with Twin Turbo.
And with that, the Chukyo Junior Stakes finally came to an end.