When Yasui Makoto turned his eyes toward the paddock, on the large screen directly opposite the stands, another Uma Musu appeared behind jiro Bright.
She had long dark-brown hair and violet eyes, a temperant clearly distinct from jiro Bright's—cooler, more reserved—but the resemblance in appearance was undeniable.
Stepping closer to jiro Bright, the Uma Musu had a sowhat helpless look in her eyes as she tapped Bright's shoulder. Only then did Bright snap out of greeting the cara.
She quickly made an apologetic gesture, whispered sothing with a smile, then walked towards the paddock, leaving the stage to the newly-arrived Uma Musu.
"Bright-senpai really does move at her own pace, huh… Ahaha…"
Feeling an inexplicable second-hand embarrassnt from the paddock scene, Kitasan Black quickly grew excited again.
"And now, this one is… jiro Dober-senpai! McQueen-senpai's family really is filled with amazing Uma Musu!"
As if echoing Kitasan Black's sentint, the announcer's voice resonated across the stadium.
Five G1 victories, winner of two Filly Triple Crown races, four consecutive years voted best active filly Uma Musu of the year, listed among the century's top hundred Uma Musu…
As jiro Dober's accomplishnts flowed through the loudspeakers, wave after wave of cheers erupted from over a hundred thousand spectators.
In fact, these cheers hadn't stopped since the paddock presentation began, intensifying further with each star's appearance.
And the roar of excitent reached its climax precisely as the Uma Musu stepped into their gates.
"At last! The long-awaited Sumr Dream Trophy is about to begin!"
Even the announcer seed far more excited than usual. "Under the scorching August sun, these star Uma Musu are ready to present us with an intense, unforgettable race!
"They've completed loading into the gates. The racers look incredibly fired up—how will they respond to the passionate expectations of their enthusiastic fans?"
"And now, the Sumr Dream Trophy—Tokyo Racecourse, G1, turf, 2000 ters, left-handed course. This very mont…"
"Start!"
At the announcer's declaration, Yasui Makoto, along with a hundred thousand other spectators, unconsciously held his breath.
As if he heard a phantom tallic snap beside his ears, his eyes fixed intently upon the gates suddenly brightened.
This break from the gate was clearly distinct from other Twinkle Series races—even compared to other prestigious G1 races, the current start was distinctly more captivating.
It seed ticulously rehearsed, more performance than competition. The gates sprang open for only a mont, yet over a dozen figures flowed onto the course, shing together with gear-like precision.
In another blink of the eye, with equally seamless coordination, a light-blue figure instantly surged ahead, seizing the lead position.
"What an absolutely beautiful break from the gate!"
The announcer shouted passionately, "It's Seiun Sky! Seiun Sky takes the lead, exactly as anticipated, showcasing once again her exceptional front-running skills!"
"The senpais' gate breaks…"
Kitasan Black murmured softly, eyes filled with awe. "They're really so beautiful! It feels totally different from our races!"
"Naturally."
Without turning his head, Yasui Makoto instinctively replied:
"They have far more experience—races, training—and most importantly, they know each other inside out."
"In this race, the only skilled front-runner is Seiun Sky. She even managed to pull off an escape win at the Kikuka Sho. Competing against soone like her for the early pace would just be pointless—better to let her lead."
"By the way, Kita-chan, regardless of the final outco, you're also a front-runner like Seiun Sky, so pay close attention to how this senpai handles different situations."
"Hai! Got it!"
Her body reflexively straightened, tail flicking upward as she responded loudly, but Kitasan Black couldn't help scanning the entire field, unable to fully focus only on the leading Seiun Sky.
In less than a blink, her brows suddenly knitted together slightly.
"But… even in a race like this… can soone break slowly?"
She fixed her eyes at the very rear of the field.
As if half a beat behind, the previously ntioned jiro Bright was running there.
Right then, the announcer's comntary chid in perfectly:
"At the rear of the field is jiro Bright, who seems to have started late—just like in her previous races."
"However, running from behind is jiro Bright's strong suit, and during her career, she was famous for her 'unheard-of' late kicks. Being at the back isn't necessarily a disadvantage for her."
At the sa ti, Yasui Makoto said, "It's not exactly a slow break."
"I should've told you before, every aspect of your races depends on individual differences."
"For example, the break from the gate—the interval from gate opening to your brain registering and then reacting—there's sothing called 'limit reaction ti.'"
"Theoretically, the average Uma Musu reaction ti is about 100 to 200 milliseconds. Special training can stabilize it around 150 milliseconds."
"But so Uma Musu naturally have longer reaction tis."
"I've seen jiro Bright's data; she belongs to that category. When she first debuted, her gate-test reaction ti was a whopping 310 milliseconds."
"In her case, she naturally breaks a bit slower. Compared to the strong competitors in this generation, it's even more noticeable."
Yasui Makoto explained all of this very rapidly, mixed within the deafening cheers.
But Kitasan Black caught most of it, after all—the concept of "reaction ti" was sothing they'd already studied in training and classes.
Hearing it again now from Yasui Makoto, and observing jiro Bright's current race situation, she suddenly felt sothing click.
"I see…"
Pointing tentatively toward the very back of the racing pack, she ventured cautiously:
"Bright-senpai… probably knows her weakness, so she's running very close to the inner rail!"
Hearing this, Yasui Makoto offered no explanation but nodded approvingly instead.
From his perspective, jiro Bright's thinking likely matched what Kitasan Black had just pointed out.
This Uma Musu definitely understood her own gate-breaking issue. She also knew exactly how her forr rivals tended to run—their skills, techniques, tactics.
Hence, she knew precisely how to maximize strengths and minimize weaknesses.
Just as the frontrunners didn't bother challenging Seiun Sky for the lead, Bright closely hugged the inside track—no doubt planning to conserve her energy.
The inner rail unquestionably saved more stamina, and there were no other closers in this particular race.
Conserving stamina while observing her rivals from the rear, waiting for the right mont to surge and overtake, using her extraordinary late kick to cross the finish first—this was absolutely the best tactic suited for her running style.
At this thought, Yasui Makoto nodded slightly, then his brow furrowed a bit.
But from now on, the race might not proceed as smoothly as she envisioned…
No, considering how deeply they knew each other, no one's race would go entirely as planned…
Just as Yasui Makoto thought this, the announcer's initially excited voice settled sowhat.
"After the short opening straight, the field enters the first corner."
"Let's confirm positions."
"Currently leading is Seiun Sky, entering the turn first with an advantage of two and a half lengths."
"Closely behind her, running slightly to the outside, is Special Week. In third, hugging the rail slightly further back, is Tsurumaru Tsuyoshi."
"Positions four, five, and six respectively are Phalaenopsis, Erimo Excel, and Air Jihad."
"The mid-pack group is similarly large."
"Leading this cluster are El Condor Pasa and Grass Wonder."
"Right behind them co jiro Dober and Matikanefukukitaru."
"jiro Bright continues to run at the back of the field."
"The pace remains quick—the Uma Musu rapidly clear most of the turn, swiftly approaching the back straight."
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T/N: bonus chaps tomorrow
Hey everyone, thanks for reading. If you're enjoying the translation, dropping so Powerstones would really help out your hardworking translator (100 stones = 1 bonus chapter, 200 = 2 chapters, and so on—easy math, right?).
If you're feeling especially generous, or maybe just impatient, you can support the translator at patreon/wisetl. Totally optional, but hey, early access is always a nice bonus.
Anyway, see you in the next chapter~
say thank you to hayasaka guyss
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