Narita Brian didn't look like someone attending a press conference. She looked like someone waiting for a signal to start hunting.
"Nothing to say?" the reporter asked.
"I'll crush whoever's in front of me," Narita Brian replied without hesitation.
The microphone was pulled back instinctively.
"Confidence, or perhaps inevitability from Narita Brian!" the reporter said, glancing down at her notes.
"All eyes will be on her tomorrow."
Soon enough, Mayano Top Gun bounded up on stage, waving enthusiastically and blowing kisses to the crowd like confetti. "This pre-race heart-pounding feeling is so exciting!"
The reporter smiled, recovering her professional composure. "You lost to Narita Brian in the last Hanshin Daishoten. Any regrets? Planning to get revenge this time?"
"Nope!" Mayano Top Gun chirped cheerfully, not a trace of bitterness in her voice. "Maya lost that race, but Maya's still happy about it!"
"She lived up to her Triple Crown glory and didn't let Maya down at all. Maya's super excited for this race too." Her eyes sparkled. "But if he wants to beat Maya again, it's not gonna be easy anymore, 'cause Maya learned a new running style!"
"Mind sharing what kind of running style?" The reporter leaned in with the mic, sensing a scoop.
Mayano Top Gun made a peace sign in front of her eyes, winked playfully, and said in the most coy tone possible, "Se-cret!"
Secret? Mayano Top Gun had already used late-surger, end-closer, pace-chaser styles, and even ran as a front runner before. What else could there possibly be?
Other than going all-out escape, what else was left? Most people in the crowd had already figured it out.
After Mayano Top Gun skipped off stage, Sakura Laurel took her place, her movements gentle and measured.
"Do you have anything you'd like to say?"
She spoke softly, her voice almost getting lost in the noise. "I've been chasing Narita Brian's shadow to get here, so I hope Narita Brian takes this race seriously. I'm going to give it everything I've got to win."
Hard to believe those words came from such a delicate girl with cherry blossom-colored eyes that looked like they'd never seen conflict.
Hearing that, Narita Brian's brow furrowed slightly. Who was she again?
Of course, she recognized Sakura Laurel's face. She just never bothered learning her name, never asked, never cared enough for other uma musume that she has never faced.
Among all her rivals rightnow, she only remembered Mayano Top Gun's name.
"That's a bold declaration! Is this a challenge to Narita Brian?"
The reporters could smell the big story brewing, cameras flashing like a storm.
Soon, it was Seiun Sky's turn. Hayato came up on stage with her, staying a respectful step behind.
"Both Mayano Top Gun and Sakura Laurel have issued challenges to Narita Brian. Do you have anything to say?"
Seiun Sky stood there with one hand on her hip, looking down at the ground with this exaggerated sigh. "Haa! Am I being underestimated? Why am I only fourth in popularity?"
She glanced up at the reporters in front of her, then suddenly flashed a confident grin. "But hey, winning as the underdog wouldn't be bad either, right? Pretty unexpected, don't you think?"
"Looks like Seiun Sky is quite confident about the race as well." The reporter smiled as she withdrew her microphone, clearly charmed.
With the press conference finally over, it was time to prepare for the race.
The racing costume Seiun Sky wore now was the light blue ones that matched her name perfectly. They fit her just right, giving her this airy, cloud-like appearance that made her look like she could float away.
"Trainer, if Seiun wins the race, will there be any reward?" On the way back, Seiun Sky asked casually, kicking a small pebble along the path.
"It's your race. What kind of reward do you need?"
"Eh? Don't you want me to win, Trainer?" She stopped walking, her ears drooping slightly. "Besides, King Halo got rewards, so why can't I?"
"Trainer's playing favorites. Favoring Suzuka, favoring King, favoring Urara..." She counted on her fingers dramatically. "You even trained together with Scarlet-chan, but when it comes to me... Ugh! Forget I said anything!" She huffed, turning her face away with this pouty expression.
"Fine, what do you want as a reward?" Reluctantly, Hayato gave in, his shoulders sagging in defeat. King Halo really started something here. Now they've all learned to ask for pre-race rewards.
"Go fishing! I found this amazing new fishing spot." Her eyes lit up instantly. "This time I guarantee I can help you catch a big fish."
"Seiun."
"Hmm? What is it, Trainer?"
"Can't you have a bit more ambition?"
"Hey, the ambition to catch a big fish isn't small either!"
"And after you catch the big fish?"
"Then I'll catch an even bigger fish." She said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"You trying to catch a leviathan or something?"
"What's that?"
"A fish bigger than Tokyo."
Hayato and Seiun Sky chatted aimlessly like this, their conversation flowing naturally, and soon it shifted to the race.
"What strategy should I use this time?" Seiun Sky asked, her tone turning serious.
"Pace-chaser." Hayato had already thought this through, running the numbers in his head countless times.
Seiun Sky hesitated a bit, her tail swishing once with uncertainty. "But my opponents are uma musume like Narita Brian and Mayano Top Gun. If I don't take the lead, I'm worried that..."
"Afraid you won't be leading going into the final corner?"
"Exactly." She smiled helplessly, scratching her cheek. "Trainer should know, right? I can't match that monster Narita Brian in final acceleration. That means my late-game speed is inferior, especially Maya-chan. If she locks onto someone in the final corner, it becomes nearly impossible to respond."
She'd tried training for late acceleration before, pushed herself hard at it, but when it didn't work out, she gave up. Without being able to compete in late acceleration, she felt that using an all-out escape strategy to control the race would be way better.
But since this was a 3200-meter long-distance race, she was hesitant about burning out.
"So that's why you taught her the great escape trick?!?"
"Actually... Even if you hadn't taught Mayano Top Gun the great escape strategy, she'd still use front-runner tactics in this race tho..."
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*As usual, the illustration is commented on.