Chapter 35: Mainichi Okan

Bathed in the dry autumn sunlight, today’s race has become something unbelievable on both the East and West sides.

The Mainichi Ōkan is being run with the unusual number of just seven runners. But that never—absolutely never—means the level is low. Quite the opposite: the field is packed with elite talent.

And among them, the clear centerpieces are these two.

The ultimate runaway front-runner who allows no one near her. The dimension-breaking escape artist whom even shadows cannot catch: Gate 2, Number 2—Silence Suzuka.

And the one who has declared herself a champion and crushed every race since, accepting no objections whatsoever. The Classic winner, Gate 7, Number 7—Witolum Pedes.

Runaway vs. runaway. Fastest vs. strongest. A direct collision.

And stepping up to challenge them are El Condor Pasa, and returning from hiatus—Grass Wonder.

More than 150,000 spectators have gathered at Tokyo Racecourse, roaring with excitement even before the race begins. Yet none of the Uma Musume here are shaken by the thunderous cheers. Every one of them has come prepared to shoulder that roar and win.

Gate loading proceeds smoothly.

There will be no tricks today. Power vs. power. Speed vs. speed. A pure clash over 1800 meters at Fuchū. Now the last one, Witolum Pedes on the outside, settles into the gate.

And—they’re off!

Grass Wonder stumbles slightly at the start, but quickly recovers. She settles and looks to secure her position. Witolum Pedes gets a clean break.

Crossing the pristine turf, the one who takes the lead—naturally—is Silence Suzuka. And from the outside, Witolum Pedes also pushes forward. She’s aiming for the lead today as well. Even with Silence Suzuka present, she shows no hesitation toward a front-running strategy.

It looks like we have a full-on runaway duel between Silence Suzuka and Witolum Pedes.

The two surge ahead. Inside: Silence Suzuka. Outside: Witolum Pedes. Two front-runners—who will seize the lead?

In third, watching the front, is El Condor Pasa. The yellow armband farther out belongs to Hayate Running.

Behind them, Emtei Hurricane keeps pace. And on the outside, the returning Grass Wonder is already making up ground.

Oh—there she goes! Using her legs early on the backstretch, Silence Suzuka seizes the initiative. Witolum Pedes stays slightly outside, as if studying her. She sticks to Suzuka like glue.

Silence Suzuka accelerates again. But Witolum Pedes won’t let her open a gap. Half a length outside, she perfectly mirrors Suzuka’s speed.

They pull farther and farther away—already seven, eight lengths ahead as they enter the third corner.

The first 800 meters: 45.4 seconds. A blistering pace. Can Silence Suzuka and Witolum Pedes keep this up? Can they really hold this speed?

Second group: Hayate Running, with El Condor Pasa outside her. And further out, Grass Wonder begins her early push.

Is this her move? Or is she still saving her legs?

Grass Wonder begins to close in—but the leaders are still flying. Witolum Pedes maintains her tight mark on Silence Suzuka.

Passing under the giant keyaki tree, Silence Suzuka still holds the lead.

Silence Suzuka tries to widen the gap, but Witolum Pedes refuses to allow it. Grass Wonder gives fierce chase. El Condor Pasa also moves forward.

The leaders remain side-by-side. Entering the fourth corner, the gap behind them is still about five lengths.

Witolum Pedes attempts to edge ahead—but Silence Suzuka absolutely will not yield.

The Classic champion? Or the senior division queen?

Pride against pride. Will against will.

But now the five runners behind them all close in at once—!

Now the final stretch. A head-on battle you cannot take your eyes off.

Grass Wonder sweeps in from outside, aiming for the front. El Condor Pasa drives forward to close the gap.

With the thunderous Fuchū cheers behind them, the two leaders remain side-by-side, still four to five lengths ahead.

Ah—Witolum Pedes makes her move! She digs in and surges forward!

What a burst! Incredible speed! She accelerates all at once—!

She was hiding this until now!?

She steals the lead in an instant. Silence Suzuka refuses to give up and kicks into her own acceleration.

Behind them, Grass Wonder struggles to extend. Hayate Running pushes from the inside. El Condor Pasa swings outward and lengthens her stride, but the gap isn’t closing.

The hill is approaching!

Witolum Pedes—still in front, still pulling away. The gap widens.

Silence Suzuka tries to cling to her, but it’s tough. She’s being pushed back, little by little.

It’s turning into a harsh race for everyone behind them.

They pass the 200-meter mark.

Silence Suzuka makes a desperate acceleration.

But—it’s Witolum Pedes. It’s Witolum Pedes! She widens the gap even further.

Is an Uma Musume like this even allowed to exist?

El Condor Pasa is in third, but she won’t make it in time.

The winner is Witolum Pedes—! She doesn’t yield a single crown.

And right here at Fuchū, she has defeated Silence Suzuka.

Silence Suzuka finishes second.

What an unbelievable race.

A magnificent wire-to-wire victory for Witolum Pedes. As she heads toward the autumn battles, the conquering path of Witolum Pedes knows no fear.

Witolum Pedes POV

The Mainichi Ōkan seems to have even more spectators than the Derby—or maybe about the same. Honestly, once it’s over 50,000 or 100,000, I can’t really tell the difference. I just understand by how loud the cheering is.

And for today’s race, Suzuka-san is the top favorite. I’m the second favorite.

As expected of Suzuka-san—she’s popular. With my sharp powers of analysis, I’m pretty sure it’s her unique airheaded charm and the gap between her usual self and the way she runs that the fans love.

Trainer-san agonized forever over our strategy, but the final plan ended up being extremely simple:

"Follow Suzuka-san until the fourth corner, then accelerate before the hill in the stretch and pass her."

Like—after all that thinking, we ended up with that? Well, it’s easy to remember, so I guess that’s fine.

The gate next to mine belonged to Grass-chan, and right before entering the gate she stared at me the whole time while muttering something. It was terrifying.

I wondered if she was casting a curse on me, but Grass-chan would never do that. If it were her, she’d just attack me directly.

When the race began, Suzuka-san immediately took the lead.

As expected of her—she charges ahead so strongly that all I have to do is stick behind her without thinking. We glide forward effortlessly.

Not having to run in front myself… is surprisingly comfortable. Suzuka-san would sometimes accelerate or slow slightly, and I followed her movements. I guess that’s what being the front-runner is—controlling the pace for everyone.

But once we hit the straight and entered the turn, things changed.

Grass-chan came thundering up from behind with terrifying speed.

I’ve gotten a bit more used to racing, so I’m not as scared as before, but I can still feel that steady pressure burning into my back.

Pushed by that pressure, I move up a little. Then Suzuka-san moves up just as much. Over and over, we both keep increasing the pace.

Still, the turf is beautiful and easy to run on, and Suzuka-san is blocking the wind for me, so I feel like I’m using less stamina than usual.

Even so, by the time we hit the straight, Grass-chan, El-chan, and the others are all closing in from behind.

But all that’s left is to run straight.

I don’t feel all that tired.

I don’t have to think about anything anymore.

A few more steps—and my vision is filled with nothing but turf.

With a powerful stride, slicing through the air, I flew toward the finish.