Bonus — Effort, Future, A BEAUTIFUL ROSE

Once, a long time ago, I read a fairy tale.

Its title was “The Blue Rose of Happiness.”

It’s the kind of story that makes your heart ache as you read it. But in the end, it gently turns bright again—a story I truly love.

The story begins in a garden filled with roses. Roses of every color bloom there, bringing happiness to all who visit. But one day, within that garden, a rosebud of a color no one had ever seen before appeared—a blue rose.

Naturally, everyone felt uneasy about a color they didn’t recognize.

Visitors to the garden mocked the blue rose, saying things like, "A blue rose is creepy," and "That must be a flower of misfortune." No one felt happy, and everyone left with an unpleasant feeling in their hearts.

And as it continued to hear those words, the blue rose itself began to think, I’m a useless flower. Little by little, it started to wither.

I think it’s a terribly sad story.

Because there isn’t a villain anywhere in it.

The blue rose didn’t choose to be born blue. It had been blue since the moment it came into the world. And the people who came to see it weren’t cruel—they were simply afraid of something unfamiliar. What existed there wasn’t malice. It was fear.

Even so, the fact remains that words carrying real pain pierced the blue rose’s heart.

No one is at fault. No one is at fault, and yet…

Both the blue rose and the people who came to see it—no one ends up happy. A sorrowful ending.

…But the story doesn’t end there.

Before the withered blue rose, an “older sister” appears.

Someone kind at heart, who smiles gently. Someone almost like a magician, able to turn misfortune into happiness.

She finds the blue rosebud in the garden and immediately says, smiling brightly,

"I can’t believe it—a blue rose! That’s wonderful! I’m sure it will bloom beautifully. Please, let me buy it!"

The older sister purchases the blue rose and replants it into a beautiful pot. She speaks to it every day, waters it carefully, and raises it with love…

The withered bud swells once more, and one day, it blooms into a magnificent flower.

And so the blue rose is placed by the window of the older sister’s home, bringing happiness to countless passersby.

And they all lived happily ever after.

I loved that fairy tale.

I think I probably saw myself in it.

Because from a young age, Rice Shower was an “unlucky Uma Musume.”

I didn’t grow very much, and because of that, I caused my father and mother endless worry. I overheard teachers at my elementary division school saying, "Rice Shower is too small. At best, she’ll be middle-tier." …I kept disappointing everyone.

My mother is an incredible Uma Musume who once won an overseas G2 race. And my grandmother was even more amazing—an outstanding Uma Musume who won G1 races by overwhelming margins, or so I was told.

Strong Uma Musume blood runs through me. That’s why people hoped I would shine in the central Twinkle Series…

But in the end, because my body didn’t develop, they were disappointed. I made everyone who had expectations of me unhappy.

Rice makes the people who believed in her—Father, Mother—unhappy…

I’m a useless child.

It didn’t take long for me to realize that.

But if there was just one thing I could call hope…

If I tried, and tried, and kept trying… then maybe someday, Rice could become a blue rose who makes someone happy.

I held onto that childish dream for a long time. Using it as emotional support, I kept running.

And then…

I ran, and ran, and ran with everything I had… and somehow managed to enroll at the Central Tracen Academy.

When I received my acceptance notice, I was unbelievably happy. Maybe I could change. Maybe here, at Tracen Academy, Rice could become a blue rose who makes everyone happy. That’s what I thought.

But reality was very cold.

Rice remained a useless child who brought misfortune to the garden called Tracen Academy.

At the entrance ceremony, the chairwoman’s microphone broke, delaying the proceedings. A teacher injured their back, turning class into self-study. During a selection race, the starting gates wouldn’t open, and it took a long time before the race could begin.

Other things too—sudden rain, terrible track conditions, broken chalk, missing personal items… That sort of thing happened all the time.

…Around Rice, something unpleasant always occurred at the worst possible moment. I knew that well from experience.

Rice is a useless child. Because I’m useless, I bring misfortune to those around me.

Even so, I tried to deceive my own heart and keep moving forward…

But when the senior Uma Musume who shared my dorm room—and who had been kind to me—was injured…

My heart withered away.

---

Rice is a useless child, so I bring misfortune to everyone.

That’s why I distanced myself from others.

It hurt, but I kept my distance from classmates who tried to befriend me. I asked Fujikiseki-senpai, the dorm supervisor, to let me move into a single room. In class, I tried not to stand out, and as soon as lessons ended, I slipped away.

Like a little mouse holding its breath, I chose to live quietly on the edge of Tracen Academy.

But that choice caused one serious problem.

Rice could no longer race.

In the selection race, no trainer was assigned to me. One kind-looking trainer offered me a contract, but when I imagined making that person unhappy too, I couldn’t take their hand.

But without a trainer, I can’t register to race in the Twinkle Series. And to live up to my father’s and mother’s expectations, I want to race in the Twinkle Series.

That’s why I need a trainer. And to be scouted by one, I have to participate in the freshman mock race.

…But if I race, I’ll surely make the other Uma Musume unhappy. And if I sign with a trainer, I’ll surely make that person unhappy as well.

If I don’t want to make anyone unhappy… then Rice must not race.

"…Rice… is…"

What should I do?

If I race, I’ll make the other racers unhappy. If I don’t race, I’ll betray my father’s and mother’s expectations.

No matter what I choose… Rice remains a useless child who makes someone unhappy.

After all… maybe it’s impossible for Rice.

…No. That’s not right.

I have to face forward. I have to try.

Rice is a useless child. Because I’m useless, I have to try far harder than anyone else.

To become a blue rose.

To become an incredible Uma Musume who can make many people happy.

"……Can I really become that? Do I truly believe that someone like Rice can become a blue rose?"

To shake off that voice echoing from deep within myself—

"Rice has to try harder."

So that someday, I can become a blue rose.

…I have to struggle.

---

And so, as I was running desperately—

I……

"By slamming overwhelming speed straight into reality—and now…! Hoshino Wilm crosses the finish line in first! A commanding, dominant victory by eight lengths! The time is—eh, three!? I-it’s a record! She’s cut nearly three seconds off Emperor Symboli Rudolf’s 2:01.1, clocking an astonishing 1:58.2!!"

"Hoshino Wilm has demonstrated overwhelming growth and otherworldly speed right here! The gray serpent aiming for an undefeated Triple Crown carries the dreams of countless fans into the Derby!"

That was when I learned about that Uma Musume.

Hoshino Wilm-senpai.

The front-running Uma Musume said to be the cornerstone of this year’s classic races, after winning the Satsuki Sho by an eight-length margin.

"Eight lengths at the Satsuki Sho… for the first time in forty years."

A gap that proved truly exceptional strength. The dawn of a new myth—where calling her the fastest was no exaggeration.

On the screen I stared into, countless people were cheering her on.

Because it was a broadcast, I couldn’t distinguish individual voices, but…

Everyone was moved by her strength. Everyone admired that Uma Musume. …Everyone who looked at her was becoming happy.

"A-amazing…"

For the first time, I felt a light of hope flicker inside my heart. If I could become like this Uma Musume… if I could catch up to her, then Rice too—

That was how I came to know Wilm-senpai.

A moment I know I’ll never forget—the moment I discovered a single blue rose.

Onee-sama is an incredible Uma Musume.

Unlike Rice, who was said to have strong bloodlines, she came from humble stock—a lineage of Uma Musume who struggled in local races and failed to make names for themselves. Her mother was sickly and couldn’t even enroll in a local Tracen Academy. When she was young, people believed Onee-sama would inherit that frailty.

A bloodline already considered unlikely to succeed in the Twinkle Series—and according to rumors, her environment wasn’t good either…

And then—Onee-sama lost both of her parents at a young age.

When I learned that…

Rice thought Onee-sama was the same as Rice—an unlucky Uma Musume. A blue rose planted in the garden, a useless Uma Musume.

…But in truth, her circumstances were far more unfortunate than mine.

She told me herself. Her mother neglected her. Her father never looked her way. And on top of that, when she came to Tracen, she was already burdened with debts worth tens of millions.

Even Rice—who should have been accustomed to ordinary misfortune—had never known anything like that.

Onee-sama had lived in a world far, far harsher than I had ever imagined.

And yet, Onee-sama did not wither.

After enrolling at Tracen Academy, she secured a trainer even before the selection races and immediately began to stand out. Her maiden win, the open race Botan Sho… then a decisive victory in the G1 Hopeful Stakes.

Records of winning a G1 by a large margin are extremely rare.

Just like my grandmother, who had once been called overwhelmingly strong—the very embodiment of a monster.

Onee-sama… Hoshino Wilm-senpai is the real thing.

After that, her meteoric rise never stopped.

At the Satsuki Sho, she crushed Tokai Teio-senpai—the well-bred genius Uma Musume who had been named one of the two favorites—by eight lengths.

And then, while I was researching Hoshino Wilm-senpai, the day of the Japan Derby arrived. Tokai Teio-senpai unleashed an overwhelming finishing kick, and yet—even so—Onee-sama edged her out by a nose.

After witnessing the fierce battles of those two classic races, the spectators praised Tokai Teio-senpai’s valiant effort and, above all, celebrated Onee-sama’s victory. They were excited. They were enjoying themselves.

…That’s right.

Through racing, Onee-sama was making everyone happy.

At first, she had been seen as Tokai Teio-senpai’s antagonist—the villain.

But before long, everyone was captivated by Onee-sama herself—by her brilliance, by her color.

It was a miracle.

A flower that was supposed to wither, blooming beautifully at last—the happiest ending imaginable.

Onee-sama rose up from an unfortunate background and became an Uma Musume who could make everyone happy.

"Rice too… Rice too, someday…"

I want to become like that senpai. I want to catch up to that receding back.

I too… someday, will become a blue rose!

---

…And then—

"But I won my present happiness through my own strength. If you want to change the useless version of yourself, then do it. You have that power. I can guarantee it, as someone who’s been there."

"Rice too… Rice too, can change…?"

"Not ‘can change.’ It’s ‘will change.’"

"Can I… become an Uma Musume who can make everyone happy?"

"Not ‘can become,’ right?"

"I will. …Rice will become an Uma Musume who can make everyone happy. I will… become the blue rose of happiness!"

"Mhm. Do your best, Rice-chan. I’ll be waiting to run with you up there."

When I saw Wilm-senpai say that, smiling softly—

…I felt like I had finally found my “older sister.”

Ever since then, Rice has sometimes run together with Onee-sama. She invited me herself, saying, "If we’re going to run, let’s do it together."

Of course, if I stayed close, I never knew when misfortune might strike Onee-sama. So at first, I tried to keep my distance, but…

"I won’t lose to your misfortune."

Just like she said.

Onee-sama never once made a sour face at Rice’s bad luck.

When I nearly tripped after losing my footing, she sprang lightly ahead and landed safely. When we were stopped again and again by red lights, she listened to my stories—or told me stories of her own. When a sudden downpour began, she dashed with me under a nearby tree and laughed, saying, "I’m happy I get to talk slowly with you, Rice-chan."

"O-onee—Wilm-senpai… um, maybe it really would be better if you ran away from Rice…"

"Huh? Do you dislike running with me?"

"N-no! Rice is having so much fun… it’s just… Rice is enjoying it, but…"

"Then it’s fine, isn’t it? I’m enjoying it too. And running has to be fun, or it’s no good."

No matter how many times I said it, Onee-sama always smiled gently. Running alone would have been much easier for her… and yet she never abandoned Rice, staying with me the entire time.

…So Rice, too.

I want to live up to that expectation.

To become an Uma Musume who can deliver happiness to everyone.

For that…

"First, the classic races. And then… Mihono Bourbon-san…"

Mihono Bourbon-san. An Uma Musume in the same junior class as Rice—a front-runner who signed with the same trainer as Onee-sama and who may become the centerpiece of next year’s Classic Road.

Onee-sama told me, "First, try aiming for Bourbon-chan."

I think that probably meant, If you want to catch up to me, you have to become the best of your generation first.

Onee-sama became the first in history to win the Takarazuka Kinen while still in the classic class.

And not just that—she won even with veteran Seiunn Sky-senpai, fresh off a Tenno Sho (Spring) victory; Mejiro McQueen-senpai, famed as the strongest active stayer; and Mejiro Ryan-senpai, whose solid strength had long gone unnoticed, all in the same field.

From that point on, Onee-sama stopped being called “the strongest of her generation” and began to be called “the strongest active runner.”

Everyone acknowledged her as one of the very strongest within the Twinkle Series—counting senior-class veterans and fully matured champions alike.

So if I want to stand alongside Onee-sama, I have to become that same kind of “strongest,” too.

…Even so, I don’t know if I can become that kind of Uma Musume.

An undefeated double crown is something Onee-sama achieved because she’s Onee-sama—a miracle, really.

For Rice… for a useless child like Rice, it might be too difficult.

And yet.

I can’t stop this longing.

I see blue petals in Onee-sama’s back. I believe that if I keep chasing her, someday Rice will reach that place too.

So first, the classic races.

I have to do my best for the first of them—the Satsuki Sho.

…Though, actually, Rice hasn’t even signed with a trainer yet, so I need to do something about that too.

Ugh, what should I do…?

---

"Hah… hah… whew. It’s about time, right?"

And so, on a certain night, Rice was running alone—something rare.

The Onee-sama who usually ran with me had said, looking very apologetic, that she couldn’t run today because she had an important live broadcast. She asked me to be sure to watch it.

Of course, I’m the one who’s always being helped—there’s no need for Onee-sama to apologize. And since it’s her important broadcast, I’ll definitely watch.

After all, Rice is also Onee-sama’s… Hoshino Wilm-senpai’s fan.

Yeah… it should be starting about now.

I gradually slowed down, caught my breath, and sat on a nearby stone. Taking my phone out of my pocket, I tapped the screen a few times.

Um… this should be it, right?

The official live broadcast announcing Onee-sama’s upcoming race schedule.

After that fierce race at the Takarazuka Kinen, Onee-sama had suffered a fracture. When a racing Uma Musume breaks a bone, they say it usually takes at least six months to return.

Which meant it would be difficult to run in the Kikuka Sho, less than five months after the Takarazuka Kinen.

Onee-sama had been seen as the strongest favorite for the Triple Crown. And yet, because of that unfortunate injury, the glory slipped from her grasp.

Thinking about it makes me sad.

There’s no way Onee-sama wouldn’t want to run in the final classic race—the Kikuka Sho. There’s no way she wouldn’t want to claim the classic Triple Crown that had been so close.

…She told me lightly, like it didn’t bother her at all,

"Well, um… yeah, maybe it’s fine? I’m totally okay, really?"

But…

I’m sure that deep down, she’s hurting badly.

I didn’t know what to say to Onee-sama, who was putting on a brave face.

"…I wonder which G1 race Onee-sama will run next."

The Queen Elizabeth Cup, where many elite fillies gather?

But there’s only half a year between the Takarazuka Kinen and the Queen Elizabeth Cup. Not only would it be difficult to run a prep race, it might even be hard to properly rebuild her condition.

Then what about the Japan Cup, where powerful overseas runners gather?

Rebuilding might just be possible in time, so maybe it’s that. I think Mejiro McQueen-senpai was planning to run too… what would happen then?

Or perhaps the grand year-end showdown—the Arima Kinen?

A glorious comeback in a G1 known as the ultimate battle for supremacy… honestly, I kind of want to see that.

I’m sure that if it’s Onee-sama, she’d show a cool, powerful run that wouldn’t lose even against the most illustrious lineup.

"…Onee-sama."

It doesn’t have to be the Kikuka Sho. I just want to see you running again. Not running just to keep Rice company—running wild through a race with outrageous tactics and speed, that bold, unrestrained style, like a dragon wrapped in a storm. I want to see that again.

No matter where you race, there’ll probably be a tune-up in an open race or a G3 first, so I think I’ll get to see you there… but still, Rice really—

Ah—the livestream is starting!

On the screen are Onee-sama, her trainer in his usual suit, and countless cameras surrounding them. It’s a broadcast about the future of an undefeated two-crown Uma Musume, so the attention is immense. Hundreds of thousands of people and Uma Musume are watching.

Especially for people outside Tracen Academy who haven’t seen Onee-sama training toward her comeback, the worst possibility—Hoshino Wilm retiring as a racing Uma Musume—must be crossing their minds. That’s why everyone is watching with bated breath.

…Is Onee-sama okay?

An absurd number of reporters stand before her, and beyond the screen, an even more absurd number—hundreds of thousands of viewers. If it were Rice, I don’t think I could handle it. There’s no way I wouldn’t be shaking.

But—

"As expected, Onee-sama is amazing."

She doesn’t seem bothered at all. With her usual expressionless face, she calmly looks straight ahead. For someone who has run four G1 races amid roaring crowds of tens of thousands, maybe even this isn’t much of a burden.

Then, the broadcast begins with her trainer’s words.

"Thank you all for gathering here."

After a brief greeting, he explains the state of Onee-sama’s fracture after the Takarazuka Kinen, the subsequent progress, and her current rehabilitation. He carefully answers each question from reporters and media members seeking to confirm her condition.

And finally, he addresses the main topic of the broadcast.

"Lastly, we’ll discuss Hoshino Wilm’s upcoming race schedule. Her next race will be… the Kikuka Sho. After that, depending on her condition, she is scheduled to run in the Japan Cup, and then the Arima Kinen."

The air freezes.

There are less than five months between the Takarazuka Kinen and the Kikuka Sho. And the Kikuka Sho is a long-distance G1 no classic-class Uma Musume has ever experienced. Even with her rival Tokai Teio-senpai absent, this isn’t something you can win after a fracture, recovery, and rehabilitation.

When someone cautiously asked, "Is she really running in the Kikuka Sho?" he replied without hesitation,

"Yes—without a doubt, she is scheduled to run in the G1 Kikuka Sho, the endpoint of the Classic Road."

When others indirectly questioned whether the recovery period was too short, he answered,

"We don’t deny that. Even so, after considering her wishes and our own judgment, we decided to run."

Only then do the venue—and the viewers—fully realize that the two of them are serious.

"That’s—!"

Someone in the hall begins to shout, then stops.

Because they remember who the Uma Musume standing before them is—and what she has accomplished so far.

Onee-sama’s trainer hands her the microphone.

She isn’t swallowed by the tense atmosphere. With a serious expression, she opens her mouth and says,

"I will race in the Kikuka Sho. There, I will run the most fun, the best race imaginable. And I will make every fan who has supported me think, ‘I’m glad I believed in Hoshino Wilm.’ So… please, believe in me."

Everyone is overwhelmed by the moment.

Up to now, the Uma Musume named Hoshino Wilm has created miracles again and again.

She clawed her way up from a humble lineage said to be unpromising. She won G1 races by huge margins. She achieved an undefeated double crown with front-running tactics said to be disadvantageous. She carved her name into history by winning the Takarazuka Kinen while still classic-class—something once called impossible.

A gray dragon that turns the impossible into possible.

That nickname fits Onee-sama perfectly.

"Onee-sama…"

A rebloomed blue rose brings happiness to everyone.

So surely, Onee-sama will really run in the Kikuka Sho—and give us an incredible race.

Everyone believed it without question. Even the skeptical, even the pessimistic… anyone who had watched Onee-sama’s races felt a faint maybe spark in the depths of their eyes.

Before I realized it, the livestream had ended. Leaving behind only an overwhelming afterglow, the phone screen went dark.

"…Let’s go."

I can’t suppress the heat welling up from the bottom of my heart. I slip my phone back into my pocket and start running again. I’m already behind—if I want to catch up to Onee-sama, I have to work harder. Much harder.

Someday, I’ll catch up to that blue rose.

So that I—Rice myself—can become a blue rose of happiness too.

---

A few days later.

Inspired by Onee-sama’s broadcast, I’d been running almost every day. Then there was a time when Onee-sama took on some work and couldn’t run with me.

And that’s when Rice ended up making someone unhappy again.

But that…

Maybe it was fate.

"Ah—um, excuse me…!"

"Huh? Me?"

"Y-yes! Um, s-s—sorry! I—I’m really sorry! Because Rice was running nearby, you ended up getting back to the academy this late… I’m really, really sorry!"

"No, I don’t think that’s your fault, though…"

…the person I met was a trainer from Central Tracen Academy. A man who seemed straightforward and earnest.

At the time, I still didn’t know that I would end up signing a contract with that trainer.