"Besides! The changes to the Winning Live Costume aren't just minor—they're substantial!"
"And that's not all. Her weapon isn't one of the usual small daggers or pistols, nor one of the rarer medium-sized swords. It's actually... an unheard-of bow and quiver? A large weapon?!"
"By the Three Goddesses, can such a blessing really exist?!"
The craftsman looked so stunned that he couldn't react for a while. It seemed this was the greatest shock of his entire career.
What kind of luck was this?
She was practically blessed by the Three Goddesses... No, it would be more accurate to say she'd been chosen by them!
While the little fillies around her and even the professional craftsman were all still reeling,
Platinum's gaze flicked from the familiar bow to the ordinary-looking, empty quiver.
The moment she looked at it, the now-composed Assassin Girl froze in surprise.
Because the unremarkable quiver, especially compared to the bow, had a system panel description floating above it?
Quiver (Winning Live Costume · Platinum Exclusive)
Description: Automatically fills upon entering a race, with the number of arrows matching the number of Uma Musume on the field
Each time you overtake an Uma Musume, one arrow is automatically removed
Huh!
So... it was an accessory with a special effect? The empty quiver would automatically come with arrows during a race?
Awesome! This was exactly what she wanted!
She wondered if it had a "defeat effect" or a "Transcendence Effect." That would be even better.
Satisfied, Platinum stepped closer. Without even looking at the white Winning Live Costume, which had combined her Elite promotion with her swimsuit, she eagerly picked up the bow and arrows.
As expected, it was the bow she'd had all along! It felt just the same!
Even Platinum, who had no interest whatsoever in "going to work," felt a little excited about the Japanese Derby.
She wanted to try running in this ethereal, stylish outfit, with the quiver and bow on her back!
"Great! I'll take this one!"
The Three Goddesses had clearly gone to great lengths to make a certain Little Heavenly Horse want to go to work for the first time!
Not long afterward—
After finishing the registration and paying, Platinum even found a long, narrow case at a nearby shop to store and carry her bow and quiver. She slung it over her back.
At first, Platinum had worried that such a huge bow would attract too much attention and that she'd have no excuse to take it out.
She couldn't exactly come to this pure, fairy-tale world of Uma Musume and return to her old life by rebuilding the Mugyuu Alliance and working overtime as an assassin, could she?
So, from the moment she transformed, Platinum had sealed away the bow and never taken it out from under her bed.
But things were different now. Since she'd received the Three Goddesses' blessing, she'd effectively obtained "official approval"!
And this was the highest possible authority—the kind that could point straight to the heavens...
So the current outfit... granted Platinum permission to carry the bow openly, and she was perfectly satisfied!
Mejiro Dober, Tokai Teio, and the others finally came to their senses and prepared to say goodbye to Platinum.
"Platinum..."
"Are you really going to challenge the Japanese Derby in four or five days?"
After getting her bank card back from Platinum, Mejiro Dober gazed into her clear eyes. She seemed unable to hold back any longer and asked the question she'd been wanting to know the answer to.
"Why are you challenging the Triple Crown of Transformation?"
From every angle, challenging the Triple Crown of Transformation seemed far too risky.
She'd just finished the 2,400-meter Oaks, and after only a week of rest, she'd be racing again in the Japanese Derby—a 2,400-meter race of extreme intensity.
The difficulty was unprecedented.
She could simply challenge the Undefeated Triple Crown next year!
Or she could skip the Derby, focus all her efforts on the Kikuka Sho, and safely complete the Double Crown of Transformation.
Nowhere in all of Japan had an Uma Musume ever achieved the hellish Triple Crown of Transformation. Countless people didn't even believe it was possible!
Where, then, did this Heavenly Horse get her confidence?
The next moment, Platinum stopped walking.
Before Tokai Teio and Mejiro McQueen, Japan's top active Uma Musume, she turned her ethereal, sharp gaze back to Mejiro Dober and replied coolly.
"No Uma Musume from Japan has ever stood on the world stage. Not Agnes Tachyon, not Shunkawa Tazuna—not even the Emperor."
"But this vacancy on the world throne is about to end. I will stand above the heavens!"
Tokai Teio, Mejiro McQueen, and even Mejiro Dober were stunned once more. They hadn't expected Platinum to possess such absolute dominance and confidence!
"Before that, I'll win the supposedly impossible Triple Crown of Transformation."
Half an hour later!
Back in her room, Miss Heavenly Horse eagerly took down the case she'd been carrying on her back.
As Platinum looked forward to the Japanese Derby, a system notification appeared before her for the first time in a long while.
System Reward (Available to Claim)
Note: The more races the host wins as an Uma Musume, the greater the benefits, and the greater the reward for the host's original body before transformation
Platinum froze at the sight, then nodded once she understood.
"When I'm a doctor, treating an Uma Musume earns me rewards that strengthen her."
"When I'm an Uma Musume, winning races earns me rewards for my body before transformation?"
Note: Rewards will be determined based on the needs of the host's original body
Claim reward? YES/NO
Huh? The system would figure out what I was missing and reward me accordingly?
But I don't think I'm missing anything. Could it be... it's going to shower me with cash?!
"Could it be money?!"
"YES! Claim it!!"
53. Who's the Strongest Uma Musume in the Derby? Reward: Manner's...?
Inside the student council room at Tracen Academy,
Tokai Teio excitedly reported what she'd seen to her idol and senior, Symboli Rudolf.
"That bow was huge! Platinum carried it on her back, and she looked so imposing!"
Even though Tokai Teio was technically the senior, she had to admit that when Platinum wore her Winning Live Costume and carried the bow, she'd have far more presence—and look much cooler—than Teio.
"When Platinum walked down the street with the bow on her back and a blank expression, she looked like an assassin or a killer from a TV drama. It was so cool!"
"It's just a shame her quiver was empty. It would've been perfect if there were real arrows inside."
What disappointed Tokai Teio a little was that the quiver was empty.
It wasn't as if Platinum could bring her own arrows, right? That simply wouldn't work.
Even setting aside whether the URA race officials would approve of bringing extra arrows just for the sake of appearance and atmosphere...
Even if they did approve, the arrows she brought herself wouldn't have the Three Goddesses' blessing. They wouldn't be as light or unaffected as the bow and arrows she'd received. Instead, they'd just weigh her down.
So Tokai Teio couldn't help feeling a little regretful.
Across from her, Symboli Rudolf sat behind her desk, looking somewhat surprised.
Even Air Groove, the Uma Musume vice president, who was sitting nearby with her head down as she handled official business, raised an eyebrow.
Symboli Rudolf laughed softly and nodded to show she understood.
"Platinum... She really is that lucky?"
That girl really was lovable.
Not only had her Winning Live Costume changed considerably, but her weapon was also an incredibly rare large weapon, one of the few of its kind in the entire world.
It seemed the Three Goddesses were rather fond of that little Heavenly Horse!
"Then the Japanese Derby should be quite a spectacle."
"The immensely popular genius Jungle Pocket, once considered the only one with a chance of defeating Agnes Tachyon!"
"The monster Black Ship, an astonishingly talented newcomer from abroad!"
"And the mysterious Heavenly Horse Platinum, who's aiming for the Triple Crown of Transformation!"
Among all six GI Races in the classic events—the Classic Triple Crown and the Fillies' Triple Crown—the Japanese Derby had always attracted the most attention and held the greatest influence.
Winning the Derby made an Uma Musume a household name and a superstar. In terms of popularity, she might even rival Uma Musume with several other GI victories!
There was even a saying about the Classic Triple Crown: "The Uma Musume with the fastest Final Burst wins the Satsuki Sho! The luckiest Uma Musume wins the Derby! The strongest Uma Musume wins the Kikuka Sho!"
The Satsuki Sho was 2,000 meters, and it was usually won by the Uma Musume with the most fearsome Final Burst.
The Kikuka Sho was 3,000 meters. It was a race where talent shone through, and most of the Uma Musume who won it went on to display formidable strength and exceptional stamina. Their overall records were often among the best of their generation, which was why it was said that the strongest won it.
So why was the Derby described as a race for the "luckiest"?
The answer was simple and cruel, utterly at odds with the sweet, easygoing sound of the word.
They fought with everything they had! They burned themselves out! They ran with the resolve to stake everything! That was why the Japanese Derby was said to be won only by the luckiest Uma Musume.
Far too many Uma Musume dreamed of the Japanese Derby. To win the race watched by the whole country, with the greatest influence and popularity, they would stop at nothing.
They might relentlessly increase their training, even at the risk of lasting complications, fractures, or serious injuries. They did it all so they could be at their strongest on Derby day.
So many Derby champions staked their careers and their lives on the race, only to fail to recover after that one battle and perform poorly afterward. That was why they were considered "lucky."
That was how brutal the Japanese Derby was. So even someone as powerful as Heavenly Horse Platinum, with her peerless speed, might still be held back by her Experienced Battles and the madness of the Japanese Derby...
With an expectant smile, Symboli Rudolf turned to Air Groove and asked for her opinion.
"Air Groove, who do you think..."
"Is the strongest Uma Musume in the Japanese Derby?"
Air Groove thought it over for a moment before stating her view.
"Platinum, I think. But if you include the Uma Musume from abroad, that's another matter."
"After all, Black Ship is quite talented, and Jungle Pocket is astonishingly strong. It'll be a three-way battle."
"In a contest between two, it all comes down to individual strength. But with three, the situation gets chaotic, and anything could happen!"
"Besides, Platinum just finished the 2,400-meter Oaks. How much strength will her body and legs be able to show in the Derby?"
So the question of who would win the Derby remained open!
Meanwhile, Tokai Teio sighed with a smile.
"But Platinum... Her Winning Live Costume and bow are so cool!"
"She can definitely place second at worst and fight for first!"
In short, the upcoming Japanese Derby was absolutely not to be missed!!
Could it be... she's going to shower me with cash?!
Before you continue