The saying "The fastest Uma Musume wins the Satsuki Sho, the luckiest Uma Musume wins the Derby, and the strongest Uma Musume wins the Kikuka Sho" might be wrong about the Derby, but it was absolutely right about the Kikuka Sho!
There were still uncertainties. Platinum was so young, and her Full Bloom might not even be complete yet.
Yet URA had already launched a Triple Crown-level publicity campaign, and was even considering elevating her to godlike status. That was unprecedented in URA's decades of history!
If the effort to make her a legend failed, the backlash would be enormous—possibly disastrous!
It would be a lose-lose situation for both Platinum and URA. A cautious organization like URA would normally never take such a risk, yet they were making an exception for Platinum.
So even Shunkawa Tazuna, a senior who had seen plenty, was rarely this flustered.
She'd never seen anything like it!
And the clever, mature Shunkawa Tazuna already understood why URA was taking such a bold gamble.
When a sport produced a superstar who could break out beyond its usual audience and attract countless new fans, that star could drive the growth of the entire sport.
URA had previously developed hugely popular stars like Symboli Rudolf and Oguri Cap, who had helped advance Japan's Uma Musume scene.
But now... the sport seemed to be nearing a bottleneck. Even if another conventional Triple Crown Uma Musume emerged, she probably wouldn't make much of a difference.
Unless someone could break through that bottleneck and become a world-class Uma Musume who could step onto the world stage! Platinum had the potential to do just that!
After hearing Shunkawa Tazuna's explanation, Symboli Rudolf's pupils contracted sharply. She, too, was clearly shaken.
But soon, she nodded to show she understood, then couldn't help sighing.
"True. The Japanese Uma Musume scene has dreamed of the Arc de Triomphe and of raising a truly world-famous Uma Musume for countless years."
"Even URA's old-fashioned higher-ups must be running out of patience. They want to see a Japanese Uma Musume compete on the international GI stage and win in front of racing fans around the world while they're still alive."
"The Heavenly Horse shining right now is the last light, the last hope."
Shunkawa Tazuna walked over to Symboli Rudolf and handed her several sheets of information.
"These are URA's records of post-Derby reactions, gathered from Uma Musume and ordinary spectators alike."
"URA thinks very highly of Platinum, but they're also worried that she didn't come from a prestigious school or family. They're afraid she hasn't had access to enough educational resources or guidance from outstanding seniors."
"So URA hopes Tracen Academy can have a top Uma Musume who's won a GI long-distance race give Platinum some proper guidance during a Training Race."
"Alternatively, they'd like Platinum to win another graded stakes race within the next month, proving her long-distance adaptability through her string of wins against Experienced Battles."
"If either of these goes well, they'll promote Platinum with the best resources they've ever offered."
Symboli Rudolf nodded slowly. She planned to contact Platinum soon and ask what that unruly Little Heavenly Horse thought.
Would Platinum... choose to train against a senior, or keep racing and win another graded stakes race?
Before that, Symboli Rudolf lowered her head and looked over the post-race audience reaction sheet for the Japanese Derby.
Chimei Representative: Hahaha, what a magnificent little filly! Her running style completely defies common sense. Absolutely outstanding!
Daiwa Scarlet: Ever since the classic races were rescheduled to be just one week apart, no one has ever achieved the Triple Crown of Transformation. Maybe Platinum really can accomplish this feat.
Manhattan Cafe: Very, very frightening. I've never heard of an Uma Musume like her.
Tokai Teio: I'm really looking forward to it.
Mejiro McQueen: Fly to the world, Heavenly Horse!
Kitasan Black: I can't believe Miss Platinum overcame the inside lane on a Heavy Track and won the Japanese Derby, the most difficult race to compete in! I want to become a Big Chase Uma Musume as cool as her!
Sato no Diamond: I'm definitely going to marry Miss Platinum. No one else will do.
If I married a gentle girl, I'd resent her for not working as hard as Miss Platinum.
If I married a hard-working girl, I'd think she wasn't as good at managing a household as Miss Platinum.
If I married a girl who was good at managing a household, I'd think she wasn't as beautiful as Miss Platinum.
No matter what kind of girl I married, I'd never be satisfied, because I knew how it would end: I'd cheat on her with Miss Platinum.
Kitasan Black: Dia, that's so cringe!
Kitasan Black: Dia, stop freaking out here! Miss Platinum's the Heavenly Horse who belongs to everyone!
The sheet included retired Uma Musume, active Uma Musume, and young fillies who hadn't debuted yet and were only there as spectators.
Even the Uma Musume, whose standards were usually incredibly high, were overflowing with praise for Platinum. That was proof enough of just how captivating her dazzling presence was to the audience!
After the Emperor finished reading the sheet, she noticed the part where someone was freaking out over Platinum. The corner of her mouth twitched slightly before she quickly resumed her usual composure.
That Little Heavenly Horse sure has a lot of fans.
Then she set it down and gave one final instruction to the green-capped woman standing before her, Shunkawa Tazuna.
"Leave it to me, Miss Shunkawa."
"I'll tell Platinum later. If she chooses to train and receive guidance, I'll arrange for a suitable GI long-distance champion Uma Musume."
The next day.
Lin Anran was getting ready to leave his room and head to work again.
Suddenly, he heard a notification chime from the other phone sitting in the room.
He'd gotten it specifically for when he transformed into Platinum. He hadn't added many contacts to it yet.
"Who could it be?"
Lin Anran picked up the phone and looked.
Symboli Rudolf: URA wants to invest heavily in promoting and developing you. Before that, though, they hope you'll strengthen your dominance in long-distance races. Symboli Rudolf: You can choose to receive guidance or train against a GI long-distance champion, or challenge another graded stakes race within a month. Symboli Rudolf: Platinum, give it some thought. What do you want to choose? Or do you want to do everything?
Heavenly Horse, Challenge the British Derby? A Choice That Would Shock Japan!
"Huh?"
"I can choose to get guidance from a senior GI long-distance champion, or train against her?"
"Or should I win another graded stakes race within a month to prove myself?"
Lin Anran quickly understood the situation.
URA clearly thought very highly of Platinum. They wanted her to grow stronger and become the face of Japan's Uma Musume scene.
That was why they were asking Tracen Academy to find an active GI long-distance champion to help Platinum improve at long-distance racing.
They were obviously afraid that some astonishing Dark Horse might emerge at the Kikuka Sho and cut Platinum down, ruining her goal of achieving the Triple Crown of Transformation...
And based on what Lin Anran knew about Manhattan Cafe, that assessment and concern might actually be justified!
In terms of long-distance ability and results, Manhattan Cafe was the kind of Uma Musume who could go down in Japanese history. She was just low-key and discreet, so she didn't stand out.
If URA really gave Platinum its highest level of promotion, on par with the Emperor's... it wouldn't just cover the whole of Japan. They'd probably promote her overseas at the highest level, too.
By then, if she ran well at the Kikuka Sho, she might gradually attract fans overseas.
So URA really could be useful. And both options had been chosen with Platinum's best interests in mind.
The first was to bring in a specialist GI long-distance champion. Even many Uma Musume families from prestigious racing lineages might not be able to secure an arrangement like that.
After all, there were only three long-distance GI races: the Kikuka Sho, the Arima Kinen, and the Spring Tenno Sho. A single Uma Musume could win them repeatedly, so active champions were few and far between.
What's more, the second option was simply to "win a graded stakes race." It didn't specify that it had to be a GI or GII race.
Even if Platinum chose the lowest-level GIII race, it would still reassure URA's higher-ups. That would be enough.
It was clear that URA was really going all in on the Heavenly Horse! Its old arrogance and conservatism were nowhere to be seen. Instead, it was treating Platinum like a beloved daughter.
If that kind of extraordinary treatment reached the ears of some popular grey-haired monster who couldn't even compete in the classic races, wouldn't she be full of question marks?
"One option is to train or receive guidance..."
"The other is to win another race and earn some more prize money?"
The lazy doctor initially considered turning them down, but then he remembered how important URA's support and publicity could be.
Lin Anran's first instinct was to rule out the first option.
After all, whether he received training or raced against an excellent long-distance senior, it would be... completely unrewarding!
Even if he did well—even if he won—he wouldn't earn any prize money, would he?
So the unscrupulous young doctor immediately rejected the pointless training.
That left only the last option...
Should I race again?
Then which race should he choose?
Best option: Pick a GIII race, take it easy, and get it over with.
Middle option: Enter a GII race. Not too difficult, not too easy—somewhere in between, which might be awkward.
Worst option: Go completely mad! Challenge a GI race within the next month!
This May, the current Heavenly Horse Platinum had already won the Oaks in the first half of the month and the Japanese Derby in the second half.
If she chose another GI race within a month, the number of races she'd run... would be unprecedented in Japanese history. It'd be madness.
That would mean challenging three GIs in a row in a little over a month, on par with the famous American Triple Crown!
Even in the United States, a world-class country for dirt racing, only a handful of Triple Crown Uma Musume had emerged over the past century. It was a once-in-a-decade achievement even for them.
So winning three consecutive GIs in a little over a month was an almost unbelievable feat by any global standard.
That was why URA had only asked her to "win a graded stakes race." The meaning was clear:
"Little darling, just win any low-level graded stakes race you want. We'll take care of the publicity and tell everyone how you've fought your way through an incredible string of races—your ability is approaching that of an American Triple Crown champion!"
URA just needed to go all in on promoting Platinum, but the Heavenly Horse herself had a lot to consider.
For example, which race to enter, how much the prize money was, and whether to change her running style this time...
"So the main problem now is choosing a suitable race."
"This is really hard to decide..."
Lin Anran opened the computer on the table and logged onto URA's official race website to check the schedule.
The GI races coming up within the next month were...
The mile-distance GI Yasuda Kinen and the middle-distance GI Takarazuka Kinen.
The Yasuda Kinen was a little over a thousand meters, a completely different pace from middle- and long-distance races. Challenging a mile race wouldn't be a great way to prove her long-distance adaptability.
As for the Takarazuka Kinen, it was the All-Star Race of the first half of the year. Spectator voting determined the popularity spots, which then gave the most popular Uma Musume the right to enter.
In other words... all sorts of Older Horses, senior monsters in their prime, would be there!
That was why almost no Uma Musume chose to challenge the Takarazuka Kinen. Usually, they'd wait until after the Kikuka Sho, grow stronger through the second half of the year, and then challenge the older veterans for the throne.
"As for GII races, they're neither here nor there. Let's rule those out first."
"There are plenty of GIII races to choose from. I could sign up for any one of them and get it over with. It'd be the perfect way to slack off, but... the prize money isn't much."
"For GI races, it's a choice between the Yasuda Kinen and the Takarazuka Kinen. I'll put both on the list and think about them."
The slightly awkward thing was that there was another All-Star Race in the second half of the year: the Arima Kinen, the final GI race of the year in Japan and the most prestigious one!
Countless Uma Musume who'd been the strongest that year had been crowned the year's best after conquering the Arima Kinen. So the Arima Kinen was even more prestigious than the Takarazuka Kinen.
But as things stood, Platinum didn't have much choice among the GI races. Of all the Japanese GI races, the Yasuda Kinen and the Takarazuka Kinen were the only two she could choose between.
Lin Anran remembered Tokai Teio saying she'd challenge either the Takarazuka Kinen or the Autumn Tenno Sho.
Should he switch distances to prove he could adapt beyond middle-distance races, or compete against Tokai Teio?
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