I Will Challenge the Triple Crown

Looking at the comments on her phone, a flash of envy crossed Satono Diamond's heart, but she then glanced at the total follower count and froze.

"310 followers... that doesn't seem like very many..."

"Hm? Diamond-chan, what did you say?"

Still immersed in the joy of having just acquired her racing account, Kitasan Black was scrolling through her phone and hadn't heard what her roommate said.

After a moment of hesitation, Satono Diamond shook her head and asked with concern:

"It's nothing... I was just saying, now that Little Kita has an Assigned Trainer and a racing account...

"As for your upcoming career path, Little Kita... or perhaps your trainer...

"Have you two given it any thought?"

The fingers scrolling across the screen paused, the excitement on Kitasan Black's face slowly fading, and her expression grew solemn.

In fact, beyond being roommates, Kitasan Black and Satono Diamond were also childhood sweethearts.

They had known each other since they were very young, attended the same elementary school, and when they were both nearing their prime, they were admitted to Central Treisen Academy together.

Yet, in all the time they had known each other, in Satono Diamond's memory, her friend had almost never worn such an expression.

Oh no, did I ask something I shouldn't have...?

Satono Diamond nervously tightened her grip on her fingers.

A silence hung in the room for a long while.

"I've decided..."

Contrary to her usual lively and energetic self, as if she had made a great resolution, Kitasan Black took a deep breath.

"I'm going to challenge the Triple Crown."

Satono Diamond's eyes widened instantly, her mouth slightly agape.

In the Shining Star series, G1 Races are the highest grade and the fewest in number, with only 25 held each year.

Among these 25 top-tier races, three are extremely special.

The year Horse Girls fully enter their prime is called the "Classic Year," and the years that follow are collectively known as the "Older Horse Years."

The Satsuki Sho, the Japanese Derby, and the Kikuka Sho.

These three special G1 races are limited to Horse Girls in their Classic Year.

Because of this, these three races are collectively known as the "Triple Crown."

In other words, every Horse Girl only has one chance in her life to compete in them.

Across Japan, there are about ten thousand Horse Girls who pass the assessment at various Treisen Academies each year.

The Triple Crown only happens once a year, and there is only one winner for each race.

To win any one of these three G1 races, one's strength can truly be described as one in ten thousand.

However, Satono Diamond remembered very clearly that her friend sitting before her had been melancholy and lost just a few days ago.

She was melancholy because many trainers told her she was best suited for short-distance races.

She was lost because she didn't know what to do.

The Triple Crown consists of 2000 meters, 2400 meters, and 3000 meters—all middle-to-long-distance races; focusing on short distances would certainly mean having no connection to them.

Her friend's dream since childhood had been to step onto the stage of the Triple Crown like her idols, and facing the conflict between reality and dreams, Satono Diamond asked herself if she would be just as melancholy and lost in her shoes.

Yet, in just a few short days, how did her friend suddenly make up her mind and set her goal on the very path every Horse Girl dreams of?

...Could it be because of her trainer?

Once this thought occurred to her, Satono Diamond pondered it, becoming increasingly certain.

Ever since that day she excitedly told her she had an Assigned Trainer, her friend had hardly been melancholy or lost again.

Or rather, she had forgotten those things, completely immersed in the joy of having an Assigned Trainer.

And today, since school let out in the afternoon, her friend hadn't returned.

At dinner, she heard from her elder sister that she had been training in the Dance Hall all afternoon, and the one guiding her was that very trainer.

Satono Diamond had a strong impression of that trainer, who was young to an almost excessive degree.

Passing the Central Trainer exam at 18 was unheard of; it had caused a sensation a few months ago, and people at school still mentioned it occasionally.

However, judging by the gossip she had heard, that trainer didn't seem to intend to start as an assistant like his predecessors, but wanted to sign an Assigned Horse Girl right out of the gate.

If it were before, Satono Diamond would have thought this was a bit whimsical.

Training wasn't just about knowledge; it required sufficient experience—that was how her elder sister and others saw it, too.

So, when she first heard that her friend's Assigned Trainer was this very person, she was, to be honest, a bit worried.

Looking at it now, this trainer really did seem to be something out of the ordinary.

It wasn't just that he could teach her friend those peculiar gestures and postures.

At dinner, her elder sister had also said that the special training in the Dance Hall this afternoon seemed to have a lot of substance to it.

Regardless of the results, Kitasan Black looked like she was enjoying herself during training, clearly adapting well to the training methods she had just been introduced to.

This was quite impressive; one must realize that adapting to an Assigned Horse Girl's training regimen is difficult to arrange, let alone mastering it upon first contact.

This indicated that the Trainer's ability was just as outstanding as his assessment scores.

Since even her elder sister felt that the Trainer was extraordinary, perhaps...

After pondering for a moment, Satono Diamond tentatively spoke up.

"Little Kita, the Triple Crown... was that recommended by your Trainer?"

"Ah? Hehehe, not really..."

As if a soap bubble had been pricked, the moment Satono Diamond spoke, the previously contemplative and hesitant Kitasan Black instantly began scratching her head with a silly grin.

"The Trainer just asked me what kind of horse girl could be considered outstanding and shining, and he also asked if I had considered what races I wanted to run in the future.

"I... hey, Diamond-chan, do you remember my dream when I was admitted to the Tracen Academy?"

Her friend suddenly changed the subject, and Satono Diamond was startled for a moment before nodding.

"Mm, you wanted to become a horse girl as miraculous as Teio-senpai."

"Yeah, Teio-senpai..."

Nodding with eyes full of longing mixed with a hint of hesitation, Kitasan Black fell silent for a moment.

"At the time, that's exactly what I told the Trainer.

"But then the Trainer asked me how I understood the concept of a miracle.

"Suddenly, I didn't know how to answer."

Though she claimed not to know how to answer, the black-haired, red-eyed girl began to murmur continuously.

"And suddenly, I understood what the Trainer was really asking.

"Being outstanding, shining, miracles—these are all things that cannot be determined.

"Compared to these ethereal things, my Trainer seems to focus more on things that can be seen and touched.

"I don't understand what he has been doing these past few days, especially today, for my training.

"But whether it's observing my training, adjusting my stride length, or calculating so many numbers, these are all things that can be seen and touched.

"So, as his horse girl, I should also think about things that can be determined.

"I don't even know what 'outstanding' means myself, but each race is very clear.

"And Teio-senpai's miracles were also run out race by race, so since that's the case..."

She took a deep breath.

"I will be just like her and start with the Triple Crown.

"No matter what others say, I believe in my Trainer; he said he would help me realize my dream.

"I also believe in myself—I won't let the Trainer down.

"And I won't let the fans who are already starting to support me down, either."

After a moment of silence in the dormitory, soft applause rang out.

"Diamond-chan..."

Looking at the friend who was clapping for her, Kitasan Black was surprised to see Satono Diamond smiling as she took out her phone, tapped it a few times, and displayed the interface showing she had followed Kitasan Black's racing account.

"I believe in you too, and I believe you won't let me, your fan, down, Little Kita."