In the end, Kitasan Black left the paddock with a flushed face and a stiff smile, waving mechanically with one hand and clutching the broken zipper with the other.
She left the backstage area and headed toward the underground passage leading to the racecourse. She glanced around and saw the nearest horse girl more than a hundred meters away...
"Ahhhhh, this is so embarrassing! How did the zipper get stuck all of a sudden?! The Trainer and the others definitely saw it! This is so embarrassing!"
She pressed her forehead against the wall and twisted her arms and legs around as if she didn't know what to do with them. After freaking out in a hushed voice for a while, she straightened up, lifted her chin, clenched her fists, and let out a long breath.
"Whatever, let's look on the bright side. At least I didn't put my shoes on backward this time... But it's still so embarrassing, ahhhh!"
She pressed herself against the wall and squirmed around for a while longer.
"Will all competitors please proceed to the starting gates and get ready. Will all competitors please proceed to the starting gates and get ready. I repeat, will all competitors please proceed to the starting gates and get ready."
At the announcement echoing through the passage, she froze for a moment, then hurriedly patted her cheeks and took a few deep breaths. Kitasan Black jogged toward the passage exit.
Her opponents, who had already been introduced in the paddock, were heading toward the gates one after another. With no time to think, she quickened her pace.
Suddenly, as she passed another horse girl, the girl called out to her in a strange voice.
"Kitasan Black..."
"Huh? Oh? It's Benten..." Seeing that it was Sato no Takarazuka who had called out to her, Kitasan Black quickly stopped and greeted her enthusiastically. "Is there anything I can help you with?"
"Nothing in particular, it's just..."
Still speaking strangely, Sato no Takarazuka pointed at Kitasan Black's upper body.
"Did you forget to take off your tracksuit jacket?"
"..."
"..."
"..."
Kitasan Black wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
Even though she couldn't see her own face, the heat told her it must be bright red.
Seeing Kitasan Black's embarrassment, Sato no Takarazuka kindly said,
"The staff haven't left yet, and there's still a little time before you enter the gate. Hurry and take off your jacket and hand it to them..."
She stopped halfway when she saw Kitasan Black tugging at the zipper, her face growing even redder, as if she couldn't get it to budge. Sato no Takarazuka unconsciously stepped closer.
"Uh, do you need me to help..."
She suddenly froze.
Riiip—
A loud tearing sound rang out. Under Sato no Takarazuka's shocked gaze, Kitasan Black ripped her tracksuit jacket open in one go.
Then the black-haired girl, her face red and her mouth twitching, gave her an awkward smile. She covered her face with the jacket—or rather, the scraps of fabric—and ran toward the staff on the field.
After staring for a while, Sato no Takarazuka shook her head with an amused smile, then grew serious as she pondered.
She was still as absent-minded as ever, but that kind of strength... Hmm, just as the Trainer had said, she'd need to pay close attention to it.
Naturally, quite a few spectators saw Kitasan Black "bursting out of her clothes," and it was only to be expected that laughter rippled through the crowd.
Anjing Zhen, Daiwa Scarlet, and Vodka had seen it too. After the three of them stared in speechless silence for a moment, Vodka furrowed her brow thoughtfully.
"Little Kita's still as strong as ever... It must be hard for her to control that during a race, right?"
"It is when I run alongside Little Kita."
Daiwa Scarlet frowned too.
"She has a real problem controlling her speed. She can manage if she's maintaining a steady pace, since she has a good sense of rhythm in that regard.
"But when she needs to speed up or slow down, it takes her too long.
"That's all right during training, but in a race..."
She shook her head.
"Her opponents won't give her that many chances."
As she said this, she glanced pointedly at Anjing Zhen. Vodka did the same.
Knowing that the two horse girls probably wanted to ask how he planned to deal with it—and that he did have a plan—Anjing Zhen still didn't say a word.
It wasn't something he could explain clearly in a moment, and besides, the race was about to begin.
Rather than explain now, it might be easier to let the two horse girls see for themselves.
With their talent and experience, they'd understand his thinking.
"Everything is ready, and the competitors are making their way into the starting gates.
"Here at Tokyo Racecourse, it's the Condition Race over 2000 Meters on grass...
"Start!"
As soon as the commentator's voice fell, fourteen figures shot out of the gates.
As if it had happened before, all the horse girls instinctively veered toward the inner lane.
Suddenly, the commentator's voice shifted.
"One competitor stumbled at the start and lost a step!
"It's Minnesuk, the third favorite!
"But she lives up to her popularity and her previous results, quickly settling near the back of the pack.
"Now in first place is Touki, the tenth favorite!
"She's moving fast, surging straight to the front.
"On the outside!
"Flying out is Sato no Takarazuka!
"She's closing in on Touki. Is she trying to take the lead?"
"It doesn't look like it. After a brief burst of speed, Sato no Takarazuka has settled into third place.
"Saint Martin is in second.
"Following close behind the leading pack is Kitasan Black. She's taken a position farther forward this time."
At this point in the commentary, Vodka nodded in the stands.
"Just as expected. You figured it out too, Daiwa, right?"
"Yeah. Just as expected, Touki is leading."
Daiwa Scarlet nodded as well.
"She probably isn't an Escape Horse. Her running stance, her usual positioning, and her pace aren't suited to running away.
"But her previous races were all short. She's used to faster races, so as soon as the race began, she instinctively brought out the speed and rhythm she knows.
"Though it might also be her Trainer's instructions. If that's the case, and the others can't react in time, she'll lead them around by the nose.
"Especially..."
She paused, exchanged a glance with her friend, and looked at Anjing Zhen before growing puzzled.
That's strange. He should know very well that Little Kita wasn't good at precise speed control, and a race led at high speed was difficult to handle. Besides, he didn't seem to have started training Little Kita in that area yet...
So why was he still so calm?
Daiwa Scarlet frowned to herself.
As one of the finest Escape Horses of the recent generations—and of the entire industry—she didn't think there was anything wrong with her judgment.
She wasn't denying this Trainer's talent and ability. She'd already confirmed many times that he was exceptional.
Still, no matter how exceptional he was, and even setting aside his youth, it was an undeniable fact that this was only Little Kita's second race.
With so little precise speed control, her second race had brought her into a situation that demanded exactly that skill. So where did the confidence behind the Trainer's calm come from?
Frowning again for a moment, Daiwa Scarlet fixed her eyes on the pack speeding around the track and thought rapidly.
She wasn't going to ask Anjing Zhen.
If others could do it, so could she—and she would do it better than anyone. That was the only goal that mattered.
That had always been her creed.
She was confident she could figure out the key.
However, as time passed, her brow furrowed tighter and tighter.
She still hadn't figured out what Anjing Zhen was planning.
So... could it be that he didn't have a plan at all?
No, that couldn't be right. She wasn't seeing things. The ability he'd shown wasn't fake...
But they were already nearing the third turn, and Little Kita still hadn't made a move. Was she planning to keep following...
Wait!
Following...
Daiwa Scarlet's eyes widened, and she let out a soft gasp.
"Sato no Takarazuka?!"
Before you continue