709. Drag Down

The two remained side by side, the gap between them negligible.

Their fierce struggle continued for nearly three hundred meters.

Gradually, Starlight Peak felt that the price she was paying in this contest seemed greater than her opponent's, while the result—

Was practically zero.

Worse still, her stamina was draining like floodwaters through opened gates, far beyond anything she had experienced in simulated training or anticipated.

Kitasan Black beside her was no longer merely like a magnet. She was more like a bottomless vortex, dragging at her with a constant, powerful pull, forcing Starlight Peak to keep producing power far beyond her comfort zone just to barely maintain this damned side-by-side situation.

The familiar burning signal began to rise from her lungs, while the ache and swelling in her leg muscles came earlier—and clearer—than expected.

"If this continues—" a cold thought surfaced beyond her ability to suppress it. "I won't even make it to the Final Straight. In the middle section—

No, before we even reach the midpoint, I'll be—dragged down by her—?!"

Her pride felt as if it were being repeatedly pierced by fine needles, sending sharp stabs of pain through her.

But both her Horse Girl instincts and reason screamed at once: She couldn't keep forcing it like this! This wasn't strategy—it was suicide!

After passing the first turn, following yet another futile acceleration meant to break free, an extraordinarily complicated expression flashed through Starlight Peak's eyes:

Unwillingness, humiliation, and vexation—ultimately, they became a ruthless glint of resolve.

The force of her push against the ground eased somewhat.

Her taut posture relaxed slightly.

Her body naturally withdrew half a step.

Her position shifted from sprinting side by side to falling roughly one horse length behind Kitasan Black.

"This—isn't surrender. It's a tactical retreat—" she gritted out inwardly, trying