Like the Spring Stakes, the Satsuki Sho was held at Nakayama Racecourse, and the participating Horse Girls and Trainers all arrived ahead of time to prepare.
Compared to the previous rounds of preparation, Anjing Zhen's instructions this time were far more detailed.
Track characteristics, overall tactics, key techniques, weather forecasts, the opponents' past performances...
These repeatedly mentioned points were explained one by one again, and finally came the running style.
"Escape. This time, within the limits of your stamina, escape as far ahead as possible."
Writing a large "Escape" on the whiteboard and circling it with his marker, Anjing Zhen pointed at the starting point on the Satsuki Sho course diagram. Facing Kitasan Black, he said in a grave voice:
"You could say we're quite lucky. There aren't many Escape Horses in this race... no, there are extremely few.
"Judging from past race performances, including you, there should only be two runners with Leading Ability.
"Two Escape Horses among fifteen contestants means very little competition for the lead. That's highly advantageous for you."
"Escape as far ahead as possible... probably one or two opponents..."
Muttering as she finished writing in her little notebook, Kitasan Black looked at the whiteboard and pointed her carrot-shaped ballpoint pen at the name "Azleta."
"So that means I'll have to compete with Reta right from the start?" Kitasan Black asked thoughtfully.
Also looking at the whiteboard, Anjing Zhen nodded.
"Based on the Past Races records, that's right.
"Azleta debuted a little earlier than you and has already participated in six races.
"In her second race, her passing order was 1, 1, 1, 1. In the first three races, it was 2, 2, 2, 2.
"Barring anything unexpected, there's a very high chance she'll run Escape again this time."
Most tracks had four turns, and the