Kitasan Black's gaze lingered on Teio Sho's phone screen for a long time.
Those news headlines seemed to carry a certain weight, pressing down on her heart bit by bit.
She recalled the digital editions of Flash magazine she had browsed lately, the television news she had happened to glimpse between training sessions, and the race posters plastered along the streets.
Almost everywhere information could be found, her name was tightly bound to the "Autumn Triple Crown."
When she had read those reports before, she had mostly felt excitement and nervousness. She had thought it was everyone's recognition of her, an expectation she needed to answer with victory.
But now that Teio Sho had pointed out the words "main character," she suddenly felt something entirely different. Those densely packed words and pictures were no longer merely attention—they felt more like invisible starting lines.
The sharpness in Teio Sho's eyes, Koushou Hayate's hesitant concern, even the seriousness beneath Duramente's calm tone in the video—all of it reminded her that this journey toward the "Autumn Triple Crown" had long ceased to be a race she was running alone.
It was as though she stood in the middle of a vast oval track, with figures eager to make their move in every direction.
Futanari Shingang's steadiness, Clear Sky's agility, Sunday Silence's tenacity, and Teio Sho, who had declared her challenge right after meeting her—not to mention Satono Crown, her friend who was equally eyeing the Tenno Sho Autumn with hungry eyes.
Behind every name stood strength enough to stir up towering waves, along with efforts made with everything they had.
"So... everyone's watching me."
Kitasan Black murmured unconsciously, suddenly feeling her throat go dry.
It was like the suffocating feeling of extreme training in a Hypoxic Chamber, yet it came with an entirely