Pegasus Meteor Hammer

"The list of two-year-olds is right here."

"Oh, you've really put in the work."

"It's all part of our job. You're the one who's worked hard, Teacher Tanaka, managing so many racehorses under you."

"Haha, not at all."

Taking the thin stack of papers from a racing association staff member, Tanaka Junji immediately began going through the list of two-year-olds about to enter his stable.

"A horse from the Satomi Family..."

"It's actually debuting in the local circuit?"

"Looks like Jazz Blues has produced a few more foals."

Tanaka's gaze quickly swept over the list, and he occasionally muttered a few comments to himself.

Due to the shortage of personnel in local racing, trainers like him each had to manage dozens or even hundreds of racehorses.

The central circuit had similar problems as well, but there was no doubt that the shortage of local trainers and jockeys was far more severe.

Aside from the obligatory "favor horses" he received every year, Tanaka was quite casual in his choice of horses to bring into the stable.

In any case, he had no shortage of racehorses capable of winning prize money.

Soon, only a small portion of the list remained.

"This is..."

Seeing a certain name, Tanaka frowned in confusion.

"Mejiro... Pegasus..."

"Is it really okay to give it a name like that?"

Most local owners were rather frivolous when it came to naming their horses.

And in order to draw more attention to local races, local racing associations often turned a blind eye during the initial review, allowing some less-than-serious-sounding names to be submitted to the JRA.

But names that went too far were not actually permitted.

Even if they passed the racing association's review, they could easily lead to legal disputes.

However, after seeing "Mr. Kitano" written in the owner information column, Tanaka quickly understood.

He had heard of this new owner as early as last month.

"Then you'll do."

By Creator II, out of a Casino Shuttle mare, the gray horse named Mejiro Pegasus had no pedigree that particularly caught the eye.

But that did not matter.

He casually picked out several more horses from the list.

After folding the list in half and slipping it into his pocket, the annual selection of incoming stable horses was complete.

Before they officially entered the stable, he still needed to personally inspect their condition.

And while he was at it, he could see what kind of person this "Mr. Kitano" really was.

"Nishiken Farm... I think it only opened a couple of years ago..."

With a new owner and a novice breeding farm, the horses were unlikely to be of much quality.

That meant there was no need to trouble Hattori.

With that in mind, Tanaka called Ochiai Genta, the other primary jockey at his stable.

Though he was called a primary jockey, their relationship was actually closer to that of master and apprentice.

"Genta, this year's incoming horses have been decided. Come take a look with me in a few days."

"Understood, Teacher Tanaka."

A reply quickly came from the other end of the line.

The next day, at Nishiken Farm.

"I'm terribly sorry, Mr. Kitano!"

Losing the tug-of-war between man and horse once again, Ogawa Masaru crashed heavily to the ground.

As Hokkaido's weather gradually warmed, beads of sweat streamed down the boy's face.

He tried to hide his humiliation beneath the sound of his ragged breathing.

In three days, Flax2023, now renamed Mejiro Pegasus, would officially enter the stable.

According to the agreement between Nishiken Farm and Kitano Yuk, the farm would continue handling its training until then.

At first, it completed all kinds of desensitization exercises, gate training, and trial runs on both flat ground and slopes without issue.

Though it had not displayed anything especially outstanding, it quickly remembered what it learned and did not need repeated training like other young horses.

It was a remarkably perceptive little horse.

That was the impression Flax2023 gave people.

Ogawa Masaru believed that, aside from his father, no one understood Flax2023 better than he did.

Not even his idiot older sister, who also helped out at the farm, qualified.

Though he was not yet twenty, he had studied at Ogawa Joe's side since childhood and was quite experienced in this kind of work.

So when Kitano requested to observe the training process, he volunteered to take charge of it.

Mejiro Pegasus did not disappoint him, easily completing every exercise.

Then, in order to showcase the farm's training results as thoroughly as possible, Ogawa Masaru decided to add a mock race after discussing it with his old man.

The farm's track was only a hundred-meter straightaway, but that was enough for a practice simulation.

Another two-year-old was assigned to run alongside it, with Ogawa Kanna in the saddle.

The first eighty meters went very smoothly.

Mejiro Pegasus adapted to racing exceptionally well.

One could even say it was adapting a little too well.

Yet just as it was about to cross the finish line, Mejiro Pegasus suddenly veered toward the horse running alongside it.

Then—

It cocked its head and slammed the other horse with a heavy headbutt.

By the time everyone came to their senses, the other horse had stumbled far behind.

Ogawa Kanna, in the saddle, also lost her balance and fell from its back.

Meanwhile, Mejiro Pegasus, the horse responsible, charged across the finish line under everyone's stares as if nothing had happened.

Ogawa Masaru was the first to react, instinctively snapping his whip toward Mejiro Pegasus.

He swore that he had not put any force into that swing. It had not even touched Mejiro Pegasus's body; he had merely cracked the whip beside its ear.

But after that, Mejiro Pegasus abruptly stopped as though it had suffered some grievance, refusing to move no matter how he tugged at it.

The hand gripping Ogawa Masaru's whip rose several times, only to fall again as if all strength had suddenly drained from it.

While his old man handled most of the training and management, he was the one responsible for the hard physical work, such as cleaning the stalls, feeding the horses, and washing them.

When it came to their bond, he was the one closest to Flax2023.

Moreover, the owner, Mr. Kitano, was watching from behind him, and that kept him from acting rashly.

"Won't you bring it down?"

Kitano looked at the man and horse locked in their struggle and asked.

"Huh?"

"Only if it understands that this behavior was wrong will it learn its lesson afterward."

Seeing Ogawa Masaru still sitting there foolishly, Kitano continued helplessly.

Such a dangerous action had to be corrected immediately.

Fortunately, thanks to her helmet, Ogawa Kanna had suffered little more than some scrapes.

But on a real racetrack, where conditions were far more complicated, things might not go so well.

He wanted his racehorse to win, but he was not so unscrupulous as to do anything for victory.

"Sorry for the trouble."

When Ogawa Joe and the bandaged Ogawa Kanna approached, Kitano bowed to them apologetically.

"It's only a minor injury."

Ogawa Kanna answered calmly, the corners of her lips lifting slightly.

But she seemed to pull at her wound, and her face immediately twisted in pain.

"I'm sorry you had to see such a disgraceful sight."

Ogawa Joe took the whip from his son's hand, lowered his head slightly, and spoke in a low voice.

"But please rest assured. We'll definitely train it properly before it enters the stable!"