The enemy was right beside me?

Clop, clop, clop-

A chestnut racehorse galloped across the track.

With the training plan Ayano Aoe had provided, Koichi found things noticeably easier.

Compared with other racehorses, Golden Masterpiece clearly had a heavier training load. That suited its aptitude for dirt tracks and its strength over longer distances.

Of course, turf racers still earned more money in Japan.

After yesterday's morning training, Koichi naturally felt much more at ease today.

The main purpose of daily morning training was to keep the horse in racing condition.

In a sense, it was much the same as training for runners, except racehorses ran faster.

"Thanks for your hard work today."

Once they finished their laps, a staff member handed Koichi a bottle of water.

Koichi had arrived just as early today.

But on second thought, the staff member realized that was the right choice. Once more people arrived, there would be more trouble. Golden Masterpiece had a bad temper, and Koichi wasn't particularly welcome among the ranch's jockeys either.

Nobody would offend a horse trainer for Koichi's sake.

"It was a lot easier than yesterday. Asho's condition is getting better and better, too."

Koichi smiled as he accepted the bottle of mineral water.

Next came uphill sprint training.

Although racehorses raced on tracks, those tracks varied in many ways. Some sections went uphill, while others sloped downward.

Glare-

"I-"

Suddenly finding himself on the receiving end of Golden Masterpiece's glare, the staff member hurried several steps backward.

Had he somehow offended this horse?!

One kick from it would put him in the hospital for at least a month.

"Asho, hang in there a little longer. We can rest once we finish training."

Koichi quickly tugged on the reins, then patted Golden Masterpiece's neck.

If it hurt someone, he would definitely be implicated too.

Soothing!

He activated the skill immediately.

Clop, clop-

Golden Masterpiece lifted a foreleg slightly toward the staff member.

What did the weight on my back have to be tired about?!

If anyone was tired, it was me.

"Sasaki, I'll be going, then."

Seeing that he wasn't welcome, the staff member patted his chest to calm his pounding heart.

They really did need Sasaki after all.

Although he had no idea how he had offended Golden Masterpiece, it was clearly only holding back for Sasaki's sake.

I'm out of here. Out of here.

"Honestly, you... All right, let's get back to training."

Seeing the staff member get scared away, Koichi didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

The name "tyrant" was certainly well deserved.

Fortunately, he had reacted in time and quickly pulled on the reins. Otherwise, he might have been caught up in it too.

Snort-!

Golden Masterpiece snorted heavily, then headed toward another training area.

That man had better not show his face again!

It certainly knew how to hold a grudge.

Word of the incident soon spread among the ranch staff.

Everyone wanted to meet this remarkable rookie jockey, but because of Trainer Kudo, nobody dared approach Koichi on their own.

A jockey with no results to his name had little say in anything.

Of course, most people had little faith in Sasaki. No matter how they looked at it, he had only gotten this opportunity by being in the right place at the right time.

This was the young mistress's way of repaying Koichi Sasaki. Once next year's race was over, Golden Masterpiece would surely get a different jockey.

To everyone, putting a rookie jockey in a Grade 3 race was a joke.

He might not even know his way around a local race.

That afternoon, in the staff lounge.

"Here's some information on Kyoto Racecourse, along with your upcoming schedule. Since the race is around New Year's, your schedule will be fairly tight."

Normally, someone else would have gone over these things with Koichi.

This time, however, it was once again his uncle who explained everything to him.

"So I'll need to go there to train in December?"

Koichi looked at the stack of documents and asked.

Kyoto Racecourse was located in Fushimi Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. Nearly a hundred years had passed since it first opened.

In terms of standing, it was one of Japan's four major racecourses.

Several international Grade 1 races were held there.

Every year, Kyoto Racecourse held races on Saturdays and Sundays in January, February, April, May, October, and November.

The race he would enter was in January, after New Year's.

"Given your current situation, you'll probably need to go around mid-December. Then you can come back for a few days before the end of the year, but right after New Year's, you'll have to return to Kyoto to prepare for the race."

Ayumu Kusakawa nodded.

After training at Aoe Ranch for a while, Koichi would have to leave for Kyoto.

Judging by the young mistress's intentions, she would also go to the racecourse to watch the race in person.

"That works for me."

Koichi naturally had no objection to the arrangements.

There wasn't really anyone at home anyway. Celebrating New Year's or not made no difference to him.

"The rest of the information covers your race. As for your opponents, they haven't been confirmed yet."

Ayumu Kusakawa pointed to the remaining pages.

Race entries had to be submitted in advance, but adjustments could still be made. For instance, a horse might withdraw if something went wrong.

Koichi turned to the first page and found a detailed description of the race.

Nikkan Sports Shinzan Kinen

Grade 3, three-year-olds.

Outer turf course, 1,600 meters.

"Races like this usually have sixteen horses. The competition is pretty fierce."

Seeing how carefully Koichi was reading, Ayumu Kusakawa added that explanation.

First place in this race earned forty million in prize money. Even second place earned sixteen million.

Having three-year-old horses kick off the new year was naturally ideal.

"Mm."

"Oh, and there's one more very important thing. A horse from our ranch sired by Deep Impact will be competing too!"

Ayumu Kusakawa hesitated, but said it anyway.

Although Golden Masterpiece was fairly strong, it still fell far short compared with the offspring of Deep Impact, whose popularity was soaring.

Danon Blue would surely have no trouble becoming the betting favorite this time.

"An offspring of Deep Impact?"

Koichi's eyes suddenly lit up as he read the documents.

Deep Impact was one of Japan's legendary racehorses, and now its most important breeding stallion.

Fourteen starts, twelve wins, one second-place finish, and one race where something had gone wrong.

As for its sire, it shared one with Stay Gold. Both horses were offspring of Sunday Silence.

In racing circles, the first things people looked at were a horse's sire and pedigree. The second was its maternal grandsire.

"So you need to prepare yourself mentally. The ranch certainly won't be pinning all its hopes on you."

Ayumu Kusakawa sighed.

He would be satisfied if Koichi managed a top-five finish. Any prize money they could scrape together was welcome.

After all, the top five finishers all received prize money.

"I understand."

Koichi gave a faint smile, then continued reading the documents.

A child of Deep Impact was still only its child, not the sire itself.

(End of chapter)