Chapter 126: Therefore—

In the end, Rice was unable to find a way to surpass Bourbon-san.

It had been less than a month ago, at the Spring Stakes.

That day, Bourbon-san had been unbelievably strong.

She burst from the gate faster than anyone, then ran past them all with unmatched speed… Even Rice, who had been watching her closely, couldn’t find a single opening—couldn’t see where or how to attack—and was beaten by four lengths.

Bourbon-san seized the fastest start and surged into the lead without interference.

From start to finish, she maintained a perfectly steady pace, never allowing anyone the chance to overtake her once fatigue set in.

It was an overwhelming victory born purely from physical dominance—unstoppable and inescapable.

…Yes. Truly inescapable.

With overwhelming power, Bourbon-san had “won because she was meant to win.”

And this was the G2 Spring Stakes—a Satsuki Sho trial race—stacked with top-class competitors.

…How am I supposed to beat Bourbon-san like that?

Her body was relentlessly strong, and she calculated everything to maximize its potential.

Running at a constant pace meant there was virtually no stamina loss.

In other words, there was no weakness in Bourbon-san’s running.

That was why Rice didn’t know.

She didn’t know how to defeat Bourbon-san. She didn’t know how to surpass that back ahead of her.

And because she didn’t know, she kept running desperately… and the more desperately she ran, the less she understood.

Rice has to beat Bourbon-san.

Because that is the path Onee-sama gave her—the path to becoming a blue rose.

But…

She doesn’t know how to overcome that kind of run.

At the Spring Stakes, she increased her pace from the third corner, steadily closing in on Bourbon-san.

That was Rice’s usual strategy—the standard approach for a stalker-type runner.

She and Trainer-san had agreed on it beforehand.

And yet… she couldn’t reach her.

She had been gaining, little by little… but only little by little.

At a pace where even over one furlong, she couldn’t close a single length.

At that rate, she would never catch Bourbon-san.

But pushing beyond that pace was difficult for the Rice she was now.

So she ran, and ran, and ran—trying to become even a little bit faster.

…And even then—

She still didn’t feel like she could catch up.

To that back.

To Bourbon-san, who kept pulling farther ahead.

---

“…Haa… haa…”

Even on the day before the Satsuki Sho, Rice still hadn’t found a path to victory.

Trainer-san had told her, “If it’s you, Rice, you can definitely seize the win depending on how the race unfolds. Let’s stay calm.”

But…

She knew herself well enough to understand.

Trainer-san’s prediction was either meant to comfort her—or it underestimated Bourbon-san.

As she was now, Rice couldn’t beat Bourbon-san over 2000 meters, no matter how the race unfolded.

Bourbon-san’s strategy didn’t depend on race flow. At best, it would come down to whether Rice’s running aligned perfectly with the track conditions and the pack’s movement…

But even if everything aligned perfectly, she still wouldn’t reach her.

That was why she felt she couldn’t leave things as they were.

So even on the night she should have been resting, Rice slipped out of the dorm and went running.

“Haa… fuu…”

When her legs grew heavy from striking the ground, she finally stopped and sat down on a bench, lowering her head without realizing it.

…What am I doing, Rice?

Trainer-san had told her, “There’s no need to rush. Let’s take it easy today.”

And yet here she was, sneaking out to run.

She knew it wasn’t good.

She knew that—but unless she ran more than anyone else, she couldn’t get stronger.

She didn’t have Onee-sama’s talent. She didn’t have Bourbon-san’s natural gifts.

Rice had to keep running.

Still… was this really the right choice?

Was it okay to ignore the words of the Trainer she was supposed to walk alongside?

“…What should I have done?”

A faint, prickling sensation burned in her chest.

There were less than twenty-four hours left until the Satsuki Sho. Probably around nineteen.

She knew she wouldn’t make it at this rate.

But she didn’t know what else she could do.

What should she do?

How could she win?

Rice… what should I do…?

…

As she sat there, shoulders rising and falling—

That person appeared as if by magic.

No—like a shooting star, sudden and brilliant.

Light footsteps approached—tap, tap, tap—quick and lively.

At this hour, hardly anyone should have been here. Rice instinctively tensed.

Then that person peeked around the corner—

And smiled.

“Finally found you, Rice-chan!”

“…Onee-sama.”

The person Rice admired.

Last year’s Satsuki Sho champion.

The undefeated Triple Crown Uma Musume—

Hoshino Wilm-senpai.

---

Since Rice had already stopped to rest, she and Onee-sama sat together on the bench.

Beside Onee-sama, who was steadying her slightly uneven breathing, Rice felt completely confused.

“Um, Onee-sama… why… how did you know I was here?”

Rice had been running at a temple deep in the mountains, some distance away from Tracen.

It was a place Trainer-san had told her about recently. She hadn’t mentioned it to Onee-sama.

In response to her hesitant question, Onee-sama gave a wry smile.

“I searched quite a bit. I asked Nature if she had any idea where you might be… then I ran around looking.”

“Y-You ran around searching!?”

Even after blasting through 3000 meters at a pace Rice considered extremely fast, Onee-sama would casually say, “That was just a light jog,” without losing her breath.

Yet now her shoulders were rising slightly.

Which meant—

She had truly searched for Rice in earnest.

“W-Why would you go that far…?”

The question slipped out before she could stop it.

Onee-sama smiled gently.

“Because there was something I absolutely had to tell you, Rice-chan.”

“Something to tell me?”

“Yeah.”

After nodding, Onee-sama paused and looked up at the sky.

Drawn in, Rice looked up as well.

The rain that had lasted until noon had finally stopped. The clouds were gone.

Countless beautiful stars glittered across the sky.

“…It’s beautiful.”

The words escaped her before she realized it.

When was the last time she had calmly looked up at the sky like this?

Ever since the Spring Stakes, she had devoted herself entirely to training to win, never giving herself proper rest.

Even when her body rested… her heart kept running, constantly thinking about how to become faster.

Maybe that was why.

The sky she saw now felt unbelievably beautiful.

As Rice gazed upward, slightly dazed, Onee-sama spoke.

“This is just my personal opinion, but I think running has to be fun.”

“Fun…?”

“Yeah.”

When Rice glanced sideways, Onee-sama was still looking at the stars, her expression filled with quiet faith in the future.

“Rice-chan, do you like running?”

She couldn’t answer immediately.

It should have been a simple question.

But it felt impossibly difficult.

“…I’m not sure.

I think I used to like it. Running with others, winning—it made me happy. It was fun.

But… now…”

“Now?”

Onee-sama’s voice was calm. Gentle. Warm.

As if something inside her were slowly unraveling, Rice felt her heart spill out through her lips.

“…Rice makes people unhappy.

When Rice runs, the girls running with her become unhappy, or the race itself gets ruined…”

“Why do you think that?”

Why does she think that?

The reason Rice began to see herself as an unfortunate child—

“…Ah.”

That’s right.

She remembered.

It was when her sense of self had only just begun to take shape.

During a children’s sports day race—

When she had won by an overwhelming margin.

That was when she realized she was a bad child.

“Rice… even when she wins… she makes people unhappy.”

---

That day was the sports festival at Rice’s school.

There was an event where humans raced other humans, and Uma Musume raced other Uma Musume.

At the time, Rice truly loved running, so of course she participated.

She pumped her legs with all her strength, forcing down her ragged breathing and burning lungs—

And crossed the finish line ahead of everyone else.

Then she looked toward the spectator stands.

Wondering if she had made someone smile.

Wondering if they were smiling at her.

…But.

The very first thing she saw—

Was a face twisted in disappointment.

It was probably the parent of one of the other Uma Musume who had run in Rice’s race.

Because Rice had won. Because she had taken someone else’s victory away—

And as a result, she had made someone unhappy.

The action she had taken to make someone happy—

Had produced the exact opposite result.

“Ah… ah…”

Rice… is a bad child.

That was the beginning of the story of “bad child Rice.”

If she told someone about it, they might say, “What, that’s all?”—such a small, ordinary story.

---

The shock she felt that day. The grief that followed…

She remembered what she had tried so hard not to remember.

Even now, that disappointed face was burned into the back of her eyelids.

But this past—this fate—

Surely it was something Rice herself had to confront.

If Onee-sama gave her the answer, she felt she might never be able to move forward on her own.

So she opened her eyes and spoke only about herself.

“…Rice is an Uma Musume who can only make people unhappy.

If Rice wins, someone becomes unhappy. Everyone cheering for the other girls becomes unhappy.

Even now, Rice still wants to win. She really does want to make someone happy that way…”

“But even so, running hurts?”

“…I wouldn’t say it hurts.

But ever since I realized that… I may have stopped thinking of it as fun.”

“I see.”

After that, silence settled between them.

Together, they looked up at the night sky.

Of course, there are people who feel happy when Rice wins.

Even at that sports festival, her parents had been overjoyed when she took first place.

But in a race, only one can win.

In exchange for one brilliant victor, many more—sometimes more than ten times as many—losers are born. Rice had come to understand that.

It was just like the starry sky above them.

The stars people call “beautiful,” the ones visible to the naked eye, are only a tiny fraction of all the stars that exist in the universe.

Some are too far away to be seen. Some do not emit light at all.

Behind every shining star, there are countless others that cannot shine.

If Rice shines in first place, then every other Uma Musume loses her glow.

And the people cheering for them become unhappy.

…She understood that it couldn’t be helped.

Victory is cruel. It hurts. It’s painful.

After coming to Tracen and meeting Onee-sama, she had nearly forgotten that truth—

But it had never truly disappeared.

As she was thinking that…

Onee-sama murmured softly.

“…Rice-chan, you really are kind.”

“Kind…?”

Rice tilted her head at the word.

She couldn’t see what part of what she’d said deserved to be called kind.

“You are. There aren’t many Uma Musume who think that much about other people’s fans.”

“That’s… just because Rice is scared. Scared of making those people unhappy. I’m just a cowardly Uma Musume.”

“Yeah, I suppose you could call it cowardice. So maybe… cowardly kindness.

I’m a little jealous. I don’t have that quality.”

Onee-sama said it with a faint note of loneliness.

Rice quickly waved her hands.

“N-No! Onee-sama is kind!”

But Onee-sama replied, looking slightly embarrassed—no, almost awkward.

“…Well, I suppose I have been fairly kind to you, Rice-chan.

But that’s because I want your hard work to be rewarded. And because I think you might become my rival.

In other words, my kindness isn’t like your cowardly kindness. Mine is selfish—kindness built on personal desire.”

Rice frowned at the self-mocking tone.

From Rice’s perspective, that was more than kind enough.

After all, she had heard that right before the Satsuki Sho, Onee-sama had even listened to Bourbon-san’s concerns.

And on the day Rice had been caught chasing after her, Onee-sama had gently said, “Let’s run together.”

Whatever feelings motivated her—well, she couldn’t say for certain about Bourbon-san.

But at least for Rice, Onee-sama had saved her.

…And besides, Rice knew.

When one of her classmates—someone Onee-sama had been close with—had to leave Tracen, Onee-sama had looked truly devastated.

She might deliberately say she only acted “for herself”—

But Rice believed Onee-sama was someone who could move for the sake of others. Someone truly kind.

…Though if she said that outright, she would probably deny it, so Rice kept quiet.

Then Onee-sama suddenly turned toward her and asked,

“Rice-chan, do you know the story about the old man, the old woman, and the donkey—well, in this case, the Uma Musume?”

“Um… sorry, I don’t think I do.”

“That’s nothing to apologize for.

So—there’s a tired old man, a tired old woman, and a healthy, strong Uma Musume.

The three of them need to get home, but unfortunately there’s no car, bus, or train. So they’ll have to walk.

Now then, how do you think the three of them should travel?

All right, Rice-chan, your answer?”

Rice thought for a moment before answering.

“Um… maybe the Uma Musume carries the two of them on her back and walks?”

“Did you project yourself onto the Uma Musume? That really does sound like a very Rice-chan answer.”

“Uu…”

She had already been praised several times, and it made her a little shy.

Still, if the Uma Musume was healthy and strong, then carrying the two tired people seemed like the right thing to do.

In fact, she felt you shouldn’t make exhausted elderly people walk any more than necessary.

Since she had been praised, Rice wondered if that meant her answer was correct—

But Onee-sama smiled mischievously.

“However, someone who saw that would say this:

‘How cruel to make the Uma Musume carry two people! That’s so pitiful!’”

“Ah… that’s true…”

Uma Musume are stronger than humans, and most can carry at least one person while running.

But carrying two—not just the weight, but keeping balance and posture—it would be extremely difficult.

“Th-Then… how about ‘carry only the grandmother’?”

“Anyone watching would say, ‘How pitiful for the grandfather.’”

“Then… ‘carry only the grandfather’…”

“And they’d say, ‘How pitiful for the grandmother.’”

“U-Um… then maybe, ‘all three of them walk home together’?”

“They’d say, ‘Isn’t that Uma Musume cold-hearted?’”

“Muu…”

Maybe the correct answer was to build a sled out of something nearby.

Just as Rice began seriously considering that possibility, Onee-sama let out a small laugh.

“Sorry, sorry. Actually, there’s no correct answer to this problem.

No matter which method you choose, no matter what conclusion you reach, there will always be a certain number of complaints.

…Just like in real races.”

Hearing that much, Rice finally began to understand—just a little—what Onee-sama was trying to say.

“It’s unfortunate, but not just in racing—there’s rarely such a thing as an ending that satisfies everyone.

Last year, I got my fair share of comments too. Especially during the Satsuki Sho and the Japan Derby. Things like, ‘Why does some nobody like you get to win?’ or ‘Teio was supposed to win.’ And sometimes even worse—‘Why don’t you break your leg instead of Teio?’”

“Th-That’s… that’s horrible…”

Rice gasped at the cruelty—far worse than she had imagined.

Even the first two were harsh.

But the last one… what must Onee-sama have felt when she read that?

…And yet.

Onee-sama wasn’t sad. Instead, she smiled at Rice.

“Well, you know… I don’t actually hate comments like that.”

“Eh… w-why?”

“Because that’s not really hatred toward me. It’s because they love Teio.

The Uma Musume they adored and cheered for lost—and on top of that, she broke a bone… They had nowhere to put their emotions, so they lashed out at me.

Sure, being insulted hurts. You wonder why they’d say such things. But those people don’t hate Uma Musume. They love them—that’s why the words spill out.

Accepting that kind of runaway love… that’s also part of the winner’s role.”

Accepting runaway love is part of the winner’s role.

…Is that true?

That disappointed face directed at her that day—

Instead of being shocked by it… should she have accepted it as a form of love?

---

As Rice fell deep into thought, Onee-sama continued.

“And there’s something else.”

“Something…?”

“Don’t forget this, Rice-chan.

There are fans who would feel frustrated if you lost.”

Onee-sama pulled out her phone, tapped it a few times, and said, “Look.”

On the screen was an Umatter search page with “Rice Shower Satsuki Sho” typed into it.

『My top pick for the Satsuki Sho is definitely Rice Shower! Beating Mihono Bourbon isn’t just a dream!』

『Rice Shower’s been working insanely hard in her public training sessions—I really want to support her. The longer distance at the Satsuki Sho suits her. She can win. She will win.』

『Go Rice! I’m cheering for you in the Satsuki Sho too! But take care of your body—I don’t want a repeat of last year.』

『Satsuki Sho is probably Mihono Bourbon, but if Rice Shower comes through, that would be insanely hype. Are these two the headliners of this year’s Classics?』

『Rice Shower, seriously give it your all! I’ve watched the Twinkle Series for years, and I’m cheering for you more than anyone ever! Show us you beating Mihono Bourbon at the Satsuki Sho!!』

“…This…”

Rice instinctively tightened her grip on the phone, and Onee-sama gently placed her hand over Rice’s.

“If you win, they’ll be happy. If you lose, they’ll be sad. Just like with any other Uma Musume, there are fans like that for you too. I’m sure Nature and your Trainer-san feel the same way.

…To be honest, I’m cheering for Bourbon-chan since she’s in my camp. But if you lose, Rice-chan, I know I’d be sad too.”

The fans.

Nature-senpai.

Trainer-san.

And… Onee-sama.

There are people who cheer for Rice.

Just as there are people who would be saddened if she took first place—

There are people who would rejoice.

And that is true for every Uma Musume.

“…The world of racing is cruel. You might not be able to become a savior who makes everyone happy.

But making the people who support you happy—that’s something you can do, Rice-chan.”

Then Onee-sama smiled.

“So aim for that. Aim to become that kind of hero—the kind who can make someone happy.”

Rice caught her breath.

A hero.

Someone who brings happiness… who delivers blessings.

The word fit perfectly.

It felt as though it slid into the empty space inside her heart—the place that had been searching for something all along.

A blue rose.

A hero who can make someone happy.

…If it’s possible, Rice wants to become that kind of Uma Musume.

And yet—that’s exactly why she can’t help worrying about how.

“…But I don’t think Rice can beat Bourbon-san in the Satsuki Sho… I don’t know what to do.”

She hadn’t meant to say it—but the weakness slipped out.

In the end, if she couldn’t win, she couldn’t become a hero who made people happy.

But no matter how hard she tried, it didn’t feel like she could catch Bourbon-san…

As Rice let out a quiet sigh, Onee-sama rested a hand on her chin and hummed thoughtfully.

“I’ve been thinking this since we did joint training a few times, but Rice-chan…”

“Y-Yes?”

“Honestly? You’re not exactly the adaptable type, are you?”

“Ugh!!”

A spot she had been slightly self-conscious about was suddenly pressed, and she instinctively clutched her chest.

“I’m not a natural genius like Teio, and I can’t control the pace of a race like Nature. I don’t think I can pull off bold, all-in runs like I do, and I’m not as sharp-sensed as Bourbon-chan, either.

If I had to compare you to someone, maybe you’re closest to McQueen-san—the type who pushes through with pure physical strength.

But when you try to maintain a broad, overall perspective, your concentration tends to snap, and you lose your sharpness, don’t you?”

“Uuugh…”

…That was something her Trainer had told her, too.

Rice Shower wasn’t versatile.

She didn’t have a distinct, defining strength like the three stars of her generation, nor did she possess overwhelming physical ability and razor-sharp sensory precision like Bourbon-san.

In fact, before even talking about strengths, Rice had a major weakness.

She couldn’t grasp the entire field.

Where the other Uma Musume were positioned. How the race was unfolding. And therefore, how she herself needed to move.

That instinct—what people called race sense—was weaker in Rice compared to other G1-class runners.

She had felt that painfully in the Spring Stakes, when she failed to catch Bourbon-san.

It was embarrassing that Onee-sama understood her flaws so clearly…

And yet, at the same time, it made her strangely happy to know she was being seen so thoroughly.

Then it hit her.

Wait… isn’t this kind of bad?

“C-Could it be… that Trainer Horino-san knows about this too…?”

“Huh? Yeah, well, I’m sure he does. There’s no way I’d notice and Ayumi wouldn’t. That would be impossible.”

“Uuugh…”

If Bourbon-san’s trainer knew about her weakness, that only meant Bourbon-san’s race plan and strategy would be even more effective against her.

It felt like yet another disadvantage piling up, and her spirits sank.

But Onee-sama quickly waved her hands.

“Ah—no, sorry, sorry. It’s fine. Bourbon-chan doesn’t really run with complicated strategies anyway, so whether she knows your weakness or not doesn’t change much.”

“That’s a relief… but when I race against you someday, won’t it still put me at a disadvantage?”

“Ah, well… yeah.”

Uuugh… I guess I really do have to overcome this flaw.

As Rice lowered her shoulders, Onee-sama spoke again.

“…But you know, I think it might actually be fine.”

“Huh?”

“It’s true you might get tunnel vision during a race, Rice-chan. But that can also be a strength—it means you can focus completely on one thing. There’s that saying about fools and scissors, right? It all depends on how you use them. So why not learn to use it well?”

“Use it…”

Turn her tunnel vision into single-point focus…

…Ah. I see. That’s one way to think about it.

“Maybe, for you, it would be best to focus on the girl who’s going to take first place.”

“The girl who’s going to take first…?”

“Yeah. The one who would’ve won if you weren’t there. I mean, if you beat the first-place girl, then you’ll definitely take first yourself, right?

So what if you concentrate solely on defeating the strongest runner in that race—devote yourself entirely to that one goal?”

…As expected, Onee-sama was amazing.

As if she had lived through it herself, she effortlessly laid out Rice’s shortcomings—and even suggested a way to turn them into strengths.

Focus everything on the strongest runner.

Could Rice… do that?

…No.

It wasn’t “Could I?”

The very first thing Onee-sama had taught her—

Instead of wondering whether you can… you make it happen with your own strength.

“Tomorrow… I’ll talk things through with my Trainer.”

“Yeah, that’s a good idea. For now, you’re done for today.”

“Yes… ah—”

She tried to stand, but her legs wobbled and nearly gave out beneath her.

Before she could even think, This is bad, an arm reached out from the side and caught her.

“Whoa there… looks like you’ve hit your limit.”

With that, Onee-sama scooped Rice into her arms.

W-Wait… this is a princess carry…!?

“About that story earlier—the old man, the old woman, and the Uma Musume. I feel the same way you do, Rice-chan. If someone’s tired, it’s better to carry them. Well, you’re light, so this is easy enough.

I’ll head back as quickly as I can. Just hang in there a little longer, okay? You can sleep if you want.”

“Y-Yes…!”

Uuuhhh…!

There’s no way I could sleep like this—it’s way too embarrassing!!