Chapter 113: Toward Even Greater Glory!

It’s the fifth week of May, one week since I won the G2 Yorkshire Cup. Having fully recovered from the exhaustion, I was now back in training under Tomio’s intense regimen.

The impact of winning the Yorkshire Cup was huge. Even though it wasn’t a steeplechase or a conditions race, I won by a huge margin.

On the way back from York to the training center in Chantilly, lots of people approached me, and I’ve been getting more messages from overseas followers on social media. My fame is finally starting to explode, and I can feel that I’m steadily building momentum toward hyping up the upcoming Gold Cup.

There was still some time until the Gold Cup a month from now, so I’ve been filling my schedule with light interviews and photo shoots in the meantime—

While I was checking my schedule lying in my room, a message popped up on my mobile device. The sender was none other than Jarajara-chan. Apparently, she’d watched the Yorkshire Cup live and had gone out of her way to send me a congratulatory message. Along with a bold declaration:

『In the race next week, I’m going to defeat Kayf Tara-san.』

Her next race was the G3 Henry II Stakes, just a week away. The plan seemed to be: run in the Henry II Stakes in the first week of June, then compete in the Gold Cup in the fourth week, and after that return to Japan for a rest before setting up her autumn rotation.

But Kaifutara-san was also entering the Henry II Stakes. She had already flown to Sandown Park Racecourse in the UK, where the race would be held, and by now, she and Jarajara-chan must’ve already met, with Jarajara-chan having arrived a week early.

Who will win? It’s impossible to say for sure. However, when comparing uncertainties, Jarajara-chan has more stacked against her, and realistically, Kaifutara-san holds the upper hand.

We Japanese participants are challengers here. Unfamiliar turf, race customs, atmosphere, climate, cuisine… everything is a potential obstacle. It’s only natural that the odds are stacked against us.

Even so, Jarajara-chan came to Europe because, like me, she has a dream she won’t back down from. Her goal is to become the strongest stayer, and her mission is to win a European ultra-long-distance G1 before anyone else. …If things go as planned, it’s likely we’ll face off in the Gold Cup.

…Whatever happens, I’m going to be the one who becomes the strongest stayer in Europe. Honestly, the idea that Jarajara-chan and Kaifutara-san will fight before I get to face either of them is frustrating. I’m still not over the result of the Dubai Gold Cup in the spring. Even now, I sometimes writhe in frustration remembering that loss. It feels like someone’s stolen a special moment I was saving.

It’s not that I want Jarajara-chan to lose. But… the truth is, I don’t want any other Uma Musume to be the one to defeat Kaifutara-san before I do.

“…Ugh. I’m awful.”

Kaifutara-san is in her prime—an unbeatable fortress. I want to be the first to put a mark on her record. But at the same time, I want to see my friend from Japan succeed on the international stage. Both feelings are real. It’s not something I can just choose between.

Wrestling with that inner conflict, I turned off the light, crawled into bed, and eventually fell asleep amid a whirl of thoughts. Before I knew it, morning had come.

And so, with the break of dawn, Tomio and I set off into the Chantilly Forest. It was time for our daily morning training. The forest floor in Chantilly is usually soft from morning dew and fog. It’s perfect not just for building stamina and strength but also for developing that final burst of effort at the limits of a race.

Since it’s morning, we mostly focus on light running. Even then, I get made to run distances in 10-kilometer units. Tomio really is a taskmaster. But it’s that level of thoroughness that I’ve come to rely on.

Training wound down, and during our break, we started casually chatting. And then came something so shocking I had to doubt my own ears.

“…By the way, Apollo, have you heard about it?”

“Heard about what?”

“Well, apparently Lumos is planning to form an UmaDoll unit called ‘Bakunige Stayers☆’ or something.”

“…What?”

Bakunige Stayers. An UmaDoll unit. Only one conclusion can be drawn. Lumos-san is probably exhausted from overwork.

After all, Lumos-san and Double Trigger-san have been running around coordinating with various groups via URA to boost the popularity of Europe’s Twinkle Series—especially the long-distance division.

From media with massive public influence to factories managing merchandise, major shopping centers, and even scouting potential sponsors, it’s nonstop. There’s delegation, sure, but they’re the ones at the center of this whole movement. I’m happy they always come to see my races, but sometimes I seriously wonder where they even find the time.

So now Lumos-san is starting an UmaDoll unit called Bakunige Stayers☆. The name rings a bell—probably because I’d heard whispers about the Nigekiri Sisters, a Japanese UmaDoll group.

“I mean, I get that she wants to form a unit… but who’s going to be in it? Judging by the name, I’m probably on the shortlist.”

“The member lineup hasn’t been decided yet, but from how she was talking… I think it’s going to be Apollo Rainbow, Enzely, and Kaifutara.”

“I’m the only actual ‘Bakunige Stayer’ in that lineup…”

“It’s still just a concept. They haven’t even decided what kind of activities they’d do. No need to take it seriously.”

“I guess so…”

The Nigekiri Sisters included top-class runners like Falco-san, Suzuka-san, Bourbon-san, Ines-san, and Maruzensky-san—five true front-running Uma Musume. All proper escape types.

In contrast, Bakunige Stayers (provisional) includes Kayf Tara-san, who’s a closer. What’s going on? Angely-chan qualifies with her front-runner and stalker style, but Kaifutara-san only fits the stayer part. That’s it.

“Looks like break time is over. Let’s do a light 10K run to finish up the morning training.”

“Okay~”

I decided to write this all off as a half-joke Lumos shared over drinks. Probably best to just let it go. I shelved the whole UmaDoll unit thing and refocused on training.

Foreign language classes are brutal. I have to translate the Japanese in my head, then translate it again into a foreign language before I can speak.

Math’s manageable if you pay attention to the symbols, but literature—which is basically a foreign language to me—is tough. Science is full of technical jargon, and history and social studies are painfully hard. El-chan, on the other hand, naps in class like she did in Japan… but I can’t afford to do that.

Compared to Japan, I have to devote way more time to studying now, and that mental fatigue has been building up. Tomio has picked up on this and been giving me more time off, so it hasn’t affected my performance, but…

It really makes me appreciate what foreign-born Uma Musume like El-chan and Taiki-san have gone through. For them, performing well while keeping up with the standards expected of locals must’ve taken serious effort.

Come to think of it, wasn’t Grass-chan born in America, too? She fits in better in Japan than most Japanese Uma Musume do. It’s seriously impressive.

“Uuugh… I’m so tiiired…”

As I cracked my back and groaned, my mobile device buzzed in my pocket. It was lunchtime—who’d be messaging me now? Probably Tomio with some work update.

“…Huh, it’s from Helios-san and Palmer-san.”

But the unread icon wasn’t on my thread with Tomio. It was in the group chat labeled “Gyaru Crew.” As the name suggests, the group consists of: Palmer-san, Helios-san, City-san, Jordan-san… and me. Palmer-san and Helios-san dragged me in half against my will.

Still, Palmer-san and Helios-san often invite me out to hang out. Last time was after the Spring Tenno Sho. City-san gave me some cosmetics, Jordan-san occasionally helps me with literature and gave me some nail polish… Thinking about it, I’ve just been receiving from everyone, huh? We even go out together as a group sometimes.

But honestly, I still feel a little overwhelmed around these hardcore party-girl gyarus. My fashion and style might look girly and kinda gyaru-ish on the surface, but that’s all it is—surface-level.

I mean, those four have this fully realized, overwhelming aesthetic force of beauty. I haven’t even dipped my toes in that territory. We’re just… built different in that way. Not that I’m not cute—no, I’m super cute—it’s just, my vibe isn’t “cool and beautiful.”

So yeah, they spoil me a lot, but what could they want now? This group chat usually runs wild with or without me, but the fact that they specifically mentioned me this time… means something’s definitely up.

Helios-senpai:
“@Apollo Rainbow — Can you talk now?”

Me:
“Yep! It’s lunchtime, so I’m totally free!”

Helios-senpai:
“Whaaat!? You’re still in school!?
You’ve got classes until evening!? That sounds rough!”

Palmer-senpai:
“Helios, it’s lunchtime in France right now.”

Helios-senpai:
“Oh!”

So that’s it. It was noon here in France, but with the 7-hour time difference, it must’ve been around 7 p.m. in Japan. Just about the time they’d be getting back to their dorms.

I grabbed my sandwich and stepped into the hallway, heading for the rooftop where I could talk freely.

My phone chimed again—more messages from the Gyaru Crew.

Me:
“Is there something you wanted to talk about?”

Helios-senpai:
“Just a little something!”

Palmer-senpai:
“No need for explanations—just get on the call already!”

Me:
“Okayyy~”

Almost immediately after, a notification popped up:

Espoir city-senpai:
“📞 Group voice call has started.”

As soon as I reached the rooftop, I tapped the call button and turned on the speaker. A rustling sound echoed through the rooftop. It was the kind of noise you often pick up when someone’s lying on a bed during a call—maybe that’s what this was. I raised the speaker volume and spoke up with a cheerful, “Good evening~!”

Immediately, four voices overlapped in response:
“Yahhoo~!”
“How’ve you been?”
“Weeey!”
“Long time no see!”

From the way their voices came through, it sounded like all four of them were gathered in the same place. Only City-senpai’s icon was flashing. I almost burst out laughing, but decided to cut straight to the point and ask why they suddenly called me.

“Senpai, did you need something from me?”

“It’s a definite yes from us!”

“Helios, could you maybe zip it for a second? You’re confusing everyone.”

“Pien…”

As always, Palmer-san and Helios-san kicked things off in their usual rhythm, drawing light laughter from everyone. Then Palmer-san got right down to business.

“We just wanted to cheer you on, Apollo-chan.”

“...Cheer me on?”

“The G1 Gold Cup. It’s the race you’ve been aiming for all this time, right?”

“Ah, yes.”

“We really, really want you to give it your all, Apollo-chan, as you chase your dream. We were thinking about how best to get that across… Maybe it’s meddling, but we still wanted to tell you directly—share some words with you. If this is a bad time, or we’re bothering you, we’re really sorry.”

“No, not at all! I’m seriously so happy!”

“We also owe you for helping us study, after all~”

“That’s just Jordan, though...”

“Hey, don’t call me out like that!”

It’s not just the four gyaru group—Maruzensky-san, Guriko, and others I know always send encouraging messages before my races. They’ll even say “Good luck!” when we bump into each other around campus, so I’ve always felt more than supported... But when I flip perspectives, it makes perfect sense.

When Guriko has a race coming up, I make sure to cheer her on in person and by message too. Before a big event, you just can’t help but want to put all your support behind someone.

In any case, I gratefully accepted the kindness from my senpai. If it weren’t for Palmer-san and Helios-san—the explosive runaway duo—and their advice, I wouldn’t even be here now.

“I’ll go first,” Palmer-san said. “Apollo-chan, congrats on winning that international graded race last week! I watched it live—you were amazing! Let’s go win the Gold Cup with another explosive runaway!”

“Seeing you pull off a runaway overseas was seriously the best! Long live the runaway!”

“Palmer-san, Helios-san…”

The only reason I was able to awaken my runaway style was thanks to these two. Our meeting had been pure chance—if Helios-san hadn’t dropped her handkerchief while we passed each other at Tracen Academy, and if Palmer-san hadn’t already known about me through McQueen-san and taken a liking to me, I might never have chosen to go all-in on this strategy.

Their advice was spot on too.

“There’s something missing in your running.”
“You should change how you race.”
“You need to figure it out yourself.”
“Talk it through with your trainer.”

They gave both me and Tomio the push we needed to improve. They even deliberately left things vague so that we’d have to think things through on our own. I owe them more than I can say. Especially for the Japan Derby. There’s no way I could’ve won that without them.

“I can never thank you enough, Palmer-san, Helios-san—not just for today, but for everything until now. Truly, thank you.”

“Ehh~ Isn’t that a bit dramatic?”

“Right? Did we even do that much?”

“No… I know what you’ve done, and that’s enough for me. Let me thank you properly sometime, okay?”

“We’d love that, but only after your race, alright?”

“Way! We’ll be looking forward to it~!!”

While I was talking with Palmer-san and Helios-san, I suddenly heard a loud clatter in the background. It sounded like chairs and desks being dragged across a classroom floor. I tilted my head. If it was nighttime in Japan right now… where were the four of them gathered? And City-san and Jordan-san’s voices were kind of distant too.

As questions filled my mind, Helios-san suddenly spoke up.

“Apollo-chii, can we switch to video call!?”

“Eh? Y-Yeah, I can—wait, hold on—”

“Helios, we’re all set!”

“Ah! It switched!”

I quickly fumbled to switch from audio to video. When the call connected, what appeared was a dimly lit classroom at Tracen. The sun had long since set outside the windows, and in the middle of the camera view was a creepy black cloth covering something.

It was clearly nighttime on their end. I briefly wondered if they were breaking curfew... but I couldn’t imagine Palmer-san doing that. She’d definitely gotten permission… right?

Setting that worry aside, the four of them walked toward the mysterious cloth. At Jordan-san’s call of “Ready, and—go!” they dramatically flung it off.

Beneath the cloth was a giant banner with the words Victory boldly written across it. I was too stunned to speak. On the other side of the screen, they burst into light applause and laughter. Smiling, City-san brought her device closer so I could see the banner better.

“Helios-san came up with the idea,” she explained. “We asked your friends to write you messages of support.”

“Actually, City was the one who sugg—mmph!”

Helios and City were clearly doing something behind the scenes, but I was too focused on the banner to pay them any mind.

To the Strongest Stayer! Victory to Apollo Rainbow! was written in bold letters. All around it were handwritten messages and names I recognized. Just at a glance, I spotted Chairman Rudolf, Maruzensky-san, the gyaru group, Bakushin-O-san, McQueen-san, and Trainer Amami... My skin tingled with goosebumps. Almost every friend I knew, apart from active Twinkle Series racers, had their name there.

“—Th-this is amazing. Really amazing! I’m so happy!! B-but this must’ve taken so much work… Wasn’t it hard to put together?”

“It was easy! We’ve got a pretty big social circle, y’know? All we had to do was ask, and everyone was super happy to write something! They all said they’re cheering for you, Apollo-chan!”

Jordan puffed out her chest and gave a smug little snort. Every word on that giant banner—bigger than the blackboard—was filled with the feelings of those supporting me. There’s nothing more heartwarming than that.

“Oh, and don’t worry—we’ll make sure that banner gets to you in time for the Gold Cup!”

“And we’re tossin’ in, like, five boxes of carrots too? So take care of those for us!”

“F-five boxes…? Thank you! I probably won’t be able to finish them all myself, so I’ll share them with my friends here.”

“Okemaru! That’d be super awesome!”

Ah… I couldn’t find the words. My voice trembled. Palmer-san, Helios-san, City-san, Jordan-san… and not just the four of them. Everyone. I couldn’t possibly thank everyone at Tracen enough.

Ever since I saw that banner, something warm and fierce had been rising inside me, swelling from the bottom of my chest and refusing to stop.

I already know how to repay this kindness. The answer is obvious—by winning. By proving myself. By giving it everything I’ve got and running my heart out. That’s how I can return the favor to them all.

“Thank you so much, senpai! I will win! The Gold Cup—just watch me!”

“We’re countin’ on ya! Waaaay!!”

“You’ve got this!”

I know my mission now. I have even more people pushing me forward. I’ll fight with pride and courage. The more dreams and hopes I carry on my back, the stronger I become.

“Ah, crap! The security guard’s doing rounds!”

“Time to pack up!”

“Hurry, clean it all up!”

“Apollo-chan, sorry to cut it short, but we gotta go! Nighty-night!”

“Ah—good night! And thank you!”

“If things get rough, remember us! We’ll always be right behind you, pushing you on! Later!”

Palmer-san’s words were the last thing I heard before the call ended, just like that. It was a hectic ending, and I didn’t get to say everything I wanted, but I gained so much from that moment.

I whispered thanks over and over in my heart as I looked down over the Chantilly forest. A cool breeze brushed through my hair, drifting up toward the sky streaked with silver clouds.

“…Thank you, everyone.”

My quiet words vanished into the sky above Chantilly.

But the burning resolve and powerful support I’d received from everyone… that remained, blazing fiercely within me.