As the words fell, the audience's gaze turned towards the competitor's passage.
Regardless of the other overseas Horse Girl, the moment Chitose Meiji entered, the cheers and support poured down on her like a storm:
"Chitose Meiji! Go for it! Win the championship and achieve the Five Crowns!"
Feeling everyone's anticipation and hope, Chitose Meiji smiled and waved towards the audience.
And the audience, having received a response, immediately cheered even more enthusiastically.
Katsuragi Ace, who walked out with her, did not receive much attention; she simply walked quietly to the side.
The fire in her eyes continued to burn, and her hands slowly clenched into fists; she now felt that no one could stand in her way.
The audience's support and cheers? Popularity?
None of that mattered anymore; she only wanted to win now, only wanted to achieve victory.
Rudolph Symboli was the last to enter. As the newly crowned Triple Crown champion, and also the first undefeated Triple Crown Horse Girls, she also received support from a large number of spectators.
Even though her condition today was not very good, and even though the fatigue from after the Kikuka-shō (菊花赏) had not completely faded.
But since she had already stepped onto such a significant stage, she would certainly not back down, only fighting until the last moment.
In the stands, Maruzensky met up with everyone. Noticing that her expression was not quite right, Polaris Glacier asked in confusion:
"What's wrong, Maruzensky? Is there something you're worried about?"
"Ah, Polaris, Rudolf's condition..."
After roughly understanding what had happened, Polaris Glacier's mouth twitched, and for a moment, she didn't know what to say.
【Rudolf, what are you doing...】
Looking back at the track, although Rudolph Symboli tried her best to hide it, a hint of fatigue could still be seen on her face.
In this state, could she truly concentrate and fully utilize her strength?
Then, she looked at Chitose Meiji and Katsuragi Ace respectively.
【Chitose Meiji's face shows no unusual signs, and her spirits are good, so there shouldn't be any major problems.】
【Katsuragi Ace... such astonishing concentration; the atmosphere is different from before.】
On the turf, under the gaze of the audience, Rudolph Symboli slowly walked to Chitose Meiji's side. The two Horse Girl who defined their respective eras had their first meeting on the racecourse:
"Chitose Meiji, I will defeat you with my strength and bring everyone's attention to me."
"Rudolf, my popularity isn't so easily taken away, you know. Let's fight together until the very last moment."
Chitose Meiji said to Rudolph Symboli, glancing at Katsuragi Ace, who had her back turned not far away.
Not long after, with the sound of the starting horn, the competing Horse Girl all walked towards the starting gate.
In this race, Rudolph Symboli was in gate 12, Chitose Meiji in gate 1, and Katsuragi Ace in gate 10.
There were no difficulties in entering the gates; the Horse Girl all entered the gate lanes smoothly.
"All Horse Girl have entered the gates."
Tokyo Racecourse, turf, 2400 meters, counter-clockwise, track condition good.
The weather is clear, with 14 competing Horse Girl.
Among them, Chitose Meiji is the first favorite, Rudolph Symboli is the fourth favorite, and Katsuragi Ace is the tenth favorite.
Regarding the course, the 2400-meter Tokyo Racecourse requires a little more than one full lap.
It includes the initial straight, two complete large turns, and the final straight.
"International Grade 1 Race, the 4th Japan Cup..."
The Announcer (Female)'s voice continued, and the Horse Girl in the gate lanes all adopted their pre-race stances.
"Now..."
"Clang!"
The gates suddenly opened, and amidst the cheers of the audience, all the Horse Girl immediately surged out.
"The race has begun! The Horse Girl are starting in a straight line, heading towards the first turn."
Due to different tactical choices, the initial acceleration of the Horse Girl also varied.
The overall group was not particularly tight, and their respective positions were decided before entering the first turn.
Chitose Meiji, as usual, chose to stay at the very back, waiting for an opportunity.
Rudolph Symboli also chose her most familiar Leading strategy, occupying a position towards the front.
However, due to the less favorable gate this time, her position was somewhat on the outside, with two Horse Girl running parallel on her inside.
What about Katsuragi Ace?
Katsuragi Ace accelerated from the very beginning, seizing the leading position, and uncharacteristically adopted a Great escape strategy.
Being the tenth favorite, not drawing much attention from people, and not being taken seriously by other competitors, she led the race at full acceleration from the very front.
Her face showed only determination; this was not an experimental move, nor was it an accidental action; this was her chosen way to win.
When the Horse Girl group completed the turn and arrived at the opposite side of the stands, she had already opened up a lead of at least 10 horse lengths over the second-place Horse Girl, and at least 20 horse lengths over Chitose Meiji at the very back, and this gap was still widening.
Everyone reacted differently to such a race situation.
In a leading position, Rudolph Symboli gazed towards the very front, looking at the rapidly moving black-haired figure, a thoughtful expression flashing in her eyes:
【Is Katsuragi Ace actually employing a grand escape strategy? The distance is widening. Should I accelerate to catch up?】
Thinking, she turned her gaze and looked at the surrounding Horse Girl who were closely watching her:
【No, if I start to move, these overseas Horse Girl will also follow suit.】
【Because Katsuragi Ace is doing a grand escape, the pace is already a bit fast. If a confrontation occurs now, there's a high possibility of not having enough stamina for the final sprint in the ultimate straight.】
It must be known that this is 2400 meters, and it's 2400 meters at Tokyo Racecourse, where the final straight is very long.
Accelerating too early would also very likely lead to excessive stamina consumption, causing a loss of speed.
【It's better to wait here for a bit; Katsuragi Ace's stamina should be exhausted by the end.】
Therefore, Rudolph Symboli did not take action, choosing to remain within the group.
At the very back, Chitose Meiji did not pay attention to Katsuragi Ace at the very front, nor did she pay attention to the Horse Girl group ahead, because she was already too preoccupied to care about those things.
From the start of the race, she had noticed an abnormality in her legs, as if they were laden with lead balls, incredibly heavy.
Just taking steps and maintaining her current speed required more effort and energy than usual.
In such a situation, let alone giving her all, being able to accelerate and catch up would be a good outcome.
Looking up and gazing far ahead, a sense of unwillingness gradually welled up in her heart, along with an apology to her two good friends:
【Sorry, Rudolf, Katsuragi Ace, I might not be able to rush to the front and compete with you...】
In the audience stands, Sirius Symboli frowned as she watched Rudolph Symboli on the track:
"Is she being targeted? If she tries to catch up now, it will only make the pace faster. This is not good."
"It's only natural for her to be closely watched, given her reputation as a Triple Crown Horse Girls."
Mihono Bourbon, standing nearby, kept her gaze fixed and continued the conversation:
"But there's probably no need to worry too much. The Horse Girl leading the grand escape will lose speed eventually. When that happens, she can just catch up and sprint for the win."
After all, it's virtually impossible to lead for the entire 2400 meters, and that Katsuragi Ace is not a Horse Girl specializing in stamina.
Polaris Glacier listened, not joining the conversation, her gaze fixed on the figure surrounded by dark red aura:
【Is that really the case?】
【The fundamental reason why a Horse Girl in a grand escape loses speed is excessive stamina consumption, but excessive stamina consumption does not necessarily mean she will lose speed.】
"Willpower. If it's a Horse Girl with strong willpower, she might well be able to continue running even with exhausted stamina."
A sudden voice sounded, and both Sirius Symboli and Mihono Bourbon turned their attention, a thoughtful expression flashing in their eyes.
Willpower, this kind of thing is hard to explain clearly, but it indeed exists within the Horse Girl.
"For example, an intense desire to win."
Returning to the racecourse.
At this moment, Katsuragi Ace was still accelerating, surrounded by a dark red aura, and had already opened up a 15-horse-length gap with the second-place Horse Girl.
While maintaining high mental concentration, she had not abandoned thinking; on the contrary, she had already begun to consider briefly slowing down and catching her breath on the third or fourth turn.
Just as others thought, she did not have enough stamina to sustain acceleration for the entire race.
Briefly slowing down to catch her breath and rest, then re-accelerating on the final straight, that was her plan.
【Wait a little longer, I can still widen the gap even more.】
At the very back, Chitose Meiji gritted her teeth, quickened her strides, and increased her speed slightly, struggling to chase forward.
In a leading position, Rudolph Symboli was still closely watched by the surrounding overseas Horse Girl, and could only wait patiently.
The race gradually progressed, and before long, it reached the third turn.
Passing the last 800-meter marker, Katsuragi Ace, according to her plan, slowed down. Fortunately, the gap she had created earlier was large enough, giving her sufficient time to catch her breath.
The Horse Girl behind, including Rudolph Symboli, upon seeing this, instinctively assumed that Katsuragi Ace had run out of stamina and had entered a state of losing speed.
They were not in a hurry, maintaining their original speed as they chased, and the distance between them began to narrow.
At this moment in the stands, some of the audience had already noticed something was amiss.
Even though they had already entered the third turn, Chitose Meiji at the very back had yet to make any significant move, and even Rudolph Symboli remained within the Horse Girl group, showing no intention of accelerating.
Was it because the opponents were too strong, and they wanted to wait for a better opportunity to make their final sprint, or was there some physical anomaly preventing them from accelerating?
Regardless, such a race situation had unconsciously made the hearts of the local audience clench.
This year's lineup was already the strongest ever, with a Four-Crown Horse Girl and an undefeated Triple Crown Horse Girls. If they still couldn't win, then this Japan Cup might as well be renamed the Overseas Cup.
Some spectators had even begun to pray, begging the Three Goddesses to bestow their favor and allow the local Horse Girl to win.
In this somewhat anxious atmosphere, the Horse Girl group on the track passed the last 600-meter marker and entered the fourth turn.
The leading Katsuragi Ace was gradually being caught by the Horse Girl behind. Fortunately, she successfully completed the turn before being overtaken and officially stepped onto the turf of the final straight.
"It's now! From here on, no one can surpass me!"
Katsuragi Ace stomped her right foot heavily into the turf, and after a brief pause, she burst into a fierce acceleration. Her previous deceleration and rest were all for this very moment!
The other Horse Girl also realized that the decisive moment had arrived, and their strides gradually quickened as they all began to accelerate.
Rudolph Symboli was no exception; she had waited so long precisely to conserve stamina for this decisive battle.
The aura of the Emperor was unleashed, and under her rapid acceleration, the surrounding Horse Girl were successively overtaken, and she surged straight into third place.
But, it was only third place.
The overseas Horse Girl were not ordinary individuals; they were also powerhouses from another side, existences that reigned from a high position.
Their acceleration was by no means inferior. Rudolph Symboli was momentarily deadlocked with the second-place Horse Girl, and the fourth-place Horse Girl was also closing in from the outside, even showing signs of potentially overtaking her.
Feeling the pressure from beside her, Rudolph Symboli couldn't help but struggle. Her unrecovered fatigue prevented her from fully concentrating; her true strength should not have been merely at this level.
Especially when she saw the black-haired figure still leading at the very front, a sense of unwillingness surged within her even more strongly.
That place should have been hers.
At the very front, Katsuragi Ace was the first to pass the last 200-meter marker, the aura around her having reached its fiery peak.
Her vision gradually darkened, and all surrounding sounds disappeared, only the light ahead remained unextinguished—that was the glory of victory.
Now, she unleashed her leg power, taking her strongest strides, advancing fearlessly towards that light.
No one could catch up to her, no one could stand in her way.
What if she was the tenth favorite and went unnoticed? What if she received no cheers or support?
She only wanted victory, not to prove herself, but simply for victory.
When that light filled her vision, and when the surrounding sounds returned, the first thing she heard was:
"She crosses the finish line! Katsuragi Ace! With a lead of one and a half horse lengths, she wins the Japan Cup!"
"The winner of the Japan Cup! It's not Chitose Meiji! Nor is it Rudolf! It's Katsuragi Ace! Japan's Katsuragi Ace!"
With the result confirmed, Katsuragi Ace, slowly coming to a stop, felt a moment of bewilderment.
She looked back and saw that the other competing Horse Girl were all looking at her, their expressions ranging from confusion and bewilderment to thoughtful contemplation.
Rudolph Symboli's face, however, was expressionless, but the look in her eyes was entirely different—it was a gaze filled with anger and unwillingness, like a predator fixated on its prey.
This made Katsuragi Ace a bit confused, but then she realized: she seemed to have broken Rudolf's eight-race winning streak.
And she had made her taste defeat for the first time. Thinking this way, it was no wonder she showed such a look.
By the way, where's Chitose Meiji? What place is Chitose Meiji in?
With a curious thought, Katsuragi Ace looked up at the race results screen.
"Huh? Not there?!"
Chitose Meiji's name was not displayed on the board, meaning she was in fifth place or lower...