It was an unexpected result; neither of the two Triple Crown Horse Girls nor the overseas Horse Girl won the Japan Cup.
Instead, it was Katsuragi Ace, who had gone unnoticed and led the entire race until the very end.
The stands fell silent, with some local spectators still reeling from Katsuragi Ace's victory.
Rather than that, it was the performance of the two Triple Crown Horse Girls that was more concerning.
Rudolph Symboli only finished third, but considering her consecutive race schedule and her lingering fatigue, this result was not so difficult to accept, as she had already shown her resilient side.
But what about Chitose Meiji?
She made no significant moves throughout the entire race and failed to unleash her sprint in the final straight...
She only managed a tenth-place finish.
Last year's Triple Crown Horse Girl, this year's Four-Crown Champion, only finished tenth.
This result was clearly unacceptable and difficult to acknowledge for Chitose Meiji's supporters.
In the past, no matter what difficulties she faced, she would always burst through, in the most magnificent and beloved manner of a desperate counterattack.
But today, she didn't. She couldn't pull through, couldn't get back up like she used to.
The audience's gazes, directed at Chitose Meiji on the track, gradually showed disappointment:
"Why did this happen? Why didn't she sprint like before? What exactly happened to you, Chitose Meiji?"
Noticing the unusual atmosphere in the stands, Katsuragi Ace and Rudolph Symboli also reacted, turning their heads to look behind them, searching for that figure.
At this moment, Chitose Meiji, facing the audience's disappointed and blaming gazes, simply lowered her head slightly and silently walked towards the jockey's passage.
"Chitose..."
Seeing this, Rudolph Symboli subconsciously took a step, wanting to catch up, but was held back by Katsuragi Ace:
"Rudolf, Chitose Meiji is not as fragile as you think, and she hasn't reached the point where she needs comforting."
After all, that was Chitose Meiji. Even if she lost the race, even if she ended up covered in mud, she would surely get back up and continue forward.
Three days later, news about the Japan Cup continued to spread online and in news reports.
Katsuragi Ace was crowned the title of the first "Japan's Grand General," and even overseas reports referred to her as Japan's secret weapon for victory.
One regrettable point was that the number of spectators who came to cheer at the winner's stage after the race was much smaller than usual.
Katsuragi Ace frankly stated that she didn't mind, as winning the victory was already enough for her.
Rudolph Symboli officially began her recuperation, temporarily putting aside her training. She spent her days either handling paperwork in the student council office or researching jokes in the library.
Chitose Meiji went to the hospital for a check-up afterward. The good news was that her legs were not afflicted with any serious illness, but her racing condition was indeed not as good as before, and all aspects of her physical attributes had declined.
In other words, her peak period had ended.
This is something every Horse Girl experiences; no matter how strong their body once was, there will eventually be a day of decline.
Times advance, seniors retire, and juniors take over; it has always been this way.
Chitose Meiji calmly accepted this fact, as she had long anticipated this day.
Walking slowly along the riverside, looking at the river, a thoughtful expression flashed in her eyes:
"Perhaps I should consider retiring, withdrawing from the Twinkle Series and moving to the Dream Cup, hoping that one day I can stand on the track again in my prime."
It was not impossible; it was just retirement, and she could accept that.
"It's just..."
"I still have things unfinished, and I haven't truly had a decisive match with Rudolf."
She couldn't charge to the front in the Japan Cup, only silently gazing from afar; that was no decisive match at all.
A true decisive match should be both sides running side by side, neither willing to yield, only to move further forward.
"So, not yet."
If she were to leave the stage now, she would never be reconciled.
Bending down, Chitose Meiji found a relatively flat small stone and threw it towards the river surface with a special technique.
Watching the small stone skip several times on the water, the look in her eyes grew increasingly firm.
Meanwhile, in the Central Tracen Academy library.
"So you're here, Rudolf."
Polaris Glacier walked to the opposite side and sat down, smiling as she greeted the brown-haired Horse Girl in front of her.
"Hmm? Polaris, aren't you going to train today?"
Rudolph Symboli also looked up when she heard the voice, looking somewhat surprised after recognizing the person.
It was just past four in the afternoon. Normally, the Polaris Glacier in front of her should be on the training ground.
"Trainer had other things to deal with today, and I also wanted to talk to you, so I didn't train."
Polaris Glacier said, lowering her head to look at the type of book the other person was holding, realizing it was a collection of jokes.
She hadn't expected that Rudolf would actually take to heart the suggestion someone made at the gathering...
She really wanted to rely on adding some humor to her daily conversations to make her atmosphere less formal and serious...
But would it work? Rudolf's presidential aura was no longer just a matter of habit.
It was more like something integrated into her personality, like a persona.
"I see. So, Polaris, what do you want to talk to me about?"
Rudolph Symboli nodded slightly, made a bookmark, and placed the book aside.
Seeing this, Polaris Glacier closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them again, saying:
"You... before your race with me..."
Lost.
Although the sentence wasn't fully spoken, Rudolph Symboli already understood its meaning.
Her expression unchanged, she calmly stared into Polaris Glacier's eyes, not speaking.
"My apologies, it was wrong of me to bring up your pain."
Polaris Glacier also didn't turn her head away, choosing to meet Rudolph Symboli's gaze directly, including the intense, burning anger contained beneath her calm expression, as if it would completely swallow one's consciousness.
If it were anyone else, facing the Emperor's wrath, they would likely unconsciously fall into a weaker position, then shift their gaze to try and distract themselves.
However, Polaris Glacier was not just anyone; this level of anger was not enough to melt thick snow.
The Polaris Glacier's eyes widened slightly, and frost gradually condensed in her pupils, while Polaris Glare's chilling aura slowly emanated from her body:
"Rudolf, don't get angry yet. I brought this up not to talk about the race results."
Feeling layers of Polaris Glare's chilling aura enveloping her from the opposite seat, Rudolph Symboli frowned slightly and took a deep breath, saying:
"If possible, Polaris, I hope you can get straight to the point next time, rather than saying other things."
She paused slightly.
"So? What do you want to say?"
Seeing that the other person seemed to have calmed down, Polaris Glacier smiled and retracted Polaris Glare's chilling aura, saying in a relaxed tone:
"My first G1 race will begin on the 16th of next month. Rudolf, don't you want to see it with your own eyes?"
"My figure in my racing uniform, running on the winter track."