Uma Musume : The Trainer Who Just Wants to Live

"Symboli Rudolf crosses the finish line! Unbelievable! Rudolf has dominated this era with a clean sweep, winning all three races of the Classic Triple Crown!"

"The second undefeated Triple Crown horse girl after Mr. C.B. is born! Eight races, eight wins! The Emperor, Symboli Rudolf, who needs no support and whom no one can support, has once again defeated all her rivals by a comfortable length! This is the era of Japanese horse girls! An unprecedented wave and the strongest generation!"

On the track, amidst the announcer's excited cries and the crowd's wild cheers, Symboli Rudolf, clad in her racing silks, crossed the finish line in silence. However, the face of the horse girl who had earned the title of "Emperor" showed no trace of joy.

All the other horse girls saw was her smile, but it wasn't a smile of victory. It was more like the twisted, cruel, and expectant expression of a predator that had spotted its prey. It sent a shiver down the spine of every competitor who had raced against her.

She's not an "Emperor," she's a "Tyrant." A tyrant of this era, an insurmountable wall who crushed any who dared to challenge her with absolute power.

And everyone knew who this tyrant's next target was. In all of Japan, there was only one horse girl left who might be able to stand against her.

The first undefeated Triple Crown champion, the pair known as the "strongest partnership" in Japanese horse racing: Kitano Ryuichi and Mr. C.B.

Everyone understood that Rudolf would challenge this ultimate duo. Everyone looked forward to it. Would the "Emperor" become Japan's strongest through her own power, or could this moving, ever-advancing pair defeat the tyrant? The clash of two undefeated Triple Crown winners became the most anticipated showdown in the nation!

But what no one, not even Rudolf herself, expected was that the duel they had been waiting for would be so long in coming.

"Avoiding a fight? And two races in a row?"

"You mean to say, Mr. C.B. won't be competing in the Japan Cup in November or the Arima Kinen in December?"

Right after achieving her Triple Crown, Rudolf had immediately gone to find Kitano and Mr. C.B. It was the first time in over a year since enrolling at Tracen that she had actively sought out the childhood friend who had long since "died" in her heart.

She had come to declare war.

For the current Rudolf, the Kitano before her, who had forgotten their past, and the "Kitano" from her childhood, the one she had trusted and who had supported her through countless hardships, were two completely different people. She had long since separated the two, but that didn't stop her from using him as her motivation.

In her heart, the childhood Kitano was a comforting memory in difficult times; the current Kitano... was the driving force for her to become Japan's strongest, a true "Emperor."

The deeper the love, the deeper the hate. Rudolf had buried all her love, using revenge as her sole motivation. Her former best friend was now her stepping stone. She would climb to her throne over the "corpses" of Kitano and his undefeated Triple Crown horse girl!

But his answer stunned the aggressive Rudolf. She had imagined several possible responses from him, but she had never thought that the boy from her childhood, who had so grandly declared his ambition to become a central trainer despite his illness, would choose to back down at such a crucial moment.

"Didn't you just win the Tennō Shō (Autumn), giving you four G1 victories? Why not press your advantage? Aim for the five-crown achievement that only President Shinzan has ever reached?" Rudolf pressed, unwilling to give up this chance to completely sever her last weakness and ascend to the throne as Japan's strongest. But deep down, she knew this reason wasn't enough.

Her heart still wanted an answer... an answer she needed to hear from his own lips. Otherwise, her weakness would remain.

And then, she got the answer she thought she wanted, an answer that sent her plummeting into the abyss.

"It's precisely because of that that I want C.B. to rest. Her recent race schedule has been too intense. If she races in the Japan Cup and Arima Kinen after the Tennō Shō, she'll have less than a month of rest on average. The strain would be too much for her."

"What kind of reason is that? Ever since the schedule was set, every horse girl in Japan has run it this way!" Rudolf frowned, feeling as if she no longer recognized the man before her. How had the spirited boy from her memories become so timid?

In her era, Japanese horse racing had not yet caught up with international standards. The URA, eager for results, paid little attention to the physical condition and maintenance of the horse girls. Thus, most trainers packed their schedules tightly, not wanting to miss any potential victory. Racing after only a couple of weeks' rest was common.

This was the norm. But now, Kitano, who held the title of "Japan's Strongest" with the first undefeated Triple Crown winner, seemed completely unconcerned.

"Just because it's always been that way, does that make it right? For me, the safety of my charge comes first. I will not let her race while exhausted, nor will I let her risk injury to compete."

At that time, Kitano looked directly into her eyes, his tone serious, almost scolding, for the first time in his life. After his rare outburst, his tone returned to normal. "I'm sorry, Ms. Rudolf... I'm just a little too concerned about these things."

"Actually, what I'm saying is also for you. You've been pushing yourself too hard lately. You seem very stressed and tired. You don't need to keep forcing yourself."

"You don't need to listen to what the media says about the Emperor who needs no support. You may not need someone to teach you how to run, but even just for a trainer to help you arrange your schedule and manage your condition, I think I—"

"—I don't need a trainer. Goodbye, Trainer Kitano."

...Excuses. Rudolf knew it was all just excuses. If he hadn't forgotten their past, if his undefeated Triple Crown winner wasn't Mr. C.B. but her, he would never have made so many excuses, because he would have believed she could do it.

There was only one reason for all of this—Mr. C.B. The horse girl known throughout Japan as his "perfect match."

Rudolf had seen C.B.'s performance in the Tennō Shō. She was certain her rival's true strength was not as great as hers. Although C.B. had broken the record, she had shown clear signs of struggling, something that had never appeared in her previous races.

There was only one possibility: Mr. C.B.'s strength was already declining, and he knew it. That's why he had chosen to avoid the race!

He was protecting her glory. He was protecting the "myth" of the horse girl he now loved most, not wanting to see her be trampled under Rudolf's feet.

She knew... the person he loved now was Mr. C.B., and Mr. C.B. loved him back.

This was an open secret throughout Japan. Everyone knew that although they had never officially confirmed it, they were just waiting for her to retire.

The perfect pair who saved each other, the best partners who completed one another...

...How infuriating.

What salvation, what perfection—it was all just baseless rumors. When several coincidences come together, people always call it "fate," but Rudolf didn't believe in it.

She would defeat Mr. C.B. and shatter this so-called legend.

She, even without anyone's support, with only the fire burning in her heart, could run to the ends of the earth alone.

She could do it... she should have been able to.

"She's surpassed her! Mr. C.B.! After months of silence, Mr. C.B. has made a miraculous comeback in the Tennō Shō (Spring)! In the duel between undefeated Triple Crown winners, Mr. C.B. has defended her title as Japan's strongest horse girl with her strength!"

"The heaven-made pair has defeated their strongest opponent ever! Even the Emperor Symboli Rudolf was narrowly defeated at the end. This is the most impeccable partnership in Japanese history!"

On the big screen, Rudolf stared blankly at the second-place ranking that symbolized her defeat. It was so glaring, so hard to accept.

She... lost?

She had tasted defeat once before, in the Japan Cup last year when she had ignored his warning. But that defeat was nothing compared to the crushing feeling of losing this duel she had been waiting for.

This defeat was unacceptable... She should have been the one to win. C.B. had exhausted all her stamina in the first three corners; her final sprint was clearly weaker than before due to her poor condition.

Why, why was she overtaken at the end? It was as if some force had given C.B. a push from behind.

Where did I fall short? She didn't understand.

In her daze, as she was beginning to doubt herself, the pale-faced Mr. C.B. seemed to notice someone's arrival. Her expression, which had been one of pained endurance, immediately lit up with joy as she called out happily:

"Trainer-san~"

The next moment, Rudolf, who had flinched, slowly turned her head. She saw Mr. C.B.... lifting one leg slightly, hopping towards Kitano in the distance.

Under her dazed gaze, C.B. and Kitano once again walked towards each other, once again... embraced in front of everyone.

Ah... so... that's how it is.

At that moment, Rudolf finally understood why she had lost, why C.B. had unleashed such astonishing power at the end, what she had been lacking.

...It was just one person. A person who had once been her belief, a person who... she no longer had.

Rudolf had once experienced this feeling, the feeling of being supported by him, the feeling of absolutely not being able to betray that support. It had once helped her overcome every hardship.

And now, she no longer had it. Never... again.

Watching the two of them in their tearful embrace on the gloomy, rain-soaked track, Rudolf once again shakily reached out her hand towards his figure, a deep grasp... but all she could hold was a wisp of regret, a love that had left her.

That day, the rain was heavy, mercilessly soaking her face, making it impossible to tell if it was rain or tears.

As expected, she still couldn't forget. She couldn't forget this boy who had left the only ray of light in her life. And now, it was this same boy who mercilessly shone that light on someone else, leaving her to return to the lonely darkness once again.

She knew he would... never belong to her again.

The eight-year-old Rudolf was forever trapped in that childhood that had once held that light, never to escape.

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