Uma Musume Girl, I'll tell you about my Santa Hat special move too?

beep--!

With the sound of the whistle, the gates in front of everyone burst open instantly, and all the runners rushed out, surging directly towards the inside of the track.

The first to rush out and try to seize the lead was the runner who had just provoked the Stardust Illusion: the Great Universe.

The girl suddenly stomped on the lawn, kicking up a cloud of dust.

(To win this match, we must suppress the Stardust Illusion's escape...)

The running strategy was already determined; it was a running method that she and her trainer had decided on when studying the opponent's video before the competition.

She had to exert all her strength from the very beginning and use a massive escape to suppress the massive escape; only in this way could she grasp that one and only chance of victory!

The girl's eyes were fixed on the track ahead, the empty scenery captivating her.

(There's only one thing I need to do... speed up! Keep speeding up!)

[The match has begun! All contestants have successfully exited the gate, so who will seize the initiative...? It's the Great Universe contestant! Contestant number 11 from the Great Universe is the first to break through the crowd and charge to the very front—]

[Then came Stardust Illusion! Stardust Illusion's speed was equally swift and decisive; almost simultaneously, she too began to accelerate without hesitation, heading towards the front of the group—this race would be a contest between the two leading runners from the very beginning!]

[Stardust Illusion! Stardust Illusion is faster! This escape king has seized the lead, and the contest between the two has ended in Stardust Illusion's victory... Huh?]

The surprised voice interrupted the host's enthusiastic commentary.

On the track, a third person suddenly appeared in the lead position where the two were originally competing.

The runner was petite and wore a witch's hat.

A confident smile graced her face as she ran, her body leaning forward at an unimaginable angle to the ground—

[——Eastern Business Transformation?!]

The host could hardly believe his eyes and was so flustered that he couldn't even organize his thoughts. He had no choice but to temporarily hand the microphone to his partner.

She has been commentating on Uma Musume races for some time now and is quite familiar with the Tosho Reform racers.

However, she was quite certain that the runner had always used a trailing footwork style and she had never seen her get to such a forward position at the beginning of the race.

That's because this little witch has a habit of making mistakes when exiting the gate... wait!

The host was suddenly startled, and immediately remembered a very unusual situation.

Dongshang Reform, whose average entry time is usually several minutes and who almost always misses a turn in every race, somehow completed the start today without any problems?!

Only then did she realize what had happened.

Dongshang Bianhe, this runner is not usually good at chasing after his opponent.

Instead, she always made mistakes in the race, and her petite size forced her to stay at the very back of the team, only to burst into speed and catch up near the end of the race, just like Stardust Illusion in the previous match.

Dong Shang Bianhe stared directly at the two people in front of him, his steps showing no mercy.

"I'm in excellent condition today... Sure enough, the [prepared magic] has taken effect!"

Now that the magic has taken effect, let's start from the very beginning... and begin to crush our opponent.

The girl's feet suddenly kicked backward, like a giant crossbow bolt, piercing directly into the grass.

In that instant, his entire body formed a straight line with the stepping leg, and all the muscles in his body began to exert force segment by segment from his arms and torso, transmitting the explosive force downwards.

Palms, wrists, arms, shoulders, torso, waist and hips, thighs, calves, ankles, soles of feet —

At this moment, Dong Shang's body transformed into a giant crossbow, completely taut, with the power emanating from all his muscles concentrated in the soles of his feet...

Incredible posture, incredible running style!

(Stardust illusion, I'll show you what it's all about.)

(My most explosive footwork... Ultimate Magic: [Running Magic]!)

No one could have predicted this; it happened without warning, like an inexplicable spell that descended upon the arena.

The air in the entire arena seemed to freeze for a moment, but in the blink of an eye, everything was completely different.

That was a gale, that was a flash of light!

While the other runners were still in shock, wondering what had happened.

The transformation of Dongshang has already swept across the entire industry!

----------

"Varied--"

The sudden surge of pressure behind her almost made Da Yuzhou stumble, but she didn't even have time to think about what had happened.

The hurried footsteps were already approaching, and the sharp whistling sound that broke through the wind was right behind her.

"We're...we're going to crash—!"

Before she could even dodge to the left or right, the universe felt incredulously that the aura was already upon her, as if it would smash her to pieces at any moment!

"—?"

"what?"

Something happened in that instant.

However, the vast universe is beyond our comprehension.

When did that figure rushing forward appear?

This runner named Dongshang Biange seems to exist on a different timeline than her, and even her running techniques are incomprehensible to the vast universe.

But she knew at least one thing...

The transformation of Dongshang has already surpassed her and is approaching the stardust illusion at the forefront!

The Stardust Illusion, which had already begun its great escape, also saw what had just happened, thanks to the current curvature of the runway.

That magical running style was unmatched by anyone she knew, just as Sweepy had taught her.

Concentrate all your strength into one point, and then push the runner forward by pushing against the ground.

(Is this... the running technique you've mastered, the "magic of running"?)

So strong, so incredibly strong!

Stardust Illusion's eyes widened, and an invisible aura seemed to emanate from its body, enveloping her.

That was a sign that her fighting spirit had reached its limit.

boom!

A completely different approach was taken, distinct from the changes at Dongshang.

The Stardust Illusion suddenly kicked forward in a marching motion, pressing its entire body forward with its power, and shifting its center of gravity completely forward.

Her figure blurred for a moment, then suddenly appeared on the track ahead.

[Skill: Shrinking the Earth, activated.]

Now that you have challenged me... then I, Stardust Illusion, will respond with all my might!

On this stage called the Yayoi Prize, let's push the atmosphere to its climax and flaunt our presence—

The brilliance will be seized and taken into my own hands!

Chapter 186 An Unexpected Start

[To everyone's surprise! Dongshang Reform, known for its strong comeback, surprisingly adopted a leading strategy in this race, something no one expected!]

[Her final acceleration, originally intended for a powerful burst in the latter half of the race, was now on full display. Almost in the blink of an eye, she had overtaken the second-ranked cosmic being—and it wasn't over yet! She was still accelerating! Her target was the stardust illusion ahead?!]

[Could it be... that it's not just about being in the lead?! Is the purpose of Dongshang's reforms to use a mass exodus to counter a mass exodus?!]

……

"Huh? No way? Dongshang Reform has already moved up to second place?!"

The bespectacled man, who had also been invited by a friend, exclaimed in surprise.

It wasn't just her; the entire audience was buzzing with discussion.

"No way?!"

"Isn't this going too far?"

"Is he getting anxious? But entering the gate went very smoothly..."

"It's not just about leading the pack; she wants a complete escape?!"

The man with the binoculars heard these sounds and felt as if something extraordinary had happened.

However, he had only been paying attention to the Stardust Illusion for a month, so he couldn't understand it at all.

So the man with the binoculars quickly nudged his friend beside him and asked anxiously:

"What on earth happened! Is there something wrong with the Stardust Illusion?"

"No, it's not a problem with the stardust illusion. You've heard it, haven't you? Everyone's marveling at how Dongshang's reforms have actually adopted a leading-edge approach this time."

The bespectacled man shook his head, his eyes fixed on the situation on the field.

"What's wrong with going from chasing to leading? I've seen Stardust Illusion also have both chase and pursuit phases, haven't I?" The man with the telescope scratched his head, not understanding what his friend meant.

"Don't mistake that abnormality for normalcy, you idiot!"

The bespectacled man rolled his eyes, showing his disdain for his attitude.

"Stardust Illusion... Rather than an escape, it's more like she was making a final sprint throughout the entire race, maintaining her speed and leading from start to finish."

"In the last race, I was blocked by Qingzhu's memories, so I had to start to exert my strength in the second half. This is not a matter of chasing and fleeing."

"But for regular racehorse girls, the strength of a runner is the ability to accelerate at the start and maintain a steady speed in the second half of the race, while the strength of a runner is the endurance of the race and the powerful burst of speed in the last leg of the race - just like Oguri Hat, she is actually somewhat similar to Stardust Illusion."

"Oguri Kasa herself mainly uses the center running style, but often because her pace is much faster than the other runners, she naturally enters the leading position, making people mistakenly think that she is good at the leading running style."

At this point, the bespectacled man frowned.

He couldn't understand why Dongshang Reform had caused such a big change in this competition.