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

This is the first time that an attempt to rally support has had no effect whatsoever!

Could it be that there was a problem with the startup itself?!

No, that can't be.

Stardust Illusion was absolutely certain of this feeling; it definitely wasn't a problem with his running technique.

Even without the assistance of system prompts, Stardust Illusion was quite certain of this: this wild, uncontrollable inner turmoil could only be generated by successfully casting Victory Inspiration.

The sudden increase in the sound of the wind beside her ears also proved that her speed was definitely increasing.

But... why didn't they catch up?

Stardust Illusion gazed at the azure sky a horse's length away ahead, her running figure full of rhythm and cadence, seemingly unaffected by his pursuit...

No, that's not right!

Stardust Illusion frowned, suddenly sensing something amiss.

If she hadn't sped up, how could she not have been overtaken?!

Only now did the Stardust Illusion realize that the Azure Sky ahead was not actually not accelerating... but rather, while accelerating, it was deliberately creating a sense of balance as if it were not accelerating at all!

The desire to catch up with the opponent and reclaim the lead caught Stardust Illusion off guard for a moment.

When she looked at the blue sky ahead, she immediately sensed the other person's strange steps, sometimes slow and sometimes fast. The ever-growing distance between them made Xingchen Huan feel extremely uncomfortable.

It's like knowing you could catch up with just a little more effort, but you just can't seem to cross that huge gap.

During this process, my physical strength was greatly depleted, and even my mental energy quickly succumbed to exhaustion...

Only now did Stardust Illusion realize the true tactics of Azure Cloud Sky.

What was presented to him was the very fact that he was able to pursue the enemy, but it was nothing more than a mirage deliberately prepared for him by Qingyun Sky...!

------------

Chapter 275 Defeat, but it's alright

"Cross the finish line!!!"

Although it was too late for Kitahara to shout these words when he frantically raised his right hand, he still managed to demonstrate his instincts as a seasoned trainer.

The other hand thankfully kept up, pressing the stopwatch as the two runners crossed the finish line and correctly recording their finishing times.

"Haha...haha...haha..."

Panting and dazed, Stardust Illusion followed closely behind Azure Sky, stepping into the finish line.

In this parallel running training, no matter how hard Stardust Illusion tried to sprint, it was unable to overtake Azure Sky. It could only watch helplessly as Azure Sky completely took control of the lead from start to finish.

My chest was heaving violently, and my stamina was being depleted much faster than in a normal 1200m race.

Stardust Illusion looked as if he had just been pulled out of a river, completely soaked and in a sorry state.

Even the slow, restful walk after the race was barely enough to sustain Stardust Illusion. He could only lean against the railing for a moment to allow his nearly exhausted body to regain some strength.

However, even though it was so tired that it could hardly stand up straight, the eyes of the Stardust Illusion shone even brighter.

In this parallel running training session, it can be said that Qingyun Sky easily and completely outclassed them.

This complete dominance didn't stem from physical attributes or differences in running techniques, but rather from something far beyond that.

Stardust Illusion had a hard time explaining exactly how she lost the match, but she had a feeling that figuring it out would be the key to improving her strength once again!

Even though he kept the game under his control, being chased by an opponent of Stardust Illusion's caliber still resulted in an astonishing amount of physical exertion for Qingyun Sky.

However, compared to Stardust Illusion, whose endurance is still a weakness, she still has a considerable advantage because she once demonstrated her escape skills in the 3000m race.

She still has some energy left, enough to walk slowly on the track and adjust her breathing.

However, before she could take a few steps, she felt a burning pain from that gaze on her back. When she turned around, she met the stardust illusion's spirited eyes head-on.

"Hiss... I feel a little uneasy looking at me like that."

Qingyun Tiankong touched the daisy hair clip on his forehead and continued jokingly:

"No matter how much you look at me with those animal-like eyes, it won't work. Two practice sessions a day is the basic principle, and that won't change."

"...What was that just now?"

"Huh?"

Upon receiving such a question, Qingyun Tiankong's ears on the top of his head slowly turned as if in doubt.

"I mean, what was my feeling during the match just now?"

Stardust Illusion spoke again.

Of course, she also considered whether she should think about it again on her own, or seek help from Hikari Toyama, who was already walking towards her.

However, she had a feeling that if she asked directly, Qingyun Sky might be able to give her a more easily understood answer.

However, that's true...

"Huh? Is it okay for me to just ask you like this~?"

Qingyun Sky had not expected Stardust Illusion to be so straightforward. Instead, it paused for a moment before pointing to itself and asking for confirmation for the third time.

"Hmm! Can you tell me?"

The Stardust Illusion did not back down at all, nodding vigorously.

"Hey, hey, hey, asking like this directly is a bit too... or rather, it lacks any sense of boundaries?"

Qingyun Tiankong made an exaggerated gesture of deflation, then stood up again with his hands on his hips, his expression turning into a teasing smile;

"We only agreed on running twice a day, right? There was no requirement for explanation or instruction, so even if you ask me, Stardust Illusion, I don't need to explain my own tactics clearly."

"Oh—right, didn't you say yesterday that I have the potential to become a mom?"

As Qingyun Tiankong spoke, she narrowed her eyes slightly. Even the Stardust Illusion could sense the rising tide of her cunning thoughts within her smile.

"If you want me to answer your question about green sauce, that's fine too. Just call me 'Mommy'..."

"Mama!"

Stardust Illusion shouted without any hesitation.

"Huh?"

"Mommy! Mommy! Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy!"

Seeing that Qingyun Tiankong didn't seem to understand, Stardust Illusion quickly changed its tone and called out more than ten times to make sure Qingyun Tiankong heard it clearly.

Then, with a completely normal expression, she slowly straightened up and continued to ask:

"Can we talk about it now?"

"Haha~ Stardust Illusion is such a strange child."

Qingyun Tiankong suddenly felt a little embarrassed. He just wanted to bring up the joke about the Stardust Illusion from yesterday again and make a joke to change the subject.

After all, even if I explain the core idea of ​​"willing to take the bait" in detail, the effect is far less than letting the Stardust Illusion comprehend it on its own.

Unexpectedly, she didn't care about the teasing at all. Instead, in order to find out why she lost, she called out to her mom without hesitation.

(Ugh, I'm getting a bit of a headache...)

Thinking of this, she couldn't help but gasp.

Just as Qingyun Tiankong was racking his brains about how to start the conversation, Toyama Hiren, who had come from the starting point, finally arrived and took the initiative to start the topic:

"It's all about rhythm! Stardust Illusion, you idiot, the rhythm of this match has been completely controlled by them!"

"Rhythm?"

Upon hearing this, Stardust Illusion couldn't help but look puzzled.

"Don't you even understand what rhythm is? Your Great Escape is essentially about disrupting the rhythm of other runners?"

"My... Great Escape?"

Stardust Illusion then realized what the trainer meant.

As she said, when she used the Great Escape, the other runners had to change their running style to catch up in order to avoid being eliminated too early.

During this process, most of their original skills will be unusable, thus preventing them from unleashing their true potential.

This disrupts the rhythm.

So how did Qingyun Sky disrupt its own rhythm?

I closed my eyes slightly, and the scene of the parallel running training just now echoed in my mind again.

Start... Overtake... Chase... Finish...

In the pitch-black mind, it was as if a lightning bolt had flashed, dispelling the doubts about the stardust illusion—

"Is it that running style of Qingyun Tiankong, where it seems like he's not accelerating, but he always keeps a distance from me?!"

"That's it."

Higanbana clapped her hands as she walked over to Stardust Illusion, helping her towards the rest area.

"She deceives or forces you to keep pushing forward and expend extra energy by maintaining an ambiguous distance that seems to allow you to surpass her."

"On the other hand, while maintaining a seemingly constant speed, he silently accelerates his run in order to make it impossible for his opponent to catch up."

"In this process, you are completely deceived by this illusion and consume a lot of acceleration energy, so that in the end you are unable to perform at your full potential."

"..."

Listening to Toyama Scarlet's explanation, Stardust Illusion finally understood what had happened when they were running side by side.

Did Qingyun Tiankong have already planned all his thoughts in advance, and then pull off such a perfect deception...?

This is what they mean by "those who are willing will take the bait."

"Azure Sky!"

Stardust Illusion suddenly turned around and shouted at the girl behind him.