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

That was the emperor's judgment.

"Sigh, Xiao Bairen is still too impulsive. It would have been the optimal solution to listen to my instructions and start exerting force at the last moment."

Maru Zenki nodded in agreement, saying that anyone could tell that Narita Shirahito, who had started too early, had basically given up on the race for the winner.

However, Maruzensky did not intend to blame or complain about the hungry wolf that was racing desperately below.

She knew that Narita Shirahito's recklessness and pride, so different from her own, were the sharpest weapons that allowed her, as a racehorse girl, to stand out from the crowd.

"But, that's the kind of creature racehorse girls are... The power of the heart is more important than anything else. Is Shirohito just following his heart right now?"

It could be said that only by following her instincts at this moment did she touch upon the realm known as the domain.

This ultimate skill, which completely integrates mind, technique, and body, will only be revealed to runners who are single-minded and focused.

"It can be said that...it was both a blessing and a curse of instinct."

Maruzensky tilted his head and continued to look at the arena, his face showing only helplessness and regret.

"Not enough."

Rudolf symbolically picked up his teacup, took a sip, and calmly concluded:

"Runners at this level alone no longer pose a threat to the Stardust Illusion. Even if Narita Shirahito were to break through to a Domain-level power during the battle, I'm afraid..."

At the Satsuki Sho, after liberating the territory, he crushed both the Eastern Merchants' Reform and the Eastern Sea Emperor.

In the Tokyo Mile, Stardust Mirage demonstrated that even without using its domain, it could still leave its opponents with a terrifying gap of up to 12 horse lengths.

No matter how many times Rudolf saw this pace of progress, he would only be terrified.

Furthermore, the Stardust Illusion possesses terrifying stability, meaning that once she breaks through it, she will almost never fall again.

The astonishing combination of these two factors has gradually revealed an unstoppable and invincible momentum since Stardust Illusion's debut.

She grew stronger with each battle, and even the single-eye domain began to become just scenery behind her...

"Then, your turn is getting closer."

Rudolf's symbolic gaze shifted slightly backward, passing over the running figures of the people in front, and looked towards the middle and rear of the team.

There, a girl who had disappeared since the start of the competition slowly raised her head and looked at the giant wolf that had already unleashed its domain and was attacking the stardust illusion.

In this Neon Derby, she surprisingly did not choose to accelerate to chase Stardust Illusion, but instead mingled with the runners in the group of horse girls who were chasing from behind and running in the middle - Tokai Teio!

----------

The shadow cast by the jet-black giant wolf blotted out the sun, and it attacked the back of the Stardust Illusion directly from its left side.

The giant wolf let out a long, awe-inspiring howl, which boomed through the night sky like thunder, making everyone in the arena dizzy. At that moment, all the contestants felt as if a flash of light had passed before their eyes.

Even though they didn't actually feel like they'd been struck, the concept of "God" uncontrollably surfaced in their minds. The runners shuddered at this illusion of death, as if an electric current was shooting from their heads to their feet.

[Narita Shirahito! Narita Shirahito has unleashed an incredible cornering sprint! She's started chasing Stardust Illusion!!!]

[So fast! It's incredibly fast! The moment Narita Shirahito stepped onto the second straight line, he displayed an unimaginable linear acceleration. Even the Stardust Illusion couldn't withstand it!]

[5 horse lengths! 4 horse lengths! 3 horse lengths! The gap is constantly narrowing, Narita Shirahito is coming!!!]

The announcer's voice, calling out the progress of the race, remained clear even in the pouring rain. The rider, Kōjō Shōmō, struggled to adjust his running style to resist the obstacles posed by the bends of the racecourse, his brow furrowed involuntarily.

The territory is being expanded here...?

To be honest, the Sky Palace was already mentally prepared to face two or three different domains in this competition.

After all, even among the known runners, there are three who can activate their domains, so there's no reason for them not to perform at their best in this neon derby.

The Emperor of the East Sea immediately adopted a different running style, quietly blending into the group of racehorse girls, seemingly with some plans in mind.

However, considering her running style, she will most likely only be able to take advantage in the second half of the race and start chasing the leading group.

Both Stardust Illusion and East Merchant Revolution are players who can only unleash their true strength in the latter half or even the final game.

From a strategic perspective, the main confrontation in this match would logically take place in the last 800 meters or so. This is the main reason why the aerial divine palace maneuver was interrupted and the team immediately returned to a dormant state.

She needs to conserve her energy so that, in the second half of the race but before reaching the final 800 meters, she can seize the opportunity to create a time advantage.

But... Narita Shirahito went all out before even reaching the 1000m mark.

Putting aside other things.

Didn't this guy consider the physical damage and exhaustion that would result from activating his domain?

Driven by this incomprehensible emotion, the Sky Shrine once again shone with golden light, focusing intently on the contest between the two racehorse girls ahead.

Then she saw Narita Shirahito, who had transformed into a giant shadow wolf, thrusting the massive blade from its mouth at the fleeing Overlord. His expression was one of madness and savagery, and his eyes were filled with the eyes of a wild beast completely overwhelmed by its animalistic nature.

Looking further ahead, one can see the silhouette of the Stardust Illusion.

At this moment, the runner who had been brought closer and was now right behind him seemed to sense the observation of the celestial palace in the sky, and slowly raised his head.

The eyes hidden beneath the bangs flickered slightly, and the expression on the face was completely blank. The head was simply tilted slightly, as if trying to observe the runner approaching from behind...

Even a fleeting glance at those pitch-black eyes sent a chill down the spine of the celestial palace above.

That's right, it's like... only someone filled with pure killing intent would act like that!

That's the look you give a dead person!

Narita Shirahito's burning pursuit was something she didn't care about at all.

The crimson in those eyes was gradually completely covered by pitch black, and then even the whites of the eyes disappeared completely, leaving the entire eye sockets as if in a state of chaos.

Now, facing a challenge from a top-tier runner, how will Stardust Illusion fight back?

Is she also going to open up a domain here?

The Sky Palace couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation. Although Narita Shirahito's outburst was an unexpected event, it now seemed to be seen as a provocation by the Stardust Illusion.

If she places the Sky Shrine in the position of the Stardust Illusion, then she thinks the most rational response is to simply relinquish the lead, let Narita Shirahito run ahead and exhaust his stamina, and wait for this racehorse girl to burn out and perish.

However, the Stardust Illusion was clearly ready to fight.

Since we're going to face a Domain-level opponent, then we naturally need to unleash Domain-level strength...

No, I can't laugh... I can't laugh!

The Sky Palace could hardly contain its elation. In the first half of the match, the biggest boss guarding the gate was about to choose self-destruction.

That would be absolutely wonderful!

As the celestial palace pondered, the entire arena was once again thrown into turmoil.

The rising, jet-black mist, a dark aura so distinct from the shadows, gradually evaporated, with the torrential rain and muddy grass in front of them seemingly serving as its best catalyst.

This overwhelming demonic energy suddenly spread outwards from the stardust illusion as its center, causing the area that was originally shrouded in shadow to begin to shake.

(Come on, Overlord! You can hardly tolerate this kind of provocation either, right?!)

(Completely defeat Narita Shirahito, and use your invincible domain power to bury her and yourself together—)

The Sky Goddess screamed wildly in her heart, clenching her teeth tightly, and instantly adjusted her pace again to prepare for the upcoming domain-level collision impact.

Boom!

The heart's workload suddenly increases to its maximum at this moment, and the blood vessels throughout the body are suddenly filled by the surge in pumping capacity. While fully satisfying the blood supply to the internal organs and brain, the capillaries under the skin of the whole body begin to rupture under this impact.

Stardust Illusion slammed down with a powerful kick, stomping heavily on the grass. This immense force destroyed the racetrack, and the raging azure battle qi also began to boil.

Demonic nature and fighting spirit—these two completely different powers appeared simultaneously in the same person without any sense of incongruity. The current state of Stardust Illusion almost overturned everyone's understanding.

Before the runners behind could even show their surprise, an unprecedentedly fierce wind whipped up raindrops and lashed at their faces, completely changing the atmosphere of the race in that instant.

It's coming, it's coming!

Although he still didn't understand what had just happened, Stardust Illusion was about to use its domain to completely crush Narita Shirohito!

This race... was a victory for the calm runners!

In the perception of the Sky Divine Palace, the flow of time is rapidly slowing down, a sign that the domain is about to open. All that remains is to wait for the moment when time completely stops...

That moment...?

That moment?!

The Sky Palace slowly widened its eyes, unable to believe what it was feeling.

Time never stops.

The domain... will not be published.

Almost instantly, like a whirlwind, the sudden change gradually drew everyone's attention away from Narita Shirahito.

The dark, intoxicating aura blended completely with the racecourse's lawn. No matter which runner noticed the spread of this aura and immediately broke free, they could not deny the fact that their energy had been robbed.

[Skills in various stages of development: Leading Hesitation, Advancing Hesitation, Mid-Range Hesitation, Lagging Hesitation... have been activated.]

[Skills initiation, advance, positioning, and follow-up containment... activated.]

[Skills: Escape, Priority, Poor, Pursuit, Anxiety... Activated]

The physical attributes plundered from the 19 contestants were now being fed back into Stardust Illusion.

"The giant wolf of the shadows? Interesting."

The Stardust Illusion spoke, its voice so cold it could almost freeze raindrops.

Faced with Narita Shirahito's domain that almost covered the entire arena, Stardust Illusion had no intention of using its own domain strength to fight back.

Particles existing only in imagination drift past the stardust illusion.

Although she couldn't quite articulate her current thoughts, she had a strange feeling.

Narita Shirahito's level of domain, even without using power of the same level...

It can also decapitate a hungry wolf with a giant sword in its mouth!

Then the Stardust Illusion began to move.

[Golden Skill: Escape Technique, activated.]

[The insights of the Golden Skill Vanguard have been activated.]

[Skill: Mid-range straight line (o), activated.]