The way Uma Musume looks at me is so scary!

"Such a gap..."

"It's like declaring to all the competitors—you have no chance of beating me."

She suddenly let out a long sigh, turned around, patted her cheeks, and put the disappointment she had just experienced behind her.

"If there's only one chance, perhaps we really can't win."

"But for someone like me who has had countless opportunities, it's just a goal that I'll eventually achieve."

"What we need to do now is to summarize the last competition."

Xiu Xingmeng subconsciously pursed her lips and began to think.

"First of all, the chasing technique is useful. It not only allows me to break away from the group of bad female horses, but also allows me to make use of the knowledge I accumulated in my first race."

"Although my unfamiliarity with the chasing method prevented me from finding the optimal route, my D-level tenacity helped me out at that time."

"If it weren't for these combined factors, I wouldn't have been able to complete Phase One on my second attempt."

"Right now, the biggest difference between me and the Emperor of the East Sea is our basic attributes."

"To be able to surpass the second place by six to seven horse lengths, her main attributes must all have reached the D level. To have this ability in the debut battle, she is a true genius."

Thinking of this, she tried silently reciting the system in her mind, and just as she had imagined, the blue screen appeared in front of her.

Xiu Xingmeng swiped the screen and found that in addition to the panel, quests, and shop that she had already discovered, there was another option called "Items". The reward for completing the first stage of the quest should be in this.

After opening her inventory, she found a medicine tube emitting a strange blue light, which appeared as an image. Long-pressing it would display the item's description.

[Potential Activation Potion (Grade E→D)]

[Description: A mysterious potion that exists only as an initial mission reward. It can raise one of the racehorse girls' attributes from E-rank to E+-rank, or from E+-rank to D-rank.]

Note: "This is much easier than training!" —An anonymous horse girl who is still stuck at D+

Looking at the last sentence of the introduction, Xiu Xingmeng silently twitched the corner of her mouth. She had always thought this system was quite serious, but she never expected it to leave such a note for the props.

"Number Thirteen, Embroidered Star Dream!"

Before Xiu Xingmeng could recover from the contrast, she heard her name mentioned by the commentator.

Is it time?

After tying the ribbon, Xiu Xingmeng stepped back into the rain.

As she walked, she was still pondering which attribute to apply the potential-enhancing potion to.

Rank E represents the minimum requirement for Treisen to enter the academy, while Rank E+ represents the ability of a racehorse girl to achieve a top-five finish in the debut battle.

D-rank symbolizes the top five strength in OP events. Even in the lowest level of official events, its attributes are enough to stand out among the undebuted Uma Musume girls, like a crane among chickens.

Therefore, only the East Sea Emperor, whose main attributes are all D-level, could have such terrifying ruling power, as Xiu Xingmeng deduced.

For me, the wisest choice is undoubtedly to upgrade the E+ grade attributes to D grade first.

So, which aspect should be improved?

Xiu Xingmeng stood in the rain, touching her chin, and silently recited the panel in her mind. She looked at her E+ level speed and E+ level endurance and fell into thought.

Speed? Or endurance?

In the last competition, Xiu Xingmeng could clearly feel that her stamina was not enough. If she could improve her endurance to level D, she would probably be able to sprint all the way to the finish line.

However, my inherent strength has also reached level D, which grants me extra explosive power when my stamina is about to run out, helping me to push forward one more step. If my speed were level D at that time, I might have been able to win the championship in one fell swoop.

Both offer hope of victory, but which is the best choice?

"All players, please take your positions!"

The commentator had no idea of ​​Xiu Xingmeng's inner turmoil. After all the contestants had entered the arena, the brief interval had ended, and it was time to announce their positions.

Seeing that time was running out, Xiu Xingmeng simply gave up on agonizing over it.

Any doubts arising from the competition should also be resolved on the field.

Let's have another match; our body's instincts will give us the right answer.

Following the racehorse girls, Xiu Xingmeng entered the gate. Facing the track for the third time, Xiu Xingmeng was surprised to find that she could even simulate the starting trajectory of most of the racehorse girls in her mind.

"The Way is difficult to explain—"

At this moment, Xiu Xingmeng felt a surge of excitement. Although she had already guessed that the retrospective mechanism would be beneficial to the Great Chase Running Method, she could only truly feel the shock of this improvement when she stepped onto the track again.

"I originally thought that the improvement in the race was almost at its limit after the second time, but I didn't expect that the improvement would actually increase instead of decrease after the third time?"

"If I can maintain this level of improvement, there will come a time when I can remember the entire race, whether it's the opponent's trajectory or the timing of overtaking on the corners, I will be able to perfectly control it."

Xiu Xingmeng squinted as she thought to herself.

"After this rewind, I've been thinking about the attribute gap. Was I affected by the exaggerated gap between the East Sea Emperor and the East Sea Emperor? I only remembered this ability when I got on the track."

Recalling the only skill on the panel, Xiuxingmeng made a judgment.

"There's only one possibility left: skill concentration. Did I underestimate it...?"

"So, am I underestimating the role of intelligence? If it can be combined with concentration, perhaps it can produce a result greater than the sum of its parts."

The unexpected good news made Xiu Xingmeng relax her tightly furrowed brows, and even her thoughts began to wander.

"Am I an intelligence-type racehorse girl?"

After calming herself down a bit, Xiu Xingmeng fixed her deep eyes on the door frame in front of her.

Next, all we need to do is keep accumulating intelligence, and victory will be just around the corner!

"Peng!"

The gun fired, and thirteen racehorses burst out of the gate together.

Chapter Five: What is Absolute?

Having grasped the formula for victory, Xiu Xingmeng no longer worried about how to defeat the Emperor of the East Sea, but instead began to explore her own limits.

Or rather, the limit of the skill of concentration.

A retrospective.

Two backtracking steps.

Gradually, Hideyuki was able to memorize the movements of all the racehorse girls, even marking which patches of grass would become sunken due to excessive rain and which patches would be advantageous for her to exert her strength.

In these repeated attempts, even without using the potential-enhancing potion, the gap between Xiu Xingmeng and the Emperor of the East Sea was getting smaller and smaller.

From the very beginning, they couldn't be seen at all.

By the second attempt, it was six to seven horse lengths.

When Xiu Xingmeng finally stopped and leaned against the entrance passage to think, the difference between her and the Emperor of the East Sea was only a horse's length.

For Xiu Xingmeng now, that potential-enhancing potion could help her win the championship, whether used to improve speed or endurance.

However, there are a few things that need to be verified before using the medicine.

Previously, she had neither the time nor the energy to explore the system, but now that victory was almost certain, she finally remembered it.

Xiu Xingmeng first silently summoned the mall in her mind, and saw the screen wrapped in chains again. After trying to touch it with her finger, she heard the mechanical voice in her ear.

"The mall will unlock after the initial mission is completed."

Sure enough, Xiu Xingmeng nodded slightly. She had had this suspicion when she first saw the chains.

The system needs to maintain the difficulty of the initial tasks; if the mall unlocks too quickly, the horse girls will subconsciously rely on items.

So... is the note on the description of the Potential Activation Potion not just a joke, but also a hidden warning?

After confirming the mall, Xiuxingmeng brought up the control panel again.

【Horse Racing Girl Raising System - Panel】

Character: Celestial Weave

Speed: E+ [Debut Level]

Endurance: E+ [Debut Level]

Strength: E [Entrance Level]

Root quality: D [New star rating]

Intelligence: E+ [Debut Level]

Adaptable to: Grassland (A) and Muddy (C)

Domain: None

Skill: Concentration (Blue)

[Effect: The mental strength accumulated from two lifetimes, honed under pressure, allows for greater focus on the field and the ability to occasionally perceive subtle changes in the game.]

Tokyo... (generating)

Her intuition was right! Xiu Xingmeng squinted, staring at the subtle changes happening on the panel.

My memory wasn't good enough to remember all the tracks of the racehorses, and besides, remembering which patch of grass was the best to step on was just too much of an exaggeration.

Is the so-called training being a fake match, and the match being the real training, what does that mean?

Looking at the changed panel, Xiu Xingmeng suddenly had an idea.

Referring to the system's response when she touched the mall earlier, Xiu Xingmeng directly asked the system a question.

Can the attributes and skills gained during a mission be transferred to the real world?

The mechanical voice sounded again the next second.

"Regardless of the mission, skills can be brought back to reality. As for attributes, they depend on the type of mission; attributes improved during this mission can be brought back to reality."

Instead of thinking about the type of task, Xiu Xingmeng began to focus on the idea she had just had.

The attribute boosts from this mission can be brought back to reality, so can I treat this match as an endless training ground, leveling up all my attributes before completing the mission?

However, Xiu Xingmeng stopped this idea shortly after it took root.

She looked at the empty entrance passage in front of her, glanced at the rain at the entrance, and sighed silently.

Each rewind, including the entry time, only lasts a few minutes. In such an environment, one has to suppress one's loneliness and rely on the repeated cycles of a few minutes to improve attributes. Even though completing the task is within easy reach, one can only give up the championship in each competition...

Even if I could actually do it, I probably wouldn't be the same person I am now when I return to reality.

Xiu Xingmeng shook her head. She still had things she needed to do. Her pursuit of power was also for her. If the person her mother saw after waking up from her sickbed wasn't her, then everything would be meaningless.

At the same time, the same phrase that I was already tired of hearing came to my ears again.

Is it time to go on stage again? "System, use the potential-enhancing potion to raise your stamina to D level."

After giving the system her final instruction, Xiu Xingmeng tied the ribbon and stepped into the rain.

The cool raindrops dripped onto her face. She inhaled the earthy scent emanating from the tip of her nose, reached out and tried to catch the raindrops, and inexplicably felt a sense of déjà vu, as if she were playing in the water as a child.

Even though she had entered the rain curtain countless times, it felt like she was discovering it for the first time. After the clear victory, Xiu Xingmeng could finally clear her mind of all the complicated thoughts that had been building up inside her. She closed her eyes, stood still, and waited quietly until the announcement of her readiness to take her place was made before she started to move.

Enter the gate, get into the starting position, and memorize the trajectory of each racehorse.

With the sound of a gunshot, thirteen racehorses burst out of the gate together.

Adjusting and confirming, Xiu Xingmeng silently followed behind the racehorse girl, adhering to the guidance of her memories, ensuring that every step she took was perfect.

The two hundred-meter straight stretch passed in a flash. As she entered the curve, Xiu Xingmeng even turned her feet at a rather dangerous angle, as if she were being crushed by gravity, as if she would be thrown out at any moment.

But with each step she took, the ground responded firmly and powerfully. If anyone were to notice Xiu Xingmeng at that moment, they would be surprised to find that there was an inexplicable strange feeling between her and the other racehorse girls.

It was as if, when everyone was halted by the snow, a person with an expressionless face suddenly appeared beside them, walking as if the snow had never existed for her.

Before the commentator could even notice this strange phenomenon, Xiu Xingmeng suddenly accelerated the moment she crossed the bend, rushing past several racehorse girls with lightning speed.

The originally orderly group of horse racing girls seemed to sense something and uneasily adjusted their course, but Xiu Xingmeng seemed to have a premonition and rushed out directly through the gaps between the horse racing girls.

It was only then that the commentator, belatedly realizing what was happening, exclaimed in surprise.

"It's racehorse number thirteen, Xiu Xingmeng! She's too fast! She pierced through the entire police caravan group as if there were no obstacles!"

My body felt very relaxed. Even though I had to accelerate earlier than before, I wasn't tired at all.

Xiu Xingmeng stared intently ahead, at the white crescent moon that stood before her, yet remained untouchable.

She increased her speed once again, and with the help of her D-level endurance, Xiu Xingmeng was able to maintain this sprint until the end of the race. As the Emperor of the East Sea got closer and closer to her, Xiu Xingmeng could even feel the astonishment coming from the petite figure in front of her.

Soon, Xiu Xingmeng arrived beside the Emperor of the East Sea. With only a hundred meters left to go, they seemed to be competing with each other, increasing their speed. Their red and white streaks of light flashed in everyone's eyes as if piercing through the rain curtain.