Hesitating slightly, Kitahara was about to turn his gaze toward the horse girls when he suddenly felt something strange.
It might have been the first time he had ever witnessed the so-called "divine blessing" of the Three Goddesses with his own eyes—or perhaps the latest moment he had come into contact with this world's gods.
It wasn't like in a game, where blinding special effects would flash across the screen.In truth, everything before his eyes looked as it always did—the horse girls, the statues, the plaza. Nothing had visibly changed.
And yet, somehow, he simply knew—as if the thought had been placed directly into his mind—the Three Goddesses had descended.
It was an uncanny sensation.He didn't see their faces, hear their voices, or sense any particular fragrance.He couldn't even form a concrete image of them.
There was only this inexplicable awareness—a message that had appeared in his mind from nowhere:
"The Three Goddesses have come."
So this… is a miracle of this world…?
Still stunned by the strange feeling, Kitahara caught movement from the corner of his eye and turned his head.
A silver-haired, athletic figure flashed by—powerful legs leaping off the ground.In just a few steps, she soared through the air, tracing a perfect arc.
That parabolic arc crossed the entire pool—its highest point level with the goddesses' heads—and descended gracefully on the far side.
As the figure descended, she stretched out a hand—and slapped palms with the statue.
Only then did Kitahara realize—
That figure was Oguri Cap.
She reacted that quickly? As expected of Oguri Cap…
It was clear she had understood what Maruzensky meant—or perhaps what the Three Goddesses' test truly signified.
Kitahara was just about to ask her what she had felt when, again, from the corner of his eye, he saw three more arcs cross the air.
Just like Oguri Cap, Super Creek, Mejiro Ardan, and Yaeno Muteki each followed and completed the same action, touching the statues' hands in turn.
Kitahara held back his curiosity, waiting to see if another "miracle" would appear.
That odd sense of "seeing the goddesses descend" lingered vividly in his mind, confirming beyond a doubt that this world's gods truly existed—and that many mysteries of this realm were far beyond human explanation.
He had thought that perhaps a transformation would happen to Oguri and the others—some miraculous "costume change" like in a story.
But as he looked them over, he felt a faint disappointment: nothing about their appearance had changed.
They still wore the familiar Tracen Academy uniforms—purple short-sleeved jackets and white pleated skirts.
So… where are the victory outfits?
Just as confusion crept in, he heard Maruzensky's relaxed voice:
"Alright, that's all for today. Everyone can go rest."
Wait—what? That's it? The goddesses are this casual? But more importantly… where are the victory outfits?!
Kitahara was momentarily dumbfounded—but then noticed that while Maruzensky's tone was easygoing, her expression was unusually solemn.
Her head was slightly bowed as she stared intently at the pool, phone in hand—the camera pointed at the water's surface.
And not just her—others from Team Chouetsu, like Naise Fumino and Sakura Chiyono O, who had witnessed such scenes before, were also gazing at the pool.
There's something in the water…?
Realizing that, Kitahara quickly turned his eyes to the surface.
The pool had seemed utterly normal before—only ripples from the breeze.
But now, as if gusts of chaotic wind were sweeping across it, the water was covered with overlapping wave patterns.
These ripples weren't random—they crossed, curved, and intersected to form symbols, or perhaps characters.
Kitahara had never seen such markings before, but—just like that earlier feeling—another understanding flashed through his mind:
"The ripples are the goddesses' oracle."
It was their language.
A shiver of wonder ran through him, and countless myths surfaced in his thoughts.
In legends from every culture, there were tales of gods delivering oracles—messages formed from water, light, wind, or fire—to convey divine will.
In his old world, he would have dismissed such things as ancient people's naive imagination.But here, they were real.
The gods truly sent messages like this.
Then this ripple-text must describe the victory outfits, he thought.
But… how do you even read them?
He was just about to ask Maruzensky when someone else spoke up first.
"Eh? Maruzensky, this must be the description of the victory outfits, right?"
Komiya's eyes gleamed with excitement as she pointed to the water.
"I was just about to say—even though I didn't actually see anything, I could feel it!Like… I just knew the goddesses were there."
"And now, it's the same—I somehow know what those ripples mean."
"So this… is what you horse girls call a divine oracle?"
Not just her—every trainer turned their gaze to Maruzensky, occasionally glancing at Oguri and the others.
Even Naise Fumino and Dino Yoshitaka—who had seen this before—watched with curiosity.
"Well, how should I put it…"
After snapping a few pictures of the water with her phone, Maruzensky turned, smiling, tapping her chin thoughtfully.
"The Three Goddesses… have just been here."
"Or rather—Their divine thoughts just passed through."
"Eh—?! R-Really?" Komiya gasped, eyes wide, looking around in disbelief before finally staring at the statues.
That was where she had felt the strange aura—and now, that presence seemed to fade from that very direction.
"Ah, They're leaving… right, just as you thought."
Maruzensky nodded slightly, her face shining with sacred reverence.Tilting her head toward the statues, she gazed up.
"The Three Goddesses truly exist—and They truly came here, just now."
"You and Kitahara, all of you, what you felt was the passing of Their presence."
"Sadly, for humans, that's all you can perceive—you can't see Them directly."
"In truth, how we horse girls gain our victory outfits, our refinement, and our domains—those were things our predecessors learned directly from the goddesses, either by chance or fate, when passing before Their statues."
The humans were stunned.
Even if they already believed, hearing such an explanation face to face filled them with awe—and an odd sense of regret.
Humans couldn't see the goddesses.Only horse girls could.
And not only that—the goddesses personally taught them theology and guidance…
These goddesses are actually so dependable… Kitahara thought with wonder.
Their unique physiology, their mysterious powers, the divine protections of "refinement" and "domain," the victory outfits—all of it…
Such gentle deities, he thought.
And honestly—he couldn't help but feel a little envious of the horse girls.
They truly deserved divine protection—but still, envy welled up in him nonetheless.
Seeing everyone so moved, Maruzensky's smile deepened.
She pointed again to the rippling surface.
"Let me explain a little."
"These are the goddesses' characters. You can feel Their presence, so you should already know that."
"But not even we can read them." She shook her head with mild regret.
Wait, Maruzensky—are you sure you count as "ordinary"? You're a legendary horse girl… Kitahara grumbled inwardly, before realizing what she actually meant.
"Such divine script," she continued,
"can only be read by the direct descendants of the three main families who inherited the goddesses' bloodline."
"These three houses are named after the goddesses themselves: Godolphin, Byerley, and Darley."
"The one currently in Japan is the head of the Darley line—Crown Sun. Her direct ancestor is the famous Eclipse, mentioned in our school's founding creed."
"Strictly speaking, most Japanese horse girls have some trace of Eclipse's bloodline, but…"
Maruzensky sighed, smiling wryly. "Only Crown Sun herself can truly read the divine script."
"She not only understands it—she can translate it into text and symbols.
Once that's done, we can commission workshops to create the victory outfits."
"Wait—commissioned to factories…?"
That caught Ushihara off guard.
Among the Eisei Team, he was known for his calm and practical nature—always trying to make sense of things.
He frowned slightly.
"It just feels… weird. We were just talking about divine miracles, and now we're back to modern industry…"
"What's so strange about that?" Maruzensky chuckled.
"Victory outfits have existed since ancient times—of course, people used the craftsmanship of their own era to make them."
"These days, that means modern factories. If you visit old horse-girl families, you'll still find ancient crafting methods and designs. If you're interested, you should check them out sometime."
"Anyway," she said, dusting her hands, "I only explained all this because you were curious. There's really nothing more about the victory outfits to discuss."
Patting the pocket where her phone rested, she added lightly,
"The Darley family rarely appear in public. Only the Academy's Director and a handful of horse girls can visit that senior."
"I'll hand these photos to the Director and ask her to contact Crown Sun. It'll take some time before the victory outfits are complete."
"So, for now—take a break. Then…"
She turned with a bright smile, waved to everyone, and started walking toward the Director's office.
"…Let's work hard for the Satsuki Sho."
She left decisively, as expected of her—before anyone could respond, she had already disappeared inside.
The moment she mentioned the Satsuki Sho, however, the mood grew heavier.
To be precise, the trainers immediately tensed up, while the horse girls were still flushed with excitement from witnessing the divine miracle.
"Whoa! You all saw it too, right?"
Still thrilled, Oguri Cap finally couldn't hold back her excitement.
"Those three goddesses were amazing!"
"They felt so light—like air itself—but somehow, just seeing them, I knew I could never outrun them, no matter how hard I tried!"
"Uh, Oguri, aren't you missing the point?"
Tamamo Cross face-palmed.
"Those were the Three Goddesses! The source of all our running ability, our talent, our refinement, our domains—even our victory outfits come from Them!"
"How could you even think about racing against Them?!"
"And you should really be more respectful—what if They get offended?"
"C'mon, Tamamo, don't be so harsh on Oguri."
Super Creek chuckled softly, patting Tamamo's shoulder.
"She's just being herself."
"I actually felt the goddesses were really gentle. When They passed by me, I could feel Them smiling."
"Right? Don't you think so?"
"Yeah—I liked the one with the light blue hair the most," Mejiro Ardan said, before suddenly panicking and waving both hands toward the statues.
"Ah! I mean—I like all of you! The red-haired, dark-skinned goddess and the golden-brown one too! Really, I do!"
"Hahaha, Ardan, you're way too nervous," Inari One laughed, clapping her on the arm.
"I bet the goddesses wouldn't mind a little slip of the tongue like that."
"As for me—my favorite's the golden-haired one! She's so cool!"
"Though, I also like the red-haired goddess—she looks powerful, kinda like me."
"Eh? You think maybe my talent came from Her?"
"Could be, Inari."
"Then who do you think mine came from?"
"Should we go ask again? Maybe just touching Their hands will tell us?"
While Team Eisei chatted animatedly about the goddesses, Oguri Cap tilted her head curiously toward Team Beyond.
"Speaking of which—aside from Yaeno and Bamboo, Chiyono and Dicta… you've met the goddesses before, right? Was it the same as this time?"
The members of Team Beyond blinked, exchanging glances.
Sakura Chiyono O and Dicta Striker both nodded.
"Yeah… about the same," said Chiyono O, her long, white-covered ears twitching up and down.
"I really liked the Three Goddesses too. Like Inari said, I think I liked the blue-haired one the most."
"Ah, so that means you and Ardan have the same favorite," she added with a shy smile.
"So maybe my talent came from the red-haired goddess, like Inari's… but…"
"…I don't know why, I still like the blue-haired one more."
"Haha, if what you said is true, then the red-haired goddess who blessed you might get angry… or maybe even sad."
Walking over and patting Sakura Chiyou's shoulder, Didu Shooter squinted slightly, half-joking and half-serious:
"Who knows, maybe she'll even feel embarrassed in front of the other two goddesses that her follower doesn't like her."
"Ehh—!! R-Really?! That could really happen?!"
Chiyono O's ears shot upright in shock. She immediately pressed her palms together toward the statues of the three goddesses and began bowing over and over again.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I didn't mean that I don't like you, it's just—this—ahh what should I do… Goddess-sama please don't be angry, don't be sad…" she babbled incoherently.
"Hehehe, Dicta, doesn't it weigh on your conscience teasing Chiyono O like that?"
Seeing the girl fluster about, someone spoke up with a laugh in Chiyono O's defense. Dicta tilted her head and smirked, while Chiyono O blinked with a confused "Eh—?", staring at her in disbelief. Bamboo Memory just shook her head helplessly.
"Ah… she's really simple-minded…"
Then, her expression firmed. She clenched her fist tight before her, knuckles cracking.
"Anyway, thanks to everyone, I got to see the Three Goddesses earlier than I ever could have dreamed! Otherwise, I'd probably have to wait until G1 for something like this!"
"To be able to get this close to the Three Goddesses without even qualifying for G1 yet—so lucky!"
"Then, since we're in front of the goddesses…"
She looked toward the three goddesses, eyes burning with determination, and clasped her hands together with a loud bam.
"I'll work as hard as I can and make sure I can stand on the same stage as everyone else soon!"
"Don't forget, we're still rivals!"
At those words, all the horse girls froze. The lighthearted air vanished in an instant, replaced by a growing sense of tension.
If this were an anime, each of them would now be surrounded by visible auras of fighting spirit in different colors.
Even without such effects, the rising battle will in them seemed to call the wind itself—breezes stirred, hair swayed, ears trembled faintly as if twitching from the chill.
"…Indeed."
Yaeno Muteki said in a low, steady voice. Her gaze swept over her companions before slowly turning toward the trainers.
"The distant races aside…"
"…The Satsuki Sho will begin soon."
Unlike the horse girls' initial light mood, the atmosphere among the trainers was more solemn, tinged with reflection.
They didn't speak idly. It felt like two armies facing each other across a battlefield—discussions carried only between the head trainers, Kitahara and Naise Fumino.
"If not for today's meeting to finalize the race uniforms, I'd still be bothering you all at Chouetsu," Kitahara said with a grateful smile, meeting Naise's eyes.
"These past two weeks training at the Dino Dojo have been invaluable to us. We've learned a lot."
"Maybe it sounds provocative, but I have to say it—Oguri Cap and the others will come out of this special training far stronger."
"Heh… I'll take that as a declaration of war, Chief Kitahara."
Perhaps due to her nature, Naise Fumino smiled faintly, but her lips only curved a little; her voice was calm—calm like the still surface of a pond before an oracle is given.
"There's half a month left before the Satsuki Sho. That's enough time for focused training—and that extra time will let us refine our tactics."
"Speaking of tactics, we should be the ones thanking you."
"The title 'Eisei's Master Strategist' isn't undeserved. Chief Kitahara's tactics in the past three preliminaries—and even earlier—have always amazed us."
"We've learned a lot from your team as well."
"So yes, Chiyono O and the others will also grow stronger."
Kitahara smiled and extended his hand.
"Then—see you at the Satsuki Sho."
"See you at the Satsuki Sho."
They shook hands lightly. Naise Fumino then led her team away, while Kitahara sent his horse girls off to rest.
The trainers, however, could not rest.
Endurance training is a complex form of conditioning—after every session, a horse girl's overall stats show improvement, which meant there was a mountain of data to process.
And this time, the training had been supervised by the Dino family—the undisputed top martial-arts endurance trainers in the entire horse girl world—using a rarely taught "Martial Endurance" method.
So, after letting Oguri Cap and the others go play, the trainers, doctors, and technicians all gathered in Kitahara's office.
"It's been half a month since we were last back here," Kitahara began briefly, then got straight to business.
He adjusted the office whiteboard's angle out of habit, took up a marker, and started writing as he gave instructions:
"Komiya, get the projector set up. Yuzuhara, help him."
"Kyoko, put up the PPT you've organized. Light—you mentioned you'd written some programs while testing the wind tunnel equipment. Once it's ready, go ahead and tune it."
The wind tunnel order had been arranged before the Hanshin Daishoten. Originally, they'd planned to bring it over afterward—venue and procedures were already discussed with Tazuna-san.
But now, with Lady Naise's unbelievably generous billion-yen sponsorship on top of Kawawan Industries' and Nishijin's support, they could afford the best.
Kitahara's stance on training was always clear: Don't be stingy. Use resources where they matter.
And with more funds available, naturally, they'd take extra time to choose carefully.
A useful byproduct of that process was Light's new software.
With her talent, her teacher's guidance, and help from classmates skilled in programming, she had designed several tools to simplify data analysis for training use.
In Japan's horse girl world, there wasn't yet specialized software for such calculations—things like wind resistance, pace variation, stamina output, etc., were usually done on general scientific tools like MATLAB.
While MATLAB was powerful, much of it was unnecessary for horse girl analysis and required long study. Hikari's approach was: simpler, specialized tools yield better results.
Her new programs could automatically analyze inputted data from Kitahara's team—stride, breathing rate, mitochondrial conversion, etc.—and output specialized reports, complete with charts and meeting summaries.
Once the reports appeared on the PPT, Kitahara turned back to the whiteboard.
"Based on ideas I discussed with Hikari earlier, we're introducing some new data metrics this time."
"Previously, we analyzed each horse girl individually—stride length, arm swing frequency, oxygen intake rate, mitochondrial conversion, heart rate, and so on."
"That helps with personalized training, but now that we're preparing as a team, we'll use general parameters to compare overall performance."
"In other words: Speed, Stamina, Strength, Willpower, and Intelligence."
"By correlating these abstract terms with real-world metrics, we can estimate relative strength and conduct team-level analysis."
He drew a chart on the board.Vertically: Oguri Cap, Mejiro Ardan, Super Creek, Yaeno Muteki, Dicta Striker, and Sakura Chiyono O.
Horizontally: Speed, Stamina, Strength, Willpower, Intelligence.
"This should be clear enough," he said. "Let's look at the differences between our team and theirs."
He used a laser pointer to highlight the figures on the PPT and began filling in the chart:
Speed: Oguri Cap 124, Mejiro Ardan 113, Super Creek 84, Yaeno Muteki 113, Dicta Striker 121, Sakura Chiyono O 114
Stamina: 81, 109, 129, 99, 84, 117
Strength: 130, 109, 92, 119, 140, 114
Willpower: 103, 98, 129, 119, 84, 114
Intelligence: 112, 121, 116, 100, 109, 110
"These parameters come from a combination of physiological and race data," Kitahara explained. "Now, with this chart, we can gauge how our competitors stack up."
"For 2000-meter turf races, stamina over 70 is enough to finish. All six easily meet that."
"Super Creek's stamina stands out most—but her 'Swinging Maestro' strategy will need revision. That plan was brilliant when only she knew it, but now the others are aware—it must evolve."
"Her stamina advantage over others is under 20%, and versus Chiyono O, only around 10%. That explains why she couldn't outlast Chiyono O in the Wakaba Stakes."
"As for strength, Super Creek's 92 is the lowest of all six. That weak strength makes her acceleration slower and her recovery from collisions or slopes more difficult."
"So the 'Swinging Maestro' tactic must be adjusted—either reinforce her sprinting to offset the power gap, or accelerate earlier, or blend both."
The room fell into quiet thought as everyone scribbled notes. Kitahara clapped lightly.
"No need to rush into deep discussion yet. I'm just mapping the overview. Once we settle on direction, we'll dive into the numbers."
"Oguri Cap has no major weaknesses. Her stamina's the lowest, but sufficient for 2000 meters. Honestly, I expected her intellect to be lower—but it's actually mid-to-high."
He nodded toward Kyoko and Hikari.
"Right. Intelligence here isn't just learning—it's awareness, reaction time, composure."
Kyoko smiled and added:"Yes. People equate test scores with intelligence, but medically, intelligence is much broader. For example, humans' average reaction time to stimuli is 250–320 milliseconds. Horse girls average 100–160."
"That's because their neurotransmitters transmit faster. Oguri Cap's reactions are even sharper—on the track, they improve another 20–45%."
"All that's factored into her Intelligence 112. We'll discuss details later."
Kitahara nodded.
"So overall, Oguri Cap's stats are balanced, with clear advantages in speed and power. She doesn't need complex tactics—just run her race, and she has a strong chance of winning. Overcomplicating things could backfire."
"As for Ardan, she's also well-rounded but slightly lower on average. Her strength is her intelligence—making her 'Racecourse Waltz' tactic perfectly suited to her balanced stats. That adaptability is her true weapon."
Then, Kitahara's gaze turned serious as he moved to the other team's names.
"Dicta Striker… nearly identical to Oguri Cap across the board—except for lower Willpower. Her power, in fact, exceeds Oguri Cap's. Truly a bullet-bred chestnut."
Hikari hesitated, then raised her hand.
"I… once saw something. During an interview, some reporters angered Dicta. She didn't lash out there—but afterward, in an alley near the school… she kicked the wall several times. Broke a whole section—cracks spread across half the wall."
"I don't know what happened, but… she's really strong."
The trainers frowned. Kitahara pondered.
"Strength alone isn't a problem," he said. "But her low Willpower affects key traits—top speed, acceleration, and stamina recovery."
"Without risking injury, a horse girl subconsciously limits herself below her true maximum. Only strong willpower can override that."
"Similarly, sudden acceleration stresses the body—again, only high willpower lets them push through."
"And breathing—under extreme fatigue, it takes willpower to maintain rhythm instead of gasping."
He tapped her name again.
"If she's truly short-tempered, that fits her low Willpower reading. It also explains her streak of big wins and losses—her temperament drives her extremes."
"So yes, her sheer power poses a threat to Oguri Cap—but her low Willpower may hold her back. We'll need to model those interactions later."
Finally, he pointed to the last two.
"The Chouetsu team's strength is undeniable—Yaeno Muteki and Sakura Chiyono O have near-perfectly balanced stats, differing by less than 5% overall."
"Chiyono O's three stats are identical—variance under 2%. That kind of balance lets her adapt to nearly any race condition, especially the steady 2000-meter range."
"So, next, we'll integrate these numbers with field data and simulations—"
A knock at the door interrupted him.
"…Come in."
The door opened to reveal a gentle face framed by long chestnut braids—Super Creek.
Unlike her usual calm self, she looked troubled, biting her lip, brows drawn together, eyes uneasy.
Her gaze swept the room and froze when she saw the data on the board.
"…Mr. Kitahara, could I borrow a moment? There's something I'd like to discuss with you…"
She bit her lip again, voice soft.
(This chapter ends.)