Oguri Cap—1st place.
I stared at the now-lit scoreboard for some time. My name was just under Oguri's—behind by half a length. Just half a length.
I smiled wryly.
It couldn't be helped. I woke up from my healing coma barely a week before the [Arima Kinen], and I was only allowed to train again after a few days of recuperating, just to make sure I didn't land myself back in the hospital.
But more than anything, it was the fact that I no longer had the Hero System by my side. I still had my Skills and everything, and I could feel them occasionally pop off during the race, but I no longer had the adept control over them that I did when I still had the System. {Professor of Curvature}, {Leading Charge}, {Playtime's Over}—instead of being Skills that could magically increase my Speed and Acceleration, they'd been translated into actual racing knowledge.
The only 'Skill' that I still had direct access to was my {Starlit Crown}, and only because I could feel some tactile sensation whenever I used it, instead of an indistinct boost to my speed I wouldn't notice in the moment.
That tactile sensation just happened to be a searing agony, as if a molten rod of iron had been jammed down my spleen—but no one had to know that.
Regardless, I ultimately came out as 2nd place. And the only reason I got that far was because of {Starlit Crown}. I used it a total of 6 times throughout the entire race, and now my legs were really feeling it. I was pretty sure I wasn't actually injured, but the repeated scalding sensation I felt was making my legs all itchy.
It'd be a lie to say that I wasn't disappointed. After all, this was the first—and perhaps the last—[Arima Kinen] I'd ever run during my career.
But I wasn't really the main star this time around.
With all the action over, the snow began gently falling back down onto the track. But even the snowfall couldn't silence the cheers and applause of the audience. And even though Tamamo had taken 4th place, it didn't stop hundreds of thousands of people from cheering for the White Lightning's final race.
And Tamamo just stood there for some time, her breaths shallow and her eyes unfocused as she stared at the ground.
I smiled.
"Well, that was new." I said casually as I approached her, wincing slightly as I felt my legs itch with every step.
Tamamo smiled tiredly. "Ain't ma' thing." She said, her voice closer to a whisper. "Got some help from an idiot."
I blinked. "An idiot?" I asked, genuinely confused. After all, I'd only noticed the new look of Tamamo's Domain during the final 400 meters of the race. Anything from before that was lost to me, mostly because I was more focused on finding when was best to use my {Starlit Crown}.
Tamamo didn't explain. She just looked at the sky, her smile filled with both relief and faint sorrow.
I was quiet for a moment, before I huffed. "What're you doing?" I reached out and grabbed her hand. She blinked, and then yelped when I suddenly raised her hand to the air. "Look at them, Tamamo." I said, turning towards the crowd.
"You're the strongest, Tamamo Cross!"
"That was awesome!"
"That final form was so cool! She went all super sentai…!"
And finally, Tamamo turned towards the cheering audience, and she took a shuddering breath. "Everyone…" She whispered.
"You are the White Lightning." I said, smiling faintly. "And that is something no one else can take away from you. Even decades later, even in another world—there will never be another White Lightning but you." I turned to her. "Be proud of what you've done, Tamamo Cross. Be proud of who you are."
"...always so dam' sappy." She whispered, her voice sounding choked.
I chuckled, and then my ears perked up when I heard someone approaching us. I glanced back and saw that it was Obey, her own breaths labored after having finally crossed the finish line.
Immediately, I thought about the new prismatic look of Tamamo's Domains, then thought about the nebulae that spawned from Obey's Domains, and then I recalled Tamamo's words. The synapses between my two brain cells finally lit up, and my eyes widened slightly as I finally realized where Tamamo's new power had come from.
「An idiot, is it…?」I whispered, grinning slightly as I raised an eyebrow at Obey.「I wonder who that could be.」
Obey coughed out a small laugh.「Well, it is fools who make the greatest heroes, no?」She said, her face slightly pale.
I huffed, before I gestured for her to come closer. She raised an eyebrow but complied. The moment she came close enough, I smoothly switched my hand out with hers, and suddenly it was Obey who was holding Tamamo's hand up. She blinked, barely capable of understanding how I'd been so smooth at the switch. I only winked in return as I walked away, letting those two share the glory together.
…
Yet, after only a dozen more steps, I couldn't help but wince as my legs became itchy once more. "What is it?" I whispered as I crouched down, pulling my left shoe down slightly to see what was going on.
My entire body froze when I saw the obvious golden cracks that covered my entire foot, visible even through the full-body coverings I wore beneath my G1 outfit. I could already see it shrinking, but with how extensive the cracks were, it'd likely take hours or even a day before all the cracks vanished entirely.
No wonder my leg felt itchy as all hell. Using 6 {Starlit Crowns} was clearly not without consequence, though at least I hadn't permanently sent myself to death's door just for using it. My System's final gift ensured that my body had grown even more durable, even if it'd come at the cost of my supernatural healing–
"Blossom Star."
Oh.
Oh no.
I quickly retied my shoes and turned around to try and smooth things out, but I was too late. Before I could even turn around, a shadow fell over me and suddenly my entire body felt cold, as if the sun within my chest was abruptly snuffed out by a black hole. I gulped as I attempted a smile. "W-What's wrong, Oguri?"
No reply.
My body trembled softly as I slowly turned around, and my face went pale as I came face to face with an expressionless Oguri Cap. Perhaps others would think she was being her usual self, but I'd been with her long enough to tell. The way her eyes bored into me, unblinking and eerie–
Yeah, I was done for.
"L-Listen, it's not like I can just sit back and let you win that easily, y'know? I gotta put up a fight even if I'm not able to use my Domain. And I didn't! I really didn't! I just pushed myself a little more than usual, and I guess I'm still groggy or something because I'm not this fragile. Please, ya' gotta believe me! I wasn't-, gack!?"
The rest of my words were silenced when Oguri suddenly grabbed me by the collar and pulled me close. Our faces came inches from one another, and my face went red as her eyes bored into mine. "Bad girl." She said.
I shivered, this time not from the cold. "W-W-We're in p-public…!" I shrieked, my voice going up several octaves as I desperately looked around to seek help.
No one answered. Dicta Striker, who was closest to us, turned away and began whistling. Super Creek just giggled. And Belno Light sighed and rolled her eyes as she pulled her cap down.
"You broke our promise." Oguri said to me, and I whined as I felt her warm breath on my neck. "You know what that means."
"...b-be gentle…?"
Oguri said nothing, and that might as well be an answer of its own.
I just went limp, knowing that I was done for.