Chapter 27: Retirement
[Initially, we took notice of this local Uma Musume, Oguri Cap, due to an invitation from the Emperor, Rudolf Symbol.]
[At that time, the media – including myself – were foolishly unable to recognize the strength of this monster. We publicly voiced our doubts, subjecting her to unprecedented criticism.]
[But even fools like us were conquered by her performance in each successive race.]
[The Pegasus Stakes, the Daily Cup, the Takamatsunomiya Kinen, the Tenno Sho (Autumn), the Japan Cup, the Arima Kinen...]
[It's hard to list all of Oguri Cap's classic scenes in detail, and we never imagined that a Uma Musume symbolizing an entire era would appear before us like this.]
[Today is Oguri Cap's retirement ceremony. On behalf of myself and our Tokyo TV station, I apologize for the initial doubts cast upon Oguri Cap... and also wish to express our highest respect to this Uma Musume, who is now a champion!]
Oguri Cap and Musaka Ginjirou's retirement ceremony began shortly after the Winner's Stage.
A large crowd of reporters had already gathered here early.
Unlike the previous time with Stardust Mirage, where the reporters were mostly from local media around Nagoya, every single one here was undoubtedly a top reporter or star correspondent from major TV networks.
They all had only one goal at this moment: to record everything about the retirement announcement of this, the greatest Uma Musume of the present day.
After temporarily parting ways with the two, Stardust Mirage stood waiting silently in an unnoticed corner.
Because Musaka Ginjirou had already arranged with her that after the press conference ended, he would take her and Oguri Cap out for an all-you-can-eat yakiniku feast to celebrate this victory.
Once the host's address concluded, the aged Musaka Ginjirou and Oguri Cap, still wearing her victory uniform, walked up to the podium together.
As soon as they were seated, the flashing lights of cameras immediately began incessantly, and the reporters eagerly started their questions:
"May I ask, what are Oguri Cap and Mr. Musaka's thoughts on winning this race?"
The first reporter initiated with a relatively ordinary question to start the press conference.
"All participants gave their full effort, but Oguri also lived up to the expectations of every supporter, ultimately delivering a satisfying result."
Old man Musaka's answer was steady and measured, showing no trace of the pride with which he had told Stardust Mirage before the race: [All the top contenders in this race will merely be supporting characters for Oguri Cap.]
"May I ask how Mr. Musaka and Oguri Cap feel about this decision to retire?"
Another reporter asked about the main theme of this press conference: the dual retirement ceremony.
"I feel I have no regrets left on the professional circuit, so I've decided to retire and focus my efforts mainly on the upcoming Dream Cup."
Oguri Cap answered this question seriously.
The Dream Cup she mentioned was a unique product of this world blessed by the Three Goddesses.
There, all participating Uma Musume can be restored to their peak condition by divine power and granted physical abilities of an equivalent level, allowing competitors from different eras of their prime to run and compete again.
The qualification to participate requires application and approval from the Central Tressen Academy, which is also why the central academy is far stronger than local ones.
"Everyone can see that I'm the only one over sixty still working as a central trainer. This retirement is also because I've nurtured Oguri into such a satisfying form. To be honest... I am very pleased."
Old man Musaka took over the conversation and sighed.
"Some believe that after Oguri Cap's retirement, future races will lose much of their color. What are your views on this?"
A reporter posed this slightly pointed question.
"Of course not. The world of Uma Musume is never lacking in thrilling runners. Even if Oguri Cap no longer participates in public races, new strong competitors will emerge, just like Rudolf Symbol did in her day."
To prevent Oguri Cap from saying something inappropriate, Old man Musaka directly took over this topic, answering very appropriately.
However, a reporter affiliated directly with the Uma Racing Association (URA) suddenly spoke up:
"Oguri Cap's run today was deeply impressive, especially the acceleration starting from the final 800m. That powerful late kick reminds me of another Uma Musume...
I wonder if the two of you could comment on the genius Tokai Teio, who debuted at the end of this year and has already won 2 out of 2 races? After all, she also possesses a powerful late kick."
Musaka Ginjirou gave the reporter a meaningful look.
Someone as experienced as him could easily tell that this reporter deliberately brought up Tokai Teio, aiming to use the heavyweight news of Oguri Cap and Musaka's retirement to give a boost to the JRA's ace card they were promoting.
However, this also played right into the hands of Musaka Ginjirou and Oguri Cap.
"Tokai Teio is indeed a very promising newcomer. Her body is very flexible, somewhat similar to Oguri in that aspect, allowing her to exert very strong curve control and a powerful late kick while running."
Old man Musaka took one last glance at the Uma Musume standing in the corner and laughed heartily.
[Let us two retirees give you a hand.]
Thinking this, the old man picked up the microphone and continued:
"But geniuses are never destined to be alone. Tokai Teio has already met her rival. I can guarantee this... next year will definitely not be uneventful."
"What does that mean? Tokai Teio's rival?
Who is it? Do you mean the new middle-to-long distance star from the Mejiro family? Or perhaps the descendant of the brilliant clan and the Pegasus?"
The URA reporter quickly pressed for details.
Although he didn't get the praising response he wanted, in this reporter's view, as long as the topic was steered towards Tokai Teio, the goal of capitalizing on this hot topic would be achieved. Now, he just needed to expand on this topic further.
"Ha ha ha ha ha! That rival of Tokai Teio has actually already greeted everyone. But since you've asked this much..."
"I'll tell you."
Old man Musaka once again displayed his trademark boisterous laughter.
But as the old man spoke, Stardust Mirage, who had been standing in the corner thinking it had nothing to do with her and quietly waiting for the end to go celebrate with yakiniku, shuddered.
By now, she certainly had a premonition of what this old man was about to say—
"Ha ha, it's this Uma Musume right here... Stardust Mirage! Come on, say hello to everyone!"
The laughing old man didn't give Stardust Mirage more time to react. In front of all the reporters, he directly pointed over.
The crowd spontaneously parted, creating a path following his finger, revealing the brown-haired Uma Musume in casual shorts standing there, flustered and at a loss—
Stardust Mirage, who was pointed at, was already stunned by this sudden shock, her mind blank, her limbs completely stiff.
She could only watch as Old man Musaka waved her over, and she walked towards him with a stiff, unnatural gait.
[That's Stardust Mirage?]
[Stardust Mirage is Tokai Teio's rival?]
[Is it really her? She looks like just a beginner.]
Countless questions popped into all the reporters' minds, but the most important one was...
"So, just who is Stardust Mirage?!"
Searching through his memory and the list of central Uma Musume repeatedly but finding no information on this Uma Musume, the URA reporter couldn't help but shout out.
The people present also looked at each other; they too hadn't figured out the identity of this suddenly appearing Uma Musume.
At the very edge of the crowd, a seemingly very young reporter timidly raised his hand and cautiously said:
"I think I know who she is..."
"Who are you?" The URA reporter asked with a frown.
"I'm a reporter from Nagoya TV, my name is..."
"Never mind your name, just tell us what you know!" Upon hearing he was just from Nagoya TV, the URA reporter directly cut off his self-introduction and demanded he get to the point.
Under the gaze of all these senior colleagues, the young reporter could only swallow and explain:
"...Stardust Mirage seems to be an Uma Musume who debuted yesterday at Chukyo Racecourse in an unvictorious class race and finished first. Her current record is 1 win in 2 races."
"Because during the post-race interview with local media, she declared that she would defeat Tokai Teio on the classic triple crown circuit, it was reported this morning, and our station's racing news also broadcast it."
...
The scene fell silent for a moment.
The URA reporter looked at this Nagoya reporter, then turned to look at Stardust Mirage, who was still standing stiffly, his face full of disbelief.
Then his expression shifted, and he immediately turned back to Musaka Ginjirou, thrusting the microphone forward:
"In your opinion, what exactly qualifies this Uma Musume to be Tokai Teio's rival?"
"Please don't misunderstand, I absolutely don't hold any prejudice against this Stardust Mirage, but looking at the facts, Tokai Teio currently has 2 wins in 2 races and is already advancing to classic-grade prestige races."
"Meanwhile, this Stardust Mirage even failed in one of her debut races. To be honest, whether Stardust Mirage can even participate in the classic triple crown races alongside Tokai Teio is still unknown, right?"
"Because she is strong."
Oguri Cap answered directly but didn't elaborate further.
"Let it go, old man..."
Stardust Mirage quietly tugged at the hem of Musaka Ginjirou's clothes and whispered.
She didn't want her own affairs to affect these two's important retirement ceremony.
However, Old man Musaka completely ignored Stardust Mirage's plea and answered directly:
"I believe she is fully qualified to say such things. Stardust Mirage... she is the greatest rival standing in the way of Tokai Teio's goal of an undefeated triple crown."
Watching the various colleagues around him scribbling furiously, the JRA reporter gritted his teeth.
He had intended to use this opportunity to give Tokai Teio another round of publicity, but he never expected Musaka Ginjirou to directly position Teio as this Stardust Mirage's rival – wouldn't this make it seem like Teio was having her spotlight stolen by this local Uma Musume?!
No, absolutely not... If this news got out, he, having caused this backfire, would definitely be fired!
Thinking this, the reporter could no longer maintain basic decorum and directly retorted:
"But Tokai Teio is universally recognized as a central genius, even called [Successor to the Emperor] by many trainers! She has inherited the ability of that [Emperor] Rudolf Symbol! How can this local Uma Musume possibly be compared to Tokai Teio?!"
Upon hearing this, Musaka Ginjirou and Oguri Cap looked at each other, both simultaneously smiling.
Oguri Cap reached over and took the microphone, her eyes fixed on the questioning reporter as she said:
"Remember to report my next words exactly as I say them—"
"You just said my late kick left a deep impression on you, right?"
Oguri Cap's eyes emitted a beast-like aura, enveloping the reporter before her.
This URA reporter had never experienced the pressure emitted by a top-tier Uma Musume before; his legs trembled as he barely managed to remain standing, and he nodded.
"But that running style, I learned it from Stardust Mirage."
"If you've seen her race footage, you'd know that as early as her first debut race over half a month ago, Stardust Mirage nearly beat Tokai Teio using this very running style."
The first late kick acceleration that sealed Oguri Cap's victory in the final Arima Kinen was actually learned from her?!
All the reporters present began whispering among themselves.
They could tell this wasn't something Oguri Cap just made up, as race footage certainly couldn't be falsified.
But... how could a Uma Musume who just debuted have a running style that could help a leading-era runner like Oguri Cap?
Could this be the reason they believe Stardust Mirage can become Tokai Teio's rival?!
During the previous half-month of interaction, while preparing for the Arima Kinen and striving to break her limits in this race, Oguri Cap focused on training and didn't have extensive exchanges with Stardust Mirage. The times they got along well were mostly just eating meals together.
But that didn't mean Oguri Cap didn't consider her a comrade.
Or perhaps, in Oguri Cap's view, any Uma Musume willing to eat and drink heartily with her every day and train seriously alongside her was enough to be considered a friend.
And now, it was time for her to do something for her friend—
Facing the URA reporter who looked utterly incredulous, Oguri Cap, holding the microphone, continued to speak:
"You just said—Tokai Teio is called the [Second Generation Emperor], [The Undefeated Genius], and everyone believes she can inherit President Rudolph's glory. So, Stardust Mirage cannot be compared to her, right?"
"Correct." The URA reporter gritted his teeth as he replied.
His mind was completely blank, but the only thing he knew was that he absolutely could not let today's events become his solo clown show. At the very least, he had to drag down a local horse girl who overestimated herself!
"Alright then, let me tell you something now."
Oguri Cap scanned all the reporters present, then continued speaking:
"Stardust Mirage... I, Oguri Cap, declare that she will inherit all my glory as [Oguri Cap the Second] and run in the upcoming races."
"Now I ask you, Mr. URA reporter—"
Oguri Cap's voice exploded, startling the reporter so much that he fell to the ground. However, neither Oguri Cap nor Musaka Ginjirou intended to let off this guy who casually looked down on others. Oguri Cap pressed on aggressively:
"—Does [Oguri Cap the Second], Stardust Mirage, have the qualification to become the rival of [Second Generation Emperor] Tokai Teio?"
This bombshell finally drove all the reporters completely wild!
Note: I'm new to translating so please be kind and tell me any mistakes you all find, I will try to release a chapter a day but don't expect much
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