This world was truly remarkably peaceful. International political conflicts were resolved entirely through athletic competitions. Because of this, joyous festivals and public events were a daily occurrence across the country. Every time Mejiro McQueen stepped outside, she couldn't help but marvel at how much this reality felt like a literal fairy tale.
Given that the Three Goddesses actively watched over this world, such a utopian prosperity made perfect sense.
"McQueen, here. It is my absolute favorite, the Extra-Concentrated Special Honey Drink." Tokai Teio handed her a brightly colored cup.
McQueen blinked in surprise before tentatively accepting the beverage. "Thank you."
Truthfully, she had almost completely forgotten about this iconic, sugary concoction that appeared so frequently in the anime.
Normally, she strictly consumed only sports drinks, black tea, or bitter black coffee. Ever since she was reborn, she rarely touched anything overly sweet.
She knew her body possessed a terrifying, innate predisposition for rapid weight gain.
She gently wrapped her lips around the straw and took a small sip. In an instant, an explosion of absolute, sugary perfection assaulted her taste buds.
Watching McQueen's eyes literally sparkle like a shy little girl experiencing her first candy, Tokai Teio couldn't help but let out a silly, infatuated giggle.
Damn it. How does McQueen possess this kind of gap-moe charm?!
Teio's staring was far too intense. McQueen immediately snapped back to reality.
She forcefully plastered a look of total indifference across her face to cover up her reaction.
"Hmph. A commoner's beverage! Still, I suppose it is... acceptable."
Tokai Teio just stared at her.
Apologize to me and the Special Honey Drink right now. That is literally the number one most popular beverage among all Uma Musume!
However, seeing McQueen's ears and tail twitching happily betrayed the girl's true feelings. Teio instantly forgave her.
McQueen was supposed to be a cold, unapproachable aristocrat, yet her animalistic traits made her look incredibly cute.
Teio quickly shook her head. No, finding McQueen cute was a terrifyingly dangerous line of thought.
This was the cold-blooded, ruthless Mejiro McQueen!
She was the Great Demon Lord who struck fear into the hearts of an entire generation of racers. She was the tyrant who was so intimidating she barely had any friends!
"Let us go. We need to regroup with the Trainer," McQueen said, sounding noticeably flustered.
Curse it all. This body truly had zero resistance against the temptation of sugar.
A single cup of a special honey drink had nearly caused her to completely surrender her dignity.
My body is way too easy to bribe!
But she absolutely refused to fall into this sweet, caloric trap. She would never allow herself to devolve into the "Chubby Filly" from the game!
"Alright," Teio chirped, a thoughtful look in her eyes.
She felt like she had just uncovered one of McQueen's greatest secrets.
Whenever she saw McQueen casually sipping horribly bitter black coffee, she assumed the girl just had eccentric, mature tastes. Today, she realized McQueen loved sweets just as much as she did. The aristocratic facade was just her forcing herself to exercise extreme dietary restraint.
How pitiful, McQueen. Is this the heavy burden of being a noble lady?
Tokai Teio had completely misunderstood the situation.
Walking slightly ahead, McQueen stared hesitantly at the drink in her hands.
Just one cup should be fine, right? My weight is perfectly optimized right now. And it is not like I eat greasy or sugary foods on a regular basis.
Having been thoroughly tortured by physical breakdowns in the simulation, McQueen prioritized her bodily health above all else.
Her daily meals were strictly regimented nutritional courses designed by the Mejiro family's professional dietitians. Because of this, her physical data was drastically superior to her canonical counterpart, provided no one brought up her completely flat chest.
"Look! It is Lady McQueen and the Hero, Tokai Teio!"
The two superstars were quickly recognized by the festival tourists. In a matter of seconds, a massive crowd swarmed around them, completely blocking their path.
"...Teio! Guard me!"
McQueen instantly took a step back, shoving Teio in front of her like a physical meat shield. Her other major weakness was a profound hatred of being in close proximity to massive crowds. It was the exact reason she refused to take public transit like a normal person. To her, a packed train was literal hell.
"McQueen, stop pushing me! Everyone, please calm down! You are going to scare McQueen!" Teio yelled over the noise.
"Who is scared?! Teio, you idiot!"
"Then stop hiding behind me!"
"I-I am simply giving you a chance to show off! You love the spotlight, don't you?!"
"You really are stubborn to the bitter end, McQueen!"
Surprisingly, the surging crowd calmed down almost immediately. The terrifying mob crush McQueen envisioned never materialized.
"You heard the Hero! Stop pushing! If any of you startle our Lady McQueen, the Knights of Mejiro Castle will be the first to beat you down!"
Hearing a hardcore fan completely decked out in her official merchandise shout those words left McQueen's mind full of question marks.
Since when did her family command an obsessive fan militia called the Knights of Mejiro Castle? Still, it seemed the citizens of this world were remarkably self-aware and polite. Seeing the joyous, excited gazes of the crowd devoid of any predatory or boundary-crossing behavior brought her a deep sense of relief.
The main reason she despised crowds was that the toxic fanbases of her previous reality had completely ruined her perception of the public.
But this was the Uma Musume world. It truly was a fairy tale.
In the end, only a few designated fan representatives and young horse girls stepped forward to politely ask for autographs. Everyone simply wanted to express their admiration, congratulate McQueen on her Undefeated Triple Crown, and cheer for Teio's eventual return to the turf.
Interacting with fans like this miraculously washed away a large portion of McQueen's social anxiety.
The crowd quickly dispersed.
No one wanted to aggressively intrude on their festival date, though many people still sneaked admiring glances their way from afar.
"Are you alright, McQueen?" Teio asked with genuine concern.
McQueen immediately restored her flawless, aristocratic mask. "What are you talking about? Of course I am fine. I am Mejiro McQueen. Nothing in this world can trouble me."
"Sure, let's go with that," Teio smiled. She felt like McQueen's flawless image had already been thoroughly shattered today.
But she didn't dislike it. In fact, this slightly clumsy, stubborn version of McQueen made it even harder to look away from her.
Teio honestly didn't know why she was so completely captivated by Mejiro McQueen anymore.
She remembered the very beginning. She had merely heard rumors of another rookie who was being hailed as a peerless genius. Out of sheer curiosity, she investigated the girl and watched her Debut Race footage. Seeing that aloof, goddess-like prodigy utterly obliterate the course record had ignited Teio's own competitive fire. But back then, she hadn't truly comprehended the sheer, terrifying scale of McQueen's power.
The second time was shortly after Teio's own debut. Trainer P played the broadcast of McQueen's second race, the Hopeful Stakes. In that 2000-meter G1 event, McQueen brutally eliminated a field of senior horse girls by an overwhelming, humiliating distance.
That was the exact moment Teio realized the truth. Mejiro McQueen was stronger than her. But her pride refused to accept it. When she learned McQueen was targeting the Classic Triple Crown, she didn't feel fear. She felt ecstatic. It was the perfect opportunity to crush the demon lord and prove her own absolute superiority!
Then came the Satsuki Sho. Their first true clash.
It was the very track where Teio's grand dream was violently extinguished.
Yet, she wasn't particularly bitter about the result anymore. She had made her peace with it. What she couldn't forget, however, was the burning, explosive passion that flooded her heart during that final sprint. The desperate, all-consuming desire to surpass Mejiro McQueen.
If I want to race her so badly, why am I so terrified to run at full speed now?
Thinking about her current psychological block caused Teio's cheerful mood to plummet.
Fortunately, McQueen was absolutely terrible at reading the room and completely failed to notice her rival's sudden depression.
The two of them arrived at the designated meeting spot.
Trainer P and the others were already waiting. Oguri Cap had already started aggressively feasting.
"McQueen! Teio! Over here!" Trainer P waved them down.
As they approached, the very first thing they noticed was the towering, structurally unsound mountain of empty bento boxes stacked next to Oguri Cap.
"Uh, Senior Oguri, are you even going to be able to walk after this?"
Teio stared at Oguri's visibly distended stomach, a massive drop of sweat rolling down her cheek.
Oguri Cap didn't say a word. She simply gave a firm thumbs-up, indicating this light snack would in no way impede her physical mobility.
Teio couldn't bear to look at her anymore.
When she first joined Team Sirius, she genuinely believed Senior Oguri was a cool, stoic, legendary master of the turf.
Now, that filter was completely shattered. After finishing her final Twinkle Series race, the legendary Oguri Cap had effectively devolved into the team's gluttonous, bottomless-pit mascot. Teio couldn't even visualize what Oguri looked like on the track anymore. Her most defining mental image was just Oguri sitting around with a massive food baby.
Trainer P kept insisting Oguri was somehow stronger now than she was in her prime. Teio found that incredibly hard to believe.
During their team practices, Oguri never bothered to run serious lap times. Was their trainer secretly nurturing the great Oguri Cap into a completely useless freeloader?!
"Teio, McQueen, have you two drawn your fortunes yet?" Trainer P asked.
Both girls shook their heads.
"Let's go draw some Omikuji, then."
"Sounds fun!" Teio cheered.
"Very well," McQueen agreed.
The group walked up to the main shrine. They tossed their coins into the offering box, made their silent wishes, and headed to the Omikuji booth. They all opened their paper slips at the same time.
Oguri Cap drew a Good Blessing. Silence Suzuka drew a Small Blessing. Trainer P drew a Great Blessing, and Tokai Teio also drew a Great Blessing.
As for Mejiro McQueen, she stared down at her paper.
She had drawn a Great Curse!
"Eh? Your face looks terrible, McQueen. Did you pull a bad fortune?"
Teio leaned over and peeked at the paper. Her eyes widened at the two massive, blood-red characters stamped on the page.
"A-A Great Curse?! I have never actually seen anyone pull one of those in real life!"
"Ridiculous! It is nothing but a piece of paper! I, Mejiro McQueen, do not believe in such baseless superstitions!" McQueen shouted, aggressively trying to save face.
It was true that she wouldn't have cared in her old reality. But the terrifying problem was that actual, literal deities existed in this world!
Was this an actual divine curse?!
She deeply regretted ever agreeing to draw a fortune.
Where was the time machine? She needed to go back five minutes and punch her past self!
"...Do you want to trade? Look, the great Teio pulled a Great Blessing!" Teio offered gently.
Hearing Teio's pity, McQueen instantly regained her cold composure. She sneered dismissively. "Keep it for yourself. Given how incredibly weak you are right now, if your luck gets any worse, you will never be able to fulfill your promise to race me again."
"Damn it! If you are going to be like that, I am not trading with you! Hmph!"
Despite the minor Omikuji incident, everyone thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the festival, and the bad fortune was quickly forgotten.
Time flew by, and the opening day of the Japan Cup finally arrived. This would be McQueen's very first race after claiming the Triple Crown.
The public's confidence in Mejiro McQueen was absolute. Her strength was undeniable, and her physical condition was flawless, having completely avoided the injury curses that plagued so many overworked champions. It was no exaggeration to say she was currently the strongest active Uma Musume in the Twinkle Series. The entire world fully expected her to claim yet another overwhelming victory.