Uma Musume Girl, I'll tell you about my Santa Hat special move too?

Doesn't he know that he's disturbing people?

But there's no way around it; if you want to climb the ladder, sometimes you need to be oblivious to the atmosphere.

His previous attempt to promote the debut match of the East Sea Emperor was quite successful, attracting a number of new spectators to the Zhongjing Racecourse in December.

However, the East Sea Emperor is ultimately a racehorse girl belonging to the Central Teresen Academy, and it's unlikely that she would cooperate much with the promotion for the sake of Zhongjing. She is a randomly spawning elite monster that can only be encountered by chance.

If it weren't for the popularity generated by the East Sea Emperor's debut battle, which gave everyone hope, under normal circumstances, a mere year-end undefeated level competition wouldn't be worth their attention at all.

The appearance of this extremely rare racehorse girl, Stardust Illusion, who led the entire race and won, naturally spread the name of Stardust Illusion far and wide.

You should know that this is a world blessed by the three goddesses, and almost all ordinary people pay attention to Uma Musume races, not to mention the hardcore fans who are already in the community.

Everyone knows that winning in a horse race might involve an element of luck, but to win by a large margin throughout the race and snatch victory by a single move is definitely not a coincidence.

In other words, Stardust Illusion's raw strength has already overwhelmed all the other contestants!

Not long after, inside the Zhongjing Racecourse Network Center.

The staff responsible for maintaining the official website and updating match videos are discussing the match videos that were just uploaded.

"That Stardust Illusion is definitely extraordinary; even the giants lost to it."

An employee slurping instant noodles nearby chimed in:

"Yeah, I heard that the giant, Daita Tendo, always crushes other racehorse girls in training sessions in the region, and there are even rumors that he might be recruited into the Central Academy... I never expected that he would be completely overtaken by Stardust Illusion after only a few seconds of stalemate at the start."

"It was really powerful. That Stardust Illusion ran like a whirlwind, blowing everyone else away in a devastating manner."

"With this kind of strength, I think it's a sure thing that she'll be competing in classic races in the future. That's great! Now our Zhongjing racehorse girl will have another star to her name!"

"She doesn't seem to be a student at the Zhongjing Horse Training Academy, does she? I remember she's from the countryside..."

"So what? She's a local racehorse girl, debuting in Zhongjing. Who would object if she's from Zhongjing?"

"Hey, I remember she was only half a horse length behind East Sea Emperor in her debut race last time. Plus, she led by 10 horse lengths the whole time this time. Stardust Illusion has had such exciting races in both of her races. Isn't our racecourse going to see another surge in popularity?"

Before the employee could finish speaking, everyone seemed to suddenly realize something and hurriedly checked the website's video recording data.

Online popularity is a significant component of race popularity, and with the increasing development of the internet, it is becoming increasingly important. A breakthrough in this area would have a tremendous impact on the Zhongjing Racecourse.

And this match recording... might just be the catalyst for a big surprise?

"It's gone up! The number of visitors has increased a lot!"

The employees sitting in front of the computers immediately moved aside, exposing the back-end panel to others.

"It's really gone up... It's only been half an hour, and already several thousand people have watched the recording of this match?"

Even her last match against the Emperor of the East Sea gained over a thousand more views!

The network center manager exclaimed in surprise and ran straight out to the administrator's office.

He knew all too well how long that beer-bellied manager had been racking his brains trying to boost the racetrack's popularity!

Chapter Twenty-Three: The Appearance is About to Be Announced [Third Update]

"Because I was too exhausted from the entire escape, it's perfectly reasonable that I can't go to the winner's stage, right?"

At this moment, Stardust Illusion is arguing with the staff.

She really didn't want to go on the winner's stage. Although doing so would also win people's applause and even affection, dancing in a little skirt was simply something she couldn't do!

"But this time you made a big escape, and everyone is really looking forward to seeing your performance costume."

The person persuading her was a female staff member named Koharu Furuya. In fact, the two knew each other; she was the one who gave Stardust Illusion a massage last time.

For this reason, Stardust Illusion couldn't refuse too inhumanely; they could only appeal to their emotions and reason to avoid giving off a bad reputation.

"There will be an opportunity for performance costumes sooner or later. Don't G1 level events require participants to wear performance costumes?"

"You want to keep avoiding the winners' stage until you participate in G1?!"

Koharu Furuya finally understood the girl's plan and was immediately astonished.

She had never heard of a racehorse girl who, despite eagerly signing up, resisted the winner's podium like this. That was a place where only the true victor could display their prowess; one could say that the entire race wasn't complete without it. How could someone be willing to race but not want to stand on the podium?!

"I have my own difficulties." Stardust Illusion was also helpless. She couldn't very well say that her pride as a transmigrator wouldn't allow her to become an idol, could she?

"But--"

"Alright, Xiaochun, let me tell you what's going on next."

The sound from outside the door interrupted their conversation. Xiaochun turned her head and saw her boss, the manager of Zhongjing Racecourse, standing at the door with a beaming smile.

"You can come out first." The manager, with his beer belly sticking out, cheerfully waved to the woman, signaling her to leave.

"I am Lin Yongyi, the manager of Zhongjing Racecourse."

Beer Belly first politely introduced himself to Stardust Illusion, who was still confused about the situation, before sitting down in the seat opposite her and starting to ask her about her well-being with a smile:

"Is it because you fought too hard in the race that you can't participate in the winner's stage? It's okay, I'll have someone go and coordinate it. Anyway, it's just a non-victorious race. What's the winner's stage compared to the health of a racehorse girl?"

Stardust Illusion felt uneasy looking at the slightly fawning smile on the middle-aged man's face.

Just moments ago, she was trying to persuade the organizers to let her escape the winner's stage, but now this man readily agreed, making Stardust Illusion feel that there was some kind of conspiracy...

"Is it really okay if I don't participate?"

"Of course, our Chukyo Racecourse has always prioritized the physical condition of our racehorse girls!"

The beer-bellied man quickly made a guarantee, and then, right in front of her, he made a phone call ordering his subordinates to coordinate the matter.

After putting down his phone, he put on that slightly obsequious smile again and said:

"Are you relieved now? But since you're not participating in the winner's stage, I might have a small favor I need your help with, Stardust Illusion. Is that alright?"

Upon hearing the man make his request, Stardust Illusion secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Since he needed her help, at least she didn't have to worry about him having any bad intentions.

"Here's the thing, there's a press conference after today's match. Originally, we planned to interview all the participants after the winners' stage, but since you can't go on stage right now, why don't you help out by answering some questions for the reporters?" the beer-bellied man continued.

"Just a reporter's interview?"

The stardust illusion confirmed its opening.

After all, if one had to choose one, a reporter's interview would be far better than the winner's stage.

"It's like this, it seems like some media outlets from the Nagoya area wanted to interview Uma Musume, so...?"

Stardust Illusion couldn't help but laugh as he looked at the middle-aged man with a beer belly that was much bigger than his own two lifetimes combined.

What? He seems like a good person?

Her initial wariness of him vanished instantly, and she confirmed his intentions.

Stardust Vision is aware that the Nakajo Racecourse has been trying to increase its popularity in order to host G1-level classic races.

In fact, in the future before the time travel, the Chukyo Racecourse did indeed host the short-distance G1 turf race called the Takamatsu-nomiya Memorial after several years of hard work.

So, are they trying to use me to liven things up?

Use this match to announce your entry into your goal!

Stardust Illusion couldn't help but recall Ginjiro Rokuhei's words, and then nodded at the beer belly:

"Then let's go now, and I will give you a satisfactory answer."

"There's one more thing."

Seeing Stardust Illusion stand up and walk out, Beer Belly quickly called her back and continued, "It's like this, Stardust Illusion, you come from a rural academy, right?"

“Yes,” Stardust Illusion replied.

"Have you ever considered joining the racehorse girl academy at Chukyo Racecourse? I mean... as a racehorse girl who debuted in Chukyo, we can offer you a lot of conveniences, but in exchange—you'll have to identify yourself as a racehorse girl from Chukyo in other places in the future, how about that?"

Stardust Illusion looked at the beer belly in front of him, somewhat puzzled as to why the other party would go to such lengths to impress him:

"I only participated in two competitions, right? Is it really necessary to do so much?"

The man with the beer belly chuckled, immediately realizing the other person understood him too, and then proceeded to explain:

“Since you know what we mean, it’s even easier to explain. This is an investment, you understand? Places like Kasamatsu have become very popular because of Oguri Hat… We want to do the same.”

"Oguri Hat? Do you really think my potential can compare to that of a monster like Oguri Hat?"

Upon hearing this, the beer-bellied man's smile widened even further.

"You can do it! I trust my judgment. Your best running style is escaping, right? That kind of running style has always been the most attractive to the audience."

And your potential was clearly demonstrated in both matches; even His Majesty the Emperor has already specially recruited you into Central Teresen Academy, hasn't he?

"Do you know about the special recruitment?" Stardust Illusion asked in surprise. "Then you should know that I'm going to report for duty early next year, so there's no way I can stay and promote Zhongjing much... Ah, so that's why you asked me to call myself a racehorse girl from Zhongjing Racecourse from now on?"

The beer-bellied man smiled without saying a word.

Although he often treats the female racehorses with humility, as the boss of this racetrack, he is also very shrewd.

By openly presenting the situation to Stardust Illusion and explaining this mutually beneficial arrangement, he was certain she would not refuse.

Ultimately, this does nothing to harm the Stardust Illusion.

Even someone with a beer belly isn't stupid enough to do something so short-sighted. As long as she agrees, they will fully support all her demands and cooperate with her in cultivating her public image.

Then we'll package this racehorse girl as a star athlete, have her participate in races step by step, and boost her popularity.

The woman with the beer belly was certain that she would generate even greater profits for the racetrack.

"I think we should leave this matter for after the interview."

The Stardust Illusion was silent for a moment, then laughed.

She patted her beer-bellied shoulder and walked out first.

"What's the meaning?!"

Beer Belly was extremely surprised. He turned around in astonishment, wanting to know what Stardust Illusion was planning.

However, all he saw was the other person waving their hand behind their back, then turning and leaving the room, leaving behind only one sentence:

"It's nothing. You'll understand the details after you hear the interview."