Umamusume's days are numbered

Episode 31 Side Roll

"Wow, so fast! These two are definitely destined rivals!" Holding up his binoculars, Golden Ship's gaze followed the two figures on the field. "McQueen, what are your thoughts now?"

“I feel…” Megumi McQueen held up his phone, sweat pouring down his face, “We need to get them to stop right away.”

Huff, huff.

What a wonderful feeling!

Even though the race has only just begun, I already feel tired. This is proof of uneven energy distribution.

The Emperor of the East Sea glanced at the platinum figure beside him.

However, the other party is the same.

Neither side was willing to slow down, and neither side was willing to let the other stand in front of them.

Just like that, keep accelerating, accelerating, accelerating!

The Emperor of the East Sea could feel his leg bones throbbing and the muscles in his legs howling in pain.

But she also felt an unprecedented joy.

—So, I can actually run this fast.

And, it's not just that.

If I could always stand by Platinum's side —

I can be even faster!

We're almost at the first bend, okay, let's speed up again here—

Now that things have come to this, all the distracting thoughts in the Eastern Sea Emperor's mind have vanished. Only genuine joy and confidence remain within her.

I can do it!

Similarly, platinum can do it too!

Right now —

At the first bend, the East Sea Emperor did not see Platinum. Instead, she heard a heavy thud behind her.

...Eh?

what happened?

The Emperor of the East Sea did not react immediately.

She ran a few more steps before slowly stopping, and only then did the shouts from the audience reach the ears of the Emperor of the East Sea.

"They've broken free—Platinum has broken free—"

"She rushed over the fence—can Platinum still move—"

Could it be that···

The Emperor of the East Sea turned around in disbelief.

Two footprints meandered across the meadow. One light, graceful footprint gracefully circled the bend and extended all the way to the feet of the Emperor of the East Sea. The other, a footprint with tremendous force, almost completely submerged in the grass, left a noticeable scratch mark as it rounded the bend, running from the inner path to the outer path, and then uncontrollably extending towards the outer fence.

Following the footprints, we finally saw Platinum lying motionless outside the fence.

In the audience, McQueen gripped his phone tightly and gasped in surprise.

"Oh no, oh no, what are we going to do..." Special Zhou could only worry anxiously, "Trainer, where is the trainer?"

"Never mind those things for now—"

While everyone else was in a panic, Golden Boat threw the binoculars into Vodka's arms, then grabbed the fence of the stands and climbed over. The stands were nearly two meters higher than the grass, and Golden Boat didn't hesitate for a moment as he stomped his feet on the grass with a dull thud.

Then, after immediately coming to a stop, the golden ship sped off towards the platinum ship.

Overwhelmed with surprise and shock, the Emperor of the East Sea stood frozen in place, utterly bewildered.

What happened to Bai Jin?

Did she rush over the fence?

What would happen if it broke through the fence?

It went around the bend at such, such high speed, and crashed uncontrollably into the fence... and was then flipped over.

Is your ankle injured?

Broken bone?

Or... is he dead?

The Eastern Sea Emperor felt her vision gradually blurring. She looked down and saw her own feet.

It's something you absolutely have to do to accelerate on the curves.

It was his own doing that forced Platinum to catch up with him, to the point that he couldn't control his speed.

It was he who insisted on competing against Platinum.

From beginning to end, it was all a farce caused by myself. But others ended up bearing the consequences.

Will Platinum get hurt? Will it break a bone? Will it die? It's all because of itself.

It's all because of my own willfulness...

From initially harboring hostility towards Platinum, to blindly comparing themselves to Platinum, and finally accelerating their own pace, they never considered Platinum's interests at all.

Warm tears streamed down the face of the Eastern Sea Emperor as she stood on the grass, sobbing softly.

Realizing he was sobbing, the Emperor of the East Sea hurriedly wiped his eyes. But the more he wiped, the more tears flowed, and he couldn't get them away.

"I, I..."

I'm absolutely the worst. I'm nothing like the president, nothing like Platinum, nothing like anyone else.

Raising his head, the Emperor of the East Sea burst into tears.

"The Emperor! The Emperor!"

"Your Majesty, please stop crying!"

Someone was shaking the East Sea Emperor's shoulders vigorously. The East Sea Emperor looked at Megumi McQueen in front of him through teary eyes.

McQueen glared at the East Sea Emperor, but he wasn't angry because Platinum had gone off the track.

"You idiot! What good will your tears do? What's the use of blaming yourself now?"

"At this moment, shouldn't you, who are closest to Platinum, rush over to check on Platinum's injuries and try to minimize the damage? Have you forgotten what the trainer told you?"

"What's wrong with you today? You're nothing like the Emperor of the East Sea I remember!"

"Yes, right... Platinum..." The Emperor of the East Sea stared blankly at Whitey McQueen, then came to his senses as if waking from a dream. "Platinum, how is Platinum?"

At this moment, the golden ship had already reached Platinum's side. She first ran around Platinum once, and after confirming that she did not see any obvious external injuries, she shook Platinum's head.

"Hey, hey! Can you see clearly?" The golden ship held up three fingers in front of the platinum. "How many is this?"

"...Three?" Platinum, feeling dizzy from the fall, saw stars all around her.

"Seven monkeys on the ground and one monkey riding on a tree, how many monkeys are there in total?"

"...A riddle?"

"Fujino forgot his homework when he left home for school this morning, so he called his father to bring it to him. Fujino's walking speed is 50 kilometers per hour, and his father's walking speed is 70 kilometers per hour. Fujino had already walked for five minutes before telling his father, and at that time, Fujino was only three kilometers away from school. Can Fujino's father deliver the homework to Fujino before he arrives at school? If so, please write down the distance between Fujino and school. If not, please write down the time Fujino would spend waiting at the school gate after arriving."

"...Huh? Am I the one who's mentally unstable, or are you the one who's mentally unstable?"

"I'm tapping your calf now, does it hurt?"

"It hurts a little, no, it hurts a lot, could I have broken a bone...?"

"That's because I hit it hard." Gold Ship slapped Platinum's thigh. "Nothing's wrong with you, you're healthier than me."

After saying that, Golden Ship stood up and gave an OK sign to Megumi McQueen, Yamato Akama, and the others in the distance: "Don't worry, it's no problem. I'm familiar with this kind of thing, I can tell the answer every time."

Episode 32 What about me?

When Rudolph arrived at the scene, she saw the East Sea Emperor, whose face was covered in tears, being comforted by Whitey McQueen, and Platinum, who was being helped by the Golden Ship to walk limping to the audience.

It's over, it's all over, that was the only thought in Rudolf's mind.

Having just run three kilometers, and with the scene so overwhelming, Rudolf felt a wave of dizziness and nearly collapsed.

My heart hurts, and my stomach hurts too.

The undefeated emperor dies today on the green racetrack. I hope that in the future I can be buried in the snowy landscape of Hokkaido.

Golden Ship, quick-witted and outspoken, immediately shouted, "President, don't worry, Platinum's legs are tough. They're not even sprained, let alone broken."

"I was just a little frightened, but I'll be fine after a good night's sleep."

Upon hearing the words "Golden Ship," Rudolf felt as if his eyesight had cleared, his heart was no longer aching, and his legs were nimble again, allowing him to run another chrysanthemum viewing.

The golden ship, the miraculous healer!

Upon seeing the president arrive, the Emperor of the East Sea burst into tears again.

"Wow—President—"

"I'm a fool—I'm an idiot—"

Seeing the East Sea Emperor crying with tears streaming down his face, Rudolf, who had been somewhat angry, lost all his temper and quickly stepped forward to comfort him.

"Don't worry, Your Majesty. It's not your fault; it's just that my communication wasn't thorough enough."

"Having a desire to win is a very good thing."

"And you also heard what the Gold Ship said; there's nothing wrong with Platinum."

The Emperor of the East Sea shook his head repeatedly.

"That's not true at all, President, please don't try to excuse me..."

"I know my own ulterior motives; I never wanted to compete to see who was better..."

"I'm a despicable person, I don't deserve to race with the president—waaaaaah—"

What's going on again? In the past, if my opponents were running so hard on the track that their legs were about to break, I would just not turn around and give them the middle finger, and that would be considered a friendly race. Are the horse girls these days just too cute, or was I just too mean back then?

Watching the East Sea Emperor continuously drop small pearls, Rudolf symbolized even falling into self-doubt.

"—Listen up, Your Majesty!"

Rudolf suddenly shouted loudly. Perhaps startled by Rudolf's suddenly raised tone, the Emperor of the East Sea even stopped crying and stared blankly at Rudolf.

"What qualifications? You are the Emperor of the East Sea. Do you remember what you told me?"

"You're destined to become the Undefeated Triple Crown Girl! If you start to doubt yourself now, here, because of such a small setback, you have no right to inherit your name!"

As he said this, Rudolf's voice softened again, a smile appeared on his face, and he reached out to stroke the head of the East Sea Emperor.

"But, as I said, you are the Emperor of the East Sea."

"You are such a rising star, such a dazzling genius. So I believe you can do it—overcome the setbacks you encounter."

"Have a good cry if you really want to get rid of this guilt. But after you've cried, I hope I can see an East Sea Emperor who is the same as before, no, even better than before."

Rudolf symbolizes extending his little finger and kneeling halfway before the Emperor of the East Sea.

"After all, I'm still waiting for you up ahead."

"President..."

Looking at the president's little finger extended in front of him, the East Sea Emperor tremblingly extended his own little finger as well.

The president is indeed the president; he's always so handsome and always able to stand at the forefront and guide everyone.

Yes, the chairman is right, and Megumi McQueen is right too.

What's wrong with me today? I'm so indecisive and my mind is full of my own little thoughts.

Was it because the president signed Uma Musume? Did she think she wasn't the president's number one anymore, so she's being presumptuous and harboring resentment?