Chapter 266: The First Preliminary Round
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 266: The First Preliminary Round
Long before the founding of the Beastkin United Nation of Vestia, back when the beastkin lived in their own separate tribes, there was a horse tribe that roamed freely across the vast plains.
Among them, the Swift family was famous for producing the finest steeds. Calling themselves the descendants of the gale, they were by far the fastest of the horse tribe, proving their nickname was no empty boast.
Their running form was said to be like the gale itself. This was an eyewitness account passed down unchanged for ages.
The glory of the Swift family did not end in the past but continued to the present day, and Lua, standing before Miro, was proof of that.
She had the Swift family's symbolic, lustrous, dark gray coat, as well as the blue metal rings on the tips of her long, thin horse-like ears and the silver braids adorning her clothes.
Lua Swift.
The scion of the finest horse family.
A third-year student at Beastialis Academy.
She was known as the "Noble Lady Who Summons the Gale."
Befitting her grand title, her grades were naturally at the top of the academy. Miro was also a prodigy, in the top one percent, but between them existed a great, insurmountable wall.
Not only was there a clear difference in skill, but she was also Miro's senior.
Top student.
From a prestigious family.
A senior.
Though respected by all the students at the academy, Miro found Lua uncomfortable. Because this person…
“Miro, I heard you dropped out of the academy. I thought you ran away because you were upset about losing to me, but you’re back?”
…had such a terrible personality.
“Senior Lua…”
“It can’t be for re-enrollment, so don’t tell me you came to participate in the race?”
“I did! What do you mean, ‘don’t tell me’? Am I not allowed to participate?”
“Any horse beastkin can… no, any mare can participate, but let’s be honest, Miro, you’re not a contender for the championship, are you? You must be busy taking care of your younger siblings. Is it really okay to waste your time on something like this?”
Lua picked at Miro’s painful reality like a pair of tweezers, but Miro knew. She knew it wasn’t a question laced with ill intent, but one of one-hundred-percent pure naivety.
What people would call clueless.
In other words, she was a person who lacked the basic etiquette one should observe between people.
Lua didn’t know how to read the room or consider another’s feelings.
She never needed to learn.
Because she was in a position where she never had to be mindful of anyone.
A young lady who grew up being pampered. As someone in the complete opposite position, Miro was often hurt by Lua’s malice-free way of speaking.
“You don’t have to worry about it, Senior! We’ll handle our family matters ourselves, so stay out of it.”
“As your senior, how could I not worry about an incompetent junior? Of course, I have to look after you. Anyway, it’s really nice to see you after so long, Miro! You feel the same, right?”
“Yeah, right.”
What’s so nice about it?
Anyway, she was a difficult person to deal with.
“So why are you participating, Senior? You’re well-off enough without doing this kind of thing.”
“For the revival of my family. If I win here, I can show everyone the greatness of the Swift family, and by extension, all horse beastkin.”
The revival of the horse beastkin.
For Miro, who struggled just to get by day to day, it was a grand goal she couldn’t even imagine.
“Contestant Miro, are you here?”
“Ah, yes!”
“Here, take your uniform.”
At the staff member’s call, Miro received a numbered uniform.
It was number 7.
The middle lane.
It was a pretty good position.
The inner gate allowed for the shortest path into the corner, but it was highly congested and carried a greater risk of being blocked.
The outer gate was at a disadvantage in distance when entering the corner, but the longer path allowed for more acceleration, making it advantageous for those confident in their initial spurt.
Finally, the middle gate allowed for the freedom to choose a line, whether aiming for the front, the back, or the middle. Miro was most familiar with this one.
A good start, huh?
The corners of Miro’s mouth curved up slightly.
“Oh my, Miro. You’re number 7? What a coincidence! I’m number 8. We’re right next to each other!”
Maybe… not such a good start after all.
“Group B’s race will begin shortly. All contestants, please come to the track.”
“Shall we go?”
“Yeah…”
The sixteen contestants, including Miro, walked out onto the track. Outside, the Group A race was in full swing. Far more people were watching than at the racetrack she had gone to with Karami.
She’d expected it to draw more attention than other places since this was the beastkin homeland, but she hadn’t imagined it would be this much.
Next to the trembling Miro, Lua beamed and waved her hand.
“To think all these people came to see me. How deeply moving.”
Paying no mind to whatever Lua was saying, Miro scanned the stands. Then she spotted Karami’s group gathered in one spot.
She instinctively started to wave back at them but stopped and lowered her hand. They weren’t close enough to smile and exchange cheers.
“Waaaaaah!”
A roar erupted from the crowd.
The Group A race had just ended.
“Group B contestants, please enter the gates.”
Following the announcement, the contestants entered the gates one by one.
Unlike the last racetrack, which was built for simple entertainment, the academy’s facilities were excellent. The metal gates were designed to open automatically at the start.
Standing in the narrow gate, which could barely fit one person, she was struck anew by the reality that the race was about to begin.
“Miro, don’t push yourself too hard. You’re no match for this, okay?”
Miro did her best to ignore Lua’s unintentional mental attack.
If Miro, who was skilled enough to be considered for a scholarship, was treated like this, how on earth were the students below her treated?
Probably not like horses, but like bugs.
It must be horrible.
-All 16 contestants have entered the gates. The Group B preliminary round will begin shortly.
Miro got into position.
Just after the announcer’s voice faded, the gates swung open without any other signal. Sixteen horse beastkin shot out at once.
-The Group B preliminary has begun! Numbers 14 and 5 bolt forward right from the start! It’s a fierce competition for the lead!
-Right from the start, you can see the difference in reaction times between the contestants. It must be the students trained at the academy versus those who weren’t, right?
-That’s right. There are several Beastialis students mixed into Group B, and if we were to pick one to watch, it would have to be this one: number 8, Lua Swift.
-The contestant right next to her, number 7 Miro, was also an outstanding prospect at the academy before she suddenly dropped out. It’s nice to see her again, and it’s quite a heartwarming sight to see a senior and junior running side-by-side.
Heartwarming my ass!
Miro complained inwardly at the announcer’s clueless chatter. No one who hadn’t run alongside Lua could know how uncomfortable it was.
It was a different kind of pressure than just having a skilled person next to her—it was because of her running style.
The participants weren’t ordinary horses, but horse beastkin with mana. They all possessed mana, allowing them to not only enhance their bodies but also use one or two special skills.
Befitting her title as a descendant of the gale, every time Lua’s feet touched the ground, the airflow would shift artificially, though so faintly that only a very sensitive person would notice.
However, Miro was one of those very sensitive people, and she could feel Lua’s wind. That slight breeze was incredibly distracting.
To make matters worse, they had the same running style: front-runner.
A position where they were forced to run together.
This is uncomfortable. Miro glanced around, found an open space, and slightly increased her pace to put some distance between herself and Lua.
Just when she thought she’d created enough space, she felt that unpleasant breeze again.
“Miro, where are you going?”
Lua had closed the distance Miro had just created.
“It’s been a while, so don’t run away. Run with me. I get energized when you’re running next to me, you know?”
“You’re not supposed to energize your competition!”
“Don’t run away, Miro!”
“It’s because of you, Senior!”
-Ah, contestants Miro and Lua! They’ve suddenly picked up the pace and are starting to pull ahead! Both are runners who prefer to spurt in the mid-to-late race, but are they already competing for the lead?
Panicked by Lua, a common rival to watch out for, the other contestants also began to pick up their pace.
Their pre-planned strategies vanished in a tangled mess, and the race devolved into a stampede of wild horses running blindly forward.
Only the experienced veterans could flexibly handle the unexpected situation. While increasing their speed to not fall too far behind the leaders, they conserved their energy by hiding behind the frantically running contestants.
The gap in skill between the contestants became starkly clear.
The contestants caught up in Miro and Lua’s rampage lost their pace and fell behind. The pack of horses stretched out long from front to back.
The instigators of this situation, Miro and Lua, were running side-by-side in 7th and 8th place. Miro glanced back and saw Lua sticking close behind her.
“Miro, you seem faster than I remember. Did you do some special training after leaving the academy?”
“…”
“Hmph, you don’t want to talk? Well, I can’t help that. But Miro.”
Lua’s innocent, young-lady-like atmosphere changed in an instant.
The airflow changed with it.
“You can’t go all out, can you?”
Before Miro could even flinch, Lua broke into a spurt. She passed Miro and raced far ahead.
-In the middle of the third and fourth corners! Lua Swift’s favorite section! As if she was waiting for it, Lua Swift accelerates and charges forward with terrifying speed! A single gale pierces through the front-runners one by one!
Only four could advance to the next round.
When she came to her senses, the race was entering its latter half.
At this rate, she’d be eliminated.
Miro started to run after her.
-Miro starts to accelerate from the inside, chasing after Lua!
-The cutoff is just four, only four! Who will advance to the next round! As I speak, Lua Swift has already overtaken the lead?!
-Miro, chasing her respected senior, has also retaken 2nd place in an instant! The two contestants who were in the middle of the pack have now taken 1st and 2nd, pulling far away from the main group!
-Is it these two again? Is it really these two again? Miro, will she overtake her senior here and show us a changing of the guard? Only 600 meters left! Not much farther to go!
Miro chased after Lua, her eyes fixed on her back.
The distance between them was one horse length.
About 400 meters left to the finish line.
She still had plenty of energy.
She had enough to pass not just in the qualifying ranks, but in first place.
If I can just overtake that back I’ve always been watching…!
The moment Miro put power into a great stride…
“Ugh?”
A sharp pain shot through her back.
The pain traveled up her spine and made her head ring.
Her balance wavered greatly.
-Ah, what is this! Was it a mistake to push her pace so hard in the beginning? Miro’s speed is dropping drastically! The gap between her and Lua widens! One horse length, two horse lengths, three horse lengths!
-The runners behind her don’t miss their chance, fiercely chasing the faltering Miro! At this rate, even advancing to the next round is in jeopardy!
Miro forced her pain-ridden body to move. The other contestants passed her by.
-Lua Swift! The wind always blows for her! She crosses the finish line in first place with an overwhelming lead! Following her are Maxia and Tirumine in second and third! Miro barely makes it in fourth, advancing to the next race