By conservative estimate, 97% of all umamusume enrolled in either a regional or central Tracen Academy.
Nearly every single one chose the racing path, even though fewer than 3% would ever make a name for themselves.
They poured in regardless—as if an umamusume’s life wasn’t complete without a trainer, without that moment of I want to run.
Even retired racers spoke of their Tracen years with nothing but fondness.
Nobody disliked umamusume racing.
These born athletes carried an almost supernatural magnetism.
The Eight Crown Races were national-level spectacles in Japan, with viewership climbing every year.
The public’s passion for umamusume had never wavered.
The only person who’d seen through the illusion was the one girl who looked like a child on the outside but had the battered soul of a corporate veteran: Toujou Kaisoku.
She understood the weight behind the dream, and she didn’t believe she could become part of that glittering 3%.
So she’d chosen a different track.
Literally.
“Another full practice exam in the books—” Kaisoku yawned and dropped the completed test paper onto her growing stack of trophies.
Her target was the liberal arts faculty at the University of Tokyo, which meant a crushing amount of rote memorization.
She’d been cramming Japanese history she’d never learned and, for reasons that defied explanation, Shinto mythology that somehow appeared on entrance exams.
The deities’ names were tongue-twisting nightmares, but she’d brute-forced every last one into memory.
She was now consulting the Kojiki more often than she went outside.
“You’re doing practice exams again, Kaisoku?
Take a break once in a while!” Kita was sprawled across Kaisoku’s bed, flipping through a manga during one of her frequent visits.
“Every time I come over you’re buried in test papers.
Is this really going to get you into Tōdai?”
“No idea.
But not doing it will definitely keep me out.” Kaisoku answered without looking up.
She’d gotten her hands on every available practice test and was grinding through them like a woman possessed.
The strategy was timeless: in an exam-based system, raw volume was king.
Her mind felt sharper than it had since the peak of senior year in her previous life.
Middle schooler brains were genuinely superior—even with the umamusume debuff of Impaired Theoretical Knowledge Retention, she was still outperforming her exhausted corporate-drone self.
“You’re basically guaranteed a spot at Central Tracen, right, Kita?”
“Yeah—but Duramente’s apparently getting in too.
Ugh, I still haven’t beaten her once.” Kita turned a page, mildly annoyed.
“At least once I’m at Central, I’ll get to meet my idol.”
“Your idol?”
“Oh, you have NO idea—” Kita rolled off the bed, eyes sparkling.
“Allow me to introduce the strongest rising star of our generation, the one umamusume they say could dethrone the great Symboli Rudolf herself—Tokai Teio!”
“Symboli Rudolf…
the seven-crown legend?” Kaisoku wasn’t totally clueless—Rudolf was a fixture on exam questions, the kind of figure who transcended racing and became cultural knowledge.
She and Oguri Cap were the two names that showed up most in test prep materials.
“She pops up on practice tests all the time.”
“See?
She’s literally a legend among umamusume.” Kita was in her element now.
“But Teio is incredible too!
She hasn’t debuted yet, but in the pre-Twinkle Series rookie circuit, Teio’s record is undefeated.
All the top commentators are calling her the next Undefeated Triple Crown winner.”
“Oh—” Kaisoku elongated the vowel with zero inflection.
“So I’ve got a new exam topic to memorize.”
“…Kaisoku, have the practice tests broken your brain?” Kita poked at the girl’s forehead with genuine concern.
“Also—didn’t you apply for early admission somewhere?
How’d that go?”
“Good news and bad news.
Which do you want first?”
Kita deliberated briefly and went with good news.
“The early admission went smoothly.
I got an offer from a competitive prep school in Tokyo.” Kaisoku shrugged.
“The exam was honestly easy.
Suspiciously easy.”
“That’s great!
So what’s the bad news?”
“They don’t want me in the college prep track.
They want me in their athletics department…” Kaisoku’s entire body had gone numb at the time.
“They had the audacity to tell me it was for my own good.
Honestly, if assaulting school administrators weren’t frowned upon, I’d probably have a disciplinary record right now.”
“…Rough.” Kita made sympathetic noises.
“So you turned them down?”
“Yeah.
I’ll probably have to settle for some random high school and self-study like crazy.
Or cram school…
except cram school fees are insane.” Kaisoku thought of her dwindling savings and the worry lines deepened.
“My enemy might actually be the entire education system…” Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
“Hey, chin up…
something will work out.” Kita was already thinking about how to help, but her family’s influence didn’t extend into the education sector, and she’d rather not pull family strings anyway.
“You’re amazing, Kaisoku.
You’ll get into Tōdai for sure.”
“Thanks, Kita.” Kaisoku rarely received this kind of encouragement, and her expression softened just a fraction.
“I won’t be going to Tracen, but I’ll never regret becoming friends with you and Dia.”
“Hehe~ Same!” Kita grinned.
“Oh—does Tōdai even have an early admissions track?”
“Theoretically, yes.
If you had a recommendation from a Tōdai professor, you could potentially sit a special entrance exam early.
But I don’t have those kinds of connections.” Kaisoku thought for a moment, then nodded.
“Why?”
“I was just thinking—if someone showed up out of the blue and offered you a shot at Tōdai’s early admissions, would you take it?”
“I’m still a middle schooler.
Is that kind of leap even possible?” Kaisoku raised an eyebrow.
“But if the opportunity actually existed, you’d have to be an idiot to pass it up.”
“Who says it’s impossible—”
The dorm room door swung open.
And the very Symboli Rudolf they’d been discussing walked in, as if summoned by the conversation itself.
She stood in the doorway, smiling, radiating an aura that compressed the tiny dorm room into something much smaller.
“Toujou Kaisoku.
A pleasure to meet you.
Though for me, this is technically the second time.”
“…Ru—Rudolf?!” Kaisoku’s soul nearly left her body.
The visual was equivalent to debating whether Beckham or Messi was better and having Messi open your door to ask, Did someone say my name?
Or discussing Tiga versus Dyna and Daigo Madoka walking in holding the Sparklence.
A living legend of umamusume racing—why was she materializing in a middle school dorm?
“And me!
Tokai Teio, in the flesh!” Behind Rudolf, another girl in a Tracen uniform bounced into view, demanding her share of the spotlight.
Kaisoku snuck a glance at Kita—who had frozen stiff, apparently on the verge of an allergic reaction.
She was on her own.
And the Giant of Light—no, Rudolf—was clearly here for her.
“Um…
Rudolf-senpai, Teio-senpai, what brings you here?” Kaisoku’s legs were trembling, but she forced the words out.
“Just came to see you.
Remember that race at the Satono private facility a few days ago?” Rudolf got straight to the point.
“A wonderful race.
The rain was unfortunate, but your performance was outstanding.
Both of you.
It’s been a long time since I’ve seen this kind of raw talent.”
“Oh—you’re here for Kita, right?” Kaisoku connected the dots immediately.
Kita’s talent must have caught Rudolf’s eye.
“Don’t mind me, I’ll get out of your way—”
“You’re not going anywhere.” Rudolf cut off her escape route.
Kaisoku threw her hands up like a cornered French soldier.
“I’m staying, I’m staying.
Please don’t stand so close, senpai.
Maintain social distancing.
My heart can’t take this.”
“Ha.
Your sense of humor is as sharp as advertised.” Rudolf softened her tone slightly.
“Kitasan Black’s results were impressive too, and she’s certainly talented.
But you were the one who caught my attention.
Your running form and your something special left a deep impression.
I believe you have a genuine gift, which is why I came in person.
Do you understand what I’m saying?”
“…I’m pretty sure there’s been a misunderstanding.” Kaisoku waved her hands frantically.
She had zero intention of going to Tracen.
Her art school experience had taught her that dreams existed to be crushed, and they probably tasted worse than those cheap popsicles from the corner store.
“I’m just an ordinary umamusume.
Where’s this talk of talent coming from?”
“Humility is a fine quality in a racer.
But excessive humility becomes its own form of arrogance.” Rudolf’s gaze was unwavering.
“Can you truly not feel how extraordinary your talent is?
That Final Spurt—if you hadn’t decelerated earlier, and the track hadn’t been drenched, you would have won outright.”
“…I…” Rudolf’s words had Kaisoku’s mental defenses crumbling.
and I did lose.
Ask Kita—I wasn’t holding back.”
“Mm-hmm, absolutely.
She gave it everything.” Kita nodded vigorously.
“I could feel it.”
“That has nothing to do with your talent.
Maintaining that kind of speed in the lead while still having a devastating Final Spurt in reserve—that’s the definition of talent.” Rudolf smiled.
“And I’m not alone in this assessment.
Oguri Cap was with me, and she was equally impressed.
Trust me—your gift could light up the racing world.”
It’s not you I don’t trust.
It’s me I don’t trust…
Kaisoku was on the verge of tears.
She genuinely, truly, absolutely did not want to attend Central Tracen Academy.
Her odds of making it there were roughly equivalent to winning an Olympic gold medal—because Central Tracen was a pressure cooker where every region’s prodigy was thrown in to fight for survival.
Toss a brick and you’d concuss ten people, nine of whom were geniuses.
Kaisoku knew her own weight class, and she wasn’t delusional enough to think she could out-grind these monsters.
“You’re right—I was too hasty.” Rudolf read Kaisoku’s silence as fear and eased off.
“I overheard you want to get into the University of Tokyo?”
“Yes.
My goal is Tōdai.” Kaisoku nodded.
“I really have no plans for Tracen.”
“I see…
Then what if I could get you into Tōdai’s early admissions process?” Rudolf had never been shy about dangling carrots when recruiting talent.
Like the serpent offering Eve the forbidden fruit, her smile took on a distinctly persuasive quality.
“I can arrange for you to sit a special early entrance exam.
I have the connections—a Tōdai professor I know personally.
The condition: if you don’t pass, you come to Central Tracen.
How does that sound?”
“…” Kaisoku’s expression hardened instantly.
“You’re serious?”
“Once I give my word, no umamusume can outrun it.” Rudolf smiled.
“It’s fair, wouldn’t you say?
I give you the opportunity.
If you can’t seize it, we do things my way.
Either way, you come out ahead.”
“…I would come out ahead.” Kaisoku was suspicious—the deal was almost too good.
Win or lose, she had nothing to lose.
And access to Tōdai’s early admissions was a near-impossible prize on its own.
Rudolf’s connections as a racing legend made it plausible, and honestly…
Kaisoku was tempted.
“And I trust that Rudolf-senpai wouldn’t toy with me.”
“Of course not.
I keep my promises.” Rudolf’s smile was warm.
“Here’s what I propose: in two weeks, I’ll arrange a private exam.
Questions set by a sitting Tōdai professor—I happen to know one quite well.”
“Deal!
I’m in!” Kaisoku’s instincts screamed that something was off, but an opportunity like this came once in a lifetime.
If she couldn’t pass a one-on-one exam, she had no business competing against the masses.
And worst case, she’d just study hard at Tracen.
Who said you couldn’t hit the books at a sports academy?
That was just prejudice!
“Wonderful.
I look forward to seeing the results.” Rudolf watched the fish she’d been baiting finally take the hook and permitted herself a satisfied, almost vulpine smile.
“Two weeks, then.
Until we meet again, Toujou Kaisoku.”
After Rudolf and Teio departed, Kaisoku collapsed into her chair like a deflating balloon.
“My heart is going to explode!”
“THAT WAS THE REAL SYMBOLI RUDOLF AND TOKAI TEIO!” Only now did Kita dare to scream, shaking the thoroughly shell-shocked Kaisoku by the shoulders.
“I TOLD you you were talented!
Even the student council president came to recruit you!”
“Yeah, yeah—but I still think Tōdai is the better call.” Kaisoku nodded first, then clenched her fist.
“Two weeks!
Everything rides on this!
If I can punch through this class ceiling, it happens NOW!!!”