In the end, Manhattan Cafe wasn’t able to defeat jiro McQueen in the Arima Kinen.
It wasn’t because Sunday Silence hadn’t helped; Gotham Song clearly saw that Sunday Silence had matched strides evenly with McQueen, while Manhattan Cafe was left trailing behind.
The true outco of that race—
First place should’ve belonged to Sunday Silence, second to jiro McQueen, and third to Manhattan Cafe.
It was a strange experience, as though the Arima Kinen had beco a free-for-all among Gotham Song’s friends and family.
Yet afterward, as Manhattan Cafe left the racetrack to walk ho alongside Gotham Song, she didn’t seem overly disheartened by the loss.
When Gotham Song cautiously asked her how she felt, Cafe’s answer was simple:
She’d given her absolute best—shown her best self—and next ti, she would catch up to the one running ahead.
Who exactly was that person in front?
In reality, it was Sunday Silence.
Since her cousin wasn’t despairing over the defeat, Gotham Song didn’t worry too much either, and they peacefully returned ho together.
After that, life settled into quiet tranquility for a short while.
Funnily enough, Gotham Song’s newly-proclaid rival—her daily running partner, Tokai Teio—demonstrated remarkable persistence in one particular matter:
She deeply hoped Gotham Song would join her at jiro Manor’s New Year’s banquet.
Teio had managed to secure an invitation thanks to Symboli Rudolf, and upon discovering that Gotham Song had received a similar invite, she tried relentlessly to persuade her to go.
Unfortunately for Teio, her efforts ultimately failed.
Sowhat disappointed, Tokai Teio sulked briefly before bouncing back as usual.
Still, despite this minor setback, there was another event around the sa ti that captured Gotham Song’s attention even more deeply—
Neo Universe’s debut race.
The exact results of her roommate’s initial debut in previous loops were impossible to verify. Yet in this iteration, Neo Universe had indeed waited until the year’s final days, competing in the very last Debut Race of the season.
As for the reason, Gotham Song received an amusingly straightforward answer when she asked about it:
Debut races are aningless for soone who’s repeated this countless tis. Debuting just before the Classic Year begins is more than enough.
Indeed, considering how many loops she’d experienced, Neo Universe’s accumulated racing experience might surpass every other Uma Musu alive.
As expected of a veteran looper.
Neo Universe’s debut went without a hitch, concluding her brief rookie year in a quiet race that went largely unnoticed.
Then ca the preparations for the approaching New Year.
Hmm... How to put it?
A group of Uma Musu, all residing in school dorms, naturally didn’t have a ho to share for the holidays. Yet, surprisingly, none of them had anywhere else to return to either.
So after so deliberation, this small group of financially comfortable Uma Musu decided to rent a spacious apartnt near Japan Central Tracen Academy, intending to spend the holidays together and welco the New Year as a makeshift family.
The first day in the apartnt was spent cleaning, but the next morning, Manhattan Cafe promptly dragged Gotham Song out the door.
"Since we’re in Japan, we might as well follow local customs. Let’s not spend our holidays wearing school uniforms," Manhattan Cafe said decisively.
And so, with a wave of her Kikuka Sho-winning hand, Cafe generously bought several sets of clothes for Gotham Song, including a beautiful, custom-made kimono in elegant shades of purple.
For so inexplicable reason, everyone else around Gotham Song also prepared similar traditional attire, leading to a rather peculiar scene:
A group of Uma Musu, solemnly dressed in formal kimono, sitting around a modern apartnt’s dining table eating hotpot.
Gotham Song stared blankly at this odd spectacle, montarily unsure how to react—but after a short pause, she simply took her seat and picked up her chopsticks.
Better eat quickly; I don’t want to go hungry tonight. I don’t have a habit of late-night snacking.
Incidentally, Uma Musu diets differed significantly from those of regular humans, even down to the contents of their hotpot.
Wasn’t hotpot supposed to contain plenty of at? Yet at was rarely seen at Uma Musu gatherings. Instead, vegetables dominated the pot.
Vegetables like leafy greens, winter lon, and—of course—carrots.
Lots and lots and lots of carrots.
After so playful squabbling and laughter, they finally put down their bowls, cleaned up together, and headed out into the night.
Walking together—Agnes Tachyon, Manhattan Cafe, Neo Universe, and Gotham Song—the atmosphere quickly enveloped them in the festive warmth of the New Year.
Another year was coming to an end, ushering Gotham Song from her Debut Year into her Classic Year once again. The ti to put her plans into action was drawing near.
She couldn’t help but feel excited about it.
Truthfully, Gotham Song wasn’t entirely familiar with Japanese New Year traditions. Fortunately, her companions guided her patiently through the celebrations: casual gas, tasty street food, and finally, a grand visit to a shrine.
A magnificent shrine stood before them at the end of their walk.
Usually, people visited shrines to make wishes and draw fortune slips—sothing Gotham Song had seen on television countless tis.
Yet actually doing it herself felt delightfully new and refreshing.
Seeing and knowing was one thing, but experiencing it personally was quite another.
Admittedly, perhaps the biggest obstacle at this particular shrine was the steep, winding path climbing upward from the torii gate.
The original Gotham Song might’ve balked at such a lengthy ascent, but now, strolling leisurely uphill was barely worth noticing for these Uma Musu.
Even wearing kimono and wooden sandals posed no challenge; soon enough, they reached the top, crossed the stone-paved pathway, and entered the shrine’s main hall.
Despite the long climb, many visitors had already arrived—among them, quite a few other Uma Musu.
Clearly, what posed a significant challenge for ordinary humans was rely a casual walk for Uma Musu.
After writing down their wishes on ema tablets and hanging them up, the four girls clapped their hands gently, standing together before the Three Goddesses to quietly voice their hopes for the new year.
"I wish for everyone’s safety and well-being."
That was Gotham Song’s wish.
"I hope to run once more on the racetrack."
That ca from Agnes Tachyon.
"..."
Neo Universe remained silent, praying quietly without speaking.
Lastly, under the gentle gaze of the other three, Manhattan Cafe softly uttered her own wish:
"I hope that next year, Song and I can compete on the sa racetrack."
She turned, calmly yet seriously, eting Gotham Song’s eyes.
"I’ve decided, Song. I will enter the Japan Cup too."
"I want to compete with you seriously—just once—on the racetrack."
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