Chapter 49

I looked forward again, gripping the reins tightly, and clenched my teeth, trying to match my breathing with Zephir's.

“Huff. Ah.”

But it wasn't easy. The speed was as fast as a car, but the ride was far from smooth.

My stomach churned as my body jolted up and down and my vision swayed.

“Zephir, Zephir... I, ah. I, I'm going to... die...”

Even though I spoke in a voice as small as an ant, it seemed Zephir understood.

The speed suddenly dropped as if he had applied the brakes.

‘Hmm, could this be telepathy?’

I almost cried again. Now that I could finally breathe a sigh of relief, I opened my eyes wide.

“I'm sorry, Zephir. I didn't know you wanted to run this fast. I should have practiced more...”

Just holding the reins and enduring was already difficult.

How embarrassing to be such a poor rider on the back of a fine horse like Zephir!

“I'm sorry...”

I felt guilty because I could sense that Zephir was holding back his speed for my sake, even though he could run much faster.

After running for a while on a straight course, another horse passed by me.

It was Walter and Cheshire!

Cheshire glanced at me with a worried look before riding away.

“Good job, Walter! Win, Cheshire! You can do it!”

Just as I started cheering, the B course began.

With two judges, I could see the red hurdles ahead.

“Whoa! Whoa!”

Zephir started to jump over the hurdles cleanly.

Even though he hit a few and knocked them down, resulting in deductions, it was part of the course.

‘Well, I didn't practice, but Zephir must be so familiar with this course that it's second nature to him.’

If we placed, I would feel extremely embarrassed. After all, I didn't do anything.

Zephir was the one running, and the reason I could stay on his back safely was thanks to the enchanted saddle.

“You really are amazing!”

Zephir's movements as he alternated between the obstacles on either side were flawless.

How much rigorous training must he have undergone for each course to be so ingrained in his body?

‘This is a bit sad...’

As soon as I thought that, the obstacles ended.

Next was the longest course, a curved path that involved climbing a slight hill and then descending.

As the elevation increased, a hidden lake on the hillside came into view, its surface sparkling in the morning sunlight.

“Wow.”

I marveled.

But the moment of leisurely scenery appreciation was brief.

Hearing the sound of hooves overlapping, I turned around to see Daemon right behind me.

“Run faster! Speed up!”

Daemon was shouting at his horse.

Even though it looked like he was using all his strength, he was still slower than Zephir, who was running leisurely for my sake.

“You idiot! Are you going to lose to that cripple? At this speed on a course with no obstacles, what are you supposed to do!”

“What did you say?”

Look at that guy's mouth.

I looked around.

Since no one was watching, it was a good moment to commit the perfect crime.

“Look at you! You always talk about the dignity of nobility, but now you're spewing garbage?”

“...?”

Daemon's eyes widened as he rode alongside me.

He then looked at me with a doubtful expression.

“Damn! What are you saying, you psycho!”

“What, what did you just say...?”

“Your so-called equestrian genius was all a facade, right? You only won last year because of Zephir. Without Zephir, you're completely useless, right? First place is already out of reach, right?”

I taunted Daemon with a sneer, and his face turned red and then purple.

“Are you trying to die?! You little brat!”

“No, you can't kill me~? You can't even beat a beginner like me~?”

“Shut up! Shut up!”

“No, I won't shut up~?”

Seeing Daemon's face, which was flushed with anger, made me feel relieved.

We rode alongside each other for a moment, but the gap between us quickly widened.

“Aaaaaah!”

I could hear Daemon's roar of frustration from behind.

“Run! You stupid horse! Run! Run!”

Neigh!

The sound of hooves striking the ground and the horse's neighing echoed. The horse, forced to speed up, caught up to me again.

“You're losing, really!”

What is it? Daemon's eyes were filled with madness, clearly very angry.

He rode close to me, flailing his arms in the air a few times, and then grabbed my thigh tightly.

At that moment.

Snap, something felt unnatural.

‘Oh no.’

I immediately realized what had happened.

Daemon had undone the dismount prevention magic on my saddle.

At the same time, my bottom, which had been firmly attached to the saddle, started to shake, and the stirrups tied to my feet loosened.

“Aaaaaah!”

I screamed in surprise, having trusted Zephir to keep me from falling.

Zephir also seemed startled and slowed down abruptly. However, the sudden braking had the opposite effect. My body lurched forward, and my feet slipped out of the stirrups.

“A, aaaaaah!”

Losing the reins, my body jolted and soared into the air.

‘Is this real...?’

For a moment, my vision slowed down like slow motion.

The blinding sky.

The sparkling lake.

The green landscape of the hill.

Crash!

“Ugh.”

I rolled over, starting with my right arm. A few sharp rocks scratched my cheek slightly.

“Ahhh.”

I screamed in pain, but I didn't lose consciousness.

I quickly moved my limbs. It seemed none of my bones were broken.

“Wow, wow. You really are a psycho...”

I held my most painful right arm and stared blankly at Daemon's horse and Zephir, which were riding away.

No matter how angry he was, to openly cheat like that...

No, what is cheating?

It was a clear disqualification and could even escalate into a feud between families.

“You, you... The victory is out of reach now...”

I slowly got up.

I needed to go back and inform the judges about this.

Clippety-clop.

Just then, the sound of hooves reached my ears, and I turned around—

“Z, Zephir?”

—Zephir had come back.

‘Is this possible?’

Can a racehorse, focused on the course, stop and return to the starting point just because its owner is gone?

The world of equestrian sports is truly bewildering...

“Zephir, how did you come back? You're so clever.”

I stroked Zephir and said,

“Let's go back and tell the judges that Daemon cheated. He's a complete fool. Why did he do something so obvious?”

I really couldn't understand.

“Only C course started at the same time, and it was just me and him. The magic on my saddle was undone, and I can't use magic yet. I can't undo it myself. So even if no one saw...”

As I chattered and headed back, my nape was grabbed.

“Hmm?”

Zephir was holding my collar with his teeth.

It was as if he was saying with his eyes,

[Let's keep going.]

—Like that.

“Are you serious? I can't...”

With the dismount prevention magic undone, I had to rely solely on my own strength to keep going.

“No, I can't. I'm scared. I can't...”

As I shook my head, Zephir's blue eyes met mine.

For a brief moment, I read his gaze.

The desire to run.

The will to win.

I thought he was tired from the hard training and abuse and didn't want to run anymore...

‘No, you want to run.’

Unlike me, who had no competitive spirit.

“...Okay.”

Let's try. Whether it ends in success or failure.

I took a deep breath and climbed back onto Zephir's back, who lowered himself to help me.

“I won't let go. You also... need to be careful and not let me fall, okay?”

Clippety-clop,

[Trust me.]

His neigh seemed to say exactly that.

“Let's go!”

Zephir started running again.

The enchanted saddle was precarious, and I had to use all my strength, even the strength I used to drink milk as a baby.

‘Wow, this is real equestrian riding, isn't it?’

I realized it clearly.

A feeling of awakening.

It was like the first time I successfully rode a bicycle.

‘If I kept using magic, I wouldn't have improved at all!’

That's how I learned while running.

How to breathe in sync with the horse.

How to naturally entrust my body to the horse without causing strain.

“...Why are you doing this, aaaaaah!”

As we entered the D course with obstacles, I saw Daemon.

For some reason, Daemon's horse had stopped in front of the hurdles, snorting excitedly.

‘Hmm, if I were in his position, I'd probably go on strike too.’

I clicked my tongue.

“Huh?”

Just then, Zephir, who had been running smoothly, stopped next to Daemon without jumping over the obstacle.

‘Why did he stop?’

I realized.

‘Ah, maybe he wants to taunt Daemon again?’

I grinned and stuck out my chin at Daemon.

“Your so-called equestrian genius is dead~? You can't even win with cheating~?”

“Y, Y, Y!”

Then Zephir, as if he had been waiting, started jumping over the obstacles again.

Ah, this is what telepathy is.

It was touching.

“Hahaha! Zephir, you're the best!”

We smoothly passed the obstacle course and entered the final straight course.

At this moment of running at full speed.

The refreshing air filling my lungs.

‘Am I a equestrian genius?!’

I didn't even feel the pain from my body, which had been bruised from the fall.

In the distance, I could see the finish line and the crowd filling the award ceremony area.

The finish line...

‘Huh? The finish line?’

Although Cheshire had clearly been leading by a significant margin, the red finish line was still intact.

‘Where is Cheshire? Ah, there!’

I soon saw them.

Walter had stopped and was circling around, and Cheshire, as our eyes met, gave me a sly smile.

In the midst of my bewilderment,

Zephir continued to run powerfully,

“Waaaaah!”

We crossed the finish line.

Thunderous cheers erupted.