Umamusume: Making Money Means Victory! [1] & Synopsis

Lost? Won? Chasing Snow says she turned a profit!

After the misfortune of transmigrating into some nameless small-fry Umamusume whose family was buried in debt, Chasing Snow may have been just a small fry, but she still dreamed of making serious money! So she decided to take her talents to Japan!

But waiting for her there were El Condor Pasa, Japan’s General Special Week, and the Supreme Overlord of the End of the Century, T.M. Opera O—each of them so overwhelmingly powerful they seemed impossible to beat.

Until the system activated, opening the Dream Training Grounds, where she could train and challenge opponents even in her sleep…

[TRAINING OPPONENTS DRAWN]: MARUZENSKY, KA YING RISING, SECRETARIAT.

Chasing Snow: First, I’ll take on these unknown Umas in my dreams, grind enough levels, and then challenge the invincible T.M. Opera O and Special Week!

The absurdly overleveled grinding monster had arrived.

However one day…

Maruzensky opened her eyes, feeling as if she had dreamed about something.

Hold on. Why had she spent the whole dream getting bullied by that little Uma??

No way. She had to bully her back!!

Tracen Academy, one of its training grounds.

The race was decided—!

Led by the Umamusume at the very front, T.M. Opera O, who wore a crown atop her head, seven Umamusume crossed the finish line one after another.

With the judge’s raised voice, this newcomer training race came to an end.

Past the finish line, several Trainers—most of them older—stood holding stopwatches or folders of records.

“1st place, T.M. Opera O.”

“2nd place…”

“6th place, Chasing Snow.”

“As expected, T.M. Opera O is an underrated future star. Hard to believe she was signed by a rookie Trainer.”

“That overseas Umamusume has an excellent image, but her ability leaves something to be desired. Granted, she’s only just arrived and isn’t in good condition… but even once she adapts to Japanese Turf, she probably tops out at the top three.”

“This training race was T.M. Opera O’s solo performance.”

Many of the onlookers showed regret as they shifted their gazes away from the chestnut-haired girl who had crossed the line first—T.M. Opera O.

Not far from T.M. Opera O, a striking young Uma with white hair and red eyes had crossed the line and was now sprawled on the ground, resting.

She was a white-haired girl with a hime cut, dressed in a cute panda T-shirt printed with a panda eating bamboo. Compared with the other Umamusume in training outfits, she looked completely out of place, as if she had rushed into this training race at the last second.

“How… how can she be that strong?!”

Chasing Snow clenched her teeth. Even though she was not especially competitive and had known she would lose from the start, she still felt a trace of unwillingness after the race.

Was this the instinctive craving for victory that came with being an Umamusume?!

“Forget it. It’s not like I’m some precocious ‘early-game hero’ anyway.”

“It’s not strange to lose to the future Overlord. I’ll just keep scaling.”

That slight frustration was quickly replaced by laziness and curiosity.

Because Chasing Snow had only arrived at Tracen Academy today. She was a newly enrolled foreign Umamusume!

Chasing Snow, an utterly ordinary Umamusume from overseas.

She did not have many strengths, but at least she knew herself. She knew she was a background character.

In Chasing Snow’s view, there were at least eight thousand, if not ten thousand, “supporting characters” and “small fry” like her in the world.

In truth, that was not the case.

Because… there were far more than that!

After all, this was a world where Umamusume races flourished. Umamusume loved to run, and those with ability no worse than hers were everywhere.

Fortunately, Chasing Snow had one advantage that Japanese Umamusume did not.

She—came from overseas, possessing the status of a “foreign exchange student.” She was a special kind of small fry!

She was also a transmigrator with an [UNACTIVATED SYSTEM]!

After transmigrating into this world as a young Uma only a few years old, she had been adopted by a no-name Umamusume family and had grown up to the present day.

The family that adopted her was obscure and on the verge of bankruptcy. They treated Chasing Snow very well, but the family declined by the day and was buried under debt.

Yet raising an Umamusume cost a fortune, while the prize money over there was not much. Making big money as an Umamusume was extremely difficult.

As for the system, its initial activation condition was: [FORMALLY ENROLL IN ANY UMAMUSUME SCHOOL].

But Chasing Snow’s talent was lacking, and she could not get into the demanding prestigious local schools.

So Tracen Academy, which waived tuition for exchange students, was incredibly tempting to her.

Thus, Chasing Snow became—a “rogue ninja” who left Konoha!

Chasing Snow’s slogan was…

—Winning or losing doesn’t matter. Making cash does!

The American bumpkin was invading Japan!

After all, Chasing Snow’s talent had always been ordinary. She had no future in America, where the competition was absurdly cutthroat, and it was no place for a poor, weak, helpless rookie.

So Chasing Snow, unable to keep up with the grind back home, made a difficult decision. She decided to bring her talents to Japan!

She could not beat the monsters in America, but surely she could beat Japan’s little Umas, right?!

Japanese races had less prestige, but that did not mean they had less “gold”!

So Japan suited a rookie like her perfectly—one with no grand ideals, ordinary talent, and a desire to repay her family.

She had a shot at results, and she could earn generous prize money to ease her family’s debts. It killed two birds with one stone, perfect for someone like her who did not have many ambitions.

And so, Chasing Snow followed in the footsteps of her senior, James… no, El Condor Pasa, and crossed the ocean.

Newly arrived, while wandering around campus, she had run into T.M. Opera O and been invited by this future superstar to face her in a training race.

Looking at it now, she had agreed far too quickly.

“Hah… I should head back to the dorm. I need to hurry up and complete my enrollment procedures too.”

“That way I can activate the system!”

The next second, the eye-catching girl got up and calmly turned around.

Behind Chasing Snow, several Umamusume were still watching her departing figure with curiosity.

The cheerful, lively T.M. Opera O was the same.

Because Chasing Snow had white hair and red eyes—and she was an American exchange student who had come to Japan.

Both were exceedingly rare.

The most common hair colors for Umamusume were brown, black, blond, and the like.

Next came gray. Gray hair was gray, and as an Umamusume grew older, it would gradually lighten, only turning white in the end.

The vast majority of gray-haired Umamusume still had gray hair by the time they retired. It would only turn completely white many years later. During their racing years, it was not white at all.

If ordinary hair colors had a rarity of R, and gray hair was SR, then white hair… was UR, even rarer than SSR!

One in ten thousand, nearly impossible to find in Japan, and incredibly marketable.

Paired with red eyes, it was practically a special attack against the entire Asian audience!

Why had such an extraordinarily rare white-haired Umamusume, one from America at that, chosen Tracen Academy?

T.M. Opera O had yet to ask. She would wait until next time. Then she turned to look at the young woman not far away.

“Trainer-kun, did you witness my radiance?”

“Celebrate! We will keep winning together! Prepare yourself for victory after victory!”

The young female Trainer surnamed Wada nodded, both nervous and excited.

“Then we… can start preparing the entry for your Debut Race.”

…

On the way back to the dorm, Chasing Snow passed the surrounding buildings, crossed one training ground after another, and looked around her.

On the grass, spirited girls trained at full, energetic stride, shouting all kinds of different slogans.

“Accelerate! Accelerate!”

“Sweets! Sweets!”

Some slogans were ordinary, some strange, but all were full of youthful energy and individuality.

There were also Umamusume who had finished training and were chatting with friends beside them.

“Let’s go to the cafeteria and eat four big bowls of rice after this. I just saw Teio-senpai jogging off in a hurry. I wonder if she was heading there.”

“I want to lose weight, so I’ll only have two… three bowls later.”

After passing different buildings, taking in the magnificent landmarks, and noticing the lively reactions of the many young Umamusume around her, Chasing Snow was clearly in quite a good mood by the time she was about to enter the dormitory building. She was secretly delighted.

As expected of Tracen Academy, which invests heavily in the Umamusume field!

The prize money is high, and the student benefits are good too. I didn’t come to the wrong place.

That was Chasing Snow’s first impression as an exchange student. Her heart was filled with happiness and anticipation.

Among the Umamusume coming and going, some girls turned their heads and fixed their gazes on Chasing Snow.

Because the other Umamusume were either wearing training outfits and preparing to run, or wearing school uniforms.

By comparison, whether it was Chasing Snow’s panda T-shirt or her snow-white hair, both had tremendous impact.

“Huh? She’s so pretty.”

“The Japan Cup is next month. Is she some foreign Uma champion who came early to prepare for the race?”

“S-she’s actually not gray-haired, but a real, legendary white haired Umamusume?!”

CLICK—!

Along with the voices discussing her, the sounds of phones taking photos rang out one after another.

Chasing Snow was used to it and continued strolling along.

…

Not long after, in the dormitory building, in the hallway, the white-haired girl no longer had the slightest regret from her earlier defeat.

When all was said and done, that had merely been a training race with no prize money and little significance.

Prize money was the most important thing!

When she looked toward the dorm room door, Chasing Snow’s pupils abruptly shrank the next second.

“That’s…”

A small figure who surprised Chasing Snow deeply, and who looked somewhat familiar, was standing at the door. Then she turned her head to look back at her.

It was a petite girl, one who looked cheerful, lively, and full of confidence, with a brilliant, sunny smile.

She was none other than the “protagonist,” known without question to both Umamusume anime viewers in Chasing Snow’s past life and Japanese Umamusume fans in this world.

Her name was Tokai Teio, the protagonist of the anime’s second season!

An inspirational protagonist from the Umamusume anime, a super genius who had moved and stunned everyone by overcoming three fractures and completing a miraculous comeback!

The energetic girl stopped in front of Chasing Snow. She held a small stack of documents in one hand, placed the other on her hip, and gazed at Chasing Snow with great interest.

“I’m Tokai Teio. I’m here to deliver some documents for the Student Council.”

“Chasing Snow-san, welcome to Tracen Academy.”

Tokai Teio welcomed her with a bright smile. Her hair fluttered in the wind, full of motion.

Right here at Tracen, a famous Umamusume one could normally only see on television news had appeared before Chasing Snow.

That was right. Tokai Teio was already known to all. Her racing career had ended, and she had retired after completing her miraculous comeback.

“Teio-senpai, thank you.”

Chasing Snow shaped her lips into a smile and responded to Tokai Teio in not especially fluent spoken Japanese, with an accent and intonation that were clearly foreign.

What a pity.

In the fanfics she had read in her previous life, the first opponent everyone started with was always Tokai Teio.

They would cut off Teio’s “undefeated dream” right at the start! She could not replicate what those protagonists had done.

But in her case, Tokai Teio had already retired. There was no chance to face her.

I’ll have to let Teio off this time~

Though even if they did face each other… Chasing Snow definitely could not outrun her.

This scummy girl suddenly forgot that she was small fry, acting just like a smug little brat.

If Tokai Teio had not retired and challenged her, she would probably have crouched down with her hands over her head and transformed into a cowardly lizard who feared battle.

“Here, these are for you.”

“Once you sign them, you’ll officially be enrolled at Tracen.”

The petite, energetic Tokai Teio reached out and handed over the small stack of documents.

For example, the International Exchange Student Regulations, the Central Tracen Academy Enrollment Application, the American Umamusume Exit…

This petite senior’s beautiful eyes held a touch of surprise as she looked at the white-haired girl from a foreign land.

As a famous Umamusume who had faced overseas Umamusume in international races, she had met foreign Umamusume more than a few times.

But this was her first time seeing someone with white hair and red eyes as rare as Chasing Snow! This slightly youthful, still-undebuted white-haired girl surprised her a little.

As long as Chasing Snow had decent talent, could display her style in races, and paired that with such a rare and highly popular appearance, she would absolutely become a star idol of her generation.

An Umamusume this pretty and this rare surely had talent and ability to match her image, right?

It seemed she was worth looking forward to!

“Thank you, Teio-senpai.”

Chasing Snow walked to the doorway and accepted the documents politely, thanking her.

“Snowy-san, I hope you stand shoulder to shoulder with El Condor Pasa, and that everything goes smoothly in your racing career.”

Tokai Teio turned around. Her task complete, she prepared to leave. This calm, elegant girl with white hair and red eyes had left a deep impression on her.

“You can hand the documents to the teacher tomorrow. Come ask me if you have any questions~”

Not long after, once Tokai Teio’s petite figure had completely disappeared down the hallway, a certain white-haired girl pulled her head back in and shut the door.

BANG!

Once she was alone in the room, Chasing Snow looked around again.

Even though she had finished organizing the dorm a few hours earlier, stepping inside for the second time still left her happy and refreshed.

Whether it was the space or the campus environment, she was extremely satisfied.

Unconcealable joy surfaced on her refined, composed, elegant face.

Hell yeah. She had definitely come to the right place!

Was this really a school a small fry like her could attend without paying?

It was just… way too good!!

For the vast majority of ambitious American Umamusume, coming to Japan’s Tracen Academy would be worse than killing them.

Because this was Japan, a place not recognized internationally, whose prestige and influence were not high. Aside from the high prize money and good treatment, it basically had no advantages.

However, Chasing Snow did not have any grand ambitions, and she wanted to pursue high prize money. To her, this was paradise!

Back home in America, she had shared a room and bunk bed with a young Uma her age.

After all these years since transmigrating, she had never expected the first time she would enjoy living alone to be at Tracen Academy!!

And the tuition was waived, the food and housing benefits were good, and there were scholarships she could compete for.

Truly wonderful, truly delightful!

“Though, forget about standing shoulder to shoulder with El Condor Pasa…”

“I’m the future Japanese Champion, a World-Class Umamusume!”

With that said, Chasing Snow turned to look at the documents.

In terms of procedure, only after signing them would she count as officially enrolled.

“System, I can finally activate you.”

She had been thinking about activating the system for years.

This was the moment it would begin!

Along with her murmur, her pale fingers gripped the pen. The pen flew across the page, and she quickly signed her name.

The next moment, a cold mechanical voice rang out.

[SYSTEM ACTIVATING…]

[THE STRONGEST UMAMUSUME SYSTEM IS AT YOUR SERVICE.]

Before Chasing Snow, the system panel appeared.

[PERSONAL PANEL]
[SKILL PANEL]
[MISSION PANEL]
[REWARD PANEL]

All kinds of content were laid out before her eyes.

The white-haired girl’s heartbeat suddenly sped up, and her delicate face filled with excitement.

Hell yeah!

With no competitive spirit and a heart full of pragmatism, she immediately tapped the panel in the back row.

[MISSION PANEL · PHASE ONE]

[WIN THE DEBUT RACE (0/1)]

[WIN A GRADE RACE (0/1)]

[WIN A G1 RACE (0/1)]

[NOTE]: COMPLETING THE ABOVE PHASE MISSIONS WILL GREATLY IMPROVE REWARD CONTENTS. TEMPORARY MISSIONS WILL ALSO REFRESH AT IRREGULAR INTERVALS.

…

…

[REWARD PANEL]

[THE HOST MAY REGULARLY OPEN WEEKLY REWARDS, MONTHLY REWARDS, AND QUARTERLY REWARDS. COMPLETING PHASE MISSIONS AND TEMPORARY MISSIONS CAN RAISE THE REWARD CEILING.]

[USER ANALYSIS]: THE CHANCE FOR SMALL FRY TO TURN THINGS AROUND IS RIGHT HERE.

…

Completing missions would improve her?!

It was just that these phase missions were a little too absurd, weren’t they?

“It’s only Phase One, and it already requires winning a top-level G1 race?”

Chasing Snow dared not imagine how ridiculous the requirements would become in Phase Two and beyond.

That would probably… require an all-time king of Japanese Umamusume history to complete the later phase missions, right?

On the verge of bristling, Chasing Snow did not shrink from battle. Instead, she clapped her hands.

“Doesn’t matter. Even if I can’t complete the high-difficulty missions, there’s nothing to be afraid of.”

“After all, if I draw enough rewards, sooner or later I’ll get something good that improves my strength, right?”

“At worst, I’ll let small gains pile up, learn from Nasus, farm top lane for thirty minutes before coming out, right? The system also said I’m late-blooming, didn’t it?”

At worst, she would become an old-timer and endure. If she could not beat her peers, could she not beat her juniors?

Just like Uchiha Madara. He had never beaten Senju Hashirama in his lifetime, but that did not stop him from thrashing the Five Kage after being reincarnated!

As if she could already see the same future, Chasing Snow’s brilliant red eyes sparkled.

The next moment, she tapped the explanation for the [QUARTERLY REWARD] in the Reward Panel.

In the reward list that appeared, several entries astonished Chasing Snow.

For example…

[ORFEVRE’S WISDOM]
[FLIGHTLINE’S VETERAN TALENT]
[LAUREL RIVER’S COURAGE]
[SILENCE SUZUKA’S PHYSIQUE]
[DANCING BRAVE’S FINAL SPURT]
[SECRETARIAT’S DIRT TALENT]

Huh?!

T/N: WHAAAAT ANOTHER UMAMUSUME TRANSLATION???????????? yeah ummm yah uhhh yeah uhuh yeppers yes errr positive

This is a fan translation of 赛马娘，赚钱就是胜利！ by 晓非 Rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!