One million—that was the prize money for third place at Maratela.
Whether he won the race or not, he could take that million right now.
But Derek Su didn't need one million.
This race was meant to build prestige for the Stella Club, to cultivate synergy with Imperial Scale, and to help both Imperial Scale and Tunbao integrate with Stella as quickly as possible. He wanted this competition to bring the entire club closer together, to strengthen the sense of family within the team.
More importantly, being sabotaged and hit with underhanded tricks left a bitter, burning anger in his chest.
He glared at Manager Zhang. The man wore a smiling, unhurried expression, completely at ease.
They didn't shout or stubbornly deny anything. Instead, they adopted a polite, apologetic posture.
The workers hurriedly finished changing the hot-melt tires and stood off to the side, visibly nervous—though at least half of that fear was clearly an act. Seeing that Derek Su wasn't saying anything, the manager immediately had someone bring over a cash case. Inside it sat one million in cash.
Their shift from arrogance to deference was also a message.
This was done to you.
Swallow it if you're unhappy.
If you dare make a move, we'll have you withdrawn from the race immediately.
"Giant Tech?" Derek Su didn't even glance at the cash-filled case.
He took a deep breath and walked back to Stella's side.
"Do you really think tricks this clumsy are enough to make me bow my head?"
"You're underestimating racers—and you're underestimating racing itself."
He opened the door.
Sat down in the cockpit.
Fastened his helmet.
A cold voice echoed through the maintenance station.
"What I'm engaged in…"
"…is the passion of my entire life. It's the career I'm willing to devote all my enthusiasm to."
He clenched the handbrake, shifted gears, and floored the accelerator.
Vroooom—!
The engine's roar tore through the night.
Manager Zhang, the staff, and Howard Wang sitting inside the office all watched in silence. Listening to that terrifying howl, goosebumps rose uncontrollably across their skin.
Just watch.
Derek Su stared at the track with icy eyes.
You cannot defeat me!
Out of the corner of his eye, Derek Su glanced at the timer beside the maintenance station.
The Stella Club was currently trailing the GPC Club by 5 minutes and 37 seconds.
Trailing the BSC Club by 2 minutes and 11 seconds.
Ranked 11th.
A truly miserable standing.
But the race wasn't over yet!
He released the handbrake.
A streak of silver light plunged straight into the darkness.
The race timer restarted at the same moment.
...
"Strange, why did the Magician go back to the maintenance station?" Lucy Luo was still puzzled by what had happened earlier.
"Probably a Mecha Girl malfunction," Eternity said calmly. "That's fine too. Your five million is secure—you can buy tons of snacks."
"Hmm, a Mecha Girl issue? What if the Magician just needed to take a dump?"
Eternity fell silent for a moment, then said flatly,
"No one would complain if he did it by the roadside."
"But that's bad for public decency. If it were me, I'd go back to do it."
Veins popped on Eternity's forehead.
"Master, that's enough."
Without the pressure from Derek Su and Stella, Lucy Luo and Eternity ran the final section with ease, quickly reaching the second relay point.
"Whew, I'm exhausted. Running the workload of two people at once is still a bit much~"
Lucy Luo sighed as she climbed out of Eternity, drooping as if she were weak and delicate.
She hung off Eternity like an oversized koala.
Only Eternity knew how energetic this brat had been inside the cockpit.
She'd been bouncing around like a monkey, with such strong grip that sometimes it made Eternity's control lever ache.
"Boss, you're amazing! This is insane!"
GPC Club member Kaleb Li ran over with his Mecha Girl Tornado, his face full of excitement as he gave Lucy Luo a thumbs-up.
"Our GPC Club is in first place now—more than a minute ahead of second! The third and fourth stages are basically locked in! This is all thanks to you and Eternity!"
Kaleb Li genuinely felt what it meant to be carried by a top-tier racer.
He had a full minute of error margin with Abraham on the fourth stage.
That might not seem like much, but in racing, one minute was an absurdly huge safety buffer.
"Don't get cocky, Li. Be careful not to trip in a gutter," Lucy Luo said, glancing toward the BSC Club racers preparing nearby. She lowered her voice.
"I heard BSC's Track Queen is here too. She skipped the third stage, which means she's definitely running the fourth. She'll erase that one-minute gap in no time—and you won't even know where to cry."
Kaleb Li snorted.
"Chloe Qin? That idiot? Track Queen, my ass. Boss, you're the real Track Queen. I could crush her with one hand."
Lucy Luo chuckled and patted Kaleb Li on the shoulder.
After a few exchanges, Kaleb Li and Tornado went off to prepare for their start.
With nothing else to do, Lucy Luo took Eternity over to the timing board to check the rankings.
She saw that Derek Su and Stella, who had been outside the top ten, had already climbed to fifth place.
"The Magician and Stella are still fast. They went back to the maintenance station and still managed to catch up," Lucy Luo said, blinking in admiration.
"But breaking into the top three will be hard," Eternity said as she studied the board. GPC Club was firmly in first place, with a clear gap over second-place TGB Club. There was also a clear gap between third-place ESW (Extreme Sound Waves) and fourth-place BSC Club.
BSC Club had been second on the first stage.
But their ranking dropped on the second.
That was understandable.
After all, BSC wasn't even a top-500 club. They simply couldn't field that many outstanding racers.
...
Tunbao stared into the vast night, her gaze repeatedly drifting toward the timing board.
She paced anxiously around the relay station, letting out sighs now and then.
Then, from the darkness, two blinding beams of headlights sliced through the night like sharp blades.
Hearing that familiar, piercing engine wail, Tunbao's heart leapt.
Derek Su and Stella had finally arrived!
With a handbrake drift, Stella slid cleanly into the parking slot. The staff immediately rushed over with dry ice extinguishers to cool her down.
Derek Su stepped out of the car and saw Tunbao approaching.
"Sorry to keep you waiting. Something unexpected happened at the maintenance station," Derek Su said, about to explain.
At that moment, two helicopters passed overhead, and Aiyo's booming voice rang out clearly through the loudspeakers.
"...Our much-watched driver, the Magician, and his Mecha Girl Stella have now arrived at the second relay point. The Magician will continue driving Mecha Girl Tunbao and Mecha Girl Imperial Scale for the third and fourth stages. Even someone like me, who eats goji berries every day, can't help but marvel at the Magician's incredible stamina."
"However, a small incident occurred at the maintenance station earlier. Due to staff negligence, Stella had to change tires again. Even so, the Magician delivered an outstanding performance, pulling the Stella Club from ninth place up to fifth using only the second stage. Can the Magician continue creating miracles in the races ahead? Let's wait and see!!"
By now, Stella had already disengaged her deployment mode and walked over to his side.
She lowered her head silently, her cold little hand clutching one of his fingers in confusion.
"That's the whole story. He already explained it," Derek Su said helplessly, pointing at the sky.
Tunbao looked at Stella, who stood beside Derek Su looking as wilted as a frost-bitten eggplant. With her explosive temperament, she immediately erupted.
"It was intentional. Absolutely intentional!"
"All the tires there were prepared in advance—only HT tires! How could they possibly put on the wrong ones?! They clearly prepared a set of faulty tires ahead of time!"
Tunbao was about to storm off toward the staff when Derek Su grabbed her.
"The race is about to start. What are you trying to do?!"
"Of course I'm going to demand an explanation!"
Derek Su pinched the bridge of his nose.
What explanation was there to demand? If they dared to do this, they had already prepared for everything.
At most, it would just be an apology and compensation. Do you want it or not?
It was only a training race. The organizers would naturally downplay the issue.
"Oh? So you got set up, huh~"
Lucy Luo and Eternity had appeared beside them at some point.
She leaned against Eternity as if tipsy, chuckling as she said to Derek Su,
"I know who's targeting you. Giant Tech is BSC Club's backer. Think carefully—have you ever crossed someone from BSC Club?"
BSC Club?
An arrogant woman surfaced in Derek Su's mind—the one he and Stella had forced off the bridge.
"Chloe Qin?!"
...
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