Stella was fifth in line for testing. Among the four Mecha Girls before her, only one had passed.
The ones who failed drooped in discouragement; the one who passed cried with joy—proof of just how brutal this devilish assessment was.
[Mecha Girl XC-99, prepare for testing!]
Hearing the announcement, Stella steadied her racing heartbeat and stepped up to the starting point of the consecutive cornering section.
The red-haired Mecha Girl who had spoken to her earlier was sitting at the starting area. She had just finished crying, but was now recovering her spirits.
"Relax. It's not as hard as you think. Just don't charge in recklessly like I did," UN-70X said, patting Stella's shoulder. "Even if you fail, it's no big deal. Train properly and come back in two weeks."
"Mm-hmm." Stella nodded and deployed her gleaming silver luxury chassis.
The Knox Rally was tomorrow—she couldn't afford to wait for next month.
She had to pass this time. Failure wasn't an option.
UN-70X paused when she saw Stella's luxurious chassis, stepping aside with the sense that she might've just spoken to a truly remarkable Mecha Girl.
[3, 2, 1! Test start!]
Stella didn't use a launch start. She accelerated smoothly up to 50 km/h and headed toward the first curve.
A 100-meter straight preceded the cornering section. Even while trying to keep her speed under control, she still crept up to 67 km/h.
"First C-curve." Stella took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down. Time around her seemed to slow.
She was supposed to use Derek Su's first method: brake early, use the full width of the curve, and accelerate out after passing two-thirds of the turn.
But now it was too late.
"Then I'll drift!" she told herself.
Handbrake released.
Next: downshift—
Stella panicked when she realized she had no gear left to downshift. Her heart jolted.
But inertia carried her through the rest—steering input, throttle control—just like she'd practiced.
It was awkward, yes.
But she still managed to swing her rear lightly and drift through the first curve.
"Whoaa! I did it! I can really handle cornering on my own!"
Stella pumped her small fists, locking onto the next curve.
Once you succeed once, the second time comes easier.
With her confidence boosted after the first curve, Stella nailed the remaining seven with ease, each one faster than the last—ending with a beautiful drift through the final curve at over 150 km/h.
The sight left all the other Mecha Girls stunned with envy.
Not only those who failed like UN-70X—even the one who passed felt the same.
She had barely scraped by with a passing score and had looked nothing like Stella's confident, smooth performance. She still had a long way to go before entering official races.
"XC-99, you're incredible! A 150 km/h cornering speed? Are you entering the Knox Rally tomorrow?"
"Wow, I didn't expect to meet a Mecha Girl already qualified for the professional circuit!"
As soon as Stella stepped off the track, she was immediately surrounded. The Mecha Girls poked and prodded at her chassis as if trying to find out what made her different.
"Well, you did pretty good, XC-99—for a newbie."
UN-70X folded her arms, chin raised proudly. "A senior's job is to help rookies avoid pitfalls. Sometimes we have to serve as the negative example. But just wait—by my 12th exam, I'll definitely pass!"
"Oh! I believe in you, senior!"
Stella saw a flicker of sadness beneath UN-70X's stubborn expression.
She knew UN-70X wasn't as carefree as she acted. Each exam cost money, and she must've felt guilty toward her master.
"Go for it!" Stella held out her fist toward her.
UN-70X stared blankly for a moment—then a warm smile spread across her face as she bumped fists.
"Go for it!!"
...
"Bro, your Mecha Girl is too insane!"
Up in the stands, Derek Su was surrounded by a group of drivers, all staring with envy.
"For real! If I had a Mecha Girl that strong, I'd wake up laughing in my sleep."
"Bro, how much did she cost you? What channel did you buy through? Hook us up!"
If this were when he had just arrived in this world—back when he barely understood Mecha Girls—Derek might've bragged along with them.
But not now.
It wasn't that he'd suddenly become humble.
It was simply that Stella was no longer just a racing machine to him—she was a partner. A family member.
With that identity, how could he treat her like these drivers did—comparing Mecha Girls like products?
"Man, comparing people is bad enough. Comparing Mecha Girls is even worse," the older driver from earlier sighed, lighting another cigarette. "In strength? Mine can't compare. In looks? Also can't compare. And she costs me a fortune—ten thousand dollars per test. Today is the 11th time. She just doesn't get it."
His words silenced the whole group.
They stared at the sky and the floor, faces full of helplessness. Clearly, they agreed.
Raising a Mecha Girl was expensive.
If she failed repeatedly, what family could survive that financial drain?
At that moment, Stella and the Mecha Girls came up to the stands—UN-70X among them.
The moment UN-70X heard her master's complaint, her smile disappeared.
Her head lowered, her steps faltered, and her expression paled beneath her bangs.
She hadn't wanted things to be like this…
But she was just an ordinary Mecha Girl.
She'd never received proper training. Her stats weren't great. Her master paid for exam registrations but never actually trained her. She learned alone by watching videos, so progress was slow.
Sometimes her master even mentioned his wife and child, blaming everything on her.
If she had a choice, she deeply wished her master had chosen his wife and kid instead…
Instead of choosing her.
Derek Su looked at the red-haired Mecha Girl beside Stella.
He could still vividly remember UN-70X smashing through four layers of guardrails.
Looking at her felt like looking at the old Stella.
A Mecha Girl's pride was no weaker than a human's.
UN-70X definitely didn't want to fail. And with her Cornering stats being perfectly fine, there was only one explanation: she simply lacked a good teacher.
To Derek Su, training and guiding a Mecha Girl was the pilot's job—just like tuning a race car had been in his past life.
But everyone had their own views.
And UN-70X wasn't his Mecha Girl, so he couldn't say much.
All he could do was awkwardly take Stella away quickly.
...
"Master… UN-70X is so pitiful. If I were spoken to like that all the time, I'd definitely shut down emotionally," Stella pouted, tugging on Derek Su's sleeve.
"But I have my Master who loves me!"
She took his hand, looking at his face. Her mood brightened instantly.
"That's why I must be the happiest Mecha Girl in the entire world!"
"Yes, yes, you're very happy. Next time, don't peel so much fruits for me—I can't finish it," Derek said, rolling his eyes.
"Oh…" Stella's eyes spun mischievously. Then:
"Master, be honest. Does my waist feel super soft? Does it feel really good?"
Derek Su: "…"
Stella had her own unique way of shutting him down.
But Derek Su had his own top-tier method of changing the subject.
"Tomorrow is the Knox Rally. Remember what you said?"
"Of course!" Stella's eyes lit up, sapphire irises blazing like fire.
"I'm gonna show that stinky Jade-786 that Master is under the protection of the strongest, cutest, slickest-cornering, hungriest, sleepiest Mecha Girl—Stella-99!"
Derek Su: "…"
Well… eating and sleeping well wasn't really a flaw.
"Good luck. I'm looking forward to your performance~"
"Hehe, fighting, fighting!!"
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
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