Absolute Shadow folded back from deployment mode. Miles Wang finally snapped out of it and hurried to her side.
"Absolute Shadow, did he use any special technique while driving you just now?"
Special technique?
Absolute Shadow really wanted to say: he's got no emotions—only skill.
But she still had to give her master a bit of dignity.
"Mm… he only issued standard commands. He's not some hidden Techmaster—just an ordinary person."
"I see…"
Hearing that Derek Su's performance was pure technique made Miles Wang even more unwilling to accept it. He immediately asked,
"Then did you learn his technique?"
"…I think so."
Absolute Shadow twisted her fingers awkwardly.
She wasn't entirely sure. As a Mecha Girl, she had memorized all of Derek Su's commands, but she still couldn't execute such operations by herself—she needed Miles Wang to assist.
"That's good." Miles Wang tightened his fist. "We'll test it when we get back."
He comforted himself: this was fine too.
Even if his Mecha Girl had been driven by someone else, even if he lost the Knox Rally championship, at least they'd picked up a new technique.
With his "genius" driving skills, he was sure he could expand on it and make it his own.
Then in future races, if he ever encountered Derek Su again…
He would be the one dazzling the crowd with fancy techniques, completely outshining him.
At that thought, a smug grin curled on his lips.
Absolute Shadow, however, kept stealing shy glances at Derek Su's back, cheeks slightly flushed, lost in her thoughts.
"Mr. Miles Wang, since Mr. Derek Su has already completed his self-verification, we'll begin awarding medals based on ranking. The audience outside has been waiting."
The head referee now looked at Derek Su with pure respect. As for the respect he showed Miles Wang—
That was courtesy toward SSC Club, not toward Miles himself.
If Miles Wang weren't the son of the club owner,
the head referee wouldn't even bother looking at him.
"Wait! I have another objection!" Miles Wang raised his hand sharply.
"Please speak."
"Derek Su did use Wall-Hugging Overtake, but he didn't drive on the track. Isn't that against the rules?"
"Of course not."
Before the referees could answer, Kool Kenny—who had long grown impatient—jumped in:
"According to universal international competition rules, rally drivers may temporarily use non-track roads when encountering unexpected situations, but all risks and consequences are their own responsibility."
"Uh… does Knox count as an international competition?"
"Yes. Mr. Miles Wang, please read the rulebook carefully before your next race."
Kool Kenny rolled his eyes at him.
He didn't care what club Miles belonged to—
He was just a host, and he had no intention of becoming a racer anyway.
...
At the award ceremony,
Derek Su stood atop the champion's podium with Stella.
Stella held the golden trophy with a radiant smile. Derek Su, wearing a pink Hello Kitty suit, waved gracefully at the cameras. Every angle captured him looking elegant and composed.
"Master seems awfully experienced… Is it just me…?"
Stella sneaked glances at Derek Su's perfectly fake smile. She was so nervous she could faint—yet Derek Su looked as calm as a mannequin.
She didn't know that in his past life, Derek Su had won so many trophies that even his award-ceremony smile had been mastered to perfection.
No paparazzi had ever caught him looking bad.
Inside a small tavern in Jiangcheng City—
The rich sponsor stood before the TV, bursting with excitement.
"You all see that?! That's the Mecha Girl and racer I sponsored! They won first place in Knox! And that racing suit—custom-made by me!"
He pointed proudly at the little chibi sticker on Derek Su's chest.
"Hahaha! That's my daughter!"
At a Module Shop, the owner had just turned on the TV when he saw Derek Su and Stella win first place. The noodles he'd just slurped sprayed everywhere.
"Holy shit… How is it THEM!?"
"So they weren't scammers after all?!"
He slapped his thigh in utter regret.
This loss cut deep.
If only he'd sponsored them—
His Module Shop would've exploded in popularity! Drivers and Mecha Girls would flock to buy his modules!
The profits would've increased tenfold!
At the hospital—
Jade-786 stood before Kyle Zhang's bed, termination papers in hand.
Her eyes shifted from the award ceremony on the TV, growing colder with each passing second.
"Kyle Zhang, sign it. We're done."
"Jade-786, y-you're really abandoning me? Abandoning Ascend Racing Club?"
Kyle Zhang's wounds hadn't healed. With an oxygen mask over his mouth, his voice was muffled.
"You ungrateful bastard! And I even gave you a free Module!"
Jade-786 twitched her lips, ripped the module off, and threw it onto his face.
Kyle Zhang sucked in a painful breath.
Grabbing the oxygen mask's tubing, she sneered,
"Sign it. Or I'll rip your oxygen mask off."
Mr. Liang had just gotten off a plane. Seeing Derek Su's "waiter-style" smile and Stella clutching the trophy like a silly child, his lips curved gently.
"Better hurry home and make fish soup… Stella likes fish heads. I'll get her a big one this time."
But Mr.Liang didn't notice—
Two mysterious groups were already trailing him, sometimes near, sometimes far.
...
"Mr. Derek Su, here is your prize money as the Knox Champion: a total of 500,000!"
Kool Kenny and the staff approached with a briefcase full of neatly arranged bills.
Derek Su took it, and his smile became genuinely warm.
"Wow! So much ice cream and Pineapples!" Stella rubbed her hands eagerly (she seemed to have developed some kind of fixation on pineapples too).
"Mr. Derek Su, may we interview you?"
Kool Kenny lifted the microphone toward him.
For the sake of the money, Derek Su didn't refuse.
"We heard you only participated in two practice races before entering Knox. How did you train such incredible techniques?"
Derek Su chuckled calmly.
"These techniques don't require training. I just think about them before going to sleep, and during races they naturally come to me~"
Kool Kenny turned to the audience with a stunned look: "…"
Stella: "…" Her master was in full brag mode again.
"Do you have any insights on cornering techniques you can share with the audience?"
Many racers and Mecha Girls sat among the viewers, eager for his answer.
"Insights…" Derek Su stroked his chin.
"Mostly, trust your feelings~
If you feel you can make the turn, you can.
If you feel you can't, you won't.
I've always driven instinctively. Honestly, I kind of envy racers who can precisely understand themselves and their Mecha Girl."
"...A-heh-heh… Mr. Derek Su is a rookie, so lacking experience is normal. But achieving this level by intuition alone truly is genius~"
Kool Kenny forced a smooth save.
If he kept asking, the racers and Mecha Girls in the audience might riot.
Better change the topic.
"What would you like to say to your Mecha Girl?"
Derek Su looked at Stella; Stella blinked back with wide, bright eyes.
He smiled and gently patted her head.
"My Stella will definitely become a world-class Mecha Girl."
"Wow~ Mr. Su seems very confident in Stella's future!"
Kool Kenny held the mic to Stella.
"Miss Stella, as a Mecha Girl, do you have anything you'd like to say to your master?"
Still immersed in those warm words, Stella stared at Derek Su for a long while before regaining her senses.
Facing the mic and cameras, her cheeks flushed scarlet.
She tugged nervously at Derek Su's clothes, her heart overflowing with emotion:
"I-I… I want to be with Master forever…"
Then she sucked in a breath and blurted,
"Together… e-e-eat ice cream and Pineapples!!!"
The audience burst into friendly laughter.
But Stella heard none of it.
Head down, her face burned hot all the way to her ears.
I ruined it. I ruined everything…
Stupid! Stella, you're such an idiot!!
She cursed herself a hundred times.
She finally said it—
But why did she have to add such a stupid explanation afterward?
Forever eating ice cream together and Pineapples?
Master would definitely make fun of her.
"Sure. Then let's eat ice cream and Pineapples together~"
A warm hand touched her head.
Stella lifted her gaze.
Derek Su's smile shone under the sunlight—like he was glowing.
Just like that stormy night when someone stepped into the dark warehouse, reaching out to her through a sliver of light.
Back then, fear kept her from taking that hand.
Now, she finally had the courage to walk beside Derek Su toward the future…
"Mm!! Let's eat lots of ice cream and Pineapples together!"
Bathed in sunlight, Stella beamed brightly.
"Oh, and burger too!"
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser