Another Mecha Girl had already reached the steel frame bridge ahead of Derek Su.
She wasn't nearly as fast as Stella, but her momentum was fierce—she rushed up the ramp with everything she had.
The moment she hit the jump plate, her chassis lifted, and inertia carried her forward into the air.
Unfortunately, her power wasn't enough.
She barely made it a quarter of the way over before reaching her peak height… and then began to fall.
Normally, in a situation like this, she would only make it halfway before plummeting straight down off the steel frame bridge.
But her master wasn't the type to give up easily—he modded her.
FWOOSH!
A pair of glider wings extended from her sides, instantly slowing her descent.
Inside the cockpit, the racer let out a relieved breath, still clutching the control stick.
"I'm a damn genius!" he shouted, pumping his fist with joy.
To be fair, installing glider wings on his Mecha Girl was a stroke of inspiration.
While other drivers focused on combat mods for track skirmishes, he had poured all his effort into survival gear. These glider wings were specifically designed for moments like this—when a Mecha Girl flew off a cliff-like track.
Of course, that also meant his Mecha Girl lacked battle capability and rarely placed high in races.
But today was different.
With these glider wings, he would take first place!
He could already see the money waving at him from across the finish line.
From the stands, a tidal wave of cheering rose up, washing over him.
Carried by that excitement, he began to float with self-satisfaction.
Tch—crossing a steel frame bridge with glider wings?
Forget 150 meters—if Xavier Young made it 250 meters, he'd still make it across.
Easy.
However—
VROOOOOOOOM!!!
A deafening engine blast erupted overhead, shattering his triumphant fantasy.
What the hell—
Someone else was coming?!
He glanced upward—
A silver streak flashed past above him, leaving only drifting white smoke in its wake.
The instant Stella launched into the air, Derek Su floored the throttle, refusing to slow down even a fraction.
The engine revved to the limits of Stella's Sovereign Engine, screaming at peak output.
"So high!!"
"Master, slow down! We're gonna die!"
Hearing Stella's late reaction, Derek Su's mouth twitched.
He'd been wondering why Stella seemed so calm today—turns out her reaction time was just way too slow. She was only panicking now.
There it is—makes sense.
As Stella instinctively sensed danger, she briefly attempted to request full control over her chassis…
But her absolute trust in Derek Su erased the thought as quickly as it formed.
Her streamlined silver body sliced through the air like an unsheathed blade, piercing the wind as they soared toward the peak.
By now, Derek Su and Stella had already crossed two-thirds of the airborne span.
Then—gravity reclaimed them.
They began to fall.
Time seemed to slow.
Everyone held their breath, their eyes fixed on the silver streak soaring through the sky.
For this moment, Derek Su and Stella were the center of the entire arena.
"Master, they're so fast… they're really going to make it!"
Lumina grabbed Xavier Young's hand, breathing erratically, excitement and anticipation swirling in her eyes.
She was desperate to see Derek Su and Stella cross that deadly gap—to see someone shatter the fear that had haunted her heart.
If someone else could overcome it…
Then maybe she could too.
Xavier Young, however, looked solemn.
"Taking off is the easy part," he said quietly. "All you do is close your eyes and charge forward. But landing—that's the real challenge."
"When you start falling from the air, both driver and Mecha Girl feel that weightlessness… that terrifying illusion that the ground is rushing up to shatter you. Those sensations make most drivers instinctively brake or let off the throttle."
Letting off the throttle during landing was deadly.
A Mecha Girl would lose control instantly.
"The airborne gap is the first difficulty. The landing curve—that's the real killer."
He wasn't sure Derek Su and Stella could pull it off.
He had just learned that Derek Su was a rookie. A genius, yes.
But no amount of talent could make up for the lack of real track experience—earned only through countless races and endless practice.
This was probably their first real jump.
Could they succeed?
For the first time since Lumina's accident six months ago, he felt nervous—for another driver and another Mecha Girl.
...
"Stella! There's no turning back! The moment we take off, we charge ahead—no hesitation!" Derek Su locked his gaze on the second steel frame bridge rapidly approaching. "If we don't make it, we fail. If we make it—we're reborn!"
Racing was an extreme sport dancing on the edge of life and death.
That was why people revered it—why their blood burned for it.
Humans were never meant to live quietly. They craved danger. Thrill. Glory.
"Charge forward. Leave everything to me."
Derek Su placed his hand solemnly on Stella's tail end.
The message was delivered. His hand pulled back.
Only killing intent remained in his eyes—
Killing intent toward the track.
Just a few simple words, yet Derek Su's calm, steady voice infused Stella's tense heart with unwavering strength.
She immediately steadied herself and assisted him in stabilizing the chassis midair.
A mere 150-meter jump?
If it was her master—there would be no problem.
While still airborne, Derek Su adjusted the chassis.
To prepare for the upcoming curve after landing, he leaned his own body left, causing Stella to tilt at an angle.
Her wheels turned fully left, creating a diagonal alignment with the nose-down trajectory.
These two angles were crucial—
They were the key to restoring grip immediately upon landing, and essential for entering the curve smoothly.
"Master! Landing in 100—into a left turn!"
"Got it!" Derek Su's reply was firm and resolute.
Before, Stella would've lost control in a post-jump curve like this.
But now?
She was reborn.
No longer the Mecha Girl who used to tremble at cornering, despairing at her future.
BOOM—!
Stella landed.
The brutal inertia made her tires screech violently across the ground.
Her chassis shot toward the guardrail with nearly no reduction in speed.
But thanks to Derek Su's midair adjustments, Stella slid sideways at the last moment, entering a state similar to inertia drift.
The friction of all four wheels slowed her enough that she stopped less than a meter from the guardrail—
And with the throttle still pinned, Stella's speed shot up again instantly.
She launched out of the curve like an arrow leaving the bowstring.
Trailing white exhaust, she blasted across the finish line.
Meanwhile, the glider-wing Mecha Girl finally drifted past the airborne gap.
A dead silence fell over the arena.
Derek Su climbed out with utter composure.
Stella folded out of her transformed state.
Her shoes reflected the condition of her tires.
Seeing the nearly flattened soles, she pouted.
"Master… we need new tires again. One tire could buy so many snacks…"
...
"They crossed the finish line!"
Connor finally snapped out of his daze, raising the mic with a cracked-throat scream.
"With a near-perfect jump and an unbelievably gorgeous landing turn, tonight's champions are our Kings of Knox—Derek Su and his Mecha Girl, Stella!"
Xavier Young stared blankly at the pair holding hands at the finish line.
For a moment, he felt his eyes sting.
He looked down, wanting to secretly wipe the corner—
Only to realize Lumina had already stood up beside him.
"Lumina, you—"