Ten minutes later, Zane—his dislocated arm already reset—walked into the spectator line waiting for the cable cars.
This was Derek Su and Stella's plan: have Lingwind dislocate Zane's arm so she could obtain Autonomous mode authorization. No one had ever done anything like this on the track before. It looked like bending the rules, yet it stayed completely within their defined limits. After all, even if his arm had been set back in place, Zane wouldn't be able to pilot a Mecha Girl without several days of rest.
The incident quickly spread among the racers, Mecha Girls, and spectators.
After all, an operation as outrageous as Zane's was something most people had never seen in their lives.
Many felt sorry for Lingwind, believing that ending up with a pilot like Zane meant she'd been cursed with terrible luck.
Only Lingwind herself was filled with guilt. Zane hadn't treated her as well as he treated Broken Moon—he gave her few resources and barely any training opportunities—but when she was eliminated, it was Zane who bought her back. Otherwise, she would have been sent back for recycling. He occasionally took her to training races, and during underground black-market competitions, he never modified her just to chase victory.
Because of that, the decision to dislocate Zane's arm had cost Lingwind a great deal of inner struggle.
"Master, go without worry!"
From afar, Lingwind watched Zane standing hunched in the crowd, surrounded like some rare animal, his face full of embarrassment. She quietly steeled herself.
"Your arm won't be sacrificed for nothing. I will defeat Broken Moon and Hansen!"
Lingwind withdrew her gaze and instinctively looked toward the front of the lineup.
There, a petite figure stood hand in hand with Derek Su.
Stella seemed to sense her gaze. She turned back at once, spotted Lingwind, and smiled as she waved, pumping her fists in encouragement.
"Lingwind! Go for it! Fighting! Fighting!"
Lingwind's cheeks flushed, but she clenched her fists and returned the gesture with renewed courage.
Her eyes then shifted to the tall figure beside Stella.
Even though Derek Su didn't turn around, the moment Lingwind looked at his back, the tension in her heart eased without her even realizing it.
[I want you to remember the feeling of every single corner and carve it into your bones!]
Derek Su's voice still echoed in her ears, filling her with courage and strength.
[Your cornering attributes are excellent. Broken Moon may have more experience, but that shallow experience doesn't amount to anything compared to the techniques you've mastered—it's complete garbage!]
[You are now holding the King's Sword.]
"I'm holding the King's Sword," Lingwind said softly to herself.
She thought the "King" referred to the King of Knox.
She didn't know that the word carried deeper meaning.
But for her, this was already enough.
"I'm holding the weapon that will defeat Broken Moon and Hansen."
Lingwind took a deep breath. Her shyness and nervousness faded away, as though she'd been wrapped in a brand-new mantle. A faint trace of killing intent surfaced in her eyes.
"I request to change my starting position!"
She glanced at the number plate in her hand and raised it toward a passing staff member.
...
"Zane's gone crazy—and Lingwind's lost her mind too, hasn't she?"
Broken Moon stared in disbelief at Lingwind, who had switched to starting position 18.
When she first heard that Zane had crippled himself just to apply for Autonomous mode, she'd been ecstatic.
She was convinced Zane was simply running away.
But before she and Hansen could talk about it for long, Lingwind moved her starting position to behind theirs.
The Echo Valley Circuit stretched for 341 kilometers and contained 132 corners. A collision on the track was entirely possible. Was Lingwind not afraid at all? Driving alone, without a pilot to support her, every judgment would be hers to make.
"I don't know what they're thinking."
Hansen glanced back at Lingwind. The girl looked calm and composed, as if she'd come fully prepared.
But she couldn't possibly have installed a Diamond Module, right?!
If Zane had that kind of money, even being targeted by Mr. Yang's people, he wouldn't have failed to place in all five previous advancement races.
Everything about this felt unsettlingly strange.
Yet Hansen couldn't see through it. In the end, he could only comfort himself by thinking he was being overly sensitive.
"Master, don't overthink it."
Seeing Hansen's expression darken, Broken Moon hurried to reassure him, worried it might affect his condition. "Aside from endurance, Lingwind's attributes are worse than mine across the board. Even if her track experience is close to mine, she still can't beat me. Just drive the way you always do."
Hansen nodded, forcing the unease down.
Behind them, Lingwind stared intently at the backs of Broken Moon and Hansen, her fists slowly tightening.
…
Echo Valley Circuit, the triple hairpin turn 500 meters from the finish line—
Zane, Xavier Young, and Lumina were already seated in the spectator stands.
Although there was no large screen at the starting area of Echo Valley, each high-difficulty corner had a small display showing feeds from other sections of the course. At this moment, the screens looped footage of drivers and Mecha Girls preparing for the race.
The drone shots were extremely steady, clearly capturing the tension on the faces of both drivers and Mecha Girls.
This was especially true for the racers starting near the front—particularly numbers 1, 2, 4, and 5.
The expressions of those four competitors were especially telling.
After all, no one wanted the King of Knox starting right in front of or behind them.
With a 30-second interval between starts, running into him on the course meant a brutal fight.
And this "King of Knox" had a record of knocking other Mecha Girls straight off the track.
Lumina leaned toward Xavier Young and whispered with a grin, "Master, they seem really scared of Derek Su and Stella~"
Xavier Young thought to himself: How could they not be?
When he found out that Derek Su had trained Lingwind to this extent, even he had felt afraid.
If he were starting just ahead of or behind Derek Su now, and didn't know him personally, his expression wouldn't look any better than theirs.
"Today, Derek Su and Stella will definitely take first place."
Xavier Young's gaze shifted to Lingwind. "But today's real protagonist isn't Derek Su or Stella—it's that child, Lingwind."
"Yeah~" Lumina nodded. "I'm really looking forward to seeing her surpass Broken Moon. She'll be so happy, won't she?" Over the past couple of days, after repeatedly watching Derek Su and Stella's flying jumps, much of her fear had faded. She could now walk a few simple steps, and her face held far more smiles when she spoke.
Zane sat behind Xavier Young and Lumina. Hearing their conversation, he also looked toward Lingwind, his expression complicated.
Compared to Broken Moon, he really hadn't treated Lingwind well, and he'd always looked down on her attributes.
When he bought Lingwind back, it was out of pity. As for not upgrading her, that was a driver's bottom line Julian Ziliang had always taught him.
Now that Broken Moon had abandoned him, the one he'd valued the least—Lingwind—was the one willing to stand up for him.
His heart was filled with a tangled mix of emotions.
...
In a corner of the stands, Purple Lightning's gaze was fixed on Derek Su and Stella.
Only after watching them for a while did she notice Lingwind.
"An Autonomous Mecha Girl… I heard from Mr. Xavier that she was personally trained by Derek Su…"
She pressed her lips together, her hands clenching into fists. An inexplicable excitement surged within her, giving rise to a powerful sense of hope.
She hoped Lingwind would defeat Broken Moon—using Autonomous mode.
Just as she herself hoped to survive without a pilot, and one day return to the racetrack on her own.
Even if that hope was incredibly slim.
"Please… let me see it…"
Purple Lightning murmured, her lips trembling slightly.
"After the darkness… will there truly be a dawn?"
...
[All racers and Mecha Girls, please prepare for launch!]
[The Echo Valley training race is about to begin!]
[Racer and Mecha Girl No. 1, prepare for launch. Countdown: 30 seconds!]