Chapter 164,Coolest Girl in Town
There was an audible pause at the other end of the line before he grunted in acknowledgment and asked, “How did you know?” For a split second, Elise considered relaying the conversation that she overheard without omitting anything, but she realized that she would only be digging a hole for herself since she was supposed to be in Athesea at the moment. Instead, she quickly clarified, “Does Griffith Family have any enemies, Alexander?
Or, did you offend anyone?” Alexander naturally could already tell that something was going on. “What do you mean by these questions, Elise?” As her gaze darkened, she answered, “I’m worried that someone will try to harm you while you’re at the race. Please take care of yourself.” Upon seeing how worried she was for him, his heart softened. “Don’t worry, I will.” “Alright,” she answered. “Have a good race and I look forward to your success.” In the end, she couldn’t bring herself to tell him the truth. It was a good thing that she had glanced at the license plate and remembered its number before the group of men drove off.
Unfortunately, it was a fake number and even after searching for ages, she failed to locate anything. It was Elise’s first time feeling defeated, but she didn’t intend to throw in the towel. No matter what, she couldn’t allow anything to happen to Alexander tonight. She had to foil the opponent’s plot. This was Tissote’s first time holding a national racing competition and it was undoubtedly a boon to those who liked racing. The entrance tickets had been sold out a long time ago; the area was already packed like sardines with spectators an hour before the race.
Elise had changed into her disguise and was dressed in a black-and-white casual wear that was complimented by a pair of Doc Martens, an old baseball cap, and a mask to obscure most of her face. Only after looking at herself in the mirror and determining that she didn’t resemble her usual self did she feel safe enough to enter the arena. She bypassed the amphitheater and headed straight for the waiting area that was full of racers prepared to join the race tonight.
Upon noticing her, the stunned crowd stared at her before they finally burst into an uproar. “Sue? I can’t believe she’s here! I can’t believe that she’s come to compete! I always thought this was a gimmick by the organizer.” “What kind of luck am I having to run into Sue today of all days? And I’m in the same group as her! Can I simply admit defeat now?” “Sue, will you sign my autograph?” One of the contestants rushed up and handed a pen to Elise.
With an apologetic smile, Elise apologized, “I’m sorry, I don’t like giving out autographs.” Yet, the person wouldn’t give up. “You’re my idol, Sue. The drifting skill you demonstrated in the French competition three years ago was amazing. It’s been years and I haven’t found anyone who’s been able to drift better than you, or even as beautifully as you did.” “Didn’t you leave the racing industry, Sue? Why have you suddenly returned?” someone else asked. Elise answered calmly, “For private and confidential reasons.”
Such an answer from someone else would have seemed arrogant, but it was simply par for the course from Sue. At this moment, Alexander walked in through the entrance and he was favored to win since he was a familiar face in the industry. His gaze darted around the moment he entered and his eyes brightened when he finally caught sight of Elise. Then, he headed in her direction with visible excitement. “Participants, please come over to draw lots,” a staff member called out. When Alexander heard those words, he paused in his steps but decided to disregard the call in favor of approaching Sue.
He joyfully watched as the person in front of him and the figure from his memory overlapped with each other. “It’s so nice to see you, Sue,” he greeted. Unfortunately for him, Elise simply lowered the visor on her cap and she grunted in reply without saying anything else. Yet, the excitement on Alexander’s face couldn’t be hidden. The only reason why he had participated in the competition was that he knew Sue would be in attendance as well. While he assumed that there would only be a slim chance of her actually coming to compete, she was actually here against all his expectations.
All of a sudden, he felt like a humble fan meeting an idol. “Which group are you in, Sue?” he continued to ask. Instead of answering the man, Elise simply held up two fingers. Alexander smiled gently as he encouraged, “Good luck, then. I’ll come to look for you after the competition.” With that, he headed in the other direction. The thing was that Elise never expected that Alexander would be interested in Sue as well. While she was initially worried for his safety, she found it much more convenient now that he was paying attention to her. “For the first group of participants, please get ready to enter the arena,” the same staff member announced, to which several participants headed out as a result.
Not long after that, several cool sports cars lined up neatly at the starting line and raced at top speed like an arrow shooting from a bow when the gunshot rang out in the air. The competition in this group was fierce; the top three cars were neck and neck with each other and refused to give way to the other. As Elise watched the race, her eyes narrowed as the burning familiar feeling of excitement started to return to her. “To the second group, get ready.” Upon hearing those words, she turned, but instead of heading to her own supercar, she walked to Alexander and handed her keys to him.
“Use my car instead. I’ll use yours.” While he was slightly surprised by her request, he was hard-pressed to ask any questions in his idol’s face. Thus, without concealing any of his awe, he took the car keys from her and handed his own to her thereafter heading in the direction of her car. While Elise clutched the keys, she entered his car without any hesitation. She accelerated and tested the brakes after she activated the throttle.
The basic functions seemed normal and the car was performing rather well. Immediately after she stepped on the accelerator, the car picked up speed and headed toward the starting point. The moment she readied her car in Track 4, the audience went into an uproar as one wave of cheers washed over the other, making it easy to see how popular she was. “Wow! It’s Sue! She’s here! She’s making an appearance!”
“What a blessing for the racing industry to be able to witness Sue’s return during our lifetime!” “Well, now the race will be interesting. Quickly stream it! Let everyone witness this momentous occasion.” With that, many of the audience members pulled out their cell phones as they were ready to do a live broadcast. The majority of their lenses were focused on Elise.
She clutched the steering wheel and focused on the finishing line. As the cars raced off in unison after the gunshot, she maintained her gaze on the route ahead of her. Any thoughts of distraction vanished from her mind as she headed in the direction of the finishing line…
