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nClouds of smoke and dirt flew into the air as Alpha drove her car across the city outer reaches. As she did, she couldn’t help but glare at the woman in the car beside her.

nAfter the initial challenge, there had been a brief exchange of words.

nThe winner of the evening’s race kept the other woman’s car.

nA simple bet. One that the young woman made in a condescending tone.

nHearing that, Alpha accepted and they sped off to a more suitable location.

nEven so…

nHow? How did that woman keep up?

nAs if she could hear Alpha’s thoughts, the woman glanced over and smirked.

nAlpha grit her teeth and then turned her attention back to the road ahead.

nThe city had vanished, leaving only a sprawling road leading into the countryside.

nAlpha didn’t know where they were going, but she wasn’t going to lose to a mortal again.

nHeadlights illuminating the dark road. Flakes of white snow, gently drifting down. The first snowfall of the year.

nAlpha ignored it and pushed her foot down again, increasing the car’s speed to the limit. But even so, that damnable woman kept up. No, she was inching ahead.

nAlpha grit her teeth again.

nIt would be easy. So easy to use her powers to push the car even further.

nBut this wasn’t a matter of results but pride.

nShe wouldn’t lose. She couldn’t lose. Not after all that had happened already.

nThe asphalt roads quickly degraded as they approached a mountainside road in the distance.

nGlancing at it, Alpha could see a sign hanging above a split in the road. Something or another about a mountain race track.

nSeeing that, Alpha’s eyes narrowed.

nSo this wasn’t enough for her, was it?

nAs Alpha sped through the night beside that other woman, she noticed that the other cars following them had spread out. Judging from how affairs usually went, it seemed that they were either content to leave Alpha to that woman, or to secure the area.

nEither was fine with her.

nThe split in the road arrived.

nThe black BMW suddenly swerved, heading towards Alpha’s car.

nHer eyes widened and she pulled her car back, avoiding the impact. But as a result, the BMW cut ahead.

n“That woman…!” Alpha growled and floored the gas again, speeding up after her. “Taking advantage of the fact that this is my father’s car…!”

nOf course, there was no way for that woman to know that it wasn’t Alpha’s car.

nBut Alpha didn’t realize her irrational thoughts. All she could think was that she was being slighted by some weak mortal woman.

n“…Tch. I will apologize to Father later.”

nMuttering that under her breath, Alpha resolved to win no matter what damage occurred to the car.

nThe sound of screeching tires filled the air. White smoke covered Alpha’s vision, kicked up by the BMW’s swerving across the narrow road.

nBut it didn’t matter to Alpha. She could clearly see straight through the obstruction and keep her eye on the opponent’s vehicle. As she did, she realized why it was faster. “A modified vehicle, is it? Tch.”

nWhile she was still unfamiliar with the technology and innovations of her father’s home world, she could sense that the vehicle in front of her was not in harmony. Some attributes had been sacrificed to emphasize others.

nLike speed.

nAlpha narrowed her eyes.

nIt seemed that since they had arrived on the track, that woman was no longer holding back. The distance between the black BMW and Alpha’s car was slowly increasing.

nHowever.

n“Speed is not enough.” Alpha muttered and focused on the rest of the track.

nThe mortal woman’s hubris would be her downfall.

nThe race track that had been chosen was treacherous, winding across a steep mountain in erratic twists and curves. A single mistake would be enough to send the racer tumbling into the darkness below.

nIn short, the woman was gambling with her life.

nWhy she chose to wager against Alpha of all people was unknown. However, the woman would be sorely mistaken if she thought that it would be a simple race.

nA sharp bend in the road up ahead.

nThe black BMW stopped accelerating, dropping speed to drift around it, kicking up white smoke in the air.

nBut Alpha-

n“Futile.”

nQuickly judging the angle of the mountain slope on the left as well as the vehicle’s weight, she jerked the steering wheel the the left at the moment the slope was shallow enough.

nThe black Ferrari kicked up in the air, tilted precariously on its side while the tires hugged the slope, jerking the car forward.

nA completely reckless move. One that no sane person would choose to do considering the deadly consequences of failure.

nOf course, that didn’t apply to Alpha.

nIn an instant, the gap closed and then Alpha took the lead. As she did, Alpha focused on the expression of the woman in the BMW.

nShock and disbelief. But only for a brief second. Afterwards, a wide grin and strange glint shone in the woman’s eyes.

nAlpha twisted the steering wheel again, plopping her car back on the streets just as the road spun away from the mountain slope and into a dark forest. As she did, she huffed. “So that was not enough, was it?”

nThe woman’s car hummed, the sound of the engine swiftly approaching on the straightaway.

n“Tch.” Alpha clicked her tongue and then focused on the road ahead.

nUnlike the sharp bend on the mountain slope, there were constant curved turns, like a snake’s wiggling body.

nFor a split second, Alpha considered simply charging straight ahead through the trees. However, she noticed that a guardrail covered the sides of the roads, preventing such a feat without damaging the car.

n“No matter.” Alpha muttered under her breath and then focused.

nThe woman’s actions flickered in her mind, as well as how the car moved.

nIf Alpha remembered correctly, that woman had used another braking system to immediately cut her speed.

nA quick scan of her father’s car. Then she found it.

nA small lever directly on her right side that could be pulled up to stall the acceleration.

nAt that time, the first curve arrived.

nAlpha reached over and pulled the lever. At the same time, she turned her wheel like how that woman did and made sure to keep her foot on the gas.

nThe black Ferrari jerked, twisting at the sudden movements. Smoke filled the air as she tried to copy the drifting move that woman did… and she managed it, barely avoiding flying out past the guard rail.

nHowever-

n*Vroooom*

n-The sound of a car speeding past filled the air. The black BMW, cutting ahead with a tighter drift than Alpha performed. And as she passed, the woman in the BMW grinned, flicking Alpha off.

n“You hateful…!”

nAlpha grit her teeth and then pushed the gas pedal down to the floor.

nThe curves continued, black trees flying past, briefly illuminated by the car headlights. Smoke filled the air from the car tires burning from the drifting.

nAnd Alpha got the hang of it. Like before, the gap between her and that black BMW closed, the two cars almost touching.

nBut the woman was still in the lead.

n…Why?

nAs Alpha stared at the car that wouldn’t leave her vision, she grit her teeth and questioned it.

nAlpha was the Chaos Maiden. The Magnum Opus of the strongest transcendent who broke beyond the entire Three Realms. The one whom even Eternal Emperors dared not face in direct combat without ample preparations.

nAnd… she was losing to a mere mortal?!

nAlpha’s heart throbbed.

nWas it anger? Pain? Worry?

nAlpha couldn’t discern the exact emotion she felt. But she knew one thing.

nShe couldn’t lose.

nShe wouldn’t lose.

nThe pair of cars broke through the forest, the race track opening up to a steep cliff. At the same time, the road curved, hugging close to the side of a mountain. But unlike before with a sharp bend, there seemed to be a huge curve, winding to the left.

nAlpha used the handbrake again to drift, quickly determining that it would be impossible to maintain speed the entire time and that she wouldn’t be able to drive along the mountainside.

nSmoke filled the air, the result of the tires biting the asphalt to prevent the Ferrari from flying off the cliff into the darkness.

nAnd the same happened from up ahead, smoke filling the air from the BMW’s tires as well.

nBut that was all.

nAlpha grit her teeth, quickly gauging how much of the track was left.

nAfter the curve, there was a straight away back to where they first started. But…

n‘Did I… lose?’

nShe couldn’t close the gap.

nFor some reason, when that BMW drifted, the speed didn’t completely drop. A smooth transition wasting no momentum at all.

nBut when Alpha did it, the Ferrari resisted. Try as she might, she couldn’t perform as smooth of a drift.

nWhile her superior reflexes and spatial awareness prevented her from spinning out at the worst moments, it wasn’t enough.

nAgain, like when she fought that child in that game, there was a critical lack of understanding. Something that Alpha couldn’t comprehend.

nA pang in her heart.

nAlpha winced and then resisted the urge to grab her chest.

nEven so, there was a sense of panic growing.

nThis… she was going to lose. Again.

nNot only that, but she was going to lose. To a mere mortal of all people.

nAnd when she lost, her father’s car…

n“No. NO.”

nAlpha grit her teeth, focusing all of her mind on the road ahead.

nThere was still time. There was still space.

nIf she didn’t possess the skill that woman had in drifting, then Alpha would use what she did know.

nNarrowing her eyes, Alpha broke time down into infinitesimal segments.

nOptimizing every movement. Calculating every vector. Making the slightest adjustments to even use the wind to give her speed.

nBut…

nBut…!

nThe black BMW spun around, drifting backwards and parking as it crossed the finish line.

nAlpha did the same, stopping the Ferrari right next to the other car.

nBarely a second. Mere fractions of time short.

nIt was close enough to where an ordinary person had enough reason to contest the results.

nBut.

nA soft alarm filled the air. The sound from a car door opening while the engine was on.

nThe young woman had walked out from the BMW to open Alpha’s car door. Tossing her long black hair back, the woman smiled and said, “That was a good race. For a pretty face like yourself, that is.”

nAlpha was quiet, staring blankly ahead.

nThe headlights of the Ferrari illuminated the road, revealing snowflakes drifting to the ground.

nShe… lost.

nShe lost.

nTo a mortal.

nAgain.

nFor the third time.

nHer vision blurred.

nConfused, Alpha blinked and then realized something was running down her cheeks.

n“What?” The woman laughed and said, “Crying because you lost? Afraid that Daddy will be mad because her little princess lost his car?”

nAlpha froze.

nThat… was right.

nShe lost, so she had to give up the car.

nThose were the terms of the wager.

nBut…

nAlpha blinked again and then glanced at the woman.

nShe was young. Like the other girl early in the day, it was an arrogant child who didn’t know any better.

nBut.

nBut to slight her like this.

nTo hold herself out as superior simply because she possessed knowledge that Alpha did not, because the vehicle she used had been modified while Alpha’s was not…

nAlpha narrowed her eyes, killing intent flaring.

nThe young woman raised her eyebrow. “Hoh?” At the same time, she chuckled and then said, “You’re that mad huh? Do you want to have a go, then?” She smiled, but her eyes were cold. “I’m fine with that. I’ve been under all sorts of stress since that Aoyama bastard went off the rails and ruined our businesses anyway.” Taking a step back, the woman raised her fists, taking a fighting stance.

nAlpha turned off the engine, pulling out the key. After, she unbuckled her seatbelt and got out of her car, her eyes flashing red.

n-Kill her.

nRight. Wasn’t that all she had to do?

nA mere mortal standing in her way. Someone trying to demean their reputation, of hers and her father’s.

nCars revved in the distance, coming to a stop nearby. Afterwards, doors opened and men in black suits exited, followed by the sounds of guns being loaded.

nOne man, a bald guy with scars on his face, looked to the young woman standing across from Alpha and said, “Lady Asako. Should we…?”

n“Hmph.” The young woman- That Lady Asako, tucked a strand of her black hair behind her ears and said, “I don’t care what you guys do for that bastard of a father I have, but under me, the Seiryuu will operate according to my rules. Understand? And I’m not greedy enough to kill a crying daddy’s girl for a cheap Ferrari.”

n“Yes, Lady Asako!”

nWith that shout, the men took a step back.

nAsako- No, Asako Seiryuu, heiress of the Seiryuu Alliance, smirked and turned back to Alpha. “Well?”

nAlpha clenched her fists and took a step forward.

nBut then she stopped.

n*It’s fine. And remember, this isn’t ‘that’ place. It’s okay to let things like these go.*

nHer father’s words echoed in her mind. At the same time, she recalled his smile.

nThat…

nIf she killed these mortals, what would her father think?

nFrom how he stopped her, it was clear that he didn’t intend to conquer this world. And he had mentioned that there would be no point in being here if he got involved in troublesome things.

nThen… If Alpha killed these mortals and their allies learned of it.

nWould that not mean that her father would have to resolve the situation?

nWould that not mean that even Rin and her mother would be implicated?

nAlpha knew too clearly how the chain of events ended.

nThe killing would not end until the problem had been wiped out at the source. Until the root was culled entirely.

nBut this was not the Three Realms.

nSuch bloodshed and retribution would be easily noticed.

nAnd then the peaceful life they lived would be ruined.

nThen…

nThen…!

n“What?” Asako smiled. “Having second thoughts? I mean, I’m fine with leaving this be if you just hand me the car key.”

nAlpha flinched, tightly holding onto the Ferrari’s car key.

nThat… should she just do it? Should she just give up the car?

nIf her father truly wanted to live a peaceful life here…

nBut if she gave up her father’s car… wouldn’t she cause more trouble for him?

nNo. After all of this, she had already caused trouble for him.

nAgain.

nAlpha trembled, realizing that fact.

nUseless.

nA hassle.

nIf her father found out… No. He would already know. Someone as powerful and all-seeing like him surely would have realized it.

nThen… Then she…!

nA car engine roaring from the distance.

n“Hm?” Asako turned to look.

nAlpha blinked and then did as well.

nA white Toyota roared down the road before coming to screeching halt just inches from the other cars.

nEveryone froze, wondering who the new arrival was.

nAnd then the car door opened and music started blaring from inside.

n*Deja Vu!

nI’ve just been in this place before…*

nA soft sigh echoed and then a male voice called out. “It’s so hard when I try to be me.”

n*whooooooaaa!*

nAlpha froze. “F-Father?”

nJohn glanced at her, narrowing his eyes. But then he turned to Asako and said, “So you’re the one who made my daughter cry, huh?”

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