Alice's heartbeat synchronized with the purr of the M6's engine as she stared into the void, feeling immense pressure. Gripping the wheel, she tried to calm herself while waiting for the race to begin. Suddenly, she received a transmission from her team radio.

  "Ally, get ready in a few more minutes alright?" Ghazali's told her over the radio.

  "Y-yeah, sure." She said to him.

  As she double-checks all her equipment, she looks towards the stewards, who all wave the green flag, signaling they're ready. A steward signals to Alice with a thumbs up, asking if she's good to go. Alice replies back with a thumbs up.

  "Alright, Ally. The race is about to begin. This is your shot; make us proud!" Ghazali enthusiastically told her.

  "I'll do my best for our team, Gaz!" Alice told him.

  Alice remembering all the people supporting her began igniting her heart with determination to qualify for the race. Alice holds her steering wheel and watches the red lights turn on one by one with intense focus.

  "Go Go Go!" Ghazali told Alice over the radio.

  The lights went out and Alice stepped on the gas and began zooming on the straights towards the triple hairpin. Alice enters the hairpin quite smoothly and exits it towards Sector 3. She warms her tires and begins to push her limits. Upon reaching the chicane of Sector 3, she brakes a bit late and nearly drives off the track but manages to save it.

  "Damnit! I braked too late!" Alice said in distress.

  "Concentrate Alice, don't let the pressure take over." Ghazali told over the radio.

  "Sorry, I'm getting a bit distracted. I need to remain focus!" Alice told Ghazali.

  "You don't need to focus, just drive with your flow. Do not overdrive yourself." Ghazali said in a calm tone.

  "Y-yeah, I'll try that. Thanks, Gaz." Alice told Ghazali.

  Alice turned off her mic trying to drive with her flow and avoid entering tunnel vision. On the second straight, Alice pushed hard on the accelerator as she sped through the straight. As she approached the right-hand corner, she slowed her car. She entered the corner and navigated through Sector 4 with ease. The M6 emerged from the chicane speeding through the straight of sector 1 and crossed the finish line.

  "A. Shah. Number 430. Time 2:21." An announcement was made from the speaker.

  "Not bad Alice, but not enough either. Push yourself to the limits, Alice!" Ghazali said on the radio.

  "Will do Gaz!" Alice determinedly told Ghazali.

  Alice began flooring it on the long straight of Sector 1, then braking hard into Sector 2 of the track. Alice disappears from everyone's vision as she enters Sector 2. While Alice was doing her qualifiers, Sugimoto and Kara were in the stands as they began talking to each other about Alice.

  "Do you think she can make it to the top 24?" Kara asked Sugimoto feeling worried.

  Kara looks understandingly worried for Alice and Sugimoto notices her concerns for Alice and he gives her a confident look.

  "Why are you worrying? She's already doing quite fine." Sugimoto reassures her.

  "You do realize that the pressure from this kind of tournament is pretty intense, right? Racing professionally for the first time can take a toll on a 17-year-old. The first time I participated in an event like this I almost crashed! How can you believe she could handle this?" Kara asked him.

  "She's not like any other person, she's different from us Kara." Sugimoto told her.

  "What makes you say that Asashi?" Kara asked confusedly.

  "I don't know." Sugimoto replied casually.

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  Kara drops to the floor thinking that he was about to say something spectacular, just for him to answer it casually.

  "Bro, you said it like she's some superhero that could win against anyone. Why do you say that then?!" Kara yelled at him furiously.

  "Alice just feels different from us don't you think, I feel like she has that thing that makes her distinct. We might be seeing the coming of a great racer!" Sugimoto explained to her.

  "Y-You don't say, Asashi?" Kara muttered seemingly disappointed by the answer but she accepted it nevertheless.

  As Alice continued to drive, she realized the flame within her and began driving hard through the straights and corners. She finally found her groove and drove flawlessly on the track as she entered each sector.

  "You know Asashi, she's still a kid, right? Don't you think you guys are pushing her too hard for this race?" Kara asked concernedly.

  "Huh, we're pushing her hard? She's the one pushing who's making me work hard." Sugimoto chuckled.

  As they were talking to each other, Sugimoto and Kara suddenly heard a car's engine emerge sooner than expected. Kara looks towards the circuit and sees the blue BMW M6 GT3 already on the straights and heading towards the finish line.

  "A-Alice?" Kara muttered seemingly astonished.

  "A. Shah. Number 430. Time, 2:07. Fourth position." The announcer told over the speakers.

  The pit crew began cheering as Alice reached the top 4 in the leaderboards.

  "Exactly 2 seconds behind me too huh?" Sugimoto muttered to himself.

  Kara was taken aback by the fact that Alice had almost beaten her and Richard's lap time.

  "Asashi you never told me she was this good!" Kara screamed at Sugimoto.

  "You did it Alice, top 4!" The manager screamed into the mic.

  "Ally you're crazy!" Ghazali screamed at the manager

  "I'm not done just yet!" Alice said confidently.

  "Be careful out there Alice, get back safely." The manager told her.

  Alice continued the lap and tried to squeeze out as much time as possible. She was still determined to set another impressive lap time and is now aiming for pole position. The M6's engine began roaring throughout the track as she entered the hairpins and everyone's eyes were on Alice, including the commentators.

  "Alice Shah, a rookie driver from Akinabalu Motorsports is currently making a name for herself as she has placed fourth position in qualifiers in her first professional race in her career." The commenter said currently spectating her.

  The spotlight is now on Alice began slicing away time little by little as she continued driving. Ghazali went to the computers and noticed in his analytics that she was on pace for pole position. Ghazali was astonished to see her pace and quickly called her.

  "You're almost there Alice! Just a bit more and you'll drive home with pole position!" Ghazali told her.

  Alice became too excited as she was about to enter Sector 4. She missed her braking zone and understeered into the grass. She pulled back onto the track and drove towards the straights. She felt sad that her time would be deleted as she was off track.

  "Ah damn it, sorry Ghazali." Alice said on the radio.

  "Don't worry, you did great Alice!" Ghazali reassures her.

  Alice and her BMW M6 crossed the finish line and the pit crew cheered for her, even some of the rival team clapped for her.

  "Great work Alice, come back to pits." Ghazali told over the radio.

  Alice crossed the finish line, and the crowd cheered from the stands. The cameras focused on her as she circled the lap one last time. As she was still driving, the commentators began rambling about her.

  "Tough luck for this young lady, but tonight she has outdone herself and picked up 4th position for herself in tomorrow's race. That's what really matters. It is a good night for the Akinabalu Motorsports team." The announcer said.

  Alice appeared back at the pit and stepped out of the car and they saw her trembling on her foot. She took off her helmet and saw that everyone was staring at her.

  "I-I did it!" Alice said still feeling scared from the last lap.

  The pit crew rushed over her and tossed her up as they celebrated her achievement.

  "Pole Position and 4th position!" The manager said seeming in disbelief.

  "You good chief?" Sugimoto asked while smiling.

  "Y-yeah, it feels surreal. But it doesn't mean we've won yet. Tomorrow's race will be our deciding factor." The manager told Sugimoto.

  As Alice finished celebrating with the pit crew, Sugimoto and Kara went up to her and congratulated her.

  "Great work kid" Sugimoto gave her a head pat.

  "Jeez, thanks Senpai." She said while pushing away his hands.

  After that, Kara suddenly grabbed her up and hugged her tightly. She began suffocating from the intense hugging.

  "You never told me you were this good Alice!" She said as she hugged her like a doll.

  "T-thanks Kara." She said as she tried to tap out from the hug.

  Alice was put back down and breathed a sigh of relief.

  "I still can't believe I got in 4th position!" Alice said excitedly

  "Yup, tomorrow's race just got even more interesting. You're starting behind Richard as well!" Kara told her.

  "That punk huh? Hopefully, I can make him eat my dust." Alice said as she grudged her fist.

  "Does Alice have some sort of beef with Richard, Asashi?" Kara whispered to Sugimoto.

  "Long story short, they had a little argument." Sugimoto replied nervously.

  "He's a fast driver, you know. Chasing him isn't easy, but since you're also full of surprises, maybe you could beat him," Kara told Alice.

  Alice nodded and suddenly the manager called everyone on the team to the pit for a team talk. Kara decides to head back to her team to celebrate with them.

  "It seems like it's time for me to leave. I'll see you at tomorrow's race!" Kara said to them.

  "Ah alright, see you tomorrow." Sugimoto told her.

  "See you tomorrow Kara!" Alice said to her.

  Kara waved them goodbye and walked out of their pit. Alice and Sugimoto walk toward the manager to listen to the team talk.