The roar of the Pagani Zonda’s V12 engine echoed through the mountain pass as Luna gripped the wheel, a manic grin stretched across her face. The night sky above was clear, the stars shimmering like a blessing from the heavens as the ali-turreet-racer pushed the hypercar to its limits.
The needle on the speedometer climbed dangerously high as the Zonda tore down the empty highway, the bright city lights of Kyoto shrinking in the rearview mirror. The wind howled past, and the sound of eurobeat bsted through the sound system—Running in the 90s was in full swing, setting the perfect atmosphere for pure, unfiltered speed traveling down the highway blowing straight past a Supra and a 270z which were both going very fast…
Harry and Daphne were enjoying the speed down the empty night highways of Japan…
====Until they reached the mountain.
Harry g to the passenger seat, his knuckles white as he braced himself. “LUNA, THIS IS NOT A BROOM! CARS HAVE LIMITS!”
Daphne, sitting in the back, had long since given up on protesting and was instead staring out the window with a resigned expression. “This is how I die,” she muttered under her breath.
Luna cackled, downshifting as she approached a curve. “Nonsense! Limits are meant to be broken!”
The Zonda slid into the turn with perfect precision, tires screeg against the asphalt. The g-forces pressed them into their seats, but Luna trolled the drift effortlessly, her instincts hohrough years of high-speed flying as an Ali.
The roar of the Pagani Zonda’s V12 echoed through the mountain pass as Luna pushed the hypercar even harder, the st of burnt rubber filling the air. The eurobeat track shifted to Beat of the Rising Sun, perfectly matg the adrenaline c through her veins.
Ihe cockpit, Harry was gripping the side of the door for dear life, his face a mix of awe and sheer terror. Meanwhile, Daphne erched on his p, arms crossed, seemingly unbothered by their absurd speed.
“If we crash, I just want you to know—” Harry started, voice shaking.
“We’re not crashing,” Dapherrupted, pletely unphased. “Luna actually knows what she’s doing.”
“Of course I do!” Luna grinned, heel-toeing into a downshift before flig the wheel, sending the Zonda into a perfectly trolled drift around a tight er.
Ahead of them, the tail lights of Project D’s racers shone like red beas in the night. Takumi’s AE86 was still in the lead, while Keisuke’s FD RX-7 aggressively hugged the road, trying to pull ahead.
“They are here! I t believe they actually advertised it on the website!” Luna cheers seeing the cars
“They’re here! I ’t believe they actually advertised it on the website!” Luna cheered, her excitement bubbling over as she expertly navigated another er, keeping the Zonda in perfect trol. The rear-engine hypercar wasn’t built for these kinds of narrow mountain passes, but that didn’t matter—Luna willed it to handle like a dream.
Harry groaned from underh Daphne, who was still seated on his p, arms crossed, looking pletely unfazed. “Luna, that website was for spectators, not challengers!” he shouted over the r engine. “You ’t just show up in a Zonda and expect them to race you!”
“Why not?” Luna beamed, eyes alight with mischief. “This is exactly what I wanted—an actual race against the best street racers Japan has to offer!”
Daphne sighed. “She’s gonna do it anyway, Harry. Just accept it.”
Meanwhile, up ahead, the racers of Project D had definitely noticed the monstrous hypercar closing in.
Keisuke g his rearview mirrain, his grip oeering wheel tightening. “That thing? What in the world is it?” He looks up at the 86 infront of him before deg to bite the bullet. Pressing the button on his headset, “Brother, do you have any clue what that car is?”
Ryosuke’s voice crackled through the radio. “A Pagani Zonda…? Whs something like that up here? Be cautious, Keisuke. That’s no amateur. A hypercar like that shouldn’t be able to keep up oight ers, but they’re making it work. On top of that the car isn't even released to the public yet.”
“Yeah seeing it drift just looks wrong.” Keisuke responds
The radio crackles befoing silent and then crag to life again.”I am sorry did you say drifting? That car should not be drifting its a rear engine down force mae.” Keisuke’s grip on the wheel tightened as he navigated another hairpin, keeping his RX-7 banced as best he could while the monstrous Zonda tio close in. “Yeah, I said drifting,” he snapped, eyes flig between the road and his rearview mirror. “Not just slidiher—it’s . trolled. Like they’ve dohis a thousand times.”
Takumi, still focused on the road ahead, listened quietly, his curiosity piqued. He hadn’t gotten a good look at the car yet, but if even Ryosuke was surprised, then this was something serious.
The radio crackled again as Ryosuke responded. “That doesn’t make sehe Zonda was designed with immense downforce—it’s built frip, not slides. If they’re making it drift like a touge car, theher they’ve pletely reworked the car’s suspension and aerodynamics, or…” He trailed off, a rare note of uainty in his voice.
“Or what?” Keisuke demanded.
“Or the driver is so skilled that they’re pensating for the car’s natural behavior purely through teique.”
A heavy silence filled the el for a moment. Then, Keisuke muttered, “Damn it.”
Meanwhile, ihe Zonda, Luna giggled with glee as she flicked the car into another perfect drift, the tires screeg but never losing trol. The rush of adrenalihe smell of burning rubber, the roar of the V12—it was everything she had dreamed of and more.
“They’re good,” she murmured, watg Takumi’s steady, effit movements. “Very good.”
Harry, still clutg the door for dear life, groaned. “Oh no. I know that tohat’s the ‘I’m about to make things worse’ tone.”
Daphne just smirked. “She’s going to pass them.”
Luna’s grin widened as she downshifted, the Zonda’s engine screaming in response. “Of course I am.”
