Seeing Lucius and Mors from The Vanquishers act so smug, with their members shouting nonstop, Piper was furious.
She felt like ramming a truck through the crowd and knocking every single one of them down.
But Caesar and the others hadn't returned yet.
Just as Piper stood on her toes, trying to spot when they would come back—
Suddenly, at the bend in the track near the Hollows, three figures came racing into view.
Three motorcycles.
Even from afar, Piper recognized them instantly—it was Caesar, Clorinde, and the others.
She shouted excitedly, "Lighter! Lucy! Furina! Look over there—it's Caesar and the others! They're back!"
At that, Lucy, Lighter, Burnice, Furina, and Wise all stood up.
They followed Piper's pointing finger and saw the three bikes, with Caesar's familiar figure in the lead.
Seeing Caesar return alive, Lucy finally let out a sigh of relief.
"So it really was a joke... Caesar, you're the worst! Pulling a prank like that—this time I'm definitely beating you up and taking the title of leader of the Sons of Calydon!"
Burnice stood on tiptoe, waving.
"Hey! Over here—we're over here!"
Furina clutched the railing and jumped up with joy as soon as she spotted Clorinde riding in safely.
"Clorinde! Clorinde! I'm here!"
It seemed their voices were heard.
Caesar, Clorinde, and Billy, now nearing the starting line, waved back to Lucy and Furina.
...
Soon after, the trio arrived at the race's starting point.
They were greeted by a scene of celebration—spectators and Vanquishers members lifting Lucius and Mors into the air like returning champions.
Cheers rang out, with chants of "Lucius! Mors! Vanquishers!" echoing across the crowd.
At the same time, many in the audience noticed Caesar, Billy, and the others arriving.
Some were longtime residents of the Old Oil Field, people who had long lived under the Sons of Calydon's protection. They came forward to comfort Caesar.
"Don't be discouraged. You lost this year, but there's always next time."
"Keep your head up, Caesar. Losing to the Vanquishers isn't shameful—they're an old gang with deep roots. You'll win next time, for sure."
"Welcome back, Caesar! Come join the celebration with the Vanquishers!"
A few people approached her, noticing the sour expression on her face, and tried to cheer her up.
But—
They didn't realize that Caesar wasn't upset because she'd lost.
Quite the opposite.
They hadn't lost at all. According to the rules, only those who successfully blew up the Ether crystals above Cinder Lake were the true winners.
What truly infuriated Caesar was what Lucius and Mors had done.
From ambushing her, Lucy, and Burnice in the Hollows yesterday...
To planting traps on the racetrack today—going as far as using explosives to try and kill them...
And then, at the lake—Lucius had betrayed the Vanquishers, murdered Uncle Pompey, and tried to destroy the entire lake.
A traitor. A failure.
Yet now, surrounded by cheers and praise, Lucius stood there as if he were some kind of hero.
Caesar was livid.
She skidded her motorcycle to a halt, jumped off, and shouted angrily.
"Lucius! Cut the act—your plan already failed!"
The moment her voice rang out, the cheers and shouting instantly died down.
Everyone—spectators and Vanquishers alike—turned to look at her.
Then Caesar shouted even louder.
"Lucius! I threw the flint into Cinder Lake and blew up all the Ether crystals. Your plan's over. You're a traitor to the biker clan—and you killed Uncle Pompey. It's time to settle this!"
Her words hit like a bomb.
A wave of uproar surged through the crowd.
Vanquishers supporters and members erupted in outrage.
"Caesar, what kind of nonsense is that? You lost—just admit it already! We told you not to race, but you insisted. And now that you lost, you can't even handle it? This is a live broadcast, you know—don't embarrass yourself in front of all of New Eridu and the outer zones!"
"Yeah, stop shaming the entire biker clan!"
"Before the feed cut out, the drones clearly showed the Vanquishers arriving at the lake first. Everyone saw it—they were way ahead!"
"When the Vanquishers reached the lake, you Sons of Calydon were nowhere in sight. They blew up the Ether crystals, and now you show up claiming victory? Do you think we're all blind?"
"And calling Lucius and Mors traitors? Got any proof? If not, stop slandering. Sounds to me like you're the real traitors!"
"Yeah—and about Pompey! You're saying he's dead? That's impossible! No one could kill Uncle Pompey!"
...
No one believed Caesar's accusations.
Some even flipped it on her, calling the Sons of Calydon sore losers who couldn't accept defeat and were now trying to drag down the real winners.
But—
A few spectators started to notice something wasn't right.
Lucius had just claimed Pompey was on his way.
But now the entire Sons of Calydon crew had returned—yet Pompey was still missing.
If everyone else was back... then where was Pompey?
Could it be... something really had happened in the Hollows?
Before anyone could fully process the thought, Lucius stood up amidst the crowd, flanked by his supporters.
He stared at Caesar and Billy with contempt.
Truthfully, he hadn't expected them to survive.
In his plan, Pompey was supposed to turn into an Ethereal and kill Caesar and the others at Cinder Lake.
That way, he and Mors would've had nothing left to worry about.
But now Caesar was back—and judging from what she said, even the Ether crystals were gone.
Lucius was furious.
His perfect plan—wrecked by an idiot like Caesar.
He glared coldly at her.
"You're just a loser. What right do you have to cause a scene here?"