Longxing Street wasn't far from Haitang Street, only about four or five kilometers away.
After Laiya An and the Rolling Stone Club owner left, Derek Su and the others headed to the Rolling Stone Club, excitement bubbling beneath the surface. It wasn't until they actually reached the entrance that they realized the "Stella Club" sign they'd prepared in advance was a bit too small.
Stella: "Wooooah—!!
It's that big?!"
Staring at the four-story standalone office building in front of them, Derek Su's eyes widened in shock.
When the Rolling Stone Club owner had first come by, they'd only gone over the terms with each other. They hadn't known what the Rolling Stone Club was really like, and Derek Su had assumed it would be similar to Kyle Zhang's Ascend Racing Club. After all, his goal back then was simply to secure qualification for the provincial Panlong Mountain Circuit.
"It really is huge. At this scale, it already counts as a medium-sized club," Xavier Young said, nodding repeatedly. That alone showed how wealthy the Rolling Stone Club owner was—handing it over to Derek Su without hesitation. Running a club was probably just a hobby for him, or a long-term investment in Rolling Stone's future. Unfortunately, things had taken a bad turn.
And from start to finish, that owner had never even considered replacing the Mecha Girl.
Even though Rolling Stone's performance hadn't been particularly outstanding.
...
Derek Su and the others took a full tour of the club.
The first floor was the reception area, with restrooms, four offices, a conference room, and a waiting area. The second floor was used for daily training and instruction, with two small classrooms, a large storage room, and a medical clinic. The third floor was the entertainment zone, equipped with a gym, a modification workshop, a movie and e-sports room, and even a small zero-cost nutrient solution supermarket. Stella was completely captivated by that little supermarket, her eyes shining. The fourth floor was the residential area, with twelve rooms in total. Each room was about fifty square meters, with a private shower and toilet. The decor was elegant, and everything was spotlessly clean.
Even Xavier Young felt a pang of envy after seeing it all.
Feeling a bit sour, he shook his head and sighed. "If I had what it takes to win the Silverstone Advancement Tournament championship, I definitely wouldn't have let something like this fall into your hands."
"Hahaha, Mr. Xavier, you're joking," Derek Su replied with a smile. "Your underground black market and the Foxfire Club combined are far more impressive than this place." He looked around at his very first club. Even though it was nowhere near one ten-thousandth as luxurious as the club he'd owned in his previous life, he still couldn't help feeling stirred, his smile growing wider.
This club was something he and Stella had fought for together.
It was the result of their shared effort, and it meant far more than appearances alone.
"Don't celebrate just yet," Zane said from the side, his expression serious as he poured cold water on the mood. "Having a building isn't enough. We don't have enough pilots, Mecha Girls, or instructors. If we can't pass the approval process, the club won't be officially recognized."
That was a real problem.
They couldn't exactly go asking Mr. Xavier for people.
Derek Su frowned. "So how many pilots, Mecha Girls, and instructors do we need?"
"At least three pilots, five Mecha Girls, and two instructors," Mr. Xavier replied.
"Kyle Zhang's club didn't have that many people back then!" Derek Su exclaimed in surprise.
Three pilots was manageable, but five Mecha Girls? Even if he sold himself, he wouldn't be able to afford five. He could bid on cheaper Mecha Girls, sure—but once he did, he'd be responsible for them. He couldn't bring himself to buy them just to let them sit idle.
"I don't know the exact situation with Kyle Zhang's club," Mr. Xavier said firmly, "but those are the requirements to pass approval. If pilots are fired later, or some Mecha Girls are sent to the Recycling Yard afterward, that doesn't count. That's probably why their numbers looked low."
"Alright." Derek Su sighed helplessly. That explanation actually made sense.
Back then, the three Mecha Girls at the Conscience Refurbishment Plant—including Stella—had all been discarded by the Ascend Racing Club. Seeing no future ahead and unwilling to become functional Mecha Girls, they'd chosen to go to the Recycling Yard instead.
"Don't worry. Once the club is established, we can recruit," Xavier Young said with a grin. "You're The Magician, the King of Knox. With your name, recruiting ordinary pilots and instructors won't be a problem at all. As for Mecha Girls, we can go check out the city's exhibition auction. Even if you don't have an invitation yet, you can enter as a club owner."
"That's true. Then let's start by recruiting pilots and instructors," Derek Su said, nodding.
There were still four months before the provincial-level circuit.
As long as they gathered enough people within those four months, it would be fine.
"Lingwind and I can count as one pilot and one Mecha Girl," Zane suggested. "Derek Su, you can double as a coach yourself. Just get certified—it'll be easy for you. That way, we only need one more pilot, one more instructor, and three Mecha Girls."
"Whoa! That makes things feel half as hard all of a sudden!" Stella hugged Lingwind, beaming. "Lingwind, from now on you're officially a member of the Stella Club! Hurry up and call me Pineapple Sister!"
"Pi… Pineapple Sister…" Lingwind's face turned red as he shyly said the words.
"Hehehe~" Hearing that title made Stella feel utterly satisfied. She patted Lingwind on the shoulder and said smugly, "Work hard, and I'll appoint you as my Pineapple-Bearing Guard!"
Lingwind: "..."
With a plan in place, Xavier Young and Zane immediately posted recruitment ads for the Stella Club online. Thanks to Mr. Xavier's wide network, they also spread the word in various racing groups. The titles "King of Knox" and "The Magician" were undeniably appealing, and before long, plenty of people expressed interest in checking out the newly established club.
...
However, the next day—
Derek Su and Zane were already seated in the conference room, ready for interviews, when they realized that not a single pilot or instructor who'd agreed to come actually showed up.
Mr. Xavier's expression darkened as he started calling them one by one.
"Hey, Zhang, what's going on? Weren't you coming to interview at the Stella Club?"
"Ah, Mr. Xavier, sorry! My buddy's having a really difficult delivery today, I've gotta go help. Really sorry—gotta hang up! Next time for sure, next time for sure..."
A difficult delivery?!
Mr. Xavier stared at his phone, gritted his teeth, and blocked the number before dialing another.
"Sorry, the number you have dialed does not exist. Sorry..."
Xavier Young: "..."
He made over a dozen calls in a row. Every one of them came back with some excuse, a powered-off phone, or no connection at all. Three numbers had been outright deactivated.
There was no way this wasn't deliberate.
"Damn it, a bunch of scum," Mr. Xavier cursed, sitting down heavily on a chair, his face grim. "They were probably threatened. They're scared to come, afraid it'll affect their future. If they'd had the guts to come to your club, they might've actually had a chance down the line."
Derek Su propped his chin on one hand and let out a helpless sigh.
In his previous life, clubs sabotaging each other and poaching talent was nothing new. Big clubs squeezing small ones out of existence happened all the time, and many talented drivers ended up buried after being deliberately benched by major clubs.
It turned out clubs in this world were no different.
If anything, their dirty tactics were even worse.
"Then let's expand our recruitment range," Zane suggested, frowning. "Tianyuan City might be hard, but the neighboring smaller cities should be fine. You'll just have to wait a bit longer, Derek Su."
"Good things come to those who wait. I'm fine with that," Derek Su said with a smile. "But anyone who stood us up this time is definitely getting blacklisted by our club."
The atmosphere gradually eased.
Seeing how open-minded Derek Su was, Mr. Xavier finally relaxed as well.
He patted his knee and stood up. "In that case, let's forget about interviews today. We'll head to the Tianyuan City Exhibition Auction instead. Derek Su, you haven't been there before, right?"
Derek Su nodded. He was pretty curious about it himself.
Stella, on the other hand, grew even more excited. Her eyes sparkling, she leaned in close to Derek Su, her face full of anticipation. "Master, the Pineapple King needs Pineapple Guards! A Pineapple King without guards is just a lone commander—an incomplete, puppet regime!"
Derek Su's mouth twitched. He reached out and pinched Stella's soft cheeks, pulling them apart. "Where did you learn all these weird theories?"
Stella blinked innocently and pulled a book out of a drawer.
On the cover were four bold characters: The Chronicles of the Conqueror King (by Sleepyhead Penguin).
Derek Su: "..."
So Mecha Girls read web novels too.
...
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