Chapter 262: Revenant Descends — The Final Begins!
"After a brutal opening round, we've got our ten finalists! And don't worry, everyone — all ninety eliminated racers made it out completely safe. Not one single casualty this whole round. So rest easy — Hell's Kitchen takes your safety seriously.
Now, let's bring out our ten finalists!"
The moment Xuan Yin finished, all of Hell's Kitchen erupted. The crowd roared, cheering wildly for every driver who'd made the cut.
A few of the more enthusiastic locals couldn't hold back their excitement and fired off actual rockets into the night sky, gorgeous bursts of fireworks blooming overhead like flowers in full bloom, adding a whole extra layer of swagger to the spectacle.
The livestream audience ate it up too, comments flooding in nonstop.
"This is getting me so hyped, I want to go street racing RIGHT NOW."
"Watched plenty of street racing before, but this is clearly not really about speed — it's about who's packing the bigger guns."
"This is better than paintball, it's Mario Kart with real weapons. Best part — you can go full murder-mode and nobody actually dies. This is incredible."
"Right?? I literally watched a car EXPLODE and the driver got pulled out completely fine. That should not be possible."
"What's weird about that? The Lord of Hell's Kitchen can stop a Goomba shell mid-air, this is basic stuff for him."
"I've been driving for like two and a half years now and I would pay actual money to enter this, no prize money required, just let me in."
"Am I the only one who thinks Hell's Kitchen residents are just built different? Firing off actual RPGs to celebrate?! Those things aren't cheap!"
Watching the comment section explode with enthusiasm, Xuan Yin blinked, a little thrown. She'd seen a lot in her career, but even she hadn't quite braced for locals celebrating this hardcore.
Professional to the core, though, she recovered fast. "Sounds like our audience is REALLY feeling it tonight!
Anyway, back to business — let's break down where everyone landed.
Sitting in first place, we've got Hell's Kitchen's own Pietro and his partner, Lady Luck herself. A strong, steady start and Pietro's sharp driving carried them straight through to the top of the qualifying round!"
Hell's Kitchen's crowd erupted for their own guy immediately.
"NICE ONE! Keep that damn trophy right here in Hell's Kitchen!"
The livestream audience's reaction was noticeably less enthusiastic, though — plenty of people questioning whether that first-place finish was actually earned.
"Not gonna lie, I don't see how Pietro's actual driving got him first. Even I can tell his technique is mediocre at best."
"Yeah, that guy's luck is stupid good. Every single time someone closes in on him, some completely random thing happens to knock them back."
"Word is the girl riding shotgun with him is actually a mutant too — luck manipulation, specifically."
"WAIT, that's a real power?? And it affects other cars too??"
"Called it. She's been sitting there smiling the whole race, not doing anything visible — figured she was just there for looks. Turns out she's the actual MVP."
"So by that logic, Pietro's basically dead weight in that car. My grandma could've driven and still taken first."
The livestream chat kept ripping into the "questionable" first-place win as Xuan Yin moved on, voice still bright with energy.
"Next up — let's give a warm welcome to our two brave racers representing the Fujiwara Tofu Shop: Takumi Fujiwara and his partner, Itsuki! Takumi locked down second place thanks to that jaw-dropping drainage-ditch corner technique. Cool, composed, a little standoffish honestly — but every single turn he takes is pure power and precision. Hard not to respect driving like that."
Beside him, Itsuki was practically vibrating with excitement, tugging at Takumi's sleeve. "Takumi, we actually made it to the final! This is insane! If we actually win that two-million prize, do you think we could finally get that GTR we've been dreaming about?"
He waved enthusiastically at the crowd, acting like he was the one actually behind the wheel.
His excitement faded fast, though, replaced by a flicker of worry. "Hey, Takumi... doesn't this race feel kind of different from the ones we're used to? This isn't just about driving skill anymore. We're just regular guys — we don't know anything about weapons or whatever. You think we're actually gonna make it through this in one piece?"
Takumi didn't answer right away. He just gripped the wheel silently, sinking into deep thought.
Flashes of the track ran through his mind, working through every scenario that might come next.
Then, out of nowhere, a different thought surfaced. "Hey, Itsuki," he said quietly. "If we actually win this money... you think Natsuki would leave her uncle's place? Come back to me?" His voice carried a quiet, aching longing.
Just then, the announcer's voice cut back in. "Next up — let's welcome our third-place finishers, Paul Walker and his beautiful wife! Steady, consistent driving secured them that spot. Looking forward to seeing what they've got in the final round!"
The crowd cheered for their favorites, the whole neighborhood buzzing with energy.
Fourth place went to the Peter Parker duo, making their entrance riding their partner, Peter Carker.
Fifth place: the mutant pairing of Pyro and Iceman, stepping onto the track to a wave of surprised gasps — everyone curious what this particularly volatile combination might pull off.
Sixth place: a team of four turtles, the Ninja Turtles crew, made their entrance too — their charm and unmistakable style earning them plenty of applause and affection from the crowd.
Seventh place went to the Vongola's own representatives: G, Storm Guardian, and Knuckle, Sun Guardian, standing in for their Family with real skill and presence.
Finally, eighth, ninth, and tenth place rounded out the field: Deckard Shaw, Luke Hobbs, and Dominic Toretto — three bald men who'd spent the entire qualifying round ramming and sabotaging each other, yet somehow all three still muscled their way into the top ten anyway.
Dominic eyed the other two bald men with open irritation. "Damn it. If these two idiots hadn't kept getting in my way, I'd have had first place easy. Paul got THIRD. First place should've been a walk in the park for me."
His voice dripped with bitterness and frustration.
"Alright, racers — take your positions! Final round, starting now!"
Meanwhile, six thousand meters above Hell's Kitchen, a plane circled silently in the dark sky. Inside, a cold, flat voice spoke: "Arrived over target. Preparing for deployment."
The countdown began: "Three... two... one..."
The cargo hatch snapped open, and a shape plummeted out into the night sky.
"Deployment complete. Revenant is loose."
☆☆☆
-> 20 Advanced chapters Now Available on Patreon!!
-> https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Inkshaper
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to access patreon normally)
If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that's help the story a lot Thank you