Chapter 2: Old faces, new times
After a 2 long hour drive from the airport, the cab driver took Tadanobu to the MFG Headquarters.
He stepped out of the cab and entered the receptionist of the MFG Headquarters. The staff greets him with politeness. “Welcome to MFG Headquarters! How may I be of service?”
“Hi, I'd like to join the MFG competition if that's still possible,” Tadanobu replied in a ‘straight to the point’ tone.
The staff replied while she handed out an application form: “Sure, please fill out this form.”
While he fills out the form, he can’t help but feel a sense of dark aura, as if his archnemesis was present. As his last stroke of handwriting, he wrote “Koenigsegg” in the application box that says “Car Brand”, which is the type of car he will be driving in the MFG.
When the receptionist noticed what car he was driving, she was astounded by the choice of his vehicle. “Koenigsegg? That sounds like a fast car!”
Tadanobu chuckles and replies, “It is, missy. Now, what’s the date of my trial race?”
She then checks the database in the computer before responding, “You’re lucky to book today because if it had been another day later, you could’ve missed your slot. Anyways, your date should be…,” she pauses as she types the keyboard, “Ah, in two days. Just be sure you bring your car to Odawara Pikes Peak before 8:30 am and they’ll give you further instructions.”
Tadanobu Akira: “Alright. Thank you,” he thanked the female receptionist before heading to the cab he was originally in. Just as he was about to open the passenger door, a familiar German voice stopped him in his motions.
“It’s been quite a while, ‘Swedish Phantom’.” As Tadanobu turns to see who it is, turned out it’s his archnemesis and he replies with a cold tone and a wide smile. “It has been a while…‘German Cyborg’"
They both exchanged cold, demeaning looks, as Michael leaned on his white Porsche Cayman 718 S, while Akira leaned on the cab.
Michael Beckenbauer(in a pissed-off tone): “Just what the hell do you think you’re doing here, Akira? Break every record I ever set in any race that I ever participated in? Or maybe, destroy my reputation as a racer for every race in which I got second place because of you?
Tadanobu Akira scoffs before replying snarky, “Come on, Michael. Do you seriously think that you deserve those two titles that you held yourself back in Germany when I beat you a year ago? Not to mention, in your home country? And out of the 24 races we’ve raced throughout Europe, 15 of those you’ve lost to me.”
Michael seemed triggered by the choice of words that Akira talked to him and he’s clenching his fists while still holding his grudge against me. But he tried to keep his cool and responded to Akira arrogantly.
Michael Beckenbauer: “So what? I can win other races without your presence! In addition, I’ve become a different racer than I was a year ago.”
Tadanobu Akira: “Is that so? Well if you’re gonna prove what you say, see you in the race then, ‘Stuttgart Slayer’.”
As Tadanobu taunts his title for one last time, he gets into the cab and gets driven away while Michael unleashes his fury for Tadanobu by ranting at him as the cab driver was driving him away. While Tadanobu was inside the cab, he noticed Michael ranting at him but he just took it as a clown show and ignored him while being driven away.
Tadanobu Akira: “Sorry for the long wait. I was dealing with some…unexpected guests.”
Cab driver: “It’s alright. As long as you’re paying me once you’ve reached your final destination, I have no words of complaint.”
After a 30-minute drive from the MFG Headquarters, Tadanobu finally reached his temporary residence in Odawara with his colleagues waiting.
Tadanobu Akira: “Thanks for the pickup. Here’s the money, keep the change.” He bows down to the cab driver while handing him a 50,000 yen bill and the cab driver reluctantly accepts it.
Cab driver: “Wow! That’s a hefty amount of money! Thank you very much!”
He exited the passenger seat and was greeted by his assistants and colleagues, Daisuke Hikaru and Nakamura Daiki.
Daisuke Hikaru: “You've made it back! That's good.”
Tadanobu Akira(in a chilled, friendly tone): “It has been quite a while since we last met in Germany for the Nürburgring. Is everything going as planned?”
Nakamura Daiki: “Yes, Akira. I even listed the names of the participants for this year's MFG race. But you need to see this.”
He then passes his tablet to Tadanobu to see who he needs to know. And to his response, he let out a chuckle and a tiny smug around his face when he saw it.
Tadanobu Akira: “Well hello there, Rivington. You registered as ‘Katagiri Kanata’ instead of ‘Kanata Rivington’ for MFG? Well then. I looked forward to finding out who was the best student for a senior representing our old racing school.”
