Original subtitles

Rounding off the first half of the season, the winner in Spain is...

Yes, who else but the King, Lorenzo M. Salvatore.

In second, it's the Queen, Alice Summerwood.

Youran finishes third, and Sophia ends up fourth. A good result for the pair.

They were able to beat Richard, the Queen's Shield.

Great things might spring from this.

Although Rin Rindo completed the race, she came last.

She's made that spot her own.

Don't mock me.

NEX Race: a new world of race cars built with next-gen power.

The girl dances on a stage that exceeds 500 kph.

Her goal: to become the étoile of the circuit.

Backmarker

Yamato Pier Warehouse

I'm gonna rant a little.

I'm listening.

I feel like I won't ever get there.

I hear you.

There's a deep, dark chasm in front of that spot.

Man, I'd love to be on the podium.

Yeah.

Speaking of, we made a promise back at the school.

Yup. The three of us were gonna be on the podium together.

Huh? Did we really make a promise like that?

Nope!

What?

We lied.

So mean.

But that does sound nice.

The three of us finishing one, two, and three.

Totally.

I'll take first place.

You two can fight over second and third.

I wanna finish first, too!

Me, too!

What are you doing after this?

Nothing, really.

I'm going home and passing out.

All right! Let's do some training.

What? But we just got back!

A-A-And I'm hungry.

Can't I just go home, have some of Grandma's monja, then rest up for the day?

Here, drink this for now.

Hey, that's mine.

Oh, uh, thanks.

Anyway, quit your bellyaching and let's train!

Or we'll never beat the King and those guys.

You're right.

My drink...

Let's do this!

All right! Time to train!

To cope with the rigors of racing, we need minds and bodies of steel.

Ah, I drank too much.

I told you, it was mine.

What?

That contact...

I could see Kanata's rear drifting across,

so if I'd changed my line, I could've avoided a crash.

I need more experience, no doubt about it.

It was a mistake to approach at high speed,

then brake so hard on tires that were losing grip.

Which would you rather be: an idiot or an also-ran?

What a workout.

I feel refreshed.

But I want to rest during the off-season.

Racers don't get an off-season!

What?

Even the King and the Queen train with their eyes on that end-of-season prize.

Really?

Yeah!

As rookies, we need to train ten times as hard or we'll never beat them!

You're right. I think they race in a way that only they can.

A way that only they can?

Ah, I know!

Hey, ami-chan.

How may I help you, Rin?

What's that?

Our team's AI.

Can you tell us anything about the King and those guys?

What would you like to know?

Like how they race and stuff.

Understood.

I will now begin.

First, the Queen, aka Alice Summerwood.

Her driving style is characterized by her boldness.

She drives with courage and a keen racing sense.

Her top racing moment came in the Americas,

where she dove into the completely blind first turn and took the lead.

The win she went on to achieve is regarded as legendary.

The King, aka Lorenzo M. Salvatore.

His defining trait is consistency fit for an undisputed champion.

Whatever the conditions, he never falters.

He does detailed research and training behind the scenes.

His racing style is carefully calculated and ingenious.

One could say he is the opposite of Alice, who relies on her natural talent.

His most memorable race was at a rainy Fuji.

Despite visibility extending only as far as his own nosecone,

he was in complete control and triumphed.

Richard Parker.

With his excellent tire management skills

and a tenacious style boasting few mistakes, he has found himself rising to the top.

Many of the Queen's victories have involved his support from the shadows.

Sophia Bryant Tokitou.

She has a good understanding of her machine.

Her display at Hockenheim, where the balance between power and traction is key, proved this.

Lastly, Liu Youran.

She has the composure to make up for any mistakes, plus a high level of skill.

The fact that she finished second in her home race of Shanghai

while unable to downshift perhaps most reflects her strengths.

Does that answer your question?

Then, uh, what about us?

What do you mean by "us"?

I'm talking about Kanata Asakawa, Towa Komachi, and Rin Rindo.

Well?

There is no data.

What the heck?

Unexpectedly offensive.

There must be something.

It is not that there is no information. There is simply nothing of importance.

Stop that!

It's super effective.

You should all try to hurry up and improve.

Are there only strict people on my team?

But we really should hurry and find our own racing style.

Yeah.

Chitose-san?

Hello?

What? Some new training?

Is this...

A g-force endurance machine?

This is pretty extreme.

This was supposed to be a secret training session.

S-Sorry. We had to come check it out.

It seemed interesting.

Don't worry about it. This is something we should all enjoy.

Just like that time with the Queen,

this kid just isn't satisfied without getting others involved in her business.

It's fine. In return, I'll collect all your data.

Um...

Is someone else coming?

This must be it.

Looks cool.

You guys, too? Aren't you all supposed to be off work?

Rin said she'd take us to a good restaurant.

Rin-chan told us she wanted a girls' day with everyone.

I wasn't invited?

Th-This was supposed to be Rin's training.

We're in your care!

Well, that's Rin for you.

Okay, shall we begin?

Who wants to go first?

Rock, paper...

Scissors!

I'm first?

Okay, let's begin.

What?

Don't die in there.

What?

I'll pick up your bones.

That's not what she meant!

Hurry up now.

Huh? What?

You're keeping us waiting.

Just go already!

H-How was it?

Was it scary?

Uh, my soul left my body, so I don't know.

I-I'll be going now.

Nuh-uh. You're up next, Sophia-neesan.

Y-You go ahead, Kana-chan.

I'll go after you!

All right, see ya later.

Everyone will participate.

Kanata, snap out of it. Kanata.

You're all supposed to be drivers, right?

You need to build up your stamina.

E-Easy for you to say. You haven't tried it, Hikari.

There's actually a training regimen I wanted to try out,

Don't ignore me!

but I think that's enough for today.

Yes, let's leave it there for now.

We've collected enough data so we shouldn't overwork you.

Get some good rest, everyone.

Okay.

Where did they even get their hands on this thing?

Our director has some nifty connections.

This is the latest tech, so be sure to sign the contract before you go.

What?

If you let any of this get out,

you'll be hit with various fines. No hard feelings.

What?

That is, if it's true.

Really?!

The same goes for this machine, but no matter how much tech develops,

it can't improve the individual abilities of the drivers.

In the end, it's the driver's ability that determines if they win or lose.

But I think you all already knew that.

Um, what other kinds of training are there?

Let's see...

A big one is dynamic visual training.

It's said that humans get 80% of external information from their vision.

That's true while racing, too.

To make the right call when you can't afford even a momentary lapse in judgment,

you need accurate information.

So having dynamic visual acuity is necessary for this.

Keep worrying, young ones, for that will help you grow.

No, wait. I'm still young, too.

Get up, Rin.

I can't move.

You need to listen up!

Wanna grab a bite? I'm so hungry.

I know a good place near here.

I have high expectations.

Youran-chan knows a lot of good places, after all.

You guys give me too much credit.

I asked the King and the Queen for restaurant recommendations since I'm in Japan,

and they told me the best place to go.

This oughta be good!

Wouldn't somewhere those two go be pretty expensive?

Not at all.

Then, let's go there.

Yeah!

Back Alley Monja

Monkichi

Here it is.

Wow! Japanese soul food!

N-Not again.

And that's why I wanna beat the King and the Queen, no matter what!

That's some pretty big talk.

It's best to have big hopes, big ambitions, and big delusions.

De-lu-lu delusions! De-lu-lu delusions!

I feel like it won't come true if you say it like that.

First, the Queen! Then after her, I'll surpass the King!

Didn't you join the racing world because you looked up to the Queen, Kana-chan?

Hey, that was a s-secret!

Really?

I get it. It's like you want to walk the same path as your idol.

So you have an idol, too, Youran-chan?

You could say that.

Do you really?

Who? Who?

That person from Kanazawa?

A Japanese driver?

Huh?

It's the Japanese confectionery artisan, right?

That's my culinary interests.

What?

A racer who can knead, wrap, and decorate.

That person isn't a racer.

The driver I meant was active years ago, and I've only seen them in videos.

They're said to be a driver who's "more memorable than the records,"

due to their beautiful driving style.

I want to be a driver just like that.

More memorable than the records? That's so cool!

Drivers from the past were good,

but some were so obsessed with winning, they did anything for the victory.

Uh-huh.

Some even carelessly weaved left and right to block other cars.

Wow, that's mean.

If they realized they couldn't win,

they smashed into other cars on purpose and forced them to retire.

What?

So violent.

One absurdly fast driver kept getting into trouble and never became champion,

and as a result, became known as the Uncrowned King.

Another skilled driver who was fast but crashed a lot was called the Destroyer.

One was called the Computer due to their calm demeanor and never making mistakes,

and a driver nicknamed the Phoenix came back after a huge crash.

In short, there have been many drivers with specific quirks throughout history.

B-But right now, we're in the era of the King and the Queen.

Yup.

The King was known as a bit of a troublemaker when he was younger.

What?!

Tell us more!

The most famous incident was when he accidentally hit the kill switch

while on his way to victory because he was showing off to the crowd.

What?!

His engine died, of course.

Retired on the spot.

No way!

Th-The King did that?

That's so unlike his current self.

Right? Isn't that interesting?

Everyone's unique.

Unique, huh?

Hey, now that we've eaten, do you guys wanna go exercise a bit?

If we train now, it'll backfire.

No, not proper training. Something more recreational.

I'm down. It seemed like our trainer wanted to train us a lot more starting tomorrow.

Sounds good, sounds good.

Where are we going?

My last day off.

Oh, it is not.

That was nothing compared to our last training session.

I could go ten more times.

Forget about training!

On this course, that corner is 30R, and that one is...

Don't go making it a "course"!

Hey!

Yay!

Aw, shoot. She nosed it in.

It's not a corner!

You guys aren't having fun at all!

And we're back again.

We just keep getting sucked into all the racing stuff.

We suck at resting.

It is what it is.

While we're doing this, the King and the Queen must be doing even more intensive training.

That's not the case.

What?

After all, when those two are off...

Roar!

Roar!

Roar roar!

That's what they do.

And they're still top of the pile?

That's talent for you.

I knew that, but it still really irritates me.

Let's look at it another way. If they can play, so can we!

I see.

No way.

That's so like Rin.

Let's have fun and forget everything just for today!

We're getting tossed into that training machine from hell tomorrow anyway.

Yeah, let's take it easy.

Yeah!

Sounds good.

Uh-huh. So what should we—

See ya.

Huh?

W-W-Wait, weren't we gonna have some fun?

Like I said, I'm taking it easy.

I'm tired.

Yup, yup.

See you tomorrow.

What? No way.

I-I'll head home, too.

Wha—

Oh, thank goodness. You're still looking chipper.

What? What's happening?

Something you'll enjoy.

Oh, I know. It's a gaming competition.

Bzzt! It's training.

Don't worry. It's your favorite game-like special training.

It's not my favorite! It ain't, it ain't!

This is for your own good.

You're wrong!

You guys are enjoying this! You totally are!

Stop complaining.

You'll make the podium in the second half of the season for sure. Understood?

I should have gone home sooner!

Sophia-san, you always look so pretty!

Thank you.

Will you share your secret with me?

I usually use something like this.

It costs that much?

When I want to try harder, I use this.

Next time on HIGH SPEED Étoile: The Goddess of Luck.

The Goddess of Luck

Sophia-san's rich!

Name: Towa Komachi Team: Izanami Racing (IZR)

Illustration: Takuya Fujima