Chapter 68: Capped
"Nice," Scar hummed, remembering how exciting simulation used to be in movies. "This should be fun."
"Yeah. It’s going to be," Vincent chuckled, walking over to the standalone console near the side wall. His fingers flew across the holographic keyboard, typing in a prompt of what he wanted. "Let’s create a track."
The geometric grids on the walls suddenly glowed with a blue light. And in a matter of seconds, the white room vanished. Hard-light constructs materialized around them, building a massive, hyper-realistic, circular racing track that stretched for simulated miles. The ground beneath Scar’s feet turned into red running asphalt, simulated wind whipping past his face.
Then, three holographic runners—rendered as glowing blue avatars—materialized on the starting line beside Scar.
"They are programmed to your exact speed rate," Vincent’s voice echoed from the sky. "First to complete twenty laps wins."
Scar dropped into his stance. A massive holographic countdown flashed in the sky.
Three.
Two.
One.
Go!
Scar exploded off the line instantly. The acceleration was instantaneous, he along with the avatars all simultaneously spiking up to their top speed in a matter of seconds.
For the first few laps, it was a neck-and-neck. Scar and the avatars were identical streaks of light, banking hard into the curves at over 800 km/h. But Scar quickly broke down their programmed racing patterns. He realized they took the exact same angles every time.
Using his accelerated perception, Scar intentionally dropped back on lap fifteen, drafting right behind the lead avatar to completely negate his own wind resistance and conserve energy. He maintained his speed for the remaining five laps, while making sure to be a few meters close to the avatars. As they hit the final straightaway, Scar slingshotted out of the slipstream, accelerating directly to his top speed and leaving a trail of displaced air in his wake. He blew past all three avatars, crossing the finish line with an effortless skid.
"This is too easy," Scar called out, barely out of breath. "I want something more challenging."
"Alright," Vincent replied with a chuckle. "If it’s a challenge you want... then it’s a challenge you’ll get." Then he tapped the console again
The three blue avatars dissolved instantly, and a single, crimson avatar materialized on the starting line.
"That avatar’s top speed ranges around Mach 1," Vincent stated. "So, I won’t be surprised if you lose."
Scar narrowed his eyes. Mach 1 was roughly 1,234 km/h. And he was currently capped at 870. It was a significant gap.
But Scar wasn’t the type to run from a fight, even if the odds were stacked against him.
The countdown began. And the moment it dropped to zero, the red avatar vanished with a deafening sonic boom.
Scar gritted his teeth and tore after it. The gap widened instantly. The simulated opponent was flawlessly navigating the curves, perfectly retaining its supersonic velocity. Scar pushed his body to the absolute brink, his muscles burning as he maintained his 870 km/h velocity. The G-force on the sharp turns threatened to rip his feet from the ground but he held steady. By lap fifteen, he was almost a full lap behind, his stamina rapidly depleting.
I can’t outrun it conventionally, Scar calculated, his chest heaving. I have to break the rules.
As they entered the final lap, the red avatar took the wide, optimal racing line on the final curve. But Scar abandoned safety entirely, cutting dangerously tight along the inner rail, bleeding momentum but drastically reducing the distance.
As the track straightened out for the final two-kilometer stretch, Scar locked his eyes on the finish line. Then he whispered mentally:
Activate Dash.
The system responded immediately.
[Dash Activated]
[-80 Ep]
The 200% multiplier instantly slammed into his kinetic output. And for a single, violently compressed instant, Scar broke the sound barrier. He rocketed down the straightaway at over 2,600 km/h, blowing past the avatar in a shockwave of shattered air, and crossed the finish line a fraction of a second before it.
The simulation crossed the line soon after, and immediately dissolved back into nothingness.
Scar collapsed onto the hard floor, gasping frantically for air, his entire body trembling violently from the sheer kinetic toll. But then, he received a system notification he wasn’t expecting to see.
[Last recorded Speed Rate (Before dash): 900 km/h]
[Congratulations! You have pushed past extreme physical limits.]
[Top Speed: 870 >> 900 km/h]
Scar was stunned. He hadn’t been focusing on his speedometer during the race. He had no idea he’d already surpassed his limits in the process.
Vincent ran over from the console, staring down at Scar in shock. "H-How...?" He murmured in disbelief. "I was so sure you’d lose. And how did you generate that sudden burst of speed at the end? It was insane. I have never seen anything like it."
"It’s just a little trick I saw in a movie," Scar said dismissively. "It was nothing special."
Vincent eyes widened. "What?! Of course it was! What you pulled off—you winning that race, shouldn’t be possible. You must have an unbelievable amount of mana cells." He muttered in awe. "Then again, considering who your mother is, it makes sense. Roy, you are a rare talent. At this rate, you could reach Mach 1 in a matter of days. And if it wasn’t for your low stamina, I think you could reach it in just a few hours of endless running."
Scar smirked proudly, forcing himself to sit up. "Yeah, obviously. I just need to build my endurance I guess." Then he looked up at Vincent with a curious glint in his eye. "I want to ask... how long do you last when running at maximum speed?"
"How long?" Vincent hummed. "Well, the last time I ran at full speed, I was able to maintain it for fourteen hours."
Scar froze. The pride vanished from his face, replaced by core-shaking shock. Fourteen hours?! Fourteen hours of continuous, supersonic running. The sheer volume of stamina required for that was incomprehensible.
He realized something in that moment—if Vincent wasn’t naturally capped by his mana cell count, with that kind of limitless endurance, the man could have easily reached light speed.
Vincent looked down at his hands, his expression darkening into deep, visible frustration. "But it’s nothing special. Having a lot of stamina is useless if you can’t go faster." He clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white as he stared at the floor. "Endurance is all I can build. My speed is... limited. It has been for a very long time."
Scar watched him, his logical mind processing the sheer tragedy of it. To have that kind of godly stamina, but be forever barred from running faster... it was a horrific limitation. Scar knew that if the System ever permanently capped his progression, it would destroy him.
For the first time, he felt a flicker of genuine empathy for the man. The arrogant taunts died in his throat.
"Well, for what it’s worth, I think fourteen hours is impressive," Scar said quietly, respectfully. "I don’t think anyone else in the world can beat that record. Not even me."
Vincent offered a small, grateful smile, unclenching his fist. "Perhaps," he said, his expression returning to its original jovial form. "Let’s head up to the top floor. You need to get some rest."
Scar nodded, and they both left the simulation chamber.