CHAPTER 91: END OF THE YEAR TIMETABLE

Huff, Huff, Huff, Huff, Huff.

Fatih breathed calmly as he jogged back home, returning from a five-kilometer run. As he was just eight hundred meters from home, Apollo materialized around him, flying as he shouted, "Now, run full speed until you’re home. Go!"

Without arguing, Fatih started pushing himself to the maximum despite feeling like his lungs were burning and his legs were on the verge of giving up. He knew it was all for his benefit, as the more he pushed his body, the faster the Sponge Body ability would take effect.

Instead of heading inside, he stopped in the garden of their house to cool down, jumping up and down. He then used this time to start other exercises under Apollo’s direction, aiming to complete his daily missions with the highest effectiveness possible.

"Okay, that is enough for today. Go and rest in preparation for evening practice," Apollo said moments before the mission complete screen appeared in front of him, and the five SP he won were deposited into his account.

Fatih looked forward to tomorrow, Friday, which was his full rest day, where he wouldn’t be doing anything related to motorsport, including writing articles, to allow him to wind down from his weekly workload.

"Go wash up and join us for breakfast," Rümeysa said when she heard the door open, knowing that it was Fatih back from his workout.

"Yes, Mom," Fatih shouted as he headed to his room to grab his bath essentials before taking a long and very thorough shower and joining her for breakfast.

"Afiyet Olsun (Bon appétit)," Fatih said as they started eating.

On the table, there were only three of them, as Burak, who lived with them, was at school, having already started last week.

"Don’t leave. We have to talk about your schedule for this year," Rümeysa said when she saw Fatih collecting his plate and utensils to place them in the dishwasher once he was done eating.

"Okay," Fatih said, placing them in the dishwasher before returning and silently sitting at the dinner table, waiting for her to be done so they could start their conversation.

....

PLAP!!

Rümeysa sat down after throwing the dossier she had collected from her room onto the table.

Picking it up and opening it, she paused, reading it for a moment before she started speaking. "This year, due to our late move, we are only going to be participating in three international events: two of them as normal entries under the FIA talented individual list, allowing us to circumvent the age requirements, and one of them as a wildcard entry."

Once she was done saying that, she paused for a moment before picking up a paper, sliding it to Fatih, and continuing, "Your debut race will be in late October in Italy at the 42nd Trofeo delle Industrie. As it is a normal entry for you, albeit only possible under the backing of TOSFED, you will be able to win the trophy if you win this race. It is a very prestigious and respected karting trophy in the world.

They suggested we start with it due to the effect it will have if you perform well, as it is a classic race that everyone in the sport respects, meaning the eyes of very important people in the karting world will be on it. As a result of its importance, expect a grid full of the best Italian national champions and top international drivers who will be there to win or test for the next season."

She then removed a second piece of paper, handing it to him before she continued, "The second race we will partake in is the CIK-FIA World Karting Championship (KF-Junior), which we will be entering in the second round as a wildcard entry because the first round has already happened. Because we are a wildcard entry, even if you win the race, you will not be crowned the world champion. The finisher with the most points across the two rounds will be crowned the champion, but the race win in itself is enough of a reward if you achieve it. But there is no pressure; just do your best."

She made sure not to put any pressure on Fatih, knowing that he was always doing his best no matter the session, the competition, or what was on the line. So anything added to that would be needless and might end up pushing Fatih to exceed the edge he was driving on and have worse results.

"This is going to once again be held in Italy, but at a different track named..." she dragged the word as she looked for the name of the track before she said, "La Conca International Circuit."

The moment she mentioned the name of the track, Fatih, who had placed the paper he was handed aside to read later, took the paper so fast he nearly tore it as he read the name of the track, wanting to see it for himself. And there it was. "La Conca," he read audibly, with an excited smile on his face.

It was a track that he was sure no one in the world knew better than him, even those who practiced there daily. To say he was excited would be an understatement of both his lives. Despite one race he was going to be participating in not yet being mentioned, the second round was now his most looked-forward-to race of the year.

Rümeysa, who chalked his excitement up to him just being excited that he was finally going to be racing in a competitive competition, said, "As it is a World Karting Championship, I’m sure you know that it is going to be full of the best of the best drivers in the world in that category and is even considered to be the highest level of karting. Any good performance here is as good as certain to get you into the attention of motorsport giants, and there might even be Formula 1 driver academy scouts attending."

As she was speaking, Fatih continued reading the paper, which had the names of the strongest competition he was going to face, courtesy of TOSFED wanting him to be prepared. From it, he saw many future successful drivers’ names, including the expected Lando Norris, Enaam Ahmed, Nikita Mazepin, Logan Sargeant, Robert Schwartzman, and a few more who would all go on to make a name for themselves in the higher ladders of motorsport.

This put a smile on his face, as it finally felt like his dream of reaching the pinnacle was becoming real with each passing day, as he was now on the verge of touching shoulders with those who would actually reach the pinnacle of motorsport, and not only that but also have a very high chance of winning due to the track this round was taking place at.

"As for the third round, we will also be heading to Italy, or rather, we will remain in Italy after the second round since these two races are a week apart from each other," she said as she handed him a third piece of paper.

"You will be entering the WSK Final Cup. It is the most competitive privateer karting series in the world, and the Final Cup is their grand finale. This one is going to take place at the 7 Laghi International Circuit. This one, like the first one, is a full entry and not a wildcard, so we are in for the trophy as well. Most of the drivers you will face in the world championship will be there.

I’m sure you have already seen that all the official competitions we are entering this year are very high-profile, and that is deliberate. They are setting it up so that you have the most high-profile debut ever to put you in front of as many high-profile eyes as possible in order to make things as easy as possible and even manage to bait some driver academies into reaching out to you. You don’t have to win the race to reach that objective, but winning will be the best possible outcome. And since you will have the best of the equipment, second only to kart manufacturing teams who will be testing their next-generation karts, your chances of winning are very good," she said as she looked at Fatih, gauging his reaction.

"I will do my best on the other two, but this one I’m sure I can win," Fatih said as he slid the paper with the second race he was going to participate in, the one taking place at La Conca, tapping on the name of the track with confidence.

"Hahahahaha," she chuckled before she said, "I thought you were going to feel nervous heading to a track you have never experienced, but you are still the same confident you," as she started ruffling his hair, which he quite enjoyed.

"I’m confident on that," he said as he read the system mission that appeared in front of him.

...

[CHALLENGE MISSION: EUROPEAN PROVING GROUND]

Although famous online to those who watch your videos, you are considered just an entertainer by those who look at Europe as the measuring stick. Now that you have finally moved here, it is time you prove yourself against the doubters, that you are not just a sensation in Turkey but someone capable of contending with the best of the best and coming out on top in your first participation.

MISSIONOBJECTIVES:

Objective 1 [Trofeo delle Industrie]: Task: Podium Finish (Top 3)

Objective 2 [Raw Pace - CIK-FIA World Championship]: Task: Race Win

Objective 3 [Execution - WSK Final Cup]: Task: Podium Finish (Top 3)

REWARD FOR COMPLETING ALL OBJECTIVES:

New Ability Unlocked: [Setup Mastery (Good)] + 500 SP

Additional rewards will be provided if the delivered results exceed the objectives.

PUNISHMENT FOR FAILURE:

The cost to purchase new abilities from the System Shop will be permanently increased by 10%.

***In case of failure due to circumstances beyond your control, the punishment will be re-evaluated.

[ACCEPT] / [DENY]