After being left far behind by Gustave's superior acceleration, the hip-hop driver floored his own accelerator in desperate pursuit. But the harder he pushed, the greater the distance between their vehicles became. Only then did reality dawn on him—the Porsche 356A he was driving was completely stock, unmodified in any way, and it was a classic car that had rolled off the production line decades ago. How could it possibly compete with Gustave's modern Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato?
"Damn it! Don't let me run into you again!" the frustrated young man snarled, slamming his palm against the steering wheel.
The more he dwelled on his humiliation, the angrier he became. Finally, the hip-hop driver gave up the chase and turned around to head home. However, fate had other plans—he encountered Gustave again on his route back, just as Gustave was taking Conan home after their evening drive.
The moment he spotted the distinctive Aston Martin, the young driver gunned his engine and pulled alongside them. Gustave felt a wave of annoyance when he saw the Porsche drawing parallel. Seriously? All he'd done was overtake the guy a few times—was it really worth this persistent harassment?
Gustave pulled over to the curb and rolled down his window, calling out to the agitated driver:
"Look, buddy, can you please let this go? I overtook you once. And your Porsche 356A is a classic car—there's no way it can keep up with modern engineering!"
Hearing what he perceived as mockery, the hip-hop driver's temper exploded:
"Tonight at midnight, Daikoku PA on the Bayshore Route! You got the guts to show up?"
"What's to be afraid of? See you at midnight."
Satisfied that Gustave had accepted his challenge, the young driver revved his engine and sped away into the night.
"Gustave, are you sure about this? Do you understand what the Bayshore Route actually is?" Conan stared at him in disbelief.
"Of course I know. Tokyo has two legendary street racing routes—the Bayshore Route and the C1 Inner Loop," Gustave replied with casual confidence. While he wasn't the automotive enthusiast that Conan was, he'd experienced both routes countless times in racing simulators.
"Knowing that, you're still willing to race?"
"Why wouldn't I be? Some kid throws down a challenge, so we go have some fun," Gustave said, somehow producing a piece of bubble gum from nowhere and popping it into his mouth.
"But Conan, who exactly runs these routes here? What kind of people are we talking about?"
Although Gustave had extensive virtual experience with both circuits, he wasn't familiar with the actual racing culture in Conan's world, so he needed local intelligence.
"The Bayshore Route features long straightaways and extended distances, so it attracts high-horsepower European and American luxury cars focused on pure speed," Conan explained, slipping into his analytical mode. "Based on Metropolitan Police records I've seen, the main group running the Bayshore is a club called 'Mid Night'—they're also known as the Speed Addicts."
"Most Mid Night members are young with wealthy backgrounds—politicians' kids, sons of business tycoons, that sort. Because of their privilege, they tend to drive more recklessly than anyone else."
"The C1 Inner Loop is shorter with numerous sharp corners, and since it's been around longer, it attracts mostly Japanese domestic models that prioritize handling over raw power. The main group there is called the 'Top Secret' Those members are older—survivors from the previous generation of street racing."
"But whether it's Bayshore or C1, virtually every car has been heavily modified. Even the Japanese domestic cars on C1 have been tuned to produce between 400 and 500 horsepower."
"And the Bayshore runners? Their cars often start with 500 or 600 horsepower from the factory, then get modified to produce 800-plus easily. Over 1,000 horsepower isn't uncommon."
"If your Aston Martin had a turbocharger or supercharger, it might have a chance. But as a stock car, I don't think you can beat that hip-hop guy. He definitely looks like Mid Night material."
Conan's gaze drifted to the hood, as if he could see the 6.0L V12 naturally aspirated engine beneath. With forced induction, that powerplant could easily produce over 1,000 horsepower.
"Understood. Now let me get you home so you can get some rest," Gustave said, playfully ruffling Conan's hair before starting the engine.
"No way! You're taking me with you to the race tonight!"
Conan protested indignantly. After providing all that valuable intelligence, how could Gustave exclude him from the main event?
"Take you? How exactly would I manage that? Ran would lose her mind if you didn't come home tonight."
Conan fell silent at this logical objection, but his tactical mind quickly formulated a solution:
"Drop me off first, then I'll sneak out before midnight."
"You sure about that plan?"
"Absolutely!"
"Fine. I'll take you home now and pick you up at 11:30."
Gustave fired up the engine and drove Conan back to the Mouri Detective Agency. The young detective was so perfectly behaved when they arrived that Ran felt completely reassured seeing him return safely.
But when the appointed time came and Gustave returned to collect him, Conan snuck out like a seasoned cat burglar, presenting a stark contrast to the model child from earlier.
"You're quite the character, kid," Gustave teased as Conan settled into the passenger seat, still patting his chest to calm his racing heart.
"Let's go, let's go! Don't dwell on it," Conan urged impatiently, practically vibrating with anticipation for the night's excitement.
"Alright, here we go!"
Gustave pressed the accelerator and engaged the engine. The Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato vanished into the Tokyo night like a silver ghost.
Soon they arrived at the Daikoku PA parking area, which was packed with an impressive array of sports cars and performance vehicles. Groups of young enthusiasts clustered around different machines, engaged in animated technical discussions.
Conan pressed his face against the window, taking in the scene with wide-eyed amazement. While he'd studied this subculture through Metropolitan Police files, experiencing it firsthand was completely different.
"That BMW M5 dominated the Bayshore for an entire month!" he exclaimed, pointing at various vehicles.
"That Ferrari 812—isn't that the car that set the Bayshore speed record at 396 kilometers per hour?"
"I can't believe there's a Dodge Viper SRT here! That thing has an 8.4-liter displacement monster under the hood!"
"And that's a Pagani Zonda F! Super rare—they only made 25 units worldwide!"
Entering the Daikoku PA felt like stepping into an automotive wonderland for Conan. Every machine represented cutting-edge engineering and modification expertise. Even Gustave was impressed by the gathering—he hadn't expected this small parking area to host such exotic machinery as the Dodge Viper SRT and Pagani Zonda F. Tonight was clearly going to be a significant event in Tokyo's underground racing scene.