My Formula 1 System-Chapter 340: Brazilian Grand Prix. 9
[SYNC BAR: [][][][] 100%]
[SYNC BAR COMPLETE]
"Great. Finally, we have it."
[Host, Sync Buff can now be used.]
Luca could hardly wrap his head around the fact that the last time he'd tapped into Sync Buff was way back in March, the season's kickoff at the Monaco Grand Prix.
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Since that wild ride, he hadn't tasted that god-mode rush again—not once. The thought of unleashing it now, on this drenched Interlagos track, sent a jolt of pure excitement through him, knowing he could flip the race on its head.
[ACTIVATE SYNC BUFF?]
[Y / N]
"Ugh," Luca groaned under his breath. This was where the real headache kicked in for him.
Timing the Sync Buff's activation was everything if he wanted to squeeze every ounce of its power. Luca couldn't think of a single time he'd flat-out wasted a Sync Buff, and he was damn determined on keeping that streak alive.
[50th Lap]
Since Sync Buff juiced up both him and the car to their absolute max, picking the perfect moment to unleash it was critical—especially with only a handful of laps left in this rain-drenched race.
But before Luca could zero in on the ideal Sync Buff trigger, he had to wait for the system's Randomized Duration Window feature to run its course without a hitch.
Sometimes, Luca wished he could just ditch the Randomized Duration Window feature altogether, guaranteeing his full 5 minutes of Sync Buff every time. The system even confirmed he could make that tweak, but it'd cost him 1 Race Win before the system implemented the changes.
1 Race Win wasn't even the real issue holding Luca back. His nagging worry was the chance of an FIA investigation rearing its head, like that mess last year when he was with Trampos.
Getting caught wasn't the fear—he knew he'd come out clean. The real problem was the races he could miss while stuck under the FIA's suspicious microscope.
In this cutthroat world of motorsport, Luca wouldn't dream of sitting out a single race for anything other than a team's strategic call.
[Determining Sync Buff duration....]
[Processing: ▓▓▓▓5:00▓░░2:45░░░ 50%]
[Processing: ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓░░ 80%]
[Finalizing Sync Buff Time...]
[...Sync Buff duration determined!]
[Sync Buff Duration: 1 Minutes, 45 Seconds]
Luca stared hard at the screen. "I guess I left my luck back in Europe."
He was not satisfied with less than two minutes of Sync Buff. Such duration could only last for a lap and a half!
Sure, it was plenty to give him a leg up on the other drivers, but Luca was itching for a rock-solid edge, something that'd lock in his shot at crushing the field.
[NOTICE: Host is advised that the system cannot recalculate Sync Buff duration. If the allocated time is unsatisfactory, options exist to incrementally extend it.]
"Hmm… alright, I'm listening."
[In critical scenarios, Catalysts and Wrenches can be applied to extend Sync Buff duration prior to activation, per the following conversion rates:]
[(1) Wrench = 1 minute, 30 seconds]
[(1) Catalyst = 30 seconds]
The system was laying it out plain and simple: if Luca ever needed to stretch his Sync Buff time, he could just dip into his inventory and pump some resources into it.
But one glance at his stock, and Luca knew that wasn't happening today.
[Current Inventory:
— Catalysts: 0
— Wrenches: 0]
Luca let out a sharp sigh, his hands tightening on the wheel as he threaded through the slick, uneven chicane, water spraying off his tires.
Even if he had a stash of Catalysts and Wrenches sitting unused, he'd still think twice. In the end, he'd probably funnel them into boosting Skills or Attributes before they expired, rather than gambling on Sync Buff's clock.
Sync Buff was a rare beast, no doubt—it cranked his odds way up in a race like this. But it still didn't hand him a 100% guaranteed win on a silver platter. Luca wouldn't want to burn his hard-won Catalysts or Wrenches on a failed Sync Buff activation when he could lock in permanent gains for his Skills and Attributes instead.
Another feature Luca figured he'd probably never touch.
He made up his mind to roll with the 1:45, lean into his grit, and see how far he could push himself when the chips weren't stacked just right.
But Luca wasn't going to activate the Sync Buff now. There were still approximately 20 laps left in the race.
Now, the second round of pitstops was heating up in Brazil. Garages like Jackson's were buzzing like crazy, tools clanging, as Rodnick was gearing up to dive in for a stop any second.
Jackson's engineers had already pinged Luca that Rodnick would hand over P3, letting him inherit the spot and charge toward bigger fish up the order.
Luca kept his cool, waiting for the moment to take over. Sure enough, on the next lap, Rodnick—just 1 second ahead—swung into the pitlane, leaving Luca a clear shot at Nyström, who was clearly wrestling with his wet tires, the Audi twitching on the slick track.
[3rd Position]
"...Luca Rennick em P3..!"
"WOOOOOOOOOOOHH!"
[Analyzing Ferrari (JRX-92B) and host's distance from 2nd Position]
[You are 2 seconds away, host.]
At Turn 2, Nyström's tires looked like they were about to quit on him. His car slid sideways, screeching through the wet curve, and the crowd lost it, roaring like thunder.
"…Whoa, Nyström's skating out there, hanging on by a thread! Can he save it?!"
But he somehow yanked his nose back in line, barely kissing the curbs before he plunged into Turn 3.
"WOOOOOOOOOOOHH!"
Luca respected Nyström's ability to pull off that recovery. But he wondered if it was partly because the wet conditions weren't as brutal as they'd been between laps 30 and 40.
The rain had stopped now, replaced by a light drizzle that barely coated the track. With the heavy downpour gone, the circuit was gradually clearing, designed with slanted surfaces and porous asphalt to funnel water into drainage channels under the edges, built to shed rain quickly.
The track was still slick, water clinging to the asphalt, so Luca stayed confident he held the edge here at Interlagos, thanks to Slipsense & Rainborne running strong.
If the track had dried out completely, Luca figured he might've started weighing the idea of trading some EXP for a few Catalysts to stretch that measly 1:45 Sync Buff time into something meatier—if a reverse trade was possible in Tuning Upgrade.
But his big advantage was still intact, which was why he closed in on Nyström so fast through the first turns. Once again, he was tangling with Elias Nyström of Nordvind Racing.
Nyström muttered a harsh curse under his breath. Luca wouldn't even give him a second to relax into a podium spot after he personally overtook Rodnick. But this duel was going to play out differently, he told himself. This time, he'd—
[900 m Straightaway]
[Slipstream Status: ENGAGING]
Car <— Approaching Slipstream (Minimal aerodynamic effect)
Car <<— Partial Lock (Drag reduction increasing)
Car <<<— LOCKED IN (Maximum slipstream advantage)
[Overtake Window: Optimal]
"…And here comes Luca Rennick, flying into Nyström's slipstream like a missile! He's locked in with full drag reduction...!"
"...Luca Rennick em P2, Elias Nyström em P3...!"
"WOOOOOOOOOOOHH!"
[2nd Position]
[Good job, host.]
Luca began to consider a possibility. Perhaps, if he made it to the top, a Sync Buff duration of 1:45 wouldn't harm at all!
