For most people, even working their whole lives, twenty billion would be an unattainable dream.
Yet Leon had just casually said his car was worth that much. One car — twenty billion!
Elena couldn't help but sigh in awe. This man isn't just rich. He's like some kind of god of machines.
It reminded her of how in movies, FBI safehouses looked dilapidated on the outside, but inside hid futuristic tech. Leon's little garage was the same — plain, ordinary, nothing that would make you look twice. But step inside, and it was another world entirely.
Every car here was a fortune on wheels.
She gave Leon a look of open admiration.
"You're amazing. To sell a single car for twenty billion… you make money easier than anyone I've ever seen."
Leon chuckled. The truth was, that number had just slipped from his lips — he didn't even know what the car might really fetch. But if he did decide to sell, it wouldn't go for a cent under twenty billion.
Hattie leaned forward with curiosity, her eyes sparkling.
"And if you really sold it, how much would you want?"
Leon smirked. "Forty billion. Less than that? Not for sale."
The two women nearly choked on their own breath.
Forty billion?!
Elena's blue eyes widened in disbelief. "That would ruin entire families. Who on earth could afford something like that?"
Only people who had more money than sense. A prince from the Emirates maybe, or a monarch obsessed with cars. But even they might hesitate.
Leon shrugged with nonchalance.
"That's not my problem. I only build and sell the cars. This one? It has unlimited range — no refueling, no maintenance, no breakdowns. Whoever buys it won't lose money. The price isn't high — it's fair."
Hattie's jaw dropped. She leaned over the dashboard and stared hard at the instrument panel.
"…There's no fuel gauge?"
Her mind started piecing things together. On their entire journey so far, not once had Leon stopped at a gas station.
Elena's heart skipped a beat. She thought back to the earlier races — same story. Not once did he fill up. At the time, she thought it was just because the tank was full. But now? They had driven thousands of kilometers already. Dozens of gas stations passed by. Not once had they pulled in.
Her voice trembled. "You… you've solved the fuel problem?"
Leon had cracked a challenge that had stumped engineers and scientists for decades — maybe centuries. An unlimited, maintenance-free engine.
In Elena's eyes, Leon suddenly wasn't just a mechanic anymore. He was a revolutionary. His little garage now felt like a temple — the birthplace of miracles.
Leon only laughed. "That's my secret!"
With practiced ease, he shifted gears, the black beast of a car drifting through a curve before surging forward again.
After the helicopter ambush failed, the rest of the road was surprisingly smooth. Past Denver, through the heart of Chicago — quiet.
Now, ahead lay the final stretch. 1200 kilometers, and they would reach New York.
By the time they rolled into Chicago, it was already 10 p.m. Another hour and a bit of road, and at last, the skyline of New York shimmered before them.
If Los Angeles was the world's movie capital, then New York was the beating heart of finance.
The glittering skyscrapers of Manhattan, Wall Street, the Empire State Building, Chrysler Building, Rockefeller Center — all stood like titans in the night. The Brooklyn Bridge. The Statue of Liberty. Every iconic landmark of the city that never sleeps gleamed beneath the flood of electric light.
It was 11 p.m., but New York didn't sleep. The subways ran 24/7. The streets buzzed with life. Street performers played their violins, rapped verses, or unleashed heavy metal riffs for the crowds that gathered to watch.
And then — that roar.
A savage engine note cut through the music, tearing apart the rhythm of the night. The sound rolled like thunder down the avenues, echoing off the canyon walls of glass and steel.
"Something's coming!"
The crowd turned as one, eyes locked on the corner.
A shadow burst forth.
Black. Sleek. Predatory.
Leon's Diomas thundered into view.
With a perfect drift, it carved a flawless C-shaped arc through the intersection. Tires screamed, smoke curled — but the movement was pure art.
"Whoa!!!"
"Coolest car I've ever seen!"
"My God… it looks like a devil's chariot!"
The Diomas didn't just arrive — it conquered. Its split-nose design was something out of science fiction, like a futuristic warrior rather than a mere supercar.
And those wheels — 24-inch monsters, each rim glowing with orange neon rings. Spinning at full speed, they looked like the flaming wheels of some mythic god.
The crowd went silent.
Every eye followed the beast as it prowled forward, the engine's roar vibrating in their chests.
When Leon stepped on the throttle, the Diomas unleashed hell.
The glass of nearby buildings trembled. The revs screamed past ten thousand RPM, a feral howl that ignited the crowd's blood.
And then — like a missile, it was gone.
The blast of wind came after, whipping skirts into the air, sending screams and laughter rolling across the street.
Phones came out instantly — but when the spectators checked their cameras, they found nothing but blurred light. The Diomas was too fast for lenses to catch.
"I'll pay a billion dollars! I don't care — I want that car!" someone shouted, voice shaking.
New York, the city that thought it had seen everything, had just been humbled.
Tonight, Leon's car didn't just tear through the city.
It set it on fire.
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