Chapter 0111
The team was fully gathered.
Frank took the lead personally, with Old Gao and the special training instructors in tow. They appeared even more nervous than the pilots competing.
A chartered flight was escorting them to the competition’s host country.
Aboard the plane.
After everyone fastened their seatbelts, Old Gao, positioned at the very front, inquired, “Anyone feeling unwell?”
“No,” they echoed back.
“No one.”
“All good here.”
“That’s good then.”
Old Gao explained, “Once we get there, we’ll rest for the night to adjust to the time difference. Early next morning, we’ll do a health check. After that, the order of the competition events will be arranged. The competition spans three days.”
He was giving them this rundown as a mental preparation.
“Don’t worry, Old Gao,” someone responded with a chuckle.
“What should I be confident about?”
Old Gao was far from relaxed, “Frank has told you about the previous champions and what we need to watch out for.”
Their greatest concern was still the mystery surrounding the specific
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competition events. What if they had to face something they hadn’t trained for? This was a true test of the pilots’ experience.
Those who had participated once or twice before didn’t share this
worry.
“Rest for now,” Old Gao ordered, and gradually, they all closed their
eyes.
Pilots accustomed to flying planes now found themselves unable to sleep while being passengers.
Madison, in particular.
She gazed at the infinite expanse of white clouds outside, her heart beating calmly.
Her promise to Ethan about winning the championship was simply to comfort him at that moment.
She had no real confidence in victory.
The risk was great with random competition events looming.
Over the upcoming three-day competition, they were unaware of how many events they would face.
Elsewhere.
Ethan had compressed several days’ worth of work into one, leaving William panting, struggling to maintain his sly fox grin.
“President Grant, shall we take a short break?”
“I have a flight tomorrow night; there’s no time,” Ethan replied, his gaze never wavering.
Madison’s first time in such a large-scale international competition, he had to be there in person.
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Win or lose, he wanted to be the first one she saw after her competition ended.
Even Michael was pulled into the crunch, helping to clear the rush of
business.
The International Flight Show’s buzz continued to escalate both domestically and internationally.
Recent online chatter was rife with news about the competition.
Internet comments read:
“Some say there are rookies competing this time?”
“Pfft! Are they just giving up?”
“If there really are new pilots, or a bunch of women, and they win, I’ll eat my hat!”
“This competition might as well be on par with the national soccer team, speechless…”
Online, those who were skeptical about the domestic team were
plentiful.
Internationally, the commentary was even more disparaging. They didn’t even discuss the Mukino International team, as if they didn’t
even consider them a threat.
At the host country, local time 4:30 PM.
The plane landed safely.
The organizers sent someone to pick them up, but with a lack of enthusiasm. After dropping them at the hotel, they hastily left to pick up another country’s team.
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This kind of treatment was something Old Gao and his team had experienced before and didn’t mind. He confidently arranged for the pilots to be accommodated in the hotel, strictly forbidding cellphone use late at night, confiscating them all.
Fortunately, Madison had already reported her safety to Ethan.
After everyone settled into their respective rooms, they fell asleep. uneasily.
The next day.
At the local competition’s medical check-up venue.
Old Gao led the team there, while pilots from the other seven countries arrived in sequence. The instructors greeted each other with distant handshakes.
To the far left, a team in blue flight uniforms-reigning champions for two consecutive tournaments-stood out.
They were followed by teams s, y, p, k, r, and c.
These top three countries had won first place in the past five years of competition, with the blue-uniformed team clinching the last two championships.
Consequently, for the four teams including Mukino International, they were met with disdainful glances.
Especially when the other teams noticed that Mukino International had female pilots, they laughed openly, their derision unmasked.
Zuo Yulei, known for her fiery temper, barely held back from confronting them.
Luckily, Charlie stopped her in time, “Where do you think you’re
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“To knock some sense into them! Did you hear what they’re saying?”
Zuo Yulei fumed.
She understood English well enough to know their words were
offensive.
Were they suggesting their country had run out of people?
Sending women to compete was nothing short of an insult!
Most of the people present could understand and speak English.
However, upon entering the medical check area, Madison specifically instructed, “Don’t engage with them. Win or lose the fight, we would be the ones at a loss. Act as if you didn’t hear them, and let’s talk after the competition.”
Oddly, Madison became the voice of reason.
Even Charlie didn’t object to her.
But the disrespect escalated when the female pilots lined up for their height and weight checks, standing tall and straight, only to met with whistles from the male competitors of the blue-uniform
team.
Their facial expressions were blatantly impolite.
Madison, after completing her check-up with composure, slowly approached those men, whose gazes were tinted with ill intent.
With a slight smile and impeccable English, she said: “I hope you can still smile after the competition.
There was something off about her gaze and aura, causing the men to falter momentarily.
They quickly resumed their behavior, whistling at the female pilots
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going for their check-ups and whispering among themselves, their intentions clear.
Upon Madison’s return, the team sat in a row of chairs, all with grim. expressions.
Sidelined, discriminated against, and ridiculed.
They were all elite soldiers in their professional fields, yet they faced such blatant disregard today.
It was more than anyone could bear.
Madison sensed the team’s despondent mood and sat up straighter, “Once we win the competition, I’ll personally sew those mouths shut.”
She was known for her temperance, which made her words all the more striking.
The team was stunned.
Madison didn’t care. Clenching her fists, she encouraged her
teammates, “They’re just in their twenties or thirties, the eldest barely hitting forty. They’re not invincible. You come from prestigious institutions and work for top airlines-equally exceptional. Why fea them?”
A silence fell upon the group.
“You’re right,” Charlie was the first to break it.
Her gaze was resolute, addressing everyone, “We’re here, so let’s give it our all. What if we actually make it? If Madison, who’s just been promoted to captain, can be fearless, what do we have to fear?”
Madison blinked blankly at her.
The result was an outbreak of laughter that instantly lifted the oppressive mood.
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