Out of the blue Team Startory Jokers shot past them. It was like a yellow flash of light. The tiniest of them, Yoshiki Matsuda, leaned forward as deep as possible and pedalled with insane speed.

Dust was stirred up. Olav could feel how the wind of Team Startory Jokers made his handlebars shake. The moment Olav looked to the left, it almost seemed as if Nobuhiko, the sprint star with the unusual hairstyle, was nastily smirking at him.

Haakon was reacting immediately. "Matti, Olav! After them!"

In an instant the nervous feeling became a pleasant thrill. Olav's gaze became fixed. "Sorry, Punyaa, but... The next time I'll see you the stage will be already over!"

He nodded briefly to the flabbergasted Thai, then firmly grabbed the lower part of the handlebars and danced up the slope, right behind Haakon and Matti.

Nobuhiko's smirk grew wider and wider. The newcomer, Yoshiki, was a true weirdo, but at the moment he was told to just pedal, he could dash off like a lightning bolt.

"German team discovered!" The stars flashed in Yoshiki's eyes and he increased the cadence. Nobuhiko also bent forward to reduce the air resistance. Behind him were Mamoru, their leader, and his assistant, Jun. They struggled to keep up. The slope was over and the descent began. Small and lightweight sprinters like Yoshiki had a clear advantage in descents. The distance to the rest of the team, among them the brothers Daisuke and Keisuke, was growing.

Haakon, who had switched positions with Matti, and Olav pulled into the gap.

Olav had become a different person. The level-headed cinnamon roll hero had turned into a super focused monster with a sinister look. He couldn't stop grinning.

Finally! Finally! Finally, it had begun! And this time he would make Nobuhiko shut up so he couldn't make fun of his bike again!

"Matsuda-san! Urashima Taro move," shouted the Jokers' team boss. He was the only one without black hair. His hair had been lightened to a medium brown.

"Roger, Mamo-chan!" Yoshiki saluted, then he shifted up two gears and shouted "ZOOM-ZOOM" again.

Nobuhiko let out a battle roar as he and the youngest Startory Joker broke away from their team mates.

Haakon's eyebrow twitched. Did these two intend to win the stage of the day already? Well, in that case...

"Olav, Matti! We'll never be torn apart under any circumstances. So grit your teeth and get on with it, the Viking fleet sets sail!"

Olav felt like his legs were developing a life of their own. Harder, faster, faster and faster they pedalled. The wind cut into his face and completely dried his lips.

He reached for the water bottle and poured a gush of liquid onto his face. Barely any of it got in his mouth. It didn't matter anyway. The tiny water drops poured over his open lips into his mouth tasted more like salty sweat than water.

Olav saw nothing but Matti's back and the colour of yellow. Yellow and black team outfits right in front of him.

He heard Yoshiki's crazy spell, which catapulted him several meters to the front every time they almost got hold of him.

It was frustrating. 

Was Team Viking Spades really that weak? Had the whole team been in a slump after he was forced to take a break last summer?

He felt like he was seeing double. Suddenly there was not one Yoshiki in front of him, but two. Two yellow jerseys, who were chasing downhill at an insanely fast pace.

Olav briefly took off his sunglasses and wiped his eyes. But nothing changed. The yellow colour remained double. As soon as Matti rotated to the top again and increased the speed, Olav finally recognized the reason for his double sight: they had finally caught up with Max Mustermann.

Spectators along the way were cheering. Once again, the air horns, whistles and rattles resounded. The road slowly widened and the houses along the way increased in size.

The time had come. Finally they had reached Liège. Olav knew exactly what was going to happen now: Over the next few kilometers, Matti, the young time trial specialist, would squeeze the last bit out of him, so he could send him and Haakon off to the finish sprint. 

"OLAV! OLAV!", "MAX SPEED! MAX SPEED!" the fans chanted. 

Scattered "NIPPON, BANZAI!" 

Encouraging shouting could be heard. Air horns again. Flags were waved at the roadside. Black-red-gold, white cross on red background, red dot on white background, purple "GO VIKING" banners between "Our Emperor Max" and Japanese characters that Olav could not read.

Everything flew past him so quickly. Olav could think of nothing else but breathing and pedalling. Yoshiki and Matti had worn themselves out to exhaustion and fell back. Nobuhiko and Max kept bumping into each other in the sprint, while Olav held back a bit.

The houses became bigger and bigger and soon the city center was within reach. In front of him the marking for the last kilometer shone in flaming red. That was the sign. He took a deep breath, let out a battle cry and attached himself to Max and Nobuhiko.

The crowd saw only yellow, yellow, purple, yellow again. None of the three top sprinters thought about giving in. As they turned into the last extended curve on the Boulevard de la Sauvenière, the audience exploded. Tens of thousands cheered them on.

But Olav did not notice any of them. 

He wanted to win. To win. To win again. Tomorrow he would wear the yellow jersey. 

He wanted it SO badly!