After a long ti of calming down, Dayo was able to sleep, but as usual, Dayo woke up before his alarm.
He lay still for a mont, staring at the ceiling, letting the silence wash over him. The Nationals were behind him, but the Olympic Trials were creeping closer every day. His body felt tired, but his mind was sharper than ever. He reached for his phone, ready to check ssages—
DING!
A familiar blue screen flashed in front of his eyes.
[New Mission Unlocked — Olympic Trials]
Objective: Reach the Final Round of the U.S. Olympic Trials.
Bonus Objective: Set a new personal best under 21.30 seconds.
Reward: Unknown
Penalty: None
Dayo blinked.
"What? The system is giving missions again?"
"It’s been a while I received."
He sat up quickly, rubbing his eyes. It had been so long since the system gave him a real mission. The last few upgrades ca from evaluations, not tasks. The last set of missions he received were from the Global Competition Days, so seeing the task gave him more motivation to push harder — and more so, this was the first ti he was seeing that the reward is unknown. This added a bit of mystery.
And excitent.
"About ti," he muttered with a smile.
This was the kind of push he loved — the kind that made him feel alive.
---
AT THE TRAINING GRIND
Coach Richard didn’t waste ti.
From the mont they returned ho after Nationals, Richard had booked a special training lane for Dayo. This wasn’t regular training — it was Olympic-level preparation.
Drills. Sprints. Starts. Breathing cycles. Video analysis. Strength training. Recovery sessions.
Anything that involved training, Dayo was doing it. While all of this was happening, a quick thought ca to his head.
Why don’t I test the Talent Vision on Coach?
[Talent Vision Activated]
Target Acquired...
---
[STATUS — RICHARD MILLAR]
Age: 46
Forr Career: Competitive Swimr
Past Swimming Talent: A
Past Swimming Peak Achieved: Yes
Forr Strengths:
• Sprint Freestyle – A
• Endurance – B
• Turns – A
Current Career: Professional Coach
Coaching Talent: S–
Coaching Potential: SS
Current Evaluation:
• Technique Analysis – A
• Athlete Managent – A–
• Training Strategy – S–
• Long-Term Athlete Developnt – S–
• Growth Ceiling: Very High
Overall Rating: S–
Potential Rating: SS
Note: "Coach has massive room to grow. Peak nowhere near reached."
Dayo looked at Richard’s status and couldn’t help but nod in appreciation. He had a potential of A in swimming when he was swimming back then and now had a talent for coaching of SS and had just realized only S- — aning there was room to grow in coaching. This brought joy to Dayo’s face.
After all, having a coach with S coaching him and a potential for SS , and he was just in his mid-forties, which was still young when it ca to coaching.
Dayo smiled; his respect for Richard increased by another fold and listened to everything that he said without complaints.
Every day was a loop of pain and progress.
But Dayo still balanced it with content creation. He needed it to keep the system’s engagent level up. So between training sessions, Dayo and Timon would shoot quick challenges, funny clips, charity scenes, and vlog-style updates.
His days off were used for content creation, and he had fallen in love with it. The joy that it brought to the faces of the winners was sothing that genuinely brought a smile to Dayo’s face, so any ti he was not training he was shooting content with Timon.
And of course people would talk, and online started complaining:
"Why is he shooting content? Aren’t Olympic Trials next week?"
"PR stunt. He’s not taking this seriously."
"How is he training full-ti AND posting videos??"
"Bro is doing everything except preparing."
"This is BS, how can you have ti to shoot content?"
"This increases my theory when I say this guy is using."
"Yup, I agree. How else is he able to take ti to swim and shoot content?"
But the truth was simple—
He was preparing. He was just built differently.
He knew his body and build better than anybody. What soone would take months to achieve, he could achieve in weeks. So he knew one thing: people would talk, and there was nothing he could do about them. So as much as he wanted to win, he needed to portion his ti.
And resting was part of winning.
When he wasn’t in the water, he needed his mind on sothing else. Content helped him breathe, relax, and reset.
So to Dayo, the noise didn’t matter. Not now.
---
Each day passed faster than the last.
Athletes around him were sharpening their form. The swimming world was heating up. Interviews, predictions, analysts... all building hype.
Dayo felt the tension.
Every morning, when he stepped into the training center, the energy in the air felt heavier, as if everyone understood how close they were to the biggest mont of their lives.
But he kept going.
One dive at a ti. One turn at a ti. One stroke at a ti.
---
ANWHILE —
Alex stood in front of a mirror, breathing heavily after another sprint session.
Coach Martin stood behind him, arms crossed.
"How do you feel?" Martin asked.
Alex wiped sweat from his forehead. "Stronger. Faster. But, coach... are you sure they won’t detect anything? I an — this is the Olympics."
Martin didn’t look worried at all.
"Calm down," he said. "USADA doesn’t test for this particular enhancer. The formula ca from a private lab. They’re not affiliated. You’ll be fine."
Alex swallowed hard. "Coach... this feels risky."
"You said you wanted the spotlight, didn’t you?" Martin replied. "You said you were willing to do anything. Now focus. You want to beat JD, prove you’re the real number one? Then stop doubting yourself."
Alex closed his eyes briefly.
"...I trust you, coach."
"Good," Martin said with a cold smirk. "Now let’s test your new ti."
Alex stepped away and prepared for another sprint. His heart was pounding — not from the training, but from everything he was risking.
And he felt the risk was worth it as he broke his ti limit again. This brought a grin on his face.
"Dayo better watch your back. I am coming for you harder than you can imagine," Alex muttered as he gazed at the sky-blue water.
***
Back in his hotel room the night before the Trials, Dayo finished stretching and dropped onto his bed. His muscles ached, but the good kind of ache — the type that cos from pushing your limits.
He opened the system one more ti.
The mission glowed softly.
[New Mission Unlocked — Olympic Trials]
Objective: Reach the Final Round of the U.S. Olympic Trials.
Bonus Objective: Set a new personal best under 21.30 seconds.
Reward: Unknown
Penalty: None
He didn’t feel scared. Just determined to win whatever the case may be, and he was ready for the Olympics.
He’d co too far to back down now.
Dayo stood, went to the mirror, and took a deep breath.
"Tomorrow," he whispered to himself, "I beco an Olympic athlete."
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