The finals for the Olympic 50 ters freestyle were finally here, and the crowd was massive—far beyond anything anyone expected. Even the seats weren’t enough. People stood in the aisles, along the walls, outside the stadium, anywhere they could find space. dia houses flooded the place, and everyone knew the reason.
Dayo.
The past few weeks had been unbelievable. Everything surrounding Dayo, the sudden rise, the talent, the story—news outlets couldn’t get enough of it. A global superstar stepping into the Olympic Trials? It was sothing nobody had seen before. No wonder the dia ca in swarms.
Normally, the stadium would be packed for Trials, but not like this. This ti people couldn’t even find a spot to sit. So were outside, cheering at giant screens before the event even started. Most of them were wearing shirts with Dayo’s face on it, already calling him "No. 1" and predicting him as the champion.
Police and security forces were deployed everywhere just to keep things in order. They didn’t want a stampede on their hands.
Eventually, the contestants began filling in, and the national anthem echoed across the stadium. With that, the U.S. Olympic Trials Final officially began.
Dayo sat with the other swimrs, watching the early events as he waited for his turn. After so ti, he felt the urge to use the bathroom and told the team staff around him.
As soon as he left, one of the athletes nearby quickly sent a ssage to a number saved on his phone. Seconds later, the phone rang.
"Hello," the athlete whispered.
A man’s voice ca from the other end. "Are you sure he went to the toilet?"
"Yes, he just stepped out."
"Which door?"
"Door 5. The one by the athletes’ section."
"Good."
"What about the money? When am I getting it?"
"I’m sending it now."
"Okay."
The call ended.
anwhile, Dayo approached the bathroom when soone called out to him.
"Excuse , sir, please wait."
A man in a nose mask and janitor uniform rushed toward him.
Dayo paused. "Yeah? What’s wrong?"
"Ah, so toilets are out of service," the man said, adjusting his mask nervously.
Dayo noticed the gesture. Sothing felt off, but he didn’t think too deeply about it yet. "Oh, alright. Which one is working?"
"Follow ," the man said, pointing down the hallway.
Just then, another janitor burst into the area, breathing heavily.
"Sorry, you can’t—" He stopped when he saw the first janitor standing right there.
At that mont, Dayo looked at both of them. Both wore uniforms, but details didn’t match. Shoes different. Stitching different. One was sweating too much for a janitor who supposedly worked indoors.
A smirk ford on Dayo’s lips.
He had already figured it out.
"You know what," Dayo said calmly, "I’ll just use the one on the right. I hope that’s okay with both of you."
The two fake janitors looked at each other, embarrassed and completely exposed.
Seeing they didn’t speak, Dayo smiled. "Silence ans yes."
He walked into the restroom, did his business, and walked out casually.
"I’m done. You can use it if you need it," he said with an amused smile.
Both n remained silent, watching him leave.
The mont Dayo stepped out, his expression changed. He hadn’t reacted inside, but now it was clear—soone wanted to fra him. Soone thought he was "using," and they wanted to set him up.
His face darkened. This type of thing wasn’t new to him. He had prepared for it long before coming here. After four quiet years of training and surviving the industry, he wasn’t the sa Dayo anymore.
He dialed quickly.
"Hello, Max. It’s ti. There are two of them here. I want you to follow up. You’re nearby, right?"
"Yes sir. I’m here with Bella," Max replied imdiately.
"Good. Track them. Find whoever sent them."
"Noted."
Dayo hung up and headed back toward his seat. His eyes scanned the athletes around him. One of them lifted his head slightly, saw Dayo approaching, and imdiately looked away, almost flinching.
Dayo smirked.
"Got you... little rat."
He typed quickly:
I’ve found the rat. Just scare him a little and get the na of who he reported to.
After sending the ssage, Dayo sat back down, acting like nothing had happened. His mind went back to the race. The finals were getting closer.
Twenty minutes later, the final swimrs were called for warm-ups.
While stretching, Dayo finally spotted Alex. He decided to check his stats again.
He activated Talent Vision.
***
[Talent Vision Activated]
Target Acquired: Alex Carter
Age: 21
Talent Rating: S
Current Level: A− (temporarily boosted to S−)
Potential Reach: S
Strength: Exceptional final 25 ters
Condition: Good
Factor: Using enhancent
***
Dayo narrowed his eyes.
Alex looked over, noticed Dayo staring, and smirked.
"You’re done today," he whispered with confidence.
Dayo shrugged lightly. A part of him felt the weight of it. Even with his A current form, going up against soone temporarily boosted to S− was not a small thing. But he breathed out slowly.
No matter what enhancent soone took—you still couldn’t swim faster than you were naturally built for. There were limits. Even drugs couldn’t break certain barriers.
Dayo scanned the warm-up area again... and noticed sothing else.
Almost every athlete trained by Coach Matthew had "boosted" stats.
All of them.
He exhaled and rolled his neck.
"Well... here goes nothing," Dayo muttered.
The finals were about to begin and Dayo was ready for it.
What motivated him the most was the mission.
[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
I don’t know the reward but I can’t wait for this.
Dayo knew he could pass the ti on a regular base while training but it was quick different whe the actual competion cos with all the crowd and pressure.
"Let’s do this." Dayo muttered his eyes unfocused with different thoughts.
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