The Mech Touch

Several hours went by as Ves frankly attempted to teach Master Willix how to design a living mech.

His student failed every time.

Her ability to concentrate her mind was exceptional. Not even Gloriana could keep her mind as clear and free of distractions as a Master Mech Designer who was used to imitating other design philosophies.

As a rational mech designer, her ability to impose a precise and specific order on her mind was key to emulating the perspectives of other mech designers.

Yet no matter how much Ves deconstructed his passions and beliefs, Willix continually missed the mark.

In his eyes, she was far too clinical in her work. She approached her work as if life consisted of building blocks that she just needed to piece together.

While that was partially true, Ves felt she wasn't appreciating the mystery and wonder of life. A part of him always accepted that life was too special to be understood by rational means. While his design philosophy centered around it, he never delved any deeper.

He instinctively felt there was no point. Comprehension would come when he was ready for it. What he learned by doing was much more practical and relatable to him than forcing him ahead.

Yet this organic learning approach that was devoid of structure and proper theory happened to be Willix's biggest stumbling block.

The values and beliefs that Ves always took for granted sounded utterly alien and conflicting to Master Willix.

He might as well be spouting religion!

She grimaced at him as her latest attempt failed to yield the desired result.

"Class IX design philosophy indeed. Your approach is just as unique and beyond the boundaries of known paradigms as Mr. Armalon's specialty of probability manipulation."

Ves was pleased by her conclusion. The harder it was for her to replicate his design philosophy, the greater his ability to retain his competitive advantage.

It also meant that he was irreplaceable! Anyone who wanted to obtain a living mech had a vested interest in keeping him alive.

Of course, there would doubtlessly be others who wanted to get rid of living mechs at all cost, but that was why he invested so much in the mech forces of his clan. The new expert pilots and battle-hardened mech pilots he obtained from battling through the Nyxian Gap formed a significant deterrent against his enemies.

Master Willix seemed to know what he was thinking. She had gotten better and better at reading his true thoughts.

"Don't be so satisfied so soon, Mr. Larkinson. While the benefits of adopting an abnormal design philosophy are lucrative, so is the difficulty of propagating it. This isn't a concern for you now, but once you reach Senior or Master, you will find that this condition will form a significant hindrance in your subsequent progress. The ease of which you can pass on your teachings will not only affect your relationship with MTA, but also determine the speed at which you progress beyond Senior."

"What? Is this truly the case?"

This was new to Ves! While he already knew that unconventional and irrational design philosophies were harder to pass on, he never really considered this to be a downside.

"Everything has a tradeoff, Mr. Larkinson. While you are not ready to know what is up ahead, you should know that becoming a Master Mech Designer or even Star Designer does not revolve around designing the strongest or most unique mechs. What truly matters is how applicable and universal your innovations are. The easier you can spread your design philosophy, the easier it is for you to progress in the latter stages of your career. One of the original reasons for setting up the Mech Trade Association is to facilitate this essential process."

Yeah right. Ves was truly skeptical about the MTA's intentions. While the MTA may very well provide mech designers some help with spreading their design philosophies, the Association gained most of all out of these transactions!

As the gatekeeper and keeper of so much exceptional knowledge, the MTA obtained unrestricted access to every possible way to design and empower a mech.

Since knowledge was power, the MTA continually strengthened its stranglehold over human society!

Even so, if Master Willix was correct, then Ves might truly experience some difficulties once he reached Senior.

The only consolation was that he was far from reaching that point. Despite designing a lot of fantastic mechs, his design seed had barely changed.

"Is this the case for every mech designer with a difficult design philosophy?" Ves asked.

"High-grade design philosophies such as yours are considerably more exotic and potent. In turn, they are also significantly harder to progress at every stage." She taught. "In fact, most mech designers who have chosen to specialize in difficult design philosophies mostly fail to realize their design philosophies."

"Even within the MTA?"

She nodded. "Our Association offers substantial assistance to mech designers such as Mr. Armalon. The success rate of our mech designers is substantially higher for that reason, but it is not that high in absolute terms. We cannot do all of the work on their behalf. The mech designers must still rely on their own efforts to realize something that could not be previously done."

This fell in line with his own theories on how the MTA nurtured it's mech designers. Aside from investing in rational mech designers, the Association also raised mech designers with extremely valuable design philosophies that likely wouldn't go anywhere if they were left in the hands of native mech designers.

"Do you think it is hopeless for me to progress in the later stages?"

Master Willix gave him a reassuring smile. "While the odds are small, they are not miniscule. I truly can't estimate your chances because each mech designer faces unique circumstances. What I can say is that as long as mech designers work hard enough, their chances are always greater. Those who are most deserving of advancement will grasp it with their own power. Never forget that."

That was all he needed to hear. He no longer felt as apprehensive as before.

From the moment he designed his first virtual mech, Ves was already accustomed to working hard. While the System provided him with an enormous amount of help, it mainly accelerated his progress. It never substituted his work.

Only Superpublishing his mech designs came close, but its limitations were so onerous that it was impossible for him to rely on it. In fact, many mech designers who enjoyed the tutelage of a Senior or Master were able to obtain comparable assistance, so it wasn't as if Ves enjoyed a unique advantage in this aspect.

He regained his composure. "I am confident that I'll be able to reach Master. It may take a while, but I have never stopped moving forward since I stepped on this path. There is too much at stake for me to stop at this point. If I have to face danger comparable to what I faced in the Nyxian Gap, then I will gladly do so a hundred times if that is what it takes to realize my mech design!"

His conviction resonated with his declaration! There was no doubt he was sincere!

His words did not sit well with Master Willix. She raised her palm in a gesture to calm him down. "Let's not be so dramatic, shall we? We are mech designers, not mech pilots. Our progress is not correlated to the degree of danger we face. As your mechs become more valued by the mech market, it becomes increasingly more important to safeguard your life. Taking risks, especially the life-threatening kind, is completely redundant. There are other ways to stimulate yourself than confronting illegal warships in person."

He clearly noted her overt and implied criticism of his conduct. While he agreed with her, she just stated earlier that mech designers who pursued more difficult dreams had to work harder than anyone else. How was he supposed to make any substantial progress without having his skin in the game?

Without any institutions like the MTA facilitating his progress, he had to climb his way up through his own means!

The two eventually returned to the main topic. With Master Willix continually unable to spark any life in her mech designs, there was little point for Ves to pass on his other teachings.

"You don't have an affinity for life." He concluded. "Based on my own experiences, psionic power is not monolithic. It comes in many flavors. Mine just happens to be weird and unusual enough that it is difficult for others to replicate or substitute."

Willix looked displeased. This setback severely impacted her plans.

"I see. Then we have no choice but to conclude this session for now. You must try hard to advance to Master and realize your design philosophy. Once you have made this attainment, we can revisit this session. The results will be different as Masters such as myself are much more capable of spreading our philosophies."

That was something else that Ves hadn't known until now. It seemed that realizing a design philosophy was a much bigger deal than he previously thought.

Though he eagerly wanted to know more, Master Willix remained mum of what he needed to face. According to her, he was not ready to receive this knowledge. He needed to reach the rank of Senior first and go on another pilgrimage to the MTA in order to receive enlightenment.

"As a Journeyman, you have become a qualified mech designer, but only just." She stated as she waved her hand and removed all of the projections. "You have just found your research direction but have not yet developed enough applications to elevate your mech designs sufficiently."

"How many applications do I need to develop before I reach Senior?"

She shook her head at him. "Don't be too anxious. You will become a Senior when you have made enough progress. It is different for everyone. Those with higher-grade design philosophies such as you must work harder. The magnitude of your applications matter as well. Don't let your prior rate of progress fool you. Advancing to Journeyman is a completely different process than advancing to Senior. You are in a marathon, not a sprint. Pace yourself appropriately."

He already expected that it would take at least a couple of decades for him to reach Senior. It was just that he didn't exactly know why it took so long. Now that he received some clarification, he no longer remained as ignorant.

"So what now, ma'am?"

Master Willix sighed. "While it is regrettable that I cannot follow your steps, that merely means that I will have to wait longer before our Association can benefit from your gains. I will not lie, Mr. Larkinson. I have a keen interest in designing a mech that is comparable to the legendary Ouroboros. Even if my attempts do not measure up to its level, any mech that can facilitate the growth of a mech pilot is commendable. Tell me the truth. How certain are you able to turn mech pilots into expert pilots?"

Ves hesitated. He didn't like to answer such a direct question, but considering that he had already extended so much trust to her, there was no reason for him to obfuscate his answer like usual.

"This is not a straightforward process. Just like how most Apprentices are unable to advance to Journeyman for their entire lives, most mech pilots lack the 'psionic potential' to transcend their mortality. However, to the mech pilots that do possess this potential, I have 80 percent confidence that I can turn them into expert pilots in the span of a couple of years!"

That was quite a high degree of certainty! Unfortunately, this only applied to a tiny proportion of mech pilots.

Master Willix seemed to know what he was referring to. "Your success rate, while questionable, is vastly higher than the other methods than I know of. It is a pity that it does not apply to more mech pilots. Do you have any solutions for this underserviced group?"

"I'm still working on that. I haven't given up on the majority of mech pilots who lack potential. In my opinion, potential isn't innate. There has to be ways to acquire it. I've already seen at least one instance of that after our previous battle. My research in this area is very preliminary, though. Don't expect any quick answers."

She smiled. "It is already revolutionary to achieve this much progress. Don't belittle your advancements, but don't underestimate the difficulty either. The fact that you are able to make any progress in this area at all is exceptional. The more I learn about you, the more I admire Mr. S. His master plan is so deep that just a glimpse of it is enough to impress me. Your mentor's ambition is boundless!"

"Uhmm.. yeah.. he's pretty good.."

Ves wanted to scratch his head. What was this supposed master plan?