The Mech Touch

Operating the Korok Alpha was much more impressive in reality than in a simulation.

Although the attempts to create a mech in a virtual setting allowed Ves to quickly get up to speed on how to operate a superfab, it simply wasn't physical enough for his liking.

To someone who designed and made mechs for a living, it was like playing a video game rather than doing the actual thing. Nothing could compare to harnessing the actual power of production!

It was only now that he truly felt he had become properly introduced to superfabs. The monstrous all-in-one machine was so much better than his old production lines that it was hard for him to imagine going back to them after today.

Initially, he became frightened at the powerful forces generated by the superfab.

That quickly made way for wonder and fascination. Possessing a superfab was such a game changer to mech designers that it was impossible for Ves to remain unmoved by its powerful capabilities.

The Korok Alpha KA-35 eased his adaptation to this powerful tech enormously as it was able to perform most tasks without any meaningful input from the mech designer. Hysphalin Industries might be bad at giving its customers the ability to operate its machines manually, but it excelled at developing AIs and automated production methods.

The best, confident and most skilled mech designers might opt to purchase a product from a different brand, but that didn't matter too much.

Hysphalin Industries had built up a respectable market share in the lower end of the superfab market, where its easy-to-use machines was particularly beloved among plant managers who could only rely on regular production personnel to produce mechs en masse.

Though Ves was not within the target segment of the Korok Alpha series, every superfab was powerful beyond anything he had worked with. The machine that was humming and buzzing right in front of him completed hours of work in a matter of minutes. He still couldn't quite wrap his mind around how much of a leap this represented!

The more he appreciated superfabs and the tech around it, the more enthused he became at using the Korok Alpha to shape his lancer mech.

He invested all of his focus and attention on doing justice to his recently-completed mech design.

Although he cut a lot of corners and left a lot of aspects unoptimized, the base of his lancer mech design should still be sound. He knew it was powerful enough to achieve victory in the next phase of the tournament. He just had to make sure that he did his best in translating his abstract design into a real and physical mech.

"I can't leave this device on autopilot. I need to take over control at some point, if only to impart my competition mech with my personal touch."

Once the production process reached a point where Ves saw an opportunity to do a better job, he cautiously interrupted an automated task and began to control the powerful and complicated internal production modules with deliberate intent.

Ves did not use his hands to manipulate any control devices. Instead, he placed his palm onto a special surface. This forged an electronic connection between the Korok Alpha and his implant.

This was the only way for him to take effective control over such a fast production machine. His prior practice sessions had taught him that he could only respond effectively to changing circumstances if he minimized his reaction time.

"If all goes well, I shouldn't have to rely on this measure to succeed."

Though Ves was eager to control every fine aspect by himself, he consciously reined himself in and stuck with his plan.

The Korok Alpha worked much faster when its automated systems were left to work by themselves. Humans were much slower, so everytime Ves took over manual control, he was taking at least ten times longer to complete a production task than before.

As for smaller tasks such as fabricating generating bolts or assembling ordinary fuel cells, there was little he could do that could measurably improve the performance of his finished mech. He just left most of it up to the Korok Alpha to do most of this tedious work.

"It's impractical for me to control everything from beginning to end. It will take days to finish a mech, thereby negating one of the biggest benefits of using superfabs."

The fact that he would exceed the time limit of the High Tide Tournament was also an important reason.

Ves had to choose his interventions carefully. He only took over when the production process had reached the truly important moments where he could make a difference.

"Heh, this is quite fun, actually!"

Sure, the Korok Alpha was stupendously powerful and could easily run out of control if he made a mistake, but he worked cautiously enough to minimize the risks.

In addition, Vulcan's influence on his mind was still strong enough for him to possess a considerably more intuitive grasp on craftsmanship.

Ves faintly suspected that Vulcan had improved a bit in this aspect after absorbing a tiny amount of high-end metal energy.

Although his incarnation clearly hadn't fully absorbed and mastered the prickly metal energy, just having it and getting exposed to it every day provided Vulcan with significant gains!

One of the consequences of this dynamic was that Ves actually gained a faint connection to the Korok Alpha, for a lack of a better word. He understood it a little bit better on an intuitive level and became a bit better at judging when he was pushing it to a dangerous level.

Ves couldn't fully explain it. The best way he could describe it was that this phenomenon reminded him of his ability to understand the ins and outs of mechs on an intuitive level.

The Korok Alpha was a giant machine that was predominantly made of metal, so it made sense that he was able to bond with it to a minor degree.

Though he wasn't able to create any wonders with this advantage, it was quite helpful in making sure he did not botch any of his manual processes.

Ves devoted his remaining attention on adjusting and in some cases improving the parts that were taking shape inside the superfab. He had to make good use of Vulcan's boost while it lasted.

Outside of his isolated bubble, his confident work approach attracted a fair amount of appreciation from the expert commentators.

[That is a daring mech designer. Mr. Ves Larkinson is using the Korok Alpha KA-35 outside of its recommended use. He must be a demanding person or possess a bold personality to take such risks.]

[Is it working out for him, do you think?]

[It is too early to tell, but his control is stable and he is being smart about taking his chances. If he keeps this up, his competition mech will turn out fine. It is questionable whether the difference in output is ultimately great enough to justify all of this extra effort.]

[Indeed. The Korok Alpha KA-35 excels in producing stable and consistent parts. No human can surpass the generations of research and development that Hysphalin Industries has put into improving the automation of superfab machinery.]

[Mr. Larkinson isn't the only Journeyman in the competition stage who has decided to take matters into his own hands. Let's take a look at the work of Mr. Roland Sevener. Unlike the previous mech designer, Mr. Sevener is clearly in over his head…]

"Damn, those expert commentators don't appreciate what our teacher can do!" Zanthar complained.

The four Larkinson seeds had each settled into their VIP seats for almost half a day. They only left their seats in order to bring some life back to their legs, but other than that they remained rooted in place in order to catch every glimpse of their teacher at work.

They didn't even need to visit the bathroom because their high-tech seats took care of business. If they ever became hungry or thirsty, they just had to input a command and their order would appear from the floor.

Each of them felt it was worth it to observe their patriarch from beginning to end. Seeing him complete an entire design project by himself at such an exaggerated pace showcased his strengths in a clearer way from before.

Even from this distance, the four future Larkinson mech designers could feel the life that was brewing inside the superfab.

Though Maisie Ann and Rennie admired Gloriana's work more, they still acknowledged that Ves was also impressive in his own way. No other Journeymen participating in this tournament was able to match him in terms of making their mechs alive!

That didn't mean that they were weak. It was the opposite in many cases. The strength and exquisiteness of their designs were clearly better!

"Look at that light skirmisher." Rennie gazed at one of the six powerful centrists. "Katien Tievos is considerably younger than our patriarch, but her design is much more intricate despite being smaller and lighter. She's not doing bad in operating the superfab either."

Maikel snorted. "Of course she's good at it. She practically grew up with these powerful production machines."

"Meow." Lucky huffed as well.

The cat was hovering lazily above Maikel's head. All of this mech design stuff might excite the Larkinson seeds for many hours, but a simple cat like him was utterly bored.

If not for the fact that the MTA kept track of everything that went on in the Vulit Central Star Node, he would have long phased out of this boring place and explored more exciting places!

"Is she better than Ves, though?"

"I'm not sure. I don't know enough about producing mechs to say who is doing a better job. Personally, I'm rooting for my own side, though."

Katien Tievos indeed possessed a lot of proficiency and experience in operating superfabs. She too possessed the confidence of taking over manual control in order to specifically improve the quality of some of the parts of her machine.

Since her light skirmisher was so small but packed with miniaturized components, she had many ways to improve the performance of her work!

Numerous other mech designers displayed similar degrees of proficiency. Each of them originally came from the wealthier regions of the old galaxy.

Ves was the only mech designer from the galactic rim that had the guts to take manual control over a production machine that he had only become familiar with a day ago! The others were so intimidated by the prospect of overriding the AI that they simply left the superfab its own devices!

In any case, there was virtually no risk in letting the Korok Alpha behave like an entire production line and production crew rolled into a single package. Not a single task completed by the AI systems produced any botched or disappointing results!

The incredible degree of reliability and consistency even won over certain members of the crowd. They planned to inquire about purchasing these new superfabs so that they could also produce mechs on easy mode.

There were moments when Ves also thought about buying a superfab. Though he didn't like all of the limitations of the Korok Alpha, he was open to purchasing a more suitable superfab that possessed less automation but provided much more support for artisanal workmanship.

Hysphalin Industries was far from the only company that developed and sold superfabs. It was an upstart compared to the many huge conglomerates that dominated this market category for decades or centuries!

Though the Larkinson Clan's finances weren't strong enough for Ves to buy a superfab at this time, he was confident that the circumstances would be different in a couple of years.

Ves believed he would truly become a part of the industrial crowd of the Red Ocean once he owned and operated a superfab himself. Until then, he would always feel like a pauper who relied on shabby, outdated production equipment to earn a living.

"I'm too poor!"