The Mech Touch

Though the two mech designers eventually returned to studying the phasewater that their expeditionary forces obtained from the pakklaton refugee fleet, Ves no longer became as excited about phasewater as before.

He even figured that this entire meeting was an excuse for Professor Benedict Cortez to have a heart-to-heart talk with him. The way that a Senior Mech Designer made a formal bow left a strong impression on his psyche!

Professor Benedict was not the sort of person who acted frivolously. Just like his specialty, he prized efficiency and tried to make every action or word he said as meaningful as possible.

From beginning to end, Benedict did not treat Ves as a Journeyman that he could boss around.

Instead, both of them spoke on an equal level most of the time. While there were instances where Professor Benedict's considerable expertise and experience put him on a higher level, he shared more knowledge than was strictly needed.

Ves learned a lot during this hours-long session. He not only gained a closer appreciation of Professor Benedict's design philosophy and perspective, but also became more familiar with him on a personal level.

Of course, he was not blind to the practical benefits of developing a stronger personal bond between them. Since they were likely about to become the two most important mech designers of the Mars Project, increasing their intimacy was a good way to improve the finished mech design.

Ves and Gloriana had developed one of the closest bonds that mech designers could establish, so he already experienced the benefits first-hand.

There was no reason for Ves to reject Professor Benedict's goodwill. The Senior Mech Designer may not come across as sane on some days, but today happened to be a good day.

Once Ves finally boarded his shuttle again, his head was filled with a lot of new thoughts.

Getting a better feel and understanding of phasewater was only secondary. What Ves actually lingered on was all of the revelations he received about Professor Benedict's promising new innovations as well as the initial outlines of the Mars Project.

The Mars Project had become a pivotal mech for the Crossers. If it lived up to its promises, then the expert mech may very well spark a new era for both the Cross Clan and the Golden Skull Alliance!

"Everything will change if the Cross Clan will truly be able to gain a Master Mech Designer as well as an ace pilot!"

The Cross Clan would have the biggest right to speak in the Golden Skull Alliance if that happened.

Ves initially couldn't figure out how he should feel about that. Was this a bad outcome?

A part of him would say yes. He had gotten used to being the top dog in the Golden Skull Alliance. It would be extremely difficult for him to maintain the same dominance if he had to compete directly against both an ace pilot and a Master.

Still, as Ves put more thought in it, he realized that his fears were probably overblown.

What he feared the most was other people trying to use him or boss him around. He did not think that a reinvigorated Cross Clan would do that to the Larkinson Clan. Both sides had already provided so much assistance to each other that neither of them would subjugate each other by force.

Instead, Ves thought it was likely that the Cross Clan would extend its protection to the Larkinson Clan.

Though the Crossers possessed a huge strength and rank advantage, their top figures were already old.

The Larkinson Clan was still young and its key members were predominantly two or three generations younger.

Everyone knew that Ves possessed high potential as a mech designer! As long as he succeeded in becoming a Master, his actual prowess would definitely exceed that of his peers!

Besides, Ves provided lots of benefits even if he was still a Journeyman. The utility he provided through his living mechs and so on was indispensable.

Otherwise, Patriarch Reginald wouldn't have requested Ves to turn the Mars Project into a living mech!

Now that Ves regained his confidence in his own organization, he no longer viewed the Cross Clan with as much dread.

With the principled personalities of its top two figures, the chances that either of them would backstab Ves and the Larkinsons were not high.

"This will be even more so once they advance to this point. Ace pilots are extremely rigid about their promises and Masters value their credibility like it is their religion."

Ves viewed this development in a favorable light. If the Cross Clan became the big brother of the Golden Skull Alliance, the Larkinson Clan no longer had to shoulder a huge burden alone.

The loss of control and decision-making power that came with this turn of events were acceptable prices to pay as long as the Larkinsons did not turn into complete followers.

"A decade or half a decade of peaceful development sounds nice."

It was impossible for that to happen, though. The Red Ocean was too tumultuous to give everyone a break. Ves also craved stimulation and the only way he could get his fix was to explore the unknown bounty of the new frontier!

"Does that make me an addict?"

As Ves pondered this question, his shuttle finally brought him back to his flagship.

Once he returned, everything went back on track. Ves and the other mech designers largely busied themselves with managing their spoils and resuming their work on their last mech design projects for the soon-to-be-completed design round.

Meanwhile, time went by as the expeditionary fleet continued to hover alongside the pakklaton prize fleet.

The voribug infestations were no longer as serious as before. They even turned into punching bags that the expeditionary forces utilized to train their armed forces.

All of the infantry units of the Larkinson Clan rotated to the pakklaton ships in order to gain real experience fighting against actual enemies.

Even brave groups of mech pilots joined the fray. Each of them needed to get acquainted with the psychological pressures of fighting an actual battle and facing the threat of death.

The most ridiculous instance was when a group of highly talented but completely green mech cadets went on a field trip to one of the alien vessels!

Lanie and her classmates managed to acquit themselves well, but as soon as Ves heard about this trip, he immediately ordered the Larkinson Mech Academy to stop these reckless tours!

"Don't underestimate the voribugs! Even if they appear weak and under control, who knows whether they will be able to breach their limitations. Leave the tours aside and focus on minimizing their population."

Ves was actually quite glad to see that his clansmen had overcome their fear of the alien threat. Sure, the voribugs weren't all that scary when their numbers hadn't accumulated up to a point, but they were still killers who always tried their best to slaughter any form of life that was not a fellow voribug!

As he continued to settle one matter after another, he abruptly froze when he became notified of an alarming piece of news!

"Who broke into the box where I stored the Angel of Transcendence!?"

Almost no one was allowed to wander in his personal workshop. The only one who could wander in without asking permission was Gloriana, but she never took advantage of this privilege because she vastly preferred to tinker around in her own workshop.

It didn't take long for Ves to recall that he had recently extended permission to Ketis.

His eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Did she think about breaking in back then?"

He already figured out that Ketis came with a predetermined plan!

Suffice to say, Ves immediately called her in for a meeting. Given the sensitive nature of this breach, he invited her to his personal office.

"Meow."

Lucky lounged on the desk as usual when Ketis finally stepped through the hatch.

Ves studied her carefully. He did not believe she sought out the Angel of Transcendence just because she wanted to experience a new thrill. She almost certainly sought it out because she wanted to achieve a breakthrough in some way.

He could immediately spot the difference between the self-assured warrior before his desk and the uncertain woman who had fallen into doubt.

Whatever she managed to do most certainly helped her overcome her difficulties. This was good. At least she hadn't breached the rules in vain.

Though he was relieved and satisfied that Ketis managed to find her center again and get back on track, he was also enormously worried about the recklessness she displayed.

For a moment, he didn't know how to begin this meeting.

"You should already know why I called you here." He said after he recalled that he was dealing with a 'smart' mech designer and not a 'stupid' mech pilot. "I won't say any useless stuff. What do you have to say for yourself?"

He threw the ball in her court, allowing her to start this conversation and set the tone of this meeting.

For her part, Ketis did not show any regret or remorse.

"I may have acted improperly according to the rules of the clan, and I may have violated your trust, but I knew what I was doing. Those organic statues… maybe you don't fully realize it yet since you are only a mech designer, but they can provide a huge amount of help to expert pilots and swordmasters like myself. With my mental strength, the danger posed by any of them is reduced to a minimum. Even the Angel of Transcendence, which you fear so much, is only a paper tiger in my eyes. I would not have tried to reach it if it was stronger."

Ves glowered. "You could have told me, you know."

"We've been working alongside each other for years, Ves. I know you. There are times when you are amazingly reckless, but there are also times when you are too overprotective. If I walked up to you and directly requested you to lead me to the Angel of Transcendence, would you have done it or would you have kept it hidden inside a dark box?"

He could not provide her with a good answer. He feared that he would likely choose to go for the latter option. There was much about the Angel of Transcendence and its effect on different humans that he had yet to understand.

It had already blown up hundreds of heads! Having witnessed this bloodshed first-hand, how could Ves feel relieved to allow one of his closest friends and comrade to fool around with such a dangerous totem?

"Look, I might have said no in such a situation, but I am always open to persuasion. If you relied on solid logic to argue your case, I might have granted your wish after we perform a few careful tests and examinations."

"I couldn't wait that long." Ketis shook her head. "I saw a solution, so I went for it. I cut through all of the middle parts and went straight for the end. That's the kind of girl I am. A day ago, I was in a crisis. You don't know how it feels for powerful warriors like myself to fall into a pit of doubt and questioning. It was eating away my confidence. The sooner I remedied myself, the greater my chances of avoiding more serious repercussions. If my state of doubt went on for too long, I would have developed psychological problems that could not easily be resolved anymore. I was particularly afraid of that happening due to my unusual condition. You know as well as I do that I am not a traditional swordmaster. Have you ever thought about the dangers and complications that brings?"

Ves grew serious. He indeed neglected this aspect. He just thought that Ketis had won the lottery and managed to become both a Journeyman and a swordmaster at the same time. He never thought to look past the amazing benefits she received!

"Sit down and tell me about your issues. Let's figure this out together."