Chapter 551

A hatch slid open, allowing Ves entry into the dinghy compartment . Compared to the clean and relatively tidy interior of the rest of the Shield of Hispania, Ves had entered what should have formerly been a backup storage area .

A large closet, in other words .

Now, the compartment had been turned into a lounge of some sorts . A couple of sofas, some pots with alien plants and a simple table surrounded by chairs took up much of the room while muted projection of archival mech duels played in the background .

Chief Technician Carletta Haine, Chief Engineer Morgan Avanaeon and Lieutenant Command Lisea Soapstone already sat on three of the four chairs . They all greeted Ves as he took the final seat .

"Good to see you Larkinson . "

"Been working hard today, eh?"

"You still owe me three tons of platinum!"

"I'll make it up to you, Soapstone . " Ves said somewhat tiredly . "I hadn't anticipated using it as a substitute material for my repairs . "

Chief Haine who set up this compartment in the first place pressed her finger against the table, causing a projection of a sophisticated board game to appear on the table . The game featured miniature mech and ship models, only a couple of which the players started out with . The space above the table turned into a three-dimensional star map where the game would be played out .

"Pirate Empires again?" Chief Morgan whined as he whipped out a bottle and glass from somewhere and poured himself a drink . "This game is over a century old . No offense, but you see the same strategies play out over and over again . "

"That's the beauty of this game . " Soapstone said with a smile . She gripped the projection of a random assortment of identically scaled mechs and ships and rolled them around like they were dice . "If we're all familiar with the same strategies, the game becomes a contest of mind games . Why do you think chess is still the same after several millennia after its inception?"

"I'm running this game with all the latest expansions . " The chief technician added . "The threat of a major alien invasion will spice things up if you want to deal with an extra challenge . What do you think, head designer?"

Ves yawned a bit . "I'm not very familiar with the last couple of expansions, but I'm aware of the rules . The game developers have added even more randomization in the game, I hear . That's going to be annoying to deal with . This game is pretty much ninety percent about luck and ten percent about skill . "

"You're wrong, Larkinson . " The chief engineer replied . "That ninety percent luck you're talking about really refers to your ability to manage fortune and risks . Good and bad things happen in every game . It's your ability to mitigate the bad outcomes and benefit from the good outcomes that determines whether you are winning . "

Pirate Empires was a game of exploration, conquest and profiteering . Having been developed in the galactic rim, it proved to be a breakout hit and became a rim-wide phenomenon . Riding on its success, the developer actively published countless expansion packs, add-ons and star sector-specific flavor packages over the years .

The premise of the game was that players took on the role of an outfit leader . The only choice provided by the base game used to be a pirate captain, but later expansions added the option of playing as a legitimate mercenary commander or the leader of a treasure hunting expedition .

Whatever the case, the goal of the game was to amass a set amount of wealth in money or assets through killing, plundering, cheating, or hundreds of other ways allowed by the rules . All of this took place in the frontier beyond the border of human space .

Ves never paid too much attention to this game in his youth, but he played a few matches here and there . Recently, he gained a lot more appreciation of the game because it served as a somewhat accurate depiction of what the owner of an outfit had to deal with . The game treated the frontier as a region where opportunity and danger coexisted .

"Let's begin . I've waited long enough to get this session started!"

The four players chose their roles and began to make their first moves into the untamed stars . Each of them picked the exact same roles as last time . Everyone's choices appeared to reflect their personalities .

As a chief technician, Haine always leaned towards playing a pirate . The key to running a successful pirate operation was to keep your unruly subordinates under your thumb . Haine had a lot of experience knocking some sense into the skulls of mech technicians .

"What's the difference between a pirate and a mech technician?" She asked one day . "A pirate is led by a lawless maniac while a mech technician is led by a lawful maniac!"

Haine's usual strategy leveraged her skill in managing all kinds of bastards and scum to amass a pirate fleet in the early phases of the game . If the other three players let her build up a veritable armada, then it was too late to stop her from steamrolling them one by one .

The chief engineer pursued the opposite strategy . Avanaeon pursued quality over quantity, and therefore opted to play as a mercenary commander . His outfit always stayed small, but through a steady accumulation of wealth through low and medium-risk ventures, he amassed a collection of elite mechs and ships, all crewed by some of the skilled and deadliest subordinates available in the game .

"The best hardware paired with the best people trumps anything you can throw in my way . "

Avanaeon knew his ships well, and invested in them very early . This allowed him to pick and choose his battles and avoid any attacks directed against him in the first half of the game . He would never be the first player to fall in every match .

The only logistical officer among them favored playing as the leader of a treasure hunting outfit . Different from pirates which usually raided other players or neutral human presences on the map, treasure hunters aimed to raid the unclaimed bounties of the stars . Treasure hunters strictly challenged the environment and often explored the most hazardous regions on the map .

"You fellows fight too much . " Soapstone often remarked . "This game is about hoarding the most wealth . Taking it from someone else all the time only builds up grievances among your enemies . "

That said, Soapstone did not fare very well once she entered a bad encounter against another human force . Her force mix predominantly focused on strengthening her landbound combat and exploration capacities, while most of her ships focused on maximizing their cargo capacity .

Each of the three had been familiar with each other since accepting their postings aboard the Shield of Hispania . One day, Chief Haine invited Ves to join their little circle, and out of curiosity he accepted the offer .

He quickly became immersed into the game . What he used to play for fun in the past served as a fun way to practice running his own outfit someday .

Harkening back to the Avatars of Myth he founded a while ago, Ves opted to play as a mercenary commander as well . In the first sessions, he experimented with a variety of strategies, but eventually settled on taking steady missions while preparing for a high-risk high-reward treasure hunting opportunity .

"Since this is just a game, I can go wild . I always love to gamble big . "

It was safe to say that Ves played a very risky game . He generally aimed to grow his mercenary corps as fast as possible without taking too many risks at the start . He preferred to go for mid-game value for money when acquiring new mechs and ships . This allowed him to tackle a big treasure hunting score when his search had finally stumbled upon a promising opportunity .

Anything could go wrong in these treasure hunting expeditions . From battling fire dragons while attempting to mine valuable exotics from a lava planet, to braving the risks of diving into the upper layers of a gas giant to harvest valuable concentrations of a very rare component ingredient of extreme-density fuel, his operations were always one step away from disaster .

His track record so far didn't look very good . In the current session, Ves bumped into a treasure hunting opportunity fairly early and was forced to go for it before others snatched his opportunity . His understrength collection of mechs suffered a lot of casualties on the field .

"Why do you insist on these stupid gambles?" Chief Avanaeon asked for the umpteenth time . "Chief Haine is snowballing again . I could have cut her pirate fleet down to size . "

Ves smiled ruefully as his latest venture appeared to be heading nowhere . "I'm not in the right position to help . It's not my fault my mercenary corps spawned on the other side of the map . "

The chief technician practically beat the chief engineer black and blue in the game . Playing pirates well required a good heaping of luck as well as excellent people management skills . Though Chief Haine's luck seemed to be average, her ability lent itself well in gathering a horde of low-quality pirate assets for an early game advantage .

Just now, she halved Avanaeon's forces and even added a couple of salvaged mechs to her own retinue . After this victory, Chief Haine began to focus on subduing other pirate gangs with higher quality ships and mechs .

Soapstone ignored the chaos that had erupted elsewhere and focused on taking commissions from foreign states to prospect valuable exotics for them to mine .

Ves on the other hand received a heavy thrashing from his initial failed venture . His mercenary corps licked their wounds while he accepted a couple of easier assignments . He never lost heart, though . As long as nobody was hunting him down, he was still in contention .

That didn't change the fact that his mercenary corps had fallen behind compared to the other players . The only way he could salvage this unlucky turn of events was to roll the proverbial dice again . He prepared his forces to go on another high-risk mission .

"Oh come on, do you really think that will work, Larkinson?"

"Hey, don't count me out yet . I'm the comeback kid . "

"Huff, if you're the combat kid, why are the repairs of our mechs behind schedule?" Chief Haine bit back . "Major Verle went through all that trouble sending our landbound mech pilots into a crash course on how to pilot spaceborn mechs . Some of them are pretty talented and decent at it, but they don't have any mechs to pilot!"

Each formally-trained mech pilot trained to pilot the machines for more than a decade . Every mech pilot acquired a basic proficiency on piloting landbound, aerial, spaceborn and in some cases aquatic mechs .

The only snag was that mech pilots usually specialized fairly early . Piloting mechs on land was easier and more intuitive, so it attracted a lot of mech pilots . Those who opted to train in piloting spaceborn mechs tended to be more skilled and better learners .

Thus, getting spaceborn pilots to crosstrain into piloting landbound mechs was easy . Forcing landbound mech pilots into becoming proficient in piloting spaceborn mechs proved to be a massive challenge .

So far, Major Verle tentatively trained up over fifty cross-rained mech pilots that showed enough competency in the simulations to survive the first five minutes of a battle . That was better than nothing .

"Hah!" Ves erupted into a cheer . "My expedition hit the jackpot!"

His mercenary corps excavated an ancient alien ruin that held a bounty of interesting alien technology . Ves could easily trade his gains to the MTA or CFA for a very high price . Once his mercenary corps extracted from the dangerous planet that held the ruins, they be-linked to a star system occupied by the CFA and redeemed his findings for an incredible amount of credits .

It was enough to expand his mercenary corps by five-hundred percent!

"You better ready yourselves for a fight, because here I come!"

Chapter 552

Ves instantly catapulted to the top, but that didn't necessarily secure his win . He was still far short of reaching the victory condition for the game, so he had no choice but to transform his newly-gained wealth into strengthening his battle capabilities .

With a much-expanded force of mid-range ships and mechs, Ves experienced a renaissance which he took full advantage of to batter Chief Haine's increasingly formidable pirate armada . It was a shame that Chief Avanaeon's elite mercenary force beggared off at this time .

"Avanaeon, scuttlebutt says that the slapdash installation of the FTL drives on our logistics ships is coming back to bite us . Is there any credence to this rumor?"

The engineer grunted . "All the chief engineers are pulling double duty in trying to keep those shoddy FTL drives in one piece . What do you expect? They're simply the wrong fit for the Beggar's Bounty and the Linever Swan . To a mech designer like you, it's like putting an engine for a light mech into a medium mech . The FTL drives constantly break something after each and every jump . That's why we've suffered so many many delays recently . "

This sounded very worrisome to the other occupants of the compartments . "Do we need to open the stockpiles for the repair effort?"

"No, it's fine . The lack of materials is not an issue . The main challenge we are grappling with is that we don't have a good understanding of FTL technology ourselves . Even the best of humanity hasn't figured out all the nuances, so us poor engineers from a backwater third-rate state are only scratching the surface in this field . "

"Aren't chief engineers supposed to master FTL theory?" Soapstone followed up .

Avanaeon laughed . "Impossible! You'll have to be as smart as a three-hundred year old theoretical physicist to understand maybe twenty percent of how FTL drives work . Engineers like us make do with maybe five percent . We mainly learn what each component of an FTL drive is supposed to do and how it should look like . Unlike mech designers, we don't need to understand the underlying workings of FTL drives in order to get it to work . "

"So you are essentially treating FTL drives as black boxes?" Ves asked .

Even though he knew that engineers didn't comprehensively grasp the theory of FTL travel, he severely underestimated how little they actually knew .

The thought disconcerted him a lot more than he thought . After all, he wouldn't be happy to know if he rode a shuttle piloted by someone who never graduated from piloting school .

"You don't want to mess around with FTL drives . One faulty component can cause a ship to get lost in the higher dimensions for centuries . That's the least-bad outcome by the way . It's much more likely to get dropped out of FTL only to get sucked into a random black hole . What a way to go . "

Everyone shuddered a bit at the thought .

Chief Haine's attempt to beat back the sudden incursion from Ves succeeded, but at great cost . Her pirate fleet lost most of their low-quality scum . Despite being used as sacrificial pawns, the stupid pirates rabidly held up the rear guard and fought to the death .

The strengthened mercenary corps owned by Ves lost a lot of time chewing through the cannon fodder . By the time they shrugged off the pirate scum, Chief Haine's elites had already made a getaway .

In the meantime, Chief Avanaeon's mercenaries actively hunted for Lieutenant Commander Soapstone's treasure hunting expedition . They followed the trail of breadcrumbs into uncharted territory and through sheer luck managed to arrive at the right star system .

"Hey! That's not fair!" Soapstone slammed her fist against the table . The vibration from the impact briefly scrambled the projection of the game . "Out of thirty-nine star systems your fleet could have jumped to, how come you picked the right one?!"

"I'm just lucky, haha!" Avanaeon laughed as he sent his elite mercenaries to decimate Soapstone's civilian-grade ships . "Prepare your booty, because I'm going to take them all!"

Soapstone's expedition had been caught in the middle of a planetary exploration phase and faced two difficult choices . Either she could abandon her considerable landbound assets and preserve all of her ships, or she could make a stand in an attempt to buy enough time to evacuate her landbound forces .

The first option led to guaranteed survival, but represented a major setback . The second option might cause her to bow out of this game .

The former option wasn't even a viable choice at all . Chief Engineer Avanaeon loved to run with very fast ships, so there was no running from his pursuit .

The outcome of the battle arrived quickly enough . Soapstone hadn't devoted enough resources to defend her fleet from spaceborn threats and paid for it . Even though Avanaeon fought with a diminished force of mechs, their outstanding quality allowed him to defeat the much more fragile ships and mechs of Soapstone's treasure hunting expedition .

The logistical officer was the first player to be taken out of the game .

"You lucky dog . "

"Good game . "

With three players left in the game, the session transitioned into the late game phase . Every side accumulated a core force of high quality people and assets . Instead of racing to accumulate enough wealth to satisfy the victory condition of the game, everyone tried to hunt each other in order to take their opponents out directly .

"Come on, Haine . Where is your mighty pirate fleet?"

"I'm swaggering towards you! Just you wait! Our final battle will soon begin!"

"Speaking of final battles, how high are the odds we'll be forced into a battle against the Hafner Duchy?" Avanaeon asked .

"My gut feeling tells me that Hafner won't let us go without a fight . " Haine remarked . "I've managed to survive up to now by listening to my gut feeling, so you better take my warning seriously . "

Ves shrugged at that as he drove his mercenary corps in a search pattern . "I've studied Hafner's strategies extensively, and one thing that stands out is that they've erected a massive monitoring web at the border between the Kingdom and the Reinald Republic . According to Miss Jupiter, there's no way the local rebels can sabotage this monitoring network . We'll definitely trip an alarm as soon as our ships are near the border . "

"Hafner has a reputation for responding quickly to alerts . Their ships catch up fast . "

"I'm very concerned about Hafner . All the information I've read about them suggests that they are zealous pirate hunters . Added to the fact that they know we'll have to cross their borders, they'll be ready to take us out . Frankly speaking, if not for the two-month deadline of our mission, we should have tried to go around and avoid this territory entirely . "

After jumping through several star systems, Ves finally cornered Haine's pirate fleet . A massive battle ensued as both sides fought to the death .

One of the more annoying aspects of Haine's pirates was that she always managed to max out their loyalty scores . The last time he played pirate, all of his subordinates deserted him once he sustained twenty percent losses . The gutless pirates under his command showed no appreciation for his command .

Mercenaries fit better with his playstyle anyway . Most mercenaries possessed a sense of honor, and if nothing else they were lured by generous pay and hefty pensions for their loved ones should they fall .

Right now, his mercenaries gained the edge . Pirate elites or not, criminals mainly sourced their mechs and ships from the black market, which wasn't known for their quality control . At least a fourth of the hardware that Chief Haine bought from a pirate station suffered a malfunction during the battle .

"Those numbskull profiteers! Isn't it too much to ask for me to get what I paid for?!"

Ves laughed at that as his forces slowly gained the advantage . "That's pirates for you . They're utterly lawless . Without the need for the MTA to certify their mechs, they can pull off any scam they can get away with . I can think of a million ways to fleece my customers if I have no morals . "

"Pff . Mech designers . Always thinking about profit before duty . "

"Well, you are about to lose!" Ves replied, not taking offense at her jeer .

The battle took a sudden turn when the Chief Engineer showed up out of nothing . His reconstituted force of elite mercenaries instantly dove into the battle .

"Haine! Truce?"

"Sure! Let's kick this arrogant mech designer's butt!"

"Avenaeon! That's low! Fighting alongside pirates is a great taboo!"

"Not if we keep our distance!" Avenaeon responded with a grin . "Besides, once I clean up your dinky little mercenary corps, I'll immediately prove my law-abiding ways by finishing off what you started . "

The chief technician and chief engineer were in cahoots with each other . It made sense to gang up on Ves to them because his mercenary corps was the strongest force by a fair margin . One-on-one, neither of the chiefs could match the strength of his mercenary corps .

The battle ended in a tragedy for Ves . He'd been too eager to seek a final confrontation, and he didn't expect Chief Avenaeon to join the fun so quickly .

"The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind! Tough luck, Ves, but this time you're the mantis!"

"Good game, but how the hell did your fleet arrive at the battle so quickly? I was certain that I could have finished off the pirates before you arrived . "

"There are lots of tricks you can pull off with certain FTL drive models if you're willing to burn them out . I performed an ultra-long-ranged transition at double their effective range . I can cover twice the distance in the same amount of time . The only downside is that navigation is gone to hell . I lost over thirty percent of my fleet to the tides of the higher dimensions . "

"Damn . Well, at least I've learned something new . "

With Ves out of the way, Haine's badly battered pirates contended evenly against Avenaeon's elite mercenaries . As a last hurrah, Ves had ordered his mercenaries to focus their final moments into crippling the enemy mercenaries . Since Avenaeon already lost thirty percent of his forces from botched FTL transitions, he really didn't have a lot of mechs at his disposal .

Haine managed to retrieve her malfunctioning mechs and kludged a number fixes together that restored their fighting strength . Those extra mechs tipped the scales in her favor, causing her to be the ultimate winner of this session .

"Good game" Avanaeon said, being gracious enough to concede the win to Haine .

"Yeah! Go team pirates!"

The losers at the table grumbled a bit as they raised their comms and transferred five hundred credits to Chief Haine's account .

"I'll earn that money back next time, so don't spend it yet!"

"Keep on dreaming, Soapstone!"

After wrapping up the game, they retired to the sofas and shared a few drinks . An hour later, Ves departed from the lounge to call it a night .

When Chief Haine initially invited him to these little gaming sessions, he only accepted out of a social obligation . Each session ran for at least an hour, which was precious time that Ves could have spent on furthering the repairs of the task force's mechs .

It was only after he attended the first couple of sessions that Ves realized the value of these informal gatherings . Everyone invited to the games served a vital function aboard the Shield of Hispania .

Everyone had a tendency to loosen their lips during the gaming sessions . Ves learned a wealth of information from key personnel that he would have never gotten wind of in his regular capacity .

Naturally, the others expected him to reciprocate, so he returned the favor with some semi-critical nuggets of information from time to time . He was glad that everyone knew their limits . Nobody leaked a word of classified information unless all four of them possessed the right clearances .

Through these regular off-duty meetings, Ves pieced together Major Verle's plan for Hafner .

The mech officer came up with a bold plan . Instead of letting Hafner come to them, the Vandals would take the fight to Hafner! In other words, they planned to surprise the duchy by launching a surprise attack against one of their worlds!

Chapter 553

The Flagrant Vandals feared Hafner for a very good reason. As a border territory of the Vesia Kingdom, the Hafner Duchy differed a lot from the interior duchies.

First and foremost, their main responsibility was to guard the border. Military priorities came first, everything else came second. Thus, it did not matter too much if the border star systems failed to turn a profit. As long as they maintained a sufficient garrison to deter pirate raids and the like, it was fine if they lost a substantial amount of money over time.

The Vesian propensity for infighting was remarkably subdued in the border territories. It was the same at the Bright Republic's side of the border. With the threat of external enemies so acute, the noble Houses that controlled the border systems had no time to wage pointless rivalries amongst themselves.

Another stabilizing influence was that the Kingdom as a whole subsidized the border territories by funding the military forces that kept the borders safe. This extra income came with many responsibilities, but in turn the noble Houses fielded substantially more mechs than their holdings could support.

Who would want to disturb such a good arrangement? Therefore, most of the star systems in the Hafner Duchy were relatively tranquil, and focused most of their efforts into repelling pirates and foreign invaders.

Furthermore, the differences extended to the regional rebel movements that agitated against the Vesians in Hafner. Iris explained the difference to Ves one day.

"Sir, the rebels in territories like Imodris and Venidse are fighting back against injustice, oppression and inequality. Like my Jupiter family, we are often impacted by these elements, driving us out of the light to seek solace in the dark. Our only goal is to work towards an upheaval in the Kingdom that will lead to the abolishment of the rule of nobles."

Good luck with that, Ves silently thought. Having sampled Vesian culture up close, his impressions of the Kingdom led him to believe that the noble Houses were like inextinguishable roots that had tightly gripped the state they derived their nutrients from. Destroying this pervasive system of governance could only be done if the entire Kingdom fell one day.

That would never happen.

"I'm familiar with this pattern." Ves replied, keeping his opinions about the viability of the rebel cause to himself. "A border territory such as Hafner is run very differently. Rebel movements are more than a nuisance in this kind of place. They can directly threaten their national security. This encourages the Houses here to work harder to minimize discontent among the commoners. Receiving all of those subsidies makes this choice a lot easier to pursue."

"That's exactly right, boss. Yet despite these circumstances, rebel movements still exist in the border territories. Do you know how they are able to remain aloft?"

Ves crunched his brow. He gained some familiarity with Hafner, but he mostly studied their mech doctrine and their mech models. He hadn't looked too closely at the local rebels, as the central database didn't contain all that much information about them. The Mech Corps focused mostly on gathering intelligence on the border territories adjacent to the Bright Republic. They couldn't afford to allocate too many resources to study a border region on the opposite side of the Kingdom.

"I can't figure it out at the top of my head."

"Then let me tell you the answer, sir. It's the Reinald Republic. They've directly slipped their tentacles in the rebel movements that are causing quite some grief to the Duke of Hafner!"

"That sounds dangerously like an act of war! The Vesians shouldn't tolerate such a brazen effort at destabilizing their own territories!"

Iris shook her head. "It's much more complicated than that. Even though Hafner is pretty sure where the local rebels are getting their funding and support, there's never any hard proof of such. Testimonies are worthless because people can be brainwashed. Recordings are also worthless because they can be manipulated with ease. With how careful Reinald conducts their business, there is no way for Hafner to put the blame on their neighboring state."

"If these rebels are supported by Reinald on the sly, does that mean they are agitating for Hafner to be annexed by their masters?"

"Correct." She nodded. "There's a large amount of genuine Reinald sympathizers among the lower ranks of these movements. They think that all of their troubles will magically be relieved once they've separated from the Vesians and joined the Reinaldans. The upper management on the other hand are likely plants from Reinald. There's not a single bone of integrity in their bodies."

From the tone of her voice, Ves gathered that Iris didn't hold the Hafner rebels in high regard. "Why does it sound as if you don't respect them very much?"

"Because they're foreign agents in all but name! What they want is very different from what the VRF and the other regional rebel movements want. Though our opinions differ a little among ourselves, It's not our intention to break apart the Kingdom and integrate with another state. We are Vesians, and we will not allow our unique identity to be subsumed by others."

She didn't need to say that this counted for the Bright Republic as well. The Vesians would never accept the rule of Brighters, especially since their animosity against each other had grown over several centuries.

Ves still believed that they had no way of succeeding though, especially if they explicitly refused outside help. Their delusion was on par with the Bentheim Liberation Movement's fantasy of ruling the Bentheim region as a separate state.

"What about their mechs? Since these local rebels are being funded by the Reinald Republic, they must surely have some teeth."

"Oh, it's nothing special. Their mechs aren't any better from what you've seen in Imodris and Venidse. You have to realize that Hafner excels in tracking down pirates. If the rebels attempt to play the same game, they'll be hunted down and exterminated sooner or later. They play a very different role. While their battle capabilities are rather plain, they've infiltrated nearly every layer of Hafner society. There's no better source of insider information than their spies."

This was key information that Iris only revealed in an off-hand manner. Ves thought back on his suspicion that Major Verle planned to conduct an offensive raid on one of Hafner's star systems. If the Vandals wanted to ensure this operation went well, they couldn't go without sufficient intelligence.

"Is the VRF involved with negotiating with the local rebels for something?"

"I can't tell you that. Every conversation I have at the behest of Major Verle is confidential, you know. Even if you're my boss, I'm still a guest here."

Ves nodded in understanding. "Is acting as a liaison to foreigners something that happens often?"

"Yes. In the VRF, it's actually considered a way to ascend the hierarchy. There are many people like hunger for more. We can apply to various kinds of duties in order to earn more recognition. As long as we do a good job, we'll earn more trust which in turn will translate into more responsibilities."

"Sounds like maintaining relations with foreigners is very important for the VRF."

She sighed. "Waging a war against the Vesian feudal system can't be done by ourselves. We're sober enough to realize that, or else our organization would have been wiped out by now. I can't tell you how many states we are in contact with, but it's much more than you think."

This means that the VRF likely reached out to states beyond those that bordered the Kingdom! Ves felt as if this was another important detail that he inadvertently learned. Iris wasn't too careful in her speech.

"How are you guys able to remain focused on your goal when you are dealing with so many foreigners? I can imagine that the VRF is introducing more and more competing interests."

"It's a challenge, but it's also a necessity, sir." She said. "We won't be able to realize our goals in the short-term, so we just have to build up the conditions that are necessary for an uprising to succeed. Foreign aid allows us to maintain our strength and get to that point faster. As long as we continue to gain benefits, our ultimate goal will be realized some day. We never lose hope."

That sounded a bit too optimistic to Ves. With all the money that changed hands within the VRF, there was doubtlessly a subset of the rebels who profited from these arrangements. They might not necessarily want to stop once they had a taste of wealth.

Still, that had nothing to do with Ves. As a citizen of the Bright Republic, Ves considered the VRF and the other rebel movements as a convenient weapon against their mortal enemy. To them, anything that hindered the Vesians should be lauded.

"Let's get back to Hafner. Whatever the Flagrant Vandals are about to do, it will likely concern the local rebels. I know you can't tell me anything directly, but are the Reinald-backed rebels good to work with?"

Iris pressed her lips into a thin line. Obviously she didn't hold them in very high regard. "Don't conflate us who are genuinely standing up for the commoners to those planted agents who pretend they care. The rebel leadership in Hafner merely wants to exchange one group of tyrants with another one."

"That's strange. I haven't heard any bad things about Reinald. Sure, they're a little small and poor, but they're not so different from any other republic in our star sector."

"That's because you don't see what lies underneath. You've learned before that Reinald is secretly encouraging pirate attacks against Hafner, right? You can say that Reinald is a hotbed of illegal activity. It's a state with one foot in the light and one foot firmly in the dark. Their grey markets and black markets make up half of the wealth that flows through their hands."

Ves couldn't believe that the situation was exaggerated to that degree. Wouldn't that make Reinald a pirate state? The MTA would never tolerate such a thing!

"If Reinald is so bad, how come I haven't heard of their bad reputation?"

"Oh, they're very good at hiding their misdeeds behind their proper appearances. They've mastered the art of duplicity I should say. They are master cheaters and master tradesmen. Haggling with a merchant from Reinald is like giving away half your money. Don't ever get pulled into their traps. If you want to trade anything with a Reinaldan, you better hire another Reinaldan to negotiate on your behalf. It's as if their entire state consists of swindlers."

The animosity displayed by Iris truly reached an extreme degree. Ves unconsciously took a step back. He should definitely dive into the galactic net and conduct a more thorough research on the state that the Verle Task Force was desperate to reach.

Still, Ves was careful enough to take her words with a grain of salt. Even in the future, biases and prejudices couldn't be eradicated. Humans always felt the need to categorize different groups into neatly labeled categories.

"Let's get back to work. We still have a lot of repair work left on our plate."

After more than a month without any battles, the task force managed to gain a lot of headway into reducing their backlog. While the persistent shortages of resources, equipment and skilled manpower prevented them from repairing every wreck, the Vandals weren't as pathetic as before. Unlike a month ago, they could actually put up a competent defense against spaceborn assets.

The mood among the surviving Vandals had also lifted somewhat. The earlier period of gloom had mostly faded through the passage of time. The Vandals soldiered on and let the routine of their duties distract them from any dark thoughts.

Ves admired their resilience against depression. Though other units might have managed to regain their spirits faster, the Vandals showed their pedigree as a military mech regiment. Behind their sloppy veneer was a spine of steel.

Chapter 554

Lately, the Verle Task Force started to meander in Hafner space. Ves believed that the Vandals didn't want Hafner to know where they planned to go. This was why the fleet took a lot of detours that didn't bring them closer to the border.

To an outside observer, it might have appeared that the task force desperately wanted to cross the border, but withheld from taking action because they needed to accumulate more strength. The meandering routes the task force followed didn't take them anywhere special.

Ves believed that was exactly the point. Through various hints and deductions, most of which he picked up from the meetups where he played Pirate Empires, he suspected that Major Verle actually aimed for a target that was very near to their current location.

"The Flagrant Vandals are always the ones who take the initiative. It's not in their nature to be passive and react to circumstances that are thrust upon them. The battles against the Calico Dancer Bats and the Frosty Meteors serve as proof of this pattern. I can imagine that all raiding regiments are like this. They are only comfortable when they are the attackers."

The messy but eventual success of the Detemen Operation showed how strong the Vandals could be. As long as they made the right preparations, they were capable of inflicting a devastating amount of damage while making off with an abundant amount of loot.

The only way to break the trap that Hafner prepared for the task force was to do something different, and the only course of action that made sense to him was to conduct a daring raid.

Still, attempting to attack any occupied star system in the Hafner Duchy came with a lot of peril. Most of the star systems in Imodris had lost their wariness against foreign invaders. It wouldn't be strange to see them panic at the sight of the Flagrant Vandals, especially if their defense force was inadequate.

The people who lived under the rule of Hafner didn't suffer from any doubts. Pirates were just like bullies, who kept visiting the same old chumps over and over if they acted like pushovers. Over time, the frequent pirate raids must have hardened them into putting up a ferocious fight no matter how badly the invaders outnumbered them. This was very clear in the documentation about the territory.

"That's not the true danger, though. Any star system can be overwhelmed as long as we pick the right target. It's the follow-up that's a threat."

The willingness of neighboring forces to reinforce a beleaguered star system was very high. Rivaling powers wouldn't hesitate in sending out some of their best, because they expected the same treatment in return.

Worse, the ducal authority also coordinated the defense effort. Under their centralized direction, the reinforcements not only arrived at the star system under attack, but they also gathered the star systems that formed the likely escape routes of the invaders. This vastly increased the chance of attackers tripping on their feet, allowing further Hafner reinforcements to catch up and gang up on the hindered pirates.

Every way the Flagrant Vandals could take advantage of, Hafner had a ready answer prepared. They truly weren't easy to crack.

"Still, this should be old school to the Vandals. They won't be stumped by these challenges."

Before embarking on the daring raid of the Detemen System, the Flagrant Vandals routinely raided the border territories along the border between the Bright Republic and the Vesia Kingdom. Though they mostly terrorized the shipping lines, they did have some experience with raiding occupied worlds.

"The Vandal landbound mechs are not for show. It's a significant burden to maintain a landbound contingent if there aren't many opportunities to make use of them. Planetary raids are definitely their cup of tea."

In addition, the interests of the Vandals aligned with the interests of the Reinald-backed rebels. Both sides wanted to make Hafner suffer for different reasons, but what they had in common was enough to forge a temporary understanding with each other.

"Help from the local rebels is vital for the next operation."

He already saw the signs of future action. Some time ago, Ves received orders to pull back the priority of repairing as many spaceborn mechs as possible in favor of fixing up some landbound mechs. Not a lot, but just enough to achieve some progress here.

It was a good thing that the damage sustained by the landbound mechs during the Detemen Operation didn't amount to much compared to the heavy losses sustained by their spaceborn contingent.

Ves didn't hesitate in allocating a couple of low-performing mech designers to fixing up the neglected landbound mechs. These mech designers lacked the knowledge, talent or willingness to learn to service the spaceborn mechs. Forcing them to work with spaceborn mechs was like forcing a gourmet to eat an unprocessed nutrient pack.

Landbound mech pilots also stepped up their training. Their readiness climbed up to a state where they wouldn't be much weaker from the time of the Detemen Operation.

The Vandals prepared various measures and readied various supplies that were relevant to any landbound raid. The next battle surely entailed a lot of risks!

Under these circumstances, the rank-and-file smelled something afoot. Even if they were under the mistaken impression that the fleet would attempt to make a run for the border, no one remained complacent.

A large number of mechs would soon show the Vesians their mettle. The Flagrant Vandals detested being relegated to a punching bag. They built up a lot of resentment against the Vesians. Even if they couldn't take revenge against Imodris or Venidse, venting their fury upon Hafner was sufficient for their needs.

The servicemen in the corridors and lounges casually spoke how they looked forward to thrashing Hafner mechs. Ves paid a considerable amount of importance to their mood, and it was evident that the people at the top actively encouraged such talk in order to boost everyone's morale.

With every piece of the puzzle falling into place, Ves had his own work to do. While a planetary raid didn't necessarily involve any spaceborn mechs, any mildly important star system hosted a spaceborn garrison. Ves felt that it was important to keep raising their spaceborn strength.

Throughout the last month, some of the mech designers under his supervision achieved great results. Of course, it helped that Ves rewarded them generously by allowing them to borrow valuable textbooks from the central database. Some book-starved idiots even borrowed four or five books on six month terms.

Ves called them idiots because these mech designers didn't possess any remarkable cognitive traits. Their intelligence war firmly within the range of a baseline human, which meant that completely understanding a single Journeyman-level textbook would take a couple of years.

"Six months isn't enough to digest that much theory."

His own rapid ascension was an exception. A normal Apprentice Mech Designer slowly took the time to accumulate Journeyman-level knowledge over many years. Access to good textbooks cost a lot of money, but as long as a mech designer achieved decent results, they wouldn't have much trouble getting their hands on one.

Thus, he understood the viewpoint of those idiots. They couldn't bear the thought of wasting so much value by wasting their lending opportunities.

Still, in his opinion, the right choice would be to borrow a single textbook and use the other reward opportunities to receive his teachings. Ves possessed a broad range of knowledge and mastered most fundamental fields related to mech design to the level of Journeyman. If not for getting bottlenecked by other advancement requirements, Ves could long call himself a true Journeyman.

Exceptions still popped up. Ves was gratified that some low-ranking mech designers possessed sufficient vision to make use of his valuable time.

One of his most dogged fans turned out to be Loke Vedette. The poor chump that barely escaped punishment aboard the Finmoth Regal regarded Ves as his patron.

On the advice of Ves, Vedette borrowed a single comprehensive book on mechanics and spent his limited free hours delving into the easiest aspects in the book.

"Learning good mechanics cannot be done in a day. To be frank, for someone like you, six months will never be enough. However, if you are dedicated and persistent in your learning, you will likely be able to understand eighty percent of its contents. That's more than good enough at your stage. After that, you should try to round up your other fundamentals to the same level before going back to mechanics to tackle the remaining twenty percent."

Vedette's projection looked confused at Ves. "Why not tell me to study the textbook until I understand all of it? I can work hard to earn the right to extend my borrowing term, sir!"

"That's no good. The last portion of knowledge is often the hardest to comprehend, especially when you talk about a broad and expansive field like mechanics. To truly master this knowledge, you need some tempering with realspace practice. Service more mechs. Help out with the design of one. Apply the knowledge that you have learned from the book and you will find that the twenty percent that is the hardest to understand will fall into place in your mind."

A light went off in Vedette. "I understand! Theory and practice can't be separated from each other!"

This was how most mech designers learned when they didn't possess a cheat like the System that simply crammed the requisite knowledge in his mind.

"Our time is very precious, so let's move on with the tutoring. If I recall, you've reached the chapter where the book begins to explain the interaction between the engine and artificial muscles of a mech. Have you stumbled on any hangups here?"

The other mech designer frowned. "The theory sounds simple enough, but when I try to apply what I've learned in designing my own mech from practice, it all seems to fall apart."

"Show me your progress."

After Vedette showed him his practice designs, Ves had to force his face into an immovable rock. The amount of mistakes he made in every single aspect about designing mechs really made him want to cringe.

"This is... a decent work for someone who isn't experienced with designing an original mech. You're still stuck in the phase where you're only able to design variants, right?"

"That is so, sir. Before the Mech Corps picked me up, I didn't do very well for myself. Opportunities are hard to come by for a fresh graduate."

If Vedette possessed actual talent, then he wouldn't have any trouble making ends meet. In truth, the struggling mech designer hadn't reached the minimum standard for Ves to consider hiring after they finished their stint with the Mech Corps.

Still, his earnestness and his willingness to learn put Vedette into a very short list of hopefuls. He might not amount to much right now, but a couple of years later the situation might be different.

Ves kept his eye on these potential seeds, and worked to increase his relations with them in case their potential blossomed in the future.

No one else among the Flagrant Vandals ever paid as much attention to them as Ves.

He continued to tutor Vedette in earnest. Of course, Ves held a lot of knowledge back for his junior's own good. Near the end of their one-hour session, Ves asked a pertinent question to his potential protege.

"What do you envision yourself as doing when the war is over?"

"Will the war ever end so easily? Sometimes I think that this war will never end."

"In a way, our war against the Vesians has never ended since our state was founded. But that's not important right now. Try and cast your mind to the future. What do you think you'll do?"

"I don't know. My experience with the Mech Corps will account for something, but I don't have the qualifications to get accepted by a prestigious mech manufacturer. I don't have the confidence to start my own business either, not that anyone would lend me the funding needed to purchase equipment and license a design. My future isn't as bright as yours."

Ves leaned forward and stared at his projection. "What if I can make it brighter?"

Chapter 555

Ves paid a lot of attention to the general mood of the Vandals. The servicemen he walked past and ate next to in the mess hall or the more ornate dining room when Major Verle wanted to hold a social occasion all expressed their opinions without much inhibition.

He thought this was a special feature of the Flagrant Vandals. Every mech regiment carefully constructed their moniker and religiously followed it after establishing one. As their moniker suggested, they embodied the ideal of behaving flagrantly.

"They're crude, but they're also honest."

He admired that about the Vandals. Everyone felt free to express their true opinions, even if they broke some unspoken taboos. This allowed Ves to judge the general undercurrent of the crew of the Shield of Hispania.

"Still, I'm only sampling what the Vandals aboard the Shield of Hispania are talking about. The people serving on the other vessels of the task force might hold different opinions."

Throughout all of these changes, Ves sensed them to be deliberate and directed. He had no doubt that Major Verle manipulated the mood according to the circumstances. From staying aboard the same ship as the mech officer and seeing his leadership style up close, Ves learned that Verle was a deft master at manipulating morale.

Ves found it curious if this was the reason Colonel Lowenfield appointed Major Verle as her second in command. Their different strong points complimented each other nicely.

"By all accounts, Colonel Lowenfield is a number cruncher and a glorified accountant. She's also a norm who lacks the aptitude to pilot a mech. She's earned the respect of the Vandals somehow by cleaning up the mech regiment, but that doesn't mean she's a miracle worker. She still needs a lackey who can represent the mech pilots and command them in battle."

The leadership structure of the Flagrant Vandals roused his interest because he saw that it was something worth emulating. Before entering the service, Ves founded the Avatars of Myth as his personal force. Though Ves initially intended them to be a company-sized force of forty mechs, that wasn't the limit of his ambitions.

"Once I've entered a higher gradation of power and wealth, it's necessary for me to expand my coterie of thugs."

It wasn't out of the question for him to expand the Avatars of Myth from an obscure personal force into a full-blown regiment-sized force. Ves might even register them as a mercenary corps in order to take advantage of the provisions of the Mercenary Association.

"Strength is the foundation of power. Wealth and talent in mech design can't save my life if someone has me at gunpoint. The only way I can secure my safety in these times is if I convert some of my earnings into actual strength. Once I've reached that point, I'll have sufficient power to do what I want."

People excelled in different vocations. The Flagrant Vandals gathered those of different talents and put them at the top in order to run a mech regiment that was capable of putting an entire planet into disarray.

At the moment, Ves recognized all the signs.

For a while now, every Vandal slowly pumped themselves up for a fight. Morale throughout the task force couldn't get much higher from this point. In a couple of days at most, it would reach a peak where everyone entered their highest states.

"This peak morale can't be sustained forever. Someone who's looking for a fight but isn't getting one will crash sooner or later."

With the task force's current position, Ves could extrapolate the potential raiding targets Major Verle had in mind. He didn't do so though because the major would definitely inform him very soon.

"I'll have to get everyone prepped for a battle anyhow."

While the Vandals always prepped their mechs for battle, anticipating an encounter beforehand was very useful. Ves went back to his office and drafted a series of orders that increased the battle readiness of their mechs on a temporary basis.

This amounted to actions such as slightly overcharging energy cells and applying a special coating that helped a little bit with radiating heat but tended to degrade over a week.

All of these measures meant more busywork for the mech technicians, and they didn't even increase the battle power of the mechs by much. "It will only be a one or two percent difference at most."

Still, Ves thought this was a worthwhile tradeoff. It wasn't as if the mech technicians would be able to restore any more mechs up to this point. By now, they completed all of the easy repairs, leaving only the tough cases untouched. Fixing any of those mechs required much more manpower and assets.

"They should really be handed over to the Wolf Mother. Only a base facility or a full-fledged factory ship can restore those badly beaten mechs."

The only other alternative was to recycle the wrecks into their base materials and fabricate a new mech. This was something which the Beggar's Bounty and the Linever Swan could only do on an emergency basis, and was highly inefficient.

"I really miss the Wolf Mother. It's like a mobile version of the Mech Nursery."

Factory ships had their uses, but they tend to be extremely big, slow and delicate. It only took a couple of torpedos to thrash the capital ship-sized monstrosity.

"Well, it's a good thing we've become used to working under scarcity."

The mech technicians and mech designers in the task force slowly mastered some tricks which enabled them to be more frugal with their limited resources. Waste had been cut to a minimum, and Ves had even taught his underlings some methods to substitute rare materials with more common ones with the help of his Jury Rigging Sub-Skill.

"Without Jury Rigging, we would have long become starved with critical resources."

It highlighted the dire state of their material stockpiles. They faced massive shortages in many categories. Repairing some mechs was simply out of the question because they lacked the minimum amount of exotics to restore the functionality of a critical component.

Many other mechs are made with a patchwork of different armor formulas. The Vandals didn't have the right ingredients to reproduce the more expensive armor systems, so they resorted to cheaper ones and hoped the coating applied on top of it successfully obscured their inadequacies.

To Ves, it felt like he was committing fraud. The people in charge of certifying mechs at the MTA would vomit if they ever encountered one of these patchwork mechs.

"They're ugly, but as long as they can fight, they're good enough."

There was a serious downside to transforming regular mechs into patchwork mechs. It deviated a machine from a proscribed design into uncharted territory. The older a mech, the more its imperfections led to unique variations of the standard design. Yet utilizing jury-rigged solutions introduced a lot more changes than usual, to the point where mechs stopped resembling their original model.

In the short-term, creating pathwork mechs helped increase the immediate battle power of the mech regiment. In the long-term, these mechs would slowly become more unusable due to the inability to apply newer updates onto the deviating designs.

The only way to make use of them was to revert all of the changes, which was a lot of work for some mechs. In some cases, it might be better to scrap them entirely or relegate them into a disposable role.

"If we aren't so desperate to increase our strength, I wouldn't have resorted to this measure."

Nonetheless, Ves didn't live in a perfect reality. He often had to resort to desperate choices that came with a price.

Some time later, Ves corresponded with Pierce, who was the highest-ranking mech designer aboard the Beggar's Bounty.

"Has the Beggar's Bounty received any strange orders lately?" He asked at the start.

"Nothing except for one strange order, sir. Some higher-ups ordered us to cobble together a large number of artificial meteorites. Do you remember our previous stop where we've delayed our next transition in order to mine a nearby asteroid belt? That's because we had to gather as much junk as possible in order to create a bunch of artificial meteorites on the fly."

"Do these artificial asteroids come with any specifications?"

"No. They told us to stick to a standard metal rock. It was more important to create as many of them as possible."

"How many?"

"Over fifty and counting."

Ves widened his eyes a bit. Fifty artificial meteorites was more than enough to pummel a large city into dust and ruin!

In fact, sending all of them onto a planet at once risked drawing the ire of the MTA! Major Verle was really playing with fire at this moment!

"This isn't something regular at all, Pierce. Do you feel uncomfortable being ordered to create so many artificial meteorites on order?"

The other mech designer's projection shrugged. "As mech designers, we aren't culpable for the crimes our customers commit. It's the same thing with artificial meteorites. If the MTA brings down the hammer on us, it's the brass who will suffer a punishment, not a small figure like me who's only a cog in the machine."

"You may not be culpable by law, but there's also your consciousness that you have to take into account. Will you sleep easily knowing that your creations will likely be responsible for slaughtering hundreds or thousands of people in the next battle?"

"Sir, this isn't something we should concern ourselves with." Pierce replied with a firm voice. "You should see how war is waged in the Friday Coalition. The stakes are higher there, and so are the rewards. The Coalition partners are willing to do anything to get their hands on their prize."

"Did you witness a conflict in person back when you grew up in the Coalition?"

"No, but my father frequently became involved. The hotter the conflict, the more mechs his company sold. I think he even helped to fan the flames in some cases."

Ves scratched his head. What a shameless father! "Well, it sounds like the Friday Coalition isn't a pleasant place to live in if there's so much fighting going around."

"Ah, don't misunderstand me, Larkinson, this only happens when a region is under contention. Most regions are firmly attached to a Coalition partner, so their stability isn't in question. Those are safe but expensive places to live. Immigrants from poorer states are outright barred from entering these star systems."

"Say, Pierce, do you ever wish to return to the Coalition?" Ves asked out of the blue.

Pierce smiled sardonically. "I don't miss it at all. Someone like me who is without talent is a disgrace in the Coalition. It's better if I don't show up to shame my father."

Ves clearly understood that Pierce hid a lot of his pain on the matter. Yet for Ves to nurture Pierce as a trusted lackey, this bandaid needed to be pulled away.

"What if you had some help? You aren't completely without potential in my eyes. As long as you study diligently and benefit from the right supplements, it's not out of the question for you to transform from a caterpillar into a butterfly."

"Hahaha!" Pierce lost control for a moment. "Who would waste his time and money to invest in me? I'm too old to become someone's apprentice, and finding a mentor who doesn't want to take advantage of my father is impossibly hard!"

"Think about it for a while." Ves replied calmly. "For now, I've kept track of your redemptions for exceeding the weekly quotas. I've noticed that you've spent all of your opportunities on borrowing more books. Don't you think you've borrowed enough? Why not take advantage of my tutoring?"

The other mech designer frowned. "Even if I don't have the time to digest all of those books, I'll still be able to broaden my knowledge in the short term."

"As a friend, let me give you some advice. It's better to be really good in one thing than average in everything else. Especially at the early Apprentice stage, you should be focused on developing your specialities."

"And you can help me with that, sir?"

"Why the skepticism? Since you're a friend, I don't mind giving you a lesson for free. Pull up the textbook that you've learned the most from so far and I'll see if I can help solve some of your conundrums."

Though Pierce didn't think that Ves would make a very good teacher, he did as asked and pulled up a virtual textbook. Ves proceeded to tutor him in areas in which Pierce only understood the most shallow principles.

It didn't take long for Pierce to become engrossed with the knowledge that Ves passed on. Ves discretely grinned as he recognized he hooked another fish.

Besides Vedette, Ves also had his eyes on Pierce. Once he had a genuine citizen from the Coalition in his grasp, Ves would be able to make more inroads in the circles of the Coalition. Even though he already benefited from his association with the Clifford Society, it never hurt to have more options.

Chapter 556

Ves had his eyes on multiple mech designers in the task force. No matter what, the more mech designers he gathered by his side, the better off he would be at the end of the war.

A true mech design project could not be conducted alone. Ves constantly yearned to gather his own design team at the LMC. They would be able to assist him in all manner of minor tasks in the same way the Mech Corps hired massive amounts of mech designers to pad their design teams.

As long as he controlled the main aspects of his design project, the help of others shouldn't be able to contaminate the spiritual nature of his designs.

"My Spirituality is stronger than any other mech designer, or perhaps it's better to say that I'm stronger in the creation and manipulation of imaginary existences."

Ves already proved several times that the mechs that carried his X-Factor wouldn't easily be contaminated by the fingerprints of other mech designers and mech technicians. Their non-existent spiritualities simply couldn't contend with an active one.

Still, Ves suspected that higher ranking mech designers possessed their own abilities that might be tangibly related to spirituality. "I'll have to advance to Journeyman before I can answer this question."

It might seem strange for him to focus on his plans for the future while his survival in the coming months wasn't guaranteed. He still had to help the task force survive the obstacles that Hafner put in their way.

"It's never too early to lay some ground."

This was a key period in his life in which he would be able to connect with other mech designers without too much suspicion. If Ves attempted to recruit mech designers after the war, he'd face a lot more difficulties, the most important of which was to verify their loyalty.

"There is no better proof of loyalty than to put it to test in the harshest conditions."

The bonds of brotherhood he forged with the mech designers and the Vandals may lead to a lifelong advantage later on. That was something that his Larkinson heritage had taught.

For now though, Ves did not dare spend too much time on future matters. He still had a lot of work in the present to take care of. With a tired sigh, Ves returned to his regular duties.

Two days later, Major Verle finally stopped withholding his plans. He called for another massive conference meeting in which every mech captain and ship captain gathered in the same compartment via projections. The only physical people present were Ves and others assigned to the Shield of Hispania.

"I'm sure you are aware that the Hafner Duchy is alerted to our presence. From the intelligence we've received from the local rebels, Hafner has allocated the bulk of their uncommitted forces to the star systems near the border. Once we enter their perimeter, they'll instantly lock on to us and converge on us with rapid tempo."

Everyone nodded. This was a standard blockade tactic that the Vesians proficiently employed when they really wanted to stop a specific target. Though it was possible for the Flagrant Vandals to escape the net, the risks were unimaginably high. At the very least, some Vandals preferred to fight another round with the Frosty Meteors rather than face the full fury of the Hafner mech legions.

"We've gathered a lot of intelligence on Hafner and distributed their forces. Though their core systems remain heavily guarded, the substantial drawback of uncommitted forces has left many smaller star systems bereft of a comfortable buffer against raids. After discussing the possibilities with one of the local rebel groups, we've decided to hit a specific star system. Let me show you."

A new projection appeared above the conference table. It looked like a rather small and unremarkable place. "The Nova Migolatus System centers around a fairly normal main sequence star and has four significant planets. Nova Migolatus IV is a gas giant while Nova Migolatus I is a terraformed terrestrial planet which is also the only occupied satellite in the system. Our target is here."

The details listed next to Nova Migolatus I didn't list anything worth raiding. Its overall development resembled Cloudy Curtain in that it was largely rural. It held a few large cities, but most people lived in towns and villages and kept the vast farms going. The planet did not host any form of heavy industry, which made it a very unattractive target for the Vandals to raid.

"This place is worthless!"

"What is there to steal here? Grains? Dirt? Farmers?"

Major Verle knocked his fist against the table, shutting everyone up. "Our goal here is not to go on another robbing spree. The truth is that we've accepted a commission from an influential rebel group called Peace for Hafner. Helping them in this task is scratching their back. Once we've given them what they want, the rebels scratch our backs in turn when the time comes for us to cross the border."

Ves narrowed his eyes at that. It left a lot of things to trust. Major Verle must be very confident for this so-called Peace for Hafner to return the favor.

"If we aren't robbing the place dry, what are we after, sir?"

The commanding officer resumed his briefing. "If you didn't know any better, Nova Migolatus I looks like any other rural planet. However, its highly diverse biosphere, vast stretches of mountains and hills and non-existent satellite coverage makes it a perfect place for training mech pilots how to survive in the wild. There's a training camp on this planet, and a very special one at that."

"Our mission is to smash a training camp?"

"Not exactly. Peace for Hafner doesn't care too much about the training camp or most of its trainees. They only care about taking out a specific person. Meet Captain Relia Foster, a mech officer of the Hafner mech legions."

A supplementary projection appeared alongside the projection of Nova Migolatus I. It showed the profile of a very attractive Vesian mech officer.

"She's young, she's talented, and she's a thorn in the side of Peace for Hafner. Though Captain Foster is from common stock, it's already a done deal for her to be elevated to a baron. That's because she's a verified expert candidate."

A faint gasp could be heard throughout the conference room as everyone present looked at the woman with respect. An expert candidate!

"All of you know what an expert candidate represents." Verle stated as he glanced at everyone's expression. "They are peak advanced pilots who have pierced through the threshold that holds them back from becoming a bona fide expert pilot. When measured by precise instruments, they'll be able to measure a resonance value of 0.00001 laveres or something. Even though that is nothing compared to an actual expert, it still represents a near-assurance of advancement."

A newly advanced expert pilot exhibited resonance that measured 1 laveres on average. These values didn't sound very impressive, but the vast majority of mech pilots never registered anything on the lavere scale. They could forget about reaching 0.00001 for the rest of their lives.

Many mech pilots thought that they either possessed the right magic or not. No matter how much the overwhelming majority of mech pilots challenged themselves, they would never be able to scratch the wall that barred their advancement.

Major Verle continued his clarification. "An expert pilot is a strategic weapon to any state. The rise and fall of even one of them is significant enough to affect the national strength of a state. The situation is even more significant here because the duchies that make up the Kingdom never share their expert pilots. An additional expert in the ranks of Hafner will make all of their opponents tremble in fear. They won't be as free to invade the borders and raid a seemingly defenseless star system. It only takes one expert pilot to annihilate a small-sized raiding force. A future Venerable Foster is enough to make Peace for Hafner and many other factions suffer a substantial amount of losses."

A mech captain raised his hand. "If Captain Foster is such a valuable mech pilot, won't she have a lot of guards around her, sir? I can't imagine Hafner would be willing to treat her as anything less than a chunk of high-grade exotic."

"Good question. The reason why I've decided to accept this commission is because Hafner has made some missteps. First, an expert pilot only comes about when facing a lot of stress and the threat of death. If Captain Foster is surrounded by too many guards, why would she feel any dangerous impulses? The training camp and her guards are not as overwhelming as you think. They mainly rely on secrecy to keep themselves safe. Secondly, the Nova Migolatus System used to host a significant garrison fleet. Only, Hafner later decided to split it up and send half of the ships to the border."

This was a response to the arrival of the Flagrant Vandals in this territory. Everyone knew that the Verle Task Force sought a way out of the Kingdom. The mech regiment had no reason to linger in Hafner, therefore boosting the defense of the border was a logical decision to make.

Too bad the Flagrant Vandals didn't always adhere to logic.

Ves raised his own hand. "I have a question. Expert pilots are highly regarded, and young expert candidates are even more important. Captain Foster obviously looks young. This means that if she managed to advance into an expert, she'll likely have decades ahead to serve in Hafner's military. Her value exceeds veteran expert pilots that are getting on in their years."

"What is your question, Mr. Larkinson?" Verle interrupted with an impatient tone.

"Killing Captain Foster is like strangling Hafner's favored child in the crib. They're bound to go mad at us. Won't we be dooming ourselves by provoking their retribution?"

A heavy atmosphere descended in the conference room. Ves did not like to play the spoiler, but no one seemed to have the courage to speak out this important concern.

Major Verle seemed prepared for this question, though. He smiled back at Ves. "Your concerns are legitimate, but we already have plans in place. We believe that the panic of our sudden invasion of the Nova Migolatus System will mainly provoke a different reaction. If we can attack one of Hafner's star systems once, who says we won't be able to do it again? Hafner will certainly be forced to pull back some of their border patrols. This will outweigh Hafner's desire to exact revenge."

Ves did not think it would be that simple, but Major Verle left no other opening for him to follow up. Obviously, the mech officer did not wish to entertain too many questions at this time.

"There is more to the Nova Migolatus System than their training camp. There are secondary objectives which we can attempt to complete while we are hunting for Captain Foster. Our preliminary timeframe for this mission is three days."

"That's too short, sir!"

"It's tight, but I am confident that we can complete this mission. We really can't afford to stick around longer than seventy-two hours. Any longer than that, and the nearest reinforcements will be bound to corner us. Don't think that these reinforcements will be as reluctant as those sent to help out the Detemen System. Time is our most precious resource and our most important constraint."

Three days sounded short because it would take a long time for the fleet to travel all the way from the outer reaches of the star system to the closest planet from the sun. Depending on how hard the Vandals pushed their ships, they could reach it within two days at a minimum. That meant that the Vandals only had less than a single day to hunt down this expert candidate.

Ves looked back at the profile of Captain Foster and shook his head. "What a shame."

Chapter 557

The Nova Migolatus System brought little to the Hafner System. Colonized and terraformed rather late, the first planet from the star had only been settled by Hafner because it made economic sense. A whole host of AIs calculated that adding an extra farming planet was cheaper than importing more food elsewhere in the long term.

Some time after Nova Migolatus I shaped into a planet fit for human habitation, Hafner latched on to an additional purpose. One continent would remain unsettled. Instead, Hafner would import a variety of dangerous genetically modified alien creatures to run a preserve of some sorts. The propagation and mutation of these creatures would be strictly regulated to provide a sufficient and plentiful challenge to mechs.

In other words, Hafner constructed an entire continent-wide ecosystem for the sole purpose of breeding something to kill for the participants of an elite training camp. And they also did it covertly, covering the continent with expansive trees that reached up to a kilometer in height.

Normally, mechs threw enough weight around that they could flatten an entire forest with ease. However, if a mech charged straight at one of Nova Migolatus I's massive trees, the one who would lose would be the mech, not the tree.

The expansive tree cover also served as ways to shield the surface of the wild continent from prying eyes. The tree leaves had been genetically modified with various publically available biomods that blocked long-distance communications while interfering with any wide-area scans.

Of course, to prevent themselves from losing all contact, Hafner dug an extensive network of underground cables and communication nodes keyed to their own forces. It would be extremely difficult for an outside force to tap into this well-hidden network. This gave the forces of Hafner the homeground advantage.

Overall, hunting an expert candidate that tried their best to hide on this continent would not be easy. Without any additional intelligence, tracking Captain Relia Foster down in this megajungle was as difficult as finding a needle in a haystack.

The problem was compounded by the fact that aerial mechs wouldn't be able to do much on the Kamwin continent. The trees were too impenetrable for mechs flying above the forest. With leaves, tree branches and tree trunks interfering with everything, it was impossible for aerial mechs to provide support for their landbound counterparts.

As for letting the aerial mechs fly through the forest, well, that was a very quick way to wreck a lot of expensive machines.

The Flagrant Vandals moved quickly after Verle announced their next assignment.

As the Verle Task Force emerged from FTL, the entire star system must have hit the panic button. Agents loyal to Peace for Hafner relayed the broad movements around Nova Migolatus I via their own quantum entanglement node. If not for that, they would have to depend on lightspeed observations to determine the decisions the defenders had made, which would certainly be hours out of date.

"The local defenders are making a stand."

Only half of the stations in the command center were manned right now, as nobody expected a fight in the immediate moment. It would take almost two days of solid burning to reach Nova Migolatus I. Only then would the prospect of a battle come into fruition.

"The orbital garrison fleet is going on alert, sir. Transports are lifting up from the planet's main spaceport. They are loading battle supplies and recalling every crew member on leave!"

"The landbound garrison force is buttoning up as well. Old mechs are being pulled out of storage while their bases are going on full alert. Their capital city is becoming increasingly fortified."

Major Verle took on a pensive expression. "Keep an eye on what is happening at the capital city, but put it on a low priority. Only notify me if they are shuffling supplies or war materiel to the continent of Kamwin."

The Vandals didn't think much of the garrison forces. Their spaceborn contingent had been neutered when Hafner took half of them to the border. As for their land bound contingent, they prioritized the defense of their capital city.

Even if the landbound garrison mechs shifted over to the Kamwin continent, they would still be outnumbered by the Vandals.

While the Vandals had some targets of opportunity in mind, their main purpose in making landfall on Nova Migolatus I was to strangle an expert baby in her cradle.

Every expert was a valuable asset, especially one that had been indoctrinated from birth in your own culture. Though mercenary expert pilots existed, their loyalty always remained in question, and it was not a good idea for a state to rely too much on human-form weapons of mass destruction that could turn on them in a dime.

Thus, to Hafner, a young and promising expert candidate was much more valuable than ten old expert pilots such as Venerable O'Callahan. There was simply no comparison between the two. Even if O'Callahan was ten years younger, his potential had already been tapped, and there was no prospect for improvement.

As for an expert candidate like Captain Foster, as long as she received the right nurturing, she would be able to experience a period of rapid growth. There was even hope for advancing into an ace pilot, though realistically that almost never happened.

All in all, an expert candidate from your own ranks was like a blank slate which you could fill with whatever you wanted. Any state would salivate at the opportunity to shape their skills and beliefs. It was like designing your own personal superhero.

"And now we've arrived to spoil their plans." Ves muttered as he directed a major undertaking.

Ves was surprised as almost everyone else when Verle announced their commission. If no one knew about Training Camp Quistas at Nova Migolatus I, they would have guessed that the Vandals aimed to raid a more important star system.

As it was, Major Verle had not given Ves the courtesy of giving him a heads up. Ves expected the Vandals to raid an industrial system like the Hachew System back in Venidse. Urban combat was a very different beast from jungle warfare, and Ves had been forced to issue new orders to modify their landbound mechs for a safari.

Considering the nature of their commission and the difficulty of finding a lone mech on an entire continent, Ves prioritized the enhancement of as many sensor systems as possible. Improving the eyes and ears of at least five mechs in every mech company would vastly improve the odds of tracking Captain Foster down.

Below this top priority, Ves also recommended the Vandals to pay attention to maintaining communication lines. At least one mech in every mech squad should carry a communications backpack module instead of extra supplies.

"It's a good thing the Vandals employ the same Modular Fitting Standard for their backpack modules, though it's a pain in the butt as well."

The Vandals didn't build the majority of their landbound mechs. Instead, they stole them from the Vesians. This meant that they needed to adhere to Vesian technology standards, which included adopting a foreign MFS as well. Backpack modules produced according to the Bright Republic's MFS simply didn't fit on a Vesian mech. It was like trying to squeeze a square plug into a round socket.

Fortunately, the landbound contingent didn't need to bring too much spare supplies. They needed to complete the hunt in less than a day, so there wouldn't be any need to bring extra ammunition and energy cells.

"Still, there's also the local fauna to consider. Those genetically modified monsters are meant to provide a decent challenge against intruding mechs."

This might be a problem, because certain genetic modifications or cybernetic implants could make these creatures more susceptible to outside signals. The worst case scenario would be for the training camp to gather every monster and order them to attack any Vandal mech in a massive horde.

However, these safeguards could easily be subverted by anyone else. If certain spies grasped the right codes, they could turn the creatures against the training camp.

Therefore, Ves mentally ruled out such a possibility being true. "Training Camp Quistas won't be stupid enough to leave a backdoor for their enemies to exploit. The safest way to rule out subversion is to skip the backdoor entirely."

This was the rule for most critical electronics in this age. That was also why mech pilots controlled their mechs from their cockpits rather than through remote control.

"If the training camp is stupid enough to employ controllable monsters, then the hackers in our task force will have a field day."

With that worry subsided, Ves began to ready the Vandal mechs for a period but not too intensive or frequent combat. According to the intelligence packages that Peace for Hafner passed on to the Vandals, the monsters generally gathered in squad-sized groups. This was hard-coded in their DNA. This allowed trainees to experience an even challenge when they grouped up into squads, but also enabled mech companies to bail them out if they fell into a spot of trouble.

For a moment, Ves wanted to laugh to himself. This game preserve came into being on the behest of Hafner, but now it seemed that the Vandals might become the main customers.

Then he remembered something. "Training Camp Quistas is an incubator for elites. It's meant to push the very best out of peak advanced pilots. With pilots of such skill, regular monsters won't be able to cut it. Only deadly monsters will do."

Despite this caveat, Ves was confident the Vandals could deal with the situation as long as they traveled in double squads or larger groups. Numbers trumped anything as long as the difference was big enough.

Having sent the necessary orders, Ves sat back and waited for the fleet to arrive in orbit.

Two days passed by without much incident. Vigilant against mines or stealth attacks, the task force constantly maintained a rotation of spaceborn mechs around their ships. Though Hafner did not have a track record of using either means, exceptions always existed, so the Vandals did not let their guard down.

Once the Vandals neared Nova Migolatus I, everyone tensed up for a battle. The big question was what the garrison mechs decided to do. For now, their land bound contingent hunkered down at the capital city, while their spaceborn counterparts seemed to adopt a looser pattern.

The Vandals wanted to mop up the spaceborn garrison quickly, so they didn't hesitate to approach their outnumbered enemy. The defenders on the other hand clearly didn't wish to tangle with the Vandals, and boosted away from orbit.

"The enemy garrison fleet is adopting a harassment strategy." The tactical officer stated calmly. "Any defense force that is largely outclassed by the invaders will not be eager to fight a conclusive battle. Instead, they've likely received orders to stall and disrupt our operations as best as they can without losing their mechs too quickly."

"They won't succeed." Verle announced. "We've restored a sufficient amount of spaceborn mechs to handle their garrison. A harassment strategy only works if your mechs are faster than the enemy's. As long as we allocate the bulk of our Inheritors and other light mechs into chasing them down, they won't be able to escape."

As long as the enemy didn't throw in other surprises, the Vandals likely didn't have to worry about anything from space.

The next hours proved this prediction as the attempted harassment fell short of what the defenders expected. The Hafner mechs mostly consisted of medium mechs. They were good in a brawl, but could not be expected to outrace an Inheritor mech.

The only snag in the plan was that the garrison employed second-hand combat carriers with peculiar modifications. Shipwrights stripped a large portion of armor from large and heavy ships and boosted their sublight propulsion. This gave the garrison carriers a hefty boost in speed.

Thus, while the defending mechs weren't able to outrun pursuit, they could still remain out of reach of the Vandals by hopping in and out of their nimble carriers!

Chapter 558

"These stripped-down combat carriers are pissing me off!" Major Verle barked with obvious irritation. "They should have been reclassified as light carriers instead!"

A true light carrier was a civilian-grade starship that was built for capacity rather than protection. In that sense, a combat carrier with most of her armor peeled off could justifiably be called a more durable light carrier, as her structure was still stronger than anything available in the private market.

Ships built for speed and acceleration would always be able to outrun a light mech as long as they received a head-start. Since the defenders already saw the Vandals coming, they had been able to time their optimal starting run down to the exact second.

The Vandal spaceborn contingent never stood a chance of catching up. Unless they resorted to a drastic measure such as overloading their mechs, the chase would never bear any fruit.

The tactical officer tried to console his superior. "Sir, the garrison fleet may be able to dance out of our reach, but destroying them is a secondary objective at best. It's sufficient for us to drive them away from orbit and turn them into a non-factor to the proceedings on the surface."

Basically, both the garrison fleet and the Vandal mechs chasing after them had been put out of play. This wasn't necessarily a good thing because an outside variable could overturn the situation in space at any moment, yet the odds of something like that happening was low.

The biggest threat they needed to worry about was reinforcements sent by Hafner from the surrounding star systems. Even if they raced towards the Nova Migolatus System at their earliest, they still needed to spend around two days to traverse from the outer edge of the system to Nova Migolatus I's orbit.

Even if Hafner sent out the biggest armada of mechs and ships, the Vandals would still be able to take action within two days of lead time.

"The situation in space can basically be ignored by us." Ves explained to Iris. Both of them had taken their customary seats in the command center. "Have we detected any hidden turrets or weapon emplacements?"

Iris had kept an eye on the situation on the surface. "None so far, boss. Hafner hasn't invested too much in fortifying Nova Migolatus I. The only turrets that our sensors picked up so far are located in and around the capital. As for the Kamwin continent, we can't say anything for certain. We've trained our most powerful orbit-to-surface sensors at the suspected coordinates of Training Camp Quistas, but it's completely covered in the same tree foliage that obscures the entire continent!"

"What does Peace for Hafner have to say? They still have agents on the inside, right?"

"That's correct, boss, though the rebel group isn't willing to expose anything to us. All they are willing to tell us is that they have multiple agents in the training camp, and at least one of them is highly placed. If it isn't absolutely necessary, this agent won't expose his true colors."

"The value of this spy must be very significant to Peace for Hafner. Ordinarily, organizations wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice their pawns if it meant they could take down the enemy queen."

The value of a young expert candidate couldn't be measured with money! Weighing her value at one-hundred billion sovvies or something wasn't possible because the utility of an expert pilot was inestimably profound.

While expert pilots were capable of inflicting a massive amount of damage to an enemy force, their true value lay in using them as a deterrence. The mere existence or presence of an expert pilot would already be able to snuff out most tricks directed against Hafner.

"It's time for the next step of the plan. Begin bombardment!"

Ves already developed an inkling of why the Beggar's Bounty and the Linever Swan had been tasked with mass producing a lot of artificial meteorites. Now that they orbited over rural planets, these meteorites would finally meet their purpose.

Mechs began to emerge from the hangar bays of the combat carriers. Each of them teamed up to push forth the heavy artificial meteorites. Slowly, over fifty of the massive chunks of randomly-fused alloys emerged from the bowels of the ships.

"Drop them!"

The artificial meteorites received precise pushes that sent it into a precise trajectory. Miniature boosters embedded in the meteorites corrected their paths and kept them on track as their orbit slowly decayed. Each of the meteorites slowly plunged into the atmosphere of Nova Migolatus I.

The main projector displayed a wireframe model of their expected pathing. All of them had been aimed to land at a precise coordinate in the middle of the Kamwin continent!

It was the leaked location of Training Camp Quistas!

The reason why the Vandals dropped so many meteorites was because they needed to go through a lot of sturdy trees. Once they felled enough trees, the meteorites also needed to pound the ground, because the core of the training camp was at least a hundred meters underground!

The artificial meteorites were huge chunks of alloys that heated up enormously while they descended due to friction. Unless they were as blind as a bat, the Vesians on the ground would definitely be able to pick up the incoming meteorites.

"We've dropped more than enough meteorites to collapse tunnels deep underground." Major Verle remarked. "Faced with the threat of being buried underground, the camp commander will immediately choose to evacuate the camp he's responsible for. Even if they have bunkers deep and strong enough to withstand the successive kinetic impacts of over fifty meteorites, they won't be stupid enough to hole up in a single exposed location."

Because after the apocalyptic bombardment came to an end, the Vandals would immediately make landfall on the site of the annihilated training camp! If some Vesians chose to hold up in a nearby doomsday shelter, then they would certainly be killed or taken captive by the eager Vandals.

The events that played out in front of Ves followed everyone's predictions. By the time the meteorites crashed through the skyscraper trees, opening a path for the subsequent meteorites to bombard the training camp, there didn't appear to be anything valuable among the wreckage that Ves could detect from the long-ranged sensors.

A long, oval scar had been dug through the expansive foliage. This opening provided the Vandals that had been sent out immediately after the bombardment a sufficient gap to squeeze in transports.

This time, Major Verle and Captain Rakeshir decided against landing half their combat carriers to the surface. Not only was the highly-disturbed soil a poor landing spot for hefty ships, the surrounding trees made it very difficult for them to lift off in an emergency if the enemy decided to launch an all-out attack on them. It was a better choice to make landfall with more expendable transports, even if these vessels needed to make several trips up and down in order to land all of their available landbound mechs.

The Vandals also sent down some supplies and disposable fortifications to secure their temporary beachhead. The main purpose of the beachhead was to secure their line of retreat and to establish a firm line of communication.

The latter was especially important. The Vandal fleet in orbit needed to stay in touch with the beachhead on the ground. The temporary comm center at the heart of their fortifications would in turn serve as a powerful signal beacon to facilitate communications with a group of mechs sent out to hunt their primary objective.

One of the upsides to this operation was that the beachhead needed the presence of several mech designers in case the landbound mechs needed servicing. Besides sending down some random low-ranking mech designers, Ves also sent out Vedette, Mercator and Trozin.

He decided to send down the latter two because he didn't like them very much. If anything tragic happened down at the surface, at least Ves wouldn't miss their presence.

As for the choice of sending down a potential protege, Vedette didn't register too much on his radar yet. Unless his potential bloomed later on, he was strictly expendable. If Vedette happened to meet an unfortunate end, Ves could simply direct his attention to one of his colleagues instead.

Predictably, Vedette immediately demanded a private conversation with Ves. "Sir, why am I assigned to the surface?! That is no place for a mech designer!"

"On the contrary. Being close to the action means you can respond much faster than us. Mech designers shouldn't be strangers to a little excitement. I don't hate you, Vedette. In fact, I'm doing you a favor. I hope you can use this opportunity to widen your perspective and enrich your ability to design mechs."

No matter how many excuses Vedette weaseled out of his cowardly mouth, Ves resolutely rejected them all. The man had been ordered to shuttle down to the surface and nothing could change his mind.

After packing off the young and inexperienced mech pilot, Ves turned to other matters.

"Has Captain Foster's whereabouts been confirmed yet?"

"Sir, according to the rebel spies, Captain Foster had already set off into the wildlands a day ago." Iris explained to Ves. "She has a significant head start over our landed forces."

"The good captain will be looking to hide her tracks, though. Fleeing at full speed won't be an option because she also needs to ration her energy. In addition, a valuable expert candidate won't travel alone, though she won't be surrounded by too many mechs. Even a child would be able to follow the tracks in that case."

Everything appeared to go to plan for the Vandals, but Ves suspected that it would not be so simple. They already met some difficulties trying to clean up the spaceborn garrison. As for hunting down an expert candidate, well, the troops on the ground weren't chasing after a herbivore.

"A peak advanced mech pilot with a resonance strength of 0.00001 laveres is vastly more dangerous than any other advanced mech pilot. It's not out of the question for them to defeat five or ten mech pilots by themselves."

Ves read up on expert candidates in the central database after Major Verle first announced the commission. A wealth of documentation described their exact abilities. While none of their attributes exceeded the human norm, some have experienced a rapid growth akin to injecting a handful of gene boost elixirs.

In addition to that, their skills developed in rapid tempo as well, as if the candidates had found themselves in a transition point between an advanced pilot and an expert pilot.

Some mech pilots believed that if some of their skills had improved up to an invisible standard, their minds and bodies would break through the cocoon of their mundane forms and sublimate into an entirely new life phase.

Ves scratched his head when the descriptions became too opaque. Much of the documentation became filled with jargon and incomprehensible theories that only biomedical researchers understood. He didn't necessarily believe in what little he understood either.

From his own understanding, he guessed that spirituality was actually the central factor in determining whether a mech pilot could reach the expert level.

It would be nice if the Vandals managed to capture Captain Foster alive. Ves would definitely have the opportunity to get close to the captive and probe her with his abnormally strong Spirituality.

"Sir!" Ves raised his hand and gestured to Major Verle. "Are we out to capture our target, or are we only interested in killing her?"

"Ideally, I'm not opposed to capturing her. An expert candidate is prime research material. Her corpse won't be able to tell us much. If we can apprehend her alive, we can do much to alleviate our difficulties. Though we can't hope to turn her against us, we can still trade her to the Mech Corps."

The fate of a captive expert pilot was not very pleasant. Brainwashing them was possible, but that was also very much taboo. Once word got out that a state brainwashed a captive expert pilot, their own experts would immediately revolt. The MTA would also send out a rebuke.

All in all, a captive expert was like a poisoned chalice.

Chapter 559

Relia Foster grew up in a small town on Carpenter II, a rural planet in an unremarkable corner of the Hafner Duchy. The Carpenter System was nothing special. It lacked the industries that encouraged development.

Everyone who lived on Carpenter II knew their place. They worked in mundane jobs and paid their taxes to a noble House that they never had any hope of approaching.

When she was young, her parents taught her an important lesson.

"Little Relia. Whenever you meet a noble, never look them in the eyes. Their might and wealth aren't something you can withstand."

"Because we are commoners?" The little girl asked.

"Because we are weak."

Over time, when Relia entered school, she learned what commoners truly represented. They owed their lives to the nobles and royals that ruled over them. It was not their place to question. They merely needed to obey.

"You are Hafners first, and Vesians second, never forget that!"

Her classes taught her that the Hafner Duchy shouldered the important duty of shielding the Vesia Kingdom against thieves and other bad men across the border. Even though the enemies dressed up in other identities, their true origin was the wicked Reinald Republic.

It was a state without morals. Their rejection of nobles had caused them to descend into anarchy and misery. Billions of people starved while the people at the top feasted with food that could have fed the entire state for a day.

"The depravity of the Reinaldans are only matched by the cruelty of the Roppongans and the zealotry of the Lisvians. Even our mortal enemies on the other side of the Kingdom cannot match the sheer evil that pours out of the Frozen Leaf Alliance."

Her teachers frequently emphasized the evilness of the trio of states across the border by showing the aftermath of their raids. Broken homes, fallen mechs, families torn apart, the Reinaldan pirates did not even let off children like Relia and her classmates!

"Sic semper pirata!"

Relia didn't know what that meant, but everyone repeated it for some reason, so she mindlessly yelled out the words in unison.

Most of the time, Relia was a precocious child who played whenever her classes ended. Her idyllic days in that small town came to an end when she reached her tenth birthday. Some Hafner men brought her family to a hospital in a nearby city and put her in some big machine.

Having heard about it from others, she knew that the machine tested something funny called genes. It was said that genes were long strips of strings, and if they wound up just the right way, you became a bigshot that other people called a potentate!

Occasionally, some boy or girl from her town would test positive for the right genes. Their entire family had cause to celebrate because Hafner bestowed them lots of money so that the newly-discovered potentate could attend a distant academy, which was like a school for fighting!

Still, this almost never happened, so Relia didn't think she was anything special.

She was so wrong.

The console in front of the doctor beeped in alarm. After a short analysis, the doctor grinned and whooped.

"What is wrong? Is there something wrong with our child?" Her mother asked with concern.

"Nothing of the sort! Your child is very likely to be a potentate, and not a weak one at that! Further testing is required!"

The excitement uprooted the entire hospital. Doctors and nurses kept prodding at her, taking out samples of blood and saliva. They even cut her brown locks of hair!

For some reason, the hospital couldn't come to a definite conclusion about the specialness of her genes. Only half a day later, a big and menacing shuttle arrived before the hospital and took away Relia and her parents. Little Relia thought that they would be taken to the capital city of the Carpenter System.

She was wrong.

Despite the harsh military lines of the shuttle's interior, the journey went absolutely smooth, so much so that Relia only found out later that they had been brought into space!

"Wow! I'm actually in space! My friends will be so jealous of me!"

She didn't know that she would never return to Carpenter II at that time.

As Relia stared out of the porthole of the shuttle, admiring the globe that was her home, the vehicle slowly docked with a larger vessel that turned out to be a corvette. While the Fosters made themselves comfortable in the cramped ship, the corvette zipped to an entirely different star system!

"Wow! We're actually traveling faster than light! Mom, is light really fast?"

Her mother laughed awkwardly before trying to distract her daughter with some toys.

A few days later, the corvette arrived at a star system that Relia only heard from her teachers. "We're in the Beicham System!"

The Beicham System was the capital system of the Hafner Duchy! The Duke of Hafner himself resided in a massive palace on Beicham III! When the big men told Relia that she would be brought to a special facility on that same planet, Relia's eyes began to grow stars! What wonders would she see?

Once the corvette went through a number of security checks, another shuttle brought the Fosters to the surface of Beicham III. The shuttle touched down in an enclosed parking space, whereupon men armed with weapons that Relia had only seen in dramas firmly guided her family inside a massive research facility of some sorts.

The little girl oohed and aahed at every fancy machine in her sights, even though she recognized none of her functions. Their high-tech appearances alone served to ignite her curiosity.

Once deep inside the facility, Relia underwent a more expansive round of testing. The frequent prodding made her feel scared, but her parents were always by her side, so she managed to withhold her cries.

Fortunately, the Hafner doctors didn't disturb her for too long. They ended their testing after three days of testing and informed their family of some of the results.

"Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Foster, your daughter is a promising individual!" The senior doctor announced with a smile.

"Is she sick or anything!?"

"Oh, she is as healthy as she could be. Genetically, she's remarkably perfect! There are Fridaymen who would be envious of her genetics!"

"Then... What is all this about? Why isn't Relia like the other potentates from our town?"

The doctor took on a serious expression. "Potentates are rare among our population, but they emerge frequently enough for Hafner to treat them according to long-standing policies. However, there are some cases which merit a closer look. Young Relia is exactly such a special case. The preliminary results from the clinic from your rural planet were so astounding that we didn't hesitate to bring you to the capital of the Hafner Duchy. What our state-of-the-art machines have determined has only verified those amazing results!"

"So is this something good for little Relia?"

"It is more than good!" The senior doctor proclaimed, then turned to Relia with a gentle smile. "Relia Foster, your potential has been tested, and not found wanting at all. From this day onward, you may now bear the status of potentate with pride!"

Relia already thought about the extra allowance the Hafners would pay to the family members of a potentate, but the doctor wasn't finished.

"It is our pleasure to announce to you an additional blessing! Through rigorous investigation, we have determined that your genetic aptitude has reached one of the most uppermost percentiles of all potentates! In normal parlance, your genetic aptitude falls squarely into A grade!"

A grade genetic aptitude!

Even though the Foster parents didn't know the full weight of that grade, they knew that little Relia was much more special than they thought!

"Then... will she be attending an academy at Carpenter II?"

"No! Absolutely not! Why would Hafner want to waste uncut gems like Relia? Those hillbilly teachers at your podunk academy won't be able to bring out more than a tenth of her potential! Ah, forgive my excitement. This is good news for you! Though the paperwork will come later, I can already tell you that Hafner will sponsor your new lives on Beicham III! Your daughter will enter one of the most prestigious mech academies on our capital planet and receive the highest level of tutoring! Come twenty years later, your daughter will definitely become one of Hafner's heroes!"

From that day onwards, Relia said goodbye to her pleasant and tranquil life on Carpenter II. The Hafner administration whisked the Fosters away to a villa ten times larger than their old home. While her father and mother received easy jobs on the capital planet, Relia was pushed into attending a fancy academy.

All of the changes scared her if she was being honest. She was scared out of her wits when she found out that a lot of noble sons and daughters attended their elite academy!

Fortunately, the Hafner people did their best to welcome her in their midst. After her much more wealthy cadets found out that she possessed an A grade aptitude, her noble cadets bumped away her fellow commoners in the academy and tried to befriend her as much as possible.

It was a wild ride for Relia, though she could always depend on her tutors to set her straight. She only found out later that the Hafners paid a lot of attention to the nurturing of each A grade potentate. In the circle of mech pilots, everyone else were commoners while an A grade potentate like her received treatment akin to a noble!

It was like the galaxy had been turned upside down!

Her time at the academy quickly proved her talent. She breezed through the classes to the point where she mastered the lessons two to four times faster than her fellow cadets! Each time she learned something new, she absorbed the knowledge and skills like a sponge and displayed them with perfect accuracy when she hopped into a training mech!

She quickly distinguished herself at the academy. Besides a handful of other A grade potentates in other year groups, nobody could best her in a fair duel. Relia quickly became accustomed to fighting under handicaps whenever she needed to duel her fellow cadets.

"Your progress is excellent, Cadet Foster."

"I aim to please." She nodded demurely.

Besides learning how to fight, she also learned a lot of etiquette and how to speak words without offending someone important. Just because she was an A grade potentate didn't mean the Duke of Hafner would stay his hand if she called him a bastard.

"Since you require less time to master your lessons, your supervisor has decided to supplement your lesson plan with officer training."

"Officer training, sir?"

"The moment you graduate, you will immediately become a commissioned officer in the Hafner mech legions. This is a rare privilege that will kickstart your career, so don't treat this opportunity lightly!"

From then on, Relia not only trained to become a mech pilot, she was also being groomed into a mech officer. Though the former came naturally to her, the latter provided her with much more challenges. Leadership had nothing to do with genetic aptitude, so she needed to learn the ropes the old fashioned way.

If not for the help of her tutors, Relia would have never made it through officer training. As part of her training to become a mech officer, she found herself being challenged to lead her fellow cadets during classes. Since everyone was still young, it was exceptionally hard to get them to adhere to her orders.

The young but growing woman managed somehow. Though some people envied her genetic aptitude and despised her commoner status, the academy teachers made it clear that she was destined for greater things! Knighthood was within her grasp!

Once most cadets knew that she was a knight in the making, they stopped regarding her as a lucky commoner and treated her as if she was already part of the lowest peerage. After passing through this hurdle, Relia smoothly graduated from the junior academy and effortlessly graduated from the advanced academy as well.

The Mech Legion commissioned her as a mech lieutenant when she was fresh out of training.

Though she wanted to spend more time with her parents, the newly christened Lieutenant Foster knew that her family's privileges could only be sustained by fulfilling her obligations. She followed the arrangements of the Mech Legion and joined a Hafner mech regiment called the Hostland Warriors.

Chapter 560

The 7th Hostland Warriors of the 4th Hafner Mech Legion became her new home. After ten years of study, Relia Foster finally found her true calling.

Relia fit particularly well with the Hostland Warriors. While they weren't particularly elite, their main strength lay in their versatility.

The Warriors adhered to a balanced lineup of spaceborn, aerial and land bound medium mechs. They utilized a dizzying amount of mech models, only some of which had been developed in-house. The responsibility of developing the less important designs had been outsourced to loyal Hafner mech designers operating in the private market.

None of that was important to Relia. The best trait about the Warriors was that they mixed up their mech pilots between different roles and mech types, allowing them to slowly explore their best roles.

Her first few years as a lieutenant served as a honeymoon of sorts. She refined the lessons she learned in real deployments against real enemies. Though her first battle frightened her a bit, her training bit in and she managed to deal through the reality of serving in the armed forces of the Hafner Duchy.

"Mech pilots are trained to kill."

No matter who they fought, the Hostland Warriors always fought on behalf of their homes! To Relia, she fought for the welfare of her family. No matter what, as a dutiful daughter who has received the nurturing of all of Hafner, Relia eagerly wished to repay her debts.

So began her first tour of duty, where she rotated between the vastly different mech companies of the Hostland Warriors. Each mech company possessed their own unique quirks and worked with a different mix of mech models. This allowed Relia to sample different types of mechs and employ them in vastly different circumstances.

From piloting a landbound cannoneer, to intercepting a fleeing pirate in a spaceborn light skirmisher, Relia tried them all. In the end, she returned to her initial choice, and settled on her primary specialty.

"There is nothing better than to wield the sword."

There was a sense of purity in piloting a swordsman mech. Though the lack of shield hampered its defensive capability, from a different perspective it liberated the mech type from getting bogged down. The balance of speed, armor and agility of a medium swordsman mech turned them into exquisite warriors that required a lot of thought and finesse to draw out their potential.

Other mech archetypes did not require too much thinking to put them into use. A knight mech mainly put up their shields to guard their comrades from incoming fire, while a rifleman mech only needed to point the barrel of their guns in the right direction.

Not that Relia still had much to learn when it came to piloting those mech types, but many of her fellow Warriors already had them covered. What she truly craved was a challenge. Piloting a mech came easy to her, perhaps a little too easy for her tastes.

The lack of challenges unsettled her. What she needed was to find the perfect mech type that would slow her down and force her to learn the lessons that she hadn't been able to receive when she piloted a simpler mech.

The sword looked simple, but it allowed any mech to outplay their opponents. The effectiveness of swordsman mechs against ranged opponents depended on whether they could catch up to them. As for slower mechs and other melee mechs, it was fair game to Relia.

With the right techniques and a deep understanding of her mechs, Relia became a whirlwind of violence against the opponents of the Hostland Warriors. This predominantly meant fighting against Reinaldan pirates.

"Greedy and cowardly scum!"

No matter how hard the Hafner mech legions tried to guard their borders, the Reinaldans always managed to invade their stars! Oftentimes, the Hostland Warriors arrived too late to save a vulnerable shipping convoy or an isolated planet. Each time she witnessed the aftermath of a pirate attack, she became more and more angry.

She stepped up her sword training, learning various styles and techniques from her fellow Warriors. Her mech regiment patrolled a vast stretch of stars and formed roving patrols that allowed their mech pilots to witness different sights. Each new star system opened Relia's eyes to what Hafner truly consisted of. These were the stars she was duty bound to protect!

Her sense of purpose strengthened with each new sight. She fit in well with the Hostland Warriors too, as her competence won over the skeptics who thought she was a bit too young to be an officer.

Still, nothing was ever certain when piloting mechs. Most of the time, the units Relia was a part of achieved some measure of success. Whether it was smashing apart pirate mechs or chasing them away, the Hostland Warriors always caused the pirates to scatter in fear.

That was until her patrol unit met a large pirate gathering composed of over four spaceborn mech companies.

Compared to the two mech companies that the Hostland Warriors sent out to their location, they were woefully outnumbered!

The pirates smelled blood and immediately moved to gang up on them! Relia fought with vim and fury in her spaceborn swordsman mech. Even as her fellow Warriors fell under the onslaught, she found a fire within herself that allowed her mech to move a little faster and hit a little harder.

"Sic semper pirata!"

This tiny difference meant everything to her, and she started to chop a succession of pirate mechs in rapid tempo. She felled so many pirates that day that she single-handedly drove them off from continuing the fight!

The loss of so many mech pilots devastated the Hostland Warriors, though. Relia didn't feel as if she achieved a victory. Nevertheless, the Warriors celebrated her prowess, and due to an opportune vacancy, even managed to push her into becoming a captain.

Ever since then, Relia sometimes called back to her amazing back then. Whenever she found herself in a challenging situation, she drew upon some hidden strength and burst out with an amazing level of performance.

For a long time, Relia thought that she was drawing upon feelings of vengeance and righteous retribution.

Yet the Hostland Warriors began to grow suspicious. When they activated all of their sensors in the next big fight, the truth astounded every Warrior, including Relia!

It turned out that she had poked a tiny hole into the barrier that barred her way from becoming something greater!

"Captain Foster, you're an expert candidate!"

Even though Relia was blessed with A grade genetic aptitude, she had never dared to dream that she would be able to advance into an expert pilot. Every expert was a transcendent figure among them. They were more than human and could even be said to have stepped on the path of godhood!

For all of those scientists to claim that Relia had the potential to join their ranks simply made her silly. How could she be so blessed? Had she saved an entire planet from annihilation in her past life?

When the Warriors offered to sponsor her entry into an elite training camp meant to push promising mech pilots into breaking through the barrier, Relia tentatively accepted this opportunity.

"At my current state, I won't be able to take revenge against every pirate. Once I become a genuine expert, it will be a different story."

As for her automatic elevation to the noble rank of baron, Relia didn't care. Mundane trappings ceased to spark her interest, though she faintly thought that she would be able to give her family an even better life.

Training Camp Quistas brought her away from the war against pirates, which she initially hated. What was the use of battling a bunch of giant tigers and other animals when there were pirates out there that needed to be stopped?

Relia quickly learned that the training camp was not as easy as she thought. They developed a rigorous training program that could push the limits of everyone who participated. Even expert candidates like her couldn't breeze through the program without effort!

"There are so many monsters on this planet!"

From reptiles to mammals to bizarre alien creatures that resembled crystals and living oozes, Relia fought against numerous mech-sized beasts every day. Sometimes she traveled in a squad, but most of the time the training camp had sent her out alone.

Only when she was alone would she face a sufficient challenge.

Due to genetic programming, adult monsters possessed a grouping instinct where they often gathered together in small gatherings. Against a standard mech squad, such a group of monsters could be deadly in the wrong circumstances.

Against a single expert candidate, this group of monsters pressured her like nothing she had experienced before. Even the fight that formed the catalyst to the transformation of her life phase, withstanding an onslaught of monster attacks was supremely challenging for her. These creatures weren't stupid and utilized rudimentary pack tactics against a lone mech.

Each battle seemed to be a struggle between life and death. She drew out her potential in each and every hard fought battle, of which there was many in her time on the Kamwin continent.

"What does not kill me makes me stronger."

Though she believed that the training camp wouldn't let her die against a bunch of overgrown beasts, she still experienced a lot of stimulation during her fights. Each time she survived another fight, it became a little easier to enter into that particular state of mind where all of her capabilities received a comprehensive boost.

"It's taking less and less effort to enter my super mode!"

Relia guessed that once she reached the point where she could sustain her so-called super mode indefinitely, she had successfully advanced to expert pilot!

According to her own judgment, she was five or six months away from that point. Though the threat from the monsters had diminished a little, she still experienced enough harvests to continue this pattern of training.

That was until foreigners invaded the Nova Migolatus System!

"Brighters are coming! The Flagrant Vandals have come to burn down the entire system!"

The Flagrant Vandals had become the entire kingdom's latest bogeymen. Their daring assault on the Detemen System and their successes in beating back the Calico Dancer Bats and Frosty Meteors had given them a formidable reputation! Vile, greedy and unprincipled, this raiding regiment was nothing different from a pirate gang!

Even as everyone in the training camp panicked, Relia instead relished an opportunity to fight against the famed Vandals.

"You're in danger, Captain Foster! Word has come that they are specifically here to deal with you!"

The camp commander prioritized the safety of their most promising seed over everything else. Against her judgment, Relia had been ordered to board her mech and run as far away as possible!

It was humiliating, yet orders were orders!

She had witnessed the events that followed after. From the unscrupulous use of artificial meteorites, to the landing of the Vandal landbound forces, Relia witnessed it all through her connection with the underground communication network.

The Vandals proved more competent than Hafner had thought. They somehow sniffed out the right direction of Relia's retreat, and sent out their fastest in pursuit.

Since Relia piloted a medium swordsman mech, she would never be able to outrun the hounds. In addition, her flight had also been severely hampered by the need to erase all of their traces. If not for that, then her head start would have been more substantial!

Still, the way the Vandals honed in the right direction was suspiciously uncanny. Was there a spy among her escorts?

It didn't matter. Spy or not, she would use her strength to smash their ambitions!

"Get ready to fight! Sic semper pirata!"

"Sic semper pirata!"

The first skirmish unfolded in a fury. The overeager mech pilots of the scout mechs that hounded her squad couldn't help but take their first bite. Their skirmishers employed hit-and-run attacks, relying on their excellent mobility to remain out of reach.

"You're not the only one who can sprint!"

Unfortunately, Relia's swordsman mech was capable of exerting a large amount of power in very short bursts! The legs of her mechs exploded into action, enabling her to close the distance in rapid tempo. Her mech instantly performed three slashes in succession as it dashed through the ranks of the Vandal mechs.

Three of their mechs instantly collapsed to the ground, each of them bearing fatal sword wounds!

"My sword will run red with Brighter blood! Sic semper pirata!"

Chapter 561

Relia piloted a special swordsman mech provided by the Quistas training camp. The Neyvar model excelled in fighting against the creatures. It boasted an even armor coverage that strengthened its weak points at the cost of reducing its frontal armor. That was not a problem for her, because she could easily deal with any beast attacks that came from the front.

The mech further distinguished itself with its strong mechanical power. The augmented artificial musculature combined with a strong engine allowed the Neyvar to burst out with a humongous amount of strength.

The only downside to the mech was that it drained a lot of energy when Relia pushed its capabilities. Training Camp Quistas pointed out her lack of care regarding her energy levels.

Most of her engagements up to now consisted of ambushing pirates. The Hostland Warriors only deployed her unit when the carrier she was on had taken an advantageous position against the pirates.

Working with the Neyvar taught Relia a brutal lesson on how to conserve her energy. Attempting to survive more than a day in the monster-filled forests of the Kamwin continent couldn't be done unless she rationed her energy.

Though she made good strides that day, all of her concerns about conserving her energy went out the window as soon as pirates tracked her down. She gritted her teeth in fury as she beheld the surviving scum. The cowardly pirate light mechs backed off after she demonstrated her skill with her sword.

Her Neyvar picked up a score of incoming enemy mechs. She couldn't stay still for long. Between flight or fight, she picked the latter any day.

"We won't be able to shake these pirates off without a fight! Cover me! For Hafner!"

"For Hafner!" Her escorts repeated over the comm channel.

The Neyvar groaned as Relia put the swordsman mech to its paces. It wielded its long and straight blade in wide, sweeping swings, demolishing a couple more light mechs until the Vandal mechs pulled back out of range.

"Forward!"

Relia entered a heightened state as she pushed her Neyvar onwards. She needed all of the power she could get in order to get rid of this nuisance. She released a guttural growl as her mech gained power and speed. All forms of grace disappeared from its movements as Relia focused on gaining maximum efficiency.

With a mental thought, she diverted extra power to the Neyvar's legs. This boosted the swordsman mech's speed, allowing it to spurt forward in a dangerously unbalanced dash. Only her exquisite control allowed the mech to keep its footing.

The Vandals attempted to scatter and wear her down with ranged weapons, but the light ballistic rifles hardly dented the Neyvar's compressed armor. Training Camp Quistas had been conscientious enough to provide her with an excellent mech.

The Vandal mechs that tried to flee from her reach all stumbled a bit due to the uneven terrain. The kilometer-long trees that towered over the entire Kamwin continent all developed extremely extensive root systems that occasionally penetrated above the soil.

These extraordinarily hardy roots provided mechs with an extra challenge. To the trainees who spent months trekking through the forest, they had already gotten used to the uneven footing. Their mechs also utilized specialized feet that made it easier to travel on uneven terrain.

Unfortunately for the pirates, they entirely lacked these preparations. Several mechs stumbled as they fled as their feet inadvertently dug into roots. They were operating on completely foreign soil compared to Relia.

"You can't run!"

The Neyvar's sword pierced the rear armor of the slowest mech. A minute amount of blood dyed the blade as the mech pulled out its sword.

Relia went for the killing move!

"No mercy for pirates!"

The Neyvar expended more and more energy to outsprint the fleeing light mechs. Unlike Relia, the foreign mech pilots couldn't sustain their speed as well due to the strange terrain that limited their sprinting ability. It was as if they were running through mud!

Relia's escort mechs struggled to catch up with her as she ran down the squads of Vandal mechs. Each time she reached an enemy mech, the Neyvar only took a single stab or swing to disable the light mechs. The expert candidate showed off her full prowess by unconsciously utilizing the most effective means to defeat each enemy mech in range.

Her eyes had gone red with blood as she hunted the Vandals with rabid fury.

What she didn't know was that the Vandals had not just run and scattered from her grasp. Instead, covertly lured her into a prepared kill zone where a whole host of Vandal mechs lay in wait.

"Captain Foster! There's an ambush ahead! Cease pursuit!"

Relia barely registered the warning from her escorts. She had already inferred that enemy mechs lay in waiting around her through interpreting the complex sensor data that had been dumped in her mind. Ordinary mech pilots couldn't handle so much sensor input at once, but the expert candidate willed herself to endure the strain.

"That's enough, Captain Foster!" A medium spearman mech that looked a little fancier stepped out from behind a tree trunk. "You're outnumbered and outmatched! This fight doesn't need to go on any longer!"

The Neyvar slowed and halted into place. Relia faintly realized that she faced a mech captain. Still, she felt no fear despite the threats arrayed against her. To her, every pirate was a pushover.

Her squad of escorts eventually caught up to her. They spotted the enemy mechs as well and took up defensive positions behind some massive tree trunks.

"Captain! More enemy mechs are inbound from the site of the former training camp! According to the sensor data, the Flagrant Vandals are moving to encircle us!"

The pressure piled up on Relia's shoulders. Even though she was an expert candidate, she wouldn't be able to withstand the fury of several mech companies by herself. There was a limit to how much she could defy the odds.

Nonetheless, Relia thought nothing about retreat. "This crisis had already reached a critical point. Running is pointless. I would rather fight and give these pirates a lesson they won't forget! Are you with me, trainees?!"

"We're with you, captain!"

The mech pilots that accompanied her all consisted of young elites. All of them agreed to Relia's plan. Surrender was not an option, especially against pirates!

"Attack!"

She uttered no more words than that. Relia could trust her escorts to know what to do. Right now, they were more useful to her alive than dead, so her fellow mech pilots didn't follow her into battle.

The Neyvar endured an onslaught of enemy fire as it charged forth. This time, Relia didn't opt to run in a straight line. Since her opponent believed that they had enough numbers to take her down, they stopped trying to run.

Big mistake.

"Astral Swordwind Starwalker Steps!"

Relia utilized her homemade movement technique. The Neyvar became as domineering as the astral wind, blowing in each direction with purpose. She developed her incomplete Astral Swordwind techniques in order to unify the necessary movement and attack moves on land and in space. Thus, the Neyvar's current movement seemed especially strange.

Most of the Vandals missed their shots. The few hits that impacted the Neyvar came from luck rather than skill. The average Vandal pilot fell far short to Relia in terms of skill. She easily hoodwinked their aim and successfully reached the closest squad of mechs.

This time, she faced a number of melee mechs, including a hardly medium knight. Yet Relia didn't slow down her approach.

"Astral Swordwind Swallow Stab!"

The Neyvar bent over at an angle and put its full weight behind its stab. The tip of its sword amazingly went through a gap in the opposing knight's defense and pierced its left chest armor! Relia didn't waste any time and instantly retracted the sword before slashing a light skirmisher that attempted to spring an ambush from the side.

"Redemption Slash!"

"Swallow Stab!"

"Triple Redemption Slash!"

"Execution Chop!"

"Double Redemption Slash!"

Barely twenty seconds after making contact, the Neyvar left a trail of ruined mechs. An entire squad of Vandals was no more! Relia's opponent didn't stand a chance! Even worse, at least half of the mech pilots had been killed before they managed to eject!

"Death to pirates!"

Relia barely took a breath and continued her assault. The Vandals meanwhile didn't expect that one of their squads would last so short against the expert candidate. They fully underestimated the prowess of an advanced pilot with one foot in the realm of experts!

As the Neyvar crashed into another squad of Vandal mechs, Relia put her Astral Swordwind techniques to full display. A violent orchestra of speed and power tore through the foreign-operated mechs. Despite resembling popular Vesian mech models, the enemy mechs appeared completely tainted in her eyes. Only slaughter would cleanse the sins of these mechs!

"Redemption Slash!"

"Starwalker Steps!"

There was barely any obfuscation in her moves. Relia disdained the use of feints and forms of misdirection. However, her seemingly simple movements belied her strong foundations and the inherent grace behind her strength. Her Neyvar danced to her palm as it evaded through volleys of incoming laser beams and projectiles.

With each mech she felled, Relia became more and more aware of the flaws to her piloting skills. She had fought against too many monsters lately and had gotten used to their instinctual fighting style.

Battling against human opponents was much more difficult than she thought!

The Vandals surrounded the Neyvar and her escorts in a horseshoe-like formation. No matter where Relia fought, she always needed to be aware of mechs approaching from behind.

While she was able to resolve most of the attacks from the rear, sometimes she simply couldn't do anything but endure the battering. In this situation, her escorts had no choice but to step in. They diverted over a third of the Vandal mechs sent to deal with her with great difficulty.

Their choice did not come without a price.

"Pritchard!" She yelled in pain as her mech sensed the collapse of a friendly mech.

The other participants of the training camp may have been some of the best that Hafner had to offer, but they all lacked the heaven-defying capability of an expert candidate like Relia.

Two more mechs fell in quick succession, causing Relia to falter in her aggression. "Moseley! Veronique!"

Soon enough, her entire escort squad had been felled. The Vandals had not been merciful to the Hafner mechs, opting to go for the killing blow in revenge against Relia's deliberate cockpit targeting.

Relia did not even think about who was to blame. All she thought was that she lost all of her new friends. They had trained together and fought together for several months. She remembered each and everyone of their faces.

The Vandals thought that Relia had given up once she realized she was the lone Hafner mech pilot standing.

They were wrong.

"You murderers." She wheezed out as she beheld the mechs that surrounded her. Another mech company had caught up and cut off her escape route. "ALL OF YOU MUST DIE!"

An invisible explosion emanated from the Neyvar, causing the Vandals to be taken aback. Relia didn't waste the opportunity and moved her mech into attack. Like a furious tiger, the Neyvar sprang towards the Vandal mechs and slashed them down one by one in quick succession.

As the Vandals spread out from the Neyvar, the Hafner mech pushed against its limits and outright broke its speed limit as it dove into another squad of enemy mechs.

The Vandals didn't stand a chance up close!

Mech pilots started to eject by the dozens as the Neyvar performed far above its nominal performance. Within a span of five minutes, the Neyvar slaughtered over fifty mechs with no signs of rest! The Neyvar radiated a lot of heat, causing the air around the overstressed swordsman mech to distort.

"DEATH!" Relia screamed into an open channel as she chased down the Vandals that desperately wanted to widen the distance.

The hunters had become the hunted!

Chapter 562

High above the sky, the ships of the Verle Task Force intermittently witnessed the footage of the astounding events that happened deep within the forest. Ves had to rub his eyes as he stared at the sensor data of a specific measuring instrument.

This particular tool measured the resonance strength of a mech pilot. Currently, the readout had spiked to 1.67 laveres! This was far beyond the bounds of 0.00001 laveres that an expert candidate typically exhibited!

"Sir!" Ves called out to Major Verle. "Captain Foster has broken through her bottleneck! The Neyvar mech that she's piloting is currently exhibiting forced resonance!"

No one was able to keep calm when they heard that announcement. Even Major Verle lost his composure for a moment.

Captain Relia Foster was a candidate no longer! The difference between an expert candidate and a bona fide expert pilot was not as simple as an amplification of resonance strength.

A true expert pilot was like a demigod, whose attributes and skills received a large promotion. More importantly, an expert that had recently broken through still enjoyed the baptism of breaking through their shackles!

Their life phase was in flux and the power they commanded could be stretched. What this basically meant was that they could draw on a lot more strength than usual!

The Neyvar glowed as an indistinct energy field surrounded it. The entire mech resonated with Captain Foster despite lacking any resonating elements in its design!

This was an obvious display of forced resonance, where an expert pilot achieved the impossible and resonated with a normal mech!

An ordinary expert pilot wasn't capable of performing such a feat. In fact, forced resonance was one of the signature abilities of an ace pilot. The only reason why Captain Foster could accomplish this feat was because her recent breakthrough left her piloting abilities in flux.

"Sir, Captain Foster is still riding the aftermath of her breakthrough! This is the worst time to be fighting her! I highly suggest you pull back our forces from the chopping board!" Ves advised. "Think through this! Captain Foster may have become an expert, but she doesn't have the right tools to take advantage of her new state! Right now, she's obviously pushing her Neyvar mech beyond its limits. That mech won't be able to take much more abuse, and will certainly be in much worse shape once it cools down! Its energy reserves are rapidly depleting as well!"

Major Verle eventually woke up. "You're right, Mr. Larkinson."

He ordered an immediate retreat. Unfortunately, due to the spotty communication environment on the Kamwin continent, his orders hadn't reached the Vandals on the ground in time.

Almost a hundred Vandal mechs lay ruined on the ground. All of the Vandal wrecks bore deep and penetrating sword wounds. The only activity left in the vicinity came from the Neyvar, which hunted down the cockpits that had ejected from the Vandal mechs in time.

"No quarter to pirates!"

Ten minutes passed by until Relia gave up on hunting down the elusive pirates. As the battle rage faded from her mind, she fell out of her super mode and slumped down from her cockpit seat.

"Damnit!"

She defeated so many pirate mechs, but had been unable to bring her comrades back to life. For a moment, she felt as if all of this struggle was pointless, but then she stared at the broken Vandal mechs and regained her resolve.

"As long as pirates still run amok, my duty has not yet ended."

She regained her clarity and scanned the environment for threats. Spotting none in the immediate area, she glanced at the status screens of the Neyvar and winced.

"Sorry old partner, I pushed you way too hard."

The Neyvar had been designed to accommodate mortal mech pilots. It couldn't withstand the level of performance that an expert pilot demanded from their machines.

The temporary boost in performance from Relia's display of forced resonance may have turned the Neyvar into a genocide machine, but she was unable to turn water into wine. The material composition of a mech remained the same whether it was piloted by a normal mech pilot or the best expert pilot in the galactic rim.

While the Neyvar definitely needed to be scrapped, Relia tentatively judged that the swordsman mech could still last a couple more days if she didn't put too much strain on its systems.

This was enough. Relia still thirsted for blood.

"I need to replenish the Neyvar's energy cells."

The short burst of hyperactive combat left the mech with a much-diminished energy reserve. Thirty minutes more, and the Neyvar would have collapsed despite her best efforts.

Though it saddened her to do so, Relia forced her damaged mech to trudge over to the wrecks of her escort mechs. She picked a medium mech and turned it over to its belly before prying open its lower back armor plating. Carefully, the Neyvar's delicate movements opened up the fallen mech's back, revealing several banks of energy cells.

Relia activated a special command, causing the Neyvar to open up its back armor on its own accord and eject the fully depleted energy cells. After that, she quickly manipulated her mech with utmost concentration. The Neyvar carefully removed the energy cells from the fallen mech and slowly inserted it into an open slot at the rear of the swordsman mech.

Almost no mech pilot dared to replenish their energy cells by themselves. Lots could go wrong, and mechs generally weren't precise enough to handle energy cells without denting them in some way.

These concerns didn't apply to expert pilots like Relia. Her control over her mech had vastly improved. Precision work like this was child's play to mech pilots at her level.

The biggest threat she faced besides the Vandals came from the Kamwin continent itself. The Vandals had largely been able to mop up the native genetically modified monsters through sheer numbers, but Relia needed to keep her eyes peeled for any ambushes.

Fortunately, the scale of the fighting had scared away all of the monsters in the vicinity. They still possessed some sense of self-preservation despite all of the genetic modification.

As Relia became accustomed to the chore of swapping energy cells, the Neyvar moved faster and faster until it filled its tank. Though the fallen mech's energy cells already expended some of its energy beforehand, the Neyvar's energy levels had risen to seventy percent, enough to sustain it for another big fight.

The Neyvar rose to its feet and powered up its sensors. "Where are you, pirates?!"

Back at the Shield of Hispania's command center, everyone still needed time to register the disaster they provoked on their own accord. Nobody expected that Relia would break through her shackles so quickly and prove to the Vandals why expert pilots were regarded as demigods.

"I guess we'll have to start calling her Venerable Foster from now on." Ves muttered to himself. "Her performance after her break through is wildly out of bounds from our most pessimistic projections."

Ves had fallen into the expectations of others, and never really considered whether Captain Foster spontaneously broke through during battle. When it came to expert pilots, his understanding still contained a lot of gaps.

"This isn't anyone's fault." Major Verle spoke after a long moment of reflection. "The responsibility for the deaths of our comrades on the ground lies squarely at Venerable Foster's feet. The only way to absolve ourselves from this setback is to finish the mission and subdue our primary objective. Her advancement to expert pilot just turned her into a bigger priority."

Venerable Foster was worth a lot more than Captain Foster, that was for certain. Peace for Hafner would have to cough up a lot more compensation to the Vandals if they managed to take care of the wild and unstable expert pilot. Ves wondered if the rebel group would make up for their losses. The Vandals had already bled a lot of mechs and mech pilots from this battle.

"Sir! Venerable Foster is on the move!"

"In which direction is she escaping towards?"

"She's not moving away from our forces! The Venerable's mech is moving towards our landing site!"

Nobody knew what to think about this decision. Venerable Foster was obviously out for blood. If she knew that the Vandals could only linger in this system for a very short time, she would have been better off running away. By turning around and forcing a fight with the Vandals, she had cut off all hope for escape.

This was good news for the Vandals since they wouldn't have to worry about running out of time. The only downside was that they needed to face fully-fledged expert pilot in battle. Even if Foster lacked a tailored expert mech, she had already shown what she could do with a Neyvar mech.

Another factor that may have encouraged the expert pilot to turn around was that running away meant bumping into other monsters. While Foster would be able to take them out without too much effort, each encounter would inevitably slow her down and deplete her precious energy.

On the other hand, backtracking the path that had recently been trod by over a hundred Vandal mechs meant a smooth journey. The monster mechs in the vicinity had all been cleaned up, and it would take time for other groups of monsters to take over these lands.

"Your analysis, Mr. Larkinson?"

Ves cleared his throat against Major Verle's prompt. "If Venerable Foster wishes to force another battle against us, sustaining further casualties is unavoidable. That said, her approach will allow us to make ample preparations."

"I doubt she's stupid enough to approach us head-on." The tactical officer said. "She might have gone berserk after being cornered in the previous fight, but she'll be fighting with a cooler head next time. Don't forget that she's a qualified mech captain."

"Then do you think we don't have what it takes to defeat the Venerable?"

"That is not what I said, Mr. Larkinson. We all have to remember that she is all by herself. In addition, her Neyvar mech isn't able to catch up to her level of performance. These limitations will be vital in defeating her without sustaining too many casualties."

Ves agreed with those points. "According to theory, her previous display of forced resonance is also a one-off phenomenon. Now that her life phase has stabilized, she won't be able to pull more power from nowhere. She is like a knight with no armor. Without the right equipment, her threat is vastly reduced. We won't be facing a monster on the level of Venerable O'Callahan."

The other Venerable piloted a mech worth billions of credits, while Venerable Foster had to make ends meet with a damaged mech worth sixty million sovvies at most. This fundamental gap in mech quality couldn't be overcome by a newly ascended demigod.

"She won't be alone either." The tactical officer added. "Don't forget that the Kamwin continent is Hafner's home ground. Training Camp Quistas initially scattered all of their trainees and instructors because they bet that Foster would have been able to stay out of reach. Now that she is turning around, they are bound by duty to assist."

"How many mechs are we talking about?"

"According to the intelligence provided by Peace for Hafner, the training camp hosted over twenty instructors and around a hundred trainees. All of them are highly skilled, but their mechs are optimized against monsters."

The Vandals already defeated a handful of trainees, so the total number of enemy mechs would still be manageable. Still, they couldn't underestimate how much damage an expert pilot could do when backed up by over a hundred mechs.

The Vandal landbound contingent wasn't in the best shape after that disaster of a battle. Ves silently counted how many mechs still retained enough battle capability to resist the enemy and came up with around two-hundred-and-fifty mechs.

"Will this be enough?"

Chapter 563

The invasion of Nova Migolatus I by the Flagrant Vandals had taken a very unexpected turn. The Verle Task Force expected to stomp through the jungle and strangle a baby in her crib. They never imagined that the baby would grow up all of a sudden and turn into a dinosaur.

By definition, an expert candidate could always break through to the next rank. Yet most of the times the expert candidate had to accumulate up to that point. This was why Venerable Foster's sudden advancement came as a surprise. She practically leapt through several stages at once!

"This is going to be another hard-fought battle." Ves thought as he watched on as the Vandals prepared for the worst.

Already, the sensors that the Vandals had placed around their beachhead detected the approach of large groups of Hafner mechs.

They had initially spread out in every direction in order to confuse the Vandals, but ever since Venerable Foster revealed herself, they changed gears and grouped up in one massive formation. With veteran instructors rallying promising young mech pilots, even without an expert pilot at the helm the group had become very formidable.

Naturally, the Flagrant Vandals didn't shy away from a fight. They possessed their own pride, and after repeated beatings from the hands of different Vesian mech regiments, the Vandals eagerly wished to redeem themselves in battle.

"How manipulative." Ves remarked as he recognized Major Verle's influence in action. "If I haven't been watching out for his effect, I might have been caught up in this rising tide as well."

He had gained a greater understanding of Major Verle's methodology. The man utilized various channels to promote a standpoint. From broadcasting announcements to spreading rumors from chosen agents among the lower ranks, the mech officer always managed to succeed in getting the Vandals agree to every major motion.

If Major Verle hadn't intervened at this point, the Vandals would have lost heart against an expert pilot. The strength and dignity of a demigod was not something which mortals could withstand!

Every average mech pilot would blanch at the thought of fighting an expert pilot directly. Even if Venerable Foster lacked an appropriate mech, it would be trivial for her to defeat twenty or so mechs at once with a single mech. Ves found it difficult to estimate the damage the superhuman might of an expert pilot could inflict.

Still, she wouldn't be able to defeat a hundred mechs by herself. The Vandals would have already evacuated Nova Migolatus I if that were the case!

"The Hafner mechs are coming!"

The enemy took their time. Likely, some of the instructors realized that time was on their side. After they converged with each other, they made no moves to attack or retreat until some Vandal scouts harassed them from a distance.

The longer the Hafner mech stayed in place, the more harassment they encountered. The added pressure was meant to move the Hafner mechs into action. They couldn't retreat, because the Vandal mechs would continue to harass them from behind.

Every other option led to a slow defeat. The training camp participants couldn't remain passive in the face of enemy harassment.

Vandals obviously favored long, drawn out fights where their superior numbers and abundant supplies could tide them over. The group of Hafner mechs on the other hand were all alone and lost their base. The only choice remaining for them was to force an immediate confrontation.

The Hafner mechs came into visual range with the Neyvar in the lead. After a tense moment of silence, the lead mech opened up a broadcast.

"Flagrant Vandals. You have one chance. Go back to orbit and leave this star system immediately. If not, I will hunt you down and avenge my fallen comrades!"

None of the Vandals responded. Verle looked tempted to patch into the temporary base's speakers, but refrained from doing so. The prestige of an expert pilot was dreadful, and engaging in a direct conversation with one might ruin his men's morale.

Instead, he issued out a single command. "Open fire!"

Every ranged mech started to fire at the Neyvar. The swordsman mech reacted quickly and pulled back behind a massive tree trunk before it got hit!

The second battle had commenced!

The ample amount of trees provided both sides with an ample amount of cover. Though the Vandals surrounded their base with prefab walls, they mainly relied on the hardy tree trunks to shield their mechs from enemy fire.

Compared to the Hafner training mechs, the Vandals disgorged a lot more firepower at the enemy. Not only did they field more mechs, they also didn't have to worry about running out of energy or ammunition.

Ves observed the happenings from the command center of the Shield of Hispania orbiting high above. Since the battle took place at the oval scar, the beachhead was able to transmit a direct signal to the Vandal fleet.

This was the benefit of a higher position! As head designer, Ves possessed the authority to send out other mech designers on site. So far, Mercator, Trozin and Vedette had done a decent job in servicing the mechs on the ground.

Since their lives were at stake, the three mech designers hadn't slacked off at all. Ves had nothing to complain about their work ethic, though they hadn't been very helpful when it came to identifying the weak points of the enemy mechs.

Ves had to do that for them. After the first battle, he spent an entire hour going through the footage of the Neyvar. He tentatively identified five major weak points that the Vandals could take advantage of in the next battle.

Right now, the Hafner mechs fell into a weak trend. They hadn't managed to fell a single Vandal mech. Conversely, the Vandals failed to inflict more than a couple of scratches on the Hafner mechs.

"They're stalling, sir!" The tactical officer exclaimed. "Compare the firing rates of both sides! The Hafner mechs are conserving their ammunition while dragging out the battle!"

Now that he mentioned it, Ves noticed that the Hafner mechs largely kept themselves behind cover. The massive and highly durable tree trunks absorbed most of the firepower being outputted by the Vandals!

This proved once again that while the Hafner mechs couldn't run away, they weren't too eager to confront the Vandals either. They played it smart and focused on conserving their strength.

Right now, the ball was in the Vandals' court.

"This looks kind of fishy." Major Verle stated. He turned to the sensor officer. "Are there any anomalies on the plot?"

"None detected so far, sir."

"What about the monsters?"

"They are showing no signs of.. no wait, they are massing together into a horde!"

According to the sensor plot, every monster pack began to congregate into a roving horde that was slowly moving towards the beachhead. They had already gathered more than a hundred monsters so far, but their count constantly grew.

The only relief to them was that the monsters moved rather slow!

"At their current pace, the monster horde will arrive in roughly fifty minutes!"

Hafner implemented a backdoor in their genetic programming after all.

"Hackers, get to work."

"Yes, sir!"

Ves did not expect too much from the hackers in the short term. Those monsters would overrun the beachhead long before the hackers managed to figure out a way to override Hafner's controls.

"Our position is untenable if we let the Hafner mechs run out the clock. Begin with the second phase!"

The Vandals gave up on trading potshots at each other. The abundant amount of cover in the forest prevented them from gaining any advantages in a firefight. They needed to take this battle up close and personal.

The Vandals broke up into squads and mech companies and moved out of the base. Taking advantage of their numbers, their mech companies spread out in different directions and unleashed a fusilade against the Hafner mechs from different angles.

The Hafner mechs faced a crossfire if they remained in place! They quickly pulled back from their battered tree trunks and swung around to attack a single flank of the approaching Vandals.

"They're aiming to run through our flank!"

The Vandals outnumbered the Hafners but it wasn't easy to encircle them. The Hafners chose to take the bull by the horns and chose to take the offensive rather than to let the Vandals complete the encirclement. With the Neyvar at the head, the Hafner mechs charged into the Vandal mechs without compunction!

Mechs collided as both sides clashed against each other! The flanking Vandal mechs had quickly adjusted their formation and greeted the incoming Hafner mechs with expectation.

For a moment, Ves found it difficult to distinguish what went on. Throughout the chaos, Ves finally managed to pin down the Neyvar.

A Vandal mech captain and a handful of chosen surrounded the swordsman mech in an attempt to contain it! For now, the Neyvar fell into a passive position as it desperately tried to fend off attacks from every direction.

The only problem was that the Neyvar was weaker than expected! Had the mech sustained more damage than projected?

"Sir the Neyvar is a decoy! Venerable Foster is piloting another mech!"

Damnit! Now that he thought about it, the Neyvar demonstrated none of Venerable Foster's distinctive sword style. Right now, it only performed the basic moves as it defended itself against multiple Vandal mechs.

"Where is she?!"

Just then, another Hafner swordsman mech exploded into action. This bog-standard copy of an average mech model called the Mackey Craic dropped its camouflage and displayed skill akin to a sword demon! It chopped up three nearby melee mechs in quick succession and helped the Hafner mechs punch through the Vandal line!

"That Mackey Craic is piloted by Venerable Foster!" Ves declared with alarm. "It's a completely fresh and undamaged mech!"

Though its overall specs fell short compared to the Neyvar, its pristine state meant that Foster didn't have to worry about her machine breaking down mid-battle!

Right now, the Mackey Craic obviously began to strain against the stress that Venerable Foster was forcing upon its frame. The mech moved faster to accommodate her violent Astral Swordwind techniques. Each attack finished off a Vandal mech with a single move at the cost of wearing down the Mackey Craic!

"For Hafner!"

"Death to pirates!"

"Victory to the righteous!"

The Hafner mechs gained inspiration from their Venerable's performance. Their morale surged enormously as the Mackey Craic ran through the Vandal mechs like a hot knife through butter. Its killing spree only came to a halt when two Vandal mech captains confronted it before it could break the Vandals.

In addition, other Vandal elements had caught up by now and pressured the Hafner mechs from their rear. The battle instantly swung in favor of the Vandals. The Hafner mechs hadn't managed to break through in time!

"Curs! Get out of my way!"

The Mackey Craic roundly outplayed the two mech captains and took out their mechs with superior skill! She resumed carving up her opponents, causing the Vandal mech pilots within her sight to shy away. They began to lose heart!

"Sir, our mech pilots at the flank are breaking! The Hafner mechs are breaking through"

"Hold the line, goddammit!" Verle yelled into the command channel. "The Hafner mechs are being hammered from the rear! We can finish them off if we can hold them in place!"

Unfortunately, though the battle went well at the rear of the Hafner formation, the front was a very different matter. The specter of Venerable Foster frightened the nearby Vandals into running away. None of them stood a chance against an expert pilot!

With every Vandal mech at the front trying to widen the distance, the Hafner mechs succeeded in removing themselves from the clash. They lost a lot of mechs during the brief engagement, but they succeeded in bleeding the Vandals as well. Venerable Foster was responsible for downing most of the Vandal mechs!

"The monster horde is approaching the beachhead!"

The Vandals needed to finish the battle quickly!

Chapter 564

The monster horde threatened the Hafner mechs as well as the Vandals. Ves did not believe that the Hafners had implemented too many controls in the genetically modified monsters. Ordering them to group up and sweep through every mech on the Kamwin continent was a double-edged sword. Short from ordering them to disperse their horde, the Hafner mech pilots might not make it through the monster wave alive unless they possessed another failsafe.

The Vandals couldn't let their opponents pull out another trick. They needed to end this battle quickly or at least take care of their primary objective.

After the Hafner mechs punched through one of the Vandal wings, they attempted to widen the distance.

The other Vandals attempted to catch up to them, but they were being hindered by their own comrades! The Vandals who witnessed Venerable Foster's prowess in battle completely lost their will to fight, and became nothing more than obstacles to their fellow teammates! The wrecks that littered the ground also served as an impediment to the pursuers.

The Vandals needed time to reorganize their ranks. They had no choice but to let the Hafner mechs go.

However, before the Hafner mechs successfully disengaged, a furious barrage of cannon fire impacted their formation! Dozens of heavy projectiles and powerful laser beams pelted them from the side!

Over twenty Akkara heavy mechs had been transferred to the surface! Ordinarily, they served as makeshift turrets for the Vandal combat carriers. Major Verle had made a judgement call and opted to field the Akkara mechs on the ground at the cost of weakening the defenses of the fleet.

As long as Hafner didn't attack the Vandal ships in orbit, the risk was worth it!

The Flagrant Vandals didn't particularly excel at ranged combat. The only mech model that performed well at range was their Akkara heavy cannoneers. These slow and heavy quadruped mechs provided a stable platform for the numerous cannon barrels mounted on its frame. An entire company of Vandal melee mechs guarded the valuable Akkaras.

Gathering over twenty heavy mechs and ordering them to fire in a single direction was a lethal move. The Hafner mechs hastily ran for the nearest cover, but not without losing over twenty mechs!

Along with the losses sustained in the earlier clash, the Hafner mechs only numbered around fifty mechs!

"This is the best way to beat an expert pilot." Ves concluded. "Captain Foster is deadly up close, but even she has to lower her head when it comes to massed firepower."

The heavy caliber of the cannons mounted on the Akkaras meant that her thoroughly average Mackey Craic mech couldn't shrug off the shells and laser beams without concern. Already the swordsman mech had gained several ugly cracks and scorch marks upon its armor!

The Akkara mechs continued to unleash death even after the Hafner mechs dove for cover. The heavy shells and laser beams worked away at the tree trunks. While the massive trees were capable of withstanding regular mech fire, the massed firepower of over twenty Akkara mechs was in an entirely different class!

The Hafner mechs lost too many comrades. Their plan was already a longshot, but to come across an unexpected setback depressed the surviving Hafner mech pilots.

However, they never thought about surrender. A warrior of Hafner never relented against pirates!

"The monster horde we've instigated should be close!" An instructor said. "We only need to endure for ten more minutes until the monster horde arrives!"

Both sides gritted their teeth as they fought with their utmost. By now, the main thrust of the Vandals finished sorting out their battle lines. They pressed on towards the suppressed Hafner mechs. Even after they sustained some losses, they still outnumbered the Hafner mechs by at least three-to-one.

The power of the Akkara mechs was in full display right now! Though Ves often complained in his mind about their cost and troublesome maintenance issues, he couldn't help but celebrate their inspiring performance!

"If Venerable Foster piloted a true expert swordsman mech, then she would have been able to dash up close and slice and dice these clumsy heavy mechs." Iris said besides Ves. "It's tragic that she never got the opportunity to show off her expert abilities in a better machine."

Ves huffed in response. "If she hadn't broken through in a completely spontaneous moment, then we wouldn't have to drag this battle out."

"Sir, the monster horde is five minutes away!"

Major Verle already looked pensive at the worsening situation. Though the Akkara mechs did a good job keeping the Hafner mechs from pulling something off, they weren't able to finish them off.

"Divert the Akkara group and half of our main group to deal with the monster horde."

In any case, the Hafner mechs only numbered a bit more than forty mechs by now. The Vandals didn't need to allocate all of their landbound forces into finishing them off.

The battle lines shifted. Half of the Vandal mechs eagerly split off in order to confront the incoming monster horde without distraction. The Akkara mechs along with their escorts also moved away from the Hafner mechs.

By now, the monsters numbered over five-hundred mech-sized beasts. That was sufficient to trample Training Camp Quistas even if they hadn't suffered from a massive bombardment.

Diverting around a hundred-and-fifty mechs was overkill to Ves, but Major Verle and the mech captains on the ground wanted to finish off the monsters quickly before they attracted more beasts. With the collective firepower of the Akkara mechs, the Vandals wouldn't have any problems with massacring the monsters.

This left just a bit over a hundred Vandal mechs to confront the remnants of Hafner. Though forty mechs still remained standing, none of their mechs had made it out unscathed. Seeing that the Vandals diverted much of their mechs elsewhere, Venerable Foster saw an opportunity to disengage.

"Retreat!"

Without the Akkara mechs suppressing their freedom of movement, the Hafner mechs emerged from behind the trees and retreated at an orderly speed.

The Vandals that remained followed in pursuit. Their ranged mechs fired their weapons as they ran, hoping to chip away at the fleeing Hafner mechs.

The Hafner mechs reciprocated. All of their mechs possessed the capacity to rotate their torsos by at least a hundred-and-sixty degrees. This gave their rifles enough of an angle to fire right behind them, though their mech pilots struggled to keep their mechs on their feet.

Both sides retained some scruples against each other.

If the Vandals split up into different elements again, they would only make themselves more vulnerable against Venerable Foster. This prevented the Vandals from splitting off their light mechs in an attempt to flank or surround the Hafner mechs.

Venerable Foster on the other hand felt constrained by her opponent's stubborn insistence on sticking together. Their close formation and lack of diversions meant that Foster would have to challenge all hundred Vandal mechs at once if she decided to take the offensive.

She calculated the outcome of the battle between the monster horde and the Vandal mechs. Due to the meteorite bombardment, most of the sensors and communication lines buried in the vicinity had been cut off. She found it difficult to estimate how long the monsters could keep the defending Vandal mechs in place.

"With those heavy mechs lending their assistance, those stupid beasts won't last very long. I doubt they can hold out for an hour."

She needed to finish off the pursuing Vandals before that time!

"We need to turn around and attack!"

Her prestige swayed the Hafner mech pilots without much convincing. She didn't even need to provide an explanation for her to direct her fellow comrades.

They turned around abruptly and closed in on the pursuing Vandal mechs. Both sides predominantly retained their melee mechs, so the battle quickly devolved into a confusing melee.

Two different mech captains confronted the Mackey Craic with varying levels of confidence. Though they couldn't match the speed and power displayed Venerable Foster, they possessed enough experience to preserve their mechs and their lives.

The expert pilot quickly grunted in frustration as her opponents stopped her from massacring the rank-and-file.

Although the mech pilots of the Flagrant Vandals were not as competent as proper mech pilots of the Mech Corps, their mech captains represented the best of their best. None of them were slouches when it came to piloting skill! Both mech captains happened to be elevated to their ranks due to their praiseworthy skill. While they weren't able to command all that well, their piloting prowess was enough to suppress their subordinates!

Right now, they utilized every drop of their skill to survive the Mackey Craic's onslaught of techniques! If a human made the same moves as the Mackey Craic, they would have strained their muscles or snapped their bones. Foster's sword style could only be performed by a specific class of flexible swordsman mechs!

Utilizing the inhuman range of motion of mechs and combining it with the weight of a mech, Venerable Foster attacks came fast and heavy. If not for wielding a highly reinforced mech-sized sword meant for slaying hardy monsters, the Mackey Craic would have long cracked its only weapon!

Each sword strike pushed the defending Vandal mechs back. One of the mech captains piloted a knight mech. Its shield began to split from all of the abuse. The other mech captain piloted a spearman mech, which tried and largely failed to keep the Mackey Craic out of reach.

Under the control of Venerable Foster, the Mackey Craic moved with precision. The mech always managed to avoid a stab and spin close in order to sweep the spearman mech. After several failed attempts at stabbing the Mackey Craic, the mech captain finally made a misstep!

The Mackey Craic battered the spear to the side with an arm and hacked its sword with the other arm! Though the hasty move didn't have too much power behind it, the sword somehow managed to hit a critical junction in the spearman mech's arm!

"No!"

The Vandal knight mech moved to shield its comrade, but the Mackey Craic already recovered from its first attack and launched a second attack. Its sword stabbed straight at the chest of the spearman mech!

Just moments before the sword touched against the battered chest armor of the Vandal mech, its cockpit suddenly ejected from the rear! A scattering of rear armor plating bloomed out of the spearman mech's back as the cockpit safely flew out of sight while barely managing to dodge the trees in its way.

The survival rate of a season mech officer was much higher than a rookie because they could always judge the right time to eject!

However, the loss of the spearman mech meant that the remaining mech captain lost a vital pillar of support. Venerable Foster growled in anger as the opportunity to kill a pirate captain slipped.

She quickly turned to vent her fury against the other mech captain. With her skills, it didn't take more than five seconds to finish off the knight mech. The mech captain didn't hesitate to eject once he fell in a hopeless situation.

She won!

However, once she glanced at the state of her comrades, she discovered that they quickly fell in numbers! Only twenty Hafner mechs remained standing, and their numbers diminished in rapid tempo!

"Foul Vandals!"

The Vandals succeeded in diverting the main threat. Once Venerable Foster became constrained, the Vandals shamelessly took advantage of their numbers to crush the diminished and worn out Hafner mechs. A disparity of two-to-one quickly grew wider and wider until the disparity surpassed a ratio of four-to-one!

No matter how well the Hafner mech pilots fought, defeat was inevitable!

"Venerable! Please run! We'll hold them back as long as possible!" An instructor yelled. "I've already passed over the commands to incite the native monsters to your mech! Use them to finish off the invaders!"

Venerable Foster couldn't afford to linger on the battlefield. She quickly came to a ruthless conclusion and turned the Mackey Craic around to run.

"Hold the Vandal scum in place! Don't let them catch our future hope!"

Tears fell down from Foster's cheeks as she overloaded the Mackey Craic in order to hasten her flight.

Chapter 565

The beachhead repelled the monster horde with great difficulty. The genetically modified beasts moved in an uncoordinated mob and attacked the temporary base with mindless frenzy.

"Hold the line! Hold the line, lads!"

Though the weight of the charge almost buckled the Vandal lines, their tight grouping also became their undoing.

"Akkara mechs, open fire!"

The twenty Akkara heavy cannoneers positioned themselves at the left and right wings of the frontlines. Guarded by an ample amount of melee mechs, they unleashed a torrent of firepower at the dumb beasts whose cunning and instincts had been overridden by a genetic backdoor.

It was like shooting fish in a barrel!

The monsters pressed themselves against each other in an effort to push forward. There was not a single chance the skilled mech pilots of the Akkara heavy mechs could miss a single shot when faced with a huge wall of flesh!

Incredibly violent noises emanated from their gun barrels as they mowed down the monsters. The frenzied beasts may have been large, but they weren't too resilient as their flesh lacked any special qualities compared to certain kinds of exobeasts.

Hafner wasn't extravagant enough to lace the Kamwin continent with valuable exotics!

The lack of any metaphysical qualities from the beasts meant that they were basically giant bags of flesh. While their offensive strength was enough to threaten a mech, their lack of defense enabled ranged mechs like the Akkaras to play out their full strength.

Thus, even if the monster horde outnumbered the defending Vandal mechs by three-to-one, the battle slanted heavily towards the latter's favor.

It was at this time that an alert sounded out in the command center of the Shield of Hispania.

"Sir, our sensors are detecting unusual movements from the capital city! The garrison mechs are on the move! Transports are already departing from the spaceport!"

"Where are heading?!"

"The Hafner transports are heading directly towards the beachhead!"

Some of the Vandals cursed a bit. The garrison troops finally made a move. Throughout the invasion, they had kept themselves holed up in their bunkers. Now, they finally moved out their mechs.

"Hafner must have ordered them to abandon their positions in order to reinforce Venerable Foster, sir. A newly advanced expert pilot is worth risking everything on Nova Migolatus I."

The garrison mechs didn't bring too many mechs, and their mech pilots were a far cry from those who served in proper mech regiments. According to the intelligence provided by Peace for Hafner, the rebel group had infiltrated their ranks a lot more extensively compared to Training Camp Quistas. Their inaction up to this point could be directly attributed to rebel interference.

It was likely that the garrison troops wouldn't fight all that hard. As long as they did the motions, their superiors wouldn't be able to fault them that much.

However, their entry into the battlefield was enough to inconvenience the Vandals. The base defenders expended a lot of energy in trying to repel the beast horde. Many melee mechs at the frontline incurred heavy damage, while the Akkara mechs shot themselves dry.

"Make sure to service the Akkara mechs before the garrison troops arrive!"

"Yes, sir!"

Ves conveyed Major Verle's priorities to his mech designers, leaving the matter in their hands.

The entry of the garrison troops and the unusual movements of the beasts on the Kamwin continent complicated this operation even further. What the Flagrant Vandals initially conceived as a lightning raid and assassination commission had transformed into a difficult hunt and base defense operation.

A significant amount of mech pilots lost their lives, and an even greater amount of mechs had been trashed. The Vandals lacked the time and manpower to retrieve the latter. Their losses already surpassed their expectations!

And the worst part of it was that none of their actions turned a profit!

"There's nothing about the carcasses of those genetically modified monsters that's worth harvesting." Ves quietly summed up. "The wrecks originating from the mechs of the training camp also isn't enough to make up for our losses."

The more they fought, the more they lost! Scarce and precious mech pilots lost their lives while their machines were too far for the Vandals to salvage. This entire venture was an asset-draining operation. To someone sensitive to money as Ves, this was a nightmare!

"The only way to redeem ourselves is to capture Venerable Foster."

Killing her would earn the Vandals a lot of kudos from Peace for Hafner, but how much was their appreciation worth? Not very much, especially if the group insisted on sticking to the original agreement.

No, the only way for the Vandals to recoup their losses was to capture Venerable Foster alive and treat her as a valuable bargaining chip. It was impossible to convert her to the Bright Republic, but the Vandals could still hold on to her while they renegotiated their agreement with the rebel group.

If Peace for Hafner remained obstinate, then the Vandals might even be able to trade their hostage back to the Hafner Duchy!

Of course, it would be a bad idea for the Vandals to free an expert pilot with a massive grudge against them. Ves figured that the Vandals would likely pretend to entertain the Hafner Duchy's offers in an effort to pressure Peace for Hafner into coughing up more concessions.

However, all of this depended on whether the Vandals could capture the expert pilot successfully. Capturing the ferocious Venerable was easier said than done!

Down on the surface, Venerable Foster managed to hold out for over an hour. With her comrades holding the bulk of the Vandals back, the Mackey Craic managed to disengage from the battle.

However, the Hafner mechs couldn't hold back all of the Vandals, causing around twenty light mechs to go on pursuit.

The Vandals were wary of another counterattack, so the light mechs on her heels did not come too close. They instead pelted the Mackey Craic with the handful of ranged weapons in their possession. Though their accuracy was poor and the damage wasn't all that much per shot, the Mackey Craic's rear armor was much less durable than the Neyvar's rear armor.

One of the complicating factors of the chase was that they occasionally bumped into monster groups. These beasts hadn't made it in time to join the first horde, so they congregated into a second one. Before they joined the main group of monsters, they refrained from attacking any mechs.

However, defending themselves was another matter!

Venerable Foster cleverly dashed towards any grouping of monsters with her mech. The Mackey Craic would then tap them with its sword, causing them to grow angry and defensive. Since the beasts weren't smart enough to distinguish which mech belonged to which side, they indiscriminately attacked every mech in the vicinity even if it belonged to her opponents!

Several times, she successfully incited the beasts and sneaked away at a critical junction. Though it didn't take much effort for her pursuers to put down the dumb beasts, they inevitably lost a lot of time!

One time, the Vandals decided to split up into two. One group held up the beasts while the other group continued the chase.

"A chance!"

Venerable Foster impatiently drew them away from the other group before pouncing on them! Before the Vandals could adjust their defense, the Mackey Craic already ran through six mechs in quick succession!

"Scatter! Don't engage Foster directly!"

Only after a mech captain caught up and held her back did Foster turn around and continue her flight. Venerable Foster knew very well that her mech wasn't strong enough to finish them off.

Her counterattack served as a deterrent! If the Vandals thought they could split up and cut off her escape route, then they were badly mistaken! The Mackey Craic still possessed sufficient reserves to finish off her pursuers if they dared to split!

"Come on, you pirates! Kill me if you dare!"

She wasn't entirely in her right mind. She recently experienced a break through and witnessed a traumatic event. The recent transformation of her mind and life phase had left her in an exhausted state. She desperately needed to rest, but the constant fighting forced her push against her limits!

"I can't rest until these pirates are taken care of!"

Through her familiarity of the terrain and the occasional interference from the beasts, Venerable Foster managed to bleed her pursuers. She picked off a couple of mechs each time they made a mistake.

However, an hour in her flight, the Mackey Craic rapidly reached its limit. No matter how well she dodged, the shots coming from the rear occasionally landed a hit. Some of the shots even started to damage her mech's internals, which directly impacted its performance!

In addition, the stresses she exerted on her mech slowly broke down its frame. Cracks already started seeping in, which Venerable Foster compounded each time she forced the Mackey Craic to move past its limits!

"It's getting hot in here." She panted as she checked her heat and energy levels.

Typical to melee mechs, the Mackey Craic did not incorporate an extensive heat management system. While her mech didn't accumulate as much heat as a laser rifleman mech, it didn't hold as much reserves or possess any means of dumping the heat in an expedient manner.

As for the Mackey Craic's energy reserves, the mech performed numerous extreme movements that expended large amounts of power. This mode of operation was extremely inefficient, but Venerable Foster had no choice if she wished to maintain her superiority over the Vandals. Each extreme technique wasted at least twice or thrice as much energy!

The Mackey Craic's energy reserves dipped below twenty percent. This gave Venerable Foster very little leeway. She realized that she wouldn't be able to shake off all of her pursuers during this time.

The only way for her to contest her fate was to fight upfront!

No matter how much she wore out her mech and her own self, she was willing to risk it all!

The Mackey Craic instantly turned around without warning and dove at the pursuing Vandal mechs with a vengeance.

"Starwalker Steps!"

Her mech moved with great momentum as it weaved through most incoming fire. Once her mech reached the closest enemy, its sword instantly flashed through a seam within the armor plating, cutting through a vital component related to the power management system!

"Redemption Slash!"

While she wasn't a mech designer, her studies had given her an extensive understanding of the anatomy of a mech! Redemption Slash coordinated with the momentum of the mech to deliver a powerful vertical slash that could part through frontal armor with ease.

The only problem with this move was that it consumed way too much energy!

The Mackey Craic moved to the next Vandal and utilized a fast and powerful stab that poked through another universal weak point of her opponent's mech. The sword punched through the armor with ease and penetrated a section of its engage, causing the mech to lose all of its mobility.

"Swallow Stab!"

Venerable Foster piloted her mech with great effort, trying to spare as much energy as possible. Vandal mechs pressed against the Mackey Craic on all sides. If they managed encircle her and press against her from every direction, her mech would definitely lose all of its mobility!

"Get out of my way! Double Redemption Slash!"

Slashing twice in quick succession while making both blows count was extraordinarily difficult for Foster. If she wasn't an expert pilot, this move would have remained a possible dream for her. Right now, she managed to fell two mechs at once with this move, providing her Mackey Craic some breathing room.

Though the Vandals constantly lost mechs in their attempt to subdue Venerable Foster, they didn't hesitate to throw in more mechs! These wave tactics forced the expert pilot to the brink. Just as she finished off the latest mech that suicided into the Mackey Craic, her mech beeped out a dangerous alarm.

"What?! How can this be?!"

The Mackey Craic's energy reserves had dipped below five percent and was diminishing towards zero at a rapid pace!

The console that projected her mech's current status provided her with the answer. The Vandals had directly attacked the Mackey Craic's energy cells! Though most of them had run dry, the few remaining cells that still supplied energy to her mech had been punctured!

Before she could figure out how to escape, the Mackey Craic finally locked up! Its energy reserves completely ran dry!

Chapter 566

"Reporting, sir, Venerable Relia Foster has been captured alive!"

"Good! Make sure to keep her sedated, and don't give her the opportunity to commit suicide!"

Everyone on the command center cheered or sighed in relief. Ves was one of the latter, since this entire ordeal had far surpassed everyone's limits!

"Sir, the garrison troops that landed at the other edge of the oval scar is diverting away from the beachhead! They are moving to intercept our pursuit group!"

"They are moving to rescue Venerable Foster! Don't let them intercept our pursuit force!"

The plot depicting the positions of the mechs on the ground shifted in response. Dots representing Vandal mechs moved away from the beach head in order to cut off the approach of the Hafner garrison mechs.

This caused the Hafner mechs to adjust their course, which led to another shift from the Vandal mechs. This dance went on and on, with neither side willing to get close enough to fight it out.

The only reason why the Vandals didn't allocate more mechs to take care of the garrison force was because they needed to fend off another wave of monsters. Now that they slaughtered hundreds of beasts, the Vandals gained a great understanding of their weaknesses. They didn't need as much mechs to ward them off in the next attacks. It was sufficient to leave behind a single line of melee mechs while entrusting the duty of slaughtering most of the monsters to the Akkaras.

"It's getting more chaotic here! Prepare for extraction! Make sure to chase the garrison troops away from our beachhead!"

Now that the Vandals managed to capture their prize, they had no reason to linger on the Kamwin continent. The sooner they departed they departed this star system, the better!

Ves glanced towards another plot that showed the state of the Nova Migolatus System. Two seperate fleets of combat carriers had crossed into the star system and would take less than twelve hours to reach the Vandals!

They were running out of time!

Both fleets represented entire mech regiments. One of them was a spaceborn regiment called the 3rd Silent Starpiercers. Their mech composition was made up almost entirely of cavalry mechs, more specifically lancer mechs. One or two lancer mechs might not seem so scary, but when they numbered more than eighteen-hundred mechs, a single charge could easily demolish the Flagrant Vandals even if they hadn't split up the main fleet!

Of particular alarm to the Vandals was that the intelligence on the 3rd Silent Starpiercers mentioned that they had an expert pilot among their ranks! Venerable Cordoba Hunt piloted the same kind of lancer mech as Venerable O'Callahan, but unlike the latter Hunt was in the prime of his life.

In a contest between the two, the best result the Vandals could expect was mutual self-destruction.

"And that's not all."

The other fleet that headed towards Nova Migolatus was made up entirely of the 7th Hostland Warriors! This was Venerable Foster's mech regiment, and fielded both landbound and spaceborn mechs. Though their strength was nothing special, the fact that Venerable Foster hailed among their ranks meant that the Warriors wouldn't hold anything back!

The bonds between mech pilots of the same mech regiment could rival the bonds between siblings. Everyone treated each other like family and would never hesitate to rise up and rescue a beleaguered comrade. As the villains of this story, the Flagrant Vandals would not enjoy a good end at their hands!

In short, the Vandals on the ground needed to wrap up this operation quickly to escape the calamity heading in their direction. Once the Silent Starpiercers or the Hostland Warriors caught up with the Vandal fleet in orbit, they would never be able to escape this star system!

"Come on, hurry up!"

Fortunately, in the time it took for the pursuit to return to the beachhead, the garrison troops failed to sum up the courage to attack. This allowed the pursuit force to smoothly enter the temporary base. A handful of doctors escorted by lots of armed security officers placed the unconscious expert pilot on a floating stretcher and transferred her to the heaviest transport the Vandals had on site.

"Drive the Hafner garrison mechs away from the oval scar! Don't let them take potshots at our transports!"

Support personnel already began to dismantle the base. The pursuit force that succeeded in capturing Venerable Foster quickly paused to replenish their supplies. Every mech technician worked hard to replace their energy cells and supplement their ammunition with rapid tempo. Time was short and each mech technician needed to pull their weight.

When Ves patched into the observation systems, he watched on as his mech designers each took up responsibility over important tasks.

Vedette had the unenviable task of supervising the replenishment process. A lot of mechs from the pursuit force had sustained some damage. The impact marks from the native beasts often dented the armor of the lighter mechs. This caused certain functions to cease functioning, such as opening up the rear of the mech to allow the mech technicians to replace the energy cells.

All of this required a quick resolution. Ves saw that Vedette utilized his recent gains in his studies on mechanics to propose expedient solutions. Though they weren't always the best, at least the man had the sense to prioritize speed over minimizing damage. Right now, they couldn't care too much if they sent out a mech with half of its rear armor plating missing!

"He's the most capable mech designer, but he's the most grounded of the bunch."

Trozin on the other hand liaised with the mech pilots. Ever since the start of the Vandal ground operation, she acted as a mediator between the mech pilots and the mech technicians. Ves faintly thought she was slacking off a little too much because she didn't do anything else besides talking.

"She hasn't showcased her technical skills all that much, but she's great when it comes to communicating with mech pilots."

Ves remembered that Trozin was related to a mech captain of the Vandals. Ves already looked up the connection before and found out she was the uncle of Captain Branser, who was stationed aboard the Wolf Mother.

"Right now, the Wolf Mother is part of the other fleet commanded by Colonel Lowenfield, so Trozin can't stir up too much trouble at the moment."

As for Mercator, the other high-ranking mech designer on the ground mainly bossed around the remaining mech technicians. Though the man's behavior was rather loathsome to Ves, the ambitious mech designer made sure that none of the mech technicians slacked off. Under his strict supervision, every technical personnel working on site exerted their utmost into keeping everyone's mechs running.

"He's way too abusive, but maybe that's the only way to keep everyone's productivity high. There's no room for soft-heartedness in the middle of a risky operation."

All in all, the mech designers all fulfilled their roles and prevented any major jams. Transports and shuttled landed and departed from the landing site with hardly any delays. It wouldn't take too long for the Vandals evacuate from the planet.

His only regret was that the Vandals weren't able to retrieve all of their fallen mechs. Many of their wrecks were strewn at least an hour away from the oval scar. The roaming monsters and dense trees made it far too dangerous for them to send out transports to pick up the valuable wrecks.

While the Vandals gained a tiny bit of earnings by salvaging the mechs from the training camp, it far outweighed the losses they sustained so far. Ves roughly estimated their casualties to reach up to half of their landbound contingent!

"Leaving so many mechs behind will hurt our finances a lot." Ves murmured. "Venerable Foster hasn't been merciful to our mech pilots either. She deliberately targeted the cockpit whenever she saw an opportunity."

The latter led to a lot of nasty glared towards the unconscious body of Venerable Foster. Still, most of the mech pilots would never condone any mistreatment of an expert pilot. Even if they ended up in captivity, they still retained their dignity!

More importantly, the Mech Trade Association paid close attention to the treatment of any expert pilot in enemy hands. The organization cared little if someone executed any captives on the battlefield or in a cell. Honestly speaking, the population of humanity had reached a mind-boggling figure. Even if only three-and-a-half percent of them could call themselves a potentate, that left way too many people left.

"An individual mech pilot is worth nothing. An expert pilot is worth an entire mech division."

This was only a figure of speech, but it highlighted the extreme valuation of expert pilots at the state level. The worth of a young and promising expert pilot such as Venerable Foster might reach as high as ten-thousand mechs!

Of course, this reference value could only be taken loosely, as states rarely paid so much in ransom for a captive mech pilot. The actual ransom payments were much more modest as states only paid a ransom up to a certain point.

Nonetheless, their captive was a real prize for which both the rebels and the Hafner Duchy would fight hard to gain. The Vandals directly gained the power to affect the balance of power over this territory.

Right now, the ground forces hurried up to evacuate their beachhead at the oval scar. They successfully managed to evacuate over half of their mechs so far. After driving away the timid garrison mechs, the Vandals bought enough time to evacuate the other half of their mech force.

The ground force left a lot of supplies and other goods in their hasty evacuation. They simply didn't have the time to attend to these matters as the Silent Starpiercers and the Hostland Warriors

"We've retrieved all of our essentials from the surface, sir!"

"Begin our departure from the system!"

The Verle Task Force moved towards the nearest Lagrange point. However, just like on the surface, the Vandals also needed to be wary of the garrison fleet that miraculously kept themselves alive during this operation. Their fast and nimble combat carriers continuously played hide and seek against the spaceborn mechs the Vandals sent in pursuit.

Right now, they formed the largest threat to their escape. As long as they continued to pester the Vandals, they could easily prevent any transitions.

"These cowardly garrison combat carriers are a thorn in our sides." Major Verle stated. "It's a good thing we've come up with a plan."

The only way the Vandals could halt the pestering was if they made some sacrifices. At first, they retracted all of their spaceborn mechs as the fleet moved towards a Lagrange point.

This lured the garrison fleet closer to the Vandals. It didn't take too much time for them to enter into range. Some of their mechs already started firing at the Vandal combat carriers.

"Begin!"

However, just as the Hafner spaceborn mechs began to get comfortable, all of the Inheritors and Hellcats boosted from the fleet and overloaded their flight systems! Their rapid acceleration towards the garrison fleet alarmed the Hafner mechs. They quickly boarded their high-speed carriers in an attempt to dance out of reach.

Due to the modest head-start of the Vandal mechs, the garrison fleet risked getting caught. This only prompted the stripped-down Hafner combat carriers to accelerate even faster.

This chase lingered on for half an hour. The Vandal mechs had ceased to overload their flight system, but they still posed a large threat to the Hafner mechs.

Just then, the Vandal mechs collectively turned around and burned back to the task force. They never intended to catch up to the garrison fleet!

As the Inheritors and Hellcats burned their way back to their motherships, the garrison fleet halted their acceleration in confusion. Eventually, they realized what the Vandals were up to and frantically turned around their ships to return to the vicinity of the Vandal fleet!

"Hah! I knew they were scared!" Major Verle exclaimed. "Just like their landbound force, the spaceborn garrison fleet is full of rot. They clearly treasure their lives over the mission."

The Vandals gained a decisive delta-v advantage through their maneuvers. Simply said, the garrison fleet had run away so eagerly that it took a lot of time for their ships to turn around and catch up to their targets. It would take at least fifteen to twenty minutes for their mechs to be in range to disrupt their enemy's attempt to transition into FTL.

"Too late!"

The entire task force successfully entered into FTL with more than enough time to spare. The impotent garrison fleet could only watch on as their cowardice allowed their prey to slip away untouched.

Chapter 567

The Flagrant Vandals made it out!

Those who fought on the surface almost couldn't believe they made it out of hell. Pretty much all of the mech pilots came out of their mechs in a broken state. Though they admirably held themselves together on the field due to their training, once they returned to safety the trauma seeped through the cracks.

Ves and Chief Haine stood on a ramp overlooking one of the hangar bays of the Shield of Hispania. They watched on as mech technicians carefully peeled open the cockpits of heavily damaged landbound mechs to reach the mech pilots trapped inside.

Throughout it all, the overall mood in the hangar bay was depressing. While the inherent resilience of the Flagrant Vandals prevented them from lashing out or doing anything drastic, Ves sensed nothing good from the men.

"Have the Vandals always sustained so many losses in a single campaign?" Ves asked.

"Plenty." The chief technician replied. "Just not in big battles like this. Ordinarily, we don't like to move in huge formations and pit our mechs against anything tough. Normally, we split up in smaller squadrons and spent most of our time raiding Vesian shipping lines. Sometimes, we're able to catch a juicy convoy, and in other times, we end up bumping our noses into a patrol. All of those skirmishes takes a toll on our numbers."

"I see. So the Vandals are used to losses, but only in bite-sized packages."

The chief glanced at Ves with a cool expression. "Mr. Larkinson, we are soldiers above else. We aren't cowards who value our lives above anything else. Even if the Mech Corps doesn't regard us very highly, within ourselves lies the hope that we can prove ourselves to be equal to those shining mech regiments that have become household names in the Republic."

Mech regiments such as the Stellar Lancers, the Infernal Hellhounds and the Volari Starhawks all enjoyed significant renown back home. Their funding and support was incomparable to the Flagrant Vandals.

Ves could see how the pride of those who had been forced onto the Vandals had been impugned. If Ves was a mech pilot who had been thrown into this garbage bin of a mech regiment, he too would have wished to prove himself in battle.

"I mean no disrespect, Chief Haine. It's just that the civilian in me can't get used to seeing so many comrades fall. How can the Vandals push on and keep their heads high?"

"Everyone deals with loss in a different way. The survivors are taken care of. We're not clueless in that regard. Soldier or not, humans are fragile. From the moment our civilization has ascended to the stars, we've become very good at handling trauma."

Ves nodded. He could see that a number of mental health specialists already started receiving the mech pilots who emerged from the cockpits. Ves ordinarily ignored the specialists since they hardly did anything but take up space, but right now they were worth their weight in gold.

"A lot of our landbound mechs got trashed. You've got a lot of work ahead of yourself if you want to salvage something out of this mess."

"I know." Ves laughed sardonically at himself. "I don't even look at the latest figures anymore. I'm scared I'll get a heart attack once I see how many mechs we've lost and how many wrecks we need to restore. Those giant monsters on the Kamwin continent aren't gentle at all."

A large proportion of mechs that got trashed consisted of melee mechs that received an awful battering from the monster hordes. The monsters attacked with a combination of blunt and cutting forces that combined resulted in some of the most awful sort of damage to the mechs.

"The damage to the melee mechs that got smacked around by the monsters is incredibly arduous to fix. It's different from the mechs that Venerable Foster managed to down. That feisty girl always tried to finish off her opponents as expediently as possible, so most of the damage we've incurred from her is concentrated on a small set of critically damaged components."

Ves understood her point. "On the other hand, the mechs that incurred damage from the monsters require a complete overhaul. All of that blunt force has penetrated through the surface armor of our mechs. The damage to their internals is extensive, and it will take lots of time to pin down which component needs to be replaced."

Leaving out the wrecks that the Vandals had been forced to leave behind, the Vandals hadn't sustained too much material damage. Any damaged mech they managed to retrieve could be fixed up over time as the mech technicians could easily take out a damaged parts and recycle them in order fabricate replacement parts.

The only problem was that this would take way too much time with their current equipment and manpower.

Without the industrial capacity of the Wolf Mother, the Verle Task Force needed years to make up all of the losses they sustained. Their landbound contingent was in shambles while their spaceborn contingent never regained their prime.

"Our spaceborn battle efficiency isn't too bad, so it is not the end of the galaxy." The chief patted his back in an attempt to console him. "Repairing the landbound mechs is a megaproject. No one expects you to fix everything up. Right now, it's more important to finish our mission and return home before we can consider rebuilding our forces."

She was right. The Vandals went through hell and almost reached the gates that led to heaven. Once they crossed the borders of the Hafner Duchy, they would finally be able to breathe easily as they didn't have to worry about constant ambushes from the reigning power in the region.

Though the Reinald Republic wasn't exactly an ally of the Bright Republic, their shared enemy kept their relations fairly cordial. It wasn't uncommon to see Brighter ships trawling about in Reinald space and vica versa.

Many of the larger Brighter companies established subsidiaries in the Reinald Republic. The Flagrant Vandals would be able to gain preferential treatment from them. The Vandals counted on this to be their deliverance after this ordeal was over.

"What happens next?"

"That depends, Mr. Larkinson. We've captured an expert pilot at a very great cost. If I was the Major, I would be very eager to trade her away for some much-needed concessions."

"Major Verle is going to try to play the rebels against Hafner, I bet."

"He'll be playing a very dangerous game. The thing about negotiating is that it works best if nobody is aware of what others want. Right now, it's plain to see that every side wants."

The Flagrant Vandals wanted to cross the borders.

The Hafner Duchy wanted their precious expert pilot back.

The rebels wanted to weaken the Hafner Duchy.

"The negotiation is going to be a dance." Ves guessed. "Each side will go through the motions, but I think everyone has already settled on an outcome."

"The process is still important. It can decide whether we'll enjoy the bulk of the rewards or if our rebel partners will lay claim to the lion's share of the spoils."

From what Ves could see, the only way to please all three sides was to involve everyone in the same transaction. Venerable Foster was the main prize. While it would have been better for the Bright Republic to deny her release, she wasn't very useful to the Vandals.

It was like having access to a huge bank account. Would the impressive figure be able to save his life if someone pointed a gun at Ves?

No!

Right now, the Vandals desperately needed to raise their strength. Trading away an expert pilot despite the huge threat she posed to her enemies in the future was more attractive than squirreling her away like a lump of precious ore.

Considering the sheer value of a young and healthy expert pilot, the Hafner Duchy would likely be willing to bleed really hard to get her back.

Of course, the Vandals hadn't been able to capture her by themselves. Peace for Hafner helped a lot in the background, from providing actionable intelligence to sabotaging the Hafner forces from within.

Their help was especially valuable at the end where their double agents caused the garrison fleet to waver at critical moments! Therefore, the interests of Peace for Hafner shouldn't be neglected.

Besides, considering that the Verle Task Force was about to enter the Reinald Republic, making the rebel group happy was an important concern. Though no Reinald official ever confirmed the rumors, it was pretty much an open secret that the rebel groups operating in Hafner space were Reinald's sock puppets.

"I hope that we've got some competent negotiators among our ranks, then." Ves muttered. "In any case, these mechs won't get serviced by themselves. Let's get to work, shall we?"

Ves took stock of the damage together with Chief Haine. He studied the abuse the landbound mechs had suffered from the blunt force impacts from the rampaging monsters. Though he only inspected a small sample, the damage looked worse than he thought.

The beasts possessed a weak defense, but a powerful offense! Any mech that tussled with the monsters of the Kamwin continent up close required a complete disassembly. The main reason for this was that in some cases, the internal frame had been affected!

"It's going to take multiple days of work from an entire group of mech technicians to fix one of these damaged landbound mechs." Ves concluded morosely. "That doesn't sound so bad if only a handful of mechs require such treatment, but we're talking about close to two-hundred machines here."

Chief Haine had been right that the Vandals didn't plan on fighting anymore landbound battles for the foreseeable time. However, Ves did not believe that everything would end once they reached the Reinald Republic. He already started casting his gaze on what the task force would be doing next.

"Will we really be returning to the Bright Republic for a lengthy downtime?"

Somehow, Ves did not believe this odyssey would end so soon. At the very least, the matter with Lord Javier and his secret presence aboard the Shield of Hispania foreshadowed a continuation of their secret movements.

"What's so important about Lord Javier and why is it so important to reach the Reinald Republic within a certain time?"

Ves still couldn't connect the dots despite the vast amount of data at his fingertips. In fact, the awful state of the Vandals made it clear that they weren't ready for another major operation at all. He dearly hoped that bigwigs didn't have another difficult mission in store for them once they reached the end of the journey.

After taking stock of the situation at the hangar bays, Ves returned to his office to draw up a new schedule. The original one he composed more than a month ago was plainly unworkable considering how much the Vandals had been set back.

When he entered his office, Ves saw that Iris wasn't present at her desk.

"She's probably helping with the negotiations."

Ves wondered if he would soon be saying goodbye to Iris. Now that the Vandals were about to reach their destination, they had no need to trade for favors from the rebel movements that made themselves home in the Vesia Kingdom.

Realizing that she would soon be out of his life, Ves realized that he would miss her presence. She had been of great assistance to Ves. Not only did she introduce him to neural interface technology, she also deepened his understanding of Vesian culture and military.

"I'll have to prepare a farewell gift to her." He affirmed to himself. "Perhaps once the war is over, she'll finally smarten up and give up on her unrealistic dream to turn the Kingdom away from feudalism."

Ves chuckled to himself. Sometimes he had the feeling that nothing would ever change. The Bright Republic and Vesia Kingdom would likely look the same a hundred years from now.

He wouldn't know what to do if something changed.

Chapter 568

"So that's an expert pilot."

Later in the day, Ves had been invited by Major Verle to the medical bay. They walked past numerous pods where the bodies of heavily-injured mech pilots bathed in strange solutions that slowly restored their bodies.

These days, machines performed most medical treatments. They worked much more precise and extensively than humans. Though the risk of tampering remained, the medical machines were subjected to strict and frequent inspections. A modern-day doctor was both a medical specialist and a machine operator.

To Ves, doctors were like mech technicians. The only differences were that they possessed better degrees and worked with living bodies instead of cold, mechanical machines.

Doctor Eric Cuscar greeted the two at the end of the medical bay. As the chief medical officer, Cuscar was the most senior and knowledgeable doctor in the entire task force. He was also responsible for keeping tabs on Ves' abnormal body.

"Doctor." Major Verle greeted the old man with a nod. "How's the little girl?"

Cuscar deliberately coughed in his hand. "I suggest you mind your manners, major. The 'little girl' you are referring to is a superhuman mech pilot! She's a genuine marvel of the human potential! I'm gathering bucketloads of data right at this moment!"

"You didn't answer my question, doc. How is she doing?"

"Ah, ahem, Venerable Foster is not in a good state. She broke through under great stress and in less than ideal circumstances. That she advanced to expert when she was several steps away is a testament to her talent. I've treated several expert pilots in my life, and each one is a unique work of art shaped by a combination of nature and human influence. The potential of my latest patient is hands down the best I've ever laid my eyes on!"

The doctor's excitement was palpable from the amount of spittle that escaped his mouth. Both Ves and Major Verle inched away in order to avoid getting hit by friendly fire.

"What makes her special compared to the other expert pilots you've treated?" Ves asked.

"As I've already mentioned, her genes are exquisitely perfect! In addition to that, she contains more activated genes that are known to be beneficial to mech pilots than every other expert pilot that I've laid my eyes on. The simplest way to put it is that her body has a lot of good switches, and most of them are flicked in the right way."

Ves wasn't a complete novice on expert pilots. It was everyone's dream to advance into an expert pilot, so the general population knew what a mech pilot required in order to reach this height.

First, they needed the right genetics! Just as humans could be divided into norms and potentates, the latter group in turn fit into different subcategories.

The most expedient way to categorize potentates was to measure their genetic aptitude. Biomedical experts who specialized in studying the physiology of mech pilots utilized many different measures to classify their strengths. However, laypeople mainly referred to a single summarized grade that ranged from A to F.

Genetic aptitude was a complex concept in itself. All Ves knew about it was that it signified how strong a potentate's gene expressions would facilitate the act of interfacing with a mech.

Ves possessed a genetic aptitude of F. This meant that his brain might as well be a rock when he tried to interface with a mech. No matter how hard he tried, his mind and body firmly rejected any attempts at engaging with the interface. In fact, if Ves tried to force a connection, his brains would likely suffer permanent brain damage.

Potentates with a genetic aptitude of E could barely be called mech pilots at all even when trained. They comprise a fairly small chunk of potentates, so most people who fell into this category resigned themselves into becoming the reserves of the reserves. A state wouldn't put them into a mech unless they started to scrape the bottom of the barrel in terms of manpower.

Ves remembered witnessing one mech pilot with a probable genetic aptitude of E or E-. Only with such a low blessing would Leviticus have trouble making basic movements as he competed against other mech duelists in one of Bentheim's many mech arenas.

Aptitudes ranging from D to B comprise the vast majority of mech pilots.

Mech pilots whose aptitudes fell into the D-range mostly ended up piloting frontline mechs when they served or industrial mechs if they remained civilians. Though they weren't particularly valuable, there was a lot of them, so states rarely let them go to waste.

Potentates with aptitudes in the C-range mainly consisted of the rank and file of every mech force. They possessed enough talent to pilot a humanoid or bestial mech proficiently. However, for every mech pilot with a C-range aptitude, there were at least two mech pilots with a D-range aptitude. Their relative scarcity meant that states cherished them pretty deeply.

Those with aptitudes that reached up to the B-range could be called winners in life. Their piloting careers were bound to be smooth, and they could easily pilot advanced mechs as extensions of their own limbs.

Due to focused genetic breeding and all kinds of other medical voodoo kept out of sight, the offspring of the Larkinsons mainly fell under this enviable category. The Larkinsons wouldn't be much of a military dynasty if their genes weren't so fortuitous, which they inherited from the Larkinson Ancestor.

Ves in fact possessed many of those genes as well, but there was more to genetic aptitude than having the right materials in place. The problem in his case was that his body refused to make use of those materials. Instead, it pretty much left them into the dust, treating them as nothing more than junk.

This was the special part about Venerable Foster. Not only did she possess the right materials, her body also utilized most of them to construct a beautiful palace that allowed her to advance higher than anybody else.

"A genetic aptitude of A is extremely rare." Doctor Cuscar lamented. "It's such a shame that the Mech Corps never assigns their prodigies to the Flagrant Vandals. My understanding of these blessed mech pilots is far too lacking!"

"What about Venerable O'Callahan? Doesn't he have an A-grade genetic aptitude as well?" Ves asked.

The doctor snorted. "That old man's body is only useful for studying how long a human can cling to life in their final moments. Besides, Venerable O'Callahan only works with his own medical team. He's keeping his cards close to himself. I think his actual genetic aptitude is closer to B rather than A, if you ask me."

Both Ves and Major Verle nodded in understanding. Genetic aptitude didn't signify whether a mech pilot halted at advanced pilot or not. There had even been cases where losers with D-grade aptitudes had somehow lucked out and advanced to experts!

Naturally, this almost never happened in reality. There was a direct correlation between the probability of advancing into an expert and genetic aptitude. The higher the grade, the more likely someone would be able to break through. However, even for a blessed potentate with A-grade aptitude, their odds of advancing at all was smaller than a percent!

"I can't help but marvel at the sight of Venerable Foster's aptitude." Doctor Cuscar praised as he approached a control panel that operated the complex medical machinery in the chamber beyond. "If you look at her brain scans, you can see that they are much more divergent than a more average mech pilot. The high plasticity of her brain cells essentially allows her subconsciousness to rewire their brains to better facilitate a neural connection! This is also a benefit of her youth. If she was as old as Venerable O'Callahan, she would never have been able to present such a remarkable nervous system!"

Ves and Major Verle could barely follow Doctor Cuscar's commentary. They simply watched through the transparent viewscreen as Venerable Foster's sedated body covered in a thin wrap received various proddings and injections.

"She isn't getting worse, is she?"

"The Venerable is stronger than she looks. Don't you worry Mr. Larkinson, she'll be as right as rain once I fix her up. Right now, her body needs lots of rest to stabilize her life phase as well as lots of nutrients to allow her body to finish its transformation. The transition from mortal to superhuman is truly a wonder to behold!"

It was obvious that Venerable Foster wouldn't be waking up anytime soon. This disappointed Ves for a bit, but it also provided him with an extra cushion of safety for what he was about to do. He had always wanted to flex his Spirituality with others. He wanted to do more with this Attribute than using it to bestow his works with the X-Factor.

Thus, as Major Verle discussed some matters with Doctor Cuscar, Ves quietly stared at the prone body of the expert pilot while extending out an invisible tendril of thought.

Ves never really managed to accomplish anything when he reached out to a baseline human. Neither norms or mech pilots showed any signs of being affected by his Spirituality. It was as if they consisted of nothing but air!

He theorized that most of the shenanigans that revolved around his Spirituality actually happened in a parallel dimension that Ves loosely referred to as the imaginary realm. Any human being with a deficient Spirituality didn't have the qualifications to enter this realm. This worked both ways, so entities in the imaginary realm wouldn't be able to affect that vast majority of humanity.

His current experiment was important to him, because Ves hypothesized that expert pilots partially derived their special powers from expressing their own brand of spirituality. It was the only variable that Ves could think of that could conceivably explain the magic that they performed.

He tuned out everything else and urged his mind probe to reach the unconscious woman. Just as it reached Venerable Foster's body, Ves faintly felt a small amount of feedback from his tendril!

It worked!"

Half a minute went by as Ves carefully brushed against something that felt like cotton. Whatever spirituality Venerable Foster possessed, it was extremely weak and poreus. If Ves didn't specifically look out for it, he might never have noticed its presence in the first place!

Ves was very glad right now that once of his assumptions had been proven right. Spirituality may be one of the keys that allowed a mech pilot to advance to an expert pilot! Though this was just a preliminary result, if proven to be correct, this insight could change the galaxy forever!

Most humans stumbled blindly in their attempts to find a way for mech pilots to break through the bottleneck. If Ves casually leaked out his findings, he would doubtlessly unleash a storm of epic proportions in human space!

Once he realized the immensity of his experiment, he quickly dissipated the mental probe and kept his mouth firmly pressed together. He walked away from the transparent screen and turned around as if he grew bored from watching an unconscious mech pilot.

Major Verle paused his discussion with Doctor Cuscar and turned to Ves. "Have you taken a good glimpse at her? How does she measure up compared to the expert pilots in your family?"

"We only have three expert pilots in our family. Two of them lost their strength and were forced to retire. Our only active expert is holed up in Citadel Havensworth for much of my life. I hardly ever saw the hero."

"Colonel Ark Larkinson. A good man. He is truly a shining example for the Mech Corps." Major Verle complimented without any sarcasm. "So is Venerable Foster worse than Venerable Larkinson?"

Ves shrugged. "How could I tell? Uncle Ark is strong, but he isn't young anymore. Venerable Foster could potentially reach a greater height than him. What do you think, doctor?"

"Her potentially is frightfully high." Doctor Cuscar slowly said. "I don't think you realize the import of my statement. She's a mech pilot who won the jackpot multiple times she played the slot machine. I would dare say that we're not keeping an expert pilot in our custody. Instead, we're looking at a future ace candidate!"

Ace candidate! Ves widened his eyes, and so did the mech officer standing next to him. An expert pilot that had the potential to advance to the next step in the road to godhood was practically extinct in much of the Komodo Star Sector! The only aces that have ever emerged in this part of space all came from the second-rate states.

For Hafner to have been blessed with an ace candidate was of enormous significance to the balance of power between the Vesia Kingdom and its neighbors!

Chapter 569

After visiting Venerable Foster, Ves gained a wholly new understanding of the higher ranks of mech pilots. He now understood a little better why humanity worshipped them. Their strength and force of will transcended the boundaries of mortal men.

"They may even be the vanguard of the future evolution of humanity."

In the Age of Mechs, no human enjoyed more renown than mech pilots. There was a very strong desire for parents to give birth to potentates. Though mech pilots often risked their lives, there was no greater glory for a human to pilot a mech.

This had led to a very strong desire to breed for genetic aptitude. Though the proportion of potentates to norms hadn't changed all that much in the last four-hundred years, researchers understood more about genetic aptitude than ever before. Certain families and organizations such as the Larkinsons grasped some profound means to vastly increase the odds of birthing a potentate.

Of course, the Larkinsons paid a heavy price to fund these special treatments. Without money and the right genetics, it was impossible for the vast majority of humanity to enjoy the same opportunity. Even then, there were limits to human intervention. The occurrence of A-grade genetic aptitude was completely up to chance.

Venerable Foster was truly a unique specimen in the Hafner Duchy.

Almost a week had passed since they departed from the Nova Migolatus System. The entire task force fell into a depressingly familiar routine. The Vandals mourned their losses but also pulled up their sleeves and went to work. Countless mech technicians scoured over the damaged mechs and prioritized the repair of the least-damages ones.

Once they emerged from FTL, the fleet conducted the biggest space burial ceremony as of yet. Every Vandal shared the pain of loving a close brother or sister, and Major Verle had done his best to get them to look forward to the future.

After that, the Vandals mostly turned back to normal, though there was a rising undercurrent of discontent among the rank-and-file. Ves heard the usual talk of deserting the Mech Corps, but this time a lot more people shared the same opinions.

Ves didn't think this was a good sign. The Vandals always had a tendency to speak their minds. It was a way of venting their frustrations whenever they got dealt a bad hand. The battle on the Kamwin continent had been a lot more deadly than everyone initially expected.

People started asking again why they fought these battles in the first place.

"We're not a battlefield regiment! This high-risk journey through half of the Kingdom is insane!"

"If I was Colonel Lowenfield, I would have taken the entire fleet away from this depressing corner of the galaxy. With a full mech regiment at her back, she can mix with lots of different outfits."

"I should have joined a mercenary corps instead of the Mech Corps. Pah, what does all of this talk of pride and glory has to do with us? It's the big wigs who are earning all of the glory! They don't even have the guts to step on the battlefield in person, but they're the first ones to step forward when it comes to taking credit!"

No matter where he went, Ves continued to pick up borderline treasonous talk. It made him profoundly uncomfortable when he visited the mess hall to eat his meals or went down to the hangar bays to inspect the repair work.

It had even birthed a faint suspicion in his paranoid mind. Was their trip to the Reinald Republic a one-way journey?

"Whatever is happening, it shouldn't take too long for some of the truth to come out."

During their time of recuperation, the task force continued to approach Hafner's borders. It wouldn't take too long before they finally arrived at the barrier of heavily-patrolled star systems.

Ships that made use of standard FTL drives had no way to surmount this barrier. The stars on both sides tended to be dim and small, which meant they were far from energetic enough for ships to dial into their coordinates from afar. There weren't any port systems in the vicinity either.

This basically meant that ships crossing the border needed to take multiple stops in order to avoid any accidents. This was akin to walking through a forest in the dark. People needed to take one step at a time in order to prevent anyone from smacking into a wall.

Throughout this buffer time, rumors continued to disseminate about the negotiations. Some of them had a lot of basis in fact, but it was difficult for Ves to take them for granted.

Ves wanted to cut through the falsehoods, so he went straight to one of the sources. He invited Iris to come up to one of the Shield of Hispania's lounges after their shift had ended.

"Mr. Larkinson! Why did you invite me up here?"

The lounge that Ves had picked out was a prime relaxation area for the ship's warrant officers and more junior commissioned officers. The Vandal mech pilots and mech officers tended to favor their own watering holes in the lower decks.

The luxuriously-furnished lounge was situated at the upper deck and ordinarily featured an observatory that allowed everyone to look up at the stars.

Right now, the task force was submerged in FTL travel, so thick plates of armor shielded up the transparent dome. Looking out at the higher dimensions had a tendency to make some people nauseous or worse.

Ves waved at Iris and beckoned her to join him at a corner. A discrete privacy screen surrounded the corner, which prevented others from eavesdropping on them. This was very helpful for off-duty officers who wanted to discuss sensitive matters outside of their work environment. Naturally, the ship's monitoring system still recorded every word that was being said.

Once Iris sat down, Ves invited her to order a drink. "Come. It's my treat."

Seconds after they ordered their drinks, a small floating serving bot arrived to deliver their chosen poison.

Ves took a swig of his mug of heavy stout. He almost spat it out right after. "Damnit! How can the Vandals be so cheap?! This is synthesized from nutrient packs!"

The woman sitting opposite to him smiled amusedly at him. "What do you expect? They spend the vast majority of their funds on keeping their mechs and ships together. They have no energy to waste on procuring authentic food and drinks."

He had already become used to meals derived from nutrient packs. The only times he got to enjoy authentic food these days was when Major Verle held an elaborate dinner occasion. At least the big boss knew how to enjoy himself. Ves couldn't imagine what kind of foodstuffs the mech officer squirreled away.

"You must be wondering why I asked to meet with you here."

"The thought did cross my mind."

Both of them shed the veneer of formality they normally wore while on duty. This would have been a lot less common in Vesian circles. Even the rebels that advocated for the overthrow of the nobility still couldn't shake off the class system that had been imposed on them for all their lives.

However, Iris had mingled with the Vandals for almost two months now. Her continued exposure to how the Vandals treated each other had opened her eyes.

"Our journey is almost at an end. From what I can see, we'll be crossing the border one way or another within the week. This might be the last time our lives intersect with each other."

The female mech designer smiled. "It's been a wild ride, hasn't it?"

"It's not what I expected when the Mech Corps drafted me. I originally thought I would spend the entire war stuffed inside a hidden research base buried somewhere covert deep in Republic space. Did you know that I worked hard to advance my career in order to avoid getting sent to the frontlines? Hah! Look where that got me."

"Well, it doesn't appear you've suffered loss, Ves. Look at you now. You're the temporary head designer of this fleet. Although you aren't as capable as Professor Velten, you're gaining valuable experience in a role that is hard to come by."

"My job isn't as comfy as it sounds. I've been working very hard each day and it demands the utmost of my capability. Everything would be twice as easy if I was a Journeyman Mech Designer. My own subordinates wouldn't doubt me all the time."

"Are Trozin and Mercator stirring up some trouble again?"

"Not particularly." He shook his head. "They used to deviate from my orders or interpret them in an unusual manner. They've quieted down ever since we've departed from the Nova Migolatus System. Maybe their time on the field has done them some good."

"Didn't you send that other guy down there as well?"

"That's Vedette." Ves palmed his face when he thought of the low-ranking mech designer. "All I wanted was to stiffen him up. He hadn't even been exposed to any threats to his life, yet once he came back from his deployment it's like he turned into a mouse. According to the mental health professionals who examined him, he's actually suffering from PTSD!"

Of course, this condition wasn't hard to treat these days. The doctors injected Vedette with some drugs and put him through some kind of program that unscrambled his brains. The only problem was that it took some time for the treatment program to bear results.

"Not everyone can be like you, who survived all alone for a while on Detemen IV. You're a lot more dangerous than you look."

Ves laughed. "That's because I bump into danger far too often. It's partially my fault. The galaxy is a wondrous place. There's so much treasure to be unearthed from the frontier. Sometimes I yearn to follow in the footsteps of the treasure hunters that ply the untamed stars."

"I can't imagine living an uncertain life like that. For me, I have only the VRF in mind. The rebel cause is my cause. As long as my people remain under the oppression of the nobles and royals, my duty still remains."

"That sounds... admirable."

"I know what you are thinking." She shook her head. "You don't need to hide your true thoughts. We know each other well enough to see the truth in our eyes. You don't believe we have a chance of success, do you?"

"I can't understand why you are committed to your state."

"That's because it's my home. Even if I hate it, I can never let my fellow Vesians wallow in their misery."

Ves truly couldn't see the point. No matter how many times Iris explained her conviction, he would never understand her stubborn commitment to an ugly state.

They tactfully shifted to another topic.

"Anyway, the reason why I wanted to meet with you here is because I wanted to give you a gift before we say our farewells."

Iris nodded. "I can't say much about the three-way negotiations that is going on between the Flagrant Vandals, the Hafner Duchy and Peace for Hafner, but we're already in the process of finalizing an agreement. Hafner values Venerable Foster's potential a lot. That has given us a lot of chips to bargain with. You can bet that safe passage is highly possible for the task force."

"I don't believe that the rest of the Kingdom will be happy at Hafner if they grant us safe passage out of their territory." Ves frowned.

"Although the chance is minute, Venerable Foster has a small chance of advancing to ace pilot. Compared to the possibility of obtaining their own ace pilot, Hafner is willing to endure all sorts of recrimination from the other duchies."

Ves frowned a little deeper. He already knew her potential to be high, but it seemed he underestimated her value. "A part of me wishes that she'll never be let go. The prospect of freeing a potential ace pilot is giving me the chills."

There was no doubt that Venerable Foster had developed an undying hatred for the Flagrant Vandals and the Bright Republic. Letting her loose might lead to a calamity in the future. It was too bad that the Vandals really couldn't afford to hold on to her. If they didn't ransom her back to the duchy, the Hafners would likely hound them to the ends of the galaxy!

Chapter 570

Ves and Iris chatted about their lives for the rest of the evening. The Vesian guest designer got to hear how he won the Leemar Open Competition and became an apprentice to Master Olson. Ves got to learn that the MTA offered a staff position to Iris.

"That's an incredible opportunity!" Ves remarked. "Anyone who receives an invitation from the MTA will surely experience the best of what humanity has to offer! Why did you turn it down?"

"The MTA is a neutral organization. It's not a place for old loyalties. The MTA has made it abundantly clear that once you join their ranks, you'll never be able to return to your state. Anyone who accepts their offers has to sign a lifetime contract with them. Every bond has to be severed. This not only includes your sentiments for your state, but also entails a clean break from your friends and family."

To a person who cherishes her bonds, such a condition was unacceptable. Though no organization was truly neutral, the MTA came darned close, but it was not without a price.

"I heard that the MTA often assigns its staff members all over human space. Those who are serving in the rim are transferred to the galactic heartland and galactic center. Those who originate from the galactic center are shuffled far away from their prosperous stars."

"That's because it's too easy for an official from the MTA to act on their biases. If one day you happen to be promoted to a position overlooking the entire Komodo Star Sector, can you resist the temptation to make things easier for the Bright Republic?"

Ves was no saint. "I don't think anyone can remain neutral in that case."

"That's why the best way to sort out this problem is to send every association member at least fifty-thousand light years away from their home state. This is more than enough distance for their people to become estranged to their former states. Even if you can remain in contact with your family through the galactic net, the distance is so vast that even your closest family members will become distance concerns after a few decades."

It was certainly a drastic measure in his eyes. If Ves received the same offer on day, he too wouldn't be so eager to join their ranks. Although every member of the MTA had access to the best technologies, all of their work would one day become property of the MTA. There was no room for any individuality in their ranks.

"The Mech Trade Association is a great organization. They're the only bunch in the galaxy besides the CFA who have managed to impose some sensible rules across all of human space. It's just too bad that the Big Two haven't been able to take the next step."

Iris chuckled at his words. "It's been done before. The galaxy is way too big to be ruled by a single nation. It's pure fantasy at this point."

"Well, the future is still in flux. There's always a chance that humanity will one day unite under a single banner."

No state called themselves a country or a nation. This was because they lacked the confidence to proclaim their sovereignty over the territories they ruled.

It used to be different in the Age of Conquest. Various star nations all claimed to be the blessed stars of humanity and started to become conceited against other sovereign nations. The animosity that grew between the star nations eventually escalated from minor border conflicts into full-fledged wars, and from there these conflicts escalated into a race to extinction.

It was a good thing the MTA and CFA showed up at the end to smack some sense into the so-called star nations. Ever since then, the Big Two imposed a number of rules and taboos. Taking away the warships was especially fatal to the star nations. They could no longer hold themselves with their heads held high because without any warfleets to defend themselves against other warships, there were no longer capable of safeguarding their borders by themselves.

It was no wonder that people started referring to the emasculated nations as states.

"By the way, what was that about a gift earlier?"

"Ah, it almost slipped through my mind. I wanted to pass on a gift to you before you left. It's just something to commemorate your time as a guest designer among our ranks."

Ves pulled up a small square gift box and passed it over to Iris across the table.

"What's this?"

"Open it up." Ves encouraged her with a smile.

Iris eagerly opened up the box to reveal a strange gift. "What is this?"

"It's a miniature mech."

Ves spent a couple of hours fabricating a miniaturized mech that resembled the Hellcat hybrid knight. He could have fabricated it within seconds if he wanted to produce a toy, but Ves went the extra mile and created a partially functional mech that was scaled down to the size of a hand.

It was an excellent example of craftsmanship to Ves. He not only infused the model with his understanding of the Hellcat model, he also spent a lot of thought in shrinking down the different components and finding substitutes for unworkable materials. While there wouldn't be any human small enough to pilot the mech through the tiny cockpit, he did manage to incorporate a remote control feature into the tiny machine.

For some reason, Iris threw him a weird glance and shook her head. "It's an amusing curiosity. I can see that's it's pretty functional."

"If you supply its miniaturized nail drivers and missile launchers with appropriately-sized ordnance, the mini Hellcat can actually fire them out. And you best be careful of its sword. It's sharp enough to stab someone in the chest."

Though she initially treated the model casually, her eyebrows began to furrow as she studied it further. She rotated it carefully around her delicate fingers. "I recognize these materials. This is compressed armor! Did you waste exotics on this toy!?"

"How else will it be so authentic?"

She frowned a bit at that. "Won't you get in trouble with the Flagrant Vandals for reproducing one of their signature designs?"

"Oh, It's fine. The mini model isn't a replica of the Hellcat. I don't even have complete access to its design specifications. You can say it's my own spin on its concept. The miniature is cosmetically similar to the Hellcat, but its internals looks completely differently. If it is scaled up to full size, its specs won't be as good as the real deal."

The woman traced the surface of the tiny mech with her fingers. "There's something strange about this gift of yours. It's like the model is warm to the touch without actually feeling my hands getting hotter. It's like you've added in its air of pride and aggression! Why do I feel it's not just a toy?"

"That's because the model is a carrier of my own design philosophy." Ves sent her an enigmatic smile. "If you can study it, you might be able to glimpse what makes it so special."

Ves had struggled hard to come up with a gift that Iris would appreciate. He settled on handcrafting his own miniature mech according to his own style. This wouldn't be just a normal miniature, but one which exhibited a trace of X-Factor. Accomplishing that wasn't difficult for Ves, especially with his level of Spirituality.

As for choosing which design he wanted to adapt, he considered choosing his own designs such as the Blackbeak or the Crystal Lord, but eventually rejected those choices because they weren't associated with the Flagrant Vandals.

Only the Inheritor light skirmisher and the Hellcat hybrid knight deserved to be used. Of the two, Ves was heavily partial towards the Inheritor, but its status as a cheap, disposable mech to the Vandals could be seen as disrespectful to the recipient. He didn't want to give Iris the wrong impression.

The Hellcat was much more appropriate to be adapted because the spaceborn design enjoyed a very high status with the Vandals. The mech's archetype also allowed Ves to incorporate the lessons he learned from working with other hybrid knights designs such as the Caesar Augustus and the Marc Antony.

The only complication he faced was when he tried to create a miniature flight system. Ves had been forced to fudge a lot of things in order to get it to work without shooting the miniature into the ceiling.

"If you connect the miniature with your comm, you can control it from there. Try out its flight system."

Iris followed his instructions and keyed the miniature Hellcat to her comm. Like operating a toy, she activated the mech and made it over their table. She laughed as she played with the little mech.

"I haven't played with dolls since I was a kid!"

Several minutes later, Iris had her fill and switched the little mech off. She carefully put the machine back into the gift box it came with before setting it aside.

"So how is my gift?"

"It's more than I expected, Ves. It's surprisingly symbolic, in a way. I'm sorry to say that I haven't prepared a gift of my own for you."

"That's okay."

"No, I insist. Since you've given me such a personal gift, I won't feel easy until I pass you something of my own."

"Take your time with it, Iris. There's still time before we enter the Reinald Republic."

She nodded at that. "It's true that I'll have to say goodbye to you and the Vandals when we get there. The VRF still needs me back home, and I can't forsake my family. Don't worry though, I'm pretty sure we'll meet again."

"Why is that?"

"It's. A. Seeecret." She replied with a wink.

At first, Ves thought she only said that in a perfunctory manner, but evidently she knew something that he didn't. Would they truly see each other again someday?

Perhaps after a couple of decades or so. Ves threw his speculation to the back of his mind.

"It's getting late. Let's retire for the night."

The pair wished each other goodnight and returned to their separate cabins. Ves sighed as he changed his clothes and slipped into his bunk. He almost couldn't believe their escape from Vesian space had reached the endpoint. The border to the Reinald Republic was only a stellar stone's throw away.

He wondered what would happen next once they reached another foreign state. Reinald was a very different locale from the Bright Republic. Whereas his home state was a little boring, the Reinald Republic was full of life and excitement.

"At least, that's what all the promotions are saying."

The Reinald Republic was known as one of the liveliest states in the Frozen Leaf Alliance. Though the state wasn't very large or endowed with an abundant amount of exotics, it had become a nexus of sorts of different foreign influences.

As a small state, the Reinald Republic actively courted other states. Besides the neighboring Vesia Kingdom, Reinald managed to forge diplomatic and commercial bonds with almost every other third-rate state in the star sector.

Their location wasn't very central. In fact, it was actually a little troublesome to reach Reinald because there weren't any port systems in the vicinity.

To some people, this was an advantage. The Reinald Republic played host to many ventures of dubious legality. Thieves and gangs mingled with suspected pirates in Reinald's extensive grey and black markets. Whenever someone needed to get their hands on something dirty, they took a trip to Reinald.

For some reason, the MTA hadn't cracked down on all of the shady dealings that took place there. Some believed that the MTA tacitly contented to such trades as long as it wasn't too excessive. If the MTA decided to stomp on Reinald's illegal markets, the problem would only go somewhere else. In the thousands of years since humanity expanded into space, crime and piracy always accompanied their rise.

"Even the MTA can't do everything."

Chapter 571

The tense negotiation finally came to a conclusion. Although the terms were incredibly detailed and abstruse, the basic layout of the agreement sounded simple enough.

First, the Flagrant Vandals officially handed their custody over Venerable Foster to Peace for Hafner. In return, the Flagrant Vandals received a large amount of wealth and resources as well as undisclosed benefits in the Reinald Republic.

The former two quenched the severe shortages that crippled the Vandals from restoring their battle strength. The Vesian rebel group generously paid the Vandals a fortune in Reinaldan marks. Even though two marks was only worth one bright credit, the Vandals still received a considerable sum, though no one leaked out the exact figure.

As for the latter, no one questioned why Peace for Hafner was able to accomplish this promise. While the Reinald Republic opened its doors to every foreigner, that didn't mean they enjoyed a level playing field.

Native Reinaldans withheld many privileges that foreigners needed to work for in order to enjoy them. These privileges included lower tariffs, less onerous taxes, fewer import and export restrictions, lower waiting times, residency permits and so on.

According to Iris, while Reinald famously levied low tax rates, they were famous for nickeling and diming numerous conceivable charges. If any Reinaldan thought they could charge a fee for something, they would assuredly set a price for it. Most of the more ridiculous charges only applied to foreigners of course. This gave first-time visitors a huge shock once they found their bank accounts empty.

"Still, the Flagrant Vandals still got shafted."

The Vandals needed to repay the generosity provided by Peace for Hafner. Their preparations, intelligence gathering and acts of sabotage all contributed to the capture of Venerable Foster. Even though the Vandals suffered a disproportionate amount of losses, they had been pressured into giving up more meat to the sock puppet rebel group.

Peace for Hafner undoubtedly gained the most out of this trade. Their investment was fairly minimal, all considered. All of the subversive actions they performed during this operation had already been laid out far in advance. It took time to get the right people in the right positions. Besides a handful of highly placed spies, most of their agents were disposable.

Thus, through a minor effort, they reaped a huge reward. An extremely talent expert pilot in the form of Venerable Foster was worth at least twice as a fully mature expert pilot. Her potential and growth rate was astounding, so much so that everyone at the negotiation table regarded her as a potential ace candidate.

Once Peace for Hafner had taken over custody of the expert pilot, they hashed out a second agreement with the Hafner Duchy in turn. Although it would have been better in the long run for them to kill or keep Venerable Foster captive, they couldn't resist the enticement of rich rewards.

They already provided a lot of compensation to the Flagrant Vandals. If they didn't make up for their losses, they wouldn't be able to call themselves proper Reinaldans- ahem, Hafners.

The Vandals didn't get to hear the exact details of their agreement, but Ves could imagine that the Hafner Duchy bled a pretty penny. However, Ves also admired the farsightedness of the Duke of Hafner who currently suffered a lot of reproach from the rest of the Kingdom.

The value of a future ace candidate was immeasurably high, but that was only a faint possibility at best. For Hafner to grit their teeth and submit to naked extortion from a rebel group that had long been a thorn in their side, their foresight was very great!

Fortunately, this didn't concern the Vandals very much. The Hafner Duchy was situated on the wrong side of the Kingdom. If Venerable Foster ever became a scourge, she would definitely vent her fury on Reinald's proxy forces first. As for the Vandals, they were just a bunch of small fries in the greater scheme of things.

The Vandals kept their heads down throughout the final leg of their journey. After making use of the free passage offered by the Hafner Duchy, they met up with ships affiliated with Peace for Hafner and physically transferred over their prize. In return, the Vandal ships loaded up their cargo holds with lots of critical materials.

One more important event took place at that time. The Vesian Revolutionary Front recalled their liaison. An unremarkable corvette arrived in the star system within Reinald's borders and parked next to the Shield of Hispania.

Down at the combat carrier's hangar bay, Iris stood beside a shuttle. A pair of luggage coffers floated behind her, though she still held on to the gift box that contained a miniature mech.

"I can't believe I lived through all of the excitement." She sighed as she recalled what they went through. "It's a wonder the Flagrant Vandals managed to stay alive after surviving all of those battles."

Ves had accompanied her down the hangar bay. He shook his head when he heard her words.

"This is a one-off occasion for the Vandals. I don't think they'll pop up in the news after this. Every serviceman is tired to the bone. I hope Major Verle cuts his men some slack after we arrive at our final destination. Everyone is looking forward to spending some time on Reinald's famous pleasure planets to recuperate."

Reinald profiled itself as a dangerous but alluring state. The people that tended to visit the little Republic longed to experience some excitement in their lives. Through visiting the same planets frequented by pirates, dark mercenaries and gang members, they gained the opportunity to sample a life where someone might get rich overnight, only to receive a laser beam through their heads the next day.

Remarkably, many tourists departed from the little Republic with their hides intact. The same could not be said for their bank accounts, but when it came to personal safety, Reinald was surprisingly strict in performing their due diligence. Income from tourism was one of the legs that supported the scrappy little state.

Iris directed her luggage coffers to float inside the shuttle and secure themselves onto a rack. She then turned back to Ves. "I hope you enjoy your time in Reinald. Remember not to fall into a debt trap. You don't want to know what happens when you run out of money in Reinald space."

"What about you? Where will you be going?"

"I'm heading back to Vesian space, though the corvette I'll be boarding won't be crossing into Hafner. Their troops are still on high alert, you see."

"Understandable. Have a safe journey, then!"

"You too!"

Ves waved her shuttle goodbye as it lifted up from the deck. The stubby vehicle zipped through the energy screen that shielded the ship's interior from the ravages of space.

"I wonder what is next in store for the Vandals."

The next days, Ves busied himself with sorting out the abundant amount of materials provided by the rebels. The mech technicians already started repairing some of their more heavily damaged with the help of newly-fabricated parts.

In the meantime, every serviceman started looking forward to some much-needed shore leave.

Reinald's openness to foreigners allowed the battered and limping Verle Task Force to relax. For the first time in two harrowing months, they didn't have to scurry like rats in the forgotten corners of the galaxy. They could openly navigate towards brighter stars that was easier to reach via FTL. Instead of making multiple short hops, their FTL drives could traverse the same distance in a single larger jump.

"Thank the heavens!" An engineer cried out in relief one day at the mess hall. "Our FTL drives are awfully worn out. Compressing so many hops in a short amount of time will do our drives no good. Every ship needs some time in the yard, but our logistics ships are in an especially critical state."

The Beggar's Bounty and the Linever Swan both relied on jury-rigged FTL drives specced for a different class of starships. Though the chief engineers managed to keep the logistics ships together, their incompatible FTL drives were endless sources of trouble. Each time the two fat ships emerged out of FTL, the task force was forced to endure several hours of delay on top of the ordinary FTL drive cycle time.

Therefore, Ves had a strong guess that the Vandals should be charting a course towards one of Reinald's major star systems. Only a highly developed star system with plentiful ship and repair yards would be able to satisfy their material demands.

"I wonder what will happen next."

Many of the Vandals didn't think about it, but Ves hadn't forgotten that reaching the Reinald Republic wasn't their end goal. Their true mission began once they reached a particular destination within the Reinald Republic. Ves guessed that whatever was about to happen should take place at their next port of call.

His office appeared much emptier after Iris had left. As Ves quietly allocated different portions of materials, he missed the opportunity to discuss his work with another mech designer.

"A second opinion really helps. Now that my only assistant has left, there's nothing there for me to bounce my ideas."

Ves scratched his head and considered taking on another assistance. If the task force wasn't dissolved after the end of this journey, then he would consider the matter seriously.

"It's too bad I'm not very close to the other mech designers."

Iris provided an ideal foil to him because she was knowledgeable yet also an outsider. She could provide honest advice to him while avoiding any conflicts of interest.

"Mr. Vedette is too junior to provide much help for me. His studies are still too far behind. Pierce is more capable in that regard, but he's the only person I can trust to keep watch over the Beggar's Bounty."

As for everyone else, Ves didn't even consider them. They either lacked the qualifications or didn't engender a lot of trust.

For now, Ves had to make do by himself. It was fortunate that he was already used to working alone, so the solitude hardly impacted his productivity.

He still reminded himself to stop relying on himself all the time when he went back to running his own business. While working with no one else allowed him to maintain his many secrets, once the scope of his business grew bigger, he couldn't shoulder everything by himself any longer.

A few days later, the Verle Task Force finally arrived in a highly-populated star system. The Harkensen System was a prominent trade nexus of the Reinald Republic. It appealed openly to outfits and provided many services useful to them. Anyone with enough money could procure enough starships and mechs to conquer another planet.

They key word here was money.

Without money, you couldn't even buy the cheapest nutrient pack in Reinald! The Republic was never one for charity. The Harkensen System was a little more rowdy than most due to the prevalence of mech pilots that visited its planets.

The Harkensen System wasn't a port system and didn't feature any remarkable mineral deposits. What it had instead was three promising terrestrial planets, all of which had been terraformed for human habitation. Each planet offered something good.

Harkensen I was a tourist destination. The slightly hot planet featured fantastic natural sceneries and splendid beaches. Many mech pilots that have gone through a frigid campaign flocked to Harkensen I to unwind. The planet offered many pleasures and various forms of entertainment to those who brought money.

Harkensen II didn't offer much to foreigners. It was the seat of the local government as well as the primary habitation planet for local citizens. A lot of Reinaldans lived on the planet, and only the most esteemed foreigners received the right to reside on this planet.

Harkensen III lacked most of the fun that could be found on Harkensen I, but it was the planet where the bulk of the trade was being conducted. It featured extensive market places, trading halls and more. Many shipyards orbited the planet, providing many services to various fleets or those who sought to commission a ship.

The Verle Task Force made a beeline towards Harkensen III.

Chapter 572

When Ves first received an introduction of the Harkensen System, he felt some deja-vu. In his eyes, the Harkensen System was the poor man's version of the Bright Republic's Bentheim Region.

"Harkensen III is a pale copy of Bentheim. Harkensen II is like Rittersberg but a bit less snobby. Harkensen I is like Moira's Paradise but without the aquatic culture."

Still, copies or not, each of the planets provided something different to the star system. Having them concentrated in a single star system provided enormous conveniences to visitors, especially the bigger ones that brought a whole fleet.

Ves wouldn't be able to see the thousands of ships that flew back and forth from the viewports, but he easily called up a chart that showed how many vessels were present in the Harkensen System.

The chart depicted thousands of dots, each of which represented a fully capable starship. Many of them were in transit. They either transitioned at the edge of the system and burned their way to the interior, or finished their business at one of the planets and burned towards one of the many highly congested Lagrange points.

One indicator of success to a star system was to see whether congestion took place at their Lagrange points. Considering that the ships needed to wait up to an hour for them to get their turn, Harkensen's success only paled in comparison to Bentheim.

"This is truly a melting pot of different origins."

Ves casually read through the registries of the ships present in the system. Only a portion hailed from Reinald. Many came from other third-rate states such as the Roppo Principality or the Council Stars of Lisz.

He even spotted lots of trade ships bearing the flag of the Bright Republic! They mostly traveled in convoys escorted by foreign mercenary corps.

A significantly greater amount of Vesian trading vessels flew back and forth as well. It couldn't be helped as the Reinald Republic was a direct neighbor of the Vesia Kingdom. Even though relations between the two states were rather frosty, that didn't hinder the pursuit of benefits among their trading conglomerates.

"Earn money first! What? Pirates? Who are you calling pirates?! I'm an honest Reinaldan, I swear to my mother and grandmother! Hey, I've got a great deal for you! This five percent discount is yours!"

Although the Vesians and Brighters waged a very intense war against each other, the ships that hailed from the two wartorn states behaved especially discrete.

Neither side attempted to bump into each other, not that their cargo ships could deal a lot of damage in the first place. Reinald's traffic managers also paid a lot of attention to every ship's origin. They did their best to separate ships from rival states from each other and forced them to adhere to separate routes.

The Verle Task Force received a lot of attention from the Honored Ones, which was Reinald's mech military. Every unit of the Honored Ones bore an emblem that consisted of a silhouette of ancient viking warriors.

Just after the Vandals arrived, a patrol squadron flew alongside the Vandals and transferred over a bunch of inspectors. Every mech aboard every Vandal ship needed to be sealed. Ves had already arranged the mech technicians to seal the mechs beforehand, so the inspectors found very few problems.

Of course, people always slipped up. Some of the seals put on damaged mechs didn't look very proper. These mechs could still inflict a lot of damage at their current state, so the mech technicians worked overtime to fix their mistakes.

"With the problem cases taken care of, I don't see any further problems, Mr. Larkinson." An Honored One bearing the uniform of an inspector spoke. His accent bore the clipped and harsh tones of a typical Reinaldan accent.

"I'm glad our condition finally meets your approval." Ves replied as they both arrived at the airlock in one of the corridors of the Shield of Hispania. "We're all looking forward to entering the Harkensen System."

"You certainly deserve it! I've eagerly followed mech regiment's exploits. You Vandals sure gave the Vesians a good thrashing."

"It wasn't without cost."

"We understand." The inspector nodded with a smile. "The Harkensen System is always open to warriors with honor such as the Flagrant Vandals. Our berths are already reserved for the arrival of your ships. I understand that many deals are in the works. I hope your mech regiment enjoys doing business here!"

Ves scratched his head once he saw the inspector off. From the information he received from men aboard the other ships, the Reinaldans only exerted their efforts on detecting weapons of mass destruction and making sure the mechs bore the proper seals. Their inspectors barely paid attention to anything else, including other threats or contraband.

Their conduct carried an implicit message. Any visitors could bring as much shady stuff as they wanted, as long as they made an effort into keeping their contraband out of sight.

Ves had no doubt that at least a quarter of the ships paying a visit to the Harkensen System sought to offload their contraband to the grey or black markets. Frankly speaking, the Harkensen System appealed more upright outfits that largely worked within the boundaries of the law. Their grey market was far more prominent than their black market.

"If you want to see the really bad stuff, you should visit the Mulendrone System instead." Iris once told him. "That place is a cesspool of humanity. There's no greater black market in the neighborhood than the one in Mulendrone. Everyone there is a wolf in sheep's clothing. If the pirates don't make such a good effort to disguise themselves, the MTA would have imploded Mulendrone's star by now."

Fortunately, the Flagrant Vandals carried the official sanction of the Mech Corps. Despite the lukewarm support they received from headquarters, the Vandals didn't have to suffer the ignomies of being branded as outlaws.

Now that the Vandals finally entered neutral space, it was hard for them to shake off the habit to regard everything outside with hostility. Many servicemen had been so inured in war that they found it difficult to adjust to a neutral star system.

At the next conference meeting, Major Verle explained their upcoming plans.

"We will be spending up to four weeks in the Harkensen System. This won't be enough time for us to restore our full strength, but we're down almost five-hundred mech pilots, so it won't help us if we have more mechs than we can make use of. From what the repair yards we've contracted have promised, four weeks is enough to restore the FTL drives of our logistics ships."

Both their landbound and spaceborn contingents endured heavy damage in the previous journey. Though the Vandals finally made it out alive, they permanently lost almost half of their precious mech pilots.

These were Brighters who trained from ten years old to pilot a mech. After graduating, they entered into the Mech Corps and underwent another round of intensive training before they were assigned to their mech regiments. Although the Flagrant Vandals might not have been very prestigious, their training standards wasn't too far off from the premier mech regiments.

Each mech pilot admitted into the Mech Corps was a treasure. Those with poor skills, insufficient aptitude or attitude problems would be rejected right out of hand during normal times. Everyone who made it through the initial inspection possessed the right qualities to become a soldier.

These people weren't as common as everyone thought. Many potentates failed to live up to their promise and could only find a piloting job in the private sector. Those who had what it took to join the military belonged to a privileged class that wasn't easy replaced.

The shortage of qualified mech pilots pained the Vandals who attended the meeting. It was impossible for them to refresh their ranks in Reinald space. They had to go all the way back to the Bright Republic to receive replenishment from the Mech Corps. Until then, they had to make do with half as much mech pilots.

Ves raised his hand. "Sir, how extensively do you want to restore our mechs? Do you wish to contract out their repair to the workshops on Harkensen III or do you want to keep it in-house?"

"At the end of our downtime, I want to see five-hundred pristine mechs." Major Verle grinned savagely at Ves. "It's very important for us to pair each mech pilot with a mech that is ready for war. Since it's unlikely we can accomplish this aboard our own ships while they are all under repair, we'll have to resort to outside workshops to do the work."

"Are the Reinaldans principled enough to repair our mechs without fudging them in any way? To be honest, sir, everything I've heard about the Reinaldans makes me think that it's better to keep everything under our control."

"You make a fair point, Mr. Larkinson, but we aren't strangers to doing business with the Reinaldans. As with everything, whenever possible we should trust but verify. The workshops and shipyards that we are working with have already agreed to let Vandals observe their work. This is important as many components integrated within our ships and mechs are rather sensitive. We'll let the Reinaldans take care of the less-important repair work while our own men will perform the critical repairs."

That sounded like a messy arrangement to Ves. "This is going to be difficult to arrange, sir. We'll have to rent a secure workshop on the surface of Harkensen III to do all that work."

"Then it is a good thing you have a lot of experience in this area. Since you've founded a mech business before, setting up a temporary workshop won't be any trouble."

Ves smiled thinly at Major Verle. "I will do my best, sir."

Major Verle turned to a more anticipated matter. "Let's move on to shore leave. We'll be adopting a rotating schedule for every Vandal. No one is excepted from this, not even you, Chief Avanaeon! Go have some fun on Harkensen I. I practically order it. Perhaps you will finally see how much renown we've gained in the greater galaxy."

Some other staffers stepped in to lay out a detailed schedule for shore leave. Everyone pretty much enjoyed a two-week period of downtime where they could do as they pleased.

Those who wanted to enjoy a pure vacation would doubtlessly flock to the entertainment paradise of Harkensen I. Every Vandal received a fixed salary in bright credits which they could easily convert into Reinaldan marks. With the bump in payments due to serving during wartime, no one should be short on money.

Those who couldn't divorce themselves from mechs could hang around at the endless amount of mech pilot establishments on Harkensen III. The third planet from the sun also featured a robust mech duelling scene. Though only specialized and registered mech athletes were allowed to compete in the major mech arenas, the planet was notorious for hosting many underground fighting venues.

A Vandal mech pilot with a bone to itch would surely pay a visit there. Major Verle didn't approve of these fights, but he could hardly control his own men. A couple of Vandals would doubtlessly chew off more than they could bite and lose their lives in the process.

"As far as possible, make sure that your men won't get in trouble with the law. They can drink until their liver needs a regeneration treatment, they can pump their veins full of stimulants for all I care, but whatever they do, I better not hear any stories of a Vandal getting into a fight with Reinaldans!"

As guests of the Reinald Republic, the Flagrant Vandals needed to retain some scruples to their hosts. The tolerance of the Reinald Republic was fairly high when it came to scuffles between different groups of foreigners, but once a proper Reinaldan got hurt, the Honored Ones cracked down hard on the offenders.

Chapter 573

One of the major concerns for letting the Vandals loose for some shore leave was that anything could happen to them. For example, someone might attempt to kidnap in order to beat some intelligence out of their mouths. Some drunk Vesians might bump into some drunk Vandals and come to blows with each other. Some Vandals might even be bribed into becoming a spy or a turncoat.

All manner of dangerous outcomes may become possible if the Vandals enjoyed free reign in the Harkensen System.

This wasn't the first time they were being let loose in a neutral star system. They also knew how to be discreet during times of war. However, the combination of both resulted in a potentially calamitous situation.

Major Verle announced some precautions to mitigate the danger. "To prevent any untoward incidents, everyone will form groups of ten. Nobody is allowed to wander off by themselves. Even if you go to the restroom, at least one other Vandal should be close at hand. Their comms will make sure that everyone abides by these restrictions. The moment someone goes missing or wanders out of range, every comm will send out an alert to the men and our internal network."

This placated those who looked as if they objected to exposing their men to various risks. While these measures didn't plug all the loopholes, they at least made it a lot harder for anyone with nefarious intentions to project designs on the Vandals. They not only need to take care of ten Vandals in unison, but they also needed to hack or jam the comms at the same time, all the while preventing bystanders from getting the word out.

As long as the groups of Vandals lingered in public areas, they wouldn't be exposed to too much risk. Ves knew that much of their confidence lay in their military-issued comms, which contained a lot of strong capabilities.

Usually, the servicemen could only access a couple of core functions on their comm. Features such as browsing the galactic net, taking notes, sending messages to someone or even playing some games would be locked behind a stringent set of rules. Unless someone reached a higher rank or received permission from a senior officer, they wouldn't be able to get up to mischief with their comms.

This mistakenly gave the Vandals the impression that they wore the cheapest and most basic model of comms.

The truth was very different. Ves estimated the cost of the comms to be at least five-hundred times more expensive than a standard civilian comm model. The Vandals fabricated the comms in-house, so Ves based this valuation from the expensive materials and trace amounts of exotics incorporated in the wrist devices.

Paired with exclusive software, these comms resisted jamming and intrusion much more effectively than any civilian comm model. In addition, their networking range reached across an entire city as long as they received a little assistance. Any attempts to pervert them would require a supreme hacker or a large-scale effort that couldn't be hidden.

The military comms doubtlessly possessed a lot more functions than that, but Ves didn't have the qualifications to know anything more. Information about the comms and any other restricted technology used by the Vandals was only available on a need-to-know basis.

"There will be Vandals who will wish to wander off regardless." A mech officer said. "I know the lads. Some will want to sneak off to the underground arenas. Others crave more extreme pleasures."

"They can do what they want, but only if all ten of them go. If someone wants to take a risk, either they rope their entire group, or nobody goes. As soon as someone separates from the group, the rest of the group will be penalized and have their shore leave cancelled immediately. As for the wayward Vandal, we'll send out a batch of security officers to haul him back and throw him into the brig."

Very practically, Major Verle mentioned nothing about visiting the less-than-legal establishments in the Harkensen System. Considering that most tourists visited the Harkensen System to enter these shady joints, the commanding officer could hardly prevent his men from following suit.

It was a good thing that the Reinaldans in the Harkensen System developed a reputation for safety. The honored ones maintained law and order in the light, while various Reinaldan cartels did the same in the dark. No Reinaldan wanted to upset the apple cart.

The rest of the meeting devolved into assigning different tasks to everyone. Even though every serviceman enjoyed a two-week vacation, the entire personnel roll would only get to enjoy it on a rotating basis. This meant that at least half of the Vandals remained at their disposal.

"Captain Rakeshir, I'd like you to do the usual and supervise the repair and refit process of our ships."

"Consider it done, major." The ship captain saluted. "However, four weeks isn't enough time to complete all the repairs. We need to set some priorities."

"Focus on the basics first, captain. Increase the reliability of our ships. They need to be ready to keep going for at least a year without requiring another stint in the drydocks."

"Understood, sir."

The current duty of the ship officers was to babysit the ships while they underwent repairs. Many of the combat carriers sustained an extensive amount of surface damage, so their entire shells needed renewing. The two logistics ships urgently required new FTL drives as well.

All of this work needed to be done in conjunction with the repair yards orbiting Harkensen III that offered their services to anyone that paid. Of course, the Vandals could just hand over the ships to the repair yards and call it a day, but letting Reinaldans crawl over their ships without supervision was a recipe for disaster.

Even if the shipwrights behaved honestly, someone might still attempt to sabotage the ship or cut some corners. The worst outcomes would be to derive the exact blueprint or embed spying devices deep within the structure of the ships.

A Vandal needed to be present every step of the way. They also had to undertake the tasks that outsiders shouldn't meddle with. This required lots of manpower, so even if half of the personnel roll didn't get to enjoy their vacations, they shouldn't be short of work.

Ves already received his own duties earlier. He would be responsible for managing the mechs, much of which required extensive repairs and refit as well. He couldn't do this alone, so he received permission to call up as much mech technicians as he required.

As for the mech officers, they would be responsible for supervising the mech pilots as they underwent a special training. Harkensen III offered many different training programs that focused on developing very specific combat skills. These training programs mostly accommodated private outfits, but the more prestigious training institutes also offered various regimental training programs.

Peace for Hafner provided a free pass to these training programs for the entire mech regiment as a concession to the Vandals.

All in all, despite handing over their ships and mechs to the Reinaldans, the Vandals wouldn't go idle. Too much work needed to be done, but for what?

As the meeting ended and everyone went their separate ways, Ves mulled over why the Vandals chose to undertake such an extensive refit in the Harkensen System.

"Four weeks is too short to restore everything up to full strength, but it's way too long for critical repairs."

If the Vandals wanted to fix up their ships in a jiffy, two weeks would be enough to make the Beggar's Bounty and the Linever Swan space worthy again. As long as the pair of logistics ships became safe enough to undergo a long journey, the Vandal fleet could easily travel back home by following a huge detour around Vesian space.

Yet for some reason the Vandals planned something else. Ves started to guess that the Vandals might not be going home anytime soon.

Four weeks devoted to restoring the combat capability of the task force meant that they would be ready for another operation immediately after. While there was no way the Vandals could supplement five-hundred mech pilots all of a sudden, their current strength was still sufficient to perform some missions that required less mechs.

Ves strongly believed the Vandals ran other plans. He hadn't forgotten about Lord Javier and his unannounced captivity on the Shield of Hispania. There was no way that Javier would stay aboard the combat carrier when she entered a repair yard.

"Perhaps bringing him to the Harkensen System is the entire point of the journey."

The Harkensen System provided lots of services. All sorts of influences congregated here as well. While the Reinaldan cartels held sway over Harkensen's underground, many other gangs maintained a small presence in their markets.

He could guess all day for the reasons why Lord Javier needed to be brought to the Harkensen System. Ves obviously wasn't included among the innermost circle. He didn't even know who was privy to the truth, though Major Verle and Captain Rakeshir would definitely be among their ranks.

Perhaps their stay in the Harkensen System might not go quietly at all. Lord Javier was not a regular noble and obviously knew some very important secrets.

"I'll have to take precautions."

First, he returned to lonely office. Right now, he needed to plan for the repair and refit of around five-hundred mechs. Ideally, Ves wanted to squeeze in at least a hundred more mechs in order to increase their stockpile of spares.

"Not all mech pilots die on the battlefield. Many of them are able to eject in time. If we don't have any spares at hand, those mech pilots won't be able to reenter the battle."

During longer engagements, extra spares increased the staying power of the Vandals. In addition, spares enabled the Vandals to maintain their combat strength even after suffering a substantial amount of damage. The Vandals would be able to rotate their mechs as they got damaged and repair them while the mech pilots made do with spares.

Before, the Vandals hadn't been able to build up any spares. Mechs constantly got damaged and mech pilots would inevitably be benched when there weren't enough mechs to go around. Ves didn't want to see such kinds of waste, so he planned on restoring at least six-hundred mechs within four weeks.

"This is an ambitious plan, but with so much power at my disposal, I don't believe I can't meet my target."

The important point about this task was that Major Verle gave Ves a lot of leeway on how to go about it. He could partner up with the same mech companies that the Vandals had contracted before, or he could shop around and find better alternatives.

Ves grinned at the thought. He had founded his own mech business and grew it from a one-man operation into a multi-billion credit corporation. Although he passed over much of the administrative burden to the retainers sent by the Larkinson Family, that didn't mean he remained blind the to the vagaries of the mech industry.

"There won't be any rip-offs on my watch."

He knew the business from inside-out and could tell the scammers from the real deal. Having been warned by Iris on how unscrupulous Reinaldans could be when it came to business, Ves dug in deep in the list of mech companies they could partner with for this massive repair effort.

Red flags immediately showed up.

"Ugh. The original partners are no good."

The Flagrant Vandals evidently visited the Harkensen System a few times, though none of the visits happened recently. In fact, the last time a Vandal detachment entered this system was more than a decade ago.

They entrusted their mechs and ships to various companies with ties to the Bright Republic. This was a prudent choice, all considered, but the companies took advantage of this and charged a steep premium without delivering any material benefits.

They basically ripped off the Vandals in the open.

"This is no good." Ves shook his head. He had a lot of work in store if he wanted to make this awful situation right. "We shouldn't have to pay a premium for reliable service."

Chapter 574

If Ves had to describe the mech industry, he would equate it to a pyramid.

The massive trans-galactic corporations sat at the top. Their businesses spanned entire star sectors and copies of their supremely optimised mechs got sold by the trillions every day.

The next tier of companies consisted of trans-sector corporations. Their activities transcended the borders between star sectors, and they always took advantage of the different conditions of each star sector.

Further down the pyramid, there were the sector-wide, state-wide, system-wide and planet-based corporations. The lower their tiers, the more of them existed. Technically, the Living Mech Corporation could be counted as a sector-wide corporation, which gave his company a lot of prestige.

At the bottom-most tier, the MTA couldn't even count how many independent mech workshops operated within all of human space. The base of the pyramid was doubtlessly incredibly wide.

Yet the top of the pyramid was rather fat as well. A lot of competition existed in each tier, and no single mech corporation held absolute sway over their markets unless a state had conferred a monopoly to them. All of this activity led to a very high level of friction.

Even with the MTA taking an active hand in regulating all of the mech businesses, their energy could only be spent on so many concerns. They shouldered a lot of responsibilities and generally didn't bother with petty offenses. The association basically handed over responsibility of policing such matters to the local states.

Some states proved to be less diligent than others. Particularly in third-rate states, enforcement of all kinds of rules could be spotty or lax. This opened the door to all sorts of scummy business practices.

A basic way for a company to stiff a customer was to do a sub-par job. For example, instead of delivering a mech worth 40 million Reinaldan marks, they secretly cut some corners and delivered a mech that should actually be valued at 30 million marks instead.

Of course, any mech business that wanted to sell a first-hand mech that was fresh off the production line needed to send it to the MTA for certification. This provided some protection to consumers, but this limited activity didn't cover the entire scope of the mech industry.

"Buying a first-hand mech is safe. Everything else is fraught with scams or rip offs."

If someone wanted to sell a second-hand mech, they could send it back to the MTA to certify it again for a fee.

Most didn't want to pay for the fee or lacked the funds to cover the cost.

Cheapskates that wanted to have it all therefore tended to sell their second-hand mechs directly to buyers through various ways. Of course, without a stamp of approval from the MTA, buyers needed to rely on their own judgement to determine whether they bought the product they expected to receive.

Whiny stories about customers who thought they bought a thoroughbred only to receive mule was widespread on the galactic net. If Ves wanted to have a laugh, he could always visit the forums where scam victims vented their frustrations.

"The second-hand mech market is fraught with both risk and opportunity."

Sometimes, the seller screwed up. Either they needed to get rid of their mechs in a hurry, or they didn't fully understand the value of the mechs they wanted to sell. Keen buyers could easily pick up a bargain if they watched the market closely. Some fallen mech designers even shifted their careers into full-time mech appraisers to speculate on second-hand mechs or advise other buyers into making a prudent purchase.

"The repair market is also surrounded with pitfalls."

Mechs suffered damage all the time. They were primarily built for battle, so it shouldn't be any surprise for them to return in a less-than-pristine state. Mech technicians in the employ of smaller outfits only possessed the capacity to perform surface repairs. Anything deeper and more extensive required a full-fledged maintenance department or help from others.

Lots of mech repair businesses set up shop on each planet with a large concentration of mechs and mech pilots. One of the hallmarks of the repair industry was that it suffered from a rock-bottom reputation. Not only were they widely-known as scammers, the sector was also plagued by a lack of capability.

Those in charge of the repair work in these businesses mostly turned out to be retired chief technicians or failed mech designers. Neither of these two types of people possessed any remarkable capabilities compared to a successful mech designer such as Ves. Their prestige was low and their profit margins were even lower due to all of the competition.

The only reliable repair businesses only accepted fixed contracts from long-standing customers. Since the Vandals only visited the Harkensen System sporadically, they fell outside of their ideal customer base.

Ves shook his head and readied himself for a long research slog. "I'll have to go dumpster diving."

He cast his sight on the larger businesses at first. Though they always charged more than their smaller counterparts, they at least had a reputation to uphold since their revenue was substantial and were responsible for employing thousands of mech technicians.

"The only problem is that their premium is too much."

Picking a larger company wasn't necessarily a good deed. These companies ripped their customers off in more sophisticated ways. If a customer brought up any wrongdoing, the company could basically shrug them off without suffering any loss of business as long as it didn't happen too often.

Many of these repair businesses also had deep ties to various organizations and influences, chief among them was the Reinaldan government. The risk of bumping into a spy or informer was too high for Ves to entrust them with fixing up the Vandal mechs. Even under supervision, there were too many ways for mech technicians to fudge a component or two.

"The smaller businesses aren't any better either."

Two problems resulted from contracting the smaller companies.

First, they only possessed a limited capacity. As Ves wanted to completely restore at least six-hundred mechs, he would need to contract over a hundred workshops. This kind of sprawl was too burdensome to deal with, as each workshop only employed a few mech technicians each that could only do so much work at a time.

The second and more serious problem was that the smaller workshops largely remained small due to their lack of competitiveness. This mostly translated into lack of capability or incompetence.

None of the mech models that the Vandals worked with were simple. The designs of military-grade mechs incorporated lots of sophisticated components and systems that washed out novice mech designers shouldn't be allowed to get in touch with. Although the smaller businesses often charged the lowest rates, in this case you really got what you paid for. Ves could likely get a better result if he entrusted the work to a monkey with a multitool.

In addition, their lack of business made them highly susceptible to bribes. Anyone that wanted to fudge the Vandal mechs could easily throw a bag of Reinaldan marks at these money-starved beggars. The bag didn't even have to be too big to get a good result.

"This leaves me with the midrange repair businesses."

Overall, the mid-sized companies fell between the two extremes in terms of pricing and other criteria. Ves judged that most employed sufficiently competent mech technicians to perform competent repairs. Yet he also needed to maintain his vigilance around them. They might not be as shrewd as their larger counterparts, but having grown to such a scale gave them a good instinct of how far they could push the boundaries.

Picking the right companies involved a careful selection process where Ves had to dig through the details of each company within the right range. Harkensen III possessed quite a lively mech scene that wasn't too worse off compared to Bentheim, so he had about a hundred companies to consider.

Rick's Repairs, Lovo-Opto Mech Restoration, the Mech Fixers, Argulant Workshop, the names went on and on. Most of the official data only told an incomplete story to Ves. He had to dig deep in the galactic net to get a better picture of their business practices. He ruled out any company with a mountain of recent complaints, which happened to cut his list in half.

Ves then looked at the price quotes, and he cut off those who charged too much of a premium or those who had a habit of adding too many surcharges on their work. This cut his list in half yet again.

He then picked out five companies that delivered decent work while adhering to fairly competitive prices.

"This may not be the most optimal selection, but it will do."

The only thing he couldn't investigate was their discretion. Perhaps one company was secretly a front for the Vesians, while another opened up their database to a Reinaldan intelligence agency. It was impossible for Ves to uncover these kinds of secrets from the galactic net.

"Paying a visit to each of the five repair businesses will take up too much time."

Considering that relatively few customers complained about the businesses he selected, Ves thought it would be sufficient if the Vandals supervised and participated in the repairs.

Ves straightened out the details in the next hours. He sorted out the mechs according to their type, their damage and the ease of repair. He then contacted each business and sounded them out. Some companies preferred to work with light mechs, while other companies didn't allow any outsiders to interfere with their work.

"What a mess."

All of these complications made him want to tear his hair out. Ves had to go back to his list and select other companies to substitute for his initial selections that didn't pan out.

His persistence eventually paid off. He came to a preliminary agreement with five companies that looked good to Ves. Once he determined there was a basis of cooperation with his final selection, he passed the details over to the logistics department to hash out the details.

"My work is done. Lieutenant Commander Soapstone should be able to negotiate some good deals with the parameters I've provided."

His job as a mech designer only extended to mechs. Issues concerning contracts, purchasing, financing and the like fell under the purview of the bean counters of the Vandals. At the very least, Ves expected them to be glad that his careful market research resulted in substantial savings.

"If the bean counters don't drop the ball, they should achieve cost savings up to sixty percent."

This would bring the final cost of repairs down to a competitive sum. Ves leaned back against his chair and mentally patted himself on the back. Only a mech designer who entered the mech industry and engaged in many transactions in the private market could be so astute. The careerist mech designers in the Mech Corps were practically dummies in comparison.

"Careerists have their own strengths, but when it comes to the private market, even a Journeyman like Alloc doesn't know any better."

His good mood evaporated after Alloc's name popped up in his mind. The Journeyman Mech Designer still hadn't showed up on any lists. Two months since the Detemen Operation, the Vesians hadn't sent any indications that he was a prisoner of war.

After so much time without any news, Ves had to assume the worst. Though he held onto lots of impractical beliefs, he could be highly practical in other matters. He wasn't the type to hope in vain.

Alloc's status as missing in action appeared feebler and feebler as time went on. In his mind, Ves had already replaced his status with deceased.

Though the Vandals lost a lot of mech pilots recently, none of their deaths really mattered to Ves. Yet the loss of a single mech designer impacted him a lot. Though mech designers were technically noncombatants, the battlefield was far too cruel. It reminded him of the danger of serving with the Vandals.

Harkensen System looked peaceful at first glance. Yet Ves felt as if he had entered into another battlefield.

Chapter 575

The repair businesses the Flagrant Vandals went to bed with all operated out of large workshops. As the Vandals started transporting their damaged mechs to the workshops, Ves constantly had to rotate in between the workshops to prevent the people there from screwing things up.

"Don't let this mech lay on its back!"

"Where's the weapons on this mech? It came here with a sword and shield, what do you mean they never arrived?!"

"Goddammit, we contracted you to fix these mechs up, not damage them even further due to rough handling!"

The level of service that each of the five repair businesses provided was worse than Ves had thought. Over the past several days, he realized he had still been a little too naive about the types of characters that operated these joints.

Ves had thought that the repair businesses would operate akin to the maintenance departments of the Flagrant Vandals or another regular mech regiment. At worst, the owners ran their businesses like the workshop of a mercenary corps.

In actual fact, sometimes Ves felt as if he returned among the ranks of Walter's Whalers. The sheer level of idiocy and sloppiness truly astounded him. How could these repair businesses even stay afloat with this level of service?

"No wonder why most of them charge so much. It's not just to rip off their customers, but also to compensate for the incredible amount of inefficiencies in their operations."

It wasn't as if the owners liked to run a tighter ship, but the problem was that they didn't know how. As head designer, Ves threw his weight around whenever he visited their workshops, and he often got to meet with them in person.

All of them appeared to be exactly as he expected, mech designers or chief technicians who lacked the competence to work for more prestigious organizations.

The most loathsome of the bunch was a former chief technician called Lester Tobruk. He bought up a bankrupt repair business on the cheap and somehow hadn't managed to ruin it yet, though it hadn't grown any further either.

The mech technicians that Mr. Tobruk employed all followed after their boss. They lacked the skills, discipline or temperament to get hired by the military or a private outfit. Even the worst gangs rejected these abject failures.

"The repair industry is the trash heap of the mech industry." He concluded. "This is where all the losers go when they can't get any lower."

Hounding the incompetent employees whenever they misstepped was extremely frustrating and tiring for Ves. Eventually, he shifted over this responsibility to the other mech designers. Though they weren't as eagle-eyed as Ves, they at least possessed the skills to spot something wrong in time.

Mech designers who used to work in the private sector caught on quickly enough. People like Pierce only needed a few guidelines to do an adequate job in supervising the repairmen and direct the Vandal mech technicians to lend a hand as well.

"This is kind of a sad thing to see." Pierce shook his head as he watched a repairmen clean up after spilling over a barrel of liquid coolant. "In the Friday Coalition, the lowest standard of mech technicians is the same as a mech technician from the Mech Corps. This is only the starting level, and it's barely enough to work for a small-time gang in Coalition space."

Ves sighed. "Your Friday Coalition is larger and more prosperous than dozens of third-rate states. You guys have the luxury of training aspiring mech technicians to a higher standard. We don't have the population and training methods to match your standards."

"The Coalition isn't my home anymore. It's wrong for you to call it my state."

"You still enjoy Coalition citizenship, do you not?"

"I'm only an average citizen of the Gauge Dynasty. If not for my father, my citizenship would have been revoked. The Gauge Dynasty is extremely strict on these kinds of matters. As the most powerful partner in the Coalition, too many people wish to be a part of them. An exile like me doesn't deserve to be counted among the strong."

Hearing Pierce put himself down all the time really exasperated Ves. Unfortunately, he couldn't think of a way to cheer up his colleague. This was because they measured their self-worth according to their capabilities. Even after he borrowed a couple of books from the central database, Pierce had only improved by a snail's pace despite receiving a couple of free tutoring sessions.

From what Ves had observed, Pierce's potential might not have been exceptional, but his learning ability was still within an average range. The only problem was that he competed against his brilliant siblings ever since he was born. The shadow they cast upon his mind had affected his mentality.

At least Pierce could perform his latest duty without problems. The same could not be said for some of the other mech designers. The careerists in particular had a tendency to overestimate the competency of the repairmen. They were too used to somewhat disciplined mech technicians that had gone through basic military training.

"Why are you bothering me with this duty? It's pure babysitting, sir!" Mercator yelled at Ves. He didn't even hold back his overall contempt at Ves and his current locale.

"You either do your job, or take responsibility if you don't. The lives of our mech pilots depend on the condition of these mechs."

"These grease monkeys already signed a contract with us, sir. I don't see the need to spend so much effort on supervising them. It's redundant!"

"Well, the Vandals won't be able to ask for refunds from the repair companies once our mechs start to blow up all of a sudden on the battlefield. Look, if you don't care about the welfare of our mech pilots, then think about who will be held responsible."

This shut the other fellow up. Mercator couldn't afford to have too many stains on his record if he wanted to climb up the ladder.

After sorting out the careerists, Ves took a step back and let the other mech designers be the main people on point. Though a lot of mistakes still occurred, everything went according to schedule. Planning everything out took a lot of effort from him. He meticulously distributed Vandal men and mechs to each of the repair businesses according to their specialities and shipped in the appropriate materials from the cargo holds of the Vandal ships or from the local market.

It was a good thing that Peace for Hafner rewarded the Vandals with a lot of Reinaldan marks. The Vandal logistics officers must have anticipated their need. Everything became easier in the Harkensen System once you threw some hard currency around.

The only thing that money couldn't buy was an honest Reinaldan. Ves sighed. Negotiating for the first batches of materials had been especially arduous.

"What's troubling your mind?" Chief Haine asked as she overlooked a large hall where up to half-a-dozen Vandal mechs were being stripped.

"I'm thinking about how much time and effort we've wasted on negotiating with the Reinaldans. If you don't make a stand, they'll walk right over you."

"That's the Reinald Republic for you. This isn't the first time I've been here. It's a lovely place if you can ignore the ugliness that goes around. Take advantage of your shore leave and see what the Harkensen System has to offer. I guarantee you won't be disappointed."

"I'm worried that everything will go to hell once I'm gone." Ves smiled sardonically. "Why are the higher ups insisting on granting us shore leave in a foreign state? There's nowhere we can go that is truly safe, and don't forget that the Vesia Kingdom is right next door."

The chief snorted. "Sounds kind of stupid now that you think about it, right? If you've been with the Vandals for a while, you'll learn that we don't do things so simple. Let me ask you this. How many servicemen did we bring to the Harkensen System?"

It took a lot of people to run a mech regiment. While the advantage of mechs to states was that it required a lot less logistical support to field them in battle, they still required lots of support personnel to take care of matters that mech pilots simply couldn't. When Ves added up the mech technicians and ship officers that supported the mech pilots, he came to a very substantial figure.

"The Verle Task Force comprises over ten-thousand servicemen by my count."

"Close enough. Now, the way the higher ups staggered our leave periods, there's always going to be half let out in the wild. So there's going to be at least five-thousand little Vandals running around on Harkensen I or Harkensen III."

A light went off in his head. "I see! It's actually a distraction! Just like when we split up the main fleet in the Detemen System. One element is a distraction while the other element is vital to completing the mission."

The Flagrant Vandals certainly loved to employ this strategy. Ves reminded himself about Lord Javier. Sneaking off a hot potato like a captured Vesian noble with massive secrets would be very hard to do in normal circumstances.

Ves silently narrowed his eyes as his thoughts went over the situation as he understood it. If Lord Javier was a regular prisoner, the Vandals wouldn't have gone through the bother of stuffing him in a hidden compartment aboard the Shield of Hispania.

Obviously, taking custody of Lord Javier was not a trivial matter at all. The Vandals tried their best to suppress any news of who they kept in captivity. This basically meant that others desired Lord Javier or the secrets in his mind as well, and weren't afraid to fight the Vandals if it meant they could get the valuable prisoner in their hands.

In such a dangerous circumstance, letting so many Vandals loose made a lot more sense. The collective movement of the Vandals was a giant smoke screen that obscured the real intentions of the higher ups!

"Do you think we'll be easy to keep tabs on?" Chief Haine continued. "If you rule out the Reinaldan government, every other influence needs to be discreet and only possesses a limited amount of agents to perform covert actions. Wouldn't they have a headache trying to find the right target to tackle?"

Ves mentally applauded such a devious plan. Although following around five-hundred groups of ten was a lot easier than tracking five-thousand individual Vandals, moving in groups also allowed the most critical group to bring Lord Javier to another destination in disguise. Besides, any group of ten wouldn't be easy to deal with considering that most Vandals knew how to throw a punch.

One benefit the Vandals enjoyed was that they were allowed to carry limited small arms such as pistols out in the open. This was another concession received in reward for capturing and handing over Venerable Foster. Average tourists couldn't even dream of obtaining this privilege.

Somehow, Ves suspected that the Vandals aimed for such an outcome from the start.

"The whole thing about capturing Venerable Foster is a sideshow."

They lost almost half of their landbound mech pilots to capture an expert pilot without their own expert lending a hand. This was a feat of near-legend. To outsiders, capturing an expert pilot while losing hundreds of average mech pilots was a definite win.

Yet the significance of this hard-fought victory was only a means to an end. This overly-transactional way of running things detested Ves somewhat. It was an approach that treated the lives of servicemen like chess pieces.

"Maybe that is what it takes for a leader. In order to complete the mission, you can't afford to be soft-hearted. War assets such as mechs are meant to be spent on the battlefield. As long as the fighting nets you a greater return, the sacrifices are worth it in the end."

Ves branded this lesson in his heart. It was inevitable that he would wield his own influence someday. Perhaps he would have to weigh the same kind of decision as well.

Chapter 576

Ves chose to take his shore leave in the final two weeks of their stopover in the Harkensen System. He wanted to spend the first two weeks into making sure the repair work stayed on track.

Dealing with slime balls like Lester Tubrok or keeping the Vandal mech designers and mech technicians alert was a lot of work. Without his intervention, the massive repair effort would have suffered massive delays. Forget about repairing six-hundred mechs on time. Fixing up just three-hundred mechs would have been a miracle.

His cognition of the repair industry grew by leaps and bounds as he shuttled through the various companies the Vandals had contracted. Once he became more familiar with their circumstances, he grew a little more understanding of their difficulties.

"Do you think it's easy for us to work with thousands of different mech models on an annual basis? We get every shape and size of machines in our hands, all of them using a billion different parts!" Tobruk snapped at Ves one day. "The only person in the galaxy who can master so many different mechs is the Polymath! Don't expect mortals like us to match that kind of versatility!"

Ves wasn't fooled. The fat bastard simply put up an act in order to weasel his way out of another problem of their own making. "Your stance is fine if you're running a maintenance department for a mech regiment or a private outfit, but you're not. You are operating a repair business. I didn't see you whine when you signed the contract. If our mech models are baffling your men so much, then you should have thought twice before accepting our demands."

Mr. Tubrok wiped the sweat off his brow. "Hehe, Mr. Larkinson, can't you be more merciful to us? The troubles I've mentioned are truly affecting our work. Out of all the mech regiments that I've worked for, yours is one of the worst! Not only are all your mechs completely battered down to their internal frames, you also make use of too many different mech models! There's no way for my men to learn the ins and outs of a mech model and apply a set routine on other copies!"

"We're not asking you to perform the most difficult repair jobs. That's reserved for our own mech technicians. If you can't even do the simplest repairs, then It's a wonder you're still in business!"

"We can do better! If you would just transfer some extra funds to us, I know a few friends who can lend us some senior mech technicians!"

"We are not paying a single mark more than what the contract stipulates."

Conversations like this happened every day. Half of the time Ves met with the owners, he had to reject their efforts to squeeze more money out of the Vandals. Perhaps this was a deliberate Reinaldan custom of eliciting bribes, but Ves had enough confidence in the contracts to stick to his guns.

After two weeks of close supervision, the repair businesses learned that Ves was not an affable sucker. Whenever owners such as Mr. Tubrok did business with a military mech regiment, they were used to dealing with careerists with zero business acumen or military officers with access to a virtually unlimited budget.

If he Flagrant Vandals maintained a cordial relationship with the Mech Corps, then they would have accepted an inflated price quote without blinking a single eyelid. After all, they could push all of their expenses on to headquarters back on Rittersberg and have them pay the bills.

No wonder the repair businesses attempted to levy ridiculously high surcharges at the start. For example, they attempted to bill the Vandals five-hundred-thousand marks for a single cockpit seat replacement!

What a luxurious chair! And the repair business claimed the cost was justified because it used authentic leather from an alien creature!

Ves only needed to run his finger on the seat to know that the chair was covered with synthesized leather made out of cheap waste materials.

It took a week to stomp on such attempts, and another weak to teach the Vandals to watch out for these kinds of scams. The Reinaldans were truly imaginative in this area.

The worst incident by far left Ves angry for the entire day. This was because he caught the repairmen deliberately botching up a working mech! They even did so under the nose of an inattentive Vandal mech technician!

The culprits would have gotten away with it if Ves failed to recognize the deliberate marks of sabotage. The business owner had to let the repairmen involved in the incident go, and promised to be more diligent next time.

Days like this, Ves regretted getting into bed with the medium-sized repair businesses. He vastly preferred working with the larger businesses even if they charged a significant premium. At least they could be relied upon to deliver a satisfactory job.

"Is the repair industry truly so scummy or is the local business culture at fault?"

He believed that both played a part. Each reinforced the other, turning slightly scummy businesses into a scam factories.

It didn't help that many of the outfits that did business with the repair businesses on Harkensen III came from elsewhere. The foreigners that stopped over in the Harkensen System for business rather than pleasure tended to operate in the grey area at best. They mainly arrived at Harkensen to dispose of their ill-gotten goods in one of their many shady markets.

Outfits like these weren't use to high-quality service. Scummy business practices was a daily fact of life for them. This was the price they needed to pay for profiting from the shadow or the dark.

It all highlighted the fact that despite its legal veneer, the Harkensen System was actually a hive of scum and villainy.

"What a dangerously two-faced star system."

While he disliked dealing with these kinds of incidents, he couldn't help but admire Harkensen's overarching design. There was no doubt that the small and weak Reinald Republic derived a lot of revenue from both tourism and commerce involving mechs. This was probably one of the many ways in which the Harkensen System narrowed its disparity to genuine port systems such as Bentheim.

Fortunately for his sanity, besides rotating among the repair businesses, Ves also undertook other matters. The Vandals stopped over this star system for many other reasons than to repair their ships and mechs. They also appeared to be preparing for the next leg of their journey.

Inklings of a follow-up mission became clearer and clearer as Ves received assignments to help the logistics department procure more supplies. In particular, his help was needed whenever the planners wished to procure a batch of mech-specific goods.

The latest shopping run involved a set of very specific and very expensive components. The matter was of such import that Lieutenant Commander Soapstone took care of it in person this time.

"Mr. Larkinson." She greeted Ves as he stepped inside a rented Reinaldan shuttle. The vehicle quickly lifted off and sped towards one the cities on Harkensen III. She handed over a data pad to Ves. "Please look at these parameters. We are in need of specialist mech equipment that isn't easy to obtain. I've scheduled a meeting with an equipment broker who can supply us with what we need, but I'll need your advice on what to purchase."

Ves instantly frowned when he read through the document on the data pad. "You're looking to buy... Vesian MFS gravitic backpack modules? And not the regular ones either, but the heavy-duty ones that can exert a massive amount of counter-gravity. This... this is not something you pick up from an average mech shop!"

The Reinald Republic sold plenty of backpack modules that fit the Vesian Modular Fitting Standard. A gravitic backpack module was basically a giant anti-grav generator outfitted onto the back of a landbound mech. Their anti-grav fields specifically worked to counteract strong gravity exerted onto the frames of the mechs.

In general, gravitic backpacks were rather troublesome to use because of their bulk and incredibly high energy usage. This was because the gravitic backpacks effectively lightened the weight exerted onto a mech.

This was vitally important for landbound mechs being deployed on giant terrestrial planets with massive amounts of gravities. If an ordinary mech stepped onto a super earth with two g's or up, the mech was liable to crush its vulnerable internals as it walked.

How could a mech even begin to fight when it couldn't even defeat a planet's gravity?

Of course, people didn't often fight on super earths. No state went through the trouble of terraforming them and establishing settlements on the surface. The only reason why anyone would fight on a super earth was if the place hid a lot of riches.

"A heavy-duty gravitic backpack module is not only fifty percent bulkier than the regular product, they also run out of energy extremely quickly. Going solely by their internal energy cells, they only last half an hour on a normal medium mech."

"We are aware of the drawbacks of heavy-duty gravitic backpacks, but we truly need them. They need to be rated to withstand up to five g's in atmospheric conditions. The pressure they will have to endure is very substantial."

That made it worse. A super earth with an atmosphere basically pressed a mech from all sides. Still, this request that came out of the blue practically startled Ves. Why did the Vandals seek for specialist equipment that only the most extreme treasure hunting outfits bought?

The whirlwind that the Vandals involved themselves with became murkier and murkier in his mind. He didn't dare speculate anymore because he lacked too much information to make an accurate judgement.

For now, all he needed to do was to focus on his current assignment.

"The set of criteria you've provided are hard to fulfill, but not impossible. The only problem is that it's going to cost us a lot."

"No problem. This is one of the expenses that Peace for Hafner has agreed to reimburse."

That was another strange concession. The Vandals definitely didn't decide to go to a super earth for no reason all of a sudden. Everything the Vandals planned to do appeared to be premeditated. Ves felt as if he had been caught in a very large net.

"These heavy-duty gravitic backpack modules don't look bad. However, are you sure you want them? Piloting a mech with a gravitic backpack on a super earth introduces all kinds of weirdness to the mechs affected by this technology."

"We are certain of their need, Mr. Larkinson. I'm sure you are curious exactly why we would seek this specialist equipment, but I advise you to keep your questions to yourself. Major Verle will explain the full details when needed."

"How many are we looking to procure?"

"Enough to outfit all of our landbound mechs, and some spares besides. These backpacks break easily during combat. Let's set the figure at four-hundred backpacks."

Ves widened his eyes when he heard that. The cost of a heavy-duty gravitic backpack wasn't as much as a high-quality mech component, but purchasing four-hundred of them at once was a major transaction.

"Since you're already asking for gravitic backpacks, are there any other novelties you want to get hold of? We might as well shop for other gear while we are there."

"We are going to need some high-quality transceiver towers and jammers rated for base defense."

"Those are easier to acquire, and they're cheaper to boot." Ves nodded with a little less tension. "Anything else?"

"Heavy-duty hazard suits." Soapstone added. "If the gravitic backpack fails, we don't want to see our mech pilots get crushed."

"If those backpacks fail during battle, the mech will practically become inoperative under such a terrifying amount of gravity. Cockpit ejection will likely fail as well. They won't be able to fly very far under five times the gravity of old earth."

"Our budget is limited. We will have to make do with the favors we received and the liquid funds we have left."

Ves already started to groan. This sudden spending spree came completely out of the blue.

Chapter 577

After wrangling with the repair businesses all day for the last two weeks, Ves felt as tired as the Vandal mech pilots who had gone through several successive battles. The mental strain he accumulated from dealing with numerous troublesome issues wore out his patience.

So by the time he finally got to enjoy his vacation, he grabbed it with both hands.

Ves entered the common room of one of the dormitories that the Vandals had recently rented out. Hundreds of Vandals gathered in the morning as they waited for their group mates get out of bed and finish their breakfast.

"Head designer! Over here!"

He turned and saw a young woman waving at him. Ves approached the circle of Vandals and beheld the men and women.

Every group consisted of a different mix of Vandals. There would never be a case where a group consisted entirely of mech pilots or ship specialists or the like. Whoever drafted up the lists deliberately shuffled everyone's names around so that each group represented every aspect of the mech regiment.

Ves figured this must have been a method for the higher ups to increase everyone's connection to the Flagrant Vandals and intensify their camaraderie. No one in the common room wore their uniforms. Besides their military-issued comms, nothing on their bodies marked them out as Vandals.

Almost no one in the Harkensen System wore their uniforms, especially if they were off-duty. Lots of people from different states and backgrounds mingled here. If someone wearing a Vesian uniform happened to walk past someone wearing a Brighter uniform on the streets, lots of brawls would certainly ensue.

Thus, for better or worse, no visitor advertised their origins in Harkensen. At best, they would only be able to tell each other's origin through their accents when they spoke.

"Mr. Larkinson, right? I've seen you several times from afar! I can't believe I'm standing next a genius!" The woman who called earlier chittered next to him.

"Just call me Ves. Right now, none of us are wearing our uniforms."

"Ah, I'm Ensign Tiss Kozik. I work as a junior engineer aboard the Antecedent."

Ves looked at Tiss with a bit more respect. The difficulty of becoming a ship engineer in this day and age was extremely high. For her to be a junior engineer at her age must mean she possessed a bit of promise. Why would someone like her be assigned to the Vandals?

"I see everyone is here." The burly voice of the biggest person in the group spoke. "Let me introduce myself. You may know me as Lieutenant Nolsen Feray. I serve aboard the Finmoth Regal in the ship security department. This means that I'm likely the most dangerous Vandal among our little gathering outside of a mech. Does anyone dispute this?"

A few mech pilot types looked liked they wanted to contest, but eventually they backed down. Though their status and combat prowess with a mech put them far ahead of Nolsen, they weren't allowed to bring any mechs.

The Honored Ones strictly limited the permits that allowed mech pilots to pilot a mech in Harksensen. Without a valid permit, even local Reinaldans could forget about unsealing a mech and piloting them out in the open. The same regime existed in most major planets and star systems such as Bentheim.

If not, chaos and confusion would be rife as mechs began to slaughter each other on the dime. Most training concerning mech pilots emphasized aggression, so they would usually be quick to anger and quicker to fight. Letting these wild beasts fight with their fists was one thing, but when it came to mechs, an entire capital city might become ruined after a week of unrestrained dueling.

"Alright then." Nolsen let up on his ferocity and smiled. "Forget about your former ranks and positions. We are all fellow Vandals here. Besides keeping you out of danger, I don't have any interest in bossing you around. I hope we can come to an agreement on which places to visit."

The group members quickly introduced each other before they argued where they wanted to go. Ves quietly noted everyone's names and postings and noticed that besides Tiss and Nolsen, everyone else came from the enlisted ranks.

Due to the difference in ranks, this gave Ves and the other two a bit more say than the enlisted folk, though Nolsen did his best to balance each other's requests.

"Alright, we are in agreement then? Spend one week in Harkensen III before spending another week in Harkensen I."

No one disagreed too much. Some of the Vandals favored spending time in Harkensen III, while others wanted to spend all of their time in Harksensen I. Yet most of them wanted to spend a bit of time in both, so in the end the middle ground won out.

Hashing out which places they wanted to visit was a lot more complicated. The entire group had to sit down on some benches in order to come to a consensus on a schedule they could all agree upon. This was far harder to accomplish and it took Nolsen's considerable efforts to draft up a final schedule.

"Alright, on our first day, we'll be visiting the shopping district of Black Belle City, the capital city on Harkensen III. I should remind you all that we won't be able to bring back anything we purchase."

It was too easy to slip in some spy bug inside a gadget the Vandals brought back to their ships. In truth, most of the Vandals wanted to experience the varied shops in Black Belle City.

"In the morning, we'll stroll through the shopping districts. In the afternoon, we'll visit Black Belle City's other sights. In the evening, we enter the city's grey area."

Over half of the group members perked up when they thought about the grey area. This was where the questionably legal transactions took place. Though it wasn't as shady as the black areas, it served as a good introduction to the Reinaldan underground.

"Alright, before we set off, let's pick up our weapons."

All ten Vandals exited the common room from the back and entered a courtyard where a bunch of Vandal security officers distributed standard-issue pistols brought by the crateload from the armory.

Though the public security in the Harkensen System was high, so many people smuggled in weapons that the Honored Ones pretty much gave up on enforcing any small arms weapons ban. As long as people didn't bring in anything big or destructive, the Honored Ones didn't bother too much.

The only rule that armed visitors needed to take seriously was that they absolutely couldn't kill an upright Reinaldan. Certainly, outsiders had the right to defend themselves, but only up to the point of incapacitating a Reinaldan. Only the shadiest Reinaldans didn't enjoy this protection.

This also distinguished the grey areas and black areas.

"Alright Vandals, everyone pick your weapon!" A grey-haired bosun called. "You only get one and as much ammunition or batteries as you are willing to carry!"

Not every Vandal was a good shot, but they at least underwent basic training, enough not to shoot themselves with their own weapons. They confidently picked their preferred model of laser or ballistic pistols, each of which varied substantially in size, firepower, capacity and more.

Ves had never gone through much formal training in handling a gun, and despite his lengthy practice with the Amastendira, he never regarded himself as a good shot.

Someone like him typically picked a dinky little laser pistol like the one that Tiss had picked out. Their lack of recoil and straight beams made them a favorite among servicemen that didn't specialize in combat.

He picked a ballistic pistol instead, and not the lightest one either. Instead, he picked up a medium-sized hand cannon and stroked it once before receiving a couple of magazines.

"Do you even know how to handle that weapon?" Nolsen asked while he looked at Ves with a dubious eye.

"My aim isn't that great, but I won't be blown away if that's what you mean."

Ves demonstrated his confidence by stepping up to the shooting range that the Vandals had set up at the end of the courtyard. After he checked his weapon and keyed his identity to the operating system of his pistol, he took up a stance and fired at one of the targets.

"Well, looks like you're not so clueless after all. As expected of a Larkinson."

Compared to a trained soldier, his accuracy was abysmal. Yet for a mech designer, Ves could confidently hit a target ten meters away, which was sufficient to deal with imminent threats.

The only reason he opted for a ballistic pistol over a laser one was because he already possessed the Amastendira. Picking up another laser pistol did little to enhance his capabilities.

Despite the unsophisticated nature of the pistol, it came with several useful functions. One of which was to lock it in place on his body without a body. Ves opened his coat and slid the weapon in an underarm position. Most Vandals opted to hide their weapons on their person as well, though Lieutenant Feray choose to strap it to his hip in the open.

"Alright, if you're satisfied with your gear, let's set off! There are aircars waiting outside for us to board!"

The Vandals rented out a significantly-sized complex in one of the major cities of Harkensen III to accommodate more than ten-thousand servicemen. Ves saw thousands of Vandals in uniform getting onto aircars that brought them to their temporary work assignments. Those without a uniform headed to other destinations.

The aircar they boarded was like a small bus and possessed enough room to fit all ten of them. After Nolsen passed on their destination to the aircar's AI, the vehicle floated into the air and joined one of the many streams of traffic that criss-crossed the entire planet.

Tiss bounced around in her seat. "This is the first time I'll visit a foreign market. How exciting! They say that you can find anything from the Komodo Star Sector in one of Harkensen's many shopping districts."

"I would take that with a grain of salt." Ves said with a bit more calm. "The Harkensen System is far from the major shipping lines. It doesn't have a lot of products from the second-rate states as well. You can find a greater variety of curiosities from the rest of the Komodo Star Sector in the Coalition or in places like Bentheim."

"Bentheim is boring. There's too many people there, and it's all about mechs."

Ves couldn't refute that. "That's true. Still, each trading nexus has their own charm. Treasure hunters often try to dispose their gains in Harkensen, so we may see something nice from alien space."

This was one of the reasons why Ves didn't object too much to visiting the shopping districts. Though all the truly valuable frontier loot only showed up in the grey or black markets, the legal markets had the advantage of safety. No one was liable to shoot someone there for owning something shiny.

As their aircar slowed down and descended from above, Ves looked down at the picturesque black structures that made up the more affluent part of Black Belle City.

The aircar slipped onto one of the city's many parking areas. As soon as the group members exited the vehicle, another group of tourists entered it and zipped away.

"Alright, stay together. The mech plaza is just ahead!"

The group walked to a market-like street where various street vendors showcased sealed mechs in various conditions. Though it was easier to order a mech from a specialised store or from the galactic net, the lively market atmosphere in the mech plaza fostered many impulse purchases from well-off visitors.

A loud Reinaldan-accented voice called out from the rest of the hawkers. "Mech pilots! Get the latest from the Bright Republic! Purchase the latest sensation that is stirring up the entire mech market!"

Ves touched Nolsen's shoulders and gestured his head towards the hawker. The security officer understood and detoured the group towards the section where the seller of Brighter mechs set up shop.

As the group neared the stall where the hawker kept boasting about his Brighter mechs, Ves abruptly stuttered in his pace.

"Behold the highest quality premium rifleman mech! Gaze your eyes upon the magnificent gold label Crystal Lord! Imported straight from the Bright Republic, this version is a limited edition! Look at its condition! There's hardly a scratch on this beauty! For 250 million marks, it's yours!"

A Crystal Lord. A copy of his second original design. Here in Black Belle City.

Though Ves had always known that the Living Mech Corporation extended its tentacles to foreign markets, Ves did not expect to come across his own product here.

Chapter 578

The reason why Ves put on a weird face right now was because of the presence of the supposed gold label Crystal Lord. The LMC's gold label products held a great amount of prestige that Ves had painstakingly built up step by step.

Ves sold relatively few gold label mechs ever since he went into business. He only sold around ten or twenty of them at a time because each gold label came with a guarantee of quality. Each customer who purchased a gold label mech would have absolute confidence of getting their hands on a mech that had personally been hand-crafted by the founder and lead designer of the LMC.

In other words, such a collectible luxury product shouldn't show up in some random mech plaza.

"250 million marks for this ultra-rare second-hand mech! It's an absolute steal to get a mech of this quality at this price!"

The seller was right on one thing. The mech represented a steal. The only questionable point was the customer might not be the beneficiary of the transaction.

This was because Ves immediately sensed that the mech was dead to his spiritual sense. "This is impossible."

His Crystal Lord design came with an unprecedented B-grade X-Factor. Even the stupidest third-party manufacturer would be able to fabricate one of the Crystal Lord variants with a wisp of X-Factor.

However, this only applied when the third-party manufacturer reproduced the Crystal Lord according to an authentic design.

Ves knew that the different labels of the Crystal Lord mainly distinguished themselves by the quality of their center crystal. The gold label version not only hosted a crystal that was twice as large as the lesser labels, it had also undergone an exclusive activation process from a one-of-a-kind crystal cube.

The mech in front of him happened to possess all of the right contours and dimensions of a gold label Crystal Lord. Even the oversized center crystal appeared to be cut into the right dimensions.

"This is impossible!"

The mech had been polished up until its coating gleamed in the local sun. Visually, the Crystal Lord mech looked like the real deal. That characteristic frame with a keen emphasis on mobility while benefiting from a modest amount of compressed armor gave the mech a sense of agile threat.

The alien head devoid of humanoid features that instead contained lots of mysterious starry holes made the mech look strange and exotic.

The slimmed-down rifle locked with seals and placed in its arms looked exactly like the rifles he designed in person.

The only problem was that it was all counterfeit.

"It's fake."

This mech was an unauthorized copy of the real deal. Due to the complete lack of spirituality, the mech was not only an illegal copy, it wasn't even an accurate reproduction.

Ves stared at the center crystal and noticed that it lacked the spark that signified that it had gone through the activation process. That alone signified that the mech that the seller claimed to be a gold label Crystal Lord was lying out of his teeth.

"Designed by Ves Larkinson, a genius from the Bright Republic, this is your only opportunity to get your hands on his best mech model to date! Come, take a close look at the majesty of this super scarce gold label mech! 250 million marks and it's yours!"

When the seller mentioned his name, Ves received a lot of stares by the group members. Intellectually, they knew his name and knew that he was a mech designer. However, they never came across any of his products. Even if they were curious, most Vandals lacked the permission to browse the galactic net.

"Is that yours, Ves?" Ensign Tiss asked with admiration in her eyes. "What a huge amount of money! 250 million marks is like 125 million bright credits!"

None of the Vandals remained calm when they thought about how much money the sums represented. It was as if it had never occurred to any of the Vandals that their head designer was a billionaire in civilian life.

Ves pressed his lips into a very thin smile. "That seller is a fraud."

He didn't say anything about his wealth or identity. Instead, he stepped towards the seller's stall.

"Uh, don't start any trouble here! This is Harkensen, not Bentheim!"

Ves nodded to show he understood and walked up right in front of the extravagantly dressed Reinaldan. The hefty man looked like he couldn't stuff enough gold ornaments on his body.

"Welcome, customer! Are you interested in my Hayfly?"

"Tell me about the Crystal Lord you're selling." Ves spoke calmly. "Where did you get it from?"

"Ah, the Crystal Lord! Its tale is long and winding. You see, this mech is fabricated in secret by Mr. Larkinson to his homosexual paramore..."

"...who went ill from an alien sexually transmitted disease..."

"...had to sell his precious Crystal Lord which represents his secret engagement gift to fund his treatment..."

"...some pirates intercepted the convoy that shipped the Crystal Lord..."

"...the alien sandmen ambushed the pirates that got a hold of the Crystal Lord..."

"...a small fleet of treasure hunters beat the sandmen back and coincidentally salvaged some shipping containers, one of which contains this Crystal Lord..."

Ves held up his hand. "Alright alright, enough!"

"Oh, I was only half-way in my story, dear customer! The best part had yet to come!" The seller boasted with a grin.

Some of the group members giggled and laughed behind Ves, which only lowered his mood even further.

"Do you have any proof of authenticity for this mech?"

"Ah, sadly, if you listened to the rest of my story, you would have realized that all of the documentation has been lost. Alien insects infested the ships of the treasure hunters and tragically ate the data pad that contained the certificate of authenticity! I wouldn't sell this precious mech for such a low price in the plaza if that was the case! The market price for any gold label Crystal Lord is undoubtedly than 500 million marks! I'm giving you half-price here! This is absolutely a great deal!"

"I don't know." Ves crossed his arms. "Without any proof of authenticity, how would I know I'm buying the real deal?"

"Ah, if you are doubting its performance, you can easily test it out in one of the simulators I have at hand if you are a potentate. For a small deposit of 100,000 marks, I can also let you bring my Crystal Lord to the nearest practice yard and let you or a potentate friend try out my product. You'll be able to see that it is absolutely authentic!"

Really now. Ves knew that the seller wouldn't expose any loopholes in this fashion. The simulator likely made use of the official virtual version of the Crystal Lord. As for bringing the Crystal Lord to a practice yard, such locations only allowed mechs to perform a limited amount of actions. They couldn't even move at a running pace according to the rules, let alone have another mech shoot a laser weapon at the Crystal Lord's center crystal to test out its trump card.

All in all, even if a prospective customer trailed the Crystal Lord, they would only experience the mech's performance on the surface, which likely didn't deviate very much from the real deal.

"I think I better look elsewhere, then. Thank you for answering my questions."

"Hey, if there are any problems, I can give you a discount! What about one percent off? Our prices are negotiable!"

Ves walked away while his group members gawked at him or regarded him with mixed expressions. Once Ves led them out of earshot from the Reinaldan stall owner, he slumped a bit.

"Give me a moment, please."

Ves opened up his military comm. He still retained the loosened restrictions from his field promotion to head designer. This enabled a couple of various handy functions, one of which was to record some footage of what happened around him. In addition, the block on interacting with the galactic net had temporarily been lifted.

After all, a communications blockade wouldn't be very useful if Ves could borrow the comm from any bystander to utilize the galactic net.

Ves selected a file and saw that it had recorded the entire conversation and more. He composed a quick message to Calsie back in Cloudy Curtain and attached the file before he sent the entire package.

"Let's go, Nolsen."

The Vandals eventually shrugged and resumed their window shopping. The only thing that changed was that some of them asked for his analysis on certain mechs.

During their stroll through the plaza, Ves encountered many different second-hand mechs. Many of them looked like they had been salvaged from the battlefield and fixed up to look better than their actual condition. He guessed that most of their internals might not be as pristine.

This was one of the areas in which the customers needed to make their own judgement. People in need of mechs might be able to pick up a good bargain if they had good eyes, but most likely they would get ripped off in the end. It all depended on their skill and luck.

"There's a thrill out of shopping for a second-hand mech." A Vandal group member remarked. "Maybe some of them used to be piloted by heroes. Maybe they killed a lot of people. Who knows. Every mech has their own story."

Ves silently agreed with that. When he brushed his spiritual senses towards the mechs that looked worse off, he tasted echoes of what the mech experienced in the past. Though the recollections he sensed was too indistinguishable for him to make sense of them, it was undeniable that some of these mechs had gone through a lot.

It was too bad that their physical condition leaned towards the lower end. This made sense, as older mechs invariably sustained a lot of damage. The mechs that looked like they only entered the battlefield once or twice felt like dummies in comparison.

Everyone enjoyed looking at the second-hand mechs and made a game out of guessing why it ended up in the mech plaza. Their former owners must have certainly met an unfortunate end for their mechs to be displayed and sold in Harkensen.

One thing that Ves took note that sales appeared to be rather slow. Maybe ninety-nine percent out of every visitor were like the Vandals, who merely wanted to see the sights. Those that looked like they might be serious buyers tended to focus their attention on the cheaper mechs priced at 10 million marks or lower.

This highlighted the low status of the second-hand market. The people or outfits that had the funds to buy a mech would almost always opt to buy a new one. There were mechs for almost every possible price segment. With all the shenanigans that went on in the second-hand market, only the most desperate customers and special cases considered them seriously.

"Alright, we've gone through the whole plaza. Let's move on to the main shopping streets."

The group left the mech plaza and its eclectic collection of second-hand mechs and moved over to the main streets which hosted various mech shops. Different from the chaotic plaza, the main streets appeared far more classier and orderly. The clean white streets and luxurious storefronts made it clear that only those with money would have a chance of spending it in one of the shops here.

Various strange but fancy looking shop brands adorned the storefront. Some of them only sold one brand of mechs, while others sold a variety of models from all over the galactic rim.

Ves looked at a storefront that sold spaceborn mechs. Projections of elegant mechs with hawk wings soared through space as they battled generic opponents in a simulated battle. He wondered if the LMC set up a franchise in one of these streets.

"Probably not. I haven't seen any plans to that end when I was still helming the LMC."

While shopping for a mech on the galactic net was convenient, the problem was that customers had too much choice. Investing in a physical storefront to profile your own brand of mechs allowed a company to stand out from the crowd. Considering that the LMC mostly spent its energies on selling premium mechs, operating a couple of physical stores in high end shopping streets might be worth the effort.

Chapter 579

"We're being followed." Nolsen said as the group made it to the end of one of the mech avenues. "Don't look back, you idiots! It's nothing serious yet if our watcher isn't good enough to hide his presence from me."

Ves tried really hard not to turn around. He never had a clue that someone followed their group around.

Trian Earls, one of their mech pilots, spat on the pavement. "Why aren't we doing anything? Let's go beat the fellow up!"

"Making a move in the middle of Black Belle City's shopping district will only land us in trouble. Look at how many patrolmen of the Planetary Guard are patrolling the streets. We'll be sludged and put into custody the second we throw a punch."

Everyone glanced at the uniformed law enforcement officers. They patrolled in teams of two, and wore enough gear to repel a small riot. In addition to their personal capabilities, they were also followed by a hovering bot armed with non-lethal weaponry.

The bot alone was programmed to instantly stun someone from a distance the moment they pulled out a weapon.

"Who's following us?" Ves asked. "Can you tell?"

The lieutenant furrowed his brows as they pretended to look through the windows of another upscale mech store. "He doesn't look like a pro. Likely a local gang member. Or someone who never intended to hide his presence in the first place. Right now, the fact that someone is tailing us does not mean that we're in danger. For now, we can rely on the Planetary Guards and the Honored Ones to forestall any trouble."

Half an hour passed by without a single change. The group members calmed down and resumed their window shopping. The mech avenues truly formed a snapshot of all the mech models sold in the Komodo Star Sector.

Studying the mechs the shops had to offer gave Ves a good idea of the state of the mech industry in the Reinald Republic.

Different from larger states such as the Bright Republic and the Vesia Kingdom, the Reinald Republic was too small to foster a strong and relatively independent mech industry. Apart from supporting a couple of crown jewels, the bulk of the businesses operating in their territory consisted of foreign entities.

While the Frozen Leaf Alliance that the Reinald Republic was apart of gave them the strength to contend against the Vesians in a military fashion, it did not do too much beyond that. Each of the three member states still ran their territories as a separate entity. They refused to operate as a single market with shared borders and a unified economy.

This left the Reinald Republic without the strength to punch above its weight. Its own domestic market couldn't possibly satisfy a fully mature domestic mech industry.

It was a good thing that the Reinald Republic attracted a lot of foreign visitors. Plenty of mercenaries, gang members, treasure hunters and worse visited the small state to do business. Because each of their outfits based themselves in different states, the Reinald Republic attracted foreign mech manufacturers to set up shop in their trading systems.

After walking past numerous shops, Ves finally found a legitimate vendor for the mechs of the LMC. The group entered a store called The Brightest Mech. Both the Blackbeak and the Crystal Lord occupied a prominent place in the store that obviously catered to Brighters and fans of Brighter mechs.

"Wow. Is that your work as well? This knight mech looks so light!"

"Damn! 135 million marks for a Blackbeak? And it's only a bronze label? What a ripoff!"

Ves awkwardly laughed. "These mech models are aimed at the premium market. If you look at the spec sheet, you'll know why they cost so much."

The Brightest Mech featured tasteful decoration themed around torches and stars. It played out as an exaggerated caricature of Brighter culture, and every Vandal couldn't help but be amused. Whoever operated this shop probably knew nothing about the Bright Republic.

The shop only possessed enough room to showcase half-a-dozen physical mechs that sold the most. The rest only appeared as scaled-down projections. This also applied to the mechs of the LMC. Their high price tag threw off most potential customers.

"What a shame."

If The Brightest Mech devoted some of its limited physical space to showcasing a silver label mech of the LMC, a lot of customers would likely be swayed into buying them. The charm of the X-Factor couldn't be perceived from a projection, and even a simulation wasn't able to bring out its full strength.

Ves figured that the LMC might be better off operating their own stores. This allowed the company to exert full control over how to present and sell their offerings. The only issue right now was that his company didn't have enough original models to justify such a plan.

There was another issue as well. The LMC faced various hurdles each time it tried to enter a new foreign market. Sometimes, the only way they could enter the market was if they partnered up with a native company. The mechs would then be sold through the native company's own sales channels.

If the LMC wanted to keep their cooperation with the locals going, they had to refrain from snatching meat from their partner's mouths.

"How complicated." He shook his head. Ves left the matter for later.

Once the group of ten had their fill of seeing familiar mechs, they exited the store and wandered around aimlessly for a while. They eventually ate some lunch before deciding to stroll through a non-mech shopping district.

This time they looked at numerous wondrous products, from luxury comm models to mechanical pets that bore a vague resemblance to Lucky. The AIs that operated the tiny puppies and kittens was very sophisticated, enabling them to speak and interact with children.

Larger pets existed as well with some forms of self-defense. Mechanical dogs proved to be the all-time popular, occupying a full third of the entire store. Customers bought many of the dogs in order to enhance the security of their households or provide some protection against random thugs.

Naturally, truly important figures wouldn't resort to mass-market mechanical pets. Any determined hacker would be able to intrude their operating systems, so these pets mostly catered to the lower-middle class.

The most impressive pet model by far was an aircar-sized dragon. Sophisticated anti-grav modules and various other creature comforts turned it into an impressive flying mount.

Few actually bought it though. In order to make it harder for it to be hacked, it ran on a very advanced processor and operating system. Subscribing to the mandatory security suite alone cost more than 100,000 marks a year. This went well above the limits of the middle class.

"I wouldn't know what to do with such an expensive pet." Ensign Tiss said as she admired the mechanical dragon's exquisite construction. The store normally sold it with a plain metallic surface, but they also offered the option of covering it with life-like dragon scales. "Could you create something like this on your own?"

"Maybe. I'd have to approach it as if I was designing a mech. Hm, if so, it might be feasible. The only area which I'm not very sure of is the operating system."

Ves realized he might have talent in creating a pet as it wouldn't be too different from designing and fabricating a miniature mech.

Though a lot of mechanical pets got sold each year, their revenue and profit margins paled in comparison to the mech market. Ves had no reason to abandon his current vocation.

As the Vandals weren't allowed to bring anything back with them, they regretfully had to leave the shop behind. Interacting with all of the friendly pets in the store really helped lift some of their moods.

As the Vandals gawked at various curiosities, Nolsen spoke up again. "Hey, sorry to spoil your moods for a moment, but our watcher has a companion on the opposite street."

"What are these fellows doing? Can't they observe us from remote?"

The security officer discreetly shook his head. "There are too many ways to spoil such things. My comm contains a security suite that can easily scramble smaller probes. In addition, the Reinaldans won't tolerate excessive use of spying equipment in their shopping districts. The only observation tools allowed belong to the Reinaldans themselves."

"So are we being watched by someone other than the government?"

"I'd say it's likely, but we can't rule out the government, you know. The spies may be there to act as failsafes if we ever try to scramble all of the sensors in the vicinity. Trust me, my comm can do that. To guard against unexpected equipment failure, some plain humans can keep us under observation while they try to get new bugs on site."

Ves scratched his head. He hated playing games like this where he ended up in a passive state. He knew more than Lieutenant Feray and the rest of the group.

It caused Ves to see shadows where none should appear. The wide streets became a prison and every casual bystander might actually harbor ill intentions to the Vandals.

A faint instinct of danger tickled his mind. It was not enough for him to suspect a concrete threat, but it might be a sign of what was in store.

Some days ago, Lieutenant Commander Soapstone brought him to help negotiate the purchase of various specialized equipment. Right now, the broker must have started shipping the goods to a warehouse under the control of the Vandals.

Those who kept their eye on the Vandals must be wondering why they sought to procure so much equipment that would only be useful in high gravity environments.

"Don't mind the watchers. We're all innocent Vandals here. We've got nothing to hide."

They took it easy in the next hours. Besides visiting various stores, they also entered a museum and visited a few monuments that originated from the founding of the Reinald Republic.

None of the states in the Komodo Star Sector was very old. The entire star sector only opened up for colonization shortly after the Age of Mechs commenced.

At the later stages of the Age of Conquest, human warfleets scoured many planets of life. Once the flames of war died down, the MTA and CFA fostered a great undertaking where it became popular to set out for the furthest reaches of the rim to form new colonies.

The Reinald Republic was one of the losers for the mad scramble for stars at the opening of the star sector. The Bright Republic and the Vesia Kingdom might have been bumped from the resource-rich center of the star sector, but they found adequate clusters of stars to settle upon.

The founders of the Reinald Republic fought with the larger third-rate states for a time, but eventually had to admit defeat in yet again. The star systems that encompassed Reinald wasn't promising at all. This gave the smaller state a lot of distress until they found a lifeline in tourism and trade in illicit goods.

When evening came by, the group wanted to experience some of the latter by visiting a grey market. Black Belle City happened to host a modest grey market in a vast tunnel network beneath the capital city.

It was as if they descended into a dungeon. Light was purposefully kept dim, and various invisible defense measures made the tunnels a lot more dangerous than he expected.

Nolsen looked concerned at the people that frequented the grey market. "Tuck your pistols at your side. Don't hide them. You have to show the visitors here that you won't be easy to bully."

They did what the lieutenant instructed. Once all ten of them showed off their laser or ballistic pistols, the eyes set upon them had diminished by a fair amount. No one wanted to stir up trouble in the grey market either, but the Reinaldans didn't exert a lot of influence here.

Everything that happened in the grey markets came under the purview of the cartels that set them up. Immediately upon entering a large underground hall, Ves had the misconception that he returned to the mech plaza he visited in the morning. A lot of street stalls dotted the humongous underground hall.

"Now this is what I'm talking about!" A Vandal exclaimed. "This feels just like home!"

A lot of things could be bought here so long as they could pay. Ves already widened his eyes when he spotted a lot of high-value goods brought back from the frontier.

Chapter 580

Ves ignored the uncertified mechs and the deadly weaponry the stall owners tried to peddle to the tourists and approached one of the stalls that sold frontier loot.

The stall in front of him sold nothing but pieces of ore. None of them shone in the light, but some of them possessed a subtle charm that somehow attracted his attention.

"Welcome, dear customer." The old man who manned the stall greeted. "Are you interested in my wares? They are genuine treasures of the frontier. Whether they are shaped by aliens hands or the natural forces of the galaxy, I am sure you can find what you seek here. Look at this white arcelyx stone for example!"

The man picked up an off-white piece of mesmerizing rock with a gloved hand. "A treasure hunter claimed to have picked this rock from a beast world. He claimed that the planet was filled with exobeasts, and if not for the fast-growing vegetation that kept the herbivores fed, the planet would have long collapsed its own ecosystem."

"What does that have to do with this rock?" Ves asked.

"The planet is sprinkled by this stuff! Hehe, the treasure hunter spent a lot of effort to find these anomalous rocks. At first, he didn't know their effects, but once he returned to Mancroft Independent Harbor, the effects of this stone finally came into being."

"And that is?"

The stall owner grinned at him with a mischievous expression. "The treasure hunter upended an entire entertainment establishment! Mere proximity to this amazing stone will give you the firepower of a water hose and the endurance of a long-range mech!"

Ves and a few other Vandals attracted to the curiosities offered by the stall looked incredulous.

"You don't believe me? Why don't you try it out for yourselves!" The stall owner dropped the hand-sized rock and retrieved some boxes from under the stall. Each of them came with a transparent cover that showed off the slivers of white rock contained within. "A full-sized arcelyx stone can be had for 57,000 marks! If you want to sample its effects, this nail-sized sample can be yours for 500 marks!"

"No thanks." Ves immediately turned away. When he saw that some of the other men looked tempted, he gently pulled them away. "Don't fall for his story. What exotic treasure, in my eyes the rock is plain ghoshaw ore. It's an uncommon but fairly abundant ore in the Komodo Star Sector. Its market price is around two-thousand bright credits per ton."

That convinced them all to drop any interest of the supposed 'arcelyx stone'.

"How did you recognize that it was ghoshaw ore?" One Vandal asked.

"I memorized a lot of ores and materials that are available in the Komodo Star Sector. It's necessary for my work."

Every mech designer worth a damn studied the full list of publicly available materials in their star sector. It could be said that each star sector invented their own unique brand of mechs. Maybe one star sector possessed a lot of exotics favorable to smaller mechs. This would certainly make the region focus their design efforts into developing lots of light mechs.

The group wandered over towards different stalls, making their way through the crowds as best they could. The underground halls offered as much space as the avenues above, but the Vandals barely had any space to move due to the abundance of tourists.

The difference in interest was obvious. Although the luxury shops on the surface sold a lot of good products, the same could be found on any major planet.

In contrast, the grey market offered goods that couldn't easily be found elsewhere. Many other grey markets restricted their access to known acquaintances.

For example, when Ves wanted something shady, he wouldn't know where to turn. He had to resort to contacting Dietrich to obtain what he wanted from the grey or black markets.

This highlighted the special and open nature of the Harkensen System. Their grey and black markets didn't care about connections at all. Neither the seller or the buyer required trust to perform their transactions.

Due to the popularity of this market, business was booming here. Ves saw many unregistered mechs exchanging hands, though calling them unregistered was a euphemism. They should actually be called counterfeits, because they were nothing different from the fake Crystal Lord. At least the sellers were more honest in the grey market, directly admitting that the mechs had been fabricated by a mech manufacturer that hadn't licensed their designs.

Since most licenses cost a lot of money, the true production cost of a legal mech was significantly higher than a counterfeit mech. Even if they used the exact same production standards, the counterfeit mechs wasn't burdened by a huge amount of overhead costs.

In general, this made counterfeit mechs around ten to fifty percent cheaper to buy. The discount was more extreme for expensive mechs, as the profit margin was the highest there. Cheaper mechs already cut a lot of corners, so the price couldn't get much lower even without considering overhead.

"Are you dissatisfied?" Tiss asked when she saw the glum face on Ves. "These counterfeit mechs are taking away your sales."

"Even if I am, what can I do about it?" Ves sighed in a tired manner. "People in need of mechs are always on the lookout for something cheaper. As long as there's demand, there's someone who is willing to meet it. Even if counterfeit mechs stop showing up here, business will only move elsewhere."

"Some of these mechs don't look very reliable either. Though I'm not a mech designer, even I can see that the workmanship on them is too rough."

Ves nodded. "Without the full design schematics, the counterfeiters can only use their own judgement to fill the gaps. A fake mech will never surpass the real deal. If any counterfeiters possess the skills to improve the original design, then they are better off becoming a legitimate mech designer. Therefore, it's virtually a rule that all counterfeit designers are failures."

Many failed mech designers that tried to operate a workshop would be saddled with debt by the time they folded their businesses. Sometimes, a bankruptcy allowed them to begin anew, but other times their creditors insisted on getting back their money.

Fabricating counterfeit mechs was a good way to earn money quickly, especially if they picked a popular mech model. The counterfeiters basically leeched off the achievements of their more successful peers.

It was a dishonest but profitable way to do business.

"If you look at some of the buyers, they don't look like the sort that can make a legal transaction." Ves gestured at someone with a wild air. The man looked like a pirate commander who was trying his best to restrain his savage urges. "Where do you think pirates get their mechs?"

"Ah. But pirates never pilot any good mechs, right?"

"That's because there's no form of regulation in the underground markets. Anyone could sell a mech that is supposed to last for a decade but breaks down after a single year. Buyers have to judge the seller's reputation. If they can't, they should at least have a good mech appraiser by their side."

Ves spotted several men and women guiding big spenders around. They waved at the mechs on display and presumably provided a more accurate assessment of their worth.

Still, nothing could beat the MTA in terms of reputation. Their trustworthiness and reliability trumped every other mech appraiser. Their certification process was almost flawless.

Only the most obscure features defeated their comprehensive certification and validation tests. Ves was very certain that they couldn't pick up the X-Factor.

The grey market offered more than mechs and rocks. Further ahead, they entered some kind of bestiary where a large amount of exobeasts resided inside climate-controlled cages.

Various alien beasts of all shapes and sizes could all be bought with minimal fuss, very much opposite to the strict controls that most governments set on alien creatures. After all, if specimens ever got loose, they might lead to a very troublesome cascade of failures in the local ecosystem. Remedying the problem was possible, but only at great cost.

Ves hadn't spotted anything familiar like the hexapods of Groening IV. After witnessing those majestic beasts up close, the boring and mundane exobeasts in the grey market failed to rouse his interests. Most of them appeared to be bred and tamed by humans in some farm for generations, making them good pets for families.

"This entire grey market feels a little phony somehow." Ves remarked to Tiss. "The stuff that's on sale here isn't as exciting as I thought."

"Oh? All of the things that are on sale here is illegal, right?"

"That's a matter for interpretation." He said. "There's no way that the government doesn't know what's going on here. By turning a very obvious blind eye, they've tacitly consented to the trade that goes on in these markets."

"So it's sort of legal, then."

Ves bet that the cartels that operated the underground markets passed some of their profits to the Reinaldan government. Everything that happened here was fully within their range of control. The giant game of pretend didn't fool anyone.

"The thing is, I can't figure out the MTA's stance. On one hand, they can be very tyrannical in enforcing their taboos. On the other hand, they aren't as diligent when it comes to smaller offenses such as selling counterfeits."

"Maybe they aren't as powerful as you think they are." Tiss ventured out a guess. "If they're short on manpower or resources for some reason, it makes sense if they don't bother with the small stuff."

Ves didn't believe this to be true. The MTA was unimaginably powerful and employed trillions of people across the galaxy. Even if they were spread a little thin in the galactic rim, they could always hire more people.

"Well, it's difficult to determine what the MTA wants. Since they left this market alone, it probably won't go away anytime soon."

After the group of Vandals had their fill of the exobeasts, they exited the bestiary and entered into an entirely different hall.

"Underground arena!"

A massive circular pit formed a single large arena space where two melee mechs went at each other with brutality unbecoming of a proper duelist. Shards of armor plating sheared away while the mechs went on the offensive with little guard for defense.

A large audience cheered and hooted at the spectacle happening in front of them. They all sat on the benches that went lower and lower until they reached the dueling ground.

The group quickly bumped into rough people that looked like cartel members. "We only sell all-day tickets here. Four-hundred marks per ticket. Ten-thousand marks if you want a VIP ticket. If you want to reserve a private theater box, I can take you up to the manager."

"Regular tickets please. We'll all pay for ourselves."

Four-hundred marks amounted to two-hundred bright credits, which was barely within the range they could withstand. A regular arena ticket cost only half as much, but the sanctioned duels were never as exciting as the underground ones.

The melee mechs currently in the arena sustained more damage every second, but neither of them gave up. Ves could tell that these mechs cost quite a bit, because their armor amazingly held up for a long time.

When he looked at the size of the crowd and how many seats the arena accommodated, he knew how the arena turned a profit despite the immense damage being dealt to the competing mechs.

"Even an underground arena can host more than a hundred-thousand people!"

While the main arenas in Bentheim could host up to half a million spectators, that was in the light. Despite its dubious legality, this underground arena still managed to draw a consistent crowd of tens of thousands of people!

Ves had never thought that the underground dueling scene was so popular!

Chapter 581

Huge crowds of humans from every corner of the Komodo Star Sector occupied the seats of the underground arena. Right now, over eighty percent of the seats of the boisterous fighting venue was filled. No matter where anyone bumped into, they would sit next to a Reinaldan or a tourist.

The chaotic crowd cheered their favorite athletes on as the brutal battle in the center entered a heated phase. The frames of both mechs started to show cracks. Some portions broke off entirely, exposing deadly weak points that could lead to instant defeat if struck.

The underground mech athletes pulled back some of their aggression at that point. Both mechs slowed down their pace, and the battle entered a strategic phase where both sides carefully tried to feint and fool their opponents.

Ves and the group of Vandals sat at a random stretch of empty seats. It took a bit of jostling and pushing to get others to make some room for themselves, but their air of savagery and intimidation easily frightened the tourists.

"So this is an underground arena?" Ves questioned. "Besides the aggressive fighting style, I don't see the difference yet."

"That's because both of the athletes on the stage are pussies." Trian Earls explained. Their resident mech pilot nodded contemptuously at the mechs trying to probe each other. The lack of excitement caused some of the audience members to boo. "Those mech pilots have skill, but they don't have the heart. Besides executing their moves, they have no clue what to do. They're probably thrill seekers looking to have some fun while they're visiting Harkensen."

"You mean anyone can go up on stage and compete?"

"It wouldn't be an underground arena otherwise." The Vandal mech pilot grinned. "Unlike the sanctioned mech games, there are no rules involved with the underground arena. Mech pilots don't have to go through a strict selection process and undergo special training. Neither do they need to set up an organization to manage their team. People come and go whenever they want. They might be a pirate one day, an underground duelist the next, then back to a pirate after they have their fill."

"So the underground arena is a place for mech pilots to vent?"

"Exactly. As long as your skill level and ability isn't too shabby, the arena operators will give you a chance. The only thing you need to keep in mind is that you have to bear all the damages yourself. You need to bring your own mech and be responsible for your own life."

In order to constantly attract new competitors, the underground arena also rewards them with a cut of the earnings. Every day, the arena earned a good amount of money in ticket sales, but this was not sufficient to keep up with the cost of running the arena.

The true money lay in gambling.

"Look at the people around you." Trian jerked his head towards the audience members. Occasionally, they raised their comm and entered a sum. "They're all connected to the arena's internal network. As long as you want, you can bet any sum of credits, sovvies, marks or whatever."

Ves opened up his own comm and connected to the internal network. He immediately encountered a sophisticated gambling interface that allowed him to make a bet on the five matches ahead. Betting on the current match was not allowed unless he paid for a VIP ticket, and even then it came with so many fees that even if he won the bet, he would hardly gain anything.

"I see. Any mech pilot can compete and become rich overnight as long as they draw lots of bets to themselves. Probably the only way for mech pilots to earn more is to make a name for yourself. Once you become a famous athlete, you'll have thousands betting on your name."

The ones fumbling around on stage only comprised of the lowest tier of underground duelists. Perhaps spurred on by the many boos, the mech duelists heated up their battle. One of them finally made a mistake and left their leg vulnerable. This allowed their opponent to jab at it with their weapon, causing the leg to fail completely.

The stricken mech lost its balance, and that proved fatal as its opponent hacked off the leg and caused the damaged mech to collapse. The winner slammed its leg against the body of the fallen mech and took on a winning pose, causing the crowd to regain their cheer.

"No fatality this time." Ves said.

Underground mech athletes cherished their lives as well. Ves investigated their survival rate after finding out that his cousin Raella had joined their ranks. Though killings weren't prohibited in the underground arena, he felt relieved that mech pilots didn't kill each other regularly.

The nature of killings in the underground dueling scene was complex. Some people believed that the threat of death was necessary to provide the ultimate thrill to both the fighters and the audience members. The people who felt drawn to the underground arenas explicitly rejected the tradition-heavy, rule-bound mech games that played out in the open.

The hardcore mech enthusiasts thought that the current incarnation of the mech games had gone overboard in terms of prioritizing safety. The current makeup of the rules had turned what used to be a battle with people's lives on the line to a broadcast-friendly sporting occasion.

As new mechs poured into the dueling grounds, Ves witnessed many different mechs battling it out with each other. The mechs varied from cheap light mechs to premium aerial rifleman mechs. Both sides hit each other with a lot more daring than at the mech games.

Deaths hadn't fallen yet, but the mech pilots hadn't shied away at aiming their attacks on their opponent's cockpits. This was a big taboo in legal mech duels, but here it was used as a viable tactic to put pressure on the opponent.

The underground duelists usually admitted defeat before their opponents managed to succeed in puncturing their cockpits. If they lacked the time to do so, they immediately ejected from their mechs.

Ves therefore surmised that unless an underground duelist was stupid, they wouldn't easily die on the dueling grounds.

"I can see the appeal now, in a way." He nodded. "Competing here is the ultimate way to polish your ability to pilot mechs. The real threat of death is an incredible stimulant to the underground mech athletes. It's realer than simulation battles and you don't have to go through the trouble of finding a worthy fight in the wild."

Life and death was in the mech athlete's hands. They bore all the responsibility to themselves. To some, this was an incredibly scary burden. To others, they craved nothing more than to reach new heights by putting their own lives at stake.

Ves figured that mech pilots deep in debt might resort to competing in the underground arenas to climb out of their hopeless situation. As long as they succeeded in winning a couple of matches, they could easily pay back old debts and start anew.

His spiritual sense tasted the desperation in some of the mech pilots that competed on the stage. The flavors came mostly from the shabbier-looking mechs. Ves figured they must be former members of disbanded outfits or survivors of a losing battle.

One battle happened to pit two of them in a single match.

The announcer gleefully introduced the competitors as they entered the killing field. "We've got some special duelists here for you tonight! On the west side is Broken Claw! He's a Reinaldan veteran that fought for several mercenary corps for over twenty years! Though he's encountered numerous disasters in his life, his ability to sustain his life is second-to-none!"

A worn-out medium bestial mech in the shape of a giant tiger stepped forth from the west gate. The mech was coated in blue marked with black tiger stripes. Besides its fearsome looking claws and jaws, the mech also featured weapons mounts to its side. Two kinetic weapon barrels extended out from the flanks, though one of them was broken.

"On the east side is Avid Serpent! An intrepid Vesian mech pilot, she deserted the Vesian Mech Legion and made a name for herself in Reinaldan space! Her medium axeman mech is the ultimate shield breaker, but will she be able to cope with Broken Claw's mobility?"

Speculation ran rife among the crowd. Even the group of Vandals that Ves was with started to discuss the merits of each mech pilot. They even opened their comms and prepared to bid on one of the two duelists on the field.

It was a custom in the underground arenas to use pseudonyms to refer to the participants. The real identities of many duelists was rather sensitive, so it was better for everyone if nobody knew their actual names. Both the mech pilots and underground arena operators abided by this custom.

This also made it harder to determine which mech pilot would be a good choice to bet upon. Unless they became a professional underground mech athlete like Raella, the crowd practically bet their money away at random.

"Broken Claw is a battle-tested veteran." Trian spoke. He obviously favored the pilot of the tiger mech over the axeman mech. "Even if he's a mercenary like the announcer has claimed, a twenty-year mercenary veteran that has mixed up in Reinaldan space has surely experienced a lot of chaos. I wouldn't be surprised if he joined an outfit that pretended to be pirates and raided Vesian space a few times."

"Who do you favor, Tiss?" Ves asked.

"Hmm, I think I'll put my money on Avid Serpent. She's a woman, and girls like us need to stick together."

Nolsen Feray chose to bet a thousand marks on Broken Claw, which was the biggest bet in their group so far. "Avid Serpent is absolutely not a simple mech pilot. You can tell from the marks of her mech that she's gone through hell and survived."

"Then why did you bet on Broken Claw?"

"Avid Serpent is restrained by her mech type. Between an axeman mech and a tiger mech, I would put my money on the latter anytime. Besides, Broken Claw's mech still has an intact ranged weapon. That will give him an immediate advantage."

Ves did not think the matchup would be so simple. He felt as if the underground arena organizers deliberately presented what appeared to be a lopsided matchup. The words they used painted a rosier picture for Broken Claw. As for Avid Serpent, they not only painted her with a dishonorable label of deserter, they also reminded the crowd that axeman mechs specialised in tearing down low-mobility knights.

He witnessed enough mech battles to know that mech types didn't dictate which mech would win. The quality of the mechs and the skill and disposition of the mech pilots also mattered a lot.

Thus, he used his own judgement to analyze the odds of winning.

He couldn't tell much about the mech pilots. At this distance and in the middle of a crowd of thousands, he could hardly distinguish the nuances of the man-machine connections in the middle. Probing their strength via spirituality wouldn't work.

He could only rely on his judgement as a mech designer.

"Broken Claw's tiger mech is a formidable machine, but it bears the sign of sloppy, jury-rigged repairs. You can see some discoloration on some of the portions of the frame. That's a strong sign that the mech is patchworked with inferior armor. Don't look at the bestial mech as if it's a strong machine. In truth, it is riddled with holes."

"What about Avid Serpent's mech?"

"Her axeman mech is in better shape, but her mech model is of an inferior grade. Its overall build is cheaper and the amount of strength it can exert is lower. However, the axeman mech is taller. Everyone knows that bestial mechs aren't very good at defending from attacks from above. I think her mech is nimble enough to dodge most attacks from Broken Claw."

Weighing the properties of the two mechs against each other, he chose to bet 500 marks on Avid Serpent. Of course, this amount of money hardly mattered to him, but he didn't have access to his main accounts right now. Besides, he was only placing a bet for fun.

"Let's see if my judgement is accurate."

Chapter 582

As soon as the signal blared, Avid Serpent's axeman mech sprinted towards Broken Claw's tiger mech. The sand pit that made up the underground arena's soil provided some challenges to the running motions of both mechs. This slowed down the speed of any mechs that ran across the arena.

Avid Serpent appeared to be caught off-guard of her mech's unstable footing. She was forced to pull back on the throttle, giving her opponent a little more time to respond.

BOOM!

Broken Claw's only intact kinetic weapon mount shot out a solid slug that accurately impacted Avid Serpent's mech! Her axemen mech dodged at the last moment, causing the slug to hit its sides rather than its abdomen. The hard slug managed to dig a shallow groove in the sides of the mech. It went through several layers of armor plating!

"Give it up, girlie!" A Reinaldan-accented voice boomed from the tiger mech as it stepped back to put more distance between them. The voice went through a warbler that prevented the crowd from matching a name to the voice. "I've fought over fifty battles and survived! There's nothing you can do that can baffle me! I suggest you bow down before you damage your precious mech!"

The axeman mech didn't take it lying down and began to accelerate abruptly. Though its footing was a little sketchy, Avid Serpent appeared to be adjusting quickly.

One hand of her mech raised its axe to the air, as if it was ready to split the heavens and earth. While most of the crowd followed the rise of the axe, Avid Serpent's mech abruptly pulled out a holdout pistol from a hidden compartment from behind and shot at the tiger mech!

"Two can play this game!" The warbled voice of Avid Serpent arose from her own mech.

The underground arena deliberately amplified and spread out their dialogue to ensure the entire crowd followed their words.

Though the axeman mech wasn't a hero mech, its humanoid form and articulated arms didn't prevent it from wielding other weapons!

Laser beams scorched the tiger mech. Though the beams didn't possess a lot of power, Avid Serpent cleverly tried to hit the main sensors mounted on the face of the tiger mech. She was attempting to cripple its eyes!

Broken Claw growled in anger. "Now you've pissed me off!"

The tiger mech unleashed another kinetic projectile from its side barrel. Broken Claw's aim was remarkably good! However, Avid Serpent's reaction didn't fall behind, and she pulled her mech aside at the last moment.

This time, the axeman mech suffered a shallower graze.

Throughout its dash, the axeman mech continued to pelt the tiger mech with laser beams.

Though Broken Claw's mech only suffered superficial damage, the laser beams fell dangerously close to its vulnerable sensors. The possibility of letting his mech's eyes be blinded was a huge shame to him. The tiger mech stopped retreated but instead started to advance.

"They're going at it for real this time!"

At some time, Avid Serpent retrieved the pistol and focused instead on her footwork. The axeman mech gained enough proficiency in navigating through the sand that it even started displaying a special dodging technique.

The next kinetic projectile missed entirely!

There was no more time for Broken Claw to unleash another kinetic projectile. The two mechs almost reached each other. When they were just a few seconds from colliding against each other, they each unleashed their separate moves!

Broken Claw opted to make the best use of his mech's momentum, and threw his bestial mech into a leap while immediately putting both claws forward!

Perhaps anticipating her opponent's attack, Avid Serpent chose to make away. Her axeman mech dashed against the sand and pushed it to the left, putting the mech barely out of the trajectory of the tiger mech's immense bulk.

Her mech successfully dodged the first attack!

The axemen mech not only dodged the tiger mech's leap, it also chopped down with its axe, seeking to breach the spine of the tiger mech as it whooshed past its target!

The air seemed to woosh around the scarred but sturdy axe. Just before the blade of the axe managed to connect to the tiger mech, the latter mech's rear paws abruptly lashed out to the side with a handful of claws drawn out!

Broken Claw not only used the chest of the axeman mech as a springboard, he also left some awful claw marks behind!

The crowd went wild at that moment! Supporters of Avid Serpent groaned as her mech stumbled backwards from the attack.

"Come on, Avid Serpent! Show the old geezer what girls can do!"

"You almost got him! You can do better next time!"

Meanwhile, those who put their chips on Broken Claw boosted him on. "Claw her to death! Show these foreigners how Reinaldans fight!"

"Don't let Reinald down!"

The two mechs quickly readjusted and clashed again. This time, the tiger mech barely fended off the heavy axe chop from Avid Serpent. Though the axeman mech was a little lighter, its axe strikes shouldn't be belittled. A dozen more strikes like that would certainly break the tiger mech's claws!

"Worthy of a shield breaker! That axe chop is so powerful!"

"Humanoid mechs are better than animal mechs! Only the human form allows you to utilize all kinds of techniques!"

The difference between humanoid mechs and bestial mechs came to the fore. Humans knew humanoid mechs the best, and developed or adapted all kinds of exquisite techniques to best leverage its power.

It could be said that the complexity surrounding humanoid mechs was one of the principal reasons why mech training lasted so many years.

A badly trained pilot would be able to exert only ten to thirty percent of a humanoid mech's strength. Most of its power would likely be wasted by inefficient motions.

On the other hand, a well-trained pilot would easily be able to draw out a hundred percent of the strength of their mech. In addition, the amount of force it could exert could easily reach up to five-hundred percent if it leveraged its weight and momentum behind their attacks!

The battle between Broken Claw and Avid Serpent showcased two opposite approaches to putting more than a hundred percent power behind their attacks.

While humanoid attacks relied on their vertical posture, flexible limbs and sophisticated techniques to drive their attacks, bestial mechs focused on taking advantage of their natural forms. The latter type of mechs might not possess as much variety in their movements and attack motions, but each of its actions were marked with force and speed.

Broken Claw displayed an intimate familiarity with the strengths and limits of a bestial mech. His old tiger mech didn't attempt to fight the axeman mech upfront. Instead, it kept leaping or making flank attacks, preferring sideswipes over all-in attacks. The mech's powerful movements granted by its four paws gave it a strong advantage in mobility.

"Is that the best a Vesian can do?!" Broken Claw taunted. "Deserters deserve to be buried in interstellar space!"

A roar emerged from Avid Serpent as she drove her mech to a more aggressive attack pattern. "You'll regret those words! A merc like you who never put his life on the line for his state will never understand what it's like to fight in the frontlines!"

The people in the stands cheered and whooped at the drama occurring on the fighting field. Everyone loved to put a story to the names. A colorful background increased their interest in the duelists!

"Tigers need to be put back in their cages!"

The axeman mech seemed to tire of the drive-by attacks of the tiger mech. It abruptly leapt forward, disrupting the tiger mech's timing. Both mechs leapt at each other in a haphazard manner, but the difference was that Avid Serpent's mech spun around its frame!

The extra rotation along with excellent control caused Avid Serpent's axe to dig into one of the tiger mech's paws! The axe pierced through the thin layers of armor and practically savaged the limb!

"Down goes a paw!"

The tiger mech hastily pulled back. Though one of its forepaws ceased to be capable of launching any further attacks, the mech's mobility hadn't been affected too much.

If a humanoid mech lost a leg, it immediately turned into an immobile and very vulnerable machine.

If a bestial mech lost one of their limbs, chances were it would still be able to maintain at least seventy percent of its maximum speed.

Broken Claw's experience showed as he easily adjusted his tiger mech's movement to avoid putting on weight on its damaged limb.

Supporters of Broken Claw cried out in shock or anger. A significant part of the crowd consisted of local Reinaldans. Though they didn't put their bets on their kinsmen all the time, they always acted on their biases to an extent. It wouldn't be surprising to find out that over two-thirds of all of the Reinaldans put their money on Broken Claw.

"Come on, Broken Claw! You can still do it! Smash that Vesian mech apart!"

Despite the damage it incurred, the tiger mech did not let up its aggression. In Broken Claw's perspective, to slow down now would likely widen the gap between his damaged mech and Avid Serpent's relatively intact mech. He desperately needed to equalize the state of their mechs.

Avid Serpent fell in the leeway in the next minute. Broken Claw continued to push his tiger mech onwards in a reckless flurry of attacks. Due to the crippling of one of its forepaws, Broken Claw quickly adjusted and launched more attacks from its rear limbs. Though it these kinds of attacks were awkward to pull off, the extra power behind the rear limbs caused Avid Serpent to dread getting hit again. Her axemen mech's chest had lost a lot of integrity from the earlier attack.

"Are you a turtle of an axeman mech?! Show some guts!" Broken Claw yelled out.

"You'll be at the end of your ropes soon enough!" His opponent yelled back. "Come and peel away my shell if you dare!"

It was obvious that Avid Serpent knew what her opponent was thinking about. She switched from offense to defense the moment Broken Claw sought to accomplish a breakthrough. When Avid Serpent put her full mind on defense, the advantages of her humanoid mech came to the fore.

Her medium mech possessed enough leg power and overall mobility to dodge the simple attacks of the tiger mech. Though the latter machine's attacks possessed a lot of power, their inherent simplicity made it easy for Avid Serpent to anticipate the possible attacks. Bestial mechs also didn't lend themselves well to feints, so Broken Claw didn't possess too many means of opening up the axeman mech to a critical attack.

The aggressive brawl turned into a contest of patience and endurance. The crowd sat tight while the two mechs competed on which mech would last the most.

Arenas limited the amount of power a mech would be able to bring on the battlefield. This prevented boring battles of attrition that stretched out for hours at a time.

It seemed that underground arenas craved excitement, because the mechs showed signs of winding down after an intensive battle.

"As expected, the tiger mech is faltering." Ves said. "It's slim form and substantial armor doesn't leave much room inside its body. There's no way it can fit a lot of energy cells inside its frame."

Every mech only brought out a percentage of its maximum energy charge to the arena stage. A mech built for endurance would still be able to last a long time even with only twenty percent charge.

On the other hand, a mech built for peak performance might already start to shut down in ten minutes or less at twenty percent charge.

Both of the mechs on stage happened to fall in between. They didn't feature the best endurance, but they could slog it out over a campaign without requiring constant recharges.

The tiger mech critically faltered in its steps due to a sluggish response to one of its other limbs. A critical misstep occurred due to a lack of power being directed to its engine!

"You're finished!" Avid Serpent exulted and spun her mech into a spin that hit the tiger mech's head and split it apart.

The damage jolted the tiger mech, but Broken Claw wasn't resigned to defeat. "Even if I'm going down, I'm bringing you with me, Vesian!"

The tiger mech jerked forward and went all-in, trying to enveloping the entire frame of its opponents into a deadly hug.

However, contrary to her words, Avid Serpent did not follow up on her last attack. Instead, she delayed, causing the tiger mech to grab empty air. Just as the tiger mech landed on the ground, the axeman mech unleashed a simple chop against its back.

CRACK!

This time, the tiger mech's spine suffered crippling damage!

CRACK!

A second chop followed soon after that dug into the cavity opened up by the previous chop. This time, the power reactor suffered a substantial failure that caused it to stutter.

Avid Serpent was well in her rights to deliver another attack. Her axe raised above the air, and Ves could imagine where it would land. Broken Claw's cockpit was vulnerable.

The axe barely started flowing down when the tiger mech's back abruptly exploded. Broken Claw chose to eject!

"Winner, Avid Serpent!"

Chapter 583

Avid Serpent refused to move at the end of the match. Even as a bunch of heavy lifter bots hauled Broken Claw's tiger mech away, the axeman mech remained on the arena grounds.

The audience members stilled as they sensed an unusual spectacle coming.

"Avid Serpent! Avid Serpent! Avid Serpent!" Her new fans repeated her pseudonym like a mantra.

After half a minute of inactivity, her mech finally raised its axe!

"Who said that I was a deserter?! Who said that I'm a coward who values her life over her loyalty? I am a Vesian! That remains true whether I'm part of the Mech Legion or not! I have fought and bled for my state for years, and I will do so once again!"

"Vesia! Vesia! Vesia!"

"Sod off, you Vesians! This is the Reinald Republic!"

"Kick her out already! I wanna see the next duel!"

Ves and the rest of the Vandals looked unsettled. They might have cheered if they shared the same nationality as Avid Serpent, but the fact of the matter was that she fought on behalf of the enemy. No matter how valiant she appeared right now, the enemy was the enemy.

"What do you think she's doing?" Ensign Tiss asked.

"No idea." He shrugged. "Is this even allowed?"

"There are no rules in the arena." Trian explained. Only a mech pilot understood other mech pilots best. "All types of desperate people compete in the underground arena. The operators love a good drama, and winning a match gives the mech pilot the undivided attention of the crowd. You can do a lot with that attention."

Lieutenant Feray nodded. "I've been to a few underground rings. Some mech pilots who compete in these arenas are trying to get hired. Others wish to absolve their mistakes and regain their honor. It sounds like Avid Serpent falls under that category."

The ebuilliant crowd smelled a good story, and sat in anticipation for the Vesian mech duelist's next words.

"Vesians! I have never forgotten you, nor have I forsaken the stars that I call home! Let me prove my allegiance to you by taking revenge for the shame you have suffered in recent times!"

A large amount of ooh's and aah's ran through the crowd.

"As a Vesian citizen, I've followed the news and I'm as depressed and ashamed as any of you! The shamelessness of the Bright Republic knows no bounds! Their dishonorable Mech Corps sent out their most depraved mech regiment of all, the Flagrant Vandals, to kill and raid our innocent civilians!"

"I love you, Flagrant Vandals!"

"Meh, the Vandals are the mutts of the Mech Corps!"

"Hahaha! The Flagrant Vandals are the pride of the Bright Republic!"

"The Flagrant Vandals are nothing but pirates in disguise!"

"That means they have Reinaldan blood in them!"

The Vesian mech duelist let the crowd simmer a bit before continuing. "Hearing people's praise of the Flagrant Vandals makes my blood boil to the brim! Shame on you for idolizing this gathering of thieves! From their name alone they actually take pride in their wickedness! Their crimes against the Kingdom are innumerable! From throwing artificial meteorites into a populated city, to capturing one of our revered Venerables without her own expert mech, how low can they go?!"

Her words polarized the crowd. Since the Reinald Republic bordered the Vesia Kingdom, they paid a lot of attention on what went on with their bigger neighbor. The Bright-Vesia Wars became a keen topic of interest in their daily lives.

Recently, nothing caught more attention than the actions of the Flagrant Vandals. The main fleet had inexplicably split in two, with one branch heading towards the Reinald Republic! Practically everyone followed the exploits of the Verle Task Force and its hard-fought victories against some of the best the Vesians threw at them. Each time the Vandals overcame an obstacle, the admiration among the Reinaldans grew.

Due to the fact that the Reinaldans considered the Vesians as an ominous rivals, the success of the Flagrant Vandals was something to be celebrated. By far the overwhelming majority of the Reinald Republic approved of their achievements.

Not only that, most of the foreigners who visited the Harkensen System admired their performance under adversity as well. It took a lot of guts and ingenuity to run the gauntlet from the middle of an entire enemy state! Nobody pitied the Vesians for their failure to stop the task force from escaping their territories when they had countless mechs at their disposal.

Of course, the outsiders only formed their opinions from a narrow perspective. They didn't have access to the full picture. The Vesians were not only hampered by their serious internal division, they also faced many limitations and setbacks by the low-key actions of the rebel groups that acted as a cancer to the Kingdom.

How could patriotic Vesians not stand still as their state received a battering from the public? Foreign bystanders fundamentally misunderstood the odds stacked against the Mech Legion!

"I say no more! No more hero worship for the Flagrant Vandals! Wicked thieves deserve to be scorned rather than worshipped! I may be all alone out here, but the Kingdom lives on within my heart!"

Avid Serpent's axeman mech abruptly threw its axe to the ground. The blade of the axe dug into the sand like a falling executioner's axe! The thud rang through the hall like a drumbeat through everyone's ears.

"On behalf of the stars that I call home, I issue a challenge to the Flagrant Vandals! I know you are here! There is no one here who have missed your triumphant arrival in the Harkensen System! Stand up from the seats and show yourselves!"

The entire crowd fell silent. Those who stood immediately sat down. No bystander wanted to earn the spicy Vesian mech duelist's ire. Avid Serpent's axeman mech slowly turned around to behold the entire audience.

"Where are you, Vandals? I'm right here! Are you brave enough to meet my challenge?"

The arena lights dimmed down until the entire underground space fell into shadows. A series of flood lights illuminated from above. The largest one shone upon Avid Serpent's mech standing with its axe thrown before in an immensely heroic bearing.

The other flood lights shone upon several clumps of people sitting in the stands. One one them happened to land squarely on Ves' group!

Nolsen cursed. "Damn Reinaldans. They're putting us on the spot! Can't we enjoy some privacy?"

None of the Vandals in the group looked pleased at Avid Serpent's naked challenge. Her slanderous words belittled the herculean challenge of fighting their way out of Vesian space. How could they take her words lying down?

Yet her challenge also seemed iffy. Why would she issue a challenge to the Flagrant Vandals out of the blue? Was it because she felt genuinely indignant about the Vesia Kingdom's defeats? Was she grasping at straws in order to win back honor for herself? Or were others instigating this fight from the dark?

No matter how fishy the situation looked, the Flagrant Vandals had been put in the spotlight. Refusing to stand up to Avid Serpent's brazen challenge would tarnish their hard-fought reputation.

The only problem was that the Vandals had all split up in groups of ten and went their separate ways. Even if a lot of groups attended the underground matches, nobody knew whether they were the highest ranking officers on site. Unless Major Verle was present in the flesh, no one dared to speak on behalf of their entire unit.

"I see you, Vandals!" Avid Serpent broadcasted from her mech as it pointed a finger at the people under the spotlight. "Come on! You think you can rest on your laurels? Think again! Are the big bad Vandals cowering from a lone Vesian like me? You craven Brighters! Stand up and face my challenge!"

Every off-duty Vandal had to repress their anger. In order to preserve the dignity of their mech regiment, they rigidly stayed in place and kept their mouths shut. Spouting random words in the glare of the public eye might lead to a devastating outcome. No Vandal wanted to bear the responsibility for staining their unit.

Ves looked at the Vandals sitting next to him and knew that none of them possessed the clout to represent the Vandals when they spoke. The highest ranking officer among them was Lieutenant Nolsen Feray, and he was only a mere security officer. A proper response to Avid Serpent's challenge should be given by a mech officer, but all they had was Trian and another mech pilot. Both of them were relatively junior mech pilots who made up the rank-and-file.

Luckily, one of the other Vandal groups in the audience happened to bring a mech officer. A single figure stood up from the spotlight and a familiar voice rang out. The arena operators already made a move to amplify her voice.

"You want to challenge my mech regiment? What gives you the qualifications to do so!"

Ves widened his eyes. He knew who was speaking out right now, and he had a very mixed history with that particular mech officer.

"I dare because I am a Vesian and I have proved my mettle on this ground! Who are you to question my qualifications?"

"I am Captain Rosa Orfan." The figure on the other side of the stands declared. "I have fought in the heart of the capital city of Detemen IV and have defeated Lord Javier's Loquacious Raphael in person. I have subsequently hunted down and fought a Vesian expert pilot without an expert on my side on Nova Migolatus I! Twice I have taken down a Vesian elite!"

The majority of the crowd swung in Captain Orfan's favor. The encouraging cheers fell upon her head, which swelled it past its limits!

Ves and some of the other Vandals groaned or shook their heads. Captain Orfan was one of their most problematic mech officers, though few dared to confront her about her issues. Right now, she basically inflated her importance while leaving no credit to the rest of the Vandals.

"That woman! Even if she's a captain, she shouldn't talk like that!" Trian complained.

"Big mouth or not, have some respect for the mech captain." Someone else said. "She can beat any of you within a minute in a mech duel. Her skills are the real deal."

"Captain Orfan." Avid Serpent spoke. "Good. Good. I am not afraid of a mech captain! Do you accept my challenge then?"

Fortunately, Captain Orfan wasn't stupid enough to dive into the challenge without some prudence. "Only if we can agree on the terms."

"Fine! As the challenged party, you have the right to propose the terms of our duel. Speak, then!"

"Alright." Orfan said as she fell into thought.

Though they were currently in an underground arena where rules didn't apply, people still attached a lot of importance to the ritual surrounding mech duels. Any terms that flew wildly out of bounds would only make a mockery out of this sacred occasion. Basically, Captain Orfan wouldn't be able to impose any ridiculous terms.

"First, we'll hold our duel in three days. We haven't received any prior notice to this challenge. A fight right now is too sudden for us."

"Agreed." Avid Serpent responded. "If you need to fortify your courage, then be my guest. It's not my fault you are quaking in your boots."

"Hahahaha!"

Some of the crowd erupted into laughter.

"Second term, we fight in our own mechs."

"I do not agree! My axeman mech pales in comparison to your mech. Even though I've never seen your mech before, a mech captain is entitled to pilot the best. Would our duel be fair if your mech is at least thrice as valuable as mine?"

"Fair duel! Fair duel! Fair duel!"

"You idiot, you think a mech captain will choose to pilot a rustbucket?"

Overall, the crowd was swayed by Avid Serpent's response. This was not a duel where mech pilots pitted their individual strength or the capabilities of their mech models. This was purely a contest of honor.

"Fine then! If the arena operators can lend me a spearman mech of the same value as her axeman mech, I'll kick your butt regardless!"

Ves shot forward from his seat. "No! You idiot!"

"AGREED!" Some nameless man's voice thundered from above as if it came from the will of heaven.

Something moved on the arena grounds. A section of the grounds retracted into the ground, then went back up. Surprisingly, the section now bore a partially-damaged lancer mech.

"Property of a deceased competitor. In line to be recycled." The voice spoke again but with less boom this time.

Orfan probably didn't think much of the broken mech, but refusing now would put the arena operators in a bad light. "Adequate, though I'm not sure we can fix it up in time for the duel."

"Make do, then!" The challenger spat. "Are you not without support?"

Eventually, Captain Orfan and Avid Serpent hashed out a detailed agreement for the upcoming duel.

Chapter 584

Word of the duel spread through the entire star system the next day. There wasn't a mech enthusiast or professional in Harkensen that hadn't heard of Avid Serpent's challenge to the Flagrant Vandals.

Details of the terms of the upcoming duel proliferated among the public as well. The most noteworthy stipulation elevated the honor duel from a passing curiosity into the talk of the system.

"Fight to the death!"

"Accept no surrender!"

"Disable all escape mechanisms!"

"The winner shall only leave the arena grounds stained in blood!"

Though the public butchered the wording of the terms, they weren't necessarily wrong. In order to prove their worth and uphold their deals, both duelists needed to show their sincerity. To an honor duel, there was nothing more convincing than to put their lives at stake.

The message they were trying to say was that even if they lost, they would rather accept death than dishonor!

How exciting!

Harkensen did nothing to prohibit the news. Why would they? The sensational duel only brought more tourists to their system! Drama like this promoted their cosmopolitan nature. Look at our star system! Only in a place where multiple nationalities and cultures clashed can you witness something as exciting as a duel to the death!

Not everyone approved of the duel, however. A small minority in the Harkensen System and a greater majority of people elsewhere regarded it as a barbaric tradition. A proper mech duel should be a civilized affair where the better of the two gracefully won while showing magnanimity to their opponent.

Fights to the death was as barbaric as two cavemen bashing their heads with a rock in order to determine who had the right to mate with the woman with the widest hips. Though the actual mech duelists were both women this time, that didn't detract from the crude nature of the duel.

Although mech duels happened a lot, the MTA took a very dim view on them when they turned deadly. Still, most people regarded the powerful organization as a distant nanny and took no note of their rules in this area. The mech duel was sacred, and even the MTA had given up on enforcing the no-deaths rule a couple of hundred years ago.

As long as the participants agreed to the stipulation willingly, neither the government nor the MTA had any reason to step in. If the mech pilots had a deathwish, then so be it. It was no different from driving a shuttle into a star.

In a way, the apathy shown by the highest authorities reflected their helplessness against human nature. As much as the leaders attempted to shape human values, they couldn't have it both ways.

Mech pilots bore the brunt in every war. Though many civilians and servicemen serving in auxiliary units lost their lives as well, by far mech pilots risked the most.

In order to motivate them to fight, the MTA and many states in turn chose to foster a warrior culture among their mech pilots. Honor, pride, glory and adoration were nothing but tools in the hands of the states that drove their mech pilots into deadly situations. Unlike money or material rewards, nebulous concepts such as honor and glory didn't cost much to come into being.

A famous conqueror once said that a soldier would fight long and hard for a colored ribbon.

In the Age of Mechs, trillions of mech pilots fought to make a name for themselves. The MTA's initial attempts at encouraging mech pilots to become the main sacrifice in the constant struggle between states went out of control. The warrior culture had taken a life of its own, and various rituals and customs sprung into being that otherwise seemed anachronistic to a civilization that long transcended its home planet.

Right now, Ves, Captain Orfan and Chief Haine sat in front of a desk in Major Verle's temporary office on Harkensen III. The commanding officer looked sternly at Captain Orfan.

The woman calmly stared back at her superior. Her eyes reflected the strong conviction she held in the righteousness of her case.

Chief Haine sat as if this circus didn't have anything to do with her. Although she was a card-carrying member of the Flagrant Vandals, mech technicians didn't buy into the warrior culture as much. Her only job was to fix the mechs of their fighters. What happened after that was none of the grizzled chief technician's concern.

As for Ves, he refused to waste a single minute of his time. Ever since the duel had been set, he went through some channels and obtained the design specifications of the spearman mech that Captain Orfan would ride into battle. Ves needed to deepen himself in the foreign design before he could come up with the appropriate repairs.

He really hated the short time limit. Couldn't Captain Orfan be more considerate to the mech designers and mech technicians that prepared her battlegear?

"Alright." Major Verle started after giving up on the silent treatment. "Let me begin by asking you, Orfan. What gives you the right represent the honor of the Flagrant Vandals?"

"Sir!" She barked, making a good show at being a prim and proper Vandal. "When the Vesian issued her challenge, nobody spoke up. I felt compelled by my rank to stand up to her. I doubt any Vandal objected to my actions. The odds of another Vandal mech captain being present at that venue was very slim. Since I'm not only a mech captain but also one who specializes in landbound combat, there are only few among the Vandals who can do better."

Major Verle tapped his desk with his finger. "I will give you that. Nonetheless, hasn't it occurred to any of you to contact me or send an emergency signal from your comms? Mr. Larkinson! You're the smartest among the Vandals. Why did you overlook this option?"

"Uh, I have no excuse, sir!" Ves stammered. "I mentally overlooked this option because I'm too used to all the communication restrictions."

"Those restrictions are there to prevent our servicemen from broadcasting our movements and plans to the enemy." Verle spoke. "Right now, everyone and their mother knows our task force has stopped over in the Harkensen System. It makes little sense to maintain a total blackout when we aren't on a mission right now. Use the options that are the most appropriate at hand. What is appropriate or not changes in each different situation. Don't make this kind of oversight again. That goes for the two of you as well!"

"I wasn't present at the underground arena, sir." Chief Haine replied with a touch of complaint.

As for Captain Orfan, she remained recalcitrant. "Sir, asking for instructions from above would paint the wrong picture. Avid Serpent asked for a Vandal who could stand up to her, and I bit the bullet and stood up. If I diverted my attention to my comm while everyone was looking at me, I'd be made into a laughing stock!"

"Your personal reputation doesn't concern me! Not when you hijacked this mech duel to blow your own horn!" His lips curled into a frown. "My intention was to lay low and let everyone's interest in us die down. Obviously, that's shot to hell now. We've become the talk of the town and no amount of hiding will stop everyone from paying attention to us. What a great vacation. This wasn't what I expected when I wanted everyone to take their mind off any battles."

"It's not all bad, sir. Proving our mech regiment's worth before the Reinaldans and the tourists will burnish our reputation! The Mech Corps and the Tally Divisions won't be able to ignore us any longer!"

"I don't care about that, captain!" Major Verle roared again. "Don't presume to know our strategic priorities. You are only a battlefield mech captain. Other Vandal officers are responsible for any greater concerns. We do not need a mech officer who lets her fighting instincts do the thinking for her to take a leading position in our mech regiment."

The major tried to rein in his temper while the other three patiently waited for instructions. No matter what Major Verle thought about the duel, they could only go through with it now that it was set in stone.

"Alright, let's move on to our approach. First, are you fully recovered from battle?"

"Hell, I'm raring to go at that Vesian wench, sir!" Captain Orfan enthusiastically declared.

"Are you even cleared for battle?"

"Hey, the mind doctors only repeated the usual stuff, major. I'm not depressed or hung up over our fallen brothers, if that was what you were worried about. There's nothing wrong with my body, either."

With Orfan's sheer force of personality, it was no wonder why she said so. Ves inwardly scoffed at the captain. In his eyes, she thought so much of herself that she hardly had any empathy left for others.

"Very well, I'll take your word over it for now, but I'll look up your medical reports right after this meeting. If you lied about anything, I'll boot you from this duel and replace you with another captain. The Vesian challenged our entire mech regiment, so I doubt she would object to a shuffle."

Captain Orfan narrowed her eyes at her superior. It was as if she was wary of his intentions. The man ignored her stares and turned to Ves and Chief Haine.

"As for you two, you're going to be responsible for fixing the spearman mech the arena operators dug out of their junk pile. Lay it down on me. How bad is the condition of the mech?"

"The spearman mech is a copy of a fairly popular Reinaldan mech model." Ves replied. It was his turn to answer Verle's questions. "It's condition isn't as bad as it appears. It's a little old and worn out and has a big hole in its torso, but it won't take too much effort to get it up and running. All of its essential components are still in place, and what damage it suffered to its internals can be fixed up easily enough, sir."

"What's the catch, then?"

"Well, I'm not entirely used to the Reinaldan mech standards. There are a few oddities our mech technicians and I have to get used to. The mech had been getting on in years and shows lots of signs of jury-rigged repairs. It's basically a mass production model that has slowly degraded over the years before meeting its final end in the dueling grounds."

"Will you be able to fix it up in time for the duel?"

Ves grinned. "No question about it, sir. I'm not unaccustomed to working under pressure. I've prepared for several duels like this, and in my eyes, three days is enough for me to transform the mech into something new. Give me Chief Haine and a bunch of mech technicians and I can give you a prize-winning mech."

He held the utmost confidence in his mech design skills. Avid Serpent, perhaps wary of the strong support the Flagrant Vandals could provide to Captain Orfan, proposed detailed terms that limited the amount of work that could be done to their mechs.

While this limited what people and what kind of materials the Flagrant Vandals could employ to upgrade their assigned mech, the same limitations applied to Avid Serpent as well.

There was no way she would be on her own after issuing her challenge. Their mech duel had transcended their personal honor. While Captain Orfan fought for the Flagrant Vandals, Avid Serpent represented the entirety of the Mech Legion.

Any patriotic Vesian present in Harkensen would likely flock to Avid Serpent and lend a hand. If neither side limited the amount of help each side could receive, both duelists may soon be piloting extravagant mechs worth billions of credits. A mech duel that was supposed to revolve around honor would devolve into a contest between who could waste more resources than their counterparts.

The reason why Ves felt smug was because one of the terms that Avid Serpent had insisted upon played to his advantage. The term insisted that only a single mech designer on each side was allowed to assist in the preparation of their mechs, and they had to be Apprentices at most.

Chapter 585

The terms proposed by Avid Serpent revealed that she only possessed a shallow understanding of the Flagrant Vandals. Someone who knew the Vandals intimately wouldn't put so many limitations on how much strength they could utilize to prepare for the upcoming mech duel.

An ordinary mech regiment employed up to a hundred high-ranked mech designers. Though most of them might only consist of talented Apprentices, perhaps a dozen Journeyman and a couple of Seniors sat at the top.

This was a terrifying concentration of mech design strength.

An average medium state-wide mech manufacturer only employed a couple of talented Apprentices or a single average Journeyman.

A large sector-wide mech manufacturer on the other hand may only employ up to fifty mech designers spread into various teams. Only the larger mech manufacturers employed Seniors. The smaller ones usually made do with Journeymen as their lead designers.

So from an outside perspective, employing several Seniors and more than a dozen Journeymen as well as a hundred Apprentices was massive overkill.

"That's exactly the point." Ves had learned after witnessing several different mech regiments in battle.

The two that stood out the most were the two premier mech regiments of the Mech Legion. Both the Calico Dancer Bats and the Frosty Meteors showed indomitable strength. In their battles against the Flagrant Vandals, despite showing up with a fraction of the numbers of the Flagrant Vandals, both Vesian units proved that they could punch above their weight.

Part of it was their centuries-long martial tradition. These famous names had been founded centuries ago, and they evolved from nothing into the elite step-by-step in their own unique style of fighting. This elevated their mech pilots into true soldiers that clearly surpassed the standard of an average mercenary.

Another part of their strength came from a straightforward expression of wealth and capability. Their mechs utilized many expensive materials that only the government could provide. The duchies weren't parsimonious with regard to their elite regiments. This wealth also allowed them to employ all of those high-ranking mech designers.

The Flagrant Vandals lacked that kind of accumulation. Their status within the Mech Corps was awkward, but this was only known from within and by a small circle of outsiders. To the public, the Flagrant Vandals appeared to be a genuine if eccentric extension of the Bright Republic's military.

This was why Ves felt a little bit more reassured about this challenge. At the moment Avid Serpent issued her challenge, she didn't appear to act as an agent of the Vesians. If the Vesian mech pilot had been an insider, then she wouldn't have been so hasty in ruling out assistance from Journeymen and Senior Mech Designers. She also wouldn't have prohibited external material assistance, though in this area the disparity was smaller.

In short, the terms of the mech duel sought to minimize the influence of outside factors and turn the occasion into a contest of individual strength. If the Reinaldan arena operators hadn't brought out a damaged spearman mech, the mech duel might have commenced right away!

"Avid Serpent has made a big mistake."

Ves knew his strength and considered himself to be highly placed among Apprentices. With his great foundation and his advantages from his Masteries, even after being separated from the System he still possessed capabilities beyond the average Apprentice.

"I don't know who Avid Serpent will turn to for help." He reminded himself.

Each side could employ any single mech designer they wished to enhance their dueling mechs. Both Avid Serpent and Captain Orfan had the right to pick out any Apprentice Mech Designer and a number of mech technicians to assist. They could draw on the underground arena's mech workshops to perform their work and draw upon a limited number of resources from their stockpiles or junkyard.

It was already set in stone that Ves and a number of mech technicians from the Vandals would work on Orfan's spearman mech. Regarding their own side, Ves had no question about their own strength.

As for the kind of help that Avid Serpent could expect, the Flagrant Vandals hadn't been able to find out as of yet. Several agents affiliated with the Bright Republic kept an eye on where Avid Serpent currently resided. They spotted many prominent Vesians entering her room.

Because the mech duel involved the honor of the Vesia Kingdom, there was no question that Avid Serpent could have her pick of Vesian talents. While the Kingdom had a tenuous relationship with the Reinald Republic, officially they were at peace with each other. The Reinaldans didn't prohibit any Vesian visitors, and many did in fact paid a visit to the Harkensen System.

Right now, Ves, Chief Haine, Captain Orfan and a gaggle of mech technicians traveled to the underground arena. Even in the morning, the fighting venue already opened its doors, though only a fourth of the seats were occupied at this time.

"Captain Orfan! Please come this way!" An arena manager called from the side.

The entourage followed the manager to an elevator that brought the Vandals to the lower levels. Once the elevator reached the right floor, they stepped out and walked through a wide mech-sized corridor.

The manager briefly introduced this floor. "This is our workshop area. It consists of thirty halls, each of which has enough space and equipment to service any third-class mech."

"What about second-class mechs?" Ves asked.

"Our apologies, but the variety of mechs that duelists bring to our venue mostly consist of lower-end mechs. There has never been a case where a mech pilot from the Coalition entered the dueling ground with an expensive second-class mech. Mech pilots from second-rate states generally disdain our class of establishments."

The manager spoke those words without any resentment or animosity because it was the bare truth. Having a second-class mech compete in this local underground arena was like putting a warhorse into a pigsty. The disparity was too big, and the consequences of damaging a second-class mech and its mech pilot was dreadful.

"I see." Ves nodded. "Will we have access to a complete suite of mech manufacturing equipment, or do we have to make due with the bare essentials?"

"It's the latter, unfortunately. Compressed armor is too expensive for both our organization and our mech athletes to maintain on a regular basis. It also unnecessarily prolongs the duels, turning them into hitting matches where the side that hits a little harder will win the match."

The underground arena didn't prohibit the use of compressed armor, but the owner of the mechs needed to bear the full cost of repairs by themselves without any assistance from the operators. This could turn out to be very expensive if the mech incurred a lot of damage.

"So neither our captain or Avid Serpent will be able to bring a mech clad in compressed armor to the duel?"

"That's correct. Please be assured that we will endeavor to provide the exact same amount of accommodation to each of you. Let it not be said that we are partial to one side over the other.

Mech arenas relied on a reputation for impartiality to attract a ceaseless amount of audience members and mech athletes. This applied double to underground arenas, as they weren't shackled to any laws. Fudging the outcome of the duels was trivially easy if the arena operators possessed no morals.

Once news of such manipulation leaked out, the mech arena in question lost all of their credibility. In this business, credibility was extremely precious. Once it was lost, it could never be regained.

Thus, the manager went out of his way to explain how fair they set up their preparations. Neither side should have any complaints about favor one side over another.

This suited Ves fine. "If our circumstances are truly as you have described, then I have nothing to say."

After reaching the end of the corridor, they arrived at their assigned workshop. Before everyone entered, they stared at the entrance of the workshop on the opposite side. They weren't the first to reach this location.

"Vandals." A masked and robed woman spat as she beheld the recent arrivals. "Come to prepare for your doom?"

"Hah!" Captain Orfan laughed and stepped forward. "Look who's barking up our legs! What's the matter? Why don't you show us your face? Are you too ugly or something?"

"Hmph!" Avid Serpent huffed and turned her back on the captain. "Engaging in a conversation with a boastful pig like you is a waste of time."

Avid Serpent masked her identity quite well, but her mannerisms revealed peculiar aspects about her personality. When Ves carefully probed her with his spiritual sense, he faintly encountered a strong force of will.

It lacked the sense of realness that Ves had experienced before from an unconscious Venerable Foster, so Ves was pretty sure that Avid Serpent was not an expert. This was good news for all of them. The Vandals dreaded many possibilities, of which one of them was that Avid Serpent played the pig to eat the tiger. His probing ruled out this possibility.

Ves turned his gaze to the people that Avid Serpent had admitted into her circle. The mech technicians looked like a mixed bunch. None of them appeared to be cut from the same cloth, which meant their teamwork should be low, though their individual ability may certainly be better than the average Vandal mech technician.

"Ah, the famous Mr. Larkinson!" A middle-aged man stepped out. "As one mech designer to another one, I hope we can

"You've heard of me." Ves said with a befuddled face.

"How can we not. Word has spread how pivotal you have proven to be in several Vandal battles. Head Designer Larkinson. The only Apprentice Mech Designer to assume a position that only Journeymen should take. How odd for the Vandals to favor you so? Is it because of your family?"

"I have my ways." Ves said cryptically while narrowing his eyes.

Information like that shouldn't have spread to the public. He highly preferred to stay in the background. The less the other side knew about him, the better. Obviously, this hope was shot to hell right now.

"I hope you can showcase your splendor three days from now. I'm eager to see if my work can measure up to the efforts of a head designer."

"You have me at a disadvantage. Would you be so kind to introduce yourself?"

"Ah, where are my manners. My name is Gabriel Creta. I am apprenticed to Master Renona Klaisewist of the Mech University of Loge Imodris."

Ves had never heard of Gabriel Creta, but his eyes widened when the man dropped the names of Renona Klaisewist and the Mech University of Loge Imodris.

Renona Klaisewist was a seasoned Master Mech Designer and lived over two-hundred years according to the public record. She specialized in force application, which meant she designed exquisite mechs that made the most out of their mechanical strength.

Any melee mechs designed from her hand demonstrated extreme destructiveness with every attack!

Ves regarded Mr. Creta without any of his former contempt. Though Ves was unsure of Creta's exact relationship with Master Klaisewist, any apprentice of hers should have inherited some of her best design principles.

In addition, Creta may very well be an alumni of Loge Imodris. The famed Mech University was one of the best in the Kingdom. It enjoyed just as much prestige in the Vesia Kingdom as the Ansel University of Mech Design in the Bright Republic. Both were regularly mentioned in the same sentence.

The status Gabriel Crete enjoyed from both would surely be considerate. Along with his age advantage over Ves, and he may very well prove to be a hard bone to gnaw.

Nevertheless, Ves did not shy away from the challenge.

"I am eager to see what an apprentice of Master Klaisewist can teach me." Ves smiled in a facetious manner.

"Likewise." Mr. Crete nodded back with an unruffled expression. "Master Carmin Olson's sudden rise has disrupted the high end mech landscape in the region. I am eager to see what scraps of knowledge that she has thrown to you."

Chapter 586

After Captain Orfan and Avid Serpent finished exchanging insults with each other, they both entered their assigned workshops along with their followers.

As soon as they entered, they commanded the massive mech-sized doors to shut. There was no reason to let their opponents gawk at their progress.

"Alright, what's up with you, Mr. Larkinson?" Captain Orfan asked. She hadn't missed his exchange with their rival mech designer.

"Well, this isn't going to be a walk in the park for me." Ves answered as he started searching the man's biography on the galactic net. "I don't know where Avid Serpent has found him, but she picked a good mech designer at the Apprentice-level. The only way she could top her choice was if she accepted the help of a direct disciple of a Master Mech Designer."

Such august figures shouldn't be mucking about in the Harkensen System. They had better things to do with their time than interact with the low-end mechs favored by mercenaries and pirates.

His brief search on Gabriel Creta turned up a lot of pages that confirmed his status. The man was a seasoned mech designer who ran a successful mech business that offered a complete line of mech models in its catalog.

In terms of business, Creta was far ahead of Ves. The man built up his company step-by-step, never ceasing to develop new mech models to round out his company's existing products.

"Is there anything I should know about this fellow?"

Ves thought about it. Though the man ran a larger business than him, the evaluation of his designs showed that his skills hadn't grown as fast. "Mr. Creta is older, but his Master hadn't taught him much. In that regard, we're on a similar level. His specialty is something that we have to be wary of. Though I'm not certain yet of his strengths, he will doubtlessly excel at working with melee mechs. In particular, he should be extremely good at maximizing the force application of his mechs."

Captain Orfan scratched her head. "Can you translate that into normal words?"

"It basically means his mechs hit really hard and their movements will be really powerful. Both the arms and legs are going to be really strong by the time he is done with them. Force application entails more than that, but you don't need to know that."

It would be a joke if a vaunted Master's specialty only resulted in stronger arms and legs. That was a massive oversimplification of what a supreme insight into force application could do for a mech designer.

Fortunately, Ves was fairly certain that Mr. Creta shouldn't have mastered the more abstruse uses of force application. That went well beyond the ability of an Apprentice Mech Designer. This was also why Ves didn't bother to elaborate the concept.

"So this is the mech we have to fix up?" Chief Haine asked as she stepped towards the spearman mech placed in the center of the workshop. "Man, it looks as if the Reinaldans fished it out of a junkyard."

"That's because you're right. This is a rejected piece of scrap that the arena operators planned to recycle at a later date."

Ves already studied the design of the spearman mech in detail. It was an old Reinaldan design called the INSF-8088-CS Pointed Sentinel.

Designed by Ophidian-Wheelax Industries, the mech was a typical low-cost design whose only purpose was to earn a quick buck. OWI was a small player in the Reinaldan mech market, and it had only reached the status of medium mech manufacturer after merging two smaller mech manufacturers.

The Pointed Sentinel was in fact a collaboration between the two joint lead designers of OWI. The pair somehow avoided most of the pitfalls of collaborate design work and managed to fuse both of their strengths into a single harmonious design. The Pointed Sentinel possessed little flaws and performed adequately at its price point of 40 million marks or around 20 million bright credits.

However, this description already hinted at its fatal flaw. While the design possessed various strengths and weaknesses, the former was very nuanced. Put in a different way, the design didn't excel in anything. It was a bog-standard spearman mech design with mediocre specs and nothing special to write home about.

Ves suspected that this may have been a result of two lead designers trying to push their own conflicting vision for the design. Of neither of them agreed to put one or the other in charge, both of them had to make constant compromises in order to finish the design.

The final result of the Pointed Sentinel showed that putting two mech designers in charge of the same design led to overly conservative design choices. It received a small amount of criticism that mentioned this shortcoming when the design first came out.

The only reason why the design hadn't received more criticism was because the Ophidian-Wheelax Industries was an obscure player in the mech market. Up to now, they never broke through their shackles and experienced any growth. This already showcased their overall level of competence.

To be honest, Ves didn't really put the Pointed Sentinel in his eyes. Compared to the mech designs he worked with before such as the Inheritor, Hellcat and Akkara designs, the Pointed Sentinel was a throwback to his earlier career. It lacked the complexity and optimization of more successful mech models.

Ves briefly explained all of this to Captain Orfan. "To be honest, the Pointed Sentinel can't keep up with your level of skill. You'll constantly be fighting for control and push your machine past its limits. Compared to the mech you're used to piloting, the Pointed Sentinel's speed, flexibility and reaction time are only half as good."

"So it's literally a piece of junk."

"It.. has its limitations." He conceded. "The only upside is that Avid Serpent's axeman mech falls into the same category as well. They are both meant to be affordable mechs that is supposed to deliver a good price-to-performance ratio. In that, they succeeded, in a sense. It's a decent mech to buy when you only have 40 million credits to spend when it first came out."

Both designs have depreciated over the years, though. Though they were both currentgen mechs, thousands of designs have popped up that directly competed against them in the same market segment.

A mech design that failed to make a splash and quickly fell into obscurity obviously lacked a redeeming quality. They were too generic and too mediocre. A decent price-to-performance ratio wasn't enough to stand out in the market. It needed an advantage that was memorable in order to stand the test of time.

From the start, Ves had always designed his production models with an eye towards long-term appeal. No mech was perfect. While it was true that mech designers inevitably had to make compromises with their design choices, that only applied to situations where their means couldn't catch up to their vision.

For example, wanting to design a mech clad with compressed armor, but lacking an alloy compressor. In such a situation, a mech designer could only take a step back and design a mech with cheaper armor.

What the lead designers of OWI had done was to make too many compromises with the design of the Pointed Sentinel. Defaulting to the safest design choices all the time led to a safe but timid design that never attempted to challenge the competition.

No wonder this design failed from the start. From what Ves had gathered from the galactic net, the Pointed Sentinel barely sold at full price. OWI had to issue regular discounts and conclude various unfavorable deals in order to prevent their mechs from collecting dust in their inventories.

"I've piloted many crappy mechs in my career." Captain Orfan said. "It's a long time ago since I last stepped into a cockpit of a mech as worthless as this. I'll have to shake off some of my rust. There's a simulator pod around here, right?"

"Ves jerked at the pod shoved to the side of the workshop. "It's over there. However, I don't suggest you grow too familiar with the Pointed Sentinel's level of performance. Even as we are going to repair your dueling mech, we'll also going to apply a whole host of upgrades."

"How big of an upgrade are we talking about?"

"It depends, captain. I'll have to look at the materials the arena organizers are willing to part with to be sure. However, my most conservative estimate is that I can likely boost your Pointed Sentinel's performance by fifteen percent."

Captain Orfan whistled at that figure. "Fifteen percent? That's a lot!"

"It's mainly because the Pointed Sentinel is an old and suboptimal design. Though I don't have enough time to remedy every issue, elevating its overall performance by fifteen percent while plugging most of the gaps shouldn't be too much of an issue."

"Good luck, then!"

The mech captain turned out to be an impatient client. Ever since she laid her eyes on the simulator, she never wavered her gaze. She quickly brushed Ves off before he could list a couple of possible upgrade priorities and hopped into the simulator pod.

Ves sighed. "Can you at least answer my questions?"

"Don't worry about it, Ves." Chief Haine stepped closer to him. "I'm familiar with Captain Orfan's preferences. I know what she wants in a mech."

"Thank you. Can you briefly tell me about her piloting style?"

Haine put a finger on her lips. "I don't know how to describe it. For someone like Captain Orfan, her piloting style is a little chaotic."

"How so?"

"Sometimes, I wonder whether she knows what she is doing. The captain isn't incapable foresight. She can plan and write out reports as well as any other mech captain. It's just that when she's on the battlefield, she directly throws out half of her burdens from her brains. Her intelligence basically halves when she fights."

Ves frowned at that. Even if Chief Haine exaggerated her depiction of the mech captain, his personal experiences with the captain didn't allow him to disregard this description entirely.

"How did she ever get promoted to a mech captain then?"

The chief technician shrugged. "That's the Flagrant Vandals for you. We can't be too picky on who we decide to promote. I think that in the past, the brass wanted to promote champions who could fight well to serve as anchors for the mech companies under our command. Captain Orfan may be lacking in some manners, but she's truly one of our better landbound mech pilot. That alone deserves some respect."

Ves inwardly rolled his eyes. "Respect. Yes. Anyway, you haven't described her piloting style in detail. Can you give me something to work with? I need concrete descriptions."

"The captain is capable of being patient when she's on the hunt. Once she finds an opponent her subordinates can't easily solve, she explodes into action. She loves to pressure her opponents with high-intensity combat. Very aggressive, but also very much in control despite lacking much forethought. She's the kind of mech pilot that relies on her instincts rather than her mind to see her through a battle."

"So she's a wild beast in battle, then." Ves palmed his face. "These kind of mech pilots are some of the worst to work with as a mech designer or a mech technician."

Ves had seen many of these kinds of mech pilots among the Vandals and Walter's Whalers. They usually didn't survive long enough to make it to the rank of captain, so it was very surprising for Rosa Orfan to succeed where many others have failed.

Mech pilots like Orfan exhibited strong battle instincts. This was an advantage in terms of high-speed combat where quick thinking could never catch up to pure instinct. However, the downside to relying on instincts was that the mech pilot never paid much attention to the status of their mechs. They outright ignored most of the information displayed in the control panels such as how much heat their mechs built up or how fast they depleted their energy cells.

Basically, they turned out to be some of the most abusive pilots to their own mechs.

Chapter 587

Overall, Ves faced a serious challenge of his own. The base design of the Pointed Sentinel truly couldn't catch up with Captain Orfan. Considering her personality, she wouldn't be able to hold herself back too much.

If she piloted the Pointed Sentinel after it received only the most essential repairs, then she would do much more damage to her own mech than her opponent could ever inflict.

"Captain Orfan is her mech's worst enemy."

It sounded like a ludicrous statement, but instances like this happened many times before. Countless stories proliferated on the galactic net on how skilled mech pilots met their own end after transferring from a high-quality mech to a low-quality mech.

This showcased a fundamental truth. There should never be too much disparity between the strength of a mech and the strength of the mech pilot. Why do expert pilots insist on piloting extremely expensive custom mechs?

Because they would otherwise break their own mechs!

The newly advanced Venerable Foster obviously struggled with this issue herself. Her old training mech which served her adequately started breaking down as soon as she broke through. Evoking forced resonance only put more pressure on the frame, as her mech's vastly increased power came with a subsequent tradeoff of accelerating the consumption of its lifespan.

It could be said that the quality of a mech determined the upper limit on the skill that mech pilots would be able to display. Those who possessed more ability would inevitably brush against the limits of what their mechs could perform. Therefore, it was vitally important to match the power of a mech with the upper limits of a mech pilot's skill.

Ves keenly understood this point, and so did many others. Why did Walter's Whalers used to buy second-hand trash mech worth 3 million bright credits or less? It was because the average skill of their mech pilots was absolutely abysmal.

Straight-up investing money in better mechs didn't necessarily improve the strength of the Whalers either. If Walter handed over mechs worth 30 million credits to his badly-trained mech pilots, the actual strength they could express may only be equivalent to the power of a mech worth 10 million credits or less.

"The strength of a mech pilot must be proportional to the strength of a mech!"

Of course, this statement wasn't absolute. There were many ways of strengthening a mech without overly burdening the mech pilot. The easiest way to cheat this rule was to strengthen a mech's armor. Many armor formulas shared the same attributes in terms of weight and density, but they differ dramatically in the amount of protection they offered. This was mainly a function of the quantity and quality of exotics they utilized.

This was also the most important point of difference between third-class mechs and second-class mechs and etc. Third-class mechs utilized a much lower standard of armor formulas than second-class mechs. The cost of second-class mechs may easily be tens to hundreds of times more than a third-class mech, but their armor may easily be five to ten times stronger.

Of course, the amplification of strength constantly bumped into the law of diminishing returns. A mech that was twice as expensive may only be ten or so percent stronger in reality.

This made it uneconomical for third-rate states to imitate the standard of mechs employed by the vastly richer second-rate states.

In any case, right now Ves had to work with a third-class low-end mech. In his eyes, every mech that costs less than 30 million credits was a budget mech, and the Pointed Sentinel fell squarely in this category.

The mech industry produced budget mechs en masse. Why not? The private market hungered for them. The skill, training and aptitude of the majority of the mech pilots in the private sector matched well with budget mechs. They would never be able to get their money's worth if they piloted an expensive premium mech such as the LMC's Bleakbeak or Crystal Lord.

Ves explicitly designed his original mech designs towards squad leaders, champions, mercenary commanders and the like. Possessing the ability of an advanced pilot was the basic qualification to pilot his mechs, because they both came with lots of strength and highly sophisticated control mechanisms that average pilots would never be able to use to their full potential.

This limited his customer base, but Ves had never intended to compete with budget mechs. Due to their low cost, the barrier for entry in that market was far too low. Too many mech designers plunged into that market already.

Though there were lots of risks involved with plunging straight into the premium segment, his ability and his high-quality work had pulled him through. The LMC stood on a firm foundation thanks to his good judgement and previous hard work.

His private sector experience provided him with lots of experience on what skilled advanced pilots demanded out of their mechs.

On the other hand, his experiences with several outfits such as Walter's Whalers and the Flagrant Vandals gave him a better perspective on what basic mech pilots asked out of their mechs.

The gap between basic pilots and advanced pilots was actually fairly wide. A mismatch in mechs and pilots between the two basic categories might prove disastrous.

In the case of Captain Orfan, her instinct-driven piloting style magnified that small possibility into certain catastrophe.

When Ves explained his train of thoughts to Chief Haine, she nodded in understanding. "Can't say I've bumped into this issue a lot, but I've seen some cases like that over the years. The thing is, you're asking us to upgrade a mech from something that is suitable for basic pilots into a machine that can handle the stress outputted by a peak advanced pilot. Even if you are a Journeyman Mech Designer in all but name, we've only got three days to work with before we have to send the Pointed Sentinel onto the arena grounds."

Her skepticism was justified. Even Ves didn't fully believe he could accomplish this ambitious goal in so little time.

"Do you believe in miracles?" Ves asked with a grin.

"There's no such thing as miracles."

"Well, I'll make you a believer in the next three days. There's nothing we can't do as long as we take a clever approach."

"You can't forget about your opponent either." The chief reminded Ves. "You witnessed Avid Serpent's mech in battle, right? That's precious information that you can use to implement countermeasures in your own mech."

"You're right. I was thinking so much about what I can do with the Pointed Sentinel that I haven't considered the other side."

By now, Ves had gathered a basic amount of information about his opponent. He not only knew what Gabriel Creta was capable of, but he also studied the basic background of the mech that Avid Serpent piloted.

Her axeman mech was a slightly more modern Vesian design called the Rogue Breaker. It used to come with a two-handed axe, but Avid Serpent's copy wielded a one-handed axe instead.

The Rogue Breaker happened to be designed by a Hafner mech designer, which strongly indicated that Avid Serpent came from the same territory. This also explained her personal affront to the Flagrant Vandals. Only Imodris and Hafner suffered a drastic drop in reputation due to their actions.

"The Rogue Breaker is an offensive mech." Ves explained to the chief. "It's overall parameters are actually a notch above the Pointed Sentinel. The only areas where our mech possesses an advantage is armor and endurance."

This was not good news to them. According to the Vandal mech pilots that witnessed her in battle, Avid Serpent was definitely an advanced pilot. It was questionable whether she was an officer-level mech pilot, but in terms of intuition and skills, she wouldn't be much worse than Captain Orfan.

The more important issue was that the Rogue Breaker possessed a higher tolerance for abuse from their own mech pilots. Its internal frame and mechanical structure was more robust, and its overall agility and flexibility enabled it to perform high-speed maneuvers with much less strain on the integrity of the mech.

Put simply, the Rogue Breaker accommodated advanced pilots much better than the Pointed Sentinel. Both of them were budget mechs, but their design principles took completely different directions.

"I don't know how Avid Serpent originally got her hands on the Rogue Breaker, but it certainly fits her well enough." Ves unabashedly praised his opponent. "Mr. Creta doesn't need to overhaul too many systems to draw out the potential of that axeman mech. As for us, we'll have to tear out at least half the Pointed Sentinel's frame before we can do anything more."

Chief Haine possessed a rich experience. When she heard his words, she looked suspiciously at him. "I get the feeling that you're about to do something ambitious."

"Heh, let's visit the inventory and junkyard before I explain."

Ves and the Chief exited the workshop and asked an arena manager to bring them to the places where they could draw their working materials. The manager led them through the huge but largely unadorned corridors until they entered a massive warehouse area.

"This is our main storage hall." The manager explained with pride. "We regularly stockpile the most common materials used by the mech models that we regularly see on the dueling field. As agreed, you are allowed to draw upon a limited quota of materials for your restoration work. The maximum quota is limited by the cost of materials. For example, you can draw upon tons of plain alloys, but only a handful of junk exotics."

"That's fair enough." Ves nodded. The underground arena didn't operate a charity. "I'm very satisfied with your stockpile."

He could draw upon a great variety of materials from the stockpile, including ones he previously used in his production models. His familiarity with these materials allowed him to apply them to his work without worrying about any complications.

"Do you wish to make use of your quota?"

"I'm not in a hurry. Show me the junkyard."

The three left the underground warehouse and walked a short distance before they arrived at a massive pit. Piles and piles of broken mechs, burned-out husks and separated parts rested in the pit. Heavy-duty cranes, lifters and other machinery enabled the arena organization to quickly dump and retrieve their wrecks.

"That's a lot of mech wrecks." Chief Haine widened her eyes. "All of this is untapped value. Why haven't you sent them to the recyclers?"

"Many of these remains hold unclear providence. Their ownership is rather troublesome." The manager shook his head with regret. "Many mech pilots that compete in our arena don't own the mechs they are piloting. Instead, they use a variety of means to get their hands on a battle machine. Sometimes they rent them from a rental company. Sometimes they ask a friend to borrow their personal mech. If there's a way, someone will doubtlessly make use of it. Ordinarily, there won't be much of an issue of the mech duelist wins, but a loss is more complex."

Those who lost likely had to face massive repair bills. If they didn't own the mech, then they had no reason to foot the bill. As for those who outright died in battle, it might be difficult to track down the actual owners of the mech.

All of these complications forced the organization to hold on to the mechs, whether they were intact or not. The arena stored the mechs in better condition elsewhere. Only the mechs and parts in the worst conditions would be relegated to the junk pile.

"Does the organization mind if we appropriate some of these wrecks and parts?" Ves asked. This was a very important question that directly determined the viability of his plan.

"Our bosses don't care." The manager shrugged. "You can do whatever you want with the junk as long as you're using it reasonably."

"So there's no quota?"

"None."

"Fantastic!"

Ves looked at the piles of mechs placed haphazardly on top of each other as if they were mountains of money. All of these wrecks represented untapped wealth. The manager and Chief Haine looked as Ves as if he had gone crazy. What did he want to do with junk?

Chapter 588

Chief Haine figured it out first. "You never intended to stick to the Pointed Sentinel's original design!"

"Exactly." Ves confirmed her guess with a perpetual grin. "Even if I designed a variant of the Pointed Sentinel that can make up for some of its weaknesses, its foundation is too weak! Rather than limiting ourselves to the shackles of the base model, why not break it apart and free it from mediocrity?"

"Are you crazy, Mr. Larkinson?! Do you know the immensity of what you are aiming to accomplish? You're too ambitious! I wouldn't be surprised if you chose to go this route if we had a month's worth of time to tackle the problems that crop up slowly, but you only have three days time!"

Ves took her reproach without any sign of relenting. This was going to be one of his most challenging projects to date. In truth, his ambitious was indeed very wild, but his past competition experience already showed him that he could work under pressure.

He planned to take the Pointed Sentinel, disassemble it into pieces, and substitute its lesser parts with those from the junkyard!

A mech that deviated from any known design by a very wide margin wouldn't be called a variant anymore. If Ves intended to go through with his plan to assemble an entirely different machine from parts of different mech models, then he was basically building a frankenstein mech!

Frankenstein mechs went far beyond patchwork mechs. The latter only filled up some of their holes with inadequate replacement parts. The former completely represented a new and divergent mech model that possessed only a vague relationship with the original design.

To design and assemble a frankenstein mech took a lot of guts! Mixing and matching wildly incompatible mech parts took a lot of skill, especially since every mech designer adhered to their own standards. Some commonalities would be shared among mechs from the same state, but beyond that every mech model comprised of its own system.

Rashly combining parts from different mech models would be like trying to push a square block through a round hole. The parts fundamentally couldn't mate with each other. Even if Ves forced a connection through brute force, the parts all ran on different settings and programming. Trying to harmonize all of those complexities into a coherent whole took a lot of time.

Where would Ves be able to find the time to harmonize the programming?

"You're taking an undue amount of risk for something that might go very bad." The chief warned Ves. "In my judgement, the chance of failure is over ninety percent. That's way too risky to consider this option. We have other alternatives."

"And what are those options? Repairing the Pointed Sentinel? Making minor adjustments? Replacing some of its lesser components with better quality ones?" Ves retorted. "That doesn't go far enough. If you understand the design of the Pointed Sentinel as well as I do, you'll know that it simply can't compete against the Rogue Breaker, especially after Mr. Creta is done with it. Playing it safe will lead to near-certain defeat in my eyes. In a time like this, the riskier option may be the only viable path to victory."

The regular courses of actions didn't cut it to Ves. They didn't go far enough in transforming the Pointed Sentinel from a bargain bin mech into a machine that could fully keep up with Captain Orfan's piloting standard.

Chief Haine didn't look convinced. "Even if you're the head designer, you're not in charge around here. Captain Orfan has put her life on the line for this honor duel, so she should have the final say. I won't agree to something as drastic as building a frankenstein mech without her express approval."

"That's fair enough." Ves acquiesced.

Even though he fully believed his judgement was right, it wasn't his life on the line here. Though he had a limitless amount of plans in his mind, even he sometimes forgot that mech designers ought to serve mech pilots rather than the other way around.

Ves and the Chief returned to the workshop and waited until Captain Orfan paused her simulation battle. She emerged from the pod with an annoyed expression.

"What is it?"

"It's like this."

Both of them explained their intentions to the captain. Chief Haine presented the safer while Ves elaborated on his wild scheme to construct a frankenstein mech.

The captain appeared impassive throughout the explanations. "Look at the results of my simulation battles."

She pressed a button on her half-open pod that summoned a projection of the outcome of the most recent battles. During the time that Ves and Chief Haine explored the inventory and junkyard, she completed over five simulations.

The captain lost in all of the scenarios. Ves read through the readout and saw that she not only tried out the Pointed Sentinel in a dueling environment, but also in large-scale battlefields which the captain was accustomed to. None of those situations ended well for her, and after reading the brief summaries of how her virtual mechs met their ends, he knew why.

"This ain't the time to pussy-foot around." The captain said. "I've been wrangling with this piece of crap in five separate simulations and I barely made any progress. Do you know how difficult it is for me to rein in my power? It's awful!"

"We can make focused improvements into increasing the upper limits of the parts."

"No can't do, chief. That's not good enough for me. A piece of crap is a piece of crap whether you polish it or not. If I knew how bad this stupid Sentinel really performed, I would have asked for another mech!"

"So you approve of my plan then, captain?" Ves looked hopefully at Orfan. He had a decent read on her personality. That was why he felt daring enough to think about building a frankenstein mech. Ordinary mech pilots would never think of piloting such a monstrosity.

"If you can deliver on your promises, then go for it!" The captain grinned. "Risky or not, I'd rather pilot something completely new than whatever variant of the stupid Sentinel you can come up with. Beating Avid Serpent is going to be impossible if my mech is too sluggish!"

Once Captain Orfan agreed with Ves, Chief Haine knew her arguments didn't stand a chance. What Ves proposed matched her intentions better than a more conservative approach. The two looked as thick as thieves as they hashed out a set of criteria the frankenstein mech had to meet.

"First off, the new mech as to keep up with your movements." Ves repeated. "This is the first priority on my list."

"I'm not a speed freak, but I need to react fast and fluidly if I face a close-combat maniac like Avid Serpent."

"Noted. I'll prioritize reaction speed and agility over top speed and flexibility."

Reaction speed and agility basically described how fast the limbs of a mech responded to the commands of a mech pilot. Heavy mechs notoriously scored badly in both. It might take several seconds for a heavy mech to lift a single leg forward. This was because the engine of the mech couldn't keep up with the increase in weight of what was being moved.

Light mechs moved faster because the engine needed to do a lot less work in proportion. This was like the difference between swinging around a dagger and a greatsword. Someone could perform ten swings with a dagger by the time they completed a single slash with a greatsword.

Right now, Captain Orfan didn't care too much about power. Between a dagger and a greatsword, she would rather be wielding a nimble weapon than a more powerful one that could crush an enemy in a single hit.

"Avid Serpent is a slippery pilot." She explained. Orfan hadn't been sleeping during Avid Serpent's duel with Broken Claw. "Her mech and piloting style leans towards power. Getting hit even once by that axe will instantly cripple whatever it hits. Her mech is also somewhat fast and agile for a medium mech."

Ves concurred with her analysis. "Those are my thoughts as well. The Rogue Breaker is fully committed to offense. Its armor isn't bad, but it's definitely compromised in order to increase the axeman mech's offensive power."

"Since Avid Serpent's mech doesn't have a lot of armor, I don't see why my mech needs a lot of power. I can handle a mech with a little less power."

This was a very good tradeoff to make in his eyes. "I'm glad we can agree on this. Now that I've noted down your demands, I'd like to get to work."

"Go ahead, but keep me informed!"

Orfan quickly returned to her simulator while Ves and Chief Haine walked away. The chief shook her head. "I should have expected that."

"Well, her decision is set in stone, so we better get off to work!"

They already wasted some time exploring their options, so Ves was quick to begin his plan. Building the frankenstein mech in three days was going to be a very tall order for him. He couldn't take a conventional approach to its design because it wasted too much time.

He couldn't only attempt do make up the design as he went! Though he already formed a vague vision of his intended outcome, the exact shape of the mech was still beneath a fog.

Ves wasn't used to working on a mech without a concrete vision of the result. Every time he designed a mech, he carved out a solid vision right from the start and never wavered in his attempt to make it come to life.

Still, he believed he was capable enough to adjust his work methods. The X-Factor didn't necessarily rely on a solid vision. It could work just as well on a vaguer premise as long as Ves constructed the appropriate images to override the mixed spirituality embedded in the different parts of the mech.

Ves already knew enough about the Pointed Sentinel's design to know which parts needed replacing. He immediately returned to the junkyard and started dumpster diving for parts.

"Look for a good pair of medium mech legs that emphasizes agility over power." He told the chief. "If I have to do this alone, we'll be stuck here for a while."

Both of them started to scour the wrecks and parts in the junkyard. To determine which parts needed closer consideration, they didn't look at them in the junk pile. They instead sorted through projections of the parts from the control panel installed next the junkyard. The arena organization hadn't thrown in all that junk without documenting what they dumped. Their record-keeping was meticulous, and they even measured all of the damage that had been incurred due to rough handling.

Ves closely sought for pairs of arms and legs. The two pairs of limbs formed the foundation of his frankenstein mech. As long as he made his selection, he could match them with additional parts that worked best with these limbs.

Within a single hour, Ves salvaged a pair of arms from a Lisvian spearman mech. He also dug up two separate leg parts that came from two different mechs of the same model.

Their condition was very important. While they didn't need to be pristine, they should at least be complete. Ves didn't know how many parts he rejected because were filled with holes and other signs of destruction.

Based on the body of the Pointed Sentinel and the parameters of the newly selected arms and legs, Ves picked up a host of other components. He picked out a new engine, power reactor, a whole pile of internal structure supports, internal frame rods, and more.

The most radicular parts he picked up required opening up an entire wreck. He salvaged the complete set of artificial musculature from the insides of another fallen spearman mech!

Chief Haine couldn't believe that Ves was confident enough to transplant artificial musculature optimized for another mech model into his new frankenstein mech! To attempt such a thing was madness!

Chapter 589

Ves and the mech technicians at his disposal began to transform the Pointed Sentinel mech immediately. In order to meet the three-day deadline, Ves had to take an expedited approach to building the new mech.

"Taking a sequential approach takes too much time." Chief Haine said. "Just tell us what we need to do and I'll send enough techs to finish the job."

"Hm." He nodded as he eyed the frame of the Pointed Sentinel and the parts he dug up from the junkyard. "I still need to figure out how to piece together the frankenstein mech, but that doesn't mean you have to wait on me. First, I want you to disassemble the Pointed Sentinel into complete parts, or as much as you are able to. Make a shallow inspection of all the parts and mark out those with issues."

"What about the junkyard parts? Even if we picked the best that we could find, not all of them are in great condition."

"Allocate some men into prepping them for use. Clean them up and make a more thorough inspection. The integrity of those parts are very important. We can't afford to make use of something that looks pretty on the outside but is rotting from within."

The swarm of mech technicians quickly split up in teams. While each of them was an independent person, right now they acted as an extension of his will. Ves felt some of his Spirituality at work. It left its brand on the parts through the efforts of the mech technicians.

Though it wasn't as good as handling the work by his own hand, this was much more convenient. "Achieving similar results through different means. It's not there yet, but one day I'll be stronger."

The mech technicians only siphoned away a portion of his Spirituality. The more precise his orders, the better the mech technicians grasped his intentions.

"Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to work when I'm stepping away."

If that were true, his mech technicians back in Cloudy Curtain would have been able to substitute for him when fabricating a gold label mech. Certain properties of Spirituality worked regardless of the distance, while other properties required close proximity to be effective. Ves wasn't too alarmed by this fact. Step by step, he was figuring out the rules that governed this metaphysical concept.

What magic? Nothing remained mystical once you successfully derived the theory that explained the phenomenon!

Ves always retained a steadfast stance regarding things he didn't understand. This was a perspective that the Bright Republic and many other secular states had propagated among their people. After all, too much superstition bred chaos, and aliens were known to pose as mystical beings in order to hoodwink humans.

As the mech technicians went to work, Ves figured he had a few hours before they finished their tasks. Until that happened, Ves had to finalize his vision in order to know for certain what he was working towards. It wasn't his style to fumble around with mech parts and cobble them together without any expectation of what might result.

This was the approach of someone who was working with things he didn't understand.

"There's nothing about these low-end mech parts that I can't explain. Nothing about them is hidden from my sight."

Ves sat down in front of one of the control panels of the workshop and started studying the schematics of the parts he dug up. The facility had already scanned the parts from inside-out, and though they were less comprehensive than the official design schematics, the data from the scans was sufficient for him to understand their essence.

"Good. Good. All of these are good parts."

Building a frankenstein mech was exceedingly complex and involved a lot of work. Ves did not commit himself to constructing such a difficult mech on a whim.

His ultimate purpose was to synthesize a mech of a higher grade from an eclectic selection of low-end parts.

In other words, he had to combine the different parts into a whole that was greater than the sum of its parts!

A normal mech designer could easily puzzle together parts that amounted to 1 + 1 = 2.

What separated good mech designers from the bad was that they could achieve a much greater synergy. Achieving 1 + 1 = 4 would be a cakewalk for most AIs.

However, the reason why humans remained dominant in the mech industry was their ingenuity could reach greater heights! Through a combination of skill, experience and vision, they might possibly achieve heaven-defying results such as 1 + 1 = 10 or even more!

Of course, this was a very simplistic way of looking at the mech design profession. A more realistic equation involved at least a couple of thousands variables. The complexity of designing a new mech without ripping off an existing one went far beyond most AIs.

Nothing was absolute, though. Ves heard rumors about the creation of super design AIs by some crazies from the New Rubarth Empire. There were always people that believed that everything could be automated by machines and lines of code.

As this endeavor directly threatened the livelihood of every mech designer, those crazies hid themselves well. If they ever leaked out their whereabouts, nothing would stop their annihilation!

"Well, that's not for me to worry about." He shook his head.

He shifted his attention back to his design. He opened a design suite from the control panel and imported all of the parts in a wireframe form. This allowed him to easily modify or remove certain portions from their whole.

An hour went by as he unceasingly fit together the parts. This required a lot of modifications in order to make them fit. Ves had to pay attention to the method as well as the result. If it took too much effort to transform a part into something compatible to the new frame, then Ves had no choice but to discard it due to lack of time.

He needed to achieve the maximum amount of results from the least amount of work. Only then would he be able to complete the mech within the time limit.

Fortunately, his understanding of all of the parts was high. This enabled him to cut things out or change things up without significantly impacting their performance.

Piecing them onto a single mech was more complex though. Ves needed to complete this improvised design fast, so he inevitably skipped some corners.

"This frankenstein mech must be fit for a champion in the dueling ring."

At the same time he puzzled together his design, he also began to form its spiritual identity. He decided to form a single image this time. While he was very partial to his Triple Division Technique, it worked best when he designed a mech from the ground up. Applying it to a machine composed of parts of existing mechs might not be appropriate.

"A frankenstein mech will certainly possess a fractured identity. The mech won't perform seamlessly in that case."

A vision took shape in his mind as his design came ever-closer to completion. Even though he hadn't finished the final touches, he already completed the final vision in his mind.

"Not a Pointed Sentinel, but something that looks similar to it. A reborn Sentinel that is not a Sentinel. Fast, agile, lots of reach and most importantly sturdy enough to keep up with high-stress movements. This goes far beyond the range of a Sentinel."

His new creation broke the mold of a budget mech and stepped into a higher level. Though it wouldn't be easy to achieve this height, Ves was already on the right track.

"The only downside is that I have to make some steep tradeoffs. Prioritizing speed and internal integrity above all else means that this reformed Sentinel will be rather lacking in terms of offensive and defensive power."

His current ability didn't allow him to plug these gaps. Every choice came with a price. Ves simply didn't have the time to work on the armor. As for the dip in offensive power, Ves wasn't too worried about it because Avid Serpent's Rogue Breaker didn't excel in defense.

Now that he fixed a vision, he could start on shaping its X-Factor. Ves intended for the X-Factor to be the glue that fused the different parts into an entirely new whole.

In constructing the new imagine in his mind, Ves had two choices available. He could choose to build up a primal or a cognitive image. The former comprised of a totem animal that would massively strengthen the instincts of his mech. The latter took the shape of a human myth that provided more sophisticated aid.

"Considering that Captain Orfan already possesses strong instincts, a human myth is more useful to her. However, she doesn't seem like the sort who thinks a lot during battle. If she won't listen to her own brains, then she won't be inclined to listen to someone else's brains."

This left him with the choice of going for a totem animal. Images that fell under this category had the ability to fire up a mech pilot and granted them beastly instincts that could save their lives at crucial moments. Adding the strengths of the totem animal to Captain Orfan would mean that he doubled down on her excellent instincts.

Even Ves didn't know how scary Captain Orfan would become when piloting a mech under such a spell.

"What a champion needs is a steed. A heavenly warhorse."

Ves imagined a godly horse that could sweep an entire plain within seconds. Everywhere it ran, the wake that followed behind it could pull an entire forest from the ground. Fast! The horse had to be fast!

As soon as he came up with the idea, the heavenly warhorse started to spring from his imagination. It came to life in his mind and began to look at the design that Ves worked on with impatience. The liveliness of its behavior astounded Ves.

"Good!"

The stronger his Spirituality, the more real his imaginary creations became. All of this was very abstruse right now, but Ves could definitely tell this heavenly warhorse already started off strong. Usually, his creations needed more accumulation before they reached this point.

With the heavenly warhorse taking shape, its influence started seeping into the design. As Ves finished the rough jobs and started zooming in to perform adjustments, the heavenly warhorse shifted in response. It was as if the design and the image already shared a connection from birth. Before the image took up residence in the design, it underwent ceaseless changes in order to increase its compatibility.

This was a very vital process. Usually, Ves took months to design an original mech, but he only had hours this time.

As the mech technicians completed their tasks one by one, Ves had to put an end to his design work. Though it looked horribly unoptimized in its eyes, its theoretical performance had already reached a higher level than the base model of the Pointed Sentinel! Optimized or not, even a rough utilization of its strength should be sufficient enough to compete against Avid Serpent!

Once he decided to finalize the design, the heavenly warhorse immediately left his mind and took up residence in the new design. Even though Ves hadn't done justice to the design, the heavenly warhorse appeared very pleased!

"Alright, gather around, everybody! It's time for you to take a look at my design."

Most mech technicians finished their assignments by now. They eagerly sat up and walked towards Ves, who showed off his new design. In order to align them to his thoughts and turn them into channels of his will, it was important for Ves to explain his new mech.

"This is the design I've come up with after selecting all of those parts. Its purpose is to fuse the strengths of all of those separate parts to construct a mid-range mech from low-end parts!"

Though the mech technicians already knew what Ves intended to do, to speak it out like that impacted them nonetheless. It was simply too ambitious for them to comprehend! Wouldn't mid-range mechs require mid-range components?

Chapter 590

"What's the name of this design?" A mech technician asked as he admired the technical mastery that Ves had demonstrated in fusing those parts together.

"I call it the New Sentinel. It takes the basic template of the Pointed Sentinel but elevates it to the next degree. The finished product will still resemble the old version, but its actual performance is far from regular."

This was because Ves had picked some of the best parts from the junkyard. Though all of them came from low-end mech that the arena organization didn't attach much value to, they happened to be best points of their original mech models.

"The New Sentinel is built from heavily modified versions of the parts I've collected. Each of these parts have their merits, and I've taken care to select the strongest parts that will still be able to merge with the frame of the Pointed Sentinel. Compatibility issues will undoubtedly pop up, but I'm confident I can deal with most of the problems."

Each mech model had their good and bad points. Unless a mech designer deliberately screwed around, every design that came from their hands should contain some elements with a competitive level of performance.

In his initial selection process, Ves straight up ignored the trashy bits and and took away the best parts. Combining all of them into a single frame meant that the New Sentinel shook off most of the weaknesses of the old design.

Of course, that was easier said than done. They all had a lot of work in store.

"Chief Haine."

"Here."

"I'll hand over the responsibility of modifying the parts and assembling them together over to you and your men. Try and finish the work within two-and-a-half days."

"That's going to be tough." The chief said as she seriously studied the schematics of the new design. "You're asking us to perform a lot of radical changes."

"I've designed this new mech with very loose tolerances. You don't need to be too precise in fashioning the new parts. Just get it done in time."

"I can't promise you we'll meet your target, but I'll work my men like hell to get it done."

Chief Haine immediately issued a set of orders, dividing the work among the men. Every part needed major adjustments in order to make them compatible with the New Sentinel.

By far the largest job consisted of changing out the artificial musculature. Ves was very unsatisfied with the musculature of the old Pointed Sentinel. Ophidian-Wheelax Industries had plainly cheaped out by buying an inferior component license for the muscles of the mech. This was truly infuriating considering that melee mechs depended on a good artificial musculature system to exert their offensive power.

It was the equivalent of equipping a doddering old man with a spear and a set of armor! No matter the quality of the gear, if the underlying foundation was weak, the mech would never be able to surpass a certain level of performance!

This low maximum ceiling of performance directly countered OWI's original intention of designing a mech with a high price-to-performance ratio. With such a low cap on performance, how could the Pointed Sentinel ever be a good bargain for mech pilots with decent skill?

Ves basically butchered the old man and pieced a new body together with the butchered parts of other corpses. The unholy creation that came into being would hopefully be able to match the strength of a warrior at his peak.

"Hahaha! What a great feeling! So this is how it feels like to create a true frankenstein mech!" Ves spontaneously laughed. He felt as if he had gone mad for a moment. "I never knew that breaking so many important rules was fun."

Of course, the rules were there for a reason. Mech design was a profession that was littered with rules that formed a comprehensive list of best practices. If Ves was an ordinary mech designer, he would never dream of building a frankenstein mech. The only reason why he dared to do so was that he not only possessed a broad foundation, he also made use of the Jury-Rigging Sub-Skill.

The value of this Sub-Skill was inestimate to Ves. It saw very little use when he designed an original mech, but when it came to modifying existing mechs, Jury-Rigging turned into a vital necessity. It would rarely be the case where he would have the ideal set of mech parts at hand. With this Sub-Skill at hand, he could draw on decades of experience in substituting proper parts with less optimal ones.

It was like replacing an amputated leg with a prosthetic. Although the replacement limb would never work as good as the original, it at least did the job of enabling the person to walk again.

While Chief Haine pressed her mech technicians modify the parts in rapid tempo, Ves directed his attention to the most challenging task of all. Unifying the different parts on a software level.

Rashly cutting mech parts from other wrecks and sticking them to another frame never worked unless they came from the same product line. In order to mate these parts together, Ves had to unify them on a hardware and software level.

Ves had already taken care of the former by completing the New Sentinel's design. He could trust Chief Haine to make sure the mech technicians didn't screw up on that front.

The only work he couldn't outsource was working on the software. This was something that only Ves possessed the qualifications to tamper with. "It's a good thing I've shored up my programming skills recently."

Though his Computer Science Skill only reached a Apprentice-level standard, this was already good enough for the vast majority of independent mech designers to program their own mechs. Ves also learned how to hack into the existing programming of the mech, though he never dug in too deep in that field because it clashed with his design philosophy.

"This is going to hurt."

Ves could take a couple approaches with regard to the software of his new mech. The most optimal approach entailed creating a new software from the ground up. This sucked up a huge amount of time, so he directly skipped to the next option.

The next approach would be to download a standard operating system from the galactic net and work his way into integrating all of the parts into the software system. This was also a time-consuming option, but Ves was confident enough to compress the work within three days if he skipped a lot of steps. The result wouldn't be very pretty, but the mech should roughly be functional without any major compatibility problems.

"Then there's the last option.

The quickest and dirtiest approach entailed retaining the original software of the Pointed Sentinel. This left intact the many peculiarities and optimizations from OWI. Naturally, Ves still needed to incorporate the parameters of the new parts and make sure they would mate with each other.

The last two approaches were in fact very similar. One started off from a fresh install, while the other continued on from an existing configuration.

"It's going to take a lot of time to get the software into a fighting shape if I want to work from a fresh install. On the other hand, retaining the existing software will likely prompt a lot of compatibility problems when I install a lot of strange parts that the operating system has never been programmed to work with. Squashing all of those issues might take even more time."

In the end, Ves decided to wipe out the existing software and install a generic software system for spearman mechs from the galactic net. He chose this option because he could at least foresee how much time he needed to finish the work. With the other option, Ves couldn't predict how many compatibility issues would crop up and how much effort it took into solving them all.

"I've already taken enough gambles as it is right now. I can't keep risking my slim chances of success on sudden failures."

Ves went to work behind the console. Though programming a new software system for the New Sentinel entailed a lot of work, Ves faced a smoother journey than normal because he started off from a good base. The software he downloaded from the galactic net already incorporated all of the basic and vital functions of a spearman mech. Ves merely had to adapt it to the New Sentinel.

Three days quickly went by.

He made a lot of progress in that time. Though the software could never match up to the programming of a mature mech model, Ves believed his work didn't look too shabby.

"According to the simulations, the mech is able to perform all of the basic maneuvers without delay. The frame should only hitch up during the most complex movements."

The importance of the operating system was that a mech designer or a professional programmer could preconfigure many standard mech movements.

To put it simply, it was like adding muscle memory to a mech. A mech pilot would be able to make use of the muscle memory as shortcuts. This lowered the mental burden on the mech pilot and enabled them to make the most efficient movements from a single thought.

Ves unfortunately didn't have enough time to expand upon the programming. The mech he programmed right now possessed the muscle memory of an average civilian with maybe a week's worth of spearmanship training.

With enough time, Ves could increase the strength of the software to match the performance of a trained spearman with more than a decade of dedicated training!

"This is the strength of a good mech programmer!"

Sadly, Ves didn't appear to be fated to excel in this area. Certainly, if he put his mind in this field, he could become fairly proficient in this area. However, it was unlikely that Ves progressed beyond that level.

"Designing a mech is like creating a new life. Programming is essential to ensure the mech can be functional, but too much may not be a good thing."

Mech designers who excelled in programming could accomplish amazing feats. Ves had worked by Alloc's side for a time and he had seen what a Journeyman-level mech designer who specialized in programming could do. In short, they could turn a worthless piece of rock into a shining piece of jade!

The work that Ves had done over the last few days was far from reaching that level, but at least it should do the job.

"Let's see if Chief Haine has upheld her end of the work."

Ves had been wholly absorbed in programming for his new mech. One of his major faults was that when he put his whole mind onto a task, he pretty much tuned out everything else.

He stepped away from the console and entered the assembly area of the workshop. Ves immediately saw the shape of a complete mech. Fixed in place within the workshop's assembly system, a gaggle of mech technicians climbed all around the frame of the mech to perform the finishing touches by hand.

"Well." He said with some surprise. "The mech is almost finished!"

"It took a few sleepless nights, but we almost got it done." Chief Haine said as she approached from the side. "We had to take in a lot of stimulants in order to work day and night. Hell, my men will probably sleep for two straight days after finishing up the mech."

Skipping sleep was easy. Countless substances enabled humans to push through their desire for sleep. The only problems were practically hard-wired into requiring sleep. Ves could imagine that all of the mech technicians paid a heavy price to work for three straight days.

"Did you push them into this brutal schedule?"

"Nope." The chief technician shook her head with a smile. "We all know that Captain Orfan's life is at stake. What's the worth of our good rest if we aren't willing to put it all to increase the odds of her survival?"

"You're right. We're ultimately trying to make the best mech possible so that Captain Orfan will win her honor duel. None of us should complain about our workload."

Now that the physical construction of the New Sentinel was about to be finished, Ves could finally load in the new software and see for sure whether the mech worked as expected. They didn't have much time left before the duel commenced!

Chapter 591

A lot could change in three days. Transforming a collection of low-grade parts into a single mech required both effort and thought. Ves supplied the latter while the mech technicians supplied the former. Neither of them held back in their attempts to transform the limited Pointed Sentinel into a strong and valiant New Sentinel.

Working day and night, the sleep-deprived mech technicians sacrificed much to maximize their productivity. Under the constant babysitting of Chief Haine, the techs found the will to keep pushing onwards and complete a week's worth of work in less than half the time.

At the latter half of the three-day period, the mech technicians started to slip up. Even if they could push themselves to stay awake with the help of stimulants, their concentration inevitably suffered. Plenty of work had to be redone due to small mistakes. This was also why the tech crew hadn't managed to finalize the assembly of the New Sentinel up to now. They still needed to catch up to the last tasks that needed to be done.

Everyone was dead-tired right now except for Ves, whose physique easily sustained a few extra sleepless nights. All of them yearned to drop into comfortable beds. Hell, they didn't even need a bed.

"Seeing is believing." Chief Haine said as she admired the frame of the New Sentinel that she had practically shaped by proxy. "I didn't think your frankenstein mech would work, to be honest. There's so much complexity involved in mating those different parts together that I didn't believe a few hour's worth of design planning can solve all of the compatibility issues."

Ves looked at his New Sentinel with pride. To outside eyes, the contours of the mech did not differ too much from the Pointed Sentinel. Though the arms and legs appeared to be different, Ves had deliberately selected stronger limbs that nonetheless match the proportions of the original ones. This prevented a lot of troublesome compatibility issues such as disrupting the balance due to grafting a muscled arm onto a thin female's frame.

Outwardly, the New Sentinel hadn't changed too much. Inwardly, the mech had practically gone through a rebirth. Ves replaced virtually every core component with stronger ones salvaged from various mechs. Besides the cockpit and the internal support structure, hardly anything was left from the Pointed Sentinel.

"With a new engine, power reactor, sensors, a set of energy cells and more, the upper ceiling on the New Sentinel's performance is roughly twice as high as its predecessor." Ves predicted. "That should be more than enough to cope with Captain Orfan's demands."

"I'm still a bit iffy about the transplanted artificial musculature. That's an enormously risky operation, you know. It's not every day we do something like that."

"Even if there are minor errors in the implementation, the New Sentinel can cope with it. The raw power that the mech will gain from this transplant is more than worth the risk."

Ves highly prioritized the act of unifying the artificial musculature. All of those limbs came from different mechs. The biggest compatibility issue that arose from merging them with the torso of the Pointed Sentinel was that the muscles simply wouldn't match. Trying to fudge them around until they mated with each other took too much time.

So Ves decided to do something drastic. He ripped out all of the old muscles and transplanted a set of new one. This set came intact from a single complete mech wreck. Ves would have no worries about incompatibilities as a consequence, but trying to make them compatible with the New Sentinel was an extremely difficult challenge.

This momentous task consumed an enormous amount of time and effort from the mech technicians.

"I hope the mech won't lock up its muscles when we first boot it up." Chief Haine prayed. "We'll suffer a fatal blow if it turns out that all of our work is in vain."

"Your work won't be in vain. I can promise you that." Ves replied confidently.

He had a good feeling about the New Sentinel. Despite its unfinished state, the mech radiated a subtle aura of spirituality. The X-Factor had taken root in its frame. It not only infused a copy of the heavenly horse, but also carried the earnest aspirations of the mech technicians that worked on the frame.

The latter influence was miniscule, so they didn't pollute the spiritual quality of the mech. Ves even figured that it added some complexity to the X-Factor. The untamed ferocity of the heavenly horse was the dominant component of the X-Factor and should help unify the different parts into a single whole.

"All that is left is to load in the software." Ves spoke.

He stepped on a lifter platform that brought him over to the opened cockpit. After slipping inside, he loaded in the software and started making some final tweaks that he had been saving for last. This was necessary because the physical state of the New Sentinel didn't completely match the theoretical design schematics.

"A few screw ups and misinterpretations can pile up and lead to significant change."

Therefore, Ves had to spend a precious hour configuring the software to match the actual condition of the mech.

"Finished!"

It took a little longer than he thought, everyone tentatively finished up their work on the mech. Every part was in place and the whole frame was put together nicely.

The entire crew looked at their mech with emotion. All of their sweat, blood and tears had been poured into this frame. Its complexity went far beyond a civilian mech.

Now was the time to put the mech to the test. Captain Orfan walked over in full piloting gear. During the last three days, she hadn't been idling. Ves had loaded in the virtual design of the New Sentinel to the simulator pod so she could become accustomed to its properties.

"Are you ready to mount your steed?" Ves asked the captain.

"I'm ready to roll!"

Boundless confidence radiated from the mech captain. She had never flinched away from the upcoming duel to the death. To a mech pilot like her, representing the honor of the Flagrant Vandals was a pivotal achievement in her career. The possibility of death had never swayed her courage!

"Be careful, captain. The physical copy won't move as smoothly as the virtual version. When you test it out, don't go full throttle just yet. Start off with the basic movements and slowly work your way up there. I might need to make more adjustments along the way."

"Got it. I'm not stupid, you know."

After the captain boarded the mech, everyone stepped far away as the mech finally booted up. Its humanoid eyes lit up as its power reactor started supplying power to the entire mech.

Ves sat behind a control panel and vigilantly stared at the telemetry transmitted by the New Sentinel. Though he already spotted a couple of minor hiccups, they didn't affect the performance of the mech too much. He already started performing some tweaks and uploaded the changes into the operating system of the New Sentinel.

The mech immediately became less discordant. So long as Ves didn't plan on making any drastic changes to the programming, he could continue to adjust the performance of the machine as it stayed operational.

"You can start moving, captain! Please move the limbs one by one!"

The New Sentinel slowly lifted up an arm. Nothing hitched up. It then started to rotate the limb around before performing increasingly more complex maneuvers. It repeated the same routine with the other limbs.

Throughout the testing process, Ves ceaselessly smoothed out the wrinkles to insure the programming didn't become a hindrance in the operation of the mech. As the New Sentinel moved over to a testing ground and started to put its frame to its paces, the mech continued to hold up.

"It's a success!"

"I can't believe we got a frankenstein mech to work!"

"How is it possible that this mech runs so well!?"

By the time Captain Orfan had to stop in order to rest up for the upcoming duel in the evening, everyone looked gratified that their efforts hadn't been in vain. At the start, many of them held doubts. They thought that Ves foolhardedly picked the most complex approach to improving the Pointed Sentinel.

Now that they witnessed the increased performance of the New Sentinel first-hand, they knew that the sacrifice was worth it. The unrestrained power the New Sentinel exhibited significantly exceeded their expectations!

"Hah!" Orfan laughed as she hopped out of the cockpit. "I wasn't sure I'd be able to pilot such a good mech in battle, but you sure delivered on your promise, Mr. Larkinson! That Avid Serpent won't stand a chance with my new mech!"

The performance of the New Sentinel couldn't match her service mech, but it came close enough to accommodate her fighting style. This was a mech with very good bones and muscles. Even if it was clumsy in some areas, it did not lack in reaction speed and agility!

Compared to a piece of trash like the Pointed Sentinel, the frankenstein mech was a machine fit for the arena!

"Go take a break and prepare yourself for the upcoming event." He told her. "I'll hang back and perform some minor optimizations."

Ves didn't require anyone's help, so he dismissed the tired mech technicians as well. They deserved a well-earned rest.

Left alone in the workshop, Ves looked at the fruit of his labor and sighed to himself. This project only took three days, but the difficulty involved with getting it to work rivaled the challenges he faced when he designed the Blackbeak and the Crystal Lord.

"In some way, the New Sentinel is my third original mech design."

He missed the experience of designing a mech. Spending so much time with the Vandals taught him a lot, but one thing he regretted was that the Vandals didn't allow him to showcase his design ability.

When this honor duel first came about, Ves immediately skipped the easier options because they amounted to nothing more than modifying an existing mech. Such changes didn't go far enough in his eyes.

"This is what I live for. A mech designer can't do without designing mechs."

This experience reminded him that he should never lose sight of his core purpose.

Ves met many mech designers along his way who fell off the correct path. Many mech designers who failed to jumpstart their careers shifted into other jobs such as repairing or appraising mechs.

Other mech designers who hadn't been able to stand up on their own in the market joined larger influences and became part of large design teams. Though this still allowed them to contribute to new designs, they would never gain as much compared to the lead designers.

Only by making all of the major design choices by themselves would mech designers be able to refine their ability to design a mech!

"Every other path except for designing your own mech leads to a dead end."

This was what he believed in. Though talented designers could still climb up the ranks as part of a design team, they inevitably developed gaps that might be hard to make up in the future.

"I have to find a way to keep designing mechs." He concluded. "I'll stagnate if I stop for a long period of time."

This was easier said than done. The mech designers of the Mech Corps worked in rigid design teams where Seniors decided everything. Ves was far from reaching that height.

"Hm, unless there's a drastic change, I'll likely remain in charge of administration before going back to being a number cruncher."

The positions he took up with the Vandals rounded out his experience, so he hadn't wasted his time. The experiences he went through would serve him well for the rest of his career once he became involved with more collaborative projects.

Ves shook his head and dragged his mind out of the clouds. "I shouldn't pat myself on the back too soon. I still need to touch up the New Sentinel before it's ready to fight for real."

Chapter 592

Many people caught up to Harkensen III in the past few days. All of the hype surrounding the honor duel between Captain Orfan and Avid Serpent attracted lots of mech fanatics.

The underground arena made a killing by selling tickets at inflated prices. The demand for a seat was so huge that the arena decided to add floating stands to the arena in order to stuff as much people in their venue as possible. They intended to make the best use of the open space above the arena!

Part of the reason why tickets became hot was that underground arenas prohibited any broadcasts and recordings. Even though the authorities didn't care about shutting them down, the underground still needed to remain out of sight from the public. The underground arena utilized loads of jamming and interference technology to uphold this custom.

This basically meant that the honor duel was an event that someone might only experience once in their lives! Ves could imagine how many people wanted to catch up to the duel.

"When something hot becomes rare, its value spikes."

Ticket prices shot into space, crowding out the regular folk who could only spare a thousand marks at most. Last Ves had heard, the cheapest tickets sold for 20,000 marks!

Though it seemed that the entire Harkensen System went crazy, in actual fact only a small proportion of visitors and locals were caught up in the hype. Many tourists never heard about the Flagrant Vandals and didn't particularly care about the honor the Vesia Kingdom.

Still, many Vesians and Brighters attached a lot of importance to the outcome of this duel. Citizens of the Republic and the Kingdom practically felt duty-bound to attend, though the extreme ticket prices scared many of them away.

The underground arena already made a killing by selling inflated ticket prices, but their appetite hungered for more. They opened up betting stations in many places in the Harkensen System.

In this, they failed to grab the lion's share of the market. This was because the more established betting companies moved first. With their existing infrastructure, they held a definite advantage over the underground arena that had to keep most of its operations in the shadows.

No matter how Ves looked at it, the Reinaldans brazenly profited from the honor duel. "It's like they can't let off any attempts at earning money."

All of the betting elevated a sober duel between two mech pilots from different states into a match with billions of marks at stake. Ves was worried that some might seek to pressure one of the duelists to throw the match. He wasn't naive to think such cheating never happened, particularly in the underground circles where enforcement was lax.

"Well, it probably won't work this time."

The Flagrant Vandals backed Captain Orfan, so anyone wishing to coerce her into throwing the match would have to face the fury of an entire mech regiment.

As for Avid Serpent, she wouldn't initiate an honor duel if she didn't value her principles. To some people, honor was everything. To others, honor was something that they couldn't touch or sell. How could they value something that didn't really exist?

"Well, even if Avid Serpent is only for show, the worst she can do is tarnish the Vesia Kingdom's honor. Any sabotage from her side won't affect the honor of the Vandals."

While Ves didn't concern himself too much about foul play, he still made some precautions of his own. Ever since the New Sentinel came into being, he never let it out of his sight. Anyone who wanted to tamper with the mech had to overcome his vigilance first.

Fortunately, as the time of the duel arrived, nothing went wrong. By the time Captain Orfan returned and entered the cockpit for the upcoming show, Ves felt reassured that nothing would go wrong from now on. He followed an arena attendant out of the workshop and sat down at a seat reserved for him at the very front.

He looked around and saw only strangers. It was too bad that Chief Haine and the mech technicians declined to attend. Sleep haunted them for days. They deserved their rest.

Right now, the final pre-show ritual came to an end. Due to the honor duel, the regular duelling schedule had been ditched. Nothing was allowed to upstage the honor duel.

"Ladies and gentlemen, Vesians and Brighters, Reinaldans and Roppongans, wherever you hail from, welcome to the main event!"

Anticipatory music pumped through the entire arena, affecting the moods of two-million attendees. Ves looked up as a massive floating stand of seats hovered over his head. Above those floating stands was another set of floating stands, and so on. If their antigrav modules ever suffered a malfunction, hundreds of thousands of people would crash into the people sitting below.

"Damn, is this even safe?"

It wasn't as if the underground arena was required to adhere to any safety rules.

He forced himself out of his worries and turned his attention back to the stage.

"There is no greater rivalry in this corner the battle for supremacy between the Bright Republic and the Vesia Kingdom! Two different states with two very different ideals have clashed for several hundred years without a winner in sight! Has anyone heard of a conflict that lasted so long?! Only the rivalry between the Terrans and the Rubarthans comes close!"

Many audience members laughed and jeered at the Vesians and the Brighters. Their constant warring had become something of a joke in the Komodo Star Sector.

The Vesians were portrayed as mule-headed dunces for their repetitive wars of aggression that never seemed to win them anything at the end.

The Bright Republic on the other hand gained a reputation for being punching bags for the Vesians.

They were like a dysfunctional couple where an abusive husband kept hitting his wife.

Ves glowered a little as the Reinaldans amused themselves into thinking they were better. "Without the Frozen Leaf Alliance, would you still be able to make fun of the Vesians?"

After a few minutes of blathering, the announcer finally moved on to the duelists.

"Without further ado, let us welcome the mech pilots who will stake their lives over this duel! Two may enter, but only one will leave!"

Two separate gates opened up, allowing two separate mechs to enter the field.

Ves held his breath as he beheld the Rogue Breaker. While Ves had transformed the Pointed Sentinel into something new, he never believed his competitor would stay still.

"Look at Avid Serpent! What are those add-ons attached to the frame of her mech!?"

Some people recognized the strange external components that surrounded the joints and other parts of the mech.

"Those are force boosters!"

Force boosters basically enhanced the movements of the mech at critical moments. They weren't seen very often because of their complexity and high energy demands. Still, in a short duel, these force boosters could easily amplify the power exerted by the Rogue Booster by a significant amount!

"And that's only the external changes."

Ves couldn't see anything different about the Rogue Breaker from within. Someone as good as Creta would never neglect the internal structure of the mech. Only when the fighting started would Ves be able to see what his rival had changed.

"Certainly, Captain Orfan won't have it easy."

There was one aspect in which the New Sentinel surpassed the Rogue Breaker. Though Avid Serpent had attracted a lot of attention, her mech didn't appear to be too special despite the external additions.

Though the New Sentinel looked a little duller, the mech somehow possessed a faint charm that compelled most of the audience members into admiring its form. Its cheap armor inherited from the old Pointed Sentinel did little to cover up its allure.

"Does this spearman mech look a little different from last time?"

"Why do I feel like I'm looking at a whole other mech from three days ago?"

"I thought the Pointed Sentinel was a trash model! How come I'm itching to buy one right now!"

Though Ves wasn't able to access the System, he estimated the strength of the New Sentinel's X-Factor to be in the low C-grade or high D-grade. Though this paled in comparison to the B-grade of the Crystal Lord, this was still sufficient enough to stoke people's desires.

It was too bad that no one equated the special nature of the New Sentinel to Ves. As always when it came to mechs, the mech pilots attracted all of the attention while the contributions of the mech designer faded into the background. Ves smiled ruefully as the announcers never even credited Mr. Creta and him for elevating the mechs to new heights.

"Before we start this duel, do any of you two ladies have second thoughts? This is your final chance to withdraw! After the signal is given, the gates will remain locked and the energy screens will remain up until blood has been drawn! Cockpit ejections are blocked and leaving your mechs won't do you any good! This will be a true fight to the death with no exceptions!"

The consequences of failure was serious. Even if one side wished to be merciful, the arena organizers wouldn't brook any diversions from the script. As the guarantor of the honor duel, they had taken up the responsibility of enforcing the terms of the duel to the letter. Their reputation would be ruined if they failed to uphold the terms.

"I have never feared death! All of those who slandered me are wrong!" Avid Serpent yelled from her mech. As always, her identity remained a secret and the voice scrambler did a very good job in obscuring how she truly sounded. "As the challenger of this duel, I will not disgrace myself by going back on my vow! Come what may, I will bear the consequences of my actions!"

Her valiant statement won over a significant part of the public. Her story had an air of mystery and tragedy around her. Despite being labeled as a deserter, Avid Serpent had done a good job in presenting herself as a tragic figure who had left the Mech Legion for reasons other than cowardice.

Every person's imagination harbored a different story of Avid Serpent's fall. Some imagined her to be a noble lady whose entire House fell overnight. Hunted down by the forces of a rival House, the lady had no other choice but to flee the Kingdom and throw a cloak over her identity to escape pursuit.

Others figured her to be a talented commoner who had slowly risen up the ranks of the Mech Legion. One day, a noble ponce took a fancy upon her and wished to bed her. Avid Serpent violently resisted his advances and a major accident happened which claimed the playboy's life. Enraged, his House sent assassins and bounty hunters after the woman, who had no choice but to find refuge in a neighboring state.

Many such stories circulated from people's mouths and on the galactic net. Even Ves became intrigued by her origins. Who was she, really? Even Ves couldn't tell.

"Hah! You Vesians are all the same!" Captain Orfan broadcasted from the New Sentinel. "You're all bark and no bite! You better ready yourself for a beatdown, because by the time I'm done with you, you wish you were dead!"

Ves almost wanted to palm his face. The way she spoke made it seem as if the Flagrant Vandals was made up of nothing but boors. Even though that statement was somewhat accurate, Orfan could at least put their best foot forward.

Many thousands of Brighter visitors stood up and cheered for Captain Orfan and the Vandals.

"Go beat down that venomous snake!"

"I love you, Rosa! Please marry me!"

"Show these Reinaldans that us Brighters aren't pansies!"

Once both sides had their say, the duel couldn't be postponed anymore. "What courage! Neither duelists have flinched! Let us witness their ferocity and see whose convictions will stand at the end! BEGIN!"

An explosion erupted in the air above the dueling ground which served as the signal for the start of the duel. Both mechs instantly exploded into action. One wielded a spear, the other held an axe. The opening moves of the mechs revealed their true strength for the very first time!

Chapter 593

The Harkensen System in the Reinald Republic welcomed many visitors every year. From tourists looking for excitement to outfits dropping by to conduct business, the lively star system was one of the most popular destinations in the region.

Many outsiders who weren't fans of mechs or the shady transactions, they regarded the Harkensen System with contempt. "That den of thieves and greedy merchants is a hollow place. There's no honest work to be found there! If the sun went supernova one day, nothing of value in the Komodo Star Sector is lost!"

Obviously, the Harkensen System seemed like a place where only thugs and thrill seekers gathered. There was hardly a sense of class to be found, and what luxuries Harkensen I offered appealed more to the nouveau riche than the true power brokers.

This was the Harkensen System on the surface. To the vast majority of the Komodo Star Sector, this was all there was to it. Such a shallow destination required little consideration.

However, all of this was a facade.

To be more precise, the Harkensen System operated on several different levels. What everyone saw could only be considered as the shallow layers. What was observable from the surface meant nothing to the secrets hidden below.

To those who operated on the highest level, the Harkensen System was not as pleasant and tourist-friendly as everyone had thought.

"Did you hear? The honor duel between a captain from the Flagrant Vandals against some Vesian deserter has just started!"

"If I hadn't blown my entire budget at the casino earlier, I would have been able to afford a ticket!"

"Those blood-sucking Reinaldans! Who is crazy enough to pay 20,000 credits for a single seat?!"

Right now, a significant part of the Harkensen System became enthralled with the duel that happened in the arena underneath Black Belle City.

In other words, the duel diverted a lot of people's attention, leaving others free to move in the dark.

On the other side of Harkensen III, a group of fit men and women walked through the streets of a medium-sized city. Their path led them from a commercial district to a decayed industrial district. This area of the city used to be a prime location for smaller mech manufacturers, but all of them folded one by one in the last couple of decades.

Many old factories looked shuttered and emaciated. The decay and blight attracted many lowlives who hung out in these streets due the lack of monitoring. The sensor network in this area hadn't been updated and had long been tampered with long ago. Each gang that took up residence in the factories installed interference devices that blocked most small devices from making recordings or patch into local communication network.

This basically turned this blighted district into a lawless place.

Some thugs noticed the newcomers and approached them while holding their hands over their guns. They were about to bark the group of strangers away, but halted when one of them held up a token.

"We're expected."

The lead thug huffed at that. "Hmph. The boss is at the end of the street."

Not a single gang member looked for trouble with the outsiders as they walked by. Nobody made any rash movements. Any group in possession of a token was allowed to enter their territory. That was the rule.

Ten minutes later, the group reached a fallen factory that looked no different from the others. Nonetheless, the newcomers shoved aside the rusted gate and entered the main structure.

The darkness inside made it difficult to navigate the factory floor. However, none of them activated any lights. Instead, they each took measured steps in the dark, relying on nothing but memorized instructions to get through the invisible maze. Not once did they bump into anything.

Once they reached the entrance to another hall, they went through a door on the left, which finally led them into a bare metal room with not a single piece of furniture inside.

The only sight that greeted them was a dozen men in heavy combat armor standing guard from the opposite side of the room. Two men in business attire greeted the newcomers.

"Welcome, welcome. I am glad to see you've made it here in time, Major Verle."

Impressively, the man in the center of the group in plainclothes turned out to be the commanding officer of the Verle Task Force! This man who led over ten-thousand Vandals had declined to attend the duel with the honor of his mech regiment at stake!

"The situation has changed." Major Verle grimaced at the person on the opposite side. "Too much attention is being cast on the Flagrant Vandals. Though the attention-grabbing duel has disrupted many of our plans, it has given us a good opportunity to sneak to this meeting."

"Were you followed?"

"Do you doubt our professionalism?"

The room fell into a brief silence.

"Let's move on." The man on the other side said. "Our next step required us to bundle all of our strengths. After all, the Starlight Megalodon rests for no one. If we don't hurry up, others will reach the derelict first."

Everyone present in the room pumped up once they heard that name. The Starlight Megalodon was not a casual phrase to be uttered whenever someone felt like it! Even now, the name remained a legend in the frontier.

"The Starlight Megalodon..." Major Verle uttered. "I really can't believe we're on the trail to that legendary battleship. A partially-intact derelict of the Common Fleet Alliance. Even if she's a few hundred years old, the treasures we can recover is enough to overturn the entire star sector!"

"It all depends on whether we can get our hands on the keys." The other man said and turned to the person standing next to Major Verle. "Isn't that right, Lord Javier?"

The Vesian noble had surprisingly accompanied Major Verle without any restraints or restrictions. "Relax, I know where to find the Things you are looking for. I know for sure that one of them is on this planet."

"Good, good. As long as we can gather all the keys, we can reconstruct the final route of the Starlight Megalodon!"

There was a reason why everyone looked fervent at the thought of tracking down the Starlight Megalodon. That was because she was a battleship packed with wondrous materials and technologies into the size of a small city! Over a dozen kilometers long and armed with massive planet-cracking weapons, the CFA predominantly utilized this ship class to wage decisive battles against tough alien civilizations.

Not long after the Komodo Star Sector came into being, the Starlight Megalodon was the flagship of a small CFA task force meant to press the sandmen back. Unfortunately, the task force encountered a freak accident during FTL travel, knocking most of the ships out of FTL. By the time the CFA ships converged with each other, they found to their surprise that the battleship that served as the nucleus of their force was gone!

Back then, the CFA tried hard to track down the Starlight Megalodon, but their search was in vain. They eventually concluded that the massive and expensive battleship was lost with all hands.

Nobody outside of the CFA really cared, and anyone that did took their word for it. Everyone soon threw the mystery of the Megalodon out of their minds until certain forces discovered the presence of descendents of the crew in the frontier!

Only a very small circle of people knew about the descendants, and immediately grasped them without alerting anyone else, including the CFA!

The secret movers learned many things from interrogating the descendants. However, tracing back their route to the Starlight Megalodon wasn't as straightforward.

This was an operation years in the making. By now, the group collectively gathered almost all of the keys. After acquiring the ones exposed by Lord Javier, they could finally make an attempt at looting the valuable battleship!

How could they not be excited?! As an organization that shouldered the defense of humanity's outer borders, their technology exceeded the lofty standard of the Terrans and the Rubarthans.

Almost nobody in the Harkensen System knew what was at stake. The Starlight Megalodon wasn't even a footnote in history to most people.

Right now, Ves hung on to his seat at the front row of the underground arena. Captain Orfan's New Sentinel charged at Avid Serpent's modified Rogue Breaker without any qualms!

"Come on, captain! I put on my money on you, so you better win!"

"Die Vesian!"

Once the two mechs came close, the New Sentinel thrust out its spear with considerable momentum.

Clang!

A loud ringing noise reverberated in the arena as Avid Serpent deflected the initial stab with a flick of her mech's axe.

The two mechs separated. Neither pilot was in a hurry to press their advantages.

Inside her cockpit, Captain Orfan felt as if her entire mech urged her forward. Though she really wished to up the ante and unleash a flurry of blows at the Rogue Breaker, she couldn't afford to make any mistakes.

This wasn't like a regular deployment. In a real battle, she still possessed the leeway to retreat from battle and live another day. Right now, both of their mechs lost the ability to eject their cockpits. There was no way out after commencing the duel!

Either she lived, or she died! With her entire life at stake, Orfan couldn't treat this duel as a casual romp.

"Damnit, Mr. Larkinson wasn't kidding when he said my opponent's mech will be powerful."

What little the Rogue Breaker revealed already placed it on par with premium mechs. When it came to movement and attacks, the axeman mech certainly emphasized offense over defense!

"I'll have to take it slow and steady." The captain concluded and shifted her mech into a defensive posture.

True to her prediction, Avid Serpent took the initiative and lashed out. It ran close and chopped with its axe. The moment the New Sentinel lifted up its spear to block the attack, but one of the force boosters attached to the weapon arm of the axeman mech suddenly glowed! The limb gained a lot more power as usual and accelerated forth at a blazing pace!

Clang!

However, Captain Orfan was an experienced mech pilot. She had never let down her guard after spotting the weird boosters attached to the mech. She managed to parry the axe chop in time!

"Don't think these little toys can give you the edge! Taste my spear!"

Captain Orfan realized the force boosters allowed Avid Serpent to unleash a devastating attack. The New Sentinel still suffered from the aftershock of the weapons collision.

Perhaps the New Sentinel wouldn't be able to last for the entire duel after blocking a handful of full-powered attacks!

This compelled the captain to go on the offensive. With the long reach of her spear, Captain Orfan quickly regained the initiative. She unleashed a flurry of stabs, leaving no openings for Avid Serpent to exploit.

For a minute, everyone thought that Avid Serpent would never be able to escape from those shackles. However, the axeman mech fought calmly while making sure that the spear never touched its armor.

"They're both keeping up with each other's movements!"

"Look at how different the two mechs move!"

Ves saw that Captain Orfan piloted the New Sentinel in an extremely aggressive manner, which was completely different from the game plan they set up!

"She's wasting too much energy!"

This duel wouldn't be decided within a short amount of time. Rationing the energy reserves of a mech was a basic priority for every mech pilot.

Worst of all, Avid Serpent maintained a sober mind throughout the assault. It always chose to jump out of reach, but when that wasn't possible the Rogue Breaker fended off the spear stabs with the minimum amount of exertion.

"The Vesians are playing the long game."

As long as the New Sentinel exhausted itself, Avid Serpent only needed to make a single push to achieve a win!

Chapter 594

Ves thought that Captain Orfan lost her mind after melding with her mech. Ves had infused the New Sentinel with the unbridled fury of the heavenly horse.

"Did I go too far?"

Ves constructed the image of the heavenly horse with an eye towards offense. However, too much offense was not a good thing.

Avid Serpent displayed a lot more self-control right now. The axeman mech she piloted cleverly showed off its nimbleness by dancing and dodging out of the way of unrelenting spear flurry aimed in its direction. Its axe rarely deflected the spear stabs.

"Stay still you rat!" Orfan yelled as the New Sentinel's feet thundered forward.

"I've no reason to do that, you mangy dog!"

The Rogue Breaker refrained from showing off its cards. Its force boosters remained dormant, as Avid Serpent hadn't found it necessary to draw upon their strength while on the defensive.

At some point, Captain Orfan ceased her constant aggression. Even she began to feel some strain after keeping the offensive going. The quirks and imperfections of the New Sentinel prevented her from piloting the mech as an extension of her limbs. Compared to her service mech, this frankenstein mech moved like a creaky robot.

The two mechs circled around each other before they went on the attack again. This time, the two mechs refrained from making any elaborate movements.

"They're probing each other." A stranger said next to Ves. "They both acknowledged each other as worthy opponents. Since they can't take down their opponents quickly, they're taking a step back by trying to learn the other's strengths and weaknesses."

The cautious probing and slow-paced movements caused the audience to become annoyed. Many of the audience members booed at Avid Serpent and Captain Orfan for being timid cowards. Where did Captain Orfan's passion go? Why didn't Avid Serpent display her full strength?

Only the more astute mech pilots understood that the battle had only just begun. Both of them were in it for the long haul.

"Has anyone found out the face behind Avid Serpent's mask? I always thought her identity has issues."

"Hell, better men have tried. It's like she's a ghost in the Harkensen System. Before she showed up here, she hadn't made a splash at all. Not a single Vesian knows who she is! For all I know, Avid Serpent might not even come from the Vesia Kingdom."

"Why would anyone lie about her backing?"

"I don't know. Maybe she wanted to put herself in the spotlight and took advantage of the war between the two states."

Ves listened to the rumors around him but did not even come close to figuring out the true identity of Avid Serpent.

Not that it mattered too much in this case.

Seeing Avid Serpent move her mech even nimbler than the New Sentinel, Ves felt a little jealous at Mr. Creta's accomplishments. The first time Ves saw the Rogue Breaker in battle, the mech exhibited a good amount of agility.

Under the care of an apprentice of Master Klaisewist, the Rogue Breaker experienced a transformation of its own that wasn't any worse to what Ves had done to the New Sentinel.

Ves glanced around the nearby seats and spotted Mr. Creta calmly observing the fighting happening beyond the energy screen.

The Vesian mech designer abruptly turned towards Ves, and their gazes collided with each other. After a few seconds of staring at each other, Creta politely smiled at Ves and tipped his finger at him as if in salute before turning his attention back to the duel.

"What a tough adversary." Ves muttered. The man came from an earlier generation and possessed a definite advantage in age and experience. "It's like facing someone who's almost a Journeyman."

From the smooth performance of the Rogue Breaker, Ves could already tell that the mech experienced a large-scale strengthening. The mech was much more robust than before and its defensive strength had received a minor improvement as well. Overall, every performance characteristic had been strengthened without exception. None of its aspects became weaker.

This balanced strengthening contrasted sharply with what Ves had done to the New Sentinel. He had butchered the old mech and cobbled together an entirely new frankenstein mech. This boosted several of its performance characteristics to a whole new level, but the sloppy and hasty work had also impacted its integrity and other performance characteristics.

This led to two contrasting sights. One mech fought smoothly while the other fought with power.

"Enough of this dance. Take my Dervish of the Axe God!"

The axeman mech suddenly ceased to probe the spearman mech and started to commit to the battle. Some of its force boosters activated which abruptly put the mech into a spin! With its axe stretched out, the mech became a force of nature which could hack anything apart which strayed into its vicinity!

Despite spinning around like a figure skater, Avid Serpent's mech somehow approached the New Sentinel with an alarming amount of speed. The Rogue Breaker's Dervish of the Axe God was unavoidable!

Inside her cockpit, Captain Orfan began to sweat at the sight. "You don't do things by half-measures, do you?"

The New Sentinel couldn't escape this calamity. It was too near to its opponent! By the time it turned around and ran, the spinning axe would have already hacked against its frame!

It could only meet the forceful spin head-on!

Captain Orfan did not dare to put all of her trust into the New Sentinel's spear. Against the momentum driving the axe into a spin, if the New Sentinel dared to parry it with the shaft, it was liable to snap!

This was also why she skipped the option of carrying a shield. Axemen mechs were known as shield breakers, and the Rogue Breaker had definitely been designed to tear them apart.

Ordinarily, Orfan knew she had to rely on her mech mobility to negate the attacks of an axeman mech. However powerful they were, they still needed to connect to be effective!

If not for Mr. Crete's force boosters and other enhancements, Captain Orfan could have dodged throughout the entire match.

After waiting for the spinning axeman mech to come close, Orfan didn't lose mind. Though the sight looked dreadful to the audience, the mech captain ignoring the spinning axe blade and jabbed the New Sentinel's spear downwards.

"My mech's reach is greater than yours, and no matter how fancy you spin your mech, it can't do anything with the footing to keep it up!"

The tip of the spear failed to strike the nimble legs that kept the Rogue Breaker into a spin. However, the threat successfully diverted the unstoppable momentum of the dervish. After the New Sentinel struck again, it managed to trip one of the moving limbs which destabilized the axeman mech.

Yet Avid Serpent hadn't spun her mech in vain. Just before Captain Orfan tripped up her mech, she commanded the Rogue Breaker to let go of its axe!

The hefty weapon spun into the air before striking the New Sentinel square into its chest!

BANG!

Many shards of armor plating erupted from the chest of the spearman mech. The flying axe had carved through almost every layer of armor plating! If Captain Orfan hadn't adjusted her mech at the last moment, the axe might have cut off the arm of her mech!

Right now, she couldn't afford her mech to lose an entire limb! Therefore, she took a gamble that the New Sentinel could take the axe hit without damaging the internals.

Her gamble paid off!

The free hand of the New Sentinel went up to grip the axe embedded into the chest, but Avid Serpent activated a mental command on her mech that recalled the axe back to its hand!

"Look! The axe is connected to the weapon arm of Avid Serpent's mech! It can reel the weapon back in after it has thrown it out!"

This wasn't an unusual sight with higher-end axeman mechs, but Ves was pretty certain the original Rogue Breaker didn't incorporate such a feature. For Mr. Creta to add this feature to a mech in three days was very impressive because such systems easily broke!

"Avid Serpent isn't retracting the axe completely! What is she doing?"

The Rogue Breaker kept the axe hanging onto its arm. Instead, it started to swing its weapon arm with the weapon still attached to the alloy cable.

The subsequent attack arrived at the New Sentinel a lot faster than Orfan anticipated. Her mech hastily put up its guard, allowing it to deflect the cable-bound axe with great difficulty.

Orfan tried to unleash a counterattack, but Avid Serpent merely sent out the axe yet again!

Right now, the spearman mech's reach advantage had been reversed. The New Sentinel could no longer bully the Rogue Breaker by taking advantage of its reach. The proficient way in which Avid Serpent threw and retrieved its axe had baffled over half the crowd.

"What can a skinny cable do? I'll hack it apart!" Captain Orfan yelled.

The New Sentinel dashed forward and dodged the spinning axe sent into its direction. Immediately after, it swung its arm in an attempt to cut the cable with its spear.

Ding!

Unfortunately, the collision showed that the cable remained steadfast throughout any attempts at breaking it apart. The fearfulness of Avid Serpent's mech increased. What was more depressing to Captain Orfan was that she couldn't get any close!

"Hahaha!" She laughed after her mech fended off the latest flying axe. "I'm usually the one who bullies others with my reach. If you think an old dog like me can't think of another trick, then don't blame me for losing your life!"

When Avid Serpent threw out another axe, the New Sentinel jabbed its spear yet again. This time, it didn't bother with trying to cut the resilient alloy cable. Instead, it pushed the shaft of its spear against the strength and forced it to coil around it. It looked as if someone winded up a piece of loose cable!

"Caught you!"

With a mighty heave, the New Sentinel dragged the Rogue Breaker closer and unleashed a kick at the axeman mech that battered the mech's internals a bit. However, somehow the cable gained a life of its own. The axe quickly shook off the entanglement with the spear and returned to the waiting palm of the Rogue Breaker as the kick it received had pushed it back.

"You're not the only one here who can pull off a special move."

She declined to call out the name of the move, but that didn't detract from the New Sentinel's imposing manner. The spearman mech gripped its spear with both hands and stepped forth like the weight of the galaxy rested on its shoulder. Once it came into fighting range, the mech started spinning its spear!

Different from the Rogue Breaker's Dervish of the Axe God, Captain Orfan didn't intend to spin around her entire mech. Instead, the footing of the New Sentinel seemed like it was connected to a mountain! Knocking it off balance wouldn't be easy!

"Come! Taste bewilderment!"

As the New Sentinel marched closer, it abruptly turned its spin into a slash that scratched one of the arms of the Rogue Breaker. Avid Serpent hadn't anticipated the attack!

Just after completing the slash, the New Sentinel resumed with spinning the spear. Seconds later, it repeated the slash, this time succeeding in digging through the cockpit of the Rogue Breaker. This affected some of its sensors, causing Avid Serpent no small amount of difficulties.

"What's this wheel of spears?!"

"That's a party trick. It's nothing complicated. Spearman mech pilots like to practice it because it improves our fine control over our mechs."

"If you want to copy Captain Orfan's moves at home, I suggest you don't do it in a populated area. Once you make a mistake, the spear will go flying and is liable to hit an innocent bystander!"

Right now, Captain Orfan had caught her opponent off-guard by using this parlor trick to obscure her attacks!

Chapter 595

As the match entered a heated phase, the strengths of the Rogue Breaker became more evident. Ves constantly had to adjust his estimation of Gabriel Creta's competence.

Although the apprentice of Master Klaisewist had not yet advanced to Journeyman, his technical competence alone revealed that he was extremely close to the threshold. This was by far the toughest match that Ves had ever faced!

Ves realized he made a mistake in underestimating his counterpart. "I can't dismiss Apprentice Mech Designer out of hand."

He used to believe his System-upgraded Skills gave him an edge over other Apprentices. Now, he realized he didn't factor in everything when comparing himself to other mech designers of the same level.

"There's a difference between knowing how to do something and applying them correctly."

Though Mr. Creta's work exhibited some specialties that Ves couldn't replicate, most of the fundamental modifications on the Rogue Breaker wasn't beyond his understanding. Basically, what Creta did, Ves could do as well.

"Yet even I wonder if I can accomplish the same in three days."

The two mech designers adopted different strategies to strengthening their mechs. Ves discarded the old and created something new. Mr. Creta on the other hand retained the quintessence of the Rogue Breaker but upgraded almost every aspect to a higher level.

The difficulty of the latter was lower, but it would be hard to achieve a major boost without a lot of work and clever planning. Mr. Creta somehow managed to compress a week's work of modification work in three days, which was the same as Ves had done.

This basically meant his adversary's design ability wasn't any inferior to his!

"Mr. Crete doesn't know as much as I do, but his management ability and his application of what limited knowledge he accumulated is better than mine."

Ves felt as if the fog that obscured the path to Journeyman receded a bit. Accumulating an enormous amount of theoretical knowledge did not necessarily make him a better mech designer. That only turned him into a huge bookworm with a lot more tools at hand.

A true mech designer only needed a couple of tools to create an amazing result. That represented true ability. "A mech is a product of science and art."

People could easily quantify the former. Science existed to define reality. Its language was expressed in math and rules.

As for art, this was something much more abstruse. It came from the wellspring of creativity and achieved results that was more than the sum of its parts.

With the design and construction of the New Sentinel, Ves had conceitedly patted himself on the back for turning low-grade goods into a higher grade mech. Yet his opponent not only matched his stride, but even exceeded it through different means!

Throughout the duel between Captain Orfan and Avid Serpent, the latter always managed to regain the initiative.

The parlor trick that Captain Orfan used to confuse Avid Serpent's judgement was quickly seen through by the latter. Spinning around the spear like a ferris wheel subconsciously attracted her attention and messed up her rhythm. Once Avid Serpent learned to disregard the spin but focus instead on the footing of Captain Orfan's mech, she managed parry her opponent's attacks again and again.

This was because if the New Sentinel wished to launch an attack, it inevitably had to step forward!

"Looks like the jig is up." Captain Orfan said and stopped spinning her spear. Though it didn't consume as much energy as the Dervish of the Axe God, it wasn't very efficient either. "Then let's see if you can handle the storm!"

Captain Orfan did not give up on her offensive. Giving Avid Serpent an opportunity to attack even a single time might prove fatal to her. The enhanced Rogue Breaker had almost broken right through the New Sentinel's chest armor with a single blow! This was the thickest part of the spearman mech's armor!

If Avid Serpent managed to land another hit, the New Sentinel would certainly suffer crippling damage. This wasn't something Captain Orfan wanted to see, so she maintained her offensive despite expending large amounts of energy.

The New Sentinel moved forward and pushed the Rogue Breaker backwards with repeated spear stabs. This time, the spear didn't surge forward in a repetitive motion, but contained a random rhythm that made it hard for Avid Serpent to judge when the attack would land.

Clang!

The Rogue Breaker barely deflected another stab, but the spear had surged forward like an unstoppable tide that had only slightly been bent. The speartip managed to scrape the Rogue Breaker's arm and sheer through several layers of armor.

The hit created a weak point in the Rogue Breaker's arm! If the New Sentinel managed to land another hit at the same spot, the axeman mech was liable to lose a limb!

Both mechs weren't built like knights. Besides their chest and some strategic points on their frame, their overall armor coverage was lackluster. Both mechs relied on speed and technique to mitigate damage. While this prevented the two mechs from inflicting reliable damage to each other, once they managed to score a hit, the damage would always be severe.

Having gained an advantage, Captain Orfan smelled blood. She yelled out a guttural warcry and intensified her offensive. The Rogue Breaker continually receded as it tried to dodge or deflect the surge of spears.

"You can't hold out forever, Avid Serpent!"

It was not that the Rogue Breaker wouldn't be able to solve this attack, but Avid Serpent hoped to keep her cards close to her chest. Throughout the match so far, she predominantly played the long game. Now, it seemed she needed to expose one of her cards.

Avid Serpent carefully watched the incoming spear stabs and prepared her timing. When the spear shot forth yet again, the Rogue Breaker not only succeeded in deflecting it, the axeman mech also hooked the spear shaft with its weapon and drew it away.

For a moment, the New Sentinel left an opening.

This allowed the Rogue Breaker stepped into knife-fighting range and grab the New Sentinel's shoulder! Just as it attempted to exert some force, the New Sentinel immediately retaliated by letting one limb off the spear before grabbing the opposite in a similar grip.

Both mechs started to push against each other!

With both the spear and axe stuck in a temporary deadlock, both mechs started to push and shove each other with their humanoid mech limbs. The amount of force an arm could exert in this manner was limited. Too much pressure risked damaging the limbs, but neither side could tend to this matter.

That was until the Rogue Breaker suddenly kicked out with a force booster-enhanced leg!

Captain Orfan widened her eyes as she only had a split second of time to fend off this sudden attack. Even though the Rogue Breaker momentarily weakened its footing with this attack, its leg whipped forward with destructive force!

Almost every countermeasure she could think of took too long to defend against the kick!

Then her eyes became savage. "If I can't defend, then I might as well attack!"

The New Sentinel quickly jumped forward and off the ground while simultaneously letting go of its spear! Though the Rogue Breaker kicked landed against one of its leg, dealing serious damage, the fact that the New Sentinel had jumped meant the damage was less serious than expected.

This was because the New Sentinel basically pounced on the Rogue Breaker!

Due to its awkward kicking stance, the axeman mech couldn't withstand the force, and started falling backwards!

Bang!

The mech landed with its back against the sandy soil. Though the New Sentinel had let go of its spear, that left both of its arms free to take advantage of the situation. The New Sentinel knelt on the waist the Rogue Breaker and started wrestling and punching against the helpless axeman mech.

When the Rogue Breaker attempted to slam its axe into the New Sentinel, the latter mech quickly held on to the arm of the axeman mech and restrained it from completing its attack!

With an enormous amount of weight pressed against the frame of the Rogue Breaker, Avid Serpent thoroughly fell into the leeway at the moment. The New Sentinel attacked and attacked with its other arm and only stopped when the Rogue Breaker grabbed it with its other arm.

The two mechs resembled wrestlers of sorts as both mechs tried to push each other around with their arms taking hold of each other.

All of these moves put a lot of stress on their internals! They were dealing just as much damage to their own mechs as each other!

However, Avid Serpent was thoroughly on the losing end right now. The waist of the Rogue Breaker began to become deformed as Captain Orfan's mech kept pressing it from above.

She finally couldn't take it any longer!

"GET OFF!"

Over half of the Rogue Breaker's force boosters activated at full strength. An enormous surge of power suffused the axeman mech, allowing it to overpower the spearman mech and push it off its frame!

Sand sprayed all over as the axeman mech quickly climbed up to its feet!

As for the spearman mech, Captain Orfan hadn't fought against the powerful surge of strength, but instead borrowed its force to roll her mech in the direction of its fallen spear. It quickly picked up its fallen weapon before rising up to its feet in a ready stance.

The Rogue Breaker hadn't gone for the attack. Instead, the mech retrieved another axe from a hidden compartment in its rear. The hand axe looked smaller than the original one, but its lethality was without question.

Ves remembered that Avid Serpent's mech used to hide a laser pistol in the same compartment. Now it seemed that Mr. Crete had fashioned a small axe that fit the same area.

With a second weapon in hand, Avid Serpent's mech had shifted into duel wielding a pair of axes. Before Captain Orfan could process the change, the Rogue Breaker dashed forward. Its axes rose high before plummeting over the head of the spearman mech.

The New Sentinel barely held up its spear shaft to block the heavy attacks, but with force boosters strengthening the duel attacks, the defending mech almost buckled!

"Again!" Avid Serpent screamed and her mech unleashed another attack!

This time, she went all-out, saving none of her energy reserves. The Rogue Breaker turned into a chaotic storm as both of its axe-wielding limbs attacked in an independent fashion. Each axe chop came at a different angle and timing, causing Captain Orfan a lot of grief.

The New Sentinel's spear shaft started chipping from the force of the axe blows. Even though Captain Orfan tried to dodge as best as she could, her mech simply couldn't move fast enough to evade the blocks. Only by blocking would her mech be able to hang on. If not for those force boosters, the Rogue Breaker would never be able to chip away at Captain Orfan's spear shaft!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The New Sentinel continually stepped back as it found itself unable to breathe through the current crisis. The duel-wielding axeman mech practically attempted to suffocate its opponent through unleashing constant attacks.

Like a weight pressed against her body, Captain Orfan felt as if she couldn't endure for long. She cursed at herself for giving her opponent the opportunity to unleash her own attacks. The fearsome momentum of an axeman mech on the offensive was no joke, especially when it wielded two axes at the same time!

This time, their roles were reversed! With the New Sentinel on the defensive, it could hardly find the opportunity to strike back at its opponent. Meanwhile, the Rogue Breaker's offensive seemed unstoppable, but in actual fact it drained a lot of energy!

What this did signify? It basically told Ves that Avid Serpent figured out everything she needed to know!

Chapter 596

The face of Ves turned ugly when the Rogue Breaker pressed the New Sentinel with its flurry of attacks. The duel-wielding axeman mech exhibited a distinct superiority over its adversary, and never stepped out of range, giving the New Sentinel very little room to maneuver!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Each swing of the axe landed with the force of a hammer. The Rogue Breaker seemed to dance on the arena ground, causing the public to become mesmerised by its ferocious movements. Even Ves found the view to be compelling in a way. There was a pattern to Avid Serpent's chaos, but it was too abstruse for Ves to figure out.

The reason why Captain Orfan found it difficult to defend against the assault was because of the random nature of Avid Serpent's attack routine. Sometimes, the force boosters lent more power to the blow, while other times they remained inactive. The irregular activation of the force boosters left the New Sentinel unbalanced as its pilot was unable to adjust its defense.

Captain Orfan gritted her teeth as she endured the assault. She had been afraid of this outcome! Giving the Rogue Breaker a single breather had been enough to turn the tide!

"My mech isn't any weaker than hers!"

The Vandal mech officer was pleased with the New Sentinel's performance up to now. The machine may have been somewhat weird, but it was mostly able to keep up with her movements.

However, it still missed a pace compared to her service mech! That difference was subtle in some aspects, but huge in other aspects. These limitations constantly frustrated the captain and prevented her from performing her desired moves.

The duel between the two mechs had entered a superheated moment. The entire audience stopped speaking as they concentrated on the current phase. Nobody wanted to miss the moment where something changed. This might be the last seconds before the New Sentinel succumbed!

Ves bit his lip. He knew the New Sentinel the best. Captain Orfan had done her utmost and squeezed out every bit of performance it could unleash.

The spearman mech accumulated more battle damage as time went on. The New Sentinel currently bore two major wounds. The first one was the chest wound where Avid Serpent's axe had dug into its chest armor. The second one was the leg which suffered major damage from the Rogue Breaker's kick.

The other mech wasn't in a good condition either. One of its arms suffered a cut, while a couple of other attacks spread the mech with wounds. However, the most significantly damaged portion of the Rogue Breaker was its waist area.

When the New Sentinel knocked down the Rogue Breaker and climbed on top of the prone mech, Captain Orfan's mech had pressed down with its entire weight. The Rogue Breaker hadn't been able to bear this weight, thus its waist became deformed!

Somehow, this hadn't impacted the performance of its engine, but the same couldn't be said for its leg joints. The Rogue Breaker had to move its legs forcefully in order to keep up its offensive.

"The honor of the Flagrant Vandals is at stake! I can't falter like this!"

She had proudly stood up and answered Avid Serpent's challenge three days ago. This was because she felt boundless confidence in her own ability to overcome Avid Serpent. The Vesian hadn't shown off any exceptional ability back then.

It turned out that Avid Serpent fooled them all!

Even though the Vesian piloted a much-improved mech, that wasn't of much use if her skills couldn't keep up. The problem was that Avid Serpent's performance exceeded everyone's expectations.

This meant that Avid Serpent had definitely held back at least twenty to thirty percent of her strength when she dueled Broken Claw!

This additional boost in skill was the difference between an average advanced pilot and a peak advanced pilot. It separated the rank-and-file from the officer-level mech pilots in the military.

Captain Orfan bet with at least eighty percent certainty that Avid Serpent used to be a mech captain as well! Her opponent's courage and judgement stood out from regular mech pilots like a crane among chickens. It reminded her of the time she clashed against the recently-advanced Venerable Foster!

The suffocating pressure emanated by Avid Serpent threatened to engulf Captain Orfan. "Really sneaky of you, Avid Serpent! You've hidden yourself well!"

"It's not my fault you imbecile Vandals fell for my ruse." Avid Serpent taunted back as her mech kept unleashing more and more attacks without any signs of depleting its energy reserves. "How else would I be able to goad you dumb brutes into stepping onto the arena field?"

"Do you even care about your own honor? Hiding your identity like a rat and relying on subterfuge to get ahead of us, do you feel proud of yourself?"

"My pride is nothing you should concern yourself about! I hope the Vandals have prepared your coffin, because your broken corpse is about to rest in it! Sleep well and know that your defeat will be the stepping stone to my redemption!"

The New Sentinel's spear became more ragged as it had to block more axe attacks. Although the material held up against the strikes for now, it wouldn't be able to hold out for much longer, especially when her opponent didn't have any scruples about conserving the energy of her mech.

"I can only choose to suffer!"

Captain Orfan let go of her desire to defend. Instead, she stridently controlled the New Sentinel to flip its spear in an offensive stance. The mech ignored the incoming axe attacks and instead thrust out with its spear in a desperate jab!

The twin axe strikes landed upon the unguarded New Sentinel without any hindrance. One axe bit deep into the side of the New Sentinel, while the other one heavily damaged one of the spearman mech's shoulders.

Its performance had definitely suffered a significant impact this time as its internals received significant damage! However, because the axes had dug into her mech, the Rogue Breaker had momentarily exposed itself to Captain Orfan's counterattack.

The spear stab almost went straight through the abdomen of the Rogue Breaker. However, the abundant layers of armor ultimately prevented the spear from penetrating into the internals.

The New Sentinel's attack lacked sufficient force! Its sudden attack came out of nowhere, and while this had caught Avid Serpent off-guard, the New Sentinel hadn't been able to put much weight behind the thrust.

Still, even if the spear stab hadn't managed to pierce the abdomen, the kinetic energy behind the blow wasn't easy to shrug off either! The shock incurred by the internal components underneath the abdomen was sufficient to hitch up the Rogue Breaker for a single instant.

This was enough for the heavily-damaged New Sentinel to disengage. Bearing new scars on its shoulder and its sides, it practically lost most of its functionality of the arm attached to the damaged shoulder. For all intents and purposes, the New Sentinel could only choose to fight on with a single arm.

"Kill the Vandal! She's a sitting duck now! Finish her off!"

"The Bright Republic always comes back from behind! Go Captain Orfan! You can still do it!"

"Damn, who told me that betting on a mech captain is a sure win?! My marks, my precious marks!"

The crowd erupted in an explosion of emotion at the end of this sequence of attacks. The Rogue Breaker proved to be more valiant than the New Sentinel! Its unending flurry of axe attacks had finally achieved the desired result and crippled the New Sentinel into a one-armed mech!

Though Ves momentarily felt despair, his mood still contained some hope as Captain Orfan had successfully disengaged without giving her opponent the opportunity to finish off her mech. As long as the New Sentinel still kept standing, she still retained the opportunity to win. All Ves could do was hope she had what it took to turn the situation around.

The next minute went by without any suspense. The New Sentinel continually had to give up ground as the Rogue Breaker advanced again and again. Its twin axes became huge threats to the New Sentinel because it couldn't block the attack with only a single working arm.

Both its offensive and defensive ability had been halved!

Despite her overwhelming advantage, Avid Serpent sought to finish off her opponent as quickly as possible. She held nothing back and activated her force boosters again and again with much greater frequency.

The longer the match went on, the greater the chance of an accident!

Perhaps her opponent wasn't clear about the Rogue Breaker's situation, but her axeman mech expended over two-thirds of its energy reserves. The imposing level of performance granted by the force boosters demanded a heavy price that would soon come to roost if Avid Serpent wasn't able to trustle up her opponent.

"This will be easy." She smirked as she saw how flurried the spearman mech had become. "What can you do with a single arm?"

Again and again the axes landed glancing blows against the faltering New Sentinel. Captain Orfan tried to evade the attacks at all costs, but the damage incurred by her mech worked against her. Her mech was wounded and bleeding and her opponent did not have a single merciful bone in her body!

Under this enormous amount of pressure, Captain Orfan tried to stall her opponent in any way she could think of. The main reason she fell behind was because her mech's upper body suffered a substantial amount of damage.

Losing the functionality of an entire arm ended all of her hopes of winning through superior spearplay!

The captain wracked her brain for a way to turn the situation around. She refused to accept her defeat, not when more than two million people watched her disgraceful performance!

"Think! What can I still do?!"

She suddenly thought back of the Rogue Breaker's abrupt kick. If the New Sentinel's upper body was no good, what about the lower body?

Though one of the legs suffered some damage, it wasn't to the point of crippling it entirely. Captain Orfan's face adopted a resolved expression. With her back against the wall, she decided to lash out one more time with the most desperate move she could think of!

The New Sentinel dropped to the ground at her command! The two axes that whizzed in its direction only met empty air as Avid Serpent did not anticipate such a move! Still, her reaction speed was great, as the Rogue Breaker immediately sought to step onto the fallen mech and crush it with the weight of its entire frame.

"Not today, you snake!"

While the Rogue Breaker directed one of its feet forward, the legs of the New Sentinel snapped forward in a scissor that clamped down onto the stretched leg of its opponent.

"Caught you!"

The upgraded musculature of the New Sentinel showed off their power. It pulled the Rogue Breaker into a fall, straight into the spear held ready and waiting!

However, the Rogue Breaker chopped down with its twin axes as it fell, both of them aimed straight at the torso of the mech on the ground!

A huge collision occurred that boomed throughout the entire arena! The Rogue Breaker had fallen on top of the New Sentinel with both of their mechs unleashing their final attacks!

Some audience members screamed. Others winced. Most of them leaned closer in order to see which mech had survived the final clash.

As the dust cleared away, the audience gasped as they beheld the damage. The New Sentinel's spear had ran straight through the middle of the Rogue Breaker! Meanwhile, the axeman mech had embedded both of its axes deep through the wounded torso of the other mech.

Both mechs landed their strikes around the area where the cockpit was situated at!

"Is it... a draw?!"

"That can't be! Maybe someone missed!"

A mutual kill would be a devastating outcome to the duel. Though it excited some of the rumor mongers, most people who put money behind one of the mech pilots hoped dearly that one of them made it through.

After a few seconds of suspense, one of the mech exhibited movement. Then the other mech moved as well.

"Both of them survived!"

Yet... what happened now? Both mechs didn't seem to be in a shape to continue the fight. The Rogue Breaker was practically impaled, while the spearman mech was squashed underneath the other mech.

Chapter 597

The duel had reached its end stage. Everyone in the audience held their breath after the dramatic turn of events. They all thought that Avid Serpent possessed the advantage. Not only did she cripple her opponent's mech, but the offensive she put out fully denied her opponent the opportunity to make a comeback.

Yet Captain Orfan found a way to fight back after all. She did so by performing one of the greatest taboos in mech combat, which was to drop her own mech to the ground!

There was almost no reason for a mech to lay prone on the ground. Not only would the machine lose most of its mobility, but it also put stresses on its frame which the designer had never anticipated. Furthermore, a mech that had collapsed on the ground was a sitting duck for any enemy mech. They could easily wreck a prone mech by stepping on it once!

Yet before the New Sentinel completely fell down, it had somehow succeeded in tripping the Rogue Breaker. Not only that, but the mech had also positioned its spear with its butt against the ground in a prime position to impale the falling axeman mech.

"What an amazing desperation move!"

"How did the Vandal mech manage to pull that leg down?"

"Finish off the Vesian!"

When the two mechs exhibited movement, the crowd started rooting for their favored mech pilot. With the Rogue Breaker impaled by a spear that miraculously held on up to now and the New Sentinel being squashed by the former mech with axes embedded into its chest, which mech still possessed the energy to finish the match?

In one of the front seats, Ves gripped his fists and hoped the damage to the New Sentinel wasn't as bad as it appeared. In times like these, he felt the pain suffered by many mech designers.

It was no secret that many humans in the galaxy wanted to become mech pilots. People like Ves only became mech designers after finding out that their aptitude would never allow them to interface with a mech. Though he had ultimately turned around and embraced his current career, a small part of him still craved to fight in a mech rather than supplying it to someone else.

This was a feeling shared by many mech designers. Back at Rittersberg, his professors sometimes touched upon this subject.

"As mech designers, we are destined to be the people cheering our warriors on. Our primary role in society is to support the mech pilots. Do not delude yourself to be one of them. Even if your causes are the same, their fight is not our fight. The winds and rains that they have to go through in order to survive another battle is theirs to endure. If one mech pilot dies, there is always another customer for you to engage."

Ves recalled those words as he silently rooted for Captain Orfan. Some mech designers believed they needed to be dispassionate to their clients. Others believed that mech designers should build a close connection to the mech pilots that used their products. The different schools of thought often fought against each other, and up to today neither side had achieved superiority.

He supposed he ordinarily fell into the school of thought that believed a mech designer should keep their distance with their clients and avoid becoming entangled with their affairs. If someone bought a Blackbeak one day and used it to massacre an isolated village, Ves did not feel guilty at all. What did the actions of a lunatic have to do with him?

His cognition changed when he accompanied Walter's Whalers in their jaunt to the Glowing Planet. Ves found it hard not to care about their lives when he serviced their mechs. Still, even when most of the Whalers died in the hellish campaign, Ves hardly shed a tear for their loss. They were only acquaintances at most to him. He couldn't even recall the names of the fallen.

It was only when he rode with the Flagrant Vandals and assumed responsibility as a head designer that Ves had finally gone over to the other side. Ves cared a lot about the Vandals, and his heart bled whenever they suffered casualties in battle. This was especially because his fingerprints were all over their mechs. Though he hadn't serviced them personally, the men who worked on the machines largely followed his instructions from above.

Right now, Ves felt the same burden of responsibility crushing on his shoulders.

The strength of a mech depended on both the mech and the mech pilot. Though the skill of the mech pilot was beyond his purview, the state of the mech could not be separated from his hand. The Pointed Sentinel was an old creation of Ophidian-Wheelax Industries, but the New Sentinel was thoroughly a creation that transcended its origins.

"This mech duel isn't a one versus one. It's a two versus two."

Captain Orfan versus Avid Serpent.

Ves Larkinson versus Gabriel Creta.

Ves felt fully invested in this duel. Though he could never match the dedication of the mech pilots who put their lives at stake, Ves felt as if his own competence was at stake.

"The New Sentinel is a mech that stems from my work!"

Right now, with both mechs piled up against each other, the capabilities of the mech pilots ceased to be important. What truly counted at this moment was which mech designer fashioned a better machine!

Which mech would still be able to fight after suffering such heavy blows? Would the New Sentinel be able to push off the Rogue Breaker? Did the latter mech still have the capability to function after an entire spear was thrust through its chest?

The answers to both questions relied on how well the mech designers built the mechs!

"Come on! You can still fight!"

Though the New Sentinel suffered a lot more blows than the Rogue Breaker, the damage should have been rather shallow. Ves carefully looked at the axes embedded into the chest of the spearman mech and judged that the weapons hadn't penetrated too deeply.

Too bad the angle of view was rather bad for him. He turned to the sides and looked at the projections with a magnified view of the mechs. "There's a fifty percent chance that the power reactor or the cockpit has suffered a breach."

If the former had happened, then the New Sentinel was finished. Luckily, it didn't appear his frankenstein mech had reached that point. The axes stopped short of dealing direct damage to the power reactor!

"Since the mech is still moving, then the damage to the cockpit isn't fatal to Captain Orfan!"

Good! This meant that even if the New Sentinel suffered severe damage, it still possessed enough energy to fight!

Though Ves had not paid too much attention to improving his mech's internals, he nonetheless carried over many improvements in this area. He figured if the armor of the New Sentinel wasn't that good, he should at least strengthen the internals so that any breaches would not drag the entire mech down.

Considering that Ves faced a melee mech, he focused primarily on enhancing the New Sentinel's redundancy. This basically meant that if the mech suffered a crippling blow, it would still be able to retain some of its functions through other means.

This was also why he felt confident that Captain Orfan could still win the match. "With all the redundancies I've introduced, the power reactor should still be able to function at a diminished capacity.

The only variable that concerned Ves was whether Avid Serpent possessed the same opportunity! Though the Rogue Breaker looked as if it had seen better days, Ves feared that the spear had not inflicted enough damage. It depended a lot on what components the spear had actually damaged. Did the weapon pierce something important, or did it strike something of less value such as heatsinks?

A strange minute passed as both mechs fumbled against each other. Neither mech was able to exert a lot of power. Both had suffered serious damage that affected their motor capacities. The New Sentinel wasn't able to push off the frame of the opponent's mech, while the Rogue Breaker couldn't even lift up its axes.

"Punch!"

The two mechs eventually resorted to wrestling with each other. In this, both sides possessed distinctive advantages. The Rogue Breaker still possessed two working arms, while the New Sentinel only had to make do with one. The upside was that the latter mech's arm retained a lot more strength!

"Keep punching, captain!"

With no weapon in hand, the New Sentinel had no choice but to bare its fists against its adversary. The mech kept punching against the axeman mech's torso. The continuous punches aggravated the condition of the mech as the energy transferred by the punches messed up its internals. Though the damage done by each punch was slight, the longer it went on, the greater the chance of a critical fault!

The Rogue Breaker attempted to counterattack, but its limbs had turned especially feeble! Ves looked closely and determined that while its power reactor still functioned properly, its transfer of motive power had been cut by at least eighty to ninety percent!

This meant that the axeman mech could barely summon the power to lift its own arms!

The entire crowd displayed a mix of responses to this turn of events. Many found it disappointing that such a heated match ended in such an exceptionally low note. Others still held out hope that Avid Serpent could stage a comeback.

Alas, the spear impaled through the Rogue Breaker's frame happened to cut through a critical junction to its engine! While Crete had been prudent enough to implement redundancies, the spare junction happened to be situated in the same line!

One junction at the front and another one at the rear. Ordinary battle damage would never penetrate from one end of the mech to the other end of the mech.

In truth, Gabriel Crete focused upon elevating the performance of the Rogue Breaker. He spent insufficient attention on increasing its redundancies!

Both mech designers had chosen different paths, and Ves appeared to have chosen wisely!

After a few minutes of punching and fiddling, the New Sentinel finally managed to pry open a gap in the torso armor of the other mech. Once it opened up this vulnerability, the spearman mech gleefully reached out with its fingers towards the axeman mech's cockpit!

It was too bad that both mechs seemed to have lost their speaker functionality. Otherwise, they might have been able to hear Avid Serpent's last words.

"Kill her!"

"Vesia will never forget this!"

"Stop! You don't have to kill her!"

The New Sentinel's finger finally breached the cover of the cockpit. With as much power as Captain Orfan could direct, the New Sentinel firmly pressed within the cockpit like finger pressing down an insect hiding within a hole!

When the finger drew back, a smattering of blood marked its surface.

The announcer suddenly came to life again. "Our sensors show no life signs within Avid Serpent's mech. The outcome is clear! The winner of this honor duel is Captain Rosa Orfan of the 6th Flagrant Vandals!"

The entire crowd went wild with glee or despair. A lot of people had bet their money on Avid Serpent, but even more bet on Captain Orfan! After all, one mech pilot was in the dark while the other was a strong captain from a military mech regiment!

Still, a lot of people rooted for Avid Serpent, including almost every Vesian in the crowd. Their faces appeared sullen as Avid Serpent's loss not only implicated her honor. It would have been acceptable if she suffered from her own consequences. The problem was that she dragged down the dignity of the Vesia Kingdom upon her fall!

After displaying so much strength near the end of the match, how could she lose so ignobly at the very end? Every Vesian felt angry and ashamed. As much as they wanted to roar against the unfairness of it all, the fact of the matter was that they lost!

Chapter 598

That night, over two million witnesses to the duel went crazy. The story of how Captain Orfan's mech tripped the other mech before punching it to death became an instant legend in the Harksensen System!

The honor duel had been the most exciting arena battle on Harkensen III in recent memory! So many people hit themselves on their heads for declining to attend. If they only coughed up 20,000 marks, they would have seen the dramatic course of the events in person instead of listening about it in hearsay!

Those that attended the duel erupted in jubilation or despair. There was no doubt about it. Despite the unconventional ending of the duel, the match had definitely been worth attending!

Though the Vesians visiting the system all became depressed, most people thought that Avid Serpent fought very ably. She displayed a lot of skill and fought with ceaseless courage. If the engine of her mech hadn't been impacted so much, then she no doubt would have kept hitting back.

"Avid Serpent hasn't lost. Her mech failed on her. How could it break so easily after being impaled by a single spear?"

The Vesians sought out a scapegoat to vent their frustrations. There was no better target at the moment than Gabriel Creta. What Master's apprentice? What successful businessman? Your work fell short!

A lot of shade was being thrown at him, a lot of it without cause. Ves sympathized with his competitor. That could have been him. At the end of the match, Ves got to opportunity to meet Creta again. Both of them gathered in the underground halls leading to the workshops.

"Mr. Creta. I'm sorry for your loss."

The older man shook his head. He didn't appear to take the criticisms directed against him to heart. "She went into the ring expecting to win or die. Her death is not unjust. You've done an amazing work at transforming the Pointed Sentinel mech."

"It's a shame about Avid Serpent." Ves remarked. "I never got to learn her identity. Do you know who she is?"

"She never confided her identity to me. I think she hoped to take off her mask and announce her name to the public when she won the honor duel. Now that she has lost.. It's better to let sleeping dogs lie."

This could be considered a final mercy to the woman that bore the name of Avid Serpent. Though losing the duel hadn't affected her honor all that much, there was no doubt she dragged the name of the Vesia Kingdom through the mud. If the Vesians found out her real name, they would doubtlessly curse her name for a couple of months.

The two mech designers talked shop for a few minutes. Both of them briefly described what they had done. As expected, Creta hadn't gone as far as Ves! When the other mech designer heard that Ves went as far as turning the Pointed Sentinel into a frankenstein mech, he expressed his admiration.

"That was exceptionally risky of you, but it evidently paid off. Even I never expected that your mech could keep up with the Rogue Breaker after it had passed through my hand. All the time, I was modifying the machine with an eye towards a comprehensive crush in performance against your mech. It seems I was very much mistaken at that."

After chatting some more, they finally said goodbye to each other. Ves enjoyed the talk. He faintly perceived that Mr. Creta was from the same mold as him. Compared to their allegiance, they cared more about designing mechs. Both of them harvested a tiny bit from their conversations.

"I really can't underestimate older Apprentices. Not all of them are stagnating at a lower boundary than me." He sighed as he watched the other mech designer walking towards the exit.

Ves hadn't been able to learn too many lessons from Creta's shallow exposition. However, he was still able to affirm that the other mech designer was able to utilize his knowledge more exquisitely than what Ves could accomplish by himself.

"This is what experience brings."

Someone who had been in the game for decades developed their own polished methods. In a situation where a mech designer wasn't able to increase the breadth and depth of their knowledge, they instead attempted to develop ways to utilize their existing knowledge better.

"He's making the best of what he has!"

Ves had mostly faced younger mech designers in design duels in his career. Rarely had he been able to compare notes with someone who could be considered a veteran in the business like Gabriel Creta. The direct comparison of their work this time illuminated Ves that he had a long way to go with regards to designing better mechs.

"The only problem is that progress of this kind only comes from time and effort. I can't accelerate this learning process through any other means."

Even if he acquired a million Skills and a hundred Attribute poitns from the System, he would still muck it up somehow. More tools at his disposal did not mean he could design a better mech. It was how he used it that really mattered.

Ves contemplated about this issue the entire way back to the temporary Vandal compound. As he crashed into his bed, he still hadn't figured out a way to improve his utilization besides designing lots of mechs.

"Maybe that's why designing multiple original mechs is one of the criteria to become a Journeyman Mech Designer. Without practical experience, how can a mech designer be any good at utilizing what they learned? A useless bookworm who can't design a mech on their own is unqualified to become a Journeyman."

It also explained why some mech designers stalled in the Apprentice phase despite designing scores of mechs. One of the factors that held them back was doubtless their poor grasp on utilization. If they robotically churned out design after design without putting all of their effort and passion into their work, they would likely consider it to be a chore.

No matter how much anyone had harvested from this duel, Ves had definitely won a lot. The path to advancement became a lot more clearer in his mind. That alone was worth all of the effort of designing a frankenstein mech.

The next day, everything appeared to go back to normal. Half of the Vandals enjoyed shore leave while the other half were hard at work at fixing up their assets.

The only thing that changed was that everyone felt like a winner. Captain Orfan's performance had put the Flagrant Vandals in a very good light! Despite being billed as a raiding regiment, Orfan showed the Reinaldans and the visitors that they still possessed teeth!

"Hahahaha! I can't forget what happened last night! Avid Serpent had us on the ropes, but we whallopped her good!"

"Hey! Have some respect for the girl!"

"Why should I? She's a Vesian, and a treacherous one at that! As far as I'm concerned, she got what was coming for her!"

The Vandals spoke non-stop about the duel. This wasn't a surprise as many of them attended the duel. Of course, they could never pay the entire 20,000 marks for a seat. Instead, the Vandals received a whole bunch of free tickets from the underground arena. Just like Ves, they received free tickets because they were all related the Vandals.

After breakfast, Ves joined his old group with lots of welcome and appreciation. Though Captain Orfan earned the most kudos out of the Vandals, the contribution of Ves had not been forgotten. It was thanks to his efforts that her mech held out despite suffering a lot of damage!

"I heard from a mech technician who worked on the captain's mech that you turned it into a frankenstein mech! Is that true?" Ensign Tiss asked.

As an engineer, Tiss was clearer than most people on how difficult it was to cobble up a frankenstein mech together.

"It takes a lot of smarts to prevent it from falling apart."

"What a boastful mech designer!" A mech pilot exclaimed.

"Alright, knock it off, Vandals." Lieutenant Nolsen Feray said. "I'm sorry you missed the last couple of days, Ves, but there are plenty of sights left to see. We only have a short time left on Harkensen III before we head over to the beaches of Harkensen I. Let's make the best of our time."

Their group had already drafted an entire schedule for their stay on Harkensen III. They already visited several iconic sights on Harkensen III such as famous mech museums and historical monuments. They even visited the black markets in the evening.

As the group boarded a large-sized aircar that took off into the air, Ves asked what they experienced the last few days when he was absent.

"How are the black markets?"

"Very shady." Tiss said as she blinked at him with her big eyes. "It's a lot less friendlier than the grey market. They forced us to wear a sensor-blocking veil and mask that Nolsen scanned on his own to determine whether they had been bugged."

"Did he find something?"

"Surprisingly, no. The black markets are fairly scrupulous in this. They wouldn't be able to attract any customers if they're nosing the true identities of their visitors."

This told him that the black market wasn't without rules.

"Why do you look so grim then?"

"The black market isn't really a place for outsiders like us to mix in. It's a lot ruder than he grey market. Everyone is acting quiet and mysterious. Still, the things they have on sale can make you dazzle."

Ves could imagine the kind of products that circulated in the black market. Most of the goods had likely come from the hands of pirates. Still, that didn't detract from his interest.

According to the schedule, Ves still had an opportunity to visit a different black market. At that time, he would naturally be able to sample what the pirates and scummy treasure hunters routinely harvested.

The next couple of days, Ves made up for lost time by visiting many different sights on Harkensen III. The lively cities on the planet didn't pale too much in comparison to Black Belle City. The only thing that disappointed him was that he missed out on visiting the capital city's black market. The other markets underneath the medium-sized cities all catered to a special clientele.

The one Ves had visited was a market for slaves. All kinds of humanoid and non-humanoid aliens could be obtained from this market. The sight disgusted some of the visiting Vandals. Even Ves found the practice to be repulsive.

Not only did they have to endure lifeless aliens stuffed into cramped climate-controlled boxes, the market also seemed especially desolate at this time.

"What's wrong with this place? Has something happened?" He asked.

"The Reinaldans are kind of spooked." Nolsen explained. "You might not have heard about it, but a little of trouble has stirred up lately. Last night, two unsealed mechs started fighting at some place called Kwanza City. In another city, an unknown group invaded a restaurant and slaughtered all of the customers!"

"That's brutal!"

"I heard it was some kind of gang hit because many of the guests were part of some local gang." Tiss said. "I'm not too sure about the details, but the Honored Ones are blaming the violence on the local gangs."

"What do the gangs have to say?"

"They're blaming the foreigners for all their troubles."

In other words, everyone was pointing fingers at each other instead of trying to cooperate to stem the tide of violence. Ves furrowed his brows. Why did such incidents crop up during the time the Vandals stopped over at this star system? Were the Vandals related to these incidents? Too bad he couldn't read any clues from the news reports.

"I'm already looking forward to shuttling over to Harkensen I." Ves said lightly, trying to disguise his interest in the incidents. "If this planet keeps blowing up all the time, I would rather spend my time on the beach."

Chapter 599

The Flagrant Vandals slowly emerged out of the rut they fell into after reaching the Reinald Republic. Like a wounded bear emerging out of a fight, they emerged stronger and more resilient.

Captain Orfan's performance in the underground arena became a point of pride with the servicemen. Her demonstration of her individual fighting prowess propped up the other Vandal mech pilots. This not only lifted everyone's pride, but also increased their bond of brotherhood with their fellow Vandals.

Though these effects fell short of turning the Flagrant Vandals from a regular mech regiment into an elite mech regiment, the shift in mentality nonetheless formed a point of evolution in their martial tradition.

Many armchair generals spoke about martial tradition. It not only rose through steady accumulation, but also through major battles and sudden turning points. Each event deepend the history of the mech regiment, causing it to become more distinct.

Ves had mostly been out of sorts lately. It was a good thing that Harkensen I offered the perfect opportunity for him to relax and contemplate his recent insights.

Different from Harkensen III, the first planet from the sun aimed to create an entertainment paradise that had nothing to do with mechs. Practically no one received a permit to operate a mech on the surface of the planet. The only mechs around bore the colors of the Honored Ones, and these machines only patrolled the most strategic centers.

In every other place, the Honored Ones adopted a more discrete countenance. They toned down their physical presence on the streets and made do with much less heavy gear. Overall security was still good, but it became much less overt on the planet.

Pleasure, entertainment and fun became the focal points of Harkensen I. From its famous stretches of beaches, to the endless casinos and nightclubs, the planet touted itself as a famed holiday destination in the Komodo Star Sector.

The planet attracted two kinds of tourists. The regular kind made up the bulk of the visitors. The other kind consisted of mech pilots that needed to wind down. Though the latter category didn't spend as much as the whales, their presence on the planet attracted many people fascinated with mech pilots. As long as someone wasn't too rude, they would be able to interact with mech pilots on a daily basis!

The lack of overt militarization on the planet made it a prime therapy planet to mech pilots that experienced traumatic events.

With its proximity to Harkensen III, it was no surprise that many outfits tended to stop by in the Harkensen System. Just like the Flagrant Vandals, they found it convenient to service their ships and mechs while allowing their crew to decompress at the same time.

"The Reinaldans really take their no-mechs policy seriously here in Harkensen I." Ves noted curiously as his group strolled through a boulevard looking over a stretch of golden beaches. Thousands of vacationers dotted the area, each of them trying to forget about the worries of their daily lives. "On Harkensen III, it's impossible not to bump into a mech, but here you have to go to a military base to spot the mechs."

"Don't think the streets are unprotected." Nolsen cautioned them all. "I've spotted countless Planetary Guard patrollers in plainclothes. There are hidden turrets and defense fixtures all around. Though they can't withstand a determined attack, fending off a few random mechs is easy enough."

The security officer's words revealed that Harkensen I was nearly as well-defended as the mech-crazy Harkensen III. The vacation planet simply camouflaged its fangs.

"That's a lot more security than normal I think." Another Vandal said.

Ensign Tiss nodded at that. "It's no surprise that the Reinaldans are strengthening their security presence. All of the gang warfare and outbursts of random violence has thrown Harkensen III into turmoil."

Everyone's faces glowered for a moment. The so-called gang warfare that wracked the underbelly of Harkensen III disrupted an decades-old pact of keeping the fighting on the down-low. Even if a gang needed to hit their rivals, they should at least do it out of sight. Too much violence was bad for business.

"This is Harkensen I. There's no industry here and no mechs that can rampage around." Ves reassured everyone. "The gangs at sway on this planet leech off the tourists. There's no way they are willing to kill the goose that lays the golden eggs."

That lifted everyone up again. So far, none of the fighting had spilled over to Harkensen I and Harkensen II. Both of them were very different planets, and the Reinaldans had a better hold over security on those two planets.

"Look! There's a race going on!"

The group walked towards a crowd of beach goers surrounding a group of young men and women preparing for a boat race. Technicians surrounded the boats and continuously tuned them up.

Ves ignored the boastful talks and exaggerated claims of the racers. Instead, he swept his gaze over the boats. "They're kind of simple."

Maybe before, he would have dismissed the boats out of hand. The technologies involved were highly refined, but the principles of propelling a boat on water remained unchanged for thousands of years. Ves did not even need to study a manual to design a boat with nearly identical performance.

Yet he did not dismiss the water vessels out of hand. Perhaps before he would have thumbed his nose at simple constructions, but ever since the honor duel, he gained a new conception of utilization.

As his eyes raked over the technical construction of the boats, he found that he could spot a subtle difference between each vessel. Ves could vaguely determine which technician was simply going through the motions and which ones pursued greater perfection in their craft.

"Even if they are just boat technicians, there's a difference between a passionate one and a passionless one."

None of the boat technicians impressed Ves in terms of their technical prowess. If they had the ability to become a mech technician, then they wouldn't be out here tinkering with boats. Yet Ves had seen many mech technicians who were worse than some of the boat technicians at work right now.

"Ves! Let's head over to the betting station!" Tiss called as Ves was lost in thought. "I'm putting my money on Handsome Martinez! Just look at his smile! He's a total winner!"

Ves absentmindedly followed the group towards a betting station that was probably responsible for handing out the prize money to the winners of the race. He put a hundred marks on Handsome Martinez without much consideration.

"I'm telling you, Goosewing Red is definitely going to end up first! Just look at how hot she is!"

"No way, man! Mimi Stellion is the best babe around! I've put five-hundred marks on her name!"

After several days of contemplation, Ves could finally identify the crux behind utilization. Studying the boats and comparing the handicraft of the technicians against each other was no different than comparing different mechs. This was because the principles governing utilization applied to the entire engineering field, whether it was crafting toys or crafting mechs.

"The difference lies in passion!"

To be more accurate, the difference in quality came from the drive or motivation to improve. This was such a simple idea that most people instantly dismissed it as a platitude after hearing it. After all, wasn't it already common sense that more motivated people produced better results?

"There's a difference, though, especially when it concerns craftsmanship."

As the techs finished up their tuning and the boats raced off into the water, Ves watched the performance of the boats. Though the skills of the individual boat racer was the prime factor in whether they gained a lead, the quality of the boats played a major role as well.

Ves experienced a quiet breakthrough in thought. As most people around him cheered for their favorite racers, he alone focused on nothing but the boats.

"The will to improve! The desire to progress! That's it! That's the key!"

Every passionate craftsman desired to improve their craft. As long as they persisted in this motivation, they would eventually widen the distance between themselves and those with other motivations.

Having gotten in touch with many mech designers, Ves recognized the differences in mentalities between them. If Ves disregarded their ranking and ability, the underlying difference became very clear.

The most impressive mech designer Ves had recently met was undoubtedly Gabriel Creta. The man not only refined his craft to a very high level, but from their brief talk Ves had sensed that the man constantly strived for more!

"This is how a mech designer ought to behave!"

Though his learning ability held him back from breaking through to Journeyman, the man's indomitable motivation kept driving him forward. Ves estimated Creta would certainly able to advance in the next five years. His mentality and breadth of experience was too abundant to remain stuck in the Apprentice stage.

In contrast to driven men like Mr. Creta, Ves also encountered scores of low-ranking mech designers who had given up. Some of them had been drafted in the Mech Corps and currently served under his command. Others eked out a unprestigious existence in the private market as mech appraisers or mech repairers.

"These sideline jobs aren't enough to advance a mech designer. Only by designing mechs can someone of our profession truly improve."

The hierarchy of mech designers resembled a very wide and short pyramid. It only possessed a few layers, but the base was enormous compared to the tip. Too many mech designers lingered at the bottom level and never saw any hopes of advancing to a higher level.

Some mech designers only took months to advance from Novice to Apprentice. Others needed decades to reach the same height, while the vast majority never succeeded in taking the first step at all in their lives.

This highlighted the need for opportunity as well as motivation. Those with no ability or connections wouldn't be able to survive in the mech market. Ves had always fallen into the trap of thinking that his System-granted gifts would be sufficient to ride the tide to success.

Now he realized that such a mentality wouldn't gain him much in the larger scheme of things. Passively accumulating libraries-worth of knowledge was like depending on brute force to open a vault. He could smack the vault door with his fists all day and not even make a dent on the surface.

What Ves really had to do was to open the vault doors through the correct procedure, whether that was deciphering the right entry codes or fashioning the right keys.

Between brute force and finesse, mech designers always emphasized the latter over the former. The key to designing a mech that was far more than the sum of its parts was to employ the greatest amount of finesse.

"Utilization, motivation and opportunity all comprise the essential keys to advancement."

Ves understood a little better why the mech industry only started to take a mech designer seriously when they reached Journeymen. It wasn't just a matter of knowledge. Ves wasn't conceited enough to think he was the only Apprentice in the galaxy with an overabundant supply of knowledge stuffed in his head.

Why were many Journeymen able to advance despite possessing a much more shallow foundation in knowledge?

"It's because they've tempered themselves to the point where they can already design great mechs with only basic knowledge!"

Ves did not share the same opportunities as genuine talents such as Oleg or Patricia, but he possessed an even greater chance in the form of the System. He always thought that as long as he milked the System, he would eventually be able to catch up and surpass his peers.

"Riding the river downstream will only lead me to the sea. There's no challenge to overcome if I ride the current. In order to temper myself and polish my utilization, I've got to swim against the current! Only by going upstream with I be able to reach a higher elevation!"

Ves had found his way.

Chapter 600

Perhaps many other mech designers already realized this insight from their superiors. Unfortunately, Ves did not have too much contact with other mech designers, let alone his nominal Master.

While Ves thought it was best to minimize contact with more perceptive mech designers in order to keep his secrets safe, he also found it a pity to miss out on useful little nuggets like this. Fumbling from Apprentice to Journeyman on his own was like treading a bumpy path. Every so often, he tripped or stumbled against an obstacle. With no one to lead him to the other side, Ves had to rely on his own efforts to make it through.

"It's not that big of a deal, though. I'm progressing fast enough as it is. This insight happened to come at the right time."

Certainly, Ves wanted to become a Journeyman sooner rather than later. He faintly thought that if he kept to his old habit of gathering more and more knowledge, it wouldn't do any good with regards to his advancement. The sheer breadth of knowledge contained within his mind might even become a giant distraction!

"I've acquired far more knowledge than an Apprentice should possess. Studying more is not going to be useful to my development. Instead, I've got to focus primarily on designing new mechs."

Practical experience polished his utilization of knowledge. Ideally, Ves would eventually reach the point where he was able to combine basic theories into amazing products!

"However, mindlessly designing more mechs won't cut it. I've got to form a solid drive towards improving my mech design ability."

Ambition welled within his mind. Ves did not feel the need to formulate a concrete motivation. Merely wishing to reach the pinnacle of mech design was bold enough to work for a lifetime. Ves had always hung onto his dream after he first received the Mech Designer System.

The only difference between now and then was that Ves knew he had to work for it regardless of his advantages. Solely relying on the gifts exchanged from the System hadn't strengthened his mech design mentality at all. He needed to fight for what he wanted.

"A passive ambition is merely a daydream. An active ambition is a goal that I am striving towards."

In the analogy of comparing between drifting downstream and swimming against the current, the latter resulted in a lot more harvest. Perhaps unconsciously Ves had already taken this difference to heart.

"Maybe this is why I'm eagerly attracted to challenges and adventure."

Staying in his private workshop for years on end in order to churn out mech design after mech design didn't seem like an attractive prospect to Ves. Yet many mech designers adhered to such a brutal schedule, thinking that each additional mech would bring them closer and closer to advancement.

The mech designers working for design studios basically turned into slaves that robotically produced design after design. Their efficiency was low, because the odds of producing a lackluster design was very high. Only the rights of one in twenty or one in forty designs might be sold or licenses. And this was already a good conversion rate in the mech industry.

"A mech manufacturer can't operate like that. A company like the LMC needs quality over quantity when it comes to designs."

Low-performing mech models often led to severe losses to the mech manufacturer. Producing ten straight loser designs not only ate away a company's reserves, it also impacted its reputation in a negative way. If a mech manufacturer was perceived as having 'lost its way', they would lose at least half of their loyal customer base overnight.

A mech manufacturer on a downward trend had a very large chance of going bankrupt!

Ves never believed that producing the most amount of designs in the least amount of time was a recipe for success. He had always produced his designs depending on his needs and after a process of accumulation. His personal experiences provided him with fertile soil to develop new designs.

"I've been swimming upstream all this time without realizing it." He uttered to himself. "If I really wanted to, I could have avoided a lot of danger. Yet that would have also made me miss out on a lot of opportunities."

He summed up the major events in his career so far. The Young Tigers Exhibition. The Leemar Open Competition. The Groening mission. The Glowing Planet campaign. The Detemen Operation. The escape to Reinald.

Sprinkled with a few other challenges such as the recent honor duel, all of these experiences made him grow as a mech designer. From a fresh-faced graduate to a seasoned hand in the mech industry, Ves could never have reached this height by acting as a shut-in who perpetually locked himself in his workshop.

At first, the System prompted him out to do something by issuing missions to him. Later on, it largely fell dormant. Perhaps the reason why it rarely issued him a mission was because he was already on the right track. Ves craved for excitement and challenges even if he didn't consciously realize it. Now that he became aware of the reason behind his proclivity to adventure, nothing much had changed.

He was still the same Ves, only now he became more cognizant of his urges. No matter what, knowing why he felt different than many other mech designers was definitely a benefit. The importance of this realization couldn't be overstated.

The difference between an ape and a human was that the former acted on instinct while the latter acted on conscious thought.

It always disturbed him a bit to crave excitement despite his profession as a mech designer. He thought that while the experiences definitely allowed him to learn something new, this path to growth was an unconventional one. He felt like he was a deviant in a crowd of normal mech designers. Was there something wrong in his head?

Now he realized he had nothing to worry about his supposed abnormality. It wasn't the Larkinson blood and heritage that drove him to the edge of danger. His urge to head out in the galaxy and explore new sights came from his inner desire to swim upstream.

It didn't particularly matter what kind of events he encountered. As long as they challenged him in some way, he inevitably walked away as a better mech designer than the day before.

Lots of thoughts passed through his mind. The boat race happening in front of him became a very distant event. Ves didn't even care he lost his bet on Handsome Martinez.

As the Vandals leisurely enjoyed their stay on Harkensen I, his mind had already been cast towards the future. He felt he needed to define his future in order to drive his ambition from a passive state into an active state. Solid goalposts were easier to meet than distant aspirations clouded in fog.

"First, the Avatars of Myth needs to be more than a personal protection force."

Ves created the Avatars for multiple reasons. Not only did he wish to set an example to the market of what an outfit equipped entirely with his mechs could do, he also wanted to rely on them to proactively seek out adventure.

Whether he was fulfilling a mission for the Clifford Society or crossing into the frontier in search of treasure, owning an outfit completely loyal to him was an essential requirement. Ves would be a monumental fool to continue to rely on mercenary corps or private security forces to keep him safe!

His firsthand experiences with the Flagrant Vandals allowed him to become familiar to the inner workings of a large mech unit. Though a military mech regiment could not be equated to a private mech outfit, copying some of their best practices was probably a good deed.

"With enough numbers, a lot of opportunities will open up. If something can't be done by a single mech company, then what about three?"

If Ves wanted to make full use of the Avatars of Myth, then he should definitely expand its ranks. "I don't need to grow it to an exaggerated extent. The standard of a mech regiment works for the military, but will not necessary work for the private sector."

Large-scale mercenary corps existed with thousands of mechs on their combat rolls. Only rarely did they gather together in order to fulfill a momentous assignment.

Ves did not aim to start up a mercenary corps where his mechs would be hired out to other employees. Thus, he did not feel the need to field enough mechs to conquer an entire planet. Matching the numbers of the Verle Task Force wasn't necessary either.

"Hm, five companies of mechs should be good enough. That's strong enough to bully around most fleets in the frontier."

Naturally, Ves needed to balance out the numbers between landbound, aerial and spaceborn mechs. The only problem was that Ves had not yet produced a serious original design in the latter two categories.

"This should be my next priority. I have to round out my mech catalog as fast as possible."

A mature mech manufacturer developed and sold entire product lines of mechs. These were mechs that shared many commonalities with each other, such as technologies, parts and design standards. An outfit that utilized multiple mech models from the same product line faced a much smaller logistical burden than if they utilized a wide variety of mechs.

The Vandals suffered somewhat from this problem due to their wide variety of random mech models. Each of them centered around different sets of core materials and technologies that it had been a daily nightmare for Ves as a head designer to keep it all together.

"Right now, I can't develop an aerial or a spaceborn mech, but I should at least pave the way if I decide to start in this direction."

Ves already became somewhat familiar with flight systems and the anatomy of spaceborn mechs from his time with the Vandals. Working constantly on the Inheritor and Hellcat mechs combined with the tutelage he received from Laida gave him a solid footing in this area.

"If I want to design a spaceborn mech, I can already produce a decent attempt."

That wasn't enough for Ves. If Ves wanted to pad the Avatars of Myth with mechs meant to keep him safe, then he had to go the extra mile and thoroughly master the intricacies of spaceborn mechs.

Taking a page out of the new book, Ves did not aim to solve his inadequacies by binge-reading textbooks on flight systems and spaceborn mechs. He already possessed the required knowledge to design a spaceborn mech from his existing Skills.

Rather than read a manual on how to combine those disparate pieces of knowledge from different Skills, perhaps Ves might be able to achieve a greater harvest if he compiled a method of his own.

"It's the difference between playing an existing song or composing a new song as a musician. Retreading existing work allows me to catch up faster and enables me to produce better output on the fly. But would I really be able to become a good musician? An imitator has never attempted to climb out of their molds are destined to be forgotten."

That said, composing his own songs may likely lead to a lot of bad or mediocre songs at the start. Perfection couldn't be reached in a single bound. Yet if Ves was willing to grit his teeth and tough it out, he was much more likely to sustain his growth trajectory after all of the imitators reached a halt in their progress.

Ves thought back on the strange theory proposed by Morgan who he met during mech designer boot camp. The older mech designer might have been onto something when he proposed that rushing to Journeyman with an insufficient foundation may stop them from advancing to Star Designers.

It was unfortunate that Morgan took a detour while he was on the right track.