The Mech Touch

"Hihihi! We finally get to sleep together! Isn't that great, Ves?"

"Yeah.. great…"

At the Austen Estate, his bedroom received a minor makeover. Gloriana had ordered a team of bots to bring some closets and furniture from her old bedroom.

Ves felt as if his bedroom was no longer entirely his bedroom. While he hadn't bothered to decorate and personalize a chamber that he would soon be leaving, he still felt a bit bothered at the abrupt change in scenery.

As Gloriana emerged from the bathroom in pajamas, she dove into the bed.

"Miaow."

Clixie, who was laying on a cushion, began to roll towards her owner.

This prompted Gloriana to grasp her cat and hug her cozily against her chest. She giggled and kissed Clixie on the forehead.

When Ves, clad in his own pajamas, slid into the other side of the king-sized bed, he stared at Gloriana and took in her rosy, bath-scented presence.

He never really thought this day would come so soon. He had become so used to sleeping in his bed by himself that he hadn't really fathomed lying alongside someone else!

The only times when he slept in a bed with others was when he was just four or five years old! He remembered being scared of the dark and heading to his parents' bedroom in order to beg his mother to protect him from the menace of the shadows!

"What are you thinking, Ves?"

"Oh, ummm.. is it really okay for you to sleep with me? I.. wouldn't want to bother your mother."

"It's fine, Ves!" She sleepily grinned while cozying up to the furball in her arms. "I already told you that the old rules don't apply anymore. Becoming a genuine masterwork mech designer at your age is enough to make my mother and those stiff matriarchs from my dynasty regard you in a different light!"

Even Hexers recognized the accomplishments of exceptional males. Naturally, they also continued to regard them as boys. People like Ves were just similar to child prodigies in that regard.

Though Ves disliked such treatment, it was better than being disregarded, so he would take what he could get.

That didn't mean he developed any sort of appreciation for the Hexers. He was still determined to stay as far away from the Hegemony as possible!

"Lights, off." He spoke.

The lights in the bedroom faded out, leaving the bedroom in near-darkness. Only a small amount of light filtering through the darkened windows.

"Goodnight, Ves."

"Goodnight, Gloriana."

As Gloriana started to doze off while clinging to Clixie like a stuffed animal, Ves felt a bit awkward.

A part of him felt that he should be doing something more, but…

"Miaow."

Clixie was in the way! Even as Gloriana snuggling against her back, the cat's round eyes glinted at Ves with a wary expression!

"Meow."

What was more, Lucky was watching curiously from the foot of the bed!

On top of that, Ves could hear the small movements of the combat armor worn by the guards keeping them safe!

Aside from Nitaa, who was always present in his vicinity, over a dozen guards from the Glory Battalion silently stood guard from all directions.

How could Ves possibly cozy up to his girlfriend with all of these onlookers present? His excitement instantly dropped at the thought that all of them possessed night vision capabilities!

Seeing that Gloriana started to fade into slumber with a content smile, Ves realized that she didn't intend to do anything more than sleep with him today.

He shrugged helplessly. He felt as if he had been hoodwinked somehow. Was this how his nights with Gloriana would proceed from now on? Would he ever be able to share the same bed with her without the peanut gallery watching his every move?

He was not a public performer! He was just a mech designer!

"Forget it." He muttered and turned around.

Sleep came slowly. After a turbulent night of rest, Ves woke up the next morning feeling only half as refreshed as usual.

As the morning light poured through the automatically-cleared windows, a gentle ray of sunshine landed on Gloriana's smiling face.

"Miaow."

Clixie had squirmed out of Gloriana's grasp at some point. She was wide awake and rested on the table next to where he put the Larkinson Mandate.

Of course, Lucky and the guards were around as well. They had stood guard and patrolled throughout the spacious chamber without taking any break! The dedication they showed to their guard duty was admirable!

As Ves and Gloriana showered in separate bathrooms and readied themselves for the day, they met again at the dining table to discuss their upcoming agenda.

"You plan to start your implantation surgery shortly after the MTA delegation arrives?" Gloriana curiously asked as she partook a cute-looking bunny-shaped tart.

"Yup." He nodded. "I don't think the MTA envoys will appreciate it if I avoid them entirely. They have to verify that I'm a masterwork mech designer as well. Once they complete this part of the inspection, I plan to go under as soon as possible."

Gloriana briefly paused. "Are you trying to avoid the MTA or something?"

"No!" Ves quickly shook his head. "I just want to make the best use of my time. Besides, we both know that our enemies will definitely steer away from us while we are hosting an official delegation from the MTA. I can't let this opportunity pass!"

According to the schedule, the ship carrying the delegation from the main MTA branch in the Protectorate would be arriving at Kesseling VII the next day. This meant that there was not much time left before he had to appear at his best while at the same time starting the operation that would significantly increase his cognitive functions!

Just thinking about the Archimedes Rubal's formidable data storage capacities and virtual connectivity options made him drool.

Not only that, but after almost half a year of studying and tinkering with the bioimplant, Dr. Ranya and Dr. Lupo extensively upgraded the implant in almost every way with modern solutions!

One of the most important addons to the bioimplant was a small dedicated mini processor that added some much-needed processing power. This would allow Ves to perform rapid calculations in his mind without having to consult any conventional software solutions!

On top of that, Ves also spent some time to engineer some protection for the implant. He built a small shell of modified Breyer alloy that was extremely thin but still very strong. He surrounded it with a small amount of Synthra Umbra fabric to make it invisible from nearly every type of sensor or remote hacking system.

Of course, Ves couldn't close it off entirely. He added small, curling canals to the stealthed shell that allowed for specially-cultivated biothreads to connect the implant with his central nervous system.

All of these complications significantly raised the difficulty of integrating the implant with his brain tissue, but Ves didn't care.

He didn't want his bioimplant to become vulnerable to hacking, data siphoning or or nasty tricks!

While the risks were significant, the rewards were even more so. Gloriana had already described more than once how her own Erestal-015 doubled or tripled her design capabilities. She wouldn't have been nearly as good at spotting and resolving flaws in her designs if not for her formidable cognitive functions.

They even aided her off the job! Ves deeply suspected that one of the reasons she knew him too well was because she stuffed all kinds of data about him in her implant and ran analytical software whenever they talked!

Once the pair finished their breakfast, they went about their day. Gloriana split off to babysit the design teams while Ves began to prepare his organizations for departure.

When Ves finally announced the news that he intended to move, Raymond, Gavin and Calsie all looked perplexed.

"We knew we wouldn't be staying here forever, but..." Calsie hesitated. "We aren't ready for this. Not truly."

"You knew what you were getting in when you continued to remain in the company." Ves stoically pointed out.

"Saying is one thing, doing it is another. I think we all didn't mind your initial intentions because the Ylvaine Protectorate is right next door to the Bright Republic. Now that we are moving further away.. I expect a lot of employees to have a change of heart."

Ves grimaced. "Leave them behind, then. We don't need them. You can station them in the local branches or let them go entirely. Right now, I only value the people who are willing to accompany me no matter my destinations."

"The LMC can handle it." Raymond said. "Our overhead has decreased ever since we have decided to outsource almost all of our production to external partners. Many positions have become redundant. Along with all of the Ylvainans that are eager to take the place of the old guard, we won't suffer any staffing problems. The only difficulty I'm concerned about is that transitioning to the mobile headquarters and virtual headquarters models will lead to a lot of disarray at first. We won't be in the position to undertake any major activities for the next couple of months."

"That's fine." Ves dismissively waved. "I don't plan to design any commercial mechs for the time being. The LMC can continue to manage the marketing, production, sales and support of our legacy products."

Gavin looked concerned. "You haven't released a commercial mech design for some time, boss. The Desolate Soldier is our last major success if you count out the abnormal Deliverer. While it's by far our best-selling product in the company's existence, a single breakout success does not define a company. The hype has already faded and our brand awareness is already fading. If you don't want our hard-earned fame, reputation and brand value to fade, then you should really think about generating some excitement by releasing a new mass-market product."

He had a point. Ves did work hard to propel the LMC into the forefront of his customers. Yet the market was always fleeting and fads always wore out in time.

Eventually, his Desolate Soldier would no longer be a mech that turned heads whenever someone saw them. The LMC had to prove that it was not just a one-hit wonder and that it was absolutely capable of generating constant value.

Ves wasn't very concerned with the state of the LMC though. Commercial mech design was still an important money-making vehicle to him, but he had other priorities these days. As long as the LMC's cash flow remained healthy, he was more interested in earning merits rather than credits.

"How will the Larkinson Clan cope?"

"Frankly, half of us are rather glad to leave the Protectorate." Raymond replied. "No offense to the Ylvainans, but we never managed to feel at home on this planet. It's odd for any of us to go on an excursion in Krent due to all of the open religious expression around us. The people and the architecture are all marked by the Ylvainan Faith, and the Holy Soldiers and Deliverers walking around everywhere doesn't help matters either!"

That was what Ves felt as well. As much as he appreciated the Ylvainans for supporting him so much, he would rather hang out in the Sentinel Kingdom which was just as secular as the Bright Republic.

"We employ a lot of Ylvainans these days, right? Will they be fine with moving away from their home state?"

Calsie smiled at that. "I've been liaising with the Ylvainans every day. We explicitly adjusted our hiring criteria to recruit only those who are willing to go on an adventure, so there aren't many local citizens who insist on remaining in their home states."

That surprised Ves. He thought it would be much more difficult to convince the insular Ylvainans to travel abroad.

Even if they believed they were on a mission to support the Bright Martyr or something, Ves would take what he could get!

"Continue to keep a close eye on the Ylvainans then, Calsie. If there are any unusual developments regarding this group, inform me immediately."

"Will do, sir."

As Ves continued to ask questions, he generally received satisfactory answers.

His subordinates hadn't been sitting on their thumbs all this time! Transitioning their core operations to a roving fleet was a massive endeavor, but Raymond and the rest of the leadership had months to prepare!