[1-200] THE MECH TOUCH

Chapter 87: Banquet

Now that many mech designers and their followers left the premises, the temporary living area received a much-welcomed renovation. The cheap and convenient apartments made way for compact villas that contained room for up to twenty residents. The LIT also stocked the villas with all kinds of amenities, from the rarest teas to the most sophisticated entertainment centers.

Ves only met up with Dietrich briefly before a student guide approached him from above.

"Mister Larkinson?"

"Yes, that's me."

"Good. Our institution invites you to attend a banquet together with your fellow designers."

That sounded interesting. Ves accepted the invitation and followed the guide towards a palatial hall floating in the distance. A floating conveyor brought up guests like Ves who lacked antigrav clothing to the entrance. As he looked around, he noted that a lot more walkers had made it through the qualifiers, though he reasoned that most of them got carried by their groups.

Still, even if they got knocked out tomorrow, they still benefited from the honor of presenting themselves to trillions of people. With their status as a past contestant who made it through the qualifiers, they could leverage that prestige into wealth and status. No one despise the Leemar Institute of Technology, especially its famous annual competition.

The dining hall was resplendently large. Calm and relaxing music extended from the instruments of a handful of musicians. The main tables offered ample space for all the guests. A larger and more extravagant set of tables sat at the front, reserved only for the masters and the most eminent visitors.

Though the hall appeared simple, Ves recognized the precious materials built into the furniture. Even a cannon shell couldn't blast them apart. The subtle extravagance impressed all of the designers who came from humble backgrounds.

A small projection lit up in front of him and guided him to his seat. As a noname designer from a remote third-rate state, his seat was near the end. He looked around and spotted Barakovski near the front.

If their seat positions were ranked, she easily entered the top 20. As for Ves, he was clumped together with the walkers and freeloaders. He sat onto his seat without fuss and waited for the rest to gather around.

"Mr. Larkinson?" A woman called from behind.

He turned around to see a familiar face. "Patricia Schneider?"

He had not expected to meet an acquaintance from the Bright Republic. Patricia had always been an enigmatic figure back when he studied at Rittersberg. She was a genius who excelled in every field. Every classmate sighed that it was a pity that she hadn't gone to study at Leemar or some other famous second-rate institution.

To see her here was a remarkable turnaround. Ves looked around and did not spot any other former participants of the Bright Republic's Fusion Cup.

"Don't bother looking around. We are the only ones from the Republic who qualified." She said and took the seat next to him. "I do have to say that I thought you had potential, you're still a few years too early to compete in Leemar. It's quite a pleasant surprise to see you grow so much."

Unlike any other designer in the room, Ves sensed Patricia had nothing but goodwill to him. He appreciated her willingness to approach him. He missed the casual candor he was used to in the Republic.

"I've grown a lot since the last time we met each other. I always thought my last victory was more due to luck and circumstance. Now that I've caught up in my studies, I'm confident I can beat you in a straight fight."

"Is that so?" Patricia smiled mysteriously at him. "Maybe we can find that out tomorrow. You never know. I still have to pay you back for knocking me out before I reached the finals."