[1-200] THE MECH TOUCH

Chapter 159: Controversy

Missions generally came in two flavors. Ves could either accept a risky but rewarding mission or a safe but less worthwhile one. The latter often took up more time so many of the less talented mech designers took up these tasks.

As for Ves, he'd been eyeing the riskier missions. Though he cherished his life like any human being, he knew he couldn't get anywhere without taking calculated risks. The Clifford Society's whole advancement structure encouraged their talents to temper their skills in exotic adventures.

"A mech designer who holes up in his workshop all day will only stagnate." Horatio had told him once when he guided Ves around the Society. "Even if they managed to advance by some fluke, their designs lack an essential spark. The mech industry has no need for clones."

In other words, a mech designer has to seek out the untold wonders of the galaxy and survive experience. Only then would they be able to find their own paths.

Ves didn't know what to make of this theory. Leemar strongly subscribed to the idea that the best mech designers were those capable of surviving under the most adverse conditions.

"It's more likely that mech designers who thrive under danger are already outstanding."

Whatever the case, many people paid well to enlist the services of a competent mech designer.

As long as they had access to the right facilities, they could easily design or modify a mech tailored to the situation at hand.

They also served as consultants, able to deconstruct any design and explain its inner workings to their clients.

Ves wanted to finish a mission quickly, so he ignored any mission that lasted more than three standard months. He also wanted to avoid antagonizing more people, so he drew his attention to join an expedition into the unknown reaches of space.

Despite humanity's dominance in the galaxy, vast swathes of space had never been explored. Even if an unexplored star system fell under the borders of a certain state, it might take decades before they sent a survey ship to catalog its planetary bodies.

This applied even more to the Komodo Star Sector, which had only been colonized for over half a millenia. Many of the sparser regions unclaimed by even the poorest fourth-rate states might hide some gems. If some of these star systems happened to contain some deposits of extremely valuable exotics, then an follow-up expedition would swing by sooner or later.

"Hi there!" A cheerful girl chirped at him from behind. "You're a Knight, right?"

"That's correct."

"Great! Our team of five is thinking about taking the Hudson-Fairfax mission." She gestured at a couple of men and women a few steps behind. "We'll split the merits equally as long as everyone is doing their fair share of work. So what do you say?"

"Hold on a minute, let me study the mission."

Ves quickly called up the mission in question. It turned out to be a rather thorny job that involved mediating a conflict between two rival fourth-rate states in the middle of nowhere. Instead of going to war, they decided to hash out their differences by holding duels.

He admired such a solution, but didn't wish to enter these muddy waters. Who knew if someone powerful had something to gain from the results. The three-hundred merit reward looked nice, but Ves could only look forward to receiving fifty merits if he had to work in a team.

"I'm sorry, but I'll have to decline."

"That's a shame." The girl replied, her smiles all gone. "Goodbye then."

A handful of other Society members asked if Ves wanted to join their teams before someone told him to stand elsewhere.

"If you aren't looking for a team, then don't stand in the center!"