The Mech Touch - Chapter 7257: A Handsome Reward
Ves did not have a good expression at the moment.
He had many plans for the future. He voluntarily traveled to the latest front in order to see if he could help red humanity repel the mutated voribugs.
The important part was that he did so on his own initiative. He valued control. He wanted to be the one to dictate whether he stayed around to address the voribug threat or relocate to another front in order to conduct other business.
From the moment the Evolution Witch imposed a mission onto him, Ves lost that precious freedom and independence.
He would be forced to act as her minion and represent her interests so long as he had yet to complete his objectives.
How could he not feel pissed about this matter?
“I don’t buy your reasoning.” He said. “I am a mech designer. I am good at designing mechs. If you want to commission a mech design from me, then I would gladly accept. You turned to the wrong person if you think I can complete a reconnaissance mission. It is extremely dangerous to travel through voribug-occupied space. Aside from a few stealth vessels, none of the ships of the Bluejay Fleet are equipped to scout enemy territory, and even then stealth systems have their failings. Doesn’t the Red Association have its own dedicated spies and scouts? You should trust in their professionalism.”
“Their professionalism is exactly why I cannot entrust them to complete their mission in time.” The Evolution Witch spoke in a domineering tone, as if she was making her own truth rather than describing it. “You are the agent I trust the most. You should not sell yourself short. You are far more than a mech designer. You possess many unusual and exotic capabilities and you have built a growing powerbase. Not only that, your network of allies and partners are growing. You already possess the tools necessary to complete your mission. You only need to use your brain and be prepared to do what is necessary, even if your actions would ordinarily invite sanction.”
Ves narrowed his eyes. “What do you mean about that last part?”
The physical projection of the god pilot stared directly into his eyes. “You know exactly what I mean. I did not misspeak. The priority of this mission is high. The sooner you can satisfy my demands, the better. I want you to go all-out. Do not let the rules or customs of red humanity get in the way of what is necessary. You are already a tier 2 galactic citizen. If there are parties who still object to your methods, then inform my office. Do not limit yourself to ordinary methods. I already have my own subordinates for that. What I am seeking from you is a solution that is so unthinkable that it is able to catch everyone off-guard.”
Her words contained numerous hints. Ves continued to narrow his eyes in suspicion.
“Your words suggest that whatever scheme you have in mind is faced with opposition. Strong opposition. This is why you can’t trust the Transhumanist Faction and other mechers to fulfill your orders, is that right? They may not be sincere about doing what they are told. They can also encounter hindrances from other factions and groups. Now that I think about it, turning to me is rather clever on your part. No one expects a mech designer like me to embark on a reconnaissance mission. No one will know.”
Divine Lucie Miyazaki grinned. She looked approvingly towards Ves.
“It is good that you have managed to make these deductions. It will spare me from the effort of spelling it out to you. I cannot currently share any details about my plan to you, but it is true that I am faced with strong opposition. Their misgivings are understandable, but I will not let their caution hinder my goals. As long as you do not act in an overt fashion, I am confident that you will bring me good news next time. Remember my words. I do not care what you will do to determine the location of the Hive Princess. In fact, it is best if you do not tell the full details to anyone, including myself.”
“Uh, got it. You only want results. You don’t care about the process. I can work with that, I guess. How precise do you want the location data to be? Do I need to give you the exact coordinates of the Hive Princess in real-time?”
The god pilot shook her head. “That is not necessary. Giving me the sun system where the Hive Princess is currently residing is enough. The more granular the data, the better. It would be better if you can also report the specific globe that the Hive Princess is residing at. Ensure that the location data is still up to date. If the location data is several days or a week out of date, then the insect leader may have already relocated.”
This was a rather tricky demand. Finding the right star system was already a big help, but determining anything more specific than that would imperil any scout sent so deep into bug space.
Ves knew right away that he could not possibly rely on mundane solutions such as sending a stealth vessel into enemy territory.
Not only would this be equivalent to trying to find a needle in a haystack, other rivals who were opposed to the Evolution Witch would learn that she had roped Ves into her ambitious scheme.
This was why she explicitly told him to think outside of the box. He needed to figure out a different way to scout occupied star systems without relying on the usual means.
Ves already came up with a few wild ideas on how he could make this happen under all of the extra conditions.
However, why should he put so much effort into a mission that did not directly relate to his mech design work?
The highly perceptive god pilot understood his thoughts. She immediately addressed his misgivings.
“Your status has changed, Ves. You are a tier 2 galactic citizen. I tried to prevent you from promoting too soon, but your actions have forced this matter. This elevation comes with greater privileges, but also greater responsibilities. Duty is important. Besides, you became a tier 2 galactic citizen by virtue of leading your own army of phase lords. The consequence of that is that you must become more involved in frontline operations as opposed to rear-line support duties.”
She was right. As the polemarchos of the Phase Lord Department, he and his alter ego possessed a great deal of military power.
Even if he had delegated most of those boring duties to his subordinates, he still possessed direct command over 30 Ascended Giants. It would be wasteful for them to remain idle and fight without a greater purpose. Every asset could achieve much more gains so long as they fought according to a well-defined strategy.
“Okay, I’ll do it. You do not need to persuade me any further. I don’t know how I will be able to get this done, but I will think of something. I need to learn more about the mutated voribugs and gather more resources before I can work on a possible solution. As long as you can make sure that others won’t interfere with my actions, then I am confident that I will be able to pull it off somehow.”
“You do not have to be concerned about that. The Destroyer of Worlds also has an interest in you. She has already made it known that she expects the Rubarthan Pact to act with sincerity towards you. You can call upon their assistance if necessary, but be careful to never divulge any information about your true mission.”
Ves grimaced. “I can only say that I will try my best. No promises. I am a high-profile individual in the Red Ocean. Both humans and aliens are paying a lot of attention to me. I am operating aboard an RA starship that is under constant monitoring. It is really hard to keep secrets these days.”
“The intelligence officers that I am sending to you will partially address your complaints. Trust in their work. I am aware that it will take serious effort on your part to complete your mission, but I can make it worth it. As long as you return with a good result in time, then I am happy to bestow you with a major favor.”
Ves perked up when he heard that. He knew what a minor favor constituted, but he had yet to obtain a major favor.
“What… what can I expect?”
Updated first on lightnovelworld.org
The Evolution Witch smiled at him. “At our level of galactic citizenship, it is common for us to trade favors with each other. The mission that I have assigned to you is worthy of a major favor from me. Once you have received it, you can call it in at any time in order to issue a major request that I can fulfill within my own power. You can even combine it with other favors in order to demand larger concessions. Think carefully, as a major favor of any god pilot is a precious commodity.”
That sounded rather vague. Ves had a difficult time estimating how much he could get away with a major favor.
“Can you give me a more concrete example?”
“Sure. You can demand my assistance in doubling or tripling your army of Ascended Giants. Depending on the numbers, you can even ask me to provide all of the phasewater necessary to pave the way for their initial growth. Think about it. Your voice will become much louder if you have an army of 1000 Ascended Giants at your beck and call.”
That… was definitely a big improvement!
This single example already gave Ves a much better idea on the worth of a major favor!
“Alternatively, if you wish to increase your personal power, you can request my personal assistance in helping you evolve into a greater phase lord. The Red Collective is already working on developing a systematic process to convert lesser phase lords into greater phase lords for the human race, but its reliability is not high. If you undergo this process under my supervision, I can guarantee your health, erase any complications and enhance every phasewater organ so that they can deliver superior performance.”
Ves was not too interested in this offer, but he felt his Jutland organ straining harder.
The Dark Apostle would definitely be interested in strengthening himself!
He was the first human lesser phase lord.
It would be best if he was able to become the first human greater phase lord as well!
If another Ascended Giant managed to become a greater phase lord sooner than the Dark Apostle, then the former had a good chance of winning a leadership challenge!
“I see. Thank you for clarifying this matter. I have a much better idea on what to expect. I will be sure to complete the mission in order to secure a major favor.”
The god pilot grinned in satisfaction. “I wish you good luck, even though you do not need it as you tend to make your own luck. Do note that the major favor is bestowed by myself. You cannot approach others to redeem it. That is not how it works. Furthermore, I advise you to work fast. If another party has completed this mission faster than you, then you can forget about earning a major favor.”
Damn. Ves frowned when he thought about the competition. He was not about to let this enormous reward slip past his fingers!
“I will make this my highest priority so long as I am operating on this front.” Ves promised to the Transhumanist leader. “Still, what if… there is no Hive Princess? I mean, their existence has not been proven with absolute certainty.”
“Hive Princesses exist. The Devourer Queen exists.” The god pilot sneered. “You can be assured of that. Biology is my domain. Ascertaining their existence is not difficult for me. Locating them is much more challenging. As powerful as I am, I am but one god pilot. If I enter bug space in person, my targets will never deliberately avoid me by relocating to more distant locations. I require a more discrete agent such as yourself to locate a Hive Princess without alarming anyone.”
