The Mech Touch

Chapter 6338  Capital of Trade and Commerce

The Amaranto Mark III and the Riot Mark III both had the potential to shine on the battlefield in their own ways.

It just took a little more time and effort to get to that point. The two machines also wouldn't be able to reach their full potential unless their mech pilots successfully broke through and subsequently got upgraded into true ace mechs.

Ves liked to imagine that Venerable Davia Stark and Venerable Rosa Orfan were on the cusp of breaking through. The best case scenario was that the two powerful women only needed to obtain more powerful expert mechs in order to complete this crucial step.

However, Ves did not dare to lean too much on this assumption. He thought the same about his uncle and his grandfather, and they were still languishing as ace pilot candidates despite months of heavy fighting.

The Red Tide Offensive already caused a multitude of Larkinsons and many other brave soldiers to break through and transform their lives, but it did not happen to the people that held greater meaning to Ves.

The lack of progress from the likes of Venerable Joshua Larkinson and Venerable Benjamin Larkinson continuously disappointed Ves, but he knew that he could not really force this issue.

Breakthroughs were intensely personal and dependent on a lot of factors outside of anyone's direct control. The transcendence glow and other tools might be able to give them a boost, but that did not invalidate the need to get their own baggage in order.

Ves thought back on the three ace pilots that managed to break through so far. Nothing regarding the advancements of Saint Tusa, Saint Isobel and Saint Casella could be treated as standard and routine.

In the first two cases, the pilots became exposed to acute lethal peril.

In the latter case, the pilot suffered a devastating loss that was arguably worse than death!

Now that he thought about it, he could also do a lot for the three high-end mech design projects by going on his business trip. Ves could shop around for helpful goodies at the popular central star node that could add a lot of value to the respective high-ranking mechs.

Although the trio ultimately proved their qualifications as Saints by successfully rising above their trauma, that did not change the fact that Ves could not replicate their circumstances to force the breakthroughs of other high-tier expert pilots.

It was not only ethically wrong, but also not a reliable long-term solution for the Larkinson Clan!

Ves really wished he had access to the Red Association's extensive libraries on pilot breakthroughs. The mechers surely managed to build up a lot more data and theory about this subject. If Ves could peruse those archives, he could identify the variables that he overlooked and improve his theoretical framework. That might be enough for him to develop a more reliable pipeline for inducing breakthroughs.

Maybe he might have a chance once he arrived at Yernstall.

Now that he thought about it, he could also do a lot for the three high-end mech design projects by going on his business trip. Ves could shop around for helpful goodies at the popular central star node that could add a lot of value to the respective high-ranking mechs.

Perhaps it was better that the three upgrade projects were still unfinished. Ves was about to embark on a journey to the Sapphire of the Red Ocean.

While Bridgehead One was the first star system that humans settled after they managed to infiltrate the Red Ocean, Yernstall had managed to surpass it in terms of trade and commerce even before the latest turn of events.

The reason for that was because the latter central star node was located in a more central galactic location. Yernstall happened to sit at a favorable midpoint between the expansive territories of the Terran Alliance and the Rubarthan Pact. This caused it to attract an increasing number of traders who did not really care about whether they were doing business with their frenemies.

At least most Terrans and Rubarthans had the decency to conduct their trades through middlemen such as the enterprising Yorul-Tavik Clan.

Whatever the case, the removal of Bridgehead One from the board had accelerated the economic development of Yernstall and turned it into the most prosperous star system in human-occupied space!

That meant that Ves could practically find anything he wanted at this central star node!

If Ves wanted to get his hands on strategic goods such as Mentalist Crystals, high-performance heatsinks, restricted high-grade exotics and hypers, intact phasewater organs and more, Yernstall was the place to go if he wanted to obtain such a large variety!

Of course, not everything was fine and dandy in this busy central star node. The prices of everything had shot through the roof. It was extremely expensive for people to live there as a mountain of fees and taxes made every transaction vastly more expensive than it should.

If not for the protection of the Red Two, the presence of both terrans and Rubarthans, the favorable location and the strong networking effect, Yernstall wouldn't have been able to become red humanity's foremost capital of trade and commerce!

Ves eagerly discussed the potential to pick up more potent upgrades for the works in progress with his wife.

"I can procure far more useful goods than a bunch of high-performance heatsinks. Just think about it. I managed to secure the tier 3 Destroyer spear through a grand auction. I bet I can obtain a weapon or component that is just as extravagantly powerful if I work hard enough. We'll probably have to make heavy concessions, but I can make a lot of promises due to my growing political power."

Ves would rather owe heavy favors and go even further into debt than he already was in order to empower his champions even further.

The planned showdown between his Bluejay Fleet and his most ardent enemies had reminded him of the importance of investing in his mech forces!

If he hadn't been so complacent about his security as of late, he wouldn't have to feel so nervous about provoking this inevitable confrontation!

Although it was too late to compensate for this mistake, Ves could at least make up for lost time and remedy this issue so that he would be in a better position next time.

His wife looked receptive. "If you are willing to procure more strategic goods for us, then pay attention to the items in my wish list. I have great use for them, so try to obtain them if possible."

She transmitted a very long shopping list to Ves. He quickly skimmed through the list with his cranial implant and promptly shoved the file to the back of his memory banks where he stored all of his other junk data.

"I will keep a lookout on some of these items."

"Good. Do remember to buy gifts and toys for our children as well. We have pampered them with so many Terran goods that it would be good if we expose them to Rubarthan equivalents as well."

"That's a good idea."

As evening rolled in, Ves and Gloriana finally retired from the design lab and returned to their home where they spent one last family moment together.

"Meow~" Lucky luxuriated on Andraste's lap like usual.

"Miaow~" Clixie meanwhile purred as Aurelia gently brushed her fur with a comb.

"Why can we not come with you Yernstall, papa?" Andraste asked. "We can still keep up with our schooling by remote. There are children of other important Terran leaders that can apply for dispensation for this. They can make up for their absence in gym classes and other practical classes when they return to school."

Both Ves and Gloriana exchanged glances.

"It's not about school." Ves gently answered her excitable daughter. "I know that all of you want to go on a holiday and go sight-seeing at the Sapphire of the Red Ocean, but it is too dangerous for you to go there. Yernstall has become a focal point of a lot of dangerous machinations. A large number of powerful people are converging on the star system, and who knows how they will get along with each other. Besides, I have very good indications that our journey to Yernstall will likely encounter an ambush. I cannot in good conscience let you come along in one of the toughest battles that I have to win."

"Awww!"

"My answer is final, Andraste. It doesn't matter how much you whine or how cute you look. If you want to enter a battlefield, then first wait until you have grown up and completed your military training."

All three children looked unhappy. They all wanted to take part in the excitement and visit the unofficial capital of human civilization in the Red Ocean for themselves.

However, there were good reasons why Ves characterized this visit as a business trip as opposed to a vacation. Fun and leisure should never be the first priority if he visited another location for business and official purposes.

Ves felt a bit worried about the safety of his wife and children that he would be leaving behind in New Constantinople.

This was why he also decided to leave behind the rudimentary beginnings of a first-class mech force behind.

The initial first-class mech pilots hired by the Premier Branch were not too reliable, but that was what the Larkinson Network was for. Ves did not dare to hire too many as it would become too difficult to assimilate them into the Larkinson culture. It was already difficult to convert the new hires into proper Larkinsons due to the lack of existing members at Diandi Base.

Ves just hoped that he did not misjudge them too much and that they would do the jobs that he hired them to do. The pilots could hardly be called elites, or else Ves would never have been able to hire this batch.

He was banking a lot more on the protection provided by the mechers anyway. It was ultimately the Red Association that determined how well his immediate family remained safe from external threats.

A less charitable interpretation of this situation was that the mechers implicitly held his wife and hostage.

Ves knew that he could never make any decisions that seriously damaged the interests of the mechers, or at least the factions that he was currently associating with. Perhaps people like Jovy and Vector never harbored any ill will towards him, but it was way too naive for him to disregard this underlying dynamic.

This was why his clan needed to pick up steam in building up a true first-class mech force.

It would have been nice to have another ace pilot around at the very least.

If he was willing to resist the temptation to bring that second ace pilot along his journey, he could leave the powerful Saint behind in Diandi Base and give him a lot of peace of mind.

Oh well.

Ves continued to chat with his children about what he intended to accomplish in Yernstall. He did not share everything he had in mind, but what little he shared already made them excited.

"You can have a shipyard build any ship you want?! Even ones like the Spirit of Bentheim that has a cat head as her prow?!"

"Not quite, haha." Ves chuckled as he tousled his young son's hair. "Starfarer Berth is only a relatively small first-class shipyard. It is capable of constructing a top-of-the-line RA combat carriers every 3 months or so as long as all of the conditions are met. I am relying on it to produce the beginnings of the sub-capital ship of our first-class mech force. However, this can only be done if all of the financing, technological licenses, permissions, specialized manpower and most importantly supply of resources are in order. All of these factors and more make it very difficult to run a successful and profitable first-class shipyard in a location as expensive as Yernstall. This is why I have to visit Starfarer Berth in person and make sure that it will be able to play its part in my plan."

"Will you mount cat heads on the front sides of all of the sub-capital ships?"

"...I will see what I can do. I am not opposed to this as long as it doesn't compromise the structural integrity of those vessels."