The Mech Touch

Chapter 6089  The Sendoff

Solarium!

The light-attributed hyper material had become one of the latest fads in the first-class mech community.

Although it was still difficult to obtain in greater quantities, a lot of mech designers were eager to get their hands on enough to build entire mechs of. The magical property of amplifying its defensive properties by up to 300 percent when irradiated by a strong light or heat source was so dazzling that there was even talk about integrating Solarium into first-class ace mechs!

Though Gloriana had instantly fallen in love with this hyper material, Ves became aghast when he thought about how much the clan would have to pay to acquire tons of Solarium.

”I am not going to purchase this overpriced crap for you.” Ves definitively stated.

Naturally, his wife did not give up so easily.

”I refuse to accept your decision! Do you know what you are missing out on?! Other hypers are far too fragile compared to Solarium. With this amazing hyper material, we can turn the Amaranto into an invincible counter against any enemy that is reliant on energy weapons. This will grant our only expert marksman mech a crushing advantage in long-ranged combat. No matter whether they are hostile mechs or warships, so long as they are reliant on laser weapons, they have already lost the battle before it has begun!”

Ves furrowed his brows as he tried to imagine this scenario. He found that Gloriana might actually have a good point.

”Think about it.” She urged. ”At extreme ranges in space combat, kinetic weapons are ineffective due to the limitations of their muzzle velocities. Laser weapons are the most effective since their beams travel at the speed of light. According to our design proposal, the Amaranto Mark III will also excel at sniping at extreme range. If we can make the living mech practically impervious to returning fire at the same range, Venerable Stark will absolutely dominate any opponent at such distances!”

According to her description, if the Amaranto Mark III truly integrated a lot of Solarium, then the expert marksman mech would be able to outfight one or even multiple warships at extreme ranges.

After all, Venerable Stark and her battle partner would easily be able to launch powerful but also uncannily accurate attacks more than a light-second away, while their adversaries had very little chance of dealing effective damage in return!

As long as the enemy was not able to get closer or further away from the Amaranto, then it was theoretically possible for the expert mech to terrorize an entire alien fleet by herself!

However, Ves did not get swayed by this prospect. He still remained unreceptive to Glorianaʼs pleas.

”As attractive as this sounds, it is not too compelling for me. The Amarantoʼs defensive advantage is conditional. She will still remain vulnerable when attacked by enemies at close range. Solarium also doesnʼt fit the emphasis on extreme firepower that is supposed to characterize this living mech. Adding extra defenses is a luxury, not a necessity. I am not opposed to strengthening her hard defenses if the opportunity costs are low, but that is not the case here. The price is too high for a hyper material that doesnʼt outperform other first-class hypers in E energy sensitivity.”

His wife made an ugly expression.

”Then what do you want instead?”

”The Amaranto doesnʼt need to be reinvented!” Ves shouted back! ”She just needs to double down on extreme firepower. Our clan will never deploy the expert marksman mech by her lonesome. She will always be accompanied by the Bastion or other defensive assets. There is no need for us to convert her into a machine that can undertake independent operations.”

”Forget about obsessing too much on enhancing the defenses of the Amaranto Mark III. You are the one that originally came up with the idea of going all-out on using hyper materials to enhance the offensive power of this machine. Instead of getting distracted by the latest toys that do not align with the Amarantoʼs original concept, letʼs just stick to finding first-class hyper materials that can boost the firepower of Instrument of Vengeance and the Instrument of Doom. I do not believe that there are no hypers available that outperform Solarium in this aspect.”

”If you reject the option of integrating Solarium into the Amaranto, then you are neglecting an opportunity to reinvent one of our best creations!”

”The Amaranto doesnʼt need to be reinvented!” Ves shouted back! ”She just needs to double down on extreme firepower. Our clan will never deploy the expert marksman mech by her lonesome. She will always be accompanied by the Bastion or other defensive assets. There is no need for us to convert her into a machine that can undertake independent operations.”

”But—Ack!”

Ves threw a pillow in her face.

”Go to sleep, Gloriana. I am too tired of this crap. I wonʼt deny the value of Solarium, but I think you have become too blinded by its amazing properties to consider whether it is a good fit for the Amaranto Mark III. You need to rest and revisit this topic when you have sobered up. I think that once you perform a proper cost-benefit analysis, you will be able to conclude that there are better alternatives available.”

Seeing that Ves refused to budge on this matter, his wife resentfully grumbled her breath while trying to fall asleep.

The next morning, Gloriana did not revisit the topic immediately. Perhaps Solarium was still on her mind, but she knew she would not be able to convince Ves to go out of his way to procure this strategically valuable hyper material.

Ves hoped that she would regain enough sanity to understand that it was not wise to get caught up in all of the hype surrounding the discovery of fantastic new materials.

He did not underestimate the power of Solarium, but it was clearly a hyper material that was more suitable for mechs that confronted their enemies more directly.

For example, Ves believed that Solarium was an excellent fit for the Lionheart. General Arkʼs expert mech relied a lot on the light of the Illustrious One in order to become a more radiant presence on the battlefield. The Lionheart should therefore be able to achieve much greater synergies with this new light-aspected hyper material.

When Uncle Ark finally managed to advance to ace pilot, then Ves might think about exchanging valuable resources or favors in exchange for enough Solarium to turbocharge the Lionheartʼs defenses.

At that time, Ves would be able to justify the expense and trouble of procuring this highly desirable material. The Lionheart in its ace mech incarnation possessed so much frontal combat power in large battles that General Ark may be able to slaughter lesser phase lords all by himself!

The Larkinson Clan needed such a powerhouse. No matter whether Ark decided to keep Patriarch Reginald Cross company over at the 77th Warborn Mech Division, he should still be able to earn a huge amount of war merits and boost his reputation to a much greater height.

That would ultimately benefit the clan in a roundabout way.

He mentally shook his head. There was no need for him to think about procuring Solarium right away. He should at least wait until Ark broke through first.

”Venerable Lanie and Venerable Taon will be departing very soon.” Ves mentioned. ”Since the two misfits are being recruited by the mechers and the Rubarthans, we wonʼt hold a farewell party for them, as we donʼt want to draw too much attention to their destinations. Do you want to come and say goodbye to them, Gloriana?”

”Forget it.” His wife rejected the offer. ”I do not have much of a relationship with the two. I have nothing to say to them, and the reverse should be true as well. You are much closer to them both. You can go without me, Ves.”

”Suit yourself.”

An hour later, his physical projection appeared inside the hangar bay of the Spirit of Bentheim.

Two different unmarked shuttles had already arrived and docked inside. Their outward appearances did not show anything special, but Ves knew that they had been dispatched by two different first-class starships belonging to mechers and the Rubarthans.

As soon as Lanie and Taon stepped inside their respective shuttles, they would immediately start their new journeys in life.

At this time, a small group of Larkinsons had already arrived. Each of them consisted of the friends and family that Lanie was most familiar with. There was a high proportion of trueblood Larkinsons among them, showing that there were still a lot of clansmen that valued blood ties.

Different from before, Lanie regained a bit more of her old cheer. Perhaps her brighter future had given her enough reasons to become optimistic again. Her thorny willpower did not repel the presence of the people she loved and trusted for much of her life.

Though not all of the visiting Larkinsons were able to attend this sendoff in person, each of them were sincere about how sad they were to see Lanie depart.

”We will miss you, Lanie.” Commander Melkor Larkinson spoke without any airs. ”Your recent breakthrough has come at a good time, I suppose. Plenty of groups will scramble to hire a rising talent like you. Maybe we will eventually be able to learn about your exploits in the news one day.”

”Maaow.”

”That day may come sooner than you think.” Venerable Lanie coyly smirked while holding Syrcy in her arms.

Venerable Jannzi on the other hand stared at the female exile with a scrutinizing expression.

”You seem much more relaxed than before. Have you truly made peace with your separation from our clan?”

”There is more to life for a Larkinson than the clan. I have learned to look on the bright side of this change. I will miss the Larkinson Clan, but I cannot help but look forward to traveling the new frontier and finding my fortune elsewhere. If you think about it, didnʼt our patriarch manage to rise up only after he got kicked out of the Larkinson Family. Maybe I can go on my own legendary journey that will allow me to surpass him one day.”

”Well, you are not lacking in confidence. That is a good sign.” Jannzi remarked.

When the physical projection of Ves came close enough, everyone ended their conversations and turned to face their patriarch.

”Sir.”

”Good morning, sir.”

As Ves examined the two expert pilots, he saw that Venerable Taon looked a lot lonelier in comparison.

Not a single Larkinson went out of his way to visit him and send him off! Even if the news of this sendoff had not been published on a larger scale, it was still telling that not a single Ylvainan saw fit to honor Taon with a solemn farewell.

Ves raised the large tome in his hands.

”Larkinsons. I am sure you recognize this. The Larkinson Mandate not only records the original rules and structure of our clan, but also contains the individual pages of its founding or most prominent members. There are two pages that correspond to Venerable Lanie Larkinson and Venerable Taon Melin.”

He flipped open the book and searched for both pages. He had already memorized their positions before, so it did not take much time to find the first one that bore Lanieʼs name.

”Nyaaaa.”

The Golden Cat emerged from the Larkinson Mandate and turned around to witness what Ves was about to do. She already knew what would happen next.

Ves stared at Lanieʼs page for a moment before he grabbed it with a hand and ripped it out of the book!

Many of the attending Larkinsons grew shocked at this drastic gesture!

”Venerable Lanie Larkinson, from today onwards, you are cast out of the Larkinson Clan!”

He utilized a small spiritual spell to generate a flame that was powerful enough to ignite the page.

Soon, it turned into ash.

Ves repeated the ritual for Venerable Taon as well.

In contrast to Lanie who became emotional at the removal of her page from the Larkinson Mandate, Taon hardly reacted at all. It was as if he had already burned his page in his mind.

”You are free now. Both of you are exiled from the Larkinson Clan. You are no longer welcome among the members of our clan. You will no longer be allowed entry to any of our premises. We will not offer you any of the services that we extend to every clansman, and we will not go out of our way to rescue you if you are in distress. Wherever life may take you, it is no longer possible for us to accompany you anymore.”

Lanie grew a little more morose after hearing that. Though she was about to become an elite mecher, the Red Association was nowhere near as warm and cozy as the Larkinson Clan.

This was the end of a chapter in her life.