After Ketis concluded her meeting with the representatives to the Red Three, she finally took the initiative to report to Ves. As his physical projection appeared, both of them stared at each other. There was not that much for them to talk about considering that they had both planned this in advance. Ketis successfully attracted and misdirected the public’s attention. Stay connected via freewebnovel She believed that she had done a convincing job of selling the notion that the ability to tear holes between dimensions came from the Heavensword instead of another source. If Ves wanted to, he could have used the Dimension Blade to open up a portal himself so long as he had 200 Ascension Points to spare. However, he had made the strategic decision not to do this because it would attract way too much heat onto himself. Ketis had voluntarily taken up this responsibility so that she could relieve a burden from Ves. She strengthened the foundation of the clan by becoming another pillar that was strong enough to prop it up by herself if necessary. More and more people began to view the Larkinson Clan as an enduring institution rather than a flash-in-the-pan like before. Both of them should feel satisfied in meeting their objectives. The only issue that disappointed them was the meager spoils. It had been difficult for Ketis to refrain from warning her fellow Larkinsons about a potential windfall, but in the interests of safety, she had to make sure to give off the impression that she had acted spontaneously. Now, Ketis had attracted a lot of unwelcome attention, but not many people should harbor ill intent towards her. After all, unlike Ves, she was not in control of what she had wrought upon society. "We’ve managed to earn quite a haul." Ves eventually spoke. "We could have harvested a lot more if we attempted to tax the income that others have earned or even monopolize the portal entirely, but… you have made the right choice. Not everyone likes the Red Three, but they are the best of what our race has to offer. They can do more with superdimensional matter than most of us I think." Ketis nodded in agreement. "I have already made a superficial examination of several samples of superdimensional matter. I can already tell that it will be different working with it than other matters. It is not enough to use normal tools to process the materials into useful goods. We have to work with transphasic tools but most ideally superdimensional equipment in order to shape everything properly. Normal equipment will just break and wear down at an accelerated rate due to dimensional interference." That was logical. Superdimensional matter existed in a league of its own. At least phasewater came in the form of a liquid that could easily be manipulated. The harder stuff was a lot harder to shape. Perhaps they may eventually be more malleable when subjected to extreme heat, but that did not solve every problem. "Since we’ve discovered that phasewater is a variation of superdimensional matter, then that makes this problem a little easier to solve." Ves judged. "We’ll settle with transphasic tools for now. Even if this gear wears out faster than usual, we can use it as a stopgap to produce superdimensional tools. Once we have reached this stage, we can do all kinds of stuff with it. Is it possible to use structure-grade or hull-grade superdimensional tools to create stuff made of higher-grade materials?" "I don’t know." Ketis honestly answered. "Nobody can answer this question as of yet. We are all starting to explore this for the first time. I do not think it will take too long for us to obtain answers. The Red Three have already begun to experiment with many different samples before the dimension breach closed." The Red Three would lead the initial research into a new field once again. Now that red humanity had gained access to at least one source of superdimensional matter, it was not impossible for people to figure out other ways to get their hands on the material. Perhaps the Dimensional Architect found a more technological means to replicate the act of creating a portal to another dimension. Perhaps another clever Star Designer studied superdimensional matter extensively and figured out a way to artificially produce more of it in a laboratory environment. Perhaps a more sympathetic cosmopolitan cell had a change of heart and decided to share the method the Red Cabal used to create its infamous Saint Piercer arms. Whatever the case, Ketis did not assume that she would hold a monopoly on being the only source of obtaining superdimensional matter. Humans could be quite resourceful if they wanted to. They just needed an opportunity. Ketis just happened to give them one. Now that the Red Three harvested so much superdimensional matter that they could figure out a lot of information that previously eluded them, they could unlock a wealth of possibilities! "You’re definitely famous now." Ves said with a smile. "Welcome to the life of a high-profile galactic citizen. You won’t be able to fade into the background anymore. As long as you keep carrying the Heavensword, the Red Three will never let you out of their sights. Have they offered to assign an escort fleet to you yet?" "They did." Ketis replied with a sour expression. "It will be a bit difficult for the mechers, fleeters and collies to form an escort fleet in the short term due to existing military commitments. However, they don’t seem to take no for an answer. They want their mechs, ships and cultivators around me at all times, ostensibly to protect me from greedy humans or hostile aliens. I told them that I don’t need the protection. My Heavensword alone can probably chop up my protectors if it exerts its power to the fullest." "Don’t be so quick to turn them away. They are a necessary evil for now." Ves said with a sigh. "Our clan is not strong enough to give us the protection that we need. Just bear with it for now. Besides, trying to intimidate our enemies with what appears to be an infantry-grade sword is much harder than a fleet composed of mechers, fleeter and collie assets. You are just borrowing the power and reputation of the Red Three to drive away the idiots. You will get disturbed on a daily basis if they are not present. After all, you can’t expect the expeditionary fleet to say no to a bunch of powerful Terrans or Fleeters, right?" The swordmaster sighed. "I will try to negotiate a deal that is… agreeable to everyone. I will not let them drive me away from the frontlines, though. As a swordmaster, combat is essential to my progression. I can never stand by when fellow red humans are dying in droves. If I retreat from a war where the survival of my race and everyone I love is at stake, I may as well retire as a swordmaster." "I think they will understand if you repeat this argument." Ves smiled in encouragement. "The Heavensword loves you precisely because you embody the virtues and ethos of a true swordswoman. That said, I doubt the Red Three will let you board enemy warships as casually as before. I bet the mechers and fleeters will seek to disable the enemy vessel from the outside while the collies will assign their most powerful cultivators as your honor guard." "Ugh. Do not remind me of that. A part of me regrets what I have done, but… I will not let my selfish feelings get in the way of what must be done." Ketis had demonstrated a form of sacrifice by knowingly inconveniencing her life in order to do what she thought was right. Though she did not appear to have grown any stronger, Ves could sense that the weight of her decision had matured her to an extent. She was continuing to grow into a leader who was gradually becoming more qualified to undertake heavy responsibilities. The pair of mech designers continued to talk about other related subjects. "I think your next goal is to turn the First Sword Mark III into a superdimensional mech, correct?" Ketis nodded. "That is right, but I do not have enough armor-grade matter on hand to do that. I know that you have laid claim to the quantity that we have gathered, but is it truly necessary for you to take it away so soon when it will be years before you upgrade the Bastion?" "Who told you that I am reserving the armor-grade superdimensional matter for the Bastion?" The swordmaster blinked. "We were wrong?" Ves smiled in amusement. "Evidently so. I can understand your confusion. Everyone thinks that the best defensive materials should always be used to upgrade the Bastion. I would agree with you if our schedules aren’t already packed. No. Given that everyone expects the native aliens to make a critical offensive push in the short term, we need to use whatever we have on hand on solutions that will work out sooner rather than later." "Which mech will benefit from our first batch of superdimensional matter?" "My wife and I haven’t made up our minds yet." He said. "Ace mechs should gain priority. A good argument could be made for the Dark Zephyr Mark III and the Minerva Mark II. It will be a bit harder to make the same case for the Amaranto Mark III. The Promethea Mark II is still too far on the horizon for me to consider. My preferred choice is the Riot Mark III." "An expert mech?" Ves nodded. "Not everyone will agree with this choice, but… I am willing to make a bet on Venerable Rosa Orfan. Her last performance did not end well, but she fought well most of the time. The Riot Mark III is also an expert spearman mech that I am fond of. It has a lot of potential. If Venerable Orfan recovers fast enough and manages to break through in the short term, then the Riot Mark III can duel any lesser phase lord. As long as the machine is clad with superdimensional alloy and wields the tier 3 Destroyer spear, I think that there is no better melee offensive mech available to us that can fight against phase lords head-on. The Dark Zephyr Mark III can only play evasion games while the Amaranto Mark III, the Minerva Mark II and the Promethea Mark II cannot afford to get close under any circumstances." What Ves sought was an ace mech that was brave enough to stall lesser and maybe even greater phase lords up close! In order to make that happen, the ace mech had to be clad with armor plating that could effectively resist Saint Piercer arms. One of the reasons why the Amphis Extremis failed to hold back the greater phase lords during the final battle of Viola Magnifica was because the ace offensive space knight did not dare to suffer even a single grazing strike from the enemy’s Saint Piercer! "There is another potential ace mech that could use this superdimensional upgrade. Your uncle Ark broke through as well during the last battle. His Lionheart can arguably become strong enough to threaten greater phase lords if it is protected by armor-grade superdimensional matter." Ves shook his head. "No. It is not time yet for us to upgrade the Lionheart. We will have to wait too long. My wife and I can immediately start to work on the Riot Mark III Project after we have concluded the Minerva Mark II Project. Anything else will take too long." "Have you thought about hiring more personnel to make your schedules lighter?" "We have. We are working on it. That is all I can say." Ketis still made a good point. Even she could see the problem with how Ves and Gloriana allowed themselves to become the bottlenecks of high-end mech design in the clan.