Chapter 6127 Acquisition Order. Now that Ves decided to take it slow, there was not much he could do to advance Saint Isobel Kotin's recovery process. Developing a powerful new cybernetic body for her that not only incorporated the latest technologies in human augmentation, but also complemented her fire domain as perfectly as possible was extremely complicated. At the very least, the Larkinson Biotech Institute did not have enough first-class biotech experts with the relevant expertise in its employ. Vice Director Maria Abselon thoroughly explained all of the lengths the LBI had to go through in order to complete this ambitious project. "We cannot develop the right capabilities by hiring individual biotech researchers from the Terran Alliance and other first-rate states." She explained. "Those who are available for hire are usually junior scientists. They are absolutely not qualified to build a new body for an ace pilot, especially one that has exhibited numerous complications and abnormalities. We need to obtain the services of a large, experienced and knowledgeable R&D team. There is only one way for us to acquire such a team in the timespan that you have designated." "Acquisition." Ves stated. "Correct, sir. The LBI in its current state does not have the capabilities to work on this project, but there are many first-class biotech research institutions that possess superior qualifications. We only need to look for a small to medium-sized institution that is willing to accept our offer. Once we acquire the entire organization and recruit the majority of researchers, we should be able to develop an advanced cybernetic body for Saint Isobel. In addition, we can also develop and implant a range of first-class augmentations for the rest of our clansmen. This is an enduring benefit to the clan. We no longer need to turn to third parties in order to improve the capabilities of our own personnel." Ves' physical projection directed a knowing look at the vice director. He understood her game. Her arguments were valid, but she most definitely had more selfish motives in mind. The LBI had always been regarded as one of the foremost research institutions under the Larkinson Clan. The sudden rise of the T Institute affected its interests. The biotech researchers had to put more effort into competing for funding, personnel and resources. When Gloriana took over as the director of the Design Department, she pushed the clan into founding a bunch of other R&D institutes. Now that 4 more organizations had arisen that focused on developing a lot of cool new stuff, the LBI's primacy came under threat! In order to ensure that the biotech researchers continued to enjoy a priority in funding and so on, they urgently needed to increase their value in the eyes of the clan. What better way to do so than to be able to develop and install genuine first-class augmentations? Ves could not even refute the necessity of such an acquisition. The Larkinson Clan or at least its Premier Branch was moving up in society. The inability to augment its own first-raters was an embarrassment and a sign that the clan's foundation was not strong enough. The clan could only gain a stronger footing in first-class society by developing a certain degree of self-sufficiency in this aspect. "How much?" "At least 100 billion MTA credits." "That much?!" "We are not looking to acquire hundreds of biotech researchers alone." Maria Abselon patiently explained. "We are also trying to buy out entire libraries and databases that contain the sum of knowledge, research results and successful product designs of that research institution. As long as the know-how is competitive enough, you will find that paying billions of MTA credits is a reasonable sacrifice." Ves accepted the argument, but he was still hesitant about spending all of that money. The Larkinson Clan had entered into another period of rapid growth. The Premier Branch was a money-swallowing beast that needed a lot of investment in order to attract qualified personnel, supply them with proper first-class facilities and prepare them for warfare at a much higher level than the Larkinsons were accustomed to. This was not the time to be frugal and act like a cheapskate. Even so, there was a limit to how much the Larkinson Clan could spend on expensive goodies. The dividends earned from owning 20 percent of Isthmus Manufacturing had already been committed to a lot of different spending priorities. In particular, it took a huge amount of funding to operate both Starfarer Berth and the E-66 Experimental Yard. The latter was tasked with converting the Tortured Scream, the orven battleship that the expeditionary fleet recently captured after winning the Battle of Torment. Sure, the large alien hull only needed to undergo a quick and dirty refit in order to make her somewhat usable by the Larkinsons, but the cost of doing so was still enormous in absolute terms! "It will be difficult to finance this acquisition. However, as long as you can find a good enough R&D institution and present a solid plan to earn back the money that we have spent, I am inclined to support it." Ves reluctantly spoke. "I will give a heads-up to my personal assistant. He will supervise this matter on my behalf." There was no need for Ves to spend his precious time on overseeing this acquisition process in person. Now that Gavin Neumann returned from the Streon Ancient Clan, he should be more than capable of undertaking this responsibility. His new contacts within the Terran Alliance should help him get in touch with a lot of different Terran research institutions. The vice director nodded in understanding. "I will cooperate with him to the best of my ability. Depending on how much funding our clan is able to mobilize for this acquisition, we may be able to conclude a deal within three months. If the clan is unwilling to spend an adequate sum of money, then it will take longer." "What sort of research institution can we expect to gain by spending 100 billion MTA credits." "Do not expect to obtain a particularly large or successful one at that price level. You have to know that if there are research institutions that have developed a good application that is above market standard, it would have been acquired by a larger group long ago at significantly greater prices. 100 billion MTA credits is only the minimum that we must spend to fulfill our objectives. Truly competitive bioresearch in human augmentation is never cheap." Ves knew a little bit better why second-raters were unable to gain a foothold in first-class society. Just the enormous gap in capital alone was enough to dash the dreams of many ambitious second-raters! The Larkinson Clan happened to be in a weird position. It was still a second-class family organization for the most part, but its income levels were abnormally high. More importantly, the clan was severely underleveraged compared to similar organizations in the new frontier. This meant that the Larkinsons still had a lot of leeway in terms of borrowing cash. Ves was very reluctant to pile so much debt in a short amount of time, but… did he have a choice? Trying to refrain from spending lots of cash during a critical and sensitive period of time would slow down the Larkinson Clan's development. Once the clan ceased to grow at a fast pace, it would become much harder to compete against the bigshots and protect the Larkinsons against enemies powerful enough to defeat first-raters! Ves discussed a few more details with Maria Abselon about funding and other conditions. "By the way, has the LBI discovered anything important when examining the remains of the Emperor Tree? Is the captured Ebony Everchanger in a stable condition?" "Not enough time has passed for us to draw too many conclusions." Vice Director Abselon answered. "The Emperor Tree is enormous even in death. You will have to be patient. As for the captured wooden construct that is designated as the Ebony Everchanger, it remains stable and inert as far as we can tell. It has ceased all deliberate activity and entered into a dormant state from the moment the Emperor Tree has perished. It is just…" The woman adopted a reluctant expression. "What is it, vice director?" "We… are not entirely certain that the Ebony Everchanger is as inert as it appears. As you know, Venerable Joshua is particularly sensitive towards signs of life. While he was assigned to guard the Ebony Everchanger, he warned us that he feels that the wooden construct is still alive and conscious. In fact, he fears that this captured prize may not be as harmless as it seems." 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦 Ves immediately grew serious. "Does Joshua suspect that the Ebony Everchanger secretly hides the remaining consciousness of the Emperor Tree?" "We cannot rule out this possibility. For now, we have decided to put it under heavy guard. At least one active expert mech and an entire mech company must remain on standby at all times. It is highly doubtful that the Emperor Tree can wield the strength that he has shown at his height when he was still complete, but that does not mean we can afford to lower our guard. We cannot let this matter persist. It was only because Saint Isobel's dramatic breakthrough and physical deterioration attracted all of our attention that we neglected to address the Ebony Everchanger." "I need to take a look at it myself." Ves decided. "It is best if I can examine it in person. Observing it by remote is not good enough." "Do you require us to ship it over to your location at Diandi Base?" "Yes. I need you to send over the intact Ebony Everchanger as well as any intact remains of the other two ebony mechs. In addition to that, I would like to get my hands on whatever remains are left of the tree heart. It doesn't matter if much of it has burned into ash. My personal assistant will make sure to send the fastest possible starship to ship these goods over. The sooner I get my hands on them, the better." "We shall prepare the goods for shipment right away. However, do take into account that our research on the Emperor Tree will be hindered if we send away all of the ebony wooden remains." "I will allow the LBI to retain enough samples of ebony wood to conduct further research. I trust you to determine the most appropriate proportion of materials to hold back." Ves decided. "Before you send all of these goods over, I would still like to examine it by remote through a special method. Tell me when it is Venerable Joshua's turn to guard the immobilized Ebony Everchanger. I can examine the captured wooden construct more closely through one of my works." Ves looked forward to examining the Ebony Everchanger. The ebony wooden mechs had made a strong impression on him. They were the perfect template to use for the development of his first Woodsap mech! He also wanted to find out whether the Emperor Tree was still alive. Was the Ebony Everchanger its clone as well as a backup measure in case its main body perished? If this was the case, then the Larkinsons definitely picked up a bargain by capturing the Ebony Everchanger intact! Ves could do so much with the spirituality of the Emperor Tree. The calamity tree's performance during the last two engagements made a strong impression. Right now, Ves couldn't help but think that the most brilliant way to upgrade the original Everchanger was to merge the living mech with the Ebony Everchanger! It would be even better if Ves was able to salvage and make use of the Emperor Tree's spiritual remnant as well. This would augment the performance of the new ebony wood-based additions. More importantly, the ingredient could also be used to grant the Everchanger a powerful affinity for the wood element! All of this took time, though. Ves was far from ready to design an upgrade for the Everchanger. He still needed to upgrade the Elegant Rage first. The results of upgrading Venerable Lanie's mech would provide valuable empirical data which could be used to refine his upgrade plans for Venerable Joshua's machine!