Chapter 7359: Ves the Overeager Researcher "No." "Really? Won’t you reconsider, Jovy?" "Absolutely not, Ves. None of my superiors is in favor of your latest proposal. In fact, they are horrified by it. Have you become so obsessed with power that you have completely disregarded the dignity of our heroes? Please reiterate the purpose of our profession." "Mech designers exist to serve mech pilots." Ves parroted the familiar phrase. "Exactly. What part about serving mech pilots do you not understand? Even if you have a history of subjecting them to great risks for a fleeting possibility of a greater payoff, the plan that you have just presented to us has little to do with that! You are asking us to deliberately allow a party of dissident ace pilots to intercept our escort fleet just so that you can harvest them in your perverted attempt to reproduce the birth of the Ixith Goliath! We do not see how allowing you to desecrate the dignity of the entire mech pilot profession will benefit them in the future!" "I think you are not giving my proposal enough credit." Ves pushed back. "Sure, the sacrifice of a few ace pilots is awful, but we have a chance to create an improved set of rituals that can reliably enable us to produce devices that can generate stolen resonance. According to the Myth Reproduction Theory, it is highly probable that we can fulfill our goal by following the recipe established by the mutated voribugs, but this is an implicit form of surrender, just like how the Ascended Giants are forced to follow the methods of the phase lords no matter whether they like it or not. Rather than let the enemy dictate the rules, I would rather have us take the initiative and take control." Jovy Armalon listened to the most famous Larkinson and promptly shook his head in rejection. "We can understand your arguments, but the answer remains the same. No. Even if we have any inclination of executing your suggested actions, it is not your prerogative to perform them. This is a heavy responsibility that will taint those responsible forever. Our highest leaders are not cowardly enough to avoid the stigma that comes with sacrificing the lives of respectable saints. You... are too young and promising to bear this unforgivable sin." That... sounded both disappointing and reassuring. Now that Ves started to calm down a bit, he suddenly realized that he may have been acting a bit too hastily. His plan did not even have the full approval of his fellow Larkinsons. He just felt the need to do more than the basics. Just retracing the steps of creating the Ixith Goliath on a small scale did not seem ambitious enough to him. He wanted to gain control over the process so bad that he became insensitive to the incredible harm to his reputation if he actually went through with his crazy initiative! Now that Jovy had woken him up, he gradually realized that he had almost set himself on a path to no return. Ves often criticized other mech designers in the past for going so far in their research that they no longer held the wellbeing of mech pilots at the top of their priorities. Admittedly, he himself had been skirting this fundamental principle at times. What he had been thinking about this time far exceeded his usual scruples! What was wrong with him? Why did he lose sight of his boundaries? Had his competitive desire overtaken his common sense? He inwardly shook his head. He clearly needed to clear his head and regain his perspective on the matter. His research gains should not come at the cost of his integrity. Even if he managed to produce an incredible result, the complications arising from his controversial methods would end up dogging him for many years to come! He let out a tired breath. "You... you are right, Jovy. I have... overlooked the considerations that you have mentioned. I will no longer push for this suggestion. Even if we get confronted by a bunch of dissident saints at a later date, they... deserve better than to become sacrifices in a process that represents the ultimate evil that they are fighting against." While all of that sounded good and all, an awkward moment of silence ensued. Since the MTA clearly conveyed the intention of defending the principle that mech pilots and especially high-ranking ones should never be turned into consumables to create stolen resonance devices, where the hell should they gain their willpower sources? Without this vital ’ingredient’, it was impossible to impart stolen resonance onto artifact warships and other massive works! This was truly a case where the ends may end up justifying the means. The method may be horrifying to the mech industry, but red humanity needed the power demonstrated by the first Level 8 Goliath so much that it may end up breaking the rules. At the very least, Ves did not think that the Red Fleet would be as insistent on maintaining the sanctity of high-ranking mech pilots as the Red Association. The RF may or may not regard mech pilots as vermin, but the fleeters would never put mech pilots up a pedestal like the mechers! Once the RF began to argue the opposite standpoint, there was a high likelihood that sparks would fly! As a tier 2 galactic citizen who maintained ties with both superorganizations, he had enough influence to intervene in this debate if he was willing to disregard Jovy’s warning. Should he meddle into this affair anyway, or should he honestly back away and let the bigshots sort out this problem? Jovy clearly read Ves’ intentions and made a dissuading gesture with his hand. "Do not think so much. You are too closely involved in the initial incident, so it is understandable that you have lost perspective. I advise you not to overthink the matter and give us time to resolve the problems that you have no doubt ascertained. There are many possible solutions, some of which fall outside of your imagination. We shall definitely give you an answer when the time is right." Perhaps the Survivalist was right. Perhaps the RA already had a more acceptable way to deal with this problem. "I... thank you." Ves said with a hint of relief. "I won’t be happy if you are wrong, but if it is true that you are working on a better solution, then I am happy to cede the initiative." "As you should. Do not forget that we are the Red Association. Just like our predecessor, we are the foremost authority when it comes to all matters relating to mechs and mech pilots. You may have climbed to the upper ranks of the Red Collective, but your mandate covers an entirely different set of responsibilities. Let us not get mixed up over them. You are entitled to exert your authority over your own domain, and the same applies to us. This is how order is maintained." Ves truly needed this reminder. He had become involved in so many diverse affairs that it became increasingly more difficult for him to maintain his sense of proportion and discretion. Perhaps he should look into streamlining his obligations. At the very least, he should not allow his recent takeover of the Phase Lord Department to displace all of his mech designer responsibilities. Once he was done with the immediate matter, Ves privately vowed that he would remain in Yernstall until he finished his collaboration with the Terrans. The development of his much-anticipated Woodsap mechs had reached a late stage. The Terrans had already proven to be extraordinarily motivated to bring the first advanced Carmine mechs to life. So long as Ves incorporated a small portion of his latest insights into the design project, he believed he could quickly give birth to the most incredible mech design since the unveiling of the Carmine System! "Since you have denied my admittedly stupid suggestion, how likely is it that our fleet will get intercepted along the way?" Ves asked in a more relaxed tone. "That is a complicated question to answer. Our monitoring and control over the surrounding regions is growing increasingly stronger when we are drawing closer to our destination. However, most of our war-capable forces are deployed in the front. What assets we have stationed in the rear are either dispersed or concentrated into strategic locations that must never be compromised. Therefore, intercepting our interceptors is not feasible. Avoidance is the name of the game here. We must do our best to rely on the superior mobility of our escort fleet to outmaneuver the dissidents." "Is that doable?" Jovy smiled. "Very much so. There are many stars, but not that many forces that have made the extreme decision to forsake everything for a misguided goal. They do not have as much intelligence and resources as us, so it is not that difficult to run circles around them. So long as we can avoid a confrontation entirely, we will not be confronted with the need to make unpalatable decisions." The mechers did not want to encourage fractures within the mech community. Although a growing number of mech pilots had taken a stand against stolen resonance technology, so long as they limited their actions to complaints, everything was fine. Yet from the moment the first group of dissident mech pilots fought openly against the escort fleet, the matter could not be downplayed anymore! The serious escalation would force everyone to make hard decisions that they would rather avoid. Both winners and losers would end up in a worse position than before! For this reason and more, the Red Association was highly invested in bringing the escort fleet back to Yernstall without any incidents. Though Ves wished the mechers luck, he did not have as much confidence in their ability to succeed. Ace pilots should never be underestimated. So long as they became utterly convinced of their goal, they would definitely make it happen one way or another! It was not impossible for them to outsmart the mechers and get in the way of the escort fleet. Ves grew curious how the RA intended to handle the matter when such a scenario came to pass. Would the mechers attempt to be lenient and forgive the attackers for trying to destroy a priceless research specimen? Or would the mechers establish its authority and execute the dissidents to deter anyone else from aiming their hostility at the Red Association? He did not envy the RA for being forced to take a difficult stand! Perhaps it was indeed better that Ves did not meddle directly into this issue. He truly did not bear this heavy responsibility. Since the mechers were so eager to handle it themselves, then he should do the clever thing and get out of the way. "Since this is the case, our research team will hopefully produce a result in the coming day or two." Ves said as he shifted his focus back to the original plan. "It is taking a bit of time for us to design and create an Incubator out of the limited resources that we have at our disposal. Once it is complete, we will conduct a very simplified ritual and hope that the Myth Reproduction Theory is accurate enough to produce a successful result." Jovy nodded in approval. "I have heard of this theory. It has a logic to it that makes me inclined to believe that it has the ring of truth, but I doubt it is that simple. Whether it is valid enough to guide your experiment to success is another matter. Do not be afraid of disappointment. Not every phenomenon is straightforward enough that it can be explained with a simple theory. Ritualism is still a field that is filled with uncertainty. The same rituals can produce the desired outcome on one day, but produce catastrophic explosions the next day. You should hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. Do not skimp on security measures." "Understood..."