The Mech Touch novel Chapter 2416

Chapter 2416: A Bold Proposal

Ves thought a lot about this conversation. It didn't take a genius to see that the MTA deeply wanted to know the secrets behind the Larkinson Clan's success. After the Battle against the Abyss, the clan suddenly gained four new expert pilots and nine new expert candidates.

In fact, there should have been even more expert candidates if some of them didn't die straight away!

Such a result was so extreme that even an idiot could tell there was something fishy about how all of these powerful mech pilots came into power!

Therefore, Ves could already tell the MTA would come calling.

It was difficult to find a way to resist their insistent advances.

While the MTA did not technically rule humanity as a whole, their power, influence and reach pretty much turned the Association into a de-facto hegemon.

When the MTA wanted something, few were able to say no. _{frёewebηovel.cѳm}

Ves and his closest advisors discussed and analyzed how to keep himself and the Larkinson Clan free from the MTA's clutches.

The MTA did not expose its hierarchy and internal workings to the outside galaxy. It was rather difficult for outsiders to get a sense of how much say certain officials possessed within the organization.

Fortunately, there were plenty of clues. Both Calabast and Major Verle possessed deep insights into how organizations worked. The two already came to a consensus on what angle Ves should take to extricate himself from his current predicament.

Similar to the issue of his continued leadership in the clan, Ves did not need to persuade the MTA as a whole to leave him alone. That was impossible.

He only needed to win over someone powerful enough to cover for him and protect him from within the organization.

According to the public profile of Master Moira Willix, she was a distinguished Master Mech Designer who climbed up the ranks of the Mech Trade Association.

She originated from the galactic heartland, and quickly showed her talent in mech design. She traveled extensively and gained much from experiencing different locales and exchanging with many different mech designers along her journeys.

When she reached Master, she slowed down, but did not stop her travels. Right now, she had reached the edge of human space and was residing at Halcyon Citadel as a guest of sorts.

While Halcyon Citadel hosted many MTA Master Mech Designers, Ves did not believe they all had equal say in important matters.

The public profiles of the other MTA Masters mostly stated that they came from the galactic rim. Perhaps they were born and raised at Centerpoint, perhaps they came from a neighboring star cluster, perhaps they originated from another region in the periphery of human space.

The point was that these Masters were likely not very prominent due to the fact they emerged from the backwaters.

Certainly, the members of the MTA were technically equal to each other. Yet no organization was perfect, and no human was unbiased. Even if the Masters were of equal rank, Ves bet that those who originated closer to the galactic center had slightly more say than those who came from the galactic rim.

This was not the only part that was special about Master Willix. From what Calabast and Major Verle surmised, the visiting Master should wield a lot of power.

They weren't sure whether she possessed a higher rank in the hierarchy of Masters. What the advisors did know for sure was that Master Willix ought to possess a lot of soft power!

This was because of the huge network of contacts she must have developed through her travels. She resided at various MTA strongholds throughout her journey. There, she befriended fellow MTA mech designers, collaborated with them on certain projects and may have even stayed in touch with them. It was likely that at least some of these friends of hers were promoted to very high ranks after a time!

Admittedly, all of this could be wrong. Yet, Ves still felt very confident about this judgement. He had spoken with Master Willix often enough to get a sense of her identity.

While she mostly portrayed herself as an approachable Master who was easy to befriend, she occasionally revealed an arrogance that more closely reflected her exalted status.

These observations allowed him to make two tentative guesses.

First, Master Willix was very flexible. While she was obliged to project the authority of the MTA, she was more inclined to employ gentler means. This was probably a good approach to take when she traveled so widely and encountered so many different cultures.

Second, Master Willix possessed a lot of power. She was not above resorting to firmer means if that was what it took to get what she wanted. Of course, if the former solution could be employed, then there was no need for her to generate animosity.

Needlessly making enemies was not something a rational mech designer would do. There were too many downsides and not enough upsides.

The fact that Master Willix was mostly rational was a third additional factor that Ves considered. Different from passionate mech designers, someone like the woman whose projection he was facing should be making decisions based on objective costs and benefits.

While Ves did not believe that she had cut off her emotions entirely, at the very least she should be less affected by humanity's common faults such as pride, jealousy and greed.

This made it easier for him to formulate a proposal that appealed to her. He simply had to give her enough benefits.

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