The Mech Touch novel Chapter 2534

Chapter 2534: The Third Designer

"Don't worry about what Gloriana thinks. While I cannot deny that she dislikes you, don't let this stop you from stepping up. Our Design Department needs more Journeymen. She is not in charge!"

"That is not what she has said towards me." Juliet hesitantly responded. "She had mentioned many times that she doesn't want me to take part in any design projects. Your wife has made it abundantly clear that she will respond very negatively if I ever trespass her territory."

"The Design Department is not her personal castle! She is merely a lead designer in the LMC's hierarchy, while I am the boss! Nothing in the rules allows her to override my wishes! Listen, Miss Stameros. Just ignore what Gloriana told you and come with me. She'll be pissed, no doubt, but she'll get over it once she realizes that you're not a threat to her. In cases like these, we just have to show her the hard way that her fears are unfounded."

The entire situation sounded bizarre to Juliet. As a woman, she understood quite well why Gloriana told her off. It was just that the Penitent Sister designer did not wish to cross such a powerful woman.

No matter what Ves claimed about the limits to Gloriana's power, she was still his wife! Her influence and soft power in the Larkinson Clan was very considerable despite her Hexer background!

Ves was able to read what Juliet was thinking about as well. He grew more and more exasperated at what his wife had done behind his back.

Instead of recognizing Juliet's value as an indispensable design asset, Gloriana only saw her as a threat!

This was unfair. Why did his wife have so little faith in his loyalty towards her? He never looked at Juliet as anyone other than a Penitent Sister and a Journeyman mech Designer during this meeting!

"Patriarch Ves, it is not that I am unwilling. I just don't want to aggravate your relationship with your partner. If my entry causes your relationship with her to deteriorate, then I fear that my sisters and I will suffer from the fallout."

Ves cut the air with his palm. "Nothing of the sort will happen! Look, as long as you turn into a powerful contributor in the Design Department, you will gain enough clout in the clan to protect the Penitent Sisters. In fact, you will be able to resist any of her attempts to make your lives difficult. If you remain as you are, your importance to the clan is pretty much trivial. Any competent Apprentice Mech Designer can fulfill your current role."

"I understand that, sir. You have already made that clear. I just can't accept your generous invitation. You don't understand the rivalry that goes on between women like us. Back in the Hexadric Hegemony, competition between Hexers can get quite nasty. From what I have learned about Miss Gloriana, she's a lot more ruthless than you think."

His heart sunk. Though he did not want to acknowledge what he heard, in his heart he knew that Juliet was right. Ves had personally fallen victim to Gloriana's scheming, after all. Though he didn't take it to heart anymore, he still recognized that his wife was anything but an innocent wallflower!

So what, though? The Larkinson Clan belonged to him. He put in all of the hard work of founding it, nurturing it and helping it ascend to its current height. Though Ves had the help of many other Larkinsons, it was undeniable that his will trumped over hers! The Design Department was not her turf, and he had no reason to allow her to engage in sordid court scheming!

His determination hardened. The clan would miss out on too many benefits if it allowed a Journeyman to remain suppressed in the Penitent Sisters. What Gloriana had done was no less than to sabotage the interests of the clan she was a part of. This firmly put her in the wrong!

"Let's not mess around anymore." He stated in a firmer tone. "Accept your new position and embrace your new responsibilities. I will make sure our administration processes your transfer by the end of the day. Tomorrow, I will personally bring you to the Design Department and introduce you to all of our lovely assistant mech designers. While they might not know how to deal with a Penitent Sister, they are already used to working under Hexers."

He did not give Juliet the illusion of choice anymore. While he did not wish to resort to coercion in order to get her to cooperate, it was clear that she would remain reluctant if the choice lied with her. Rather than allow Gloriana to dominate her decision-making, Ves decided to take matters into his own hands.

This way, if Gloriana blew up, she would direct most of her ire towards him, not Juliet. As someone who had taken plenty of punches from different people, Ves was confident he could handle an angry wife!

Still, just because he issued a command did not mean that others were willing to play along.

"This.. does not sound entirely appropriate, sir. I cannot see how Miss Gloriana will be able to tolerate my presence."

Ves banged his fist against the armrest of his chair!

"Meow!"

Lucky jumped from his lap!

"Who is in charge of the Larkinson Clan?"

"The Patriarch, who happens to be you." Juliet replied.

"Who is in charge of the Living Mech Company and every department?"

"Uhm, I haven't studied the corporate governance structure of the LMC as of yet. Are you the CEO?"

Ves nodded and grinned. "I am the founder, chairman and CEO of the LMC. Even though I let others manage all of the tedious business operations of my mech company, I am still the absolute majority shareholder. This means I don't have to give a damn about what other people want."

Juliet looked impressed at him. "How much stock does Gloriana possess?"

"Nothing. I own 59 percent of the LMC. The Larkinson Clan owns 24 percent. The Larkinson Family, who you must have heard about, owns 1 percent."

"That does not add up to 100 percent. What about the remaining 16 percent?"

His face darkened for a brief moment. "That's not important. I'll be taking back those shares back in due time. Anyway, as a Journeyman, as long as you earnestly put your design capabilities to good use in my mech company, then I will not skimp on your rewards. You will get what you deserve, and you can use your gains to help your fellow Penitent Sisters in many ways. This is the greatest opportunity that you can grasp in the Larkinson Clan."

She started to look interested. Though the shadow of Gloriana still loomed over her shoulders, Ves slowly pulled her into his rhythm.

"What sort of rewards can I expect to gain?"

"Let's start with the intangibles. Becoming the third lead designer of the LMC already puts you at the same level as the expert pilots of our clan as far as I'm concerned. This neatly solves the lack of high-ranking mech pilots among the Penitent Sisters."

Juliet looked swayed by that argument. "I can see how that can be useful."

Verify captcha to read the contentVerify