The Mech Touch novel Chapter 4681

There were many differences between the two organizations that laid claim to the Larkinson name.

It would be too exhausting to go over each and every single deviation, but at the heart of it all Ves believed the root of it all was due to one factor.

"In the beginning, our two organizations had a lot in common." He told a silent and contemplative Melinda. "We were both third-rate organizations back then. Sure, I'm a mech designer who already started to get good enough to attract second-raters to my cause, but you had a high-tier command-oriented expert pilot who could easily earn the appreciation of the Garleners. Both of us became free from our former shackles that tied ourselves to the Bright Republic, so my clan and your family had everything they needed to rise to greatness. The difference is that our clan dared to dream big and did everything it could to fulfill it, while your family drifted about while only being concerned about staying afloat."

"Our circumstances were different!" Melinda woke up and defended the old family! "We did not have your earning ability! We had no economic engine that could fund the upkeep of our fleet and mechs and help us gain more. We did not dare to hire more retainers and workers for our clan because the Crown Uprising that broke out around that time made every new hire a potential bomb."

Ves did not accept this argument. "Plenty of organizations managed to survive and thrive despite all of these difficulties. You had Uncle Ark, a high-tier expert pilot that not only has a lot of experience with leading men and commanding armies, but can put up a good fight against any other high-ranking mech pilot short of an actual Saint! Plenty of ultra-large mercenary companies would have paid a fortune to have him fight for them, but instead your foolish desire to find a permanent new home for yourselves have led you to get embroiled in a bunch of petty turf wars in the perpetually unstable Garlen Empire."

"We needed a new second-class expert mech for Uncle Ark, and not many were willing to provide them to him while only accepting his services on a temporary basis." Melinda grumbled.

"Your negotiation ability sucks and you did not look far enough. You could have easily gotten a better deal if you approached the right people with the right attitude."

To be fair, Ves and his own clansmen at the time probably wouldn't have been able to do any better. It was only after his clan traveled to the Grand Loxic Republic and rescued the beleaguered Purnesse Family that the Larkinsons truly became competent in diplomacy, administration and other fancy stuff.

Even so, the Larkinson Clan at least made an effort to resolve this weakness. The same could not be said for the Larkinson Family which was still largely led by a group of decrepit elders who only knew how to cling to the past.

He suspected that Melinda recognized these shortcomings as well, but she did not wish to air her family's dirty laundry.

Knock.

Just as Melinda attempted to open her mind to divert the topic, Venerable Ark Larkinson gently knocked his fist against the garden table.

Goldie had already dispelled her spiritual manifestation by this time, but she had definitely managed to leave an unforgettable impression behind.

Ark gently laid the heavy tome on the table and expressed his own views.

"Ves has made a lot of good points. You don't need to argue with him on these matters. The fact of the matter is that he succeeded in what he set out to do, while we were barely getting by. I knew for a long time that our family wasn't going anywhere, but I thought that I could single-handedly solve everything by becoming an ace pilot. This was a good plan… as long as I succeeded in becoming a Saint. That hasn't happened, so we have become the losers."

"But?—"

"?—Stop, Melinda." Ark raised his strong palm. "Let it be. It would be one thing if we came to Ves as winners in our own right. We would have been able to prove through our words as well as our deeds that there is a different way of becoming successful. That has not happened, so we have no right to criticize Ves for his apparent faults. This is the way society works. No one cares about who is more just and honorable. People only care about benefits and results, and there is no doubt that Ves has managed to secure both of them during his tenure as the patriarch of his own clan."

The female Larkinson grew upset. What had gotten into Ark?

"Are you agreeing with Ves?"

"I do not agree with all of the decisions he made." Venerable Ark spoke. "Yet that doesn't matter, because my family under my leadership has failed to materialize the same benefits and results. The differences between the two of us are clear. I don't expect us all to forget about everything and become loyal and obedient members of his clan, but this unnecessary division and antagonism has to stop. We are both Larkinsons. Let us start with this common ground and go from there without getting weighed down by all of our old baggage."

"What is the matter with you, Ark? Didn't we settle on a plan before we decided to meet and talk with Ves? We need to protect the interests of our family!"

"There is no reason to cling to the family anymore!" Ark astonishingly stated! "I value our heritage and history just as much as you do, Melinda, but it had already died from the moment we departed from the Bright Republic! I only realized fairly recently that we have been clinging to a rotten corpse for far too many years. The Larkinson Family we used to know and love was gone. There is no chance of reviving it as there is no place in the galaxy that is willing to accept us as we are without trying to exploit us to an unacceptable degree."

The family had received far too many offers that sounded nice and rosy at first, but turned out to be slave contracts in all but name.

High-tier expert pilots may be highly desirable assets, but their strong willpower and stubborn sensibilities made it hard to please them and retain their commitment.

Unless they had grown up in the same state they pledged to serve, a lot of powerful expert pilots that had become orphaned from their previous environment tended to be volatile and principled to a frustrating degree.

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