Tristan may have renounced his Fridayman citizenship and start over in Davute, but that did not mean his relationship with Master Meredith Katzenberg had frozen over.
The relationship between the two was not as estranged as the one between Ves and Master Olson.
As such, Tristan had no qualms about calling his former Master.
Since Master Katzenberg happened to be a good friend of Master Olson, it was best to use the former as a channel to contact the latter.
Master Katzenberg did not look pleased when she heard Ves' request through Tristan's explanation.
Her projection directed its gaze at the Larkinson Patriarch.
"You have recently advanced to Senior, so I do not doubt your intelligence. The Friday Coalition and the Larkinson Clan still maintain a state of hostility between each other. You may not care about what others may think if you try to make contact with a Fridayman and your former Master no less, but Carmin will not be able to shrug off criticism with the same amount of ease. If you have any gratitude or affection for her, I advise you to maintain your distance from her. She has already suffered greatly for accepting you as her apprentice in the first place."
He could indeed imagine that Master Olson went through a tough time due to raising a mech designer who eventually terrorized her own state, but he knew that the situation was a lot murkier than what was apparent on the surface.
The intensifying division within the Friday Coalition along with other factors made it so that Master Olson did not turn into a pariah outright.
In fact, as far as he knew, Master Olson benefited substantially from the Komodo War just like all of the other Fridayman Master Mech Designers.
"Please just contact her and relay my request." Ves politely said to Master Katzenberg. "Please allow Master Olson to make her own decision regarding this matter. The two of us aren't completely cut off from each other, you know. She still owns a 2 percent stake in my incredibly profitable mech company." fɾēewebnσveℓ.com
"Hm, I suppose that is true. I shall do as you say on account of this relationship."
The projection disappeared, leaving Ves to wait alongside Tristan.
The two mech designers who used to come from the same home state began to chat with each other again.
Lucky meanwhile occupied his time by sniffing around the lab. The cat avoided any gems like the plague. Since there were so many of them in the lab, he eventually decided to phase out of the chamber and explore the building's other rooms.
It took around fifteen minutes for a projection to reappear. The much more elegantly-dressed form of Master Olson had finally come!
The blond woman carried herself with an elegance that spoke of great confidence derived from her own ability and successes.
Her demeanor was much different from the likes of Gloriana or stuffy nobles. Unlike the people who were born to a life of wealth, privilege and power, Master Olson had worked hard to reach her current position!
She had advanced to the rank of Master Mech Designer when she was around 100 years old. Ves understood a lot more how significant this was. Perhaps she could have accumulated a bit more in order to get off to a better start, but her decision to realize her design philosophy earlier meant she must definitely have the confidence to make it further!
Master Olson echoed the Polymath to a small extent in his eyes. Whether her confidence was warranted, Ves could not tell. He could only judge that his former teacher and guide was still in a stage of rapid growth.
"Hello again, Master."
"Hello, Ves..."
An awkward silence ensued. Their identities were not simple, and it was already a controversial matter for the both of them to come into direct contact with each other!
An invisible aura spread between the two mech designers who were physically separated from each other by hundreds of thousands of light-years.
The air became more oppressive as it looked as if neither side would stop until one of them lost composure first!
Tristan felt distinctly unwelcome despite the fact that he was standing in his own laboratory. He smiled awkwardly and slowly backed away until he quietly slipped out of the entrance.
He did not want to get involved with whatever was going on between the two! A careless mistake could easily cause him to get dragged in the middle of the long-running conflict between a powerful state and a rapidly growing clan!
Shortly after Tristan made his getaway, Ves eventually loosened his posture and deliberately adopted a casual stance.
"It has been a long time."
"It has." Olson simply responded.
There was little point in starting up a casual chat with Master Olson. Doing so might cause her to lose patience and end this sensitive call before Ves managed to bring up his request!
"The reason why I wanted to contact you is because I recently broke through and assumed greater responsibilities. I am sure you know what it is like. My current issue is that I am trying to apply for a teaching position at an excellent school, but my qualifications are not quite sufficient."
Master Olson raised her eyebrow. "So you wish to obtain a letter of recommendation from my hand?"
Ves nodded. "I do. I have already collected a couple of them, but I think it is indispensable for me to obtain one that is written by my former Master."
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