<h4>Chapter 3047 - Treatment Editions</h4>


    "So we’re actually doing this?" Gavin Neumann skeptically asked.


    "Yes, we’re actually doing this." Ves affirmed with a grin as he looked up at the results of histestpleted side project. "While most of our n has been investing its energy on growing and expanding itsbat capabilities, I have not forgotten about ourmercial activities. The sales of my mechs continue to support our growing ambitions, but with the way our expansion is progressing, our ie is gradually unable to keep up with our expenditures."


    There were many mech pilots waiting to receive their own mechs. While Ves intended to limit this expansion because he did not want to add more useless sub-capital ships to the already-bloated expeditionary fleet, there were plenty ofbat carriers that had yet to fill up their capacity.


    The mech models that the Larkinson n adopted were all premium second-ss mechs.


    Suffice to say, they weren’t cheap!


    For example, the two main mech models that the Larkinsons intended to deploy on Trieden II were the Bright Warrior IB, which cost around 500 million hex credits per copy, and the Ferocious Piranha IB, which cost around 400 million hex credits per copy.


    .


    The Living Mech Corporation had to sell several hundred if not a thousand third-ss mechs to fund the production of those expensive second-ss mechs!


    With over 20,000 mech pilots and counting, the Larkinson n had to spend an enormous sum of money in order to equip them all. This did not even take into ount the more expensive specialized models such as the Eternal Redemption which cost a whopping 800 million hex credits per copy!


    This was not the only major economic pressure that the n had to cope with. Maintaining and supplying hundreds of ships, including several enormous capital ships the size of cities had be even more burdensome now that the Larkinsons had to feed the hungry Graveyard and the Dragon’s Den.


    Of course, with several empty capital ship slots, the Larkinsons were obliged to invest trillions of credits in acquiring new capital ships! Whether the Larkinsons ordered the construction of brand-new vessels or spent their money in the second-hand market, ships this size that were still space worthy were never cheap!


    The surprisingly huge influx of personnel and assets from the Life Research Association and the Heavensword Association didn’t help either. While Ves was very d to see the n double in size and strength in one go, such an explosive expansion also entailed and explosive growth in expenditures!


    Even if Ves rarely checked up on the business side of the n these days, he was well aware that the growth of the LMC had reached a teau.


    Aside from saturating the market with living mechs, the main cause of this was that thepany had set up too many branches in too many star sectors as ofte. Not enough time had passed for the LMC’s local branches to develop a strong identity and sense of loyalty to the parentpany. A lot more time had to pass before the dust settled down.


    "I can’t deny these mechs are effective, Ves, but..." Raymond Billingsley-Larkinson looked dubiously at the twotest products that the LMC was supposed to bring to market. "These are very different products from the ones we sold before."


    Ves and a small group of influential Larkinsons had all gathered at one of therge storagepartments of the Spirit of Bentheim. They did so in order to view the two new mech models that were supposed to insert some vitality in the stagnant LMC and direct a lot of much-needed cash back into the n coffers!


    "It’s strange to look at a mech designed by you that isn’t designed to fight." Gavinmented. "This is a deviation from your usual style, do you know that? Previously, you were all serious and principled about sticking to the primary intent of mechs, which is to make war machines that are explicitly designed to fight."


    What could Ves say to that? He merely shrugged. "Times have changed, Benny. Our circumstances have changed as well. Our n has grown too quickly and we need more funding immediately. Rather than waiting for at least two entire design cycles toe up with amercial mech design with high earning potential, it’s easier and more convenient to design some variants of one of my existing designs."


    "About that, boss, I still think you could have settled with publishing the original Sanctuary design. Our various departments have already prepared for an eventualunch and mass production of the new Sanctuary. While you initially designed it to counter glows, it performs the same functions as one of the variants here."


    "You’re not looking at this the right way. My original Sanctuary design is purely designed forbat. Whatever nonbat purpose it might be able to fulfill is secondary. That is not suitable for our current situation since thetter has be a lot more important than the former to the mech market."


    As a mech designer, Ves couldn’t stand his products being used outside of his original intention. A specific need should always be fulfilled by a product meant to address it whenever possible!


    "I think the patriarch has made the right choices with regards to these new variants." Raymond waved his hand at the pure and holy white-coated variant and the warm and weing green-coated variant. "These Sanctuary variants are more longsting and more marketable to nonbat organizations. Thetter is quite important as many hospitals and medical groups won’t even consider the possibility of purchasing a war machine."


    Repackaging the war-purposed Sanctuary into two ’peaceful’ variants was mainly meant to encourage the market to treat them differently.


    The ultimate goal of going through this trouble was quite ambitious.


    Gavin finally couldn’t hold it any longer. "Boss."


    "Yes, Benny?" Ves curiously turned to his assistant.


    "No offense, but I am growing more and more ufortable with the pricing strategy of these new Sanctuaries. There’s a difference between earning honest pay and shameless profiteering. I know I sounded a bit more supportive in our previous meetings, but now that I look at them, I feel like we are crossing a very big ethical boundary. I won’t deny the utility of its different glows, but..."


    Ves looked annoyed. "I have alreadypromised on this issue twice. I originally nned to charge 200 million hex credits for a copy of one of these variants, but you guys managed to convince me to pare it down to 100 million hex credits. When that also proved to be too controversial, I agreed to lower it to 50 million hex credits. What do you want now that I have made these concessions? Do you want to lower the price to 25 million hex credits? Our nsmen will soon begin to starve if we sell our mechs that cheap!"


    Both Gavin and Raymond looked at Ves with dubious expressions.


    25 million hex credits might not sound like much for a second-ss mech, but the problem was that the new treatment editions of the Sanctuary product line cost a total of 3 million hex credits to produce!


    This was actually a million hex credits more expensive than the base model. Ves had generously allocated extra money to incorporate more durableponents, more longsting systems and additional cosmetic finishes.


    What was important to note was that the so-called treatment edition mechs were still fullybat capable! Though they were too weak and fragile to take part in second-ss mech battles, there shouldn’t be too many problems for them to participate in third-ss battles!


    The mainplication was that Ves had to limit their glows for safety reasons.


    "Have you tested whether the five-minute interval is both practical and safe enough to make these Sanctuary variants usable?"


    The five-minute interval referred to the times when the glows of all of the treatment editions were active. In order to prevent the glows from being misused or generating too much addiction, Ves artificially limited the time they remained active.


    The rule was very simple. The glows stayed online five standard minutes before switching off for five standard minutes. After that, it switched back on for the same period of time.


    Though Ves had initially experimented with moreplicated timings, he felt it was simpler and more user-friendly for everyone if he stuck to a single, consistent time interval.


    "Tests conducted with the prototypes show no major issues." Raymond steadily responded. "It’s not really afortable middle-ground, though. Any shorter and no one ever enjoys the glow long enough to feel satisfied. Any longer, and the dys grow too annoying. Five minutes is just barely satisfying and the rest interval is short enough that people can still grow addicted if they insist on staying within range."


    The COO of the LMC directed a lot of attention to this matter. Risk assessment conducted by thepany showed that there was great potential that these new treatment editions could spark a lot of controversy that could muddy the brand reputation of thepany.


    What was even more dangerous was that the new Sanctuaries could even make Ves and the LMC liable to any serious injuries or other forms of damage that the new glows could cause!


    Even though the glows of the so-called Tranquility and Healing variants were purely meant to be benign, everything turned into poison once they exceeded specific limits.


    This was a very new and untested business direction for the LMC. While the Larkinsons possessed extensive knowledge and expertise on mechs, entering the alternative treatment industry was like stepping onto a new continent!


    The small group of Larkinsons test drove the new glows. They spent five minutes under the influence of the Tranquility variant before waiting five minutes so that they could briefly enjoy the Healing variant.


    "Ahhh.." The oldest among them sighed in relief. "That feels good. It’s like I’ve reversed my age by a few decades."


    Ves snorted. "You aren’t that old by today’s standards. You might belong to the same generation as my grandfather, but you have ess to a lot of new treatments now that we took on a lot of clever Lifers. Not even age-prolonging treatment is out of your reach nowadays."


    Raymond sighed. "I am quite aware of that."


    "You sound hesitant."


    "I am not. My grandson will be happy to see me around a few more decades longer, that is for sure. It’s just... unnatural. Do you know how much time I have spent on contemting my own mortality? I have lived through a nearlyplete life cycle. I have outlived many Larkinsons who are much more deserving than me but died on the battlefield or all kinds of other causes. I have passed on my bloodline and even see one of my greatest grandsons be a hero. I would not feel sorry if I hung up my cap and went to sleep forever."


    Ves narrowed his eyes at Raymond. Did his brief session with the Tranquility and Healing put the elder Larkinson into a suicidal mood or something? He did not want Raymond to go too soon! Even if the old man was no longer the best choice to effectively lead the LMC, he was still a familiar rtive who was worthy of trust.


    "Don’t retire too soon. There is still much more work to be done. For example, is ourpany ready to bring these new variants to market within the month?"


    Raymond slowly nodded. "It will be tight. We have arge number of branches in multiple different star sectors. Every local market and every different locale has different customs andws, so I cannot guarantee that the Sanctuary variants will be avable everywhere we can reach. We might need a couple more months to introduce them to the more difficult and less essible markets."


    Ves dismissively waved his hand. "That’s not a big problem. Right now, we need to prioritize earning money quickly. I don’t want this to be a problem until we have sessfully reached the Red Ocean. Have I made myself clear?"


    "Crystal, sir."