After dealing with all kinds of matters, it felt good for Ves to get back to doing his main job.


    The Thunderer Mark II was an overwhelming ace mech. Its size was immense and its mechanical construction was intricate from top to bottom.


    Its exquisite design contained so many technical ingenuities that Ves could spend years on studying every single nuance!


    It was a pity that Ves only had a limited amount of time to do his job. He also couldn''t go too far in trying to steal all of the secrets that made the Thunderer Mark II such an excellent ace heavy artillery mech.


    A small crowd of guards, mech designers and technicians tracked his every move. It made him feel more self-conscious and prevented him from being too tant about his selfish motives.


    If that wasn''t enough, Saint Jelmer Osenring constantly hovered near his position. Sure, the ace pilot maintained an appropriate amount of distance, but that still caused Ves to linger within the periphery of the powerful champion''s Saint Kingdom!


    The domain fields of ace pilots were much weaker when they weren''t interfacing with their machines, but they still maintained a certain degree of cohesion.


    Ves could tell that Saint Osenring had never let down his guard and was constantly judging the motives of the young and presumptuous mech designer that dared to touch his machine.


    This meant that Ves had to discharge his duty properly, much to his disappointment.


    Fortunately, this still granted him a decent amount of leeway. Understanding how the heavy artillery mech worked and the basic technical parameters of its impressive armaments could still fall within his responsibilities as long as the mech was better off in the end.


    This was why Ves paid closer attention to the areas where he could justifiably work upon in the process of enhancing the firepower of the Thunderer Mark II.


    Though he wanted to examine every single system of the ace heavy artillery mech in detail, he limited his attention to the heavy gauss cannons that served as its primary armament.


    "The cannons were specially designed by one of our Santana Group''s resident Master Mech Designers." Saint Osenring exined as Ves asked for the powerful soldier''s input. "I have a good rtionship with him. I piloted expert mechs designed by that man in my earlier years, and that has allowed me to be familiar with his style of weapons. At the same time, the Master also became more familiar with my individual preferences. By the time I graduated to the Thunderer Mark II, the cannons made avable to me are so… perfect that I can resonate with them from this distance. Let me show you my POWER!"


    The ace pilot gained an intense fervor all of a sudden! Before Ves could say anything else, Saint Osenring lifted up his arm towards one of therge cannons of the heavy mech and actually caused the long and intimidating muzzle to get surrounded by a faint corona!


    Ves widened his eyes. "Whoa, whoa, let''s not y with the big cannon, shall we? I don''t want to get blown up by a powerful gauss round or the massive shockwave that it will produce when it hits the bulkhead over there, thank you very much!"


    Saint Osenring quickly dropped his arm and rxed, causing the heavy mech to be dormant again.


    "It wouldn''t have fired. I know my mech too well, and the changes you have made recently has reinforced my… rtionship with my machine. Still… I suppose you are right to respond this way. It was reckless of me to show off my resonance to my mech in this manner."


    The bout of uncontrolled behavior caused Ves to be more vignt. He had a feeling that the Saint might not be entirely right in the head.


    Granted, every high-ranking mech pilot behaved as if they were traumatized and brain-damaged soldiers that gained way too much power for their own good.


    No ace pilot could be stopped once they set their mind on a course of action. The best people like Ves could do was to adjust his behavior around them in order to steer them away from any undesirable decisions.


    In order to prevent Saint Osenring from pulling off another stunt, Ves quickly shifted the topic as he continued to examine the impressive main cannons of the Thunderer Mark II.


    "So howe you have continued to pledge your loyalty to the Santana Group?"


    The Saint crossed his arms. "Why not? Thepany offers gainful and honest employment to mech pilots such as myself. I started off as a regr mech pilot and worked my way up the ranks. Is there a reason why I should turn my back on the employers who believed in my potential and invested many resources in my career? I don''t turn my back on my friend, Patriarch Larkinson. I thought you of all people should apud my loyalty."


    Ves let out a frustrated sound. "You know what I am talking about. The Santana Group… is a holdingpany. Its primary goal has never been to serve its dependents. From my limited interactions with its executives, it is clear that your leaders only care about enriching the shareholders while lining their own pockets in the process. Don''t you think that sounds… dishonorable?"


    "There is nothing wrong with honest business." Saint Osenring disagreed with Ves. "The Santana Group may not have any noble or altruistic aims in mind, but that does not mean it is a force of evil. Thepany has always abided by the framework of rules that govern the societies it is involved in. It engages in productive activities such as producing goods, shipping products to where consumers need them the most and offering services that are just a little more attractive than the alternatives."


    "That''s an overly rosy and one-sided description of what apany does, Osenring." Ves scoffed. "Real business is much more cutthroat and brutal. Manypanies tend to cut corners, dump waste materials in areas where they don''t belong and sabotagepetitors in the dark. Can you truly tell me that the Santana Group has managed to keep its hands clean over the course of its sessful rise?"<novelnext></novelnext>


    The ace pilot gruffly nodded his head. "I won''t deny that thepany that I am working for has engaged in misdeeds, but is it any different elsewhere? I know that most expert pilots and ace pilots prefer to pledge their loyalties to actual states, but as far as I am concerned, they are no better thanpanies. Politicians and bureaucrats can be just as shameless in their attempts to milk the poption and concentrate more power in their hands. No one is a saint."


    "Except for you." Ves stated.


    "Except for me." The augmented man affirmed with a pale smile. "We ace pilots upy a precarious position in society. We are the odd man out. In a crowd of tainted and sinful individuals, we are the only ones who have stuck to our convictions and maintained a clean conscience. Our existence diforts people, but that does not stop them from coveting our power. What do you think we should do, Patriarch Larkinson? Should we take advantage of our absolute might and take over the institutions so that we can impose our own ideals onto them? Do you think that our society will magically be better all of a sudden?"


    The very notion of letting ace pilots take over sounded repulsive to Ves. Just the thought of allowing a disaster like Patriarch Reginald Cross gain more responsibility was enough to produce nightmares!


    Saint Osenring clearly picked up on Ves'' reaction.


    "Hm, thought so. Life for people won''t get any better. I have never gained the illusion that Saints such as myself can excel in other areas. We are mech pilots. We have only ever trained to do a single job. You don''t use a hammer to write a policy document. You use a hammer to strike down a nail."


    Ves took a second look at the ace pilot. He did not expect someone so powerful to sound so modest.


    "That… is a remarkably realistic perspective of your ce in society."


    Saint Osenring smiled. "I have suffered my fair share of defeats and setbacks. Let''s just say that I learned to pick my battles the hard way. Do you think I look like this because I never faltered on the battlefield?"


    Ves possessed at least some understanding of cybeicponents, so he could tell that Osenring''s augmentations were unnecessarily gaudy and prominent. There were many ways to minimize their inhuman appearance, but for some reason the ace pilot declined to take this route.


    "Forgive me for asking this, but is there a particr reason why you have decided to opt for a cosmetically inferior augmentation configuration?"


    "I have many reasons for making myself look this way." Osenring generously replied. "For one, it is a constant physical reminder of my hubris and failure. Nothing cuts deeper to me than seeing my ugly face in a projected mirror image every morning. Only a measure as strong as this can get the message through my thick metal-reinforced skull."


    "That… sounds like a rather extreme approach to keeping yourself grounded."


    The grizzled ace pilot smirked. "It works, doesn''t it? I''ve met my fair share of ace pilots, including the ones I fought alongside in thest battle. Over half of them are so full of themselves that I wouldn''t trust them to cover my back."


    "I know what you mean." Ves tly said.


    "A scary and intimidating appearance also helps with keeping out the flies." Saint Osenring added. "A handsome and photogenic appearance will do the opposite. I am acquainted with enough peers who are constantly bombarded with requests to intervene in one matter or another because we have attracted many admirers. That doesn''t happen as much with me because I do not look like a typical influencer."


    "I see. There are better ways to iste yourself, but I can see how handy it is to leverage your appearance to deter annoying lobbyists."


    "So what do you think of me, Patriarch Larkinson? Do I meet your expectations?"


    "To be honest, no. I''m surprised. I didn''t expect you to be this way. You are probably the most sane ace pilot that I have met so far. Granted, I haven''t met a lot of ace pilots to begin with, but for someone who has ovee so many trials and tribtions, it is rare for someone like you to have so much power, yet be unwilling to leverage it to realize your ideals."


    The Thunderer Mark II''s presence seemed to grow a bit as Saint Osenring grew a little more intense again. Thetter''s willpower surged in a way that made it clear that he was not asid back as he sounded!


    "Do not misunderstand me." The ace pilot stated. "I am not devoid of ideals. I have merely chosen a strategy that will let me keep the Santana Group honest without overstepping my boundaries. The leaders of thepany are aware of my stances. I negotiated and signed a contract with them. If they take any actions that cross one of my red lines, I am free to depart and find employment elsewhere. This is my way of imposing my demands to thepany. My desirability ensures that the Santana Group must always abide by the rules I set. This is the proper way for ace pilots such as myself to influence policy."


    Ves looked impressed. "That is a clever approach. It''s subtle and you can escape all of the pitfalls of leadership."


    Saint Osenring straightened his back and exuded a strong aura of righteousness.


    "This is why I continue to belong in the Santana Group. It may be apany that is solely driven by profits, but it can never do without protection. I am doing my part to keep a part of our great society on the right track. People like me are needed the most in these kinds of organizations. We are the guardians of virtue! We are the conscience of the human race! We are the watchers who are tasked with preventing humanity from repeating the mistakes of the Age of Conquest!"


    "I see…"