The Mech Touch

The LMC's design lab quickly turned boisterous after the addition of so many mech designers. Previously, it was just Ves, Gloriana, and twelve assistant mech designers.

Now, the amount of people crammed in the same room abruptly ballooned! If they were all assigned to work on the Scarlet Rose, her workshop and lab compartment would quickly grow cramped!

Nonetheless, once Ves thought about all of the design resources he suddenly gained, he felt it was all worth it. With so many new design teams, he could finally embark on true parallel mech design!

The sight of so many mech designers in their brand new LMC uniforms caused Ves to imagine all sorts of future scenarios.

Of course, the newly hired assistants still needed to be worked into the organization. They had barely become Larkinsons after Ves personally inducted them into the clan a day ago. The bonds they formed with the Golden Cat were still thin and fragile.

They may have gained the status of clansmen, but there was still a huge distance to go before they turned into 'true' Larkinsons!

Ves clapped his hands, causing the low conversations to die down.

"Good morning, mech designers. Congratulations for becoming Larkinson clansmen. Each of you now bear the same name, which means that we are all brothers and sisters."

A wellspring of pride and relief suffused the faces of the new entrants.

In contrast, the assistants who had joined the LMC beforehand all looked smug. While their qualifications weren't necessarily better than these talented new mech designers, they at least possessed a considerable head start!

Of course, the Tovars and Ylvainans also looked worried. To be honest, their talent and track records were fairly average. If they didn't work hard and study as much as possible in their free time, they might get overtaken by the newcomers!

In the case of someone as young and junior as Mayer Torto, it was inevitable that he would have to bend his head. He had already studied the records of his new colleagues and realized that the LMC hired mech designers in the cusp of their prime this time!

Due to the high number of applicants, the LMC had the luxury of choice. Almost every mech designer who recently joined was a force to be reckoned with! At least half of them were fully capable of starting a successful independent mech company!

Naturally, the proud new hires not only had to compete against the legacy assistants. They already started to eye each other. Not much kinship and brotherhood sparkled in their eyes. Only competitiveness bred in their hearts.

Each of them were already aiming for a promotion! They wanted to stand out from the crowd and earn the appreciation of their bosses! Once Ves or Gloriana favored them, they would definitely receive his favor and enjoy special treatment!

As someone who always suspected his underlings, how could Ves not be aware of these dynamics?

He didn't need to resort to his spiritual vision to see the plots and schemed brooding in their hearts.

After all, if he was in their position, he would probably do the same!

While Ves believed that harboring an ambition was good for productivity, he did not relish the thought of playing nanny to all of them! This was why he was already eying Ketis and Miles to manage the eager new mech designers.

Though Ketis showed up in a regular blue-and-white LMC uniform today, she still brought along her floating Greatsword as always. Even in its sheathed form, its mere appearance sent sudders through the bodies of the new hires! They made sure to remain at a healthy distance from this demonic mech designer!

Ves inwardly grinned. Though the test conducted by Ketis was unnecessarily barbaric, it at least raised her stature among the new clansmen to a meteoric height!

This was something he intentionally pursued. He knew that Ketis didn't possess much management experience. She might not be able to gain the respect of the other mech designers due to her lack of completed mech designs.

Many of the people in the crowd had designed and published more than five mech designs in their short careers!

If Ketis wouldn't be able to gain their respect, then at the very least she should be able to inspire their fear!

He gestured his hand towards his assigned deputies. "Please take note of Ketis Larkinson and Miles Tovar-Larkinson. They are currently the highest-ranking mech designers in the Design Department after myself and my partner. If you require any assistance or have any requests, take it up with them first. Ketis will take charge of the mech designers that have been selected by me, while Miles will supervise the design teams that consist of individuals selected by Gloriana."

Half of the faces of the crowd fell while the other half looked joyous!

Compared to a scary beast like Ketis, they would rather receive instructions from the guy who looked normal!

Ketis didn't take offense at the negative reaction she received. Instead, she thrived on it! She already began to crack her knuckles.

"You better do what I say. If you have a problem with that, you can meet me in the dueling ring! I will gladly hand over my post to you if you can beat me in a fair fight!"

No one took her up on her offer! They were mech designers, not soldiers! This challenge didn't even make sense in the context of their profession! If anything, mech designers should be dueling with their designs, not their fists!

Ves smiled indulgently at Ketis. He indirectly conveyed his approval of her methods. While he believed her potential as a mech designer was no less promising than any of the new hires, it was still helpful to reinforce her authority among the upstarts!

"Ahem, fighting isn't mandatory in our organization." Gloriana coughed. "Never forget what is truly important. As mech designers, our design skills are paramount! Those of you who wish to seek more should focus all of your efforts on improving yourselves. Very soon, we will begin to design more second-class mechs. While we will still design plenty of third-class mechs, those of you who are aiming to higher MUST be capable of assisting us in the development of more advanced machines."

Everyone looked incredibly eager at the prospect of working on a second-class mech! None of them came from a second-class state, so designing a superior mech had always been out of reach to them! One of the biggest reasons why they wanted to apply to a promising mech company like the LMC was because it was clearly about to tackle a higher class of mechs. The presence of a Hexer mech designer guaranteed this transition!

"Before you can learn how to run, you need to learn how to walk. Before you can learn how to walk, you need to learn how to crawl." Ves reminded the crowd. "Each of you will need to get up to speed on how the Design Department is run. My partner and I have recently revised and expanded the rules and regulations governing our workplace, so each of you will need to become familiar with them. In addition, you also need to gain a thorough understanding of the Larkinson Clan. Only when you gain an inside perspective of the various facets of our clan will you be ready to work on our behalf!"

Gloriana stepped up. "To that end, we have organized a lengthy welcoming program to familiarize you with everything you need to know. Ketis and Miles will take each of you on a tour to the various divisions of the clan while aso informing you of the merit-based system we have recently instituted to reward you for your contributions."

This was something that Ves came up with on his own recently. Inspired by the way the MTA, the Rim Guardians and the Clifford Society offered a fair and regimented means of rewarding those who worked on their behalf, Ves implemented a rudimentary version of a merit system. This allowed the Design Department to systematically manage, motivate and reward his growing number of assistants.

In fact, Ves thought it was such a good idea that he already contemplated whether he should push such a system to the rest of his clan!

"Each of you can earn a small but steady amount of merit merely by showing up for work and doing what is expected." Ves elaborated. "However, as long as you perform above expectation, you can earn considerably more. Excellence will always be rewarded by us. Possessing a good work ethic is essential to your success within this department!"

He waved his hand, causing all sorts of projections to appear in everyone's views.

One projection displayed the library of printed books that Ves stole from Lady Aisling Curver. Another projection showcased the high-tech fabrication equipment of the Scarlet Rose. A third projection presented the interior of a well-stocked materials warehouse. The last projection featured some cranial implant models!

"Your individual development is important to us. While we expect you to work hard for us during your working hours, what you do in your free time is up to you. Most of you will likely be attracted to our internal library. We offer a wide selection of textbooks, many of which are normally exclusive to prestigious second-class universities!"

The eyes of at least eighty percent of the new hires already lit up at this mention! A mech designer's hunger for knowledge was voracious, but it wasn't easy for them to get their hands on quality textbooks!

Now, in order to borrow a very valuable book from the library, all the mech designers had to do was to exchange a certain amount of merits!

Naturally, the more valuable textbooks cost more to borrow. Ves had individually gone over every book and set their prices. For the most valuable ones that contained profound knowledge, an assistant had to spend months to accumulate the required merits!

On the other hand, the cheaper books only came with a nominal merit fee. The knowledge they contained was so basic and fundamental that the mech designers could easily buy them from the galactic net. There was no point in charging more, and Ves wanted every mech designer to know at least this much in order to be of use in the LMC.

Gloriana smiled. "That's not all. Aside from accessing the library, you can also spend your merits on various other services. As mech designers, it's important to design and fabricate your own mechs, so we have generously decided to put some of our facilities at your disposal in exchange for merits. In addition, if you ever need personal guidance or tutoring, you can redeem your merits in exchange for our complete and undivided attention. Lastly, you can redeem some other valuable goods and services such as gene mod templates and cranial implants to boost your cognitive functions."

That last sentence excited a considerable amount of mech designers!

A lot of the mech designers in the crowd were still baseline humans! Though they were all brilliant for making it this far with their plain human capabilities, as long as they received a couple of augmentations, they would definitely be able to reach greater heights!

A small group remained calm. Those who enjoyed a more privileged background such as Catherine Evenson already enjoyed some augmentations. Until the Larkinson Biotech Institute caught up, second-class upgrades were still off the table.

In the lower portions of society, augmentations practically didn't exist. Anyone who possessed one was regarded as a freak!

However, at their current level, every mech designer who joined the LMC knew that augmentations were essential to climbing up the ladder! If they didn't improve themselves, their colleagues definitely wouldn't pass up on the offer!

Ves could already see the burning intent in their eyes. Each of them were already planning to work harder than ever in order to earn as many merits as possible!

He grinned. This was exactly what he wanted to see!

For the first time in his life, Ves comprehended what a huge advantage he possessed by becoming the person who presided at the top of a merit system.

When every gain and loss was added together, the resulting balance would always end up in a net profit for the LMC!

"Work hard, my slaves." Ves inwardly exulted. "No matter how much you benefit, my gains will always be more!"