The Mech Touch novel Chapter 1124

Ves drew his pistol for a reason. Even though it wasn’t the Amastendira, the impressive-looking gun nonetheless gave him a dangerous air that neatly complimented his aggressive demeanor.

The show models that kept bashing their swords against their tower shields resembled the rhythmic pounding of war drums. The synchronized metallic clanging sounds evoked a martial atmosphere in the main hall of the Grand Skyward that drifted their thoughts further away from Professor Pendleton’s arguments.

"I killed people." Ves exclaimed in a dramatic fashion. "I killed hundreds of enemies of the Republic! Not from afar, but up close, close enough for me to shoot them with my gun. Do you know how many Vesians pointed their guns at me? Do you know how many times I barely managed to survive the encounters?"

He was exaggerating a bit here. It was mostly pirates and other scum that threatened his over the course of his romp throughout the frontier.

Yet what was the harm in embellishing some of his harrowing experiences? A bit of distortion here and there didn’t hurt!

In order to play up his theatrical performance, he quickly issued a series of commands under his breath that he was sure that Gavin and the specialists in the control room could hear.

"I even faced an expert pilot in combat multiple times and survived by the skin of my teeth!"

Venerable Foster grabbed his collar and slammed him against a surface not just once, but twice! That Ves managed to escape from those confrontations with his life intact was a win in his book!

Nonetheless, despite the weak and grossly distorted foundation of his latest claim, the public ate it all up! Somehow, the sight of Ves wielding his Peaceful Repose against the backdrop of the show models made it seem as if he fought off an expert mech all by himself!

Far be it for Ves to disappoint their expectations of the crowd. He abruptly pointed his Peaceful Repose at the Shield of Samar and fired off a powerful Exil round!

A powerful crack echoed throughout the entire main hall! The sound had already been amplified by the technicians of the control room in order to make the gunshot sound more dramatic!

The Peaceful Repose hardly needed the assistance because the 1 million credit Exil round seemed to crash against the senses of the public! A corona trail almost instantly emerged from the muzzle of the Peaceful Repose and impacted against the chest plate of Jannzi’s mech!

A very minute dent in the coating of mech appeared.

"I did this in order to save the lives of my comrades in arms!"

The Peaceful Repose cracked out another million credit Exil Round at the Shield of Samar!

"I have witnessed the deaths of thousands of brave and loyal soldiers of the Mech Corps!"

Ves fired off another round!

"I have seen thousands of friendly mechs fight to the very end as their mech pilots refused to go the easy way out and eject from their cockpits!"

The Peaceful Repose barked out a fourth expensive Exil round!

Whatever the merits the handcrafted rounds brought to the weapon, its dramatic trail and its powerful explosive impact against the armor plating of the Shield of Samar was already worth the ludicrous amount of money he paid for a batch!

"I know why mechs fail! I have learned what our men and women in uniform value in their mechs! With my very life and the lives of my comrades at stake, I learned exactly what mech pilots truly demand from their mechs in order to fight to the best of their ability! I wouldn’t have survived the war without the lessons that mech pilots, mech technicians and other brave servicemen have taught me during the war!"

Ves fired the Peaceful Repose for one last time. The round exploded against the chest plate Shield of Samar with a powerful and vividly-colored blast!

The mechs stopped banging their swords against their shields, causing an uncomfortable silence to ensue which strengthened the desperation that Ves tried to evoke!

"For you to tell me that my judgement in mech design is lacking is completely false!" He exclaimed while forcefully engaging the safety of his Peaceful Repose and putting it back in its holster. "My mechs are designed to accommodate their mech pilots to the best of their ability! The LMC’s products excel in this area! The sacrifices of thousands of servicemen underpin the innovations I have introduced into my designs!"

Professor Pendleton still hadn’t given up. If he wanted to salvage his reputation, then he needed to stop acting as Ves’ verbal punching bag!

"Your personal experiences aside, the Aurora Titan design is a fundamentally flawed design whose entire premise is faulty from the start! Don’t try to distract the public from its problems by talking about matters that are only tangentially related to the quality of your mechs!"

Sitting at a seat a short distance away, Professor Ventag continually groaned as he buried his face in his hands. The extremely aggressive means that Ves employed to counteract Professor Pendelton’s criticism to the Aurora Design would lead to a storm in the mech community. How could an Apprentice be so brazen as to drag a Senior into the mud?

For a moment, Ventag regretted putting his support behind Ves! This viper-tongued young mech designer would be the death of them and their high regard in the mech industry if he continued to hammer at a fellow Senior!

He stood up, interrupting Ves’ the unrelenting tirade.

"This event is reserved to introduce the Aurora Titan to the public." Professor Ventag spoke, providing a reasonable and composed counterweight to Ves. "My fellow co-designer has a point. Rather than question the viability of the design so soon, why not let the mechs speak for themselves? This argument has gone on long enough. I think everyone would be best served if the Grand Skyward makes its way into space so that we can all witness which mech designer is right!"

The abrupt interjection by his collaborator injected a much-needed dose of rationality in Ves. Although he eagerly wanted to land some more blows on Professor Pendleton, he would only be making himself seem more unhinged if he insisted.

Ves already beat the professor black and blue in the public arena! He inflicted so much damage with his thuggish conduct that Professor Pendleton could hardly lift his head and continue his original mission to detract the quality of the Aurora Titan design!

He decided to end the first part of his presentation at this moment. He relaxed his mind and let go of the aggressive emulated force of will that affected his behavior. He instantly felt calmer and more at ease.

"Please excuse the unexpected delay." He said while smiling amiably towards his audience. "In thirty minutes, the Grand Skyward is scheduled to lift off into orbit where you will be able to witness the performance of the show models in various live-fire demonstrations. If you have other plans, please exit the exhibition hall before the time is up. You can also visit the restroom before the Grand Skyward flies up in orbit as you will need to be strapped into your seats during the ascent for safety reasons. That is all!"

The curtains closed the view to the stage, obscuring both Ves and the show models from view.

The first half of the product reveal finally came to an end!

Ketis immediately ran up to Ves and smacked her palm against his back. "Looks like you haven’t lost any of your fire! You sure roasted that old mech designer really bad!"

"I sure did." Ves awkwardly chuckled. "I don’t know whether the price is worth it, though. I can’t imagine what my reputation will look like once the public hears of what just took place!"