The Mech Touch

The Bluejay Fleet arrived in the Bortele System without incident.

Unlike before, the Tarrasque and her armed escorts did not appear conspicuous in this particular port system.

This was because it had turned into a stronghold of the Red Two!

In order to prop up the frontlines and prevent the native aliens from compressing human space too quickly, the Red Association and the Red Fleet had joined forces to bolster the war infrastructure of the most affected regions.

The Torald Middle Zone had long shed its previous image as a wild frontier that only recently opened up to mass immigration and colonization.

Now, there were a lot of scared people who would rather abandon their investments and flee to the rear of human-occupied space as much as possible!

Though a lot of people had indeed chosen to pack their bags and board the first available starship that could take them away, others stayed behind. The latter remained in place because they had no choice or because they were lured by the huge incentives offered by the Red Two.

In fact, more and more people started to pour into the Bortele System because business was booming!

With the Red Two throwing lots of money and merits around, Bortele transitioned into a haven for would-be warlords, highly ambitious soldiers and profiteers who sought to take advantage of the booming war economy.

The star system was roughly divided into two different segments. The first segment consisted of the forces and the infrastructure of the Red Two.

The mechers and fleeters all built numerous space stations, defensive installations and shipyards in various parts of the star system.

The Red Association also took charge of Bortele VII. It used to be a small cold rock floating in the outer reaches of the star system, but it had transformed into a notable collection of bases and other important infrastructure. The mechers hadn't even bothered to terraform it, causing it to retain its inhospitable image.

Bortele III was where the general public converged in order to do business and prepare for upcoming deployments.

Although the Red Two still maintained a visible presence on the planet, the mechers and the fleeters mostly allowed the space peasants to go about their business so long as they abided by the regulations.

"What a lively star system." Ves remarked as he observed the plot that revealed all of the fleets and starships that had gathered in the port system. "There are over 50 private fleets and many more individual starships."

The 306th Bluejay Fleet belonged to the Red Association, so its warships easily established a connection with the system-wide commandnet.

The quantity of fleets and starships in private hands were great. There was no warship among them, the majority of vessels were carriers that held a lot of mechs.

None of these mechs were pushovers!

Although the vast majority of them consisted of lastgen mechs that had already become outdated, their overall performance was not weak in the first place.

A part of the forces who decided to park in this port system even did so in order to upgrade their old machines into hyper mechs.

A whole industry around this process had risen up on Bortele III!

So many mech designers and mech technicians had become proficient at converting lastgen mechs into hyper mechs that their expertise and efficiency had reached an impressive level.

There were hardly any other places in the Red Ocean where organizations could convert their old mechs into more effective combat assets!

This was one of the reasons why business was booming in Bortele III.

Of course, another reason why the planet had become so attractive was that it also became home to a large number of mech companies, recruitment agencies, recycling companies and more.

Each of them contributed to the war effort in their own ways.

Both frontline soldiers and support personnel banded together to help their race and civilization win the conflict that increasingly became known as the Red War!

Jovy, who stood next to Ves, gazed at the projected plot that depicted a lot of activity.

"From a security standpoint, a lively star system is not necessarily a safe star system." The RA Senior spoke up. "Remember what I told you a few days ago. Your head is worth as much as a guaranteed ascension into a greater phase lord. That is enough to tempt many powerful people. Busy star systems and congested areas are the best places for them to make their attempts."

Ves frowned after being reminded by this unpleasant business.

"I can hardly imagine anyone stupid enough to abandon their family, their friends and their entire powerbase just to get a huge body. How can they live with themselves knowing that they will have to spend the rest of their lives as isolated lackeys of the aliens who would love nothing more than to wipe out their former race?"

"Oh, do not sound so naive, Ves. I am sure that you are already aware that there are many people who are more than willing to betray everything in order to extend their lifespans and potentially live for hundreds of thousands of years. The illusion of immortality is so seductive that it is a certainty that people will try and make the attempt."

"Doesn't that mean that it is virtually guaranteed that I will suffer an assassination attempt once I reach the surface of Bortele III?"

Jovy did not deny this possibility. "All of our calculations say so. You can rest assured that we take your security extremely seriously. The attempt or attempts will fail. The ultimate masterminds will get exposed and suffer the consequences of betraying red humanity. Harming you is no less than harming the cause of human survival, so we will not only punish the people responsible for the deed, but we will also dismantle their entire organizations and redistribute their assets to more deserving candidates."

"Isn't that a form of collective punishment? The subordinates of the culprits are likely not at fault."

"This is already the gentlest outcome that we can tolerate." Jovy replied in a stern voice. "We need to send a message that such actions cannot be tolerated. We want to preclude the possibility that certain powerful families seek to hedge their bets in the Red War by doing everything they can to turn one of their descendants into a phase lord. Do not underestimate the shamelessness of these old families. To them, the survival of their bloodline and heritage is more important than the survival of our collective race."

That sounded considerably worse than Ves thought. It truly appeared that far too many people only saw their civilization as a means to an end.

Back when humanity was strong, everyone was proud to be a part of the dominant race in the Milky Way.

Now that red humanity got cut off from their home galaxy, a lot of people suddenly found it a lot less attractive to be a part of the side that was heavily outnumbered and short on so many resources.

Should it be any surprise that those scared and desperate humans actually wanted to defect to what they perceived as the winning side?

Ves pressed his palm against his face. "The Red Cabal is truly clever for using such a means to sow more division within our society. The aliens are deliberately exploiting our lack of unity and our propensity for infighting."

"It is not as bad as it sounds." Jovy reached out and patted his friend on the shoulder. "First, any assassination that targets you is doomed to fail for obvious reasons. While you have exposed your strength as a human phase lord just recently, we have made sure that word of it has not spread to wider public. Only a small number of people of the Hunting Association are aware of your true combat potential. Even if the assassins are so well-informed that they know that your physique is abnormally strong, they will likely be caught off-guard at how difficult it is to harm your life."

"I see."

"Besides, the most powerful humans who possess the means to take your life are already high-tier galactic citizens themselves. They are far more embedded in the existing power structure of our civilization. They have more to lose than anyone else, and are far more attached to the society that they have helped to build over the course of many generations. The higher their tier, the more unthinkable it is for them to betray our collective cause. This means that the only ones who are likely to take action are outcasts and other disaffected parties who are not doing so well."

That caused Ves to feel a little more relieved.

Though it was not pleasant for him to know that he had become a high-value target, he at least did not have to be afraid of top figures such as General Axelar Streon or Master Laila Rebecca Devos.

They were all on the same boat!

Ves only had to be on the lookout for crazies who weren't too competent but were desperate enough to go crazy and inflict a large amount of destruction.

Though Ves did not fear for his life, he had serious concerns about the safety of his clan and particularly his children.

"There is no profit to targeting your clan in order to get to you." Jovy said. "Such an action will only expose them to our investigators. As long as they reveal the slightest flaw, we can immediately trace the connections between the agents and their ultimate masters. The culprits will lose everything without ever touching you directly."

Ves never imagined that he would feel so grateful that the Red Association was so damn good at spying.

The mechers secretly monitored virtually every part of human-occupied space. While they gathered far more observation data than they could ever analyze, all of those archival recordings could still be used to piece together clues of a lot of misdeeds!

No one could remain anonymous under the constant surveillance of the mechers. They were the true masters of human society, and they were not afraid to show everyone why they were in charge.

"As for the chance that your wife and children may come to harm, we are already taking care of this issue." Jovy replied. "Our higher-ups have already approved our application to increase your protection detail. You won't be able to see much of the changes, but you can be assured that your immediate family are in good hands. You effectively enjoy the protection that is granted to tier 2 galactic citizens. Part of that is that we take great measures to guard your loved ones. The less you are concerned about their safety, the more you will feel at ease. That will put you in a better state to continue your effort to continue your contributions to society."

The cost and effort needed to protect the family of a high-tier galactic citizen was great, but it was all worth it so long as a tier 2 galactic citizen continued to do his job without worries!

Though Ves was not entirely sure about these promises, he knew that he could not allow his fears to stop him from pursuing his ambitions.

Ves ultimately believed that he could protect his family and clan much better if he advanced to the rank of Star Designer as soon as possible!

"Alright, Jovy. I hope you guys know what you are doing. Hopefully these crazy and desperate opportunists will target other tier 3 galactic citizens first."

"lam afraid that is not the case, Ves. You are officially recognized as a tier 3 galactic citizen, but your head is worth a full tier higher. What is also important is that you are far younger than your fellow citizens and that you are a second-rater with no notable background worth mentioning. That means that you are by far the more vulnerable high-value target in the eyes of others. You are most likely the first to suffer from an attack motivated by the Red Cabal's bounty program."

"...Great. What does your Eye of Providence say? I know you can read my future, Jovy. Tell me your prediction."

"If you are hoping to obtain a clear answer, then I am afraid that I cannot oblige you, Ves. Your future is clouded in darkness. There are too many powerful forces at work that my companion spirit cannot see through. Just he careful."

How helpful.