Jovy Armalon challenged Ves to a design duel out of the blue.
The silver-haired Journeyman hadn't made any noise since he arrived with Master Willix. Yet all of a sudden, he wanted to compare against Ves in design ability!
The request ca so sudden that Ves montarily paused.
"Why?" He asked in confusion.
"Because I'm impressed with your work!" He shouted with energy! "Among second-class chs, I have never witnessed a ch like the Little Angel! Certainly, I would never be able to design a ch that cos close to what it offers, and that is not sothing I see every day."
"That's not a reason to challenge . You're an MTA ch designer. I'm just a local ch designer. Our titles may be the sa, but our realms are worlds apart."
This wasn't the first ti Jovy challenged an indigenous ch designer. Many of them quaked with fear at the thought of challenging soone who had been nurtured by the MTA. Even Seniors with decades of seniority doubted whether they could asure up against a ch designer who had been nurtured by the holy land of chs!
Jovy smiled and tried to adopt a friendlier posture. "Our specialties and our chs are vastly different. While it is true that you won't be able to match when it cos to designing first-class chs, the sa does not necessarily apply when we fight on your terms. I have toured several star sectors already and t with all manner of ch designers, from eager Apprentices to stately Masters. When it cos to lesser chs, I believe there is a lot of credence in the rumor that you are one of the best Journeyn in the star cluster. You are worthy to battle in the design arena."
He made it sound as if Ves should feel privileged to lock horns with soone as his august self!
Though Ves was very confident in his design ability, to say that he was truly one of the best Journeyn was a stretch. In terms of foundational Skills, he knew he already exceeded the ordinary levels of his peers.
However, when it ca to his specialization, he hadn't actually made that much progress. As powerful as it was, Ves had mostly been taking advantage of external design spirits.
When it ca to empowering his chs by relying on his own, he still had much to go! Until he made so breakthroughs in this area, he did not dare to claim that he ranked among the top of Journeyn.
Perhaps he truly had the capital to make such a statent if he limited his comparison to his generation, but Ves knew that there were lots of old dogs who had developed all kinds of confounding abilities!
Ves crossed his arms. "Mr. Armalon, your flattery is just talk. How can those rumors be true? The galaxy is vast and holds all manner of absurd ch designers. Even in this small star sector, I still do not dare to claim to be the best when there are hundreds, if not thousands of ch designers who have been personally nurtured by the esteed Masters of the Friday Coalition and the Hexadric Hegemony. If you seek an actual challenge, you should go to them instead!"
"Oh, I plan to do so, but right now I'm at your doorstep. I have heard that you take a lot of pride in your work. I also heard you like to challenge yourself. You're not the first ch designer who thinks soone from the MTA like myself can't be overco, but don't sell yourself short. I have dueled many local ch designers and they have bested nurous tis when I play their own ga. I'm more than willing for you to choose the terms of the duel as long as they are fair. What do you say? Are you willing to defend your pride?"
Though Ves admittedly felt riled up as soon as his pride was on the line, he quickly reminded himself of his many responsibilities.
He was no longer a young and eager Apprentice eager to make himself stand out from the ch industry. He had already achieved this objective.
"I have already proven myself as a ch designer. My ch company sells more than 50,000 Doom Guards per month, and I have already sold over 2 million Desolate Soldiers. I am already past the stage where I need to make a na for myself by winning duels. Instead of wasting ti, I can spend my ti on preparing for my upcoming expedition to the Nyxian Gap. Now that is a real challenge. Do you dare to co with to the Nyxian Gap and fight all manner of pirates while evading hazardous zones?"
Jovy blinked at that. Even he heard about the Nyxian Gap and how it swallowed many of his colleagues. Even if they traveled on the best ships they could access and fielded a large number of formidable first-class multipurpose chs, as long as they traveled deep enough, they never appeared again!
This fact frightened the Big Two to no end! If not for the remoteness of the Nyxian Gap, the MTA and the CFA would have invested serious resources to decipher and dismantle the hazards of this warped region of space!
"If pride is not enough, what about money?" Jovy offered. "Let's make a bet. If you win, I'll transfer 1,000 MTA credits!"
"And what if I lose?"
"You don't have to pay anything! It won't cost you anything if you lose, but if you happen to win, "
Ves rapidly perford so ntal calculations. A single MTA credit was almost equivalent to the value of a Blessed Squire. A thousand MTA credits used to be an unimaginably huge amount of money to him, but he was not the little Novice and Apprentice of before.
With his LMC spreading its reach over half the star sector, earning a thousand MTA credits was simply a matter of selling enough profitable chs!
That said, 1,000 MTA rits roughly amounted to 191 billion hex credits, which was around a sixth of the cost of his factory ship!
Whether he intended to spend the money on acquiring new combat carriers or ordering additional upgrades for his factory ship, Ves would not say no to earning this hefty sum!
However… Jovy was an internal ch designer of the MTA. This duel reeked of a trap. While it was true that Ves did not shy away from a challenge, the rewards had to be proportionate to the risks!
It didn't matter if Jovy dangled 1,000 MTA credits or 1 million MTA credits in front of his face. There was no way that this elite ch designer was that easy to beat!
Ves shook his head and turned around. "I'm a very busy ch designer. Credits don't interest . If you offered rits, then I might change my mind. If not, then I bid you a good day."
"Hey, wait a minute Larkinson! If 1,000 MTA credits is not enough, what about 2,000? No? 3,000! 4,000! 5,000!"
No matter how much Jovy raised the stakes, Ves remained unmoved.
"I'll give you half even if you lose! That way, you won't co away empty-handed regardless of the outco!"
Though Ves slowed his steps, he continued to walk away, causing Jovy to beco increasingly more distraught.
Hardly any ch designer refused when he issued his challenge. Even if the odds of winning were slim, the other ch designers were too awed by his identity to reject his request.
Even though everyone that Jovy dueled knew that he was using them as a whetstone to polish his design skills, they were eager to maintain good relations with the MTA. As long as they earned his respect, they always had the opportunity to beco acquaintances and remain in contact!
Making such a connection was extrely valuable to these local ch designers!
The elite talent never t soone like Ves who apparently couldn't care less about his potential friendship.
Of course, much of that had to do with his determination to minimize his entanglent with the MTA. Why should he possibly pursue a friendship with soone who might as well be more discerning and obnoxious than Master Willix in the future?
Seeing that Ves remained unmoved even after Jovy offered a sum of money that would make any indigenous ch designer wild, he began to draw out sothing else from his formidable arsenal!
"What about a piece of tech? I can offer you an upgraded shield generator that is better than the ones you have! If you want knowledge, I can offer you a copy of my personal textbooks!"
Though an additional shield generator or an MTA-issued textbook wasn't as attractive to Ves as Jovy thought, the offers nonetheless headed in the right direction.
Ves halted his departure and turned around. "Do you have any tech that can allow to maintain a stable connection to the galactic net while I'm inside the Nyxian Gap?"
"Uhm… I don't think so." Jovy suddenly halted. "I'm not authorized to put forth such a device. Master Willix, do we have this tech?"
The Master nodded. "The local branches of the MTA have developed a specialized quantum entanglent node that is able to resist the interference produced by the space warping of the Nyxian Gap. However, it is not omnipotent. It only ensures that you can maintain a stabler connection while you are in the periphery of the Gap. As for venturing deeper, the strengthened connection will rapidly diminish. It is better than a standard quantum entanglent node, but not by much."
Ves still looked very interested at this piece of tech! "If you put this specialized node up as a reward for my participation, I will accept your duel!"
"I cannot. It's not within my rights to release restricted tech to a local such as you." Jovy turned to Master Willix. "Unless…"
The Master furrowed her brow. This was a problematic demand. However, she possessed a considerable amount of authority and leeway within the local branch.
"I can lend out the Darkbreak module, which is what the specialized quantum entanglent node is called." She eventually decided. "Once Mr. Larkinson is done, he must return the Darkbreak module to our hands. This is the extent of what I can offer."
That was enough for Jovy! "There! Will you accept my duel now? If you win, you will get 5,000 MTA credits and the opportunity to borrow our Darkbreak module! If you lose, I'll give you half the credits no matter your performance."
Even Gloriana couldn't contain herself any longer. "You should accept, Ves!"
"I don't know…" Ves looked warily at Jovy. "It's all well and good to dangle the Darkbreak module in front of my face, but I want to borrow it regardless of the outco of the duel. I'm not confident I can win against you! Those credits you offer as a consolation prize is not relevant to my upcoming expedition."
Jovy frowned again. "I want to fight you at your best. If you already stand to gain the most valuable reward when you lose, how can this duel be aningful?"
They were stuck in a dilemma. It dawned on everyone that Ves was driving a hard bargain. He wanted to borrow the Darkbreak module regardless whether he won or lost. Jovy was reluctant to agree with this demand because he suspected that his dueling opponent would lack the motivation to muster up his full strength.
To be fair, Jovy was right to be concerned. Already, Ves was thinking of scamming this fellow by pretending to do his best. After all, there was hardly any reason for him to go all out when he already secured what he truly wanted!
The situation grew increasingly awkward. Even Master Willix began to display so irritation.
Ves was too obstinate! Hardly anyone dared to stymie soone from the MTA to the extent of extorting an exclusive piece of tech! Was he asking for more?
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