Though Ves and Gloriana had fallen into their low periods for a ti, that did not make them useless...
The biggest downside to their current states was that they weren't able to design chs with their usual passion.
That was not a serious problem.
They just had to devote their attention to sothing else that did not require as much creativity and imagination.
Aside from studying, tutoring their assistants and managing their subordinates, the newlyweds also laid the groundwork of their second round of projects.
They had already made the first decision when they t aboard the Stellar Chaser.
"We should devote all of our ti to designing second-class chs for this round of projects." Ves declared to his wife. "We are way too slow in fulfilling our obligations to the Hegemony and eting the demand for second-class chs to our own clan. We need to deliver at least diverse chs for each target audience within half a year to alleviate the pressure."
Gloriana nodded in agreent. "I approve. The Hegemony truly needs more chs. As for the needs of the clan, I don't think the pressure is too great. The ch forces have recently ordered large batches of second-class chs from the ch market, right? Our ch pilots will be fine with piloting comrcial chs. We should devote all of our ti on designing as many Hexer chs as possible!"
"Denied!"
Ves flatly shot down her proposal. He would go crazy if he spent months on doing nothing else but work on Hexer ch design projects. This was a form of torture than no man should go through!
Naturally, Gloriana did not agree with him, but he put his foot down on this issue. For his sanity and confidence in his manhood, he needed to work on so non-Hexer ch designs as well.
Once he managed to get his way, he relaxed. He held Lucky in his lap and tickled his head.
"ow."
Clixie was present as well. She rested on top of the Larkinson Mandate that was placed on a nearby desk as if she was brooding an egg.
"Miaow."
The Golden Cat hasn't co out at this ti. Ever since the LMC started to churn out Chirons, Goldie had beco fascinated by the latest ch model that allowed her to form a deeper connection to so of the Larkinsons.
She especially enjoyed exploring her bond with younger Larkinsons!
As Clixie beca confused why her 'daughter' didn't show up, Ves and Gloriana shared their thoughts on what their next projects should address.
"I've been thinking about whether to design a successor to the Bright Warrior model." Ves began. "The way my clansn are using the modular ch platform is now how I originally envisioned. While there is still value in designing a ch that possesses an adaptable configuration, I'm not sure whether it is better than designing a bunch of specialized chs instead."
Gloriana snorted at him. "You don't have to bother with explaining any further. You've already decided to design a Mark II version of the Bright Warrior, right? It not only solved the urgent need for second-class chs for our clan, but also provides a comprehensive upgrade frawork for the Quint."
She knew him too well.
"You're right. I care too much about the Quint. While we can treat it as a unique ch and upgrade it on an individual basis, that is not what the original Bright Warrior model is all about. At its heart, the Quint is supposed to be the pri example of what a Bright Warrior ch should be. If we want to stay true to our masterwork ch, then we should develop a second-class version of the Bright Warrior and use that as a baseline for the Quint's upgrades instead."
Gloriana did not have too many objections to this plan. The Bright Warrior's modular nature had provided her with a lot of intellectual stimulation during its design process. She looked forward to solving the issues that ca up when they attempted to translate the sa concept to a higher tech level.
There was one question, though.
"Will you still keep making use of Breyer alloy for this ch model?"
"Probably. I haven't decided yet. I am willing to resort to a more accessible armor system as long as it's resilient enough. The only issue is whether we can afford the alternate materials."
Ves was actually a bit dissatisfied with needing to continue keeping the Bright Warrior model in developnt. If not for the extre value of the Quint, he would have felt more inclined to devote his design resources to more specialized chs.
Against other second-class chs, the Bright Warrior model's shortcomings beca more relevant. A dedicated swordsman ch, lancer ch, rifleman ch or space knight would always be able to deliver a better performance given the sa cost and material usage.
This difference in performance might be as big as 20 percent!
Even if Ves did not prioritize performance too much, he couldn't afford to ignore such a big gap.
The Larkinson Clan in its current state could not make full use of the possibilities the Bright Warrior model offered.
The only way to solve this problem was if he raised a large number of ch pilots that were just as multi-talented as Venerable Joshua. If all of these ch pilots were capable of piloting multiple ch types with greater efficiency, then the modular nature of the Bright Warrior line would truly be able to provide a lot of value!
Ves sighed inwardly. This was too much to ask from his ch pilots. They were already working hard to master the basics of piloting second-class chs. Adding these burdens on top of their current goals would only cause them to collapse.
His ch pilots simply weren't good enough. He might have to wait a very long ti before he obtained a batch of versatile elites.
After putting the Bright Warrior Mark II on the list of projects, Gloriana issued her own request.
"If you have been following the Komodo War lately, the Fridayman counterattack is pushing back our side. Our Valkyrie chs have succeeded in giving the enemy so difficulties, but the overall trend hasn't changed."
Though Ves did not want the Hegemony to lose the war, he couldn't help but feel a bit smug.
"Are you realizing now that the Fridayn aren't pushovers?"
"The Hegemony will still win this war in the end." Gloriana stated with conviction. She still held on to her delusions! "It's just.. The road to victory will be more painful than I thought. We can't allow the Hex Army to hollow itself out after beating the Coalition forces. We need to find a way to allow our side to regain the montum it had before. I still miss those early days when our Blessed Squires helped our fellow Hexers run over the Fridayn."
"It won't be that easy to take advantage of the Fridayn anymore. They know about our glows and have developed nurous asures to mitigate this feature."
Both of them felt rather frustrated about that. The Friday Coalition took their chs seriously, so of course they developed ans to counter their effectiveness.
While there were so asures that Ves could counter with ease, the Fridayn Masters weren't idiots. They were capable of developing a lot more solutions.
Right now, the addition of AIs to take over temporary control should a ch pilot beco incapacitated was very effective. Though Gloriana inford Ves that DIVA and other Hexer organizations were already trying their best to hack or subvert these AIs, this was not sothing that would yield quick results. The Fridayn were too thorough.
Gloriana hadn't given up with trying to help her state in any way she could. She mustered up her determination and shared a bold idea.
"Right now, the Fridayn are relying on one crucial advantage to turn around the war. All of the guest expert pilots they've invited to fight on their behalf are taking a horrible toll on the Hex Army."
"I know. What do you want to do about it? Short of forcing the Hegemony-aligned states to hand over their expert pilots, I don't think there's an easy way for the Hex Army to address this disparity."
This was pretty much impossible. The Hegemony long treated the lesser states around it with disdain, and most citizens who lived there had no love for the Hexers.
Convincing those stubborn, strong-willed expert pilots to fight on behalf of female supremacy was probably a herculean task!
"From what I heard, our diplomats are still working on that." Gloriana vaguely said. "I think we might be able to pitch in as well. Expert pilots are powerful, but not unstoppable. I want us to design a ch that is specially geared to countering expert chs."
"..."
Ves stared flatly at his wife. He might love her, but that didn't an he was willing to entertain her delusions!
"Honey.. expert chs are powerful. Really powerful. Not only are they made from better materials, their resonance abilities also make them extrely deadly to fight. Their resonance shields can block regular attacks with great efficiency while their offensive capabilities are enough to allow them to take down standard chs as if they are target practice!"
"I'm being serious about this, Ves." She growled.
"Forgive , but this is a problem that many ch designers have tried to solve, including Master ch Designers and Star Designers. The most they ca up with was designing so lancer chs or ranged chs that hit harder than usual. They're only effective when deployed in large numbers, and inevitably hundreds of them will fall in the process of taking down a single expert ch. I bet the Masters from the Hegemony are already at work in developing sothing similar, if they haven't already have so suitable in reserve."
Gloriana crossed her arms. "That's not good enough, and you know it. While these chs may be effective at taking down expert chs when there are many of them, the most troubleso aspect is that expert chs are too good at avoiding or escaping envelopnt. It's too hard to pin them down."
"Since you know that this is true, how do you think we're supposed to be able to do better?"
"With simple logic, Ves. We need to leverage your mother. She's a Supre who is greater than any god. re proto-gods don't stand a chance against her. Now think about what will happen if she directly squares off against a demigod. Who is the greater divinity in this confrontation? Not the latter, that's for sure. Therefore, the more surefire way to counter an expert ch is by forcing its expert pilot into a direct confrontation with the Superior Mother. This is guaranteed to work!"
"..."
Ves had no words for her 'logical' plan. Was this what Gloriana was like when she was a little more rational than usual?
He coughed. "Wifey…"
"Don't call that." She hissed.
"Uhm, sweetie, as much as you think highly of the Superior Mother and my design philosophy, we can't just snap our fingers and co up with a ch that just happens to succeed where every single ch designer in existence has failed. The willpower of an expert pilot is simply too strong to get affected by external glows. As for trying to force a direct confrontation.. I'm sorry, that will never happen unless you force a Fridayman ch pilot into the cockpit of one of our chs."
There was no way sothing as absurd as that would ever happen.
She grew even more upset. Ves wasn't giving her the right answer. "How are we supposed to beat the Fridayn and their loathso guest expert pilots, then? We have to co up with sothing to alleviate this pressing crisis."
"Look, we might not be able to counter expert pilots in one go, but maybe we can develop so applications that can make battles against them a little less lopsided."
"Oh?" She began to look hopeful again. "Do you have any suggestions?"
"Not yet. Let think about it. I have so ideas, but I need to explore them further before I am sure. Don't expect much from , though. Expert pilots have reigned over many battlefields for centuries. Their strength is for real and it's very difficult to challenge them without bringing expert pilots as well."
Still, Ves believed it was very worthwhile for him to investigate this topic. Encountering enemy expert ch in battle was only a matter of ti, and it would be nice to have an extra option in reserve!
He couldn't help but cast his mind back on the instance where an enemy expert ch was able to fight with impunity. Venerable Foster's Belisarius was so overpowering that the entire landbound contingents of Lydia's Swordmaidens and the Flagrant Vandals essentially collapsed in front of its invincible might!
Ves never wanted to live through such an awful tragedy again!
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