"I will take your… advice… under consideration." Ves eventually said when he heard enough. "Can I share this with Gloriana?"
"You may. The two of you maintain enough parity that she deserves to learn about anchor chs in advance. I am certain that this disclosure will delight her. It is a great honor to be able to contribute an anchor ch to the kingdom. It is one of the most important criteria that Master ch Designers compare themselves to. Those that are able to develop more anchor chs enjoy much higher recognition and status. You will often find them leading entire R&D institutions and important departnts."
"So this is like a secret ga between Masters like you." Ves voiced his thoughts. "The ones who earn the highest score get to rank higher than the ones who don't manage to do as well. This makes sense as any work that is qualified to beco an anchor ch is unquestionably the best among millions of ch designs of the sa category at that point in ti."
Master Laila Rebecca Devos sagely nodded. "It is a crude but convenient ans of asuring our worth and success. It is not the only ans of evaluation, mind you. There are ch designers who have never succeeded to develop a work that has earned the designation of an anchor ch, but are still respected due to their useful innovations and design applications. You are a typical example of that. Your total contributions vastly exceed that of ordinary Master ch Designers because you have introduced revolutionary new possibilities. Now, I am introducing another ans for you to make a greater contribution to the ch community."
To develop a ch that earned the recognition of the Red Kingdom was one of the highest professional honors that Ves could obtain.
It was better than winning a shiny dal for pulling off a military operation or earning lots of money as far as he was concerned.
This was because he was a ch designer first.
All other accolades paled in comparison.
For the first ti since he embarked on his career, Ves finally saw an opportunity to open a crack into the Red Kingdom.
This indescribable wonder was the holy land of all ch pilots and ch designers in the Red Ocean.
To be able to contribute to its evolution and reshape how it exerted its invisible influence over every professional that worked with chs sounded exhilarating!
Ves gained a greater understanding of why the Kingdom of chs and the Red Kingdom were called this way.
The kingdoms set the standard of what chs were supposed to be in the Milky Way and the Red Ocean respectively.
If beast chs suddenly beca more powerful due to technological or doctrinal advances, ch designers would definitely produce a lot of works that successfully earned the designation of anchor chs.
Once these beast chs started to beco anchor chs at a greater proportion, the kingdom would steadily tilt so that it favored them more.
This made it easier for other ch designers to design machines that chased this dominant trend, thereby granting custors faster and more convenient access to superior chs.
In other words, the ch designers who supported the rise of beast chs successfully conquered a large amount of 'territory' inside the kingdom!
Naturally, when there were winners, there were also losers.
ch designers who supported humanoid chs inevitably lost ground as the kingdom deed their anchor chs inferior or outdated.
They would receive less support from the Red Kingdom. The next generation of ch designers would also beco encouraged to develop 'superior' beast chs.
There was always a way to make a coback. As long as supporters of humanoid chs worked hard enough and developed innovative solutions that put them at an advantage, then they could begin to conquer the territory they had previously ceded.
Ves began to imagine the Red Kingdom as a literal piece of land that floated sowhere deep in the imaginary realm.
With every passing day, the territories of every ch grouping shifted. So lost ground while others managed to gain it. Others remained stable as the popularity of their kinds of machines remained unshakable.
This was the true aning of a kingdom. A kingdom of chs.
Ves also made another important realization.
The separation of the Red Kingdom was a foregone conclusion.
It couldn't be helped. It did not make sense to group chs from the Red Ocean together with the chs from the Milky Way.
The wider availability of phasewater technology, hyper technology, E-technology and most recently superdinsional technology and their associated materials would cause the chs of the Red Ocean to diverge increasingly more from their Milky Way roots.
What made for a good anchor ch in one galaxy did not necessarily make for a good anchor ch in another galaxy!
Without any ability to transfer goods and chs from one galaxy to the other one, the effectiveness of the Kingdom of chs would degrade as the differences grew larger.
A split was the most sensible decision to make. The Polymath was rely the person who did what was necessary, like taking a dying pet to the backyard before putting the animal out of its misery.
In any case, Ves appreciated that Master Laila Devos chose to share this little secret.
It was like receiving an invitation to grab his first piece of territory in the Red Kingdom!
Of course, the existing landholders were not willing to give up ground so easily. Their anchor chs were all pretty good in order to occupy places in the Red Kingdom, but Ves remained confident that he could muscle his way into a small corner.
It should be a lot easier for ch designers like him to gain a bit of ground in the Red Kingdom during a ti of rapid technological advancents.
Existing anchor chs quickly beca outdated if they did not keep up with all of the nifty new tech and materials that beca available.
By taking advantage of the lag between the updates of established anchor chs, Ves and Gloriana should be able to sneak his work in their midst a lot easier than usual!
He fully expected the rest of the ch industry to narrow the gap by developing powerful design applications based on their own specializations, but at least Ves would have at least one anchor ch to his na.
It should be an especially good accomplishnt if he managed to earn it while he was still a Senior ch Designer!
He threw Master Laila Devos a knowing look.
This was probably another reason why she did not participate in the upgrade process. She wanted to give Ves and Gloriana enough room to demonstrate their capabilities and prove that they did not freeload off a Master ch Designer who lived for over 3 centuries.
As Ves approached his wife, he tilted his head to the side.
She got the ssage and moved to the side where they could talk in relative privacy.
"What is it, Ves?"
"I just learned about sothing really cool from Master Laila Devos."
He quickly briefed her on the existence and significance of anchor chs.
His wife's expression changed multiple tis. Her evolution was similar to his own. She ultimately beca a lot more fired up than before.
"I always knew that we were improving rapidly to the point where our works could finally begin to compete against the best. While I am surprised that this opportunity had co years sooner than I thought, I am definitely going to fight for this chance!"
"Aren't you afraid of failing to et the criteria set by the kingdom?" Ves asked with concern. "The penalty for presenting a ch that is ultimately not worthy is quite severe."
Gloriana cooled her enthusiasm a bit after hearing that. "Hm, you are right. We need to be more prudent. Let us at least complete the upgrade project before deciding whether we should submit our work to the higher authority. We will know by then if the Minerva Mark II is good enough. As far as the design is concerned, I am confident that it holds a strong advantage in this aspect. The combination between my archetech and your E-technology results in an excellent combination. When we add in the other features, the Minerva Mark II is destined to beco a first-class ace command ch that will define all command chs that co afterwards."
Her personality did not allow her to back away from this challenge so easily.
This was a direct test of her confidence in her own abilities!
For the sake of her ego and self-esteem, she could not allow herself to take on this challenge, especially when Master Laila Devos had expressed her belief that the Miracle Couple would succeed.
Gloriana not only made the determination to work as hard as possible to turn her next work into an anchor ch, she also began to think about the significance about its existence.
"I think I understand what anchor chs an." She claid.
"Oh?"
"They are the completed works that have co closest to perfection at that mont in ti." She said. "True perfection is not within our ability to attain. We can only rank chs by how close they co to being the most perfect solution given the materials and tools we have available. To be able to make an anchor ch is the most truthful recognition of excellence that you can obtain in the ch industry. The criteria is set by multiple Star Designers who can be trusted to be fair and impartial in their standards. Since it is the kingdom that does the actual judging, no single individual can play favorites. Therefore, if your work becos good enough to receive the recognition of the Red Kingdom, it is truly the closest ch to perfection in its respective market category."
Ves found it interesting that her take on this anchor ch business was different from his own interpretation.
Gloriana saw this ga as a contest to design the most perfect chs. She did not pay any significant attention to the territory and influence aspects.
She did not really care about setting standards or starting a new trend.
Her ambition was ultimately centered around herself. Only she could design the perfect vessel. Gloriana did not think that anyone else was qualified to take this job away from her. She was born to fulfill this grand goal.
"Ves."
"Yes, Gloriana?"
"Do you think that producing anchor chs is an essential requirent to advancing to the rank of Star Designer?"
Ves widened his eyes. He had not even thought that far yet! Although they did not have enough information to determine the truth, he had a feeling that his wife may be right.
Only by proving their ability to design the best chs would they have the capital to beco a legendary Star Designer. It was inconceivable for a Master ch Designer to break through without satisfying this core requirent.
"I think you are probably right. This is a ga that is almost exclusively played by Master ch Designers. It must be extrely competitive given what is at stake."
Masters that managed to conquer more territory in the Red Kingdom would presumably gain greater assistance from this powerful construct!
That assistance may play a crucial role in facilitating their breakthroughs!
"I have made another deduction." His wife said as she continued to look at old facts in a different light. "Every god ch has to be an anchor ch. They are too powerful to be left out of the ranking. The designers of these god chs must rank at the top of the charts!"
Whereas Gloriana saw this competition as a ranking contest, Ves preferred to interpret it as conquering the territories of the Red Kingdom.
From his perspective, that ant that the Star Designers had grabbed the largest and most coveted territories of this kingdom, thereby dividing it into multiple strong camps.
Ves began to wonder which Star Designer conquered the most ground at this ti.
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