The Mech Touch (Web Novel)
chapter-2121

The creation of a masterwork mech had always been a dream for mech designers.

Countless mech designers chased after the honor of fashioning one. Not only did it prove that the mech designer had an excellent touch for mechs, the experience of making the masterwork always resulted in many new insights.

As soon as Gloriana installed the Mother's Love, she quickly left the cockpit and floated above the mech, taking in every transformation with her eyes and implants.

Though the mech hardly changed in the eyes of laymen, to mech designers the first copy of the Blessed Squire model couldn't be more different!

There was a huge difference between a regular mech and a masterwork mech. The latter was something mundane and ordinary while the latter was exceptional and perfect in a way that normal means could never achieve!

Gloriana harvested a huge amount of insights, both from witnessing the transformation taking place before their eyes and the spontaneous innovations she developed during her days-long inspiring mood.

This was a sublimely fantastic moment for her, and Ves was genuinely happy that she managed to fulfill one her ambitions.

Since her design philosophy revolved around perfection, making a masterwork mech was one of the best ways to achieve his dream! Each masterwork mech she brought into existence put her one step closer towards attaining the ideal she dedicated her entire life to pursue.

The happiness that radiated from her was indescribable. Not even in their admittedly infrequently nightly sessions did she look as happy as she was at this very moment!

In addition, her design seed became active like crazy, so much so that the spiritual fragment that Ves deposited in her mind became affected as well!

Both the masterwork mech and Gloriana seemed to resonate with each other. The bond between creator and creation was sacred and holy, and the pervasive glow of the Superior Mother only reinforced this impression!

Ves was lucky to get some scraps at all. His involvement was not that much, but he did contribute sufficiently to the formation of the masterwork mech to absorb some benefits at well. He wasn't feeling that much worse than Gloriana!

As the transformation finished and the euphoria of the moment finally subsided, Gloriana slowly came off her transcendent high.

A brilliant smile plastered on her face as she floated next to the Blessed Squire mech she created with her own effort and placed her hand on its exterior.

"My precious baby.. you're so lovely.. I love you so much.."

Perhaps drunk on her amazing achievement, Gloriana kept cooing at her masterwork mech as she stroked its chest plating. She soon proceeded to rub her cheek against the Breyer alloy plate.

"Hihihi! You're so perfect. You're so lovely. You're all mine, my precious baby. Mommy brought you into this reality, and mommy will take care of you forever and ever…"

Ves froze and watched with astonishment as Gloriana's behavior became more and more unhinged.

She floated up to the head of the Blessed Squire and began to kiss and lick its surface!

Even though the mech was brand new and squeaky clean, that was not hygienic!

Ves wavered a bit. A part of him wanted to fly up and pull her out of her drunk mood. Another part of him wanted her to relish her achievement.

Though her perverted conduct towards her masterwork mech looked disturbing, she wasn't doing anything harmful, so Ves was inclined to let her have her moment. She would probably scream his head off if he interrupted her happy moment with her new 'baby'.

As he tried his best to ignore his girlfriend's senseless cooing and licking, Ves took a step back and began to take in his third masterwork mech.

Its thick shield and serviceable sword looked as if they were part of the same whole as the mech. The frame of the machine looked both masculine and innocent, which was a very strange contradiction.

Somehow though, the machine made it work. The Blessed Squire already revolved around these concepts, but the masterwork mech seemed to embody this duality a lot better than the original design!

Despite its heavy loadout and sturdy armor plating, the mech wasn't all that heavy compared to other knight mechs. Its strong legs and its balanced structure allowed it to move steadily on the battlefield.

Overall, the mech's appearance brought him a lot of confidence that it would serve its role as a defensive asset that could provide valuable protection to any squad it was attached to. Other friendlies would always be able to depend on it to provide cover!

However, that wasn't all. Two tentacle-like appendages snaked out of the sides of the torso. These flexible limbs were usually coiled against the frame. Yet these deceptively strong limbs played a key role in facilitating the secondary role of the mech.

Ves already knew that these tentacles could transfer a huge amount of energy in both directions.

The tentacles were able to channel the modest but decent amount of energy reserves stored in the frame of the mech to any friendly mech within reach.

However, their tips could also transform into razor-sharp spikes that could stab straight through the weak points of a hostile or fallen mech in order to harvest a lot of energy at a surprising pace!

The addition of these tentacles should have given the Blessed Squire a more menacing look, but they seemed as harmless as wet noodles on the masterwork mech.

All in all, Ves was very happy with how the entire machine turned out. As the first mech that bore the glow of the Superior Mother, he believed it would definitely make an impact on the Hexers!

Yet.. the only problem was that Gloriana had been drooling over her masterwork mech for over fifteen minutes without stopping.

"My beautiful baby boy.. would you like a name? Hmmm.. how about Little Angel. Oh, you like it? Hihihi! Little Angel it is, then! Mommy loves your new name so much!���

While Gloriana persisted in her mad behavior, the sound of heels approached from behind.

"So I take it your attempt was a success." Calabast noted as she stared appreciatively at the Blessed Squire. "I don't look at mechs the way you mech designers do, but even I can tell there is something special about it. This mech.. even I feel tempted to keep it for myself. There is just something about it that makes it look so precious! I've seen the Quint up close multiple times, but this one is leagues better!"

Though Ves didn't know much about Calabast, he knew that she was not as taken in by mechs as other people. It was quite uncharacteristic of her to convey such appreciation.

He frowned and began to gaze back and forth between Gloriana and Calabast. While the creation of a masterwork mech was truly a special moment, the behavior exhibited by both triggered an alarm in his head!

This was not normal!

He suddenly thought back on the gem he decided to insert in the Blessed Squire mech.

[Mother's Love]

The love of a mother towards her offspring resides within this royal gem. Increases the allure of a mech by 100 percent to females.

When Lucky initially handed over this gem, Ves reacted very disdainfully towards its effect. A 100 percent boost sounded great at first, but not every attribute was valuable!

For example, if Ves received a boost promoting 100 percent faster beard growth, would he jump in joy? No! This was a completely irrelevant benefit and he was probably better off without this distraction.

Therefore, Ves always looked down on the gems with seemingly-useless enhancements. The Mother's Love, the Bastet's Whisper and the Whipping Boy all caused him to feel a lot of shame for owning them. Being able to get rid of one of them at this time lifted a considerable weight off his shoulders.

He overlooked one factor, though.

His opinion differed from other people's opinion!

It was only now that he realized the power of the Mother's Love gem.

Increasing the allure of a mech by a whopping 100 percent may not seem relevant in battle, but outside of it the effect was huge!

Someone like Gloriana who was the main person responsible for crafting the 'Little Angel' already possessed a lot of affection for the mech. This was the first time she entered into an inspired state of mind, and that would always leave an unforgettable place in her heart!

Suddenly doubling her already strong emotions practically turned her adoration into an outright obsession! Ves genuinely feared whether she would even leave the Little Angel's side!

Fortunately, there was at least one sane woman in this secure workshop. Calabast still looked composed despite the vastly increased appeal of the mech in her eyes.

"So. I think neither of us expected this day to end in this fashion." She said as her eyes kept roaming over the Little Angel as if it was a sweet boy. "Gloriana and you have outdone yourselves."

Ves ruefully smiled. "It's mostly Gloriana. She crafted the Little Angel as if the Superior Mother was literally supporting her from above."

He glanced back at the statue of the Superior Mother. Its presence had been decisive in pushing Gloriana to go beyond her limits!

Of course, Ves didn't actually believe the Superior Mother had blessed his girlfriend. She simply immersed herself in her superstitions and exceeded her capabilities through her own power.

In his honest opinion, the presence of the statue merely tricked Gloriana's state of mind. It was as if she had swallowed a medicine that actually didn't do anything to her body!

This was called the placebo effect.

Before, Ves always found Gloriana's insistence on sticking to her beliefs annoying. Ves had no respect for hexism and thought that all of it was nonsense that some delusional women had invented in order to justify putting women ahead of men.

Yet now, that same instance was one of the primary enablers of Gloriana's success. It didn't matter if her beliefs were built upon lies. As long as his girlfriend truly believed from the bottom of her heart that she was blessed by the Superior Mother, she was capable of outputting 120% or even more of her potential!

This caused Ves to feel very mixed about this situation. He was glad that the two of them created another masterwork mech, and so soon after their last one. They probably broke another record for Journeymen at their ages!

Once was a fluke, but twice was a pattern!

The odds of creating a third collaborative masterwork mech had increased as well, though the difference was probably small.

However, at the very least, he found a way to stimulate Gloriana. Instead of fighting her faith, Ves could obtain much better results by feeding into it! Though he was very reluctant to do so, the benefits were too attractive for him to ignore!

So what if Gloriana believed in nonsense? Increasing the odds of making another masterwork mech was very crucial in their early development! Ves would gladly tolerate a little more crazy from his girlfriend as long as both of them progressed faster!

Ves looked back at the giant statue once again. His mother's imperious gaze passed straight over his head, as befitting of a Supreme.

He did not regret creating the statue. Despite the accidents he encountered along the way, its existence played a pivotal role in the mech workshop!

Perhaps he should make it a habit. Ves already planned to repeat this act again. Even though Ves had not played a major role in this fabrication run, even he experienced the benefits of crafting a mech while under the influence of its design spirit!

Unfortunately, the successful creation of the Little Angel generated some very tough questions.

Calabast did not hold back in voicing one of them. "Let's discuss the ownership of this masterwork mech. This is a very valuable artifact, one that will definitely attract a lot of interest once it becomes known."

His face fell. She was right.