Ves looked at his girlfriend with a weird expression. "Why are you taking part in this venture?"

"It's fun!" She said. "We have competitions like this in the Wodin Dynasty as well. It's really engaging to root for your own team and group. I miss that about home. Besides, too many of your clansman don't really like us Hexers all that much."

"What a surprise. How could that be?" Ves dramatically coughed.

His girlfriend hit his arm and hissed. "I'm being serious! I know my fellow Hexers aren't exactly well-liked, but we aren't that bad! I don't want your entire clan to keep misunderstanding us. Setting up Cloud 6 and taking part in the LCS will show that we are people instead of monsters."

Good luck with that. Ves did not think that most people's opinion of Hexer culture would change because of this. There was so much wrong with Hexers that a couple of PR stunts would never be able to rehabilitate their image!

Still, his girlfriend was determined to go through with her plan. She was convinced it would work!

"Great!" Realla exclaimed after obtaining Gloriana's verbal commitment. "I'll get in touch with you or your people in order to hash out the finer details."

Once Raella and Vincent got what they wanted, they walked out of sight.

More people arrived to petition the clan patriarch, causing Ves to put this incident out of his mind.

Throughout the talks, Ves understood that the Larkinson Clan had grown to a point where a lot of interest groups had emerged.

For example, Ronsel Larkinson wanted to revive the Larkinson Basic Mech Academy.

"So far, we have already organized a complete curriculum for our mech cadets." The elder Larkinson and former expert candidate spoke. "It's just that many of our veterans and mech instructors are beginning to diverge on how to raise our future generation of warriors. The adoption of so many new clansmen who come from different states that are accustomed to different mech doctrines has led to a lot of disputes. If we don't do anything, we risk splintering our teaching resources."

That didn't sound too bad to Ves. However, he knew that it was not yet time for the Larkinson Clan to set up multiple mech academies. There weren't enough cadets to make this move worthwhile."

"So what is your plan?"

"I'd like your permission to revive the Larkinson Basic Mech Academy. Even though it is a pity that we were forced to abandon the original academy at Cloudy Curtain, our teachers have learned a lot. This time, we plan to be more ambitious. As long as you are willing to invest a couple of billion hex credits in the reestablishment of our mech academy, I can promise you that we will produce graduates who can immediately begin with piloting second-class mechs!"

"Seriously?!" Ves could not remain calm at this moment!

Ronsel Larkinson looked proud. "Our mech instructors aren't that bad, and we plan to hire plenty of external help who have experience with piloting second-class mechs. We have already formed an extensive plan to make this happen within the next couple of years. The main restraining factor is funding. Raising second-class mech pilots isn't as difficult as you think, but that is only in case there is ample funding available."

"He's right." Gloriana added. "The Hexadric Hegemony could have trained twice or thrice as many mech pilots than it did. Right now, most of our mech academies don't bother with potentates whose aptitudes are lower than C-grade. It just isn't viable to train so many low-quality mech pilots."

"I see."

In the end, Ves promised to throw a couple of billion hex credits in Ronsel's direction.

The elder's first attempt at setting up an academy had already impressed Ves a lot. With all of that experience under his belt, their second attempt would definitely be better!

Once Ronsel departed, only a couple of people arrived to make their case. Each time, Ves listened patiently, but he did not always consent to their ideas.

"How much money have I given away already?" Ves wearily asked.

"Over 19 billion hex credits." Gloriana supplied. "That's a hefty sum, but easily manageable these days. If the clan's coffers aren't enough, then you can shift some of the MTA credits you've won from the design duel."

That was a lot of money. A few months ago, Ves would never dare to spend so much on concerns that weren't high in priority. Matters such as reforming the Larkinson Basic Mech Academy could have waited. It was only now that the clan had gained a lot of money that their organizers smelled blood.

Ves felt as if he had been butchered by a pack of hungry wolves!

It made him realize that this would never stop. The amount of clansmen asking for money would only increase.

"Many of these matters were held up in the Larkinson Assembly. The organizers figured that they could have obtained faster results if they approached the clan patriarch in person." Gloriana told him. "Next time, if you don't want to pass any proposals, then just pass it back to the Assembly."

"I guess you're right."

The two no longer faced any petitioners, allowing them to enjoy the festivities without any further interruptions.

Witnessing the vitality and harmony of the clan he set up and supported up to this point brought him a huge measure of pride.

Even though only less than five percent of the people in the enormous hall had any Larkinson blood running through their veins, the differences didn't matter.

Former citizens of the Ylvaine Protectorate like James got along well with former citizens of the Sentinel Kingdom.

No matter which state they used to belong to, after spending at least a month in the clan, most of the adopted had already forgotten about their former allegiances!

It was hard not to fall in love with the Larkinson Clan. With its friendly culture that treated every Larkinson with respect, those who joined the clan later did not face that much discrimination.

The Larkinson Network played a key role in reducing a lot of friction. Differences between Ylvainans, Brighters, Sentinels and other groups still existed and continued to lead to heated arguments to this day.

Yet no matter how much they differed, the different groups of Larkinsons always emphasized what they shared in common!

Ves appreciated the harmony so much that he commenced his speech ahead of schedule.

As soon as the music faded and the sound projectors carried his voice, the entire crowd of Larkinsons fell silent.

"My fellows Larkinsons." He began. "Aside from celebrating Mr. Joshua Larkinson's ascension to expert candidate, I would like to make two more announcements today."

He waved his hand, causing projections of a formidable-looking fleet to emerge above everyone's head.

"Starting from tomorrow, Task Force Predator will officially depart to the Nyxian Gap! With a mech roster that consists of roughly 600 Avatars, 500 Sentinels, 160 Battle Criers, 140 Vandals, 40 Swordmaidens and 400 Penitent Sisters, we will be able to smash aside any local opposition! Hardly any pirate organization can withstand our collective might!"

He was right. Even without the Penitent Sisters, his task force was already strong enough to defeat military mech regiments. With the second-class mechs of the exiled Hexers added on top of that, then Ves had a very good chance of defeating entire mech regiments!

Due to the lack of population and incredible degree of dispersion of local powers, hardly any pirate organization in the Gap could muster up that much strength.

Even if the bigger pirate alliances possessed enough mechs, they were often assigned to guard a lot of different bases or spread around in different fleets.

Pirates were very sensitive towards profit and losses. They never held back when pouncing the weak, but always avoided strong opponents like plague.

There was no profit in attacking the latter!

"While I cannot tell you how long Task Force Predator will stay in the Nyxian Gap, don't expect us back in half a year."

This was a considerable length of time to many Larkinsons. Those who were slated to take part in the mission and those who remained in place both looked concerned.

"There is no reason to feel discouraged." Ves gently admonished his clansmen. "Believe in our clan. Our strength is not weak and with our best leaders in charge, we will not succumb to danger! Challenges like these shall never hinder our Larkinson Clan! Instead, I believe we can overcome them all and become stronger as a result. When our task force returns, we will each complete our transformation as warriors!"

Ves raised his fist in the air. "For the clan!"

The others followed suit!

"For the clan!"

"For the clan!"

"For the clan!"

Once the cheers died down, Ves turned to Gloriana. He briefly took the time to enjoy her lovely scent.

"I have one other announcement to make. This one is personal."

In the view of the entire clan, Ves held his girlfriend's slim and supple hands and drew close. Her breath hitched as she looked in his eyes.

"Gloriana. Though we have only known each other for two years, we have already experienced a lifetime of success and setbacks."

"Oh, Ves…"

He caressed the back of her hand. "To be honest, when I first met you, I was ambivalent about you. I still am. Yet over these years, you have proven you are more than Hexer. You have shown a willingness to adapt to the circumstances and adjust your behavior. I know how difficult it is to break from the mold set by your mother, your dynasty and your society."

"I am doing it all for you, Ves." Gloriana smiled with emotion. "I certainly haven't made life easy for you."

"There are difficulties in any relationship. Ours is just a bit more complicated than most. Yet just like the clan, they aren't enough to hinder us from appreciating what we share in common. We both love mechs. We both love each other. Our differences don't detract from that. Instead, some of our differences just happen to complement each other. The synergies we have been able to achieve in and outside of the design lab has propelled us to the forefront of the mech community. I could have never grown our clan to this extent without your unwavering support!"

"Your clan is also my clan, Ves. We're in this together. Now, and always."

"I know, but that is not enough for me. There is one more step I want to take in order to make you mine."

Under the view of the entire Larkinson Clan, Ves gradually lowered himself so that one of his knees touched the podium.

Everyone held their breath. Even Lucky, Clixie and Goldie didn't dare to utter any meows.

Ves calmly reached into his pocket and retrieved a small box. He raised it up to Gloriana and opened it, revealing an elegant golden ring set with an alluring transparent gem.

Ves had fabricated the ring the day before. He affixed one of Lucky's old lesser gems onto it. While the effect of the gem was negligible, its visual appearance was incredibly alluring.

Gloriana immediately became enchanted by the luster of the gem and the craftsmanship of the ring.

In truth, Ves had wasted more than 15 batches of Breyer alloy and other expensive exotics in order to produce a high-quality engagement ring.

Though the ring in the box did not reach masterwork quality, it came fairly close!

The sight of Ves kneeling in front of him and presenting a ring to her made Gloriana emotional. Tears of happiness leaked from her eyes as she raised her hands to cover her mouth.

Ves finally asked the fateful question.

"Gloriana... will you marry me?"

A few seconds passed as his girlfriend blinked.

"Yes! I will!"

She practically burst into tears as the occasion overwhelmed her mood! Joy exploded from her body as the rest of the clan finally reacted to the successful marriage proposal!