Shortly after the treaty signing, the attendees began to exit the Hex Garden.

Some Larkinsons and Crossers lingered for a while in order to chat with each other. Before they formed the Golden Skull Alliance, the two sides only interacted sporadically.

Without the treaty, the two clans didn't have much in common. There was no natural friendship in between them and no reason for them to hang out.

All of that changed today. The pioneering alliance they established today meant that the Larkinsons and Crossers turned into comrades!

Since there was a significant chance that they might fight alongside each other in the future, the soldiers and mech pilots of both clans thought it was prudent to establish some closer relationships.

Patriarch Reginald Cross spoke with Ves for ten minutes before he moved to leave. His stiff expert pilots departed with their leader as well.

As the Larkinsons began to leave as well, Professor Benedict briefly held Ves back.

"We're in this together now." He spoke in a low tone.

Ves knew he had to be careful of what he said in this venue. "Are you happy now, professor?"

"Very." The former fugitive grinned. "Just call me Professor or Benedict. We are friends now. You don't have to pay too much attention to our differences in rank. As future collaborators, it is vital for us to develop an understanding of each other."

Understanding. How funny. Ves had no interest at all in understanding the man who used to be known as the Skull Architect. Even if Benedict hung up his pirate coat, he was anything but a typical Senior!

Ves awkwardly coughed. "You are of a different generation than mine. I don't think it is easy to become friends. I think it's best to stick to a professional relationship."

"Don't be so stiff, Ves." Benedict moved closer and slapped his palm against the younger mech designer's back. "The best collaborations arise out of mutual understanding. The ongoing collaboration between you and your wife is a great example. If the two of you weren't so close to each other, your results would have probably lacked that special quality that is only present in works designed with love."

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Ves growled.

"Hahaha. It is nice to be young." Benedict smiled in a patronizing manner. "You are lucky, you know that? You are so young for a Journeyman. Do you know why that is so highly prized in the mech industry."

"Our potential is greater. The earlier we exit the Apprentice stage, the more time we have to impact the higher ranks."

"That's not quite it." The Senior shook his head. "While you are correct, it is not the primary reason why the mech industry pays so much attention to mech designers such as you. While there is some disagreement over this, I believe the actual reason why talented fellows such as you are valuable is because of the passion derived from your youth."

Ves grew confused. "What do you mean?"

"You young folk are still young and tender. You haven't been grinded down by reality and the unfairness of the society you live in yet. This especially applies to upstarts like you who have managed to climb up from mediocrity in just a couple of steps. You're a confident mech designer, aren't you?"

"I am." Ves plainly admitted. "If you were in my shoes, you would feel the same way."

"You have ample grounds to be so self-assured, but try and make the most of it while you still can. It is easier for younger mech designers like you to aim high. Don't take your passion and enthusiasm for granted. Once you grow older and encounter more setbacks, it will become more challenging for you to maintain an optimistic mindset. By that time, it becomes ten times harder for you to design boldly and with as much energy as before."

Ves paused and took in the older man's words. He could feel that the advice was sincere. The Skull Architect seemed to portend an inevitable transformation.

To be honest, Ves was quite spooked by the prospect. However, he had met several different older mech designers. The best of them were still as vigorous as younger mech designers. It was hard to imagine that they were plodding old coots whose hearts had already atrophied.

"You don't seem to fall in this category." He remarked in a suspicious tone. "In our previous talks, you have always sounded optimistic about your future prospects."

"As mech designers grow older, they grow more comfortable with their success. Their body grows less active. This change in physiology also affects their thought patterns. It becomes more challenging for them to push themselves and make the difficult decisions that are necessary to progress their design philosophy. For example, if you were two-hundred years older, you would never do something as reckless as entering the Nyxian Gap."

Ves unconsciously nodded. At that age, he would probably want to sit back, especially if he had already attained an extremely high level of success. Why should he risk his life this way when he was already a Master Mech Designer or a Star Designer? There were plenty of other pursuits that were worth his time!

"I know what you're thinking." Benedict said with a knowing expression. "You have to know that attitudes like yours are one of the main reasons that older mech designers slow down. Just think about it. In the first half of their careers, the most successful ones are very hard-working, daring and not afraid to explore the unknown. Now, suppose they grow older and no longer make the same decisions. Do you think they will still be able to progress just as much when they no longer follow their own formula for success?"

Though the professor's logic was hard to argue, Ves instinctively felt there was something wrong.

"I don't think it's that simple. The challenges that Apprentices and Journeymen have to overcome are very different from the difficulties that Seniors and Masters have to resolve. Even I know that as your design philosophy gets further ahead, you need to be a lot more thoughtful and do a lot more work. Diligence and persistence are far more important at those later stages."

Benedict briefly looked impressed. "You aren't wrong. Older mech designers can't afford to relax. The moment you spend less time on designing mechs and more time on enjoying the fruits of your work is the moment you have thrown away your chances of climbing higher. It is just that it's not enough for you to work diligently."

"I get that, but aren't you exaggerating a bit, professor?"

"NO." Benedict leaned forward and uttered in front of Ves! "You are very much mistaken about the barriers you must overcome. Imagine you are facing a completely sheer wall that is as tall as a mech. In order to get ahead, you need to overcome it in some way, and you can't use tools. How can you possibly accomplish this important feat?"

"Uhmm.."

"You can't, at least in a normal fashion!" Benedict shouted! "You need to be creative and make decisions that you wouldn't make at normal times! You need to expand your imagination and grasp solutions that aren't immediately apparent! For example, instead of trying to climb this wall, dig a tunnel even if your nails are bleeding! If the wall doesn't have any handholds, chisel them yourself! If there aren't any steps, just kill a lot of people and pile up their rotting bodies to form your own stairs!"

Ves backed off as Benedict ranted, but the professor persistently matched his pace!

"Uhm, professor, let's not be too morbid, shall we? We are mech designers. We are civilized people."

The Senior snapped back to reality. He blinked and adjusted his coat. "Ah. Ahem. I apologise for that, Ves. I was a bit too invested in the experiences of my own past. You are filled with talent. I hate to see you waste your gift by losing the qualities that have made you great. Inappropriate metaphors aside, remember my lesson. Every single Master and Star Designer has overcome impossible odds in order to achieve their level of success. When you approach my level, you must not flinch from the challenges that bar your way to Master."

With those words, the professor casually patted Ves' shoulder before flying towards the exit.

Ves kept hovering above the central garden for a few minutes. He eventually shrugged.

"Whatever. I'll see what I'm up against when I've reached Senior."

He was not ignorant to the fact that Seniors had to go above and beyond in order to realize their design philosophies. Plenty of mech designers had alluded the difficulty of overcoming this hurdle.

The problem was those same mech designers were too damn vague and indirect about what exactly they had to do in order to succeed! With no one telling Ves what they had to do, how could he ever take their warnings as seriously as they wished?

It was like describing the danger of the Nyxian Gap. While Ves received a flood of intelligence about the many threats lurking in the anomalous region of space, he merrily dove in with his task force and learned the hard way that it was a lot more terrifying than he thought!

"The problem is that there is only so much I can do to prepare for the challenges ahead."

It would have been great if Benedict offered him some concrete advice. Instead, all the Skull Architect told him was to maintain the courage and daring of his youth.

"Maybe he's right. Maybe I truly need to seek challenges in order to continue my progress." He muttered.

With the signing of the treaty, the two clans soon submitted their pioneering alliance application to the MTA.

The efficient organization only took a couple of hours to accept the application and include it in their registry.

The Golden Skull Alliance became an officially-recognized entity. So far, the alliance only consisted of the Larkinson and Cross Clans.

That would definitely change in the future. The Golden Skull Alliance needed at least one more partner in order to gather enough merits to redeem a fleet beyond ticket.

Applications already flooded the Larkinson Clan. There were many organizations interested in joining the alliance that Ves established with the Crossers.

However, none of them were worth his notice. If Gavin hadn't brought up any of them to Ves, then the offers simply didn't satisfy the conditions set by Larkinsons.

"I hope I can find some useful and qualified partners in the next couple of years."

The Larkinsons had plenty of time and opportunity to seek them. The Golden Skull Alliance had to pass through at least three star clusters in order to reach a beyonder gate. There were so many star sectors and states in between that there had to be some suitable groups along the way!

In fact, even Hexer dynasties had tried to worm their way into his alliance!

Their applications never reached his desk. Gavin knew better than that.

As the days went by, the two clans did not immediately turn into bosom buddies. The Larkinsons and Crossers still needed a lot of time in order to develop closer friendships.

This was fine to Ves. As far as he was concerned, this was just an alliance of convenience.

Both clans began to prepare for their upcoming journey. Ves, Gloriana, Juliet and the rest of the Design Department spent most of their time on progressing their design projects. Other Larkinsons were busy trying to gather the supplies and ready their fleet for departure.

With the date of delivery of a pair of very special capital ships coming closer, anticipation continued to build up among the Larkinsons.

After many months of residing in this boring star system, the Larkinsons were eager to leave and explore the wider galaxy!

As the wait grew unbearable, a large fleet finally entered the Cinach System!