After the Military Department completed its full takeover of the Holy Knight Company’s operations, the company’s repair workshop started handling the maintenance of ordinary Military Mecha. According to the unified design process set by the logistics division of the Military Department, one Mecha after another was sent to the Holy Knight Company. With the help of the logistics division’s staff, the work of the repair technicians gradually fell into place. The entire Holy Knight Company no longer resembled the scene of a civilian repair company as it once did. A barracks was even built on a vacant lot next to the main company building. A platoon of Imperial Soldiers was responsible for the security of the Holy Knight Company. Every morning, they would routinely raise the flag and train. Coupled with strict confidentiality rules and rigorous mechanical work procedures, this gave every Holy Knight Company employee the feeling of being in a classified military unit.
Although the company was merely an external laboratory for the Mythical Army, the technical department still received a considerable amount of advanced equipment. In Tian Xingjian’s view, these were just average pieces, incomparable with the equipment in the Gallipalan laboratories. However, in the eyes of people like Christina, these facilities were already the best. Dell especially was so excited he couldn’t contain himself. He hovered around the equipment, his face flushed and eyes shining, as if he had seen his first love. For the Holy Knight Company, having these facilities would elevate its technical capability by several levels. Other civilian Mecha companies would be left far behind. Just the equipment alone would be enough to attract the best mechanics in the Gazalin Empire to join!
Of course, the equipment wasn’t free. In addition to assisting with the computing work for the core laboratory of the Mythical Army, the technical department devoted all its energy to further improving the [Vajra]. Fatty, on the other hand, seemed somewhat idle. He had done everything he could to the [Vajra], and had no interest in the remaining parts. Besides occasionally sneaking out to the base to guide a group of increasingly unruly Freedom Fighters’ training, he did some calculation work every day and did nothing else. Christina and Dell had tried talking to him a few times, but Fatty would always dodge the conversation, showing an attitude of a master refusing to do trivial work. They couldn’t do anything with him and had to let him be.
After spending so much time together on the [Vajra] renovation project, Fatty made the biggest contribution. Whether out of gratitude or curiosity towards this person whose thoughts were as wild as a Heavenly Pegasus and whose conversations were often off-point, Christina found herself talking to Fatty more and more. Their chats ranged far beyond work and Mecha, covering topics from all over. Fatty was naturally talkative and well-versed in female psychology, flattering Christina in ways that were subtle yet effective, often making her laugh heartily. She found him honest and unsophisticated yet kind and empathetic, a very qualified good friend. So, whenever she had free time, Christina liked to go out for meals and chats with this trickster. For Fatty, it was only natural to accept such treatment with respect. This was, after all, Admiral Gordon’s precious daughter, one of the famous flowers in the Gazalin Nobles Circle, and the target of Prince George’s pursuits. In every way, this was the best route for Fatty to quickly reach the high echelons of the Empire.
Fatty’s long-term mastery of deception finally paid off. Christina often marveled at how this seemingly foolish person could be so knowledgeable, as if he knew half the things in the sky and everything on earth. No matter the topic, nothing could stump him. Christina always got unprecedented insights from him, profound and brilliant.
If it weren’t for the fact that this guy always opened the door with nothing on, Christina could bet he was a noble among nobles. His understanding of noble etiquette and social knowledge was more authentic than that of any Gazalin noble. However, this strange guy never used these skills to disguise himself. His words were always filled with disdain for such hypocritical etiquette.
As for the traditional noble pastimes of ancient Earth, like equestrianism, fencing, tennis, golf, and modern additions like Mecha hunting, flying car racing, and sky fox trot, there wasn’t a single one that Fatty didn’t excel at. Christina was especially amazed when she learned that Fatty was just an orphan and had picked up all these skills through various channels over time. She often wondered if any genius had other quirks, such as being unsophisticated, oblivious to social norms, and dumb like a naïve child.
When Christina saw Fatty’s lonely, sorrowful face while recounting his background, she felt very sad. She suddenly felt that she understood why this guy learned so much noble etiquette but never used it. The more she thought about it, the more certain she was that it was because Zhang Yuan was an orphan!
Zhang Yuan had the typical appearance of an upper-class Chuckna-Clan individual. Never having met his parents, he would surely yearn to be one of the nobility. However, he was ultimately an orphan with unknown origins, living a life similar to many lower-class individuals. The Gazalin Empire didn’t care much for orphans who weren’t of the Vibo Clan. After turning fifteen, these orphans had to leave the orphanage, wander the streets, and find a job to support themselves. Zhang Yuan left the orphanage at the age of ten. In his world, there were only machines, no family, and no friends.