The Mech Touch novel Chapter 7449

Chapter 7449: Hedging Strategy

"What?!" Ves looked scandalized! "I am not going to take up your suggestions!"

Before Calabast provided him with her recommendations, she strongly advised him to send out Eliza Mo Ragadan.

He exchanged a look with his subordinate from the Red Collective.

"I am not too sure about this." He said. "I could use a second perspective. While I haven’t known her for as long as I have liked, I think I am a good enough judge of character to trust in her discretion. If I want her to represent my interests for years on end, then I have to bring her into my inner circle sooner or later. I might as well do the former."

Calabast paused for a moment but did not repeat her statement. She simply shrugged as if making it clear that any leaks would be his fault.

"Very well, then. Let me give you a pair of proposals. They may sound unpleasant, but they are undeniably effective if you want to gain real power in the Terran Alliance."

Her proposals ended up so extreme that Ves could not imagine that he would ever seriously agree to them! They sounded so offensive to him that he found it outrageous that Calabast chose to bring them forth in the first place!

"Outrageous! You are essentially telling me that I should pick a side by sabotaging the other side! That goes way too far! I will never sabotage General Axelar Streon’s chances of breaking through by tampering with his Ouroboros! Not that I will be able to do that in the first place. It is ridiculous for you to think that I can alter the Ouroboros from an enormous distance. As for your second idea of siding with the Steel Coalition by deliberately weakening or outright sabotaging the Woodsap mechs adapted to elven pilots, that is even more heinous! My principles as a mech designer will never allow me to undertake such an action! Every mech pilot deserves to make use of the best work that I can reasonably supply. Practicality is a valid reason to lower the performance of a product. Selfish and political motives are not valid reasons!"

Ves could understand the logic behind the spymaster’s devious plots, but that did not mean he could imagine himself pulling them off! He might not be the most principled leader, but he never compromised on them when it came to his primary profession!

He would instantly lose much of his pride and sense of duty as a mech designer if he started to taint his own works in order to advance other goals!

He directed a very sharp look at the intelligence director.

Ves suspected that she hadn’t been serious about the pair of proposals in the first place. She knew him far too well to know what definitely wouldn’t work.

It seemed as if Calabast deliberately engineered this situation in order to make him more open-minded towards less extreme proposals.

His gaze told her that he was on to her game and was not amused by it in the slightest.

"The risks are disproportionate to the rewards." Eliza offered her own opinion. "The probability of getting caught is too great. The Terrans are too competent. If they manage to find proof that you are involved with pulling one of them down, then their trust in you will collapse overnight. You will not make enemies out of the coalition that you have scorned, but you will never be able to retain the trust of the coalition that you have sided with. No matter what, both sides consist of Terrans who are loyal to their colonial star empire. They are not truly enemies with each other. If you insist on entering their game, then it would be wise to play within the boundaries that they have set."

"That is sound advice, Eliza." Ves appreciated her input. "What would you do instead?"

His chief of staff looked pensive for a moment. "It might not be polite, but I would attempt to make use of your current influence within the Red Collective to tilt the balance in the favor of your chosen side. The RC as a whole is divided on this matter, but that does not stop you from changing that. You have numerous friends and allies within our superorganization. If you can rally them and form a united power bloc, thereby acquiring enough power to draw on the resources of the Terran Alliance, but maintain enough distance to avoid getting caught up in its troubles."

Calabast shook her head in disapproval. "That does not go far enough. A web of alliances and influences is decent, but it is based on a shaky foundation. As long as the Larkinson Clan is not considered Terran, we will always be outsiders to them. They will never give us too much real power. They are too intelligent and far-sighted enough to spot the potential traps. No, if you want to take greater advantage of the Terran Alliance, you will need to commit yourself one way or another."

"And how do we do that without giving up our independence?" Ves asked.

The intelligence director smirked. "I think you will like my less extreme proposals. My general advice is to hedge your bets. Why invest in a single side when you can invest in both at the same time? This way, no matter which coalition has managed to gain the upper hand, you will be able to earn the corresponding benefits."

Ves grimaced when he heard that. "Hedging is little different from staying neutral. The Terrans will definitely figure out what we are doing. I do not think that they will like our clan very much if we are attempting to exploit both sides at once."

"This is why you need to approach this in a certain way, Ves. You are a mech designer, are you not? As a recently promoted first-class mech designer who is on the cusp of completing the massive Arboreal Project, you have become one of the few mech designers who can compete fairly against the Terrans in their own mech market. This is a privilege that relatively few foreigners possess. You should take advantage of this condition to strategically develop a handful of mechs that can encourage the Terrans into a path of your choosing."

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