The Mech Touch novel Chapter 1851

Chapter 1851 Exploitation

After Lieutenant Ferct finished her introduction of the services available to associates, she soon bid him goodbye.

"Let me reiterate. It is a great privilege to become our associate. Some of the best and brightest people of the galactic rim are connected to us. In addition, there are many associates who have proven themselves to be exceptional enough to meet our high standards. We never waste our time with useless bums who are only able to get far by spending. You are in good company, Ves. Remember, MTA merits are everything to us. Be sure to work hard and make the most out of your remaining youth!"

With that, her projection disappeared in a blink, leaving Ves alone with Lucky and the Larkinson Mandate.

He turned to his cat. "What do you think. Was she sincere?"

"Meow."

"I agree." He turned to the Larkinson Mandate. "What about you? What is your judgement?"

The Golden Cat tilted her head, making her big eyes look even more adorable!

Nyaaaaaa.

"You have a point. Lieutenant Ferct doesn't care about me. To the Rim Guardians, associates like me are just a bunch cheap labor. As long as they throw enough MTA merits at us, we won't hesitate to bark on command!"

On the surface, the relation between the Rim Guardians and its associates was one of equal exchange. The Rim Guardians did not force the associates to do anything. As long as Ves remained useful and did not act directly against their interests, they wouldn't revoke his associate status!

Just like Leemar's Clifford Society, the Rim Exchange ostensibly served as an elaborate portal where associates could gain a lot of benefits in exchange for trading something valuable such as a rare good or their valuable expertise. Each transaction was completely voluntary, allowing the associates to pick and choose the deals at their leisure.

However, underneath the surface, the game was rigged from the start.

Throughout her introduction, Lieutenant Ferct emphasized the value and importance of MTA merits multiple times. She plainly said that he wouldn't be able to do anything without any merits under his belt!

Furthermore, she also dismissed the utility of transferable currencies such as mech credits, hex credits or coalition credits.

Money was still valuable. That was no doubt. It was just that many of the most valued goods and services provided by the Rim Exchange and the MTA were priced in merits!

The crucial difference between mech credits and MTA merits was that the latter couldn't be transferred, inherited, exchanged or obtained in any way or than to earn them directly from the MTA!

As the sole provider of MTA merits, the MTA and its underlying organizations held a stranglehold on both sides of a transaction!

For Ves to buy something from the Rim Exchange, he needed merits.

How could he obtain merits? By completing missions issued by the Rim Exchange!

"It's like a circle!" He uttered. "All of the merits issued by the Rim Guardians eventually end up back in their hands!"

Of course, Ves got something in return, but he had no doubt the Rim Exchange charged huge premiums for their goods and services! There was no reason for them to be generous and lower their prices out of the good of their hearts. Ves bet that the Rim Guardians earned a profit every step of the way!

"It's too bad that I have no choice but to play along." He sighed.

Just because the Rim Guardians wanted to exploit him didn't mean he should turn away. The MTA's monopoly on MTA merits meant that Ves couldn't go anywhere else!

Well, if Ves was really desperate, he could approach the CFA instead and try to earn CFA merits, but that was a complete non-starter.

There was no way the CFA would treat mech designers like Ves well! He might as well commit suicide right away if he wanted to get screwed even harder!

In short, Ves should never hold the illusion that the Rim Guardians were looking out for their associates. Their own interests always came first!

That said, it wasn't all that bad to build up a relationship with the Rim Guardians. Exploitative they might be, they were light on commitments. They did not demand his allegiance like states and neither did they impose any further obligations.

This sounded great to someone who pursued independence such as him. Since he sought to turn the Larkinson Clan into a sovereign entity, he could dearly use the services and backing that a powerful organization like the Rim Guardians could provide!

He just had to pay the right price.

"In terms of value, I can provide a lot of unique services!" He realized.

He could design mechs that possessed glows. As far as he knew, not a single mech designer in human space could do the same!

He could turn ordinary mech pilots into expert candidates. This was just a wanted transition that the 'market price' for this service was priceless!

"It's too bad I can't do it again."

It would be too suspicious if Ves kept accepting missions that required him to turn average mech pilots into expert candidates. Even a six-year old kid could tell that he mastered some kind of hidden method to promote mech pilots!

Ves felt a bit constrained by his situation. Using his specialty and his spiritual expertise, he could perform all kinds of feats considered impossible. Yet if he used too much, then he would inevitably get exposed, thereby drawing the interests of the MTA and other immensely powerful entities!

Once he landed in their crosshairs, he could kiss his ambitions and freedom goodbye!

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