The Mech Touch novel Chapter 411

"Wait a second! What’s that huge transparent material embedded into the chest?"

"That looks like a glass-like composite. Is that a cockpit window or something?"

"Don’t be ridiculous! This mech is obviously built to fight. Incorporating windows in those kinds of mechs is one of the stupidest things you can do!"

The chest crystal sparked another round of speculation. Ves let the crowd go on for half a minute before he resumed his speech.

"Introducing the first generation in the Crystal Lord product line, the CL-A-01 is exquisitely designed to meet the needs of the men and women who are burdened with defending the Bright republic for years on end. It’s a mech designed to last for ages, and is designed from the ground up to maximize its longevity."

Ves spent the next ten minutes going over the basic specs of the mech. He showcased its speed, which was very important for all mobile rifleman mechs. He also reintroduced the Veltrex armor system and its particular properties that made the Crystal Lord a lot more resilient than many other rifleman mechs.

Naturally, he also couldn’t forget about the crystals.

"On top of the amazing level of performance offered by our design, the Crystal Lord also makes use of a feature derived from technology recovered from alien ruins. Let me introduce to you the benefits of the two crystals embedded into each copy."

The Crystal Lord at the front unarched its back a little, giving the crowd a better view of the giant diamond-like crystal.

"The crystal at the chest is not a decorative component. It is a core weapon in the Crystal Lord’s kit that delivers a powerful blow under certain circumstances."

As Ves laid out its properties, someone at the crowd rudely yelled out. "What nonsense is this?! Absorbing energy attacks? Shooting them back out? This is just another useless gimmick that’s only good for marketing!"

Ves did not take offense at the latest hackler. Instead, his smile turned into a grin. "Seeing as how many of you are skeptical, why not witness it in action? We have prepared a secure stage where you can see this feature in action with your own two eyes."

The Crystal Lord walked towards the arena stage that’s been cordoned off since the start of the reveal. The audience eagerly approached the sides of the arena and milled close.

Opposite to the original Crystal Lord stood another copy. Once both mechs took their places, one of them started winding up its laser rifle and began to fire a high-powered laser beam that burned for seconds at a time.

The more knowledgeable people among the crowd looked impressed.

"Look at the power behind that beam! That’s not what you see every day from a rifle that size!"

"Is this laser rifle really a light model? Many medium-sized laser rifles don’t pack that much of a punch!"

"Hey, instead of watching that rifle in action, why not look at the mech that’s being hit. Its armor is still unscatched!"

At this distance and with both mechs standing still with their ECMs turned off, it was impossible for the shooter to miss. Every laser beam landed squarely against the crystal, which sustained minimal damage but instead devoured every bit of energy sent in its way.

The level of absorption demonstrated by the Crystal Lord only applied to the gold label versions of the mech. The chest crystals needed to be really large and activated by the crystal cube before it could withstand the full might of a full-powered laser rifle.

Furthermore, only hits directly to the chest and onto the crystal would have their damage negated. Any laser beams that glanced to the lower chest or the neck and shoulders would only have a fraction of its energy negated.

No matter the truth, Ves would be a fool to inform the crowd of those shortcomings. He wanted to introduce his new design in the best possible light, so he regarded this product reveal as selling a fantasy.

"As you can see, the chest crystal is capable of tolerating high amounts of energy damage and can absorb them inside as well. If you look at the readouts to the side, you can clearly see that we haven’t curbed the power output of the laser rifle in any way. What you are seeing right now is what the new custom laser rifle for the Crystal Lord can output in a sustainable manner!"

"Where can we buy this rifle? It’s lighter and more powerful than anything I’ve seen!"

Ves laughed a little. "We have no plans to produce and sell a standalone laser rifle except to replace a broken sample. This weapon works best with the Crystal Lord, which is highly tailored to this specific rifle model."

"How come this rifle is so powerful?"

"That’s because we incorporated a smaller version of the Crystal Lord’s chest crystal into the mechanism of the rifle. Its many wondrous properties allow us to substitute much of the conventional components that add a lot of bulk to the rifle. It’s smaller and lighter, but still delivers the same amount of damage of a full-sized rifle."

As Ves elaborated on the crystals, the chest crystal quickly reached its saturation point. It could no longer continue to absorb more energy.

"Don’t think this crystal is limited to absorbing energy. What comes in must also come out."

To illustrate his point, the saturated crystal instantly discharged a thick white beam against a target prepared to the side. The white beam burned through multiple layers of armor plating, demonstrating the awesome power behind the cannon-like beam in a direct fashion.

"That power!"

"Look at the energy readings! It’s more powerful than a laser cannon!"

"Hah! More powerful, but is it useful enough? Don’t forget that the crystal absorbed a lot of laser beams. How many mechs will stand still on the battlefield and how many enemies will conveniently aim at their chests? I stand by my words! This is nothing more than a marketing gimmick!"

Some people still remained sober, to which Ves could do not against. It wasn’t as if they distorted the truth. The utility of the crystal was much less than what the mechs depicted.

Still, the overall reaction of the crowd looked encouraging. Ves still managed to sell the idea that the crystals held a lot of utility.