Chapter 41: Spiritual Mechas

Words : 1041 Updated : Sep 10th, 2025

Chapter 41: Spiritual Mechas "Tomorrow, we’ll have a lecture and demonstration of manually operated mechas. Since the Military had just adapted this, there shouldn’t be much material outside the school and the base." Finally! Luca rejoiced at being on equal ground for at least one thing. But it was short-lived when he realized he had a hand speed problem. He wondered how he could practice before he could get the license to operate at least a combination one. "Class dismissed. See you tomorrow." It was lunch break after this, but instead of going out right away, Luca decided to approach Instructor Moore. He was really curious about the piloting modes and knew how much his life depended on the answer he was going to get. "Sir, I was hoping to ask you about today’s lesson." Moore was surprised to be approached by a student this early and was even more intrigued because the student had a golden badge. He watched the exam replay and remembered that this kid used unconventional methods to pass. "Sure, what did you want to ask about?" The student before him was rather timid, but his clear eyes held the curiosity that Moore appreciated from people eager to learn. With clenched fists, the student asked. "Sir, about the piloting modes, you talked about both the manual and combination modes. But what about the fully Spiritual mode that we had on the training pod?" That was an unexpected question for Moore. No student has really ever questioned why there wasn’t a third method of piloting, as most assumed it was used for the virtual pods. Spiritually piloted mechas weren’t exactly a myth. His ancestors had those before, but not anymore. They weren’t capable of making them, nor were they capable of driving such state-of-the-art mechas. "Historically, there was a third way to pilot a mecha: the Spiritual mode. But we’ve long been unable to manufacture such mechas because we’ve lacked their materials." It was such a shame and a giant loss to mankind. But even if they take out the last spiritual mechas kept by the institute, they would have no proper pilots. "No materials?" The student blinked up at him innocently, and rather than being annoyed at his question, Moore found it funny that he was asking such a thing. "Yeah. Spiritual mechas need spiritual materials such as beast parts, cores, and minerals. And as you know, we’re not exactly rich in that. Well, not anymore." Luca could see the look of longing in the instructor’s eyes, but he had to gulp down the desire to ask why they weren’t rich in that anymore, to begin with. That was probably something even children could answer, so he’ll have to look it up on his own. "Also, even if we manage to make those mechas. We won’t have pilots that could last to pilot them for long." "It takes abundant spiritual energy even to boot it up, and with how we are right now, a pilot might only be able to run it for several hours before being forced to stop." "And that’s risky given the corruption problem." Luca could only nod at the implication, understanding why, with their current energy reserves, being caught depleted meant being contaminated. "Then, is there a reason why we still take the test for it?" Maybe there was still use for it? Luca was good at that and was hoping that his only skill wasn’t too useless. That would really suck if so! "Of course, virtual mechas are mostly fully spiritual after all. It’s that or a combination. And it would be hard to use manually operated ones online as the virtual pods rely on one’s spiritual abilities." "So, even your manual assessment was done by connecting the pods directly into the school’s systems, or else we wouldn’t be able to get the manual assessment results." The student’s eyes brightened and his mood seemed to be better at that. Moore couldn’t hold back his amusement because the student wore his heart on his sleeve. Did this student like spiritual piloting that much? Maybe he ought to check his results later. That would be a first in a while since most students hated it. While it was intuitive, most students would’ve fainted halfway through the operations. It’s why the virtual mecha competition was said to house the Empire’s spiritual powerhouses. Surviving a round already meant immense powers, after all. His musing was cut short when the student asked another interesting question. "Sir, if the pods are mostly for spiritual piloting, how are we supposed to train for manually piloted mechas?" Good question! "Ah. The school has special training pods for that. They were created with the control panel in mind. You can try them if you want." "And, of course, you’ll train by live sparring. The training pods wouldn’t be able to simulate the weight and impact, unlike the virtual pods." Moore saw the student nod earnestly at his explanation and felt the joy of finding a student who was interested in hearing the lecture. He understood that this was a military school, so they placed heavy importance on practical skills and hands-on teaching. But he was a researcher first before a military personnel! Sue him! "Thank you, teacher. I’m sorry for taking too much of your time! I’ll go now!" Luca wanted to rush to the library or the cafeteria to ask about the virtual pods. There, he could use his spiritual abilities and maybe make something out of his ability! Luca had his terminal to project the directions toward the cafeteria as he ran. But, while he was staring intently and imagining his future as a virtual mecha enthusiast, Luca face-planted against a solid wall. *Crash!* "Ow!" The impact was rather strong, yet the wall didn’t budge. Luca wanted to check the map for errors because he was sure this was a pathway. How could he bump into a wall like this? He rubbed his nose while trying to push against the wall when the wall spoke. "How come it’s you again?" "???" "!!!" Luca looked up to see that the giant wall had such bright azure eyes. "Host! That’s perfect! Just stay like that!" D-29 wanted him dead, that’s for sure!

Chapter 41: Spiritual Mechas

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