The Mech Touch novel Chapter 583

Avid Serpent refused to move at the end of the match. Even as a bunch of heavy lifter bots hauled Broken Claw’s tiger mech away, the axeman mech remained on the arena grounds.

The audience members stilled as they sensed an unusual spectacle coming.

"Avid Serpent! Avid Serpent! Avid Serpent!" Her new fans repeated her pseudonym like a mantra.

After half a minute of inactivity, her mech finally raised its axe!

"Who said that I was a deserter?! Who said that I’m a coward who values her life over her loyalty? I am a Vesian! That remains true whether I’m part of the Mech Legion or not! I have fought and bled for my state for years, and I will do so once again!"

"Vesia! Vesia! Vesia!"

"Sod off, you Vesians! This is the Reinald Republic!"

"Kick her out already! I wanna see the next duel!"

Ves and the rest of the Vandals looked unsettled. They might have cheered if they shared the same nationality as Avid Serpent, but the fact of the matter was that she fought on behalf of the enemy. No matter how valiant she appeared right now, the enemy was the enemy.

"What do you think she’s doing?" Ensign Tiss asked.

"No idea." He shrugged. "Is this even allowed?"

"There are no rules in the arena." Trian explained. Only a mech pilot understood other mech pilots best. "All types of desperate people compete in the underground arena. The operators love a good drama, and winning a match gives the mech pilot the undivided attention of the crowd. You can do a lot with that attention."

Lieutenant Feray nodded. "I’ve been to a few underground rings. Some mech pilots who compete in these arenas are trying to get hired. Others wish to absolve their mistakes and regain their honor. It sounds like Avid Serpent falls under that category."

The ebuilliant crowd smelled a good story, and sat in anticipation for the Vesian mech duelist’s next words.

"Vesians! I have never forgotten you, nor have I forsaken the stars that I call home! Let me prove my allegiance to you by taking revenge for the shame you have suffered in recent times!"

A large amount of ooh’s and aah’s ran through the crowd.

"As a Vesian citizen, I’ve followed the news and I’m as depressed and ashamed as any of you! The shamelessness of the Bright Republic knows no bounds! Their dishonorable Mech Corps sent out their most depraved mech regiment of all, the Flagrant Vandals, to kill and raid our innocent civilians!"

"I love you, Flagrant Vandals!"

"Meh, the Vandals are the mutts of the Mech Corps!"

"Hahaha! The Flagrant Vandals are the pride of the Bright Republic!"

"The Flagrant Vandals are nothing but pirates in disguise!"

"That means they have Reinaldan blood in them!"

The Vesian mech duelist let the crowd simmer a bit before continuing. "Hearing people’s praise of the Flagrant Vandals makes my blood boil to the brim! Shame on you for idolizing this gathering of thieves! From their name alone they actually take pride in their wickedness! Their crimes against the Kingdom are innumerable! From throwing artificial meteorites into a populated city, to capturing one of our revered Venerables without her own expert mech, how low can they go?!"

Her words polarized the crowd. Since the Reinald Republic bordered the Vesia Kingdom, they paid a lot of attention on what went on with their bigger neighbor. The Bright-Vesia Wars became a keen topic of interest in their daily lives.

Recently, nothing caught more attention than the actions of the Flagrant Vandals. The main fleet had inexplicably split in two, with one branch heading towards the Reinald Republic! Practically everyone followed the exploits of the Verle Task Force and its hard-fought victories against some of the best the Vesians threw at them. Each time the Vandals overcame an obstacle, the admiration among the Reinaldans grew.

Due to the fact that the Reinaldans considered the Vesians as an ominous rivals, the success of the Flagrant Vandals was something to be celebrated. By far the overwhelming majority of the Reinald Republic approved of their achievements.

Not only that, most of the foreigners who visited the Harkensen System admired their performance under adversity as well. It took a lot of guts and ingenuity to run the gauntlet from the middle of an entire enemy state! Nobody pitied the Vesians for their failure to stop the task force from escaping their territories when they had countless mechs at their disposal.

Of course, the outsiders only formed their opinions from a narrow perspective. They didn’t have access to the full picture. The Vesians were not only hampered by their serious internal division, they also faced many limitations and setbacks by the low-key actions of the rebel groups that acted as a cancer to the Kingdom.

How could patriotic Vesians not stand still as their state received a battering from the public? Foreign bystanders fundamentally misunderstood the odds stacked against the Mech Legion!

"I say no more! No more hero worship for the Flagrant Vandals! Wicked thieves deserve to be scorned rather than worshipped! I may be all alone out here, but the Kingdom lives on within my heart!"

Avid Serpent’s axeman mech abruptly threw its axe to the ground. The blade of the axe dug into the sand like a falling executioner’s axe! The thud rang through the hall like a drumbeat through everyone’s ears.

"On behalf of the stars that I call home, I issue a challenge to the Flagrant Vandals! I know you are here! There is no one here who have missed your triumphant arrival in the Harkensen System! Stand up from the seats and show yourselves!"

The entire crowd fell silent. Those who stood immediately sat down. No bystander wanted to earn the spicy Vesian mech duelist’s ire. Avid Serpent’s axeman mech slowly turned around to behold the entire audience.

"Where are you, Vandals? I’m right here! Are you brave enough to meet my challenge?"

The arena lights dimmed down until the entire underground space fell into shadows. A series of flood lights illuminated from above. The largest one shone upon Avid Serpent’s mech standing with its axe thrown before in an immensely heroic bearing.

The other flood lights shone upon several clumps of people sitting in the stands. One one them happened to land squarely on Ves’ group!

Nolsen cursed. "Damn Reinaldans. They’re putting us on the spot! Can’t we enjoy some privacy?"