The Mech Touch novel Chapter 874

Just as every Vandal and Swordmaiden waited for the next status updates of the follow-up party, the scout mechs sent back word of an alarming piece of news.

They encountered enemy scout mechs!

Not only that, they actually tangled against each other!

The scuffle didn’t last long, but it allowed both sides to get the measure of each other.

To be frank, the Vandal scout mech almost lost!

Ves got called to an emergency meeting to analyse the battle footage, but the Vandals present already made a judgement on what they encountered.

"It’s the Vesians!"

They already knew the Vesians arrived at the Aeon Corona System and landed their ground forces on the planet. However, for so long the immense size of the planet reduced the odds of bumping into each other.

No longer!

The Vesian military mech did not hide its allegiance. It proudly wore its regimental colors.

"It’s the 1st Meandering Monkeys of the 3rd Imodris Legion!" Captain Byrd announced with a chilly voice. "They’re the landbound reconnaissance forces under the command of Lady Amalia of Imodris."

"The same noblewoman who raided the Bentheim Region!?"

Lady Amalia made a splash early in the war. She brought out the entire 3rd Imodris Legion and successfully raided numerous lightly-defended star systems in the interior of the Bright Republic!

Vesian scions often led their troops into committing bold attacks, but the deep strike that the 3rd Imodris Legion performed practically whacked the Brighters in the face!

The entire state despaired, and even the LMC’s Mech Nursery on Cloudy Curtain barely managed to fend off a small raid.

Only until the Flagrant Vandals paid the Vesians back by sneaking all the way into the Imodris Duchy and subsequently thrashed the Detemen System. Their incredible daring shot up their profile and provided an invaluable boost to the Republic when they most needed it! Though most Brighters probably forgot about the Vandals soon after, they earned more than enough glory to last a lifetime!

Secretly, that operation also set the Verle Task Force on the path to the Starlight Megalodon, but Ves and the others learned about this later.

As far as the Flagrant Vandals were concerned, they more than squared with the Vesians, yet the Imodris Duchy might not think so! _{freeωebnovēl.c૦m}

"There’s more. Do you see the mech that has run to reinforce the Meandering Monkey scout? I recognize those colors as well. That a mech of the Hostland Warriors!"

"Say what?!"

"Isn’t that a mech regiment from the Hafner Duchy?! Why would they work together with Lady Amalia?!"

The Vesian officers and chiefs all grew incredibly grave. While mech regiments from different duchies occasionally fought alongside each other, it only happened during major engagements, such as when they joined forces to conquer well-defended star systems.

Outside of that, mech regiments from rival duchies hated each other’s guts. In fact, mech regiments mech legions led by nobles detested working together even if they hailed from the same duchy or noble house.

A noble from a different duchy? Enemy!

A noble from the same duchy but from a different house? Enemy!

An esteemed brother or sister from the same house as yours? Enemy!

The sheer amount of infighting that went on in the noble circles of the Vesian Kingdom completely confused the Brighters. How could they get anything done if they constantly competed against people from their own side? It even caused them to resist the Vesians harder, because they wanted no part of their madness!

Still, Ves spotted a common thread. "I think it’s no coincidence that the Meandering Monkeys and the Hostland Warriors are fighting side by side. Which Vesian duchies did our mech regiment piss off lately? Imodris, Venidse and Hafner! I wouldn’t be surprised if a Venidsan detachment has joined the party as well. I think their goals aren’t limited to just the Starlight Megalodon. They are after us."

Everyone looked even graver than before. If any other Vesians arrived in the Aeon Corona System, then the Vandals might still have some hopes of avoiding combat. Yet it had to be mechs hailing from the Imodris and Hafner duchies, both of which harbored an undying hatred against the mech regiment that stampeded throughout their territories!

"If the Hostland Warriors are here, do you reckon that..."

"No one in Hafner hates us more than that expert candidate we thrashed!"

"Did you forgot already? She’s not an expert candidate anymore. She’s a fully-fledged expert pilot now!"

A couple of Vandals connected the dots. Lady Amalia must have paid a huge price to invite the Hostland Warriors. There was no reason for a scion from Imodris to bother with a Hafner mech regiment unless she wanted to hitch Venerable Relia Foster to her wagon!

The Flagrant Vandals captured her on Nova Migolatus I at great cost. They proceeded to ransom her back to the Hafner Duchy for an even greater price to make up their losses.

Back then, the Vandals thought they got the better out of the trade. In exchange for sending back the promising young expert pilot, they received an abundant amount of funds and resources that prepared them for their journey to the Aeon Corona System.

In hindsight, perhaps it would have been better to keep her in custody, because she’d certainly be out for revenge!

"The odds are huge that Venerable Foster has consented to working together with Lady Amalia, if only to obtain the opportunity for a rematch!"