The Mech Touch

If Ves had to make a living artifact that not only embodied his extraordinary identity, but also had to serve as a tool of evolution, he wanted it to be a cat.

Why a cat?

"There are too many reasons to count."

Ves adored cats and was most definitely a cat person. Even though his family already collected a lot of cats, there was always room for more.

The cat was literally and figuratively the totem animal of the Larkinson Clan, which he personally founded and represented. It made little sense to resort to another animal unless it was a member of the Felidae family such as a tiger or a leopard.

A cat was also an inherently mobile object, which suited a living product the best.

Ves had made a number of other totems in the past. The Unending Regalia which he wore right now, the Hammer of Brilliance which he occasionally made use of and the Larkinson Mandate which he used to track his clansmen all had one trait in common.

"They can't move on their own."

Technically, the Unending Regalia could operate by itself in a limited fashion, but it truly wasn't built to function as an autonomous battle bot.

As for the other two totems, neither of them possessed any inherent mobility systems. Their only chance of escaping a calamity was to beg Goldie or Vulcan to exert great power to and manifest a part of themselves to take the hammer or book away.

Ves didn't want to impose this limitation on his divine artifact, not when he had the ability to do better.

A cat fit all of his requirements. A cat was not only compact and easy to bring along to different places, but also excelled in evasion and running away from danger.

"Cats might not be as strong and powerful as other native earth animals, but if there is one aspect that they are good at, it is keeping themselves alive!"

That was exactly what he wanted from his autonomous divine artifact!

Ves had contemplated other options that were more dignified in nature, but none of them were any good at avoiding danger by themselves. Even if he integrated a small antigrav system in their construction, it simply wouldn't be as good.

"A crown or another book looks nice, but I can't just carry them around in informal settings."

Ves had an affinity to both crowns and books. He took pride in the masterwork crown that he had made for his favorite dwarven emperor. The Imperial Crown was an excellent masterwork totem and he thought there wasn't any way he could do better until he learned about the existence of divine artifacts.

However, Ves couldn't really justify the act of wearing a crown or even a circlet in his daily life.

He could settle for a smaller item such as a necklace or an earring, but Ves was not a big fan of wearing jewelry.

He much preferred to equip himself with more practical objects that could help him out in case he encountered danger.

This was why a cat was so much more convenient. Ves already developed a well-known habit of bringing along Lucky and Clixie whenever he visited a different place.

Few of his hosts ever took notice of the cats. Even if it was rather clear that the cats possessed a certain degree of combat power, their adorable appearances and playful behavior made them so charming that they simply didn't evoke much threat in the eyes of other people.

It was only when Ves attempted to enter an area that was secured through automated systems that the cats had to stay outside. Artificial intelligences possessed no heart and were not fooled by the inherent cuteness of cats!

"That doesn't detract from their effectiveness."

These instances had taught Ves that cats could get away with almost anything. They were just too cute.

For multiple millennia, cats had accompanied humans across the stars.

Throughout the ages, the adorable furry mammals constantly conditioned their food providers into treating them like babies or princesses.

This pattern had persisted for so long that it had practically become an instinct that was baked in the human psyche.

Although Ves doubted whether cats still came across as cute in front of alien races, the diminutive size and the lack of apparent threat should still allow the felines to escape notice.

"Camouflage is important." Ves summed up his goal.

While he felt tempted to go for a big and ostentatious artifact, it made more sense to avoid too much attention.

Going for a divine artifact that looked indistinguishable from normal cats was much more in line with his current strategy!

As the holder of a fragment of the Metal Scroll, Ves had long embraced the habit of making himself look more unassuming.

Even though he couldn't help himself at times and exposed his trump cards one after another to the MTA, none of these secrets were important to him. As long as the truth about the Mech Designer System never came out, he didn't really care about exposing his other advantages, especially when he was constantly growing stronger and more confident in his own position.

"I can't reveal anything about my divine artifact, though. The mechers probably know that this kind of secret is tied to the core of the Five Scrolls Compact. I can't explain how I discovered the existence of divine artifacts, let alone make one on my own with the resources and facilities that I have available!"

A divine artifact needed to incorporate a fragment of a powerful individual's Divine Core. Ves had learned that it was exceedingly difficult to expose it, let alone take out a slice!

Using phasewater to manipulate a Divine Core was extremely dangerous. While there were undoubtedly other methods that could produce the same result, Ves shouldn't have access to any of these high-end techniques.

In any case, a cat would solve many problems. Ves and the Larkinson Clan already had so many of them that the addition of a random cat would not even merit any attention from outside observers.

He just had to make sure that his family did not kick up a fuss.

Now that he thought this matter through, Ves was eager to start his new design project.

One of the reasons why he was so eager to design a cat was because he already possessed a good understanding of how felines worked.

Back when he designed the Devil Tiger, he extensively studied how cats and other cat-like creatures moved and fought. He learned their shapes and proportions and became familiar with how those variables affected their performance in different situations.

Not only that, but Ves had also been working on an informal side project over the years.

He didn't really have a hobby due to his busy life, but he occasionally passed the time by working on a few whimsical designs.

Ves accessed one of those designs that he had stored in the depths of his implant's memory banks.

A projection appeared that depicted an incomplete design of a mechanical cat.

The cat happened to share a large resemblance to Lucky.

As far as Ves was concerned, his very first cat was one of the best and most sophisticated mechanical cats that had ever been made. It was natural to take a lot of inspiration from Lucky's excellent design.

"It's too bad I can't replicate him." Ves regretfully sighed.

The reason why the mechanical cat design was incomplete was because Ves had no idea how to design the internals.

Ves had never been able to scan Lucky's internal architecture. Who knew what kind of advanced components were contained in his small and cute metallic body.

Although Ves could design an internal structure of his own, he never really dared to do so. He knew in his heart that whatever he designed would be far inferior to Lucky's extremely advanced interior.

It was illogical for Ves to feel ashamed for designing an inferior product when Lucky was obviously developed by a much better creator, but he couldn't help it. He didn't want to feel ashamed whenever Lucky and his new mechanical cat sat side by side.

Now that Ves felt compelled to design and make an important new cat, he could no longer allow these feelings of inadequacy to get in his way.

"Maybe I don't need to follow Lucky's template to the letter." Ves mused as he began to entertain several alternatives. "I have my own advantages. I can do much more if I apply my own style and design applications to my cat design."

According to what Ves learned from the last enlightenment fruit, there was no obligation for people to make their own divine artifacts. It was much more customary to leave the job to the professionals who knew what they were doing.

However, the individuals that went through the trouble of doing so usually attained better results. This was because they were much more capable of making ritual sacrifice altars that best fit themselves.

From this, Ves made a general observation. "The greater the compatibility between the divine artifact and the principal, the greater the benefits. The risks should also be lower as there are less chances of conflict or rejection."

What did that mean for his cat design?

"I feel like designing an organic cat."

Ves would have never entertained this idea in the past, but he was a changed man now. He had recently completed his Blood Knight design which he couldn't wait to test in reality!

While cats weren't comparable to biomechs, Ves possessed just enough competence in biotechnology and genetics to develop a basic designer beast.

He was sure that he could find enough resources about the biology of cats in his large library. Cats were so ubiquitous in the Larkinson Clan that it was essential to gather relevant information.

While he probably didn't have access to the designs of more advanced designer cats, he did recall that he obtained enough medical data about Clixie, which he could use as a reference.

"It's too bad I can't replicate a cat as powerful as Clixie." Ves sighed.

Rubarthan Sentinel Cats could only be grown under highly specific circumstances. Without setting up a specific growth environment and without providing them with the right nutrients at the right times, it was impossible for them to grow up healthy, let alone stay alive!

This was a common form of copy protection that ensured that the developers of popular designer beasts were able to protect their commercial rights.

Since Ves never bothered to buy any advanced organic cat designs of his own, he didn't have any existing templates that he could build upon to design his own flesh-and-blood cat!

He grimaced. "The only way I can make this work is to go off the beaten track. I can design an organism that superficially resembles a cat but is actually completely different on the inside."

This did not sound like an attractive solution to him because he would have to do way too much work.

He had not forgotten about his goal of earning more Ascension Points. If he spent too much time on fiddling with genes, he would rapidly reduce the amount of profit he could earn at the end!

"I need to go for a more expedient solution. I'm already familiar with how to design metallic products. What is even better is that I am already half-way done with designing my own mechanical cat. I just need to design the internal architecture before I can proceed with fabricating my latest work."

That said, he didn't want to give up on the advantages of an organic cat, especially after he learned so much about the power of blood.

As Ves continued to look at his existing, incomplete cat design, he suddenly came up with a bold idea.

"Why not do both?"

A mechanical cat was too boring while an organic cat was too complicated.

If he took his existing mechanical cat design but filled up its internals with biocomponents, he might be able to strike a favorable balance!

"I'm going to make a cyborg cat!"