The Mech Touch

Chosen Envoys were not weak.

Although they followed a completely different power system from other people, Chosen Envoys clearly weren't made to fight ordinary soldiers.

Ever since Imon Ingvar assumed his current form, he silently grew stronger while he resided at the Sacred Temple.

As an intangible life form, the present incarnation of Imon lacked a physical body.

No, that was not an entirely accurate description.

He had become a peculiar variation of a qi-based life form.

Ves was not unfamiliar with such entities. The design spirits that he had made or brought under his banner also carried this label.

However, there were big differences between intangible life forms.

Spirits such as Qilanxo, Vulcan and the Superior Mother were primarily anchored in the spiritual realm.

They possessed a very weak presence in the material realm.

Unless they had transcended into True Gods, the only way for them to interact with the material realm was through agents, idols or other material anchors.

Even if they had become powerful enough to manifest a formidable avatar into the material realm, the cost often exceeded any potential gains.

This was why even the more powerful ancestral spirits such as Gaia and the Superior Mother continued to exert their influence through proxies and vessels. They only needed to pay a fraction of the price to get stuff done.

Chosen Envoys were different.

At least in the case of Imon Ingvar, a Chosen Envoy was meant to fight or intercede on behalf of their patron.

That meant that the previous modus operandi was entirely unsuitable for Chosen Envoys. They needed to gain the capacity to take direct action when necessary.

Therefore, the first Chosen Envoy created with the help of the Mech Designer System not only retained a solid presence in the spiritual realm, but also had another foot in the material realm!

To be honest, Ves could not describe the exact state of Imon Ingvar at this time. He still retained his intangibility, but he apparently possessed the ability to inflict attack material targets and inflict real damage on them… somehow.

Of course, the glowing gigantic humanoid projection still lacked a sense of sharpness and lethality.

Even when Saint Commander Casella Ingvar had 'enthroned' her reborn brother with her willpower, the addition of true resonance did not necessarily make the Chosen Envoy ready for his debut performance.

"He's like a giant that is fresh off the conversion lab." The Dark Apostle commented. "As impressive as he is for being able to carry so much true resonance, what is he going to do with all of that power? Is he going to punch the Blackwater Summoner with his half-false, half-real fists?"

The giant leader's words clearly hinted at what was missing from this picture.

Gear!

More specifically, combat gear!

Imon in his form as the Chosen Envoy only wore an occult-like robe that befitted a warrior who experienced rebirth in a sense.

These robes were probably not even real per se. They only existed to grant the Chosen Envoy a healthy heap of modesty.

This was clearly not the optimal state for Imon Ingvar to fight against a powerful opponent.

The Blackwater Summoner or the other greater phase whale possessed far too many advantages. Their Saint Armors alone probably made them completely impervious to his attacks regardless of whether he could channel true resonance.

Willpower possessed the ability to distort reality, but it worked best when it already had a solid basis in reality.

As such, a Chosen Envoy fell far short of specialized expert mech or ace mech.

Imon did not integrate any resonating materials into his development.

As far as Ves was aware of, Imon kept himself busy all these months by relying on a combination of passive E energy absorption and active training.

One of the biggest losses that Imon had suffered upon his transformation into a Chosen Envoy was that he could no longer fight like his old self anymore.

He lacked the willpower and expert mech to replicate his old feats.

His present incarnation had nothing to do with mechs. He may have gained the power to fight while remaining 'naked', but he had lost the most precious traits that allowed high-ranking mech pilots to dominate the battlefield.

Yet just because he manifested in this state did not mean he had to remain this way.

Blinky turned to the Victrix hovering close at hand.

The majestic green-and-golden owl continued to serve her purpose by acting as a living relay for Casella's Command Field.

Yet that was only several major purposes for the Victrix. The Ultimate Module and living fey was not this large for nothing!

Upon receiving a silent command from Ves, the glowing Imon Ingvar immediately turned and flew towards the Victrix!

Soon, his intangible form disappeared inside the beautiful metallic owl, causing it to glow brighter while also falling under the control of not one, but two Ingvars!

At this moment, Casella readily handed the reins of control to the entity that she treated as her brother.

She actually wished to give Imon a better opportunity to fight by letting him control the Minerva Mark II directly!

After all, a former high-tier expert pilot would be able to exert his strength a lot better through a humanoid mech rather than an avian construct.

However, this was absolutely stupid. A command mech should never fight in the trenches. Casella's life was also far too precious to risk in such a manner.

It was a pity that Ves had not prepared a more suitable vessel for his Chosen Envoy. They could only make do with using the Victrix as a stopgap solution.

Perhaps it was possible to merge Imon with a Woodsap mech or other ordinary machine, but they were far too weak and fragile to endure the rigors of high-level combat.

As for other ace mechs, that was even more unthinkable.

The overbearing willpower of other saints would never tolerate the interference of a stranger!

Besides, those ace pilots were already strong enough on their own. Imon's addition brought no meaningful value.

In the end, the best way for Ves' first and only Chosen Envoy to exercise his might was through his sister's Ultimate Module.

Though the Victrix did not look all that different, Imon's entry had caused the Victrix's aura to skyrocket.

The main weakness of an ace commander was the inability to concentrate her willpower into a singular medium.

They had deliberately sacrificed this capability in order to spread their willpower far and wide.

Yet for the Saint Commander, Imon's appearance had broken the rules!

Though Casella took special care to continue to maintain the basic operation of her Command Field, her desire to bestow her brother with all of the willpower she could muster inevitably weakened her Commandeered and Enfeoffed subjects.

Omega Threshers that previously managed to carve their way through alien warship hulls found that their firepower had decreased in potency.

Though the drop in lethality was not severe, the mech pilot still managed to notice the differences. Their jobs had become a lot harder than before!

The same applied to other mechs, warships and naval personnel.

The importance of her brother vastly exceeded every other soldier and officer in the combined fleet!

How could she possibly remain diligent when Imon was about to risk his new 'life' on the battlefield for the first time?

Casella therefore left the remaining subjects within her domain field to their own devices. She not only withdrew a considerable amount of power from them, but also pulled back her active guidance.

Even if she was able to split her attention and multi-task to an inhuman degree, her interests had become so skewed that she readily shifted the majority of her focus onto her brother alone!

The Victrix effectively became a carrier of two extraordinary soldiers.

At first, the metallic owl moved a bit erratically.

Imon was not used to controlling such a 'mech'. He never had an opportunity to practice with it, which in hindsight was a major shortcoming.

However, the Chosen Envoy had not lost all of the strengths and qualities as a high-tier expert pilot.

Just like piloting a new and unfamiliar mech, Imon Ingvar rapidly became accustomed to controlling the Ultimate Module's various systems.

The flight systems embedded in the wings performed smoothly. The limbs moved more regularly and with deliberate control. The sharp transphasic claws clenched and unclenched as if they were waiting to grip onto their prey.

Throughout this acclimation process, the main enemies had yet to resume their fighting.

The surviving greater and lesser phase leaders of the Red Cabal utilized the present interruption to their advantage. They performed triage on the phase lords that suffered grievous injuries but still managed to cling to life. They also took stock of their hardware and tried to patch up the holes as best as possible.

The Ascended Giants engaged in similar activities. They had lost much of the confidence they held before. This was because they had suffered greater fatalities. Their inability to gain the upper hand had shamed them, but not to the point of surrender.

The Fiery Axe and her fellow giants still retained a lot of fighting spirit. They wanted to wash away their shame by claiming the lives of the alien phase lords!

Given the current results, they had little objection to relying on outside reinforcements in the form of this 'Chosen Envoy'.

The giants could be very flexible when their lives were on the line. What was the point of feeling proud when they were at risk of losing almost all of their giants just to achieve a pyrrhic victory against these giants?

It was much better to rely on their leader's confounding tricks to gain a decisive advantage and achieve victory through overwhelming strength!

When Imon and the Victrix were about ready to fight, the Blackwater Summoner issued a contemptuous response.

"$#&$#$&#$."

"IS THIS THE EXTENT OF YOUR RELIANCE? SUMMONING A GHOST OF A DEAD WARRIOR AND PUTTING HIM INSIDE A METAL SHELL WILL NOT SAVE YOU FROM MY BLACKWATER. MY NEW DEATHBORN ALLIES ARE MUCH MORE FORMIDABLE THAN YOUR INFERIOR COPY. THIS AVIAN SHELL WILL STRUGGLE TO PIERCE MY SAINT ARMOR."

The Blackwater Summoner may have a point. The Victrix was not yet superdimensional, just like the Minerva Mark II herself.

Her true resonance and other properties might allow her to punch through superdimensional armor, but only with great effort.

Ves already had a solution for that, though.

"Buddy, hand over the Murder Knife Mark III." He instructed his alter ego.

The Dark Apostle hesitated for a few seconds, but ultimately complied.

He withdrew the experimental D-arm from its sheath and tossed it over to the metallic owl.

The Victrix easily caught the hilt with both of her claws.

Though the manner in which the non-humanoid construct wielded the superdimensional knife looked awkward, the possessed command fey had just remedied her greatest shortcoming!

The Blackwater Summoner could not afford to look down on this composite existence anymore!

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