Chapter 505: 505
It didn't take long before Ves received a summons from Major Verle . He calmly closed his terminal and closed his eyes .
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"Seems like this is a serious issue after all . "
The level of embezzlement that happened on an individual level wasn't too great, but when it had reached such a scale that practically every workshop was involved, the losses added up .
If all of the profits from these activities channeled in a small number of masterminds, then what Ves reported just threatened their livelihood .
The one thing he was afraid of most was that this level of corruption had reached the highest level . If Major Verle or Lieutenant Commander Soapstone received a cut of the profits, then Ves enormously harmed his relations with two of the most powerful officers in the Verle Task Force .
"Still, I can't sit still and do nothing . "
Though Ves readily admitted to himself that he wasn't above pulling dirty tricks, he hated it when others tried to pull the wool over his eyes . Now that he accepted the job of head designer, everything concerning mechs came under his purview . Ves was not the type of person who tolerated employee theft .
"Urgh . I'm thinking of the Vandals like a business again . " He shook his head .
He couldn't help but make the parallels between his job as a head designer and his status as a business owner of the LMC .
It would be a mistake to adopt this mindset, because the web of power was much more complex here . Back at the LMC, he was not only the founder and sole designer, Ves also relied on his majority ownership to exert total control .
While his reliance on agents and employees effectively limited his power, it remained a fact that Ves held ultimate authority over his firm .
In the Vandal command structure, the mech officers formed the main combatants as well as the main decision makers . The ship and staff officers on the other hand mainly executed the decisions made by the mech officers .
Mech designers like Ves existed outside of this command structure, and acted more like external consultants . Even Professor Velten who shared the most intimate relationship with the Vandals held no military rank .
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Because Ves fell outside the conventional command structure, he also benefited from a different perspective . That was why he went through with informing Major Verle of his findings . Even if he pissed some powerful Vandals off, they couldn't do anything to him, at least outwardly . The most they could do was try to marginalize his influence .
If that happened, so be it, but Ves cooked up several plans that would counteract their petty attempts . Ves may not be a Journeyman Mech Designer, but his skills overshadowed everyone else's in the fleet .
If it came down to it, Ves wasn't above pulling up his sleeves to impress the savages of what a good mech designer could bring to the table .
As Ves stood up and exited his office, Iris called out to him just as the hatch slid open .
"Boss! Are you going out?"
"Yeah, it seems like what I dug up requires an immediate response . Stay here and keep collating the data . "
"Will do . "
After Ves made his initial discoveries, he didn't feel like digging into the data anymore . He pushed some of the duties onto Iris, who unfortunately couldn't match his Intelligence .
Ves keenly witnessed the difference between his own capabilities and someone with more human-like Intelligence values . Despite benefiting from a minor boost in mental capacity due to her Jupiter Family heritage, she required weeks to do what Ves could complete in a day .
This must be another reason why Professor Velten thought he would be suitable to take on the role of head designer . He processed data faster than others, which helped enormously in a datoriented job like his . Head designers needed to make difficult decisions according to the information at hand, and Ves could take in much more information at much higher speeds, so he possessed a definite advantage in this area .
Any other mech designer thrust into this seat would quickly be overwhelmed by the sheer amount of data required to make the right decisions . They could either spend months getting familiar with their position or take some shortcuts and enact policies based on an incomplete understanding of the situation .
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"Such outcomes will inevitably lead to disaster . "
When Ves stepped into Major Verle's stateroom, he glanced around as his steps brought him to one of the available seats .
The major didn't have time to furnish his stateroom according to his tastes . He must have lost everything he owned when the Stubby Growler went down . The metallic walls looked grey and bare while the furniture all consisted of the most basic copies that any mech technician could fabricate according to a standard template .
This was a good sign to Ves, because the bare furnishings signalled that Verle didn't care for material possessions .
"You've given me quite a conundrum, Mr . Larkinson . " Verle started as he shut off his terminal, leaving his desk bare . He stared at Ves with inscrutable eyes . "Do you have anything to say for yourself?"
Ves couldn't read any hint of Verle's intentions . Was he pleased that Ves brought the matter to his attention, or had he encroached upon a taboo?
He made a conscious choice to force the issue at the start . He disliked uncertainty, and he would rather not have this cloud hanging over his head . Now was the time to see why Colonel Lowenfield trusted the major so much .
"Sir, as the newly appointed head designer of this fleet, it's my responsibility to see that our mechs are as capable as possible to handle the threats in our way . The possible embezzlement happening under the table is a small but wide-reaching influence on our strength . "
"How can it be both small but wide-reaching?"
"Like a butterfly flapping its wings on one side of the planet, the effects can lead to a typhoon on the other side of the globe . The siphoning of resources away from their intended purposes effectively leaves our mech companies with 0 . 5 percent less resources . This might not sound like much, but at a scale of five-hundred spaceborn mechs, this loss amounts to missing two or three complete mechs . "
"And this is relevant because…?"
"Think about it . If we get ambushed at our next stop by five-hundred enemy mechs, and we deploy 497 mechs in response, that gap could mean the difference between victory and defeat . "
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Ves didn't need to explain it any further . In closely-matched battles, the ultimate victor would often be decided by the side who could tip the balance in their favor . If both sides enjoyed an even playing field in terms of mech quality and mech composition, a minor advantage in numbers would eventually lead to a decisive advantage in numbers .
Even if both sides didn't commit, a handful of extra mechs could drastically influence the amount of casualties both sides sustained .
"Is our spaceborn contingent in that bad of a state?" Verle asked .
"Their state is fairly good, since they mainly scored a lopsided victory in the Detemen System . By now, most mechs that have sustained damage are in a decent shape, though it will take the more heavily damaged mechs a little more time to become space worthy again . I'm not worried about the present . I'm concerned about the future . If this wasteful pattern continues, we'll continue to suffer preventable losses . "
"Are you sure of that?"
"I'm very sure of it, sir . You're the expert in mech tactics, so I'm sure you have a better idea at how this could lead to unnecessary losses . "
The major fell silent and tapped his desk with his finger . "Have you narrowed down who's responsible for these actions?"
"No . " Ves shook his head . "It will take a more thorough investigation to get at the root of the problem . I can point out the mech technicians who are incorrectly logging their resource usages, but I have the feeling that they aren't the main beneficiaries of this scheme . Whoever is responsible for selling of trading the siphoned materials should be the true masterminds . "
"I see . If you had the power to respond to this issue, what would you do?"
That might have been a loaded question, but Ves felt obligated to answer it . After a lot of thought about his new role, he gained some enlightenment about the purpose of mech designers attached to mech regiments .
Mech officers were the people in charge . That never changed . Everyone else assisted them in the background . As a mech designer and a head designer to boot, Ves was tasked with the responsibility to advise Major Verle so that he could make the most important decisions after taking everything into account .
With this role in mind, Ves provided several answers . "It depends on what kind of goal I want to achieve . If I wish to send a clear message that activities like this that harm our common interests will not be tolerated, I would investigate it thoroughly and punish the offenders according to the strictest regulations . "
"The penalties for embezzlement can be quite severe . "
"They played with fire, they should expect to get burned . We are not talking about innocent people here . Even if it isn't as bad as they look like, unauthorized shuffling of materials is still a moderate offense that needs to be cracked down . "
"So do you believe that this is the option that we should be pursuing?"
"Ah, there are other options available as well, sir . If we crack down too hard, we might upset a lot of people, which would lead to a lot of resentment and division . We can't afford internal division while the task force is still at risk of getting caught by the Vesians on their own turf . If the problem needs to be taken care of with some finesse, we can also opt for a softer touch . "
"A slap on the wrist . " Verle deducted . "That will send a weak message to the offenders . It will reinforce the belief that the embezzlers are impervious and that we don't have the guts to incur their wrath . "
"Still, dealing with people with overblown senses of importance is better if you still have them on your side . That's why I suggested this option . "
They both paused a bit as they contemplated the two options with two very different outcomes . While Ves came up with these possible responses by himself, he couldn't say which one would be better .
Cracking down on the practice would hurt the cohesion of the Flagrant Vandals in the short term . The damage could be quite severe if a lot of powerful people had their fingers in the pot . Yet by bringing the hurt forward, the Vandals would be able to clean up their act in one go, which was better for everyone in the long term .
As for the other options, it led to the least amount of hurt in the short term, but did not effectively solve the problem at all . Perhaps it would depress any illicit activities for a few weeks, but the masterminds would not be deterred to pick up their shady dealings again . They might have even learned their lessons this time and spend more effort on hiding their trails .
In either case, further investigation was necessary to figure out the extent of the profiteering .
After a lengthy pause, Verle came to a decision on what to do . "Both of your options have their strong points, but there are more ways to address this problem than these two extremes . You still lack experience in this area . "
Ves sat up straighter . He was curious what Verle really thought about the matter . It sounded like he wasn't involved after all .
"I agree with you that this problem needs to be nipped in the bud . Now that it's been brought to my attention, I won't rest easy until this activity ceases . Yet tact is important . Our ultimate goal is to make it to the Reinald Republic alive, so I cannot afford to put some of my most subordinates in the brig . "