Chapter 20: Chapter 19: Senior Tech Supers

“Again… Commander and Rival are quoted again…” Reading the description of an umpteenth building in the industrial machinery production area, Aven sent a discreet glance in the direction of the super-restricted area.

“I should have asked Bhanas for more details about the senior tech supers. But in all cases, it’s strange that those 2 are quoted nearly everywhere,” not minding the weird glance of people looking at him as he spoke to himself aloud, he advanced his reflection on what was for him a very perplexing matter.

Putting to memory the less perplexing factual goal of this building, which was assembling complex integrated circuits onto different alloys for optimal resistance to different conditions, he then began to evaluate the importance, how many people were there, and how frantic the whole atmosphere seemed to be.

‘They’re not in a hurry, the machines aren’t turning at full power. Same as most of the other buildings here, they should only enter intensive periods when the industrial center wants to expand and create new production lines.’

Surfing on what he had learned over the last 10 hours, he easily saw through this building and integrated it into the larger picture that was the industrial machinery production area.

“Hah~ Summer is coming. I love it when it’s so late but it’s still so bright!” Coming out of the window-less industrial building, Aven thanked the world for the White being out for so long each day before he jumped on his bike again and decided that he would start the exploration of the final industry now.

After touring the base materials industry producing all sorts of ceramics, alloys, plastics, polymers, and everything needed for more advanced products.

After visiting the electronics industry, where he realized that everything from the smallest components to full-blown CPUs was assembled there following the most stringent specs for military-grade electronics.

After traveling around the advanced supplies industry manufacturing military-grade prefab buildings, special extreme conditions coating for tents and vehicles, rapid-drying concrete, and equipment like ultra-advanced bulletproof combat uniform.

After journeying around the weapons industry and seeing for himself how draconian the production lines were, with each firearm model being smelted and crafted from the ground up in their own custom and isolated building.

After surveying the ammunition industry, with its dozens of non-super-restricted buildings mass-producing from ridiculously small bullets to ridiculously large shells.

After sightseeing the vehicles industry and confirming that it was one of the key industries of Blackdale, with it owning production lines dedicated to producing only the best of the best, from traditional jeeps, to tanks, to massive mobile HQ.

And now, after wandering through the industrial machinery industry, an industry using large-scale machinery to produce more machinery, Aven was finally seeing the end of the huge non-super-restricted tunnel that was the Blackdale IMC, an industrial military center where everything was manufactured from their most raw materials to their most developed and transformed state.

“Super-restricted industry~ Here I come!” Heading towards the inside of the IMC, he soon arrived at a barrier where guards stopped him to confirm he had the necessary authorization to enter this very sensitive area that centralized most of the supers.

Considering his identity file clearly told he was a super himself, the guards didn’t hold him for long before releasing him into the last place he hadn’t stepped foot into since arriving.

“And now, I have all the industries to revisit once again! Yeah!” Doing a mock celebration, he looked over the same concrete plain that was also present outside this restricted area, “At least now there shouldn’t be as many buildings…”

Getting his map out, he decided that since he had just “finished” with the industrial machinery industry, he had better continue with it as everything related to it was still hot in his mind.

Thus, he found the biggest building noted with the “im” designation and headed to it.

Strangely, the fact that he knew this entire area was restricted and that all people working in it were either supers or high-ranking officers didn’t make him feel intimidated. He even felt like he had returned home.

‘All my planning since I awakened was for this. This place embodies what I want the most: A place where security isn’t an issue and where I can make friends with anyone knowing we’re on the same side.’

Arriving at his target building in a few minutes, the first striking thing was the absence of life anywhere in his vision.

Not commenting on this, he entered the white building and used his sense of hearing to guide himself toward an active place.

Circling around massive cubic machinery of unknown purpose, he finally saw someone. And this someone also saw him.

“What are you doing here young man?” A man that looked like he was 100 years old with short white hair and a cleanly shaved chin looked at him with a caring elderly smile.

“Hello and good evening senior! Sorry if I interrupted, I’m only visiting the restricted area to observe everything that is present in this industrial center,” bowing slightly, Aven knew that the chances of the person before him not being a tech super were close to zero.

His extremely elderly appearance was all the proof he needed, after all, why would a true centenarian still be working?

Relying on physical appearances to identify a super was the greatest mistake that was possible to make.

For them, biological senescence would happen no matter how advanced their energy cultivation was, but such a state of physical aging was inconsequential to their ability and would even only remain for as long as the body took to realize it was perfectly healthy.

“You’re not interrupting anything, and I indeed heard there was a new production tech super that was transferred here, are you the one?” Taking his hands off the massive cubic machinery next to him, the elderly man moved like a young man and took a rag to wipe his hands as he inquired.

“Most probably, yes!” Taking on a heroic posture, Aven was totally ready to make friends with this first tech super he had encountered, “I’m Aven Amias! I’m of civilian background, and my potential is so high that if it was shown, the world would want me dead!”

“Hehe, well, aren’t you just a cheeky grade 1? Where does your confidence come from?” Sarcastically responding, the old man picked up his phone in his back pocket and started typing on it at a disturbingly quick speed.

“Of course I can’t say,” calming down a bit, Aven returned to just his enthusiastic self that was willing to discuss with anyone for as long as they desired, “What if you really end up convinced that I have infinite potential? I would be freaked out!”

“Ohoh~ A good reason but one that surely wouldn’t go through a lie detection session. Anyway! Enough about you, let me introduce myself. My true name will remain undisclosed for personal reasons, but you can call me Commander, one of the 5 grade 3 production tech supers present here in Blackdale,” showing all his white teeth, the Commander made a prestigious and shocking self-introduction.

Or it would have had a shocking effect if not for the fact that Aven felt unreasonably safe in the restricted area and that he was still a one-month-old super with no inherent knowledge of how supers of different grades should interact together.

“Commander? The one whose name I saw quoted in every description of the industrial machinery industry area next to Rival?” Making the link immediately, he started elevating the old man before him to a much higher position.

“I see that you’ve done your homework,” his kind and caring smile had never disappeared from the moment he had started talking, and it intensified a bit there, “And I also see that you’re not a wimp. Am I the first super you have met since your transfer?”

Curious about the point of this question, Aven answered without blinking, “Yup, I entered the super-restricted area for the first time a few minutes ago, and you should be the first tech super I’ve met that is so willing to discuss.”

“Chattering supers like us are the exceptions rather than the rules, so don’t take it to heart,” shaking his head slightly, Commander lapsed into silence for a few seconds before speaking again, “I’m going to eat, want to join me?”

“It would be my utmost pleasure!” Finding much more pros in accepting than in continuing his tour, he happily agreed and started to follow after Commander who was more than willing to chat with him along the way, ignoring the massive difference between them

And the more they discussed… The more they discussed.

“1 month? Hehe, now that’s a learning speed that somewhat equals me when I was young,” Commander bragged as they walked towards the super-restricted cafeteria.

“I don’t believe you one bit, sir,” Aven respectfully sent him figuratively flying.

“Then I don’t believe you became an official engineer in 1 month too,” he childishly countered.

“But that’s an irrefutable fact,” in turn, Aven became comically serious as he pushed his confidence forward

“My learning speed when I was young being the same as yours is also an irrefutable fact,” the old man imitated his seriousness as he crossed his… Muscled arms.

“Really?” Relenting a bit, Aven tried to discern truth from lies as he realized the parallel between the decrepit, nearly sickly face, and the rest of the body which seemed to belong to a man in his prime.

“Ask Rival when you meet him,” giving an easy solution, Commander dismissed his lack of credibility.

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“I’m meeting him?” Surprised at the turn of events and what he had read between the lines, he inquired.

“Maybe,” his answer was one word.

“Why is his name Rival? And why is yours Commander?” An impulse of curiosity momentarily took control of him.

“What else could it be?” Commander turned his head and looked at this young man who treated him as an old friend despite having only met him a few minutes ago, “It’s because he’s a rival and I’m a commander.”

“Rival of whom?” His curiosity latched onto this extremely interesting name.

“Ask him yourself,” a slightly mocking smile appeared on his decrepit and creased face.

“Okay,” Aven nodded slightly and redirected his curiosity, “Is he also willing to make friends with anyone as long as it looks interesting? Is there a group for people like us who…”

As the duo made their way towards the cafeteria, more and more people started appearing and crossing their path, some sending weird glances their way, and in exchange receiving a curiosity-overflowing glance.

When they arrived at the cafeteria proper, Aven marveled at the number of people present, contradicting his knowledge of how few people resided in this restricted area.

And then he saw a few people making their plates float in the air as they exited the place, some others were even making ice or flame appear in mid-air to heat or cool their drinks or meal, “That’s…! So freaking cool!”

Excitement made its way to his eyes as he saw this amazing scene and realized that he belonged here, he had earned his place here.

“What’s so cool about making things float? You’ll be able to do that as much as you want when you reach grade 2, then you’ll find it's not that amazing and turn back to learning more about the amazing tech system,” becoming completely persuaded that the young man next to him was truly seeing something like that for the first time ever, Commander let him get used to it as he slowly made his way to the self area.

Following behind as he took in all the sight he could of supers using their supernatural powers, he mechanically got through the selection of meals and continued following behind his senior as he guided him to an empty table.

Seeing him so amazed by the scene, Commander couldn’t help but want to share a bit of his wisdom, “The world of the supers might look amazing, we’re a minority able to control the world and overturn civilization after all, but you’ll realize in due time that-”

“Nope,” Aven interrupted him before he could finish, already considering the old man before him as a friend which he could jab without problem, “I won’t have the time to realize anything. The only thing I’ll realize is my endless potential.”

“Weren't you lost in thought at how amazing this scene is? Why are you trying to hide it? Just be the kid you are and listen to the chicken soup of an old man like me,” scowling at having been interrupted so abruptly, he started eating his meal without saying anything else.

“Old?” A voice pierced through the ambient sound and reached the ears of the duo who started eating, “Did you just describe yourself as old?”

Heavily putting down his plate full of food, a man who seemed just as old as Commander but had dyed his short hair and long beard in black immediately aggressively verbally imposed his presence, “Since when are you old? Are you pulling a prank on a naive young man? You better return to designing your-”

“Hush!” Commander increased the volume of his voice as he cut off the newly-arrived old man, “Receiving advice from you is not something I'm used to doing, so stop ridiculing yourself in front of our young friend with endless potential, Rival.”

“He’s slandering me!” Aven also raised his voice fearlessly, “Endless potential?! What type of narcissist would ever say something like that about himself!”

“What?!” Commander looked at him in shock, his mouth wide-open, at the most violent betrayal he had suffered in… All his life.

“So you’ve not only become senile but you’ve also started slandering the young generation? Since when did you start stooping so low? Disgusting!” Jumping on the occasion as aggressively as before, Rival started eating his bountiful meal without a care in the world.

“Why did you…?” Pitifully looking at Aven, Commander hesitated facing this new incomprehensible situation.

But the young super didn’t leave a chance as he shifted his seat to end up next to Rival, “Good evening Rival, can I ask whose rival you are? Your name certainly isn’t as impacting as Commander, but it's much more complex and to my taste.”

While Commander was suffering from his second-ever betrayal on the side, Rival turned his head and glanced at the random young man asking him a question, “Who are you?”

“I’m Aven! A 1-month old tech super with endless potential!” Taking on a heroic pose again as he introduced himself, he earnestly looked at Rival and ignored Commander dropping his knife in incomprehension.

“What endless potential? Potential for interrupting me? Potential for starting world domination? Go make friends with someone else, I’m not interested,” not looking at him, the black-haired old man returned to his meal after sending a glance at Commander.

“Okay!” Shifting his plate back to Commander’s side in an instant, he ate a bit before continuing to talk, “Is he your rival? You certainly look like you’re great friends with each other.”

“Our relationship cannot be defined with such simple words,” not taking offense at the question, he amiably completed his lack of context, “We’ve known each other for close to a century now, but the rivalry appeared the moment we became grade 3 and picked our energy specialization.”

“Did you choose the same? Is that why both your names are all over the industrial machinery industry area?” Aven tried to make an educated guess with what he knew.

“No,” Commander shook his head, “I selected the undivided infusion specialization, and he picked the massive infusion specialization. But despite having chosen different energy specializations, we individually picked the same path of development, so we entered a… Friendly rivalry of sorts?”

“Humph!” A very loud snort reached the ears of the duo, but neither of them seemed to care as they continued to discuss.

“Sounds like a tale I need to hear now! Mainly the same path of development part! Does that mean you two reached the same conclusion individually? And what’s a development path anyway?” Showing his ignorance again without any shame, Aven let his curiosity do the talking.

“Sigh… What’s a development path you ask?” The white-haired Commander sighed wistfully as he was trying to find his words, “It varies depending on your energy system, and it’s too far for you to start caring seriously anyway. But just know that for tech supers, the big split is located between production and fighting.”

“Why are you even holding back?” Rival asked with the same voice that seemed capable of piercing through anything to reach their ears, “Tell him your opinion, or I’ll do it.”

“Your rival is so much more straightforward, you should follow his example!” Nodding wisely, Aven completely agreed with getting the whole picture now rather than later.

“So what if I don’t want to influence his future choice? Our path isn’t one anyone can take, and you should know it,” critically looking at Rival who didn’t dare to turn his head after the rebuke, Commander continued trying to deter Aven from pursuing the matter.

“Production and fighting? Huhu~” Emphasizing his words with his lively eyes radiating all the curiosity they could, Aven put one of his hands to the edge of his plate and slowly started pushing towards Rival, “Huhu~”

“Stop trying to threaten me,” Commander narrowed his eyes at the audacity, “You want to know the path of development we chose? Well, it’s simple: We perfect our craft, nothing less, nothing more.”

“Well, thank you for finally telling me,” thanking him with a true smile, he then shifted a few seats to arrive not far from Rival under the dumbfounded eyes of Commander, “Hello again, I’m a long-time admirer of your path which consists of perfecting your craft. Can you tell me more? Please~”

“Hehe,” Rival seemed to really appreciate this funny situation as he raised his head from his meal and started to give more crispy details, “Well, as you should already know, when we tech supers produce something after infusing our energy into tools or machines to craft something, the end product is inexplicably stronger.”

“Yes,” nodding like a good dog, Aven straightened his back and nearly took out his notepad to note what was going to be said next.

“Those products are something that allows our energy system to have a close link with everything, even other energy systems, as they also need bullet-proof vests to increase their survivability on battlefields. That’s logical, right? Why settle for a lower quality when a higher quality exists and you are so flush with money that you don't know what to do with it?” Unlike his previous forced attitude, Rival had fully taken on a teaching persona.

“The rationale behind all that is undeniable, yes,” Aven once again agreed excessively.

“But then! Bam!” Rival raised his voice suddenly, “You just reached grade 3 and you can now make your energy do a specific task an untold amount of times better! But at the same time, before making this ultimate decision that can’t be reversed, you learn that you have an even bigger choice to make!”

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