"Should I go home and wait?" Morin asked.
"You can just go home and wait," Song Shu said. "Headquarters will design different tests for everyone who passes the first test, based on your experience and the knowledge you filled out. That's why I advised you not to write so much... but since it's already been submitted, there's nothing we can do."
Then, as if realizing something, he subconsciously tried to comfort him.
"But don't panic. It's enough if you're an expert in just one or two of those things!"
"That's a thing?" Morin asked.
"Yeah. There's no one that's good at so many things!" Song Shu waved his hand. "People who've mastered even one field to the level where they can contribute to mecha development and design are already very, very rare!"
He leaned back and continued, getting more animated.
"Honestly, the mecha designers we have now are all 'fake'! Or rather, people who've mastered only one or two fields can already be called mecha designers! The conditions announced to the public were exaggerated. Even the mechas that already exist were built by all the top mecha designers in the world working together, sharing technology and resources."
"That's how they managed to build so many mechas! We said all that stuff just to motivate people and give them encouragement..."
Song Shu kept talking, information spilling out nonstop.
Halfway through, he froze.
He slapped a hand over his mouth.
"I see," Morin said, nodding thoughtfully.
"No, that's not it!" Song Shu shook his head frantically. "I was just talking nonsense! You didn't hear anything!"
"Mmm-hmm. I didn't hear anything," Morin nodded again. "Then I'll be leaving now?"
"Don't tell anyone about this!" Song Shu pleaded. "I signed a non-disclosure agreement, but I let it slip..."
For Song Shu, a lazy bum who'd been sitting in his office for two years doing almost nothing, he'd almost forgotten what proper job procedures even were.
It had taken him forever just to figure out how to transmit the data earlier. Expecting him to remember a non-disclosure agreement at all times was asking too much.
The fact that he reacted at the last moment was already impressive.
"Don't worry," Morin said. "I'll be a mecha designer soon too, so we'll be on the same side. I'll find out about this stuff eventually, and I'll probably have to sign a non-disclosure agreement then as well, right?"
"It's not a big deal."
Morin had a good impression of Song Shu.
If he put himself in Song Shu's position, a young man in his early twenties claiming proficiency in that many fields would obviously sound like a joke.
Who would believe it?
Unless they were cheating.
Without knowing that Morin was, in fact, cheating, Song Shu still maintained a professional attitude, did his job, and even offered advice.
Even if it didn't help much, Morin felt that showed a good heart.
"How about I treat you to a meal?" Song Shu asked, still uneasy. He completely ignored the part about Morin becoming a mecha designer.
Yeah, right.
Morin: "..."
I know it's normal for him not to believe me.
But it's still a little annoying.
I'll show him eventually.
Even if he didn't look down on me, I'll still prove myself.
"Alright then," Morin thought. He didn't have anything to do later anyway, and Song Shu seemed like a decent guy. He nodded.
"Where to? Wait, isn't it still working hours?"
"It's fine," Song Shu waved his hand. "I'll just take some time off! I'm the only one in the department, and there's usually nothing to do anyway."
Morin didn't object.
He had no intention of spreading what Song Shu said earlier, but Song Shu didn't believe him regardless.
Since that was the case, he might as well let Song Shu treat him to a meal and ease his mind.
Morin felt he was a very... nice person.
...
PPDC China Division Headquarters.
A data file from the PPDC Tianjin Branch system was transmitted to headquarters.
After being archived, it was automatically forwarded to the corresponding review department. A staff member opened it and glanced at the contents.
"Holy cow. A perfect score of a hundred?"
"It's not unheard of to get a perfect score on a physical test. What's so surprising?"
"It's not a physical test. It's the first mecha designer test! Let me check the time... five minutes? Is this a joke?"
"He passed the mecha designer first test with a perfect score in five minutes? Are you sure you're not seeing things?"
"Come look for yourself! Seeing is believing!"
"Holy cow, it's real! Could the system be wrong?"
"I don't know. How could a simple grading system mess up?"
"If I remember right, the question bank for the first test is confidential, and questions aren't repeated."
"Yeah. That means he answered everything correctly in five minutes? Five minutes isn't even enough to read the questions!"
"You guys are making me curious. Let me check his identity... Holy cow, he's twenty-one?"
"He's a genius!"
"Holy cow, seriously? That's insane!"
The office filled with a barrage of colorful remarks.
"I don't even know what to say. If it's real, he's a legend for having skills this absurd. If it's fake, he's still a legend for having the guts to pull something like this."
"Could it be that he doesn't know there are more rigorous tests after the first one?"
"Even if he doesn't, the staff member would, right?"
"Then what do we do? Follow procedure and send it to the mecha design team to create the next test, or...?"
"Of course we send it."
"But it looks fake as hell."
"Are you stupid?" someone snapped. "What does it have to do with us whether it's fake or not? We're only responsible for checking the identity info. As long as that's valid, it's not our problem."
"Even if the score's fake, that's on the branch office or the system. If we hold it back and something goes wrong, then it becomes our responsibility!"
"Holy cow, you've got a point."
"Of course. That's how you work. Learn from me. Don't take responsibility when you don't have to."
"You're a legend. I'll treat you to some 'massages' tonight?"
"Ahem... let's talk about that later..."
"By the way, I heard Kaiju bone powder can enhance a man's performance. Is that true?"
"Why are you asking that? Are you...?"
"I'm just asking for a friend!"
"Let's say it's for your 'friend.' Why would he need that?"
"Get lost! Why would I need that? I said it's for a friend!"
"This 'friend' is you, isn't it?"
The discussion drifted further and further off topic.
Meanwhile, Morin's test score and identity information were approved and sent to the mecha designer department.
...
At the same time, Song Shu, having successfully taken time off, brought Morin to a barbecue restaurant.
He ordered a table full of food, and the two of them ate while chatting.
Seeing that Morin was willing to eat with him, Song Shu finally relaxed.
As the saying goes, those who eat your food speak softly, and those who take your gifts go easy on the hands.
As they ate, they talked.
Song Shu was curious about Morin. About his background. About his abilities.
"Buddy," Song Shu said after finishing a skewer and lowering his voice, "tell me. How did you do it?"
"Do what?"
"The test," Song Shu said, taking a sip of beer. His face was already a little red. "Even if it was just the first test, the questions were randomly drawn from a confidential bank. No repeats. Five minutes isn't even enough to read them."
"That's because I'm exceptionally gifted," Morin replied.
"I know. You're a genius," Song Shu said, taking another sip. "Ha... speaking of which, I was almost a genius once."
"Almost?" Morin looked interested.
Looks like he has a story.
"Yeah..."
Song Shu clearly had a low tolerance for alcohol. After just two or three cans, he was already tipsy and started talking about his past.
Through his narration, Morin gradually pieced things together.
Song Shu was twenty-five. A good age. He should have been out exploring the world.
There was a reason he was stuck in the mecha designer department of the PPDC Tianjin Branch, living an easy life.
Three years ago, when he was twenty-two, he'd been naive and worn his heart on his sleeve. He trusted people easily and liked helping others.
That time, he trusted the wrong person.
As a result, he lost his chance to become a mecha pilot.
And even now, that habit hadn't changed.
"Back then, we were a rare trio that could achieve mental synchronization," Song Shu said. "But there were no mechas designed for three pilots."
"We only had two-person and single-person mechas. And single-person mechas had already been disabled. For headquarters, that was considered a good thing. If one pilot had an issue, the other could take over, and they wouldn't lose a pair."
"But we all knew mechas were designed for two pilots."
"A three-person rotation system was impossible. Combat experience, coordination... there were too many issues."
"In short, one of the three would always be a spare unless something unexpected happened."
"And there were only two kinds of 'unexpected.' One was illness. But mecha pilots had the best protection and daily checkups, so getting sick was basically impossible."
"The other was death."
"But if a mecha pilot died, it would be during a Kaiju battle. In that situation... how could only one person die?"
"That meant the spare would almost certainly never get a chance."
"What happened after that..." Song Shu laughed weakly. "Let's not talk about it. In the end, I was the only one left."
"Did you ever hate them?" Morin asked.
"I did. Not anymore," Song Shu muttered, his words slurring. "They're dead. Both of them."
"The mecha they were piloting, 'Horizon Brave,' was destroyed..."
"So later I started thinking," he said, eyes reddening as he forced a smile, "maybe they deliberately made me lose my qualifications to protect me."
"Thinking that way makes it feel a little better."
"So you were happy being a lazy bum?" Morin asked quietly.
"The chance of three unrelated people meeting the physical requirements and achieving mental synchronization is basically a miracle," Song Shu shook his head. "Even the doctor who tested us said it was unbelievable."
"How could a fourth person appear? I don't have siblings. I'm an orphan."
"...This trope sounds kind of familiar," Morin thought.
A huge setback. Hidden ability. Orphan.
A classic protagonist setup.
All that was missing was an old man.
"You say that," Morin said, "but it doesn't look like you've given up."
"You're still exercising. Still taking care of your body. You're keeping yourself in top shape."
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