The Strongest Brain in the Interstellar

“…I was so excited that I couldn’t sleep all night. Ah, you guys didn’t sleep either… I told you, with the military training and this whole month, it’s been two months without seeing a single mech, I almost forgot I’m a solo operator. Finally, I’ve been waiting for this moment.”

“Do you think they’ll give us mechs later? Unfortunately, our school’s resources are limited, so even if they provide us with mechs, they’ll probably be the lowest standard ones. But even these are pretty good, as long as they’re operational mechs, not decorative ones. My dad says schools that use those for training are cheap and short-sighted, and in the end, they can’t train students who can actually pilot military mechs.”

“Be more precise, my friend. It’s not ‘giving us mechs’, it’s ‘assigning us mechs.’ Even those decorative mechs aren’t something you can just buy with toy money. I think we’ll probably only get to handle them during class.”

“Heh, I’ve heard that schools equipped with mechs have to buy special insurance, and they spend a lot of money every year just to pay for regular repairs. Apparently, the chance of students damaging mechs is pretty high.”

The above is gossip-type chatter, each person with different sources of information, each saying their own thing.

Of course, there were also less friendly exchanges, where the conversation eventually escalated into an argument, like the following—

“…Just spare me, do you think solo operators can just hop into mechs right away? Not all solo operators have the qualifications to pilot mechs. First, you have to be able to afford a mech. If it weren’t for coming to school, many people would probably only get to see them in movies or on the street.”

“You’re really harsh with your words. We’re all here happily discussing the upcoming class, and here you are, pouring cold water on everyone!”

“Well, aren’t you doing the same? Just now, when I was talking about mech types, you were busy correcting me, acting like you know everything…”

…

If you asked Jiang Hui which side she was on… Ah? She’s the daydreaming type. To be honest, her mind was divided in two: one half was still thinking about the pile of parts in her dorm, but the other half was eagerly anticipating the upcoming lesson. It was a bit of a contradiction.

But her contradictions usually don’t show on her face. To others, Jiang Hui appeared very calm—always calm—sitting next to Clarens, who was in the same ice-cold state. It was almost as if they were both in a frozen state, facing each other, which made people remark how these two must have been teammates before, as they were clearly of the same kind.

In reality, Jiang Hui wasn’t completely uninterested. Her curiosity had already been satisfied. Around noon, they had already discussed this in the cafeteria, with some inside knowledge from a reliable source. So, Jiang Hui and the others actually knew more about it than many of the students around them who were just guessing blindly.

It had to be said that Xierman was really low-key. Although Jiang Hui already knew that his family was in business and well-off, she didn’t expect his family to actually have shares in the school. Though it wasn’t a lot, it was something Xierman had negotiated shortly after enrolling. But even that little detail was enough to give him a better understanding of the school’s internal situation than most other students.

Xierman informed the group that the school had been allocated a batch of brand new D-grade standard mechs this year, specifically for the use of all the students in the Solo Operator Division.

D-grade is already the lowest standard among the standard mechs, but it is much better than decorative mechs. Although it’s just a standardized product from a military factory’s production line, it still has all the necessary features of a mech and meets the Empire’s minimum performance standards for military mechs.

This last point is especially rare, because even relatively high-end custom mechs or some above-standard mechs may not meet these criteria. This standard is equivalent to a military-issued mech with an official seal, with strict standards and almost no difference from battlefield mechs.

Students taught using such mechs will, in the future, when they own their own mechs, be able to adjust quickly and reduce the chance of operational errors or bad habits caused by using non-standard mechs.

To secure these D-grade standard mechs, the 8th Legion put in a considerable amount of effort, and it’s said they used up an entire month’s quota.

This isn’t a joke—it’s important to note that the 8th Legion is not a place dedicated to training students. It is a true military legion, existing for combat, with its main force still active on the battlefield.

The mechs allocated within the legion are reserved for the military commanders, and it’s nearly impossible for them to be distributed outside. The fact that they were willing to allocate a month’s worth of mech quotas to a school under their name shows their strong determination to support the school’s development.

As for Xierman’s family, they were responsible for covering the cost. After all, having the quota doesn’t mean it’s free—purchasing the mechs still requires funding, and with the school’s limited budget, they had to rely on investors. Xierman’s family obtained a small amount of shares in the school by contributing the money for these mechs. In a sense, Xierman’s family could be considered typical players in the interstellar currency market.

Now that Jiang Hui knew the mechs were standard models, she had a rough idea of what they were.

Standard mechs and standard-class mechs are two different concepts.

Standard-class mechs are a broad category of mechs, divided into regular humanoid, mimetic linear, and mixed neutral types.

Standard mechs, on the other hand, generally refer to the standard-class mechs produced by military factories on assembly lines. These mechs are designed for quick production and easy deployment, and as a result, they are usually in the form of humanoid mechs.

The humanoid mech is the earliest type of mech prototype built by humans. It has relatively rigid lines and structure, with average data, no obvious weaknesses, and a range of functions, but none of them stand out particularly.

To put it simply, it’s like the “one-size-fits-all” of mechs. The majority of people can use it, but most don’t find it particularly useful. However, using this as a beginner’s mech is probably the most suitable choice, because its standardization makes it easier to highlight skills and nurture the top performers.

If someone can show impressive skills with such a mech, when they later get a customized one, their ability will naturally improve.

Lately, the mechs Jiang Hui had been studying the most were these types, particularly the data of these mechs. Although the real machines differ significantly from the models, the basic structure is the same, and because they are so common, the official website of this mech has almost all its data publicly available. In theory, anyone with the materials can build a mech based on the blueprints, as long as they know what they’re doing.

Jiang Hui wasn’t particularly interested in other topics, but she was quite excited about the possibility of trying out a real mech soon.

She wondered if their class instructor, Stark, would let them try driving a mech today.

Yes, their mech practical class instructor was Stark, their homeroom teacher. This was the case for most classes in the Solo Operator Division, where the homeroom teacher also taught the mech practical lessons. Only a few special classes had instructors brought in from other places.

As she thought about this, she soon heard the familiar sound of footsteps approaching. The group, who had been eagerly discussing things, instinctively straightened up, quickly adjusting their positions and formation. The disorganized group became neatly arranged, just like during military training a month ago.

It seemed that the impression Stark had left on them during military training was so strong that everyone instinctively reacted to the sound of footsteps.