Chapter 1018: Designer And Builder

We were back on our way to Xetarva, accompanied by four ships that belonged to the Reapers.

They had one D Class Frigate, one C Class Combat Freighter and two C Class Corvettes. This was the type of firepower that you would expect to see from a private military, not from simple Mercs.

That was proof enough that they were a pretty big group for them not only to be able to afford to buy this hardware, but also have enough people to man them.

I did send a message to Valiea and Ragbar to let them know we were leaving again but we might drop by after this job for another visit before we leave this sector.

I wasn’t expecting any trouble while we were flying there so I took the time to make sure our new crewmate was settled in properly.

She had basically claimed ownership over our entertainment room and said something about wanting to decorate our ship and stuff because it was definitely lacking in terms of style.

I’ll admit... That was kind of true since we really didn’t personalise the ship’s interior aside from our own rooms.

And even then, our rooms were just ’decorated’ with our own personal stuff which wasn’t much anyway.

The corridors were still bland and the colours of the ship were monochrome and it felt more like a military ship than a personal ship of ours.

It’s funny because I realised then that basically everyone here besides Patricia was basically leaning more towards the practical side than anything else... So we saw no point in doing such decorations as it served no practical purpose.

Well... I saw no problems so I gave her permission to decorate our ship as long as she showed me the initial designs and had me approve them first.

She was already making plans to redo the entertainment room and she looked so serious about it you would have thought she was making battle plans or something.

Aside from that, I was also not surprised to see that she had hit it off with Ries quite well and Ries’s workshop has also become a place that she liked to spend her time in.

That’s where I found the two of them fussing over the suit that Patrica would pilot when she’s trying to visit places incognito.

"Nyaaaa~ I’m telling you, I can fit so many things in this suit it’s going to make me jealous I’m not the one piloting it!"

"Eehe... Umm... I don’t mind... Letting you pilot it as well... And if you want, I can... Umm... Put in an order for you as well? So you can have your own?"

"Nyaaa?! Really?! Nyahahaha!! Then I really need to work extra hard for this! I’ll make sure that this is the most awesome combat suit ever!"

I watched the two of them from the entrance with a warm gaze, finding satisfaction in the fact that they were getting along so well already.

Probably sensing my presence, the two of them suddenly turned back to see me standing there with a grin on my face.

"Boss!"

"Tera!"

Both of them ran up to me, their eyes sparkling and their ears twitching cutely.

Yep... I have just the right number of hands for this.

I reached out and patted both of their heads, making both of them let out cute noises while they squirmed under my headpats.

"I see both of you are having fun."

Ries perked up immediately, though she maintained her position so that her head remained where it was to make sure I continued patting her head.

"Yes!! Get this, Boss!! Did she tell you that she designed the suit herself?! I can’t believe it!"

Patricia poked her fingers together while her ears twitched beside my hand that was scratching her head, "Ehe... I... It’s not... It’s not that impressive... I... I just... Looked up some stuff on the GalaNet and... Umm... I just learned what I could..."

Ries giggled, "Ehehehe~ For her to be able to learn all that just by surfing the GalaNet is impressive by itself! The suit is completely custom designed and built by her. Tell her, tell her!"

Patricia preened a little at the attention, "Ehe... Umm... I couldn’t let people know what this was... So I designed all the parts... And then sent the order for the parts to be made... But the assembly was... Done by myself..."

Oh? That means... She’s basically like that billionaire superhero who built his own armour?

I just had to ask though...

"Do you... Use that armour to go beat up criminals in your spare time?"

Patricia blinked at me before giggling, "Ehe... Umm... I don’t go out of my way to do that but... Sometimes... You know... I might want to test out the suit so... I find out where some bad guys are and beat them up... Ehehe..."

She really is that person huh?

I looked at the suit, "I’m surprised that you only built one then."

The Purinki’s ears perked up, "Ah! I actually have a couple of them. I mean... I was building it myself so there were a few failures and stuff... I have a workshop back in the Inner Colonies where I store the other suits I made. I thought that since this station was more of a metropolis, I shouldn’t bring one that had a lot of firepower so... That’s why I brought this one. And umm... As a civilian, I can’t exactly get... Umm... The really, really big weapons either..."

Ries bounced on her feet excitedly, "That’s where I come in Boss!! She’s better than me at designing but I can build it for her and get the materials for her as well! She’ll do the design for her next suit and I’ll be able to build it! For now, I can disassemble this current suit while she designs a new one and I think she could have a combat suit ready before we reach Xetarva!"

That sounds promising.

In fact, that could even help us convince the Reapers of the authenticity of our bug nest clearing if we show them what kind of firepower we have.

Obviously, Patricia wasn’t there during our first three clears but they don’t know that for sure.

Patricia then clasped her hands together, "With... Umm... With that said... Umm... Could I ask for a favour, Tera?"

I stopped patting their heads, which made Ries let out a disappointed mewl prompting me to pat her head again while talking to Patricia.

"What favour?"

She poked her fingers together again and her ears flopped down to press against her head, her gaze dropping down to my chest area.

I thought for a moment she was going to ask to grope my boobs or motorboat me but she looked back up with a determined expression on her face.

"I... Could I... Have some... Samples of umm... Re... Renata?"

I blinked at her, "You want... Samples of Renata? Err... For what?"

"Umm... Well... She... She can transform into anything... Right?"

"Mostly," I confirmed with a curt nod. "For better transformation, she would have to eat the thing itself to better mimic its properties."

"Umm... Can I... Can I see?"

I shrugged and took a few steps back. This time, Ries didn’t complain either since she also wanted to watch what I would do.

"What do you want to see her transform into?" I asked.

"Umm... I heard... She could be a Power Armour?"

I looked down at my chest, "Renata? Could you?"

"Ehehehe~ Of course, Daddy!" She squealed, intentionally waiting for me to request it before she transformed.

My clothes shifted and expanded outwards while my collar flowed up to cover my face, making me see nothing but darkness for a moment before lights came on and I was looking through a familiar HUD that was similar to the Power Armour that Ries had made for me before.

I straightened myself and felt the Power Armour conform around me, feeling less like metal and hydraulics and more like cloth and satin embracing me.

The movements of the armour also felt fluid and smooth, allowing me to move myself however I wanted as if this weighed nothing.

Obviously this was all because of Renata making these adjustments for me or else that would not be the case with this Power Armour.

Patricia let out a squeal, "Eeeee!! The fluid transformation... It’s like the rearrangement of the atomic particles to reform into the needed elements that make up the material in order to transform into it! And that... Ohhh... Because she’s a sentient entity, she can make the minute adjustments needed to constantly shift the redundant parts into different materials that would better facilitate the movements! This is just what I needed! If I can use this to create a hive of nanobots that I can integrate into a closed circuit system and--"

I turned to look at Ries while Patricia continued to ramble on and on.

Both of us shrugged at the same time.