Returning to Prometheus Fortress, everyone who came back shared a complex mix of relief and regret.
They were relieved to have returned once more, having survived that arduous mission, but regretted that their days of peace were over. As members of Prometheus Fortress, they wouldn't necessarily head to mission worlds to execute tasks individually, but they would certainly have to participate whenever a Legion Mission occurred. Furthermore, there was no guarantee they wouldn't be sent to mission worlds alone in the future.
The newcomers from the Gundam OO World, meanwhile, were curiously sizing up their surroundings. Seeing that the entire Prometheus Fortress was just a small continent floating in the void, and observing the Void Chaos beyond the edge of the continent, they all cried out in wonder—some in fear, others in wild excitement.
"So this is Prometheus Fortress! This is the Space Crevice!"
"Incredible! A crevice between spaces really does exist!"
"Space... worlds... countless worlds... this is an infinite treasure house!"
"Teacher, could you be a little more calm?" Yang Hui and Billy Katagiri facepalmed, nursing growing headaches. Even Aeolia Schenberg, the old man whose expression usually remained unchanged for ten thousand years, now radiated a fanatical glow that was honestly frightening—to say nothing of Professor Eifman and Old Wang.
"Humph! Katagiri, Yang Hui, you two still have much to learn!"
"That's right, you two are simply not qualified scientists!"
"Setting aside the scientific technology of other worlds for a moment, just this unique Space Crevice—if we can study it thoroughly, we can take a massive step forward in the ethereal subject of space!"
As expected, Yang Hui and Billy Katagiri's attempts at persuasion were met with a verbal onslaught from the three leading scientists. Their expressions were full of disappointment, as if they wanted to expel the two from their tutelage right then and there!
"Sigh." (X2)
Yang Hui and Billy Katagiri sighed in unison and simultaneously took several steps back to maintain their distance.
"Billy, it's been hard on you," Yang Hui comforted him solemnly.
"If I had known, I wouldn't have come," Billy Katagiri said, wanting to cry but having no tears. Seeing the current state of these three, Billy could already foresee the misery of his future. Although Yang Hui was also a student of Professor Eifman and Old Wang—and a more brilliant one at that—Yang Hui wasn't just a scientist. He was also a commander and an MS pilot; he had to go to mission worlds to execute tasks.
In this regard, Professor Eifman and Old Wang knew where to draw the line and wouldn't lock Yang Hui in the lab forever to assist them. But as for Billy Katagiri... that was hard to say.
"By the way... what's the deal with that person?" Yang Hui leaned into Billy Katagiri's ear, using his eyes to gesture toward the red-haired woman who was skipping around like a young girl. She looked almost identical to Nena Trinity, whom Yang Hui had killed.
Mina Kalain, the gene donor for Nena Trinity, was a rising star in the scientific community. Her reputation for genius was no less than Yang Hui's back in the day, primarily focusing on fields like space physics.
"What do you mean, 'what's the deal'?" Billy Katagiri blushed, asking Yang Hui back awkwardly.
"I heard you're being pursued?"
"What exactly are you trying to say?" Billy Katagiri questioned Yang Hui in shame and indignation.
"Nothing." Yang Hui patted Billy Katagiri's shoulder and said meaningfully, "You, who are being dominated, will never be able to compare to me in this lifetime."
"Get lost!" Billy Katagiri slapped Yang Hui's hand away and walked off in a huff. He felt that even being PUA'd by the professors in the lab was better than standing next to Yang Hui!
"Hehe," Yang Hui chuckled, then gave everyone their assignments, sending them back to their respective posts. He then led the members of the decision-making layer to the Central Meeting Room to conduct a comprehensive summary of the campaign, tally the gains from this advancement assessment, and determine the course of action for the future.
"These three—Kati Mannequin, Sergei Smirnov, and Aeolia Schenberg—I assume everyone present already knows them. As representatives of the Gundam OO World, these three will join the decision-making layer and hold voting rights."
This was a new system established by the decision-making layer. Whenever a new world was connected to Prometheus Fortress, newcomers would generally join the decision-making layer. This was the 'special treatment for special talents' mentioned previously; after all, they had the ability. Making such people climb from the bottom would be a waste of time and opportunity, and it could easily spark resentment and create rifts.
Therefore, regarding the rules for special treatment, three plans were currently in place:
First, for MS pilots, a newcomer challenge system was adopted. They would start by challenging core members at the grassroots level and work their way up. Their position would be determined by their skill, as MS pilots had always respected strength above all. Of course, this referred to individual strength; if they were to lead a team, factors like squad command and squad tactics would also be evaluated.
Second, for commanders, simulated battlefield challenges would also be conducted. However, for commanders, it wasn't just about command ability, but also command style, coordination skills, and so on. A multi-faceted evaluation would determine the newcomer's status.
Third, the decision-making layer, the most important department of Prometheus Fortress. Generally, at least one representative from each world would join. After all, the path forward for Prometheus Fortress could both nurture the development of the connected worlds and required the support of those worlds.
However, there would be special cases. For example, in the Iron-Blooded Orphans World, neither the Turbines nor Tekkadan were qualified to join the decision-making layer, while the current state of the government in that world showed promise for the future.
So, who was qualified to join the decision-making layer? How could they gain everyone's approval?
The simplest method: a vote.
The general process involved members who had gone to the Mission World providing a detailed report so everyone could understand what kind of person the candidate was. Then, all members would vote. It wasn't a simple majority rule; a proposal required over 80% approval to pass. As the Great General of the Promis Legion, Yang Hui held a veto power, but if more than 80% of the decision-making layer deemed Yang Hui's proposal unreasonable, they could also veto and impeach him.
For Kati, Sergei, and Aeolia Schenberg, the reporting process could be omitted. Everyone present had participated in the advancement assessment, fought alongside them, and understood them.
As expected, the vote was unanimous. Kati and Sergei—one was Yang Hui's woman, the other was Yang Hui's elder brother—were, from what everyone knew, both excellent soldiers and brilliant commanders. Sergei was also an ace pilot, so there were no doubts.
As for Aeolia Schenberg... honestly, there were some concerns. After all, one would naturally be wary and vigilant of a mastermind who could hide behind the scenes and plot for the human race for over two hundred years.
However, Aeolia Schenberg's research capabilities were indeed terrifying. He was involved in every field, an absolute polymath, and his leadership was staggering. He perfectly fit the role of the head of the scientific research department.
Since he was a researcher, he wouldn't participate in any world missions, and thus wouldn't pose much of a threat to Prometheus Fortress. After all, in Prometheus Fortress, no petty schemes could escape the notice of Mephis, the head housekeeper.
"Good, passed unanimously." After a brief welcome, Kati and the other two took their seats in the area belonging to the Gundam OO World, and Yang Hui continued the meeting.
First were the mission rewards. Honestly... they were too bountiful, so much so that they didn't even know how to use them all.
Skill extraction attempts and upgrade attempts aside—everyone present was already at the top of their specialized fields. The next step was the Life Metamorphosis from B-rank to A-rank, for which upgrade attempts were useless.
As for the extracted skills, they weren't very useful to them either. They were all walking their own paths now, and flashy skills were meaningless.
Therefore, unless they encountered a skill that was a perfect fit, they wouldn't take them.
In the current situation, skill extraction and upgrade opportunities were generally reserved for newcomers, allowing those lagging behind to quickly catch up with the core team.
Construction Opportunities reached 20 for this mission alone, and upgrade opportunities reached 40. There were also massive amounts of material rewards. How to use these rewards alone was enough to keep everyone in discussion for quite some time.
Then, there was the most important gain, the one everyone cared about most: permissions for Prometheus Fortress!
[Congratulations, Commander. Congratulations to everyone. Having successfully passed the advancement assessment, Prometheus Fortress is undergoing a comprehensive upgrade.]
To ensure everyone was informed, Mephis's projection appeared in the center of the large meeting room, announcing the changes to Prometheus Fortress.
[Primary permissions are fully open. The Commander now has the permission to learn of the 15 candidate targets for the next Mandatory Mission three days in advance, and has the right to choose one of those worlds to be upgraded to Legion War Mode.]
[Primary areas of the central database records are unlocked.]
[Specialized areas for foreign races are open. The Prometheus Fortress main control interface has unlocked the "Other Races" page, adding new construction options.]
[Level caps for all building areas in the fortress have been removed and increased to LV.10.]
[The Central Hall workbench is open. The Hire Mission system is open.]
[The Veteran Point System is open. The Exchange System is open.]
[...]
Hearing the string of new permissions and functions reported by Mephis, everyone was delighted. The first point—being able to know the selectable mission worlds in advance—meant that with Yang Hui as their "prophet," they could make more thorough preparations and reap even greater rewards.
The second point—Legion War Mode—they had just experienced. Everyone knew they wouldn't want to experience it a second time anytime soon; after all, they had felt their own helplessness in the face of a racial war. They weren't yet qualified to intervene in a conflict of that scale.
However, just because they couldn't now didn't mean they couldn't in the future! Having the right to autonomously convert a world meant they could engage in Legion War Mode more safely and steadily. This mission had certainly made them wealthy.
The database went without saying; data and intelligence were always the most important and highest priority elements in a war.
The foreign races went without saying—it was definitely the ELS. And now that the ELS had set a precedent, there would surely be more allies of other races in the future. This was huge news. As for the specifics, they would find out later.
But the next set of new functions left them stunned, to the point where they didn't quite hear what came after.
"Mephis, explain the Hire Mission system, the Veteran Point System, and the Exchange System in detail.
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