His outward demeanor suggested arrogance, yet nobody anticipated the depth of sensitivity he concealed. Once the documentation was compiled, he appended a theoretical narrative—florid and sweeping in its prose, not overtly flashy, but undeniably authentic and persuasive.

Ziye scrolled through the project proposal from start to finish, marveling, "You should have studied literature."

Bo* clearly relished the compliment, chuckling, "If I had pursued literature, I would undoubtedly be a beacon in that field, though a great loss to the mecha domain, of course."

The others burst into laughter.

To ensure the proposal’s feasibility, the team submitted it to their supervising professor, Professor Budika, upon completion.

Speaking of Professor Budika, the team found him surprisingly personable.

Professor Alpha.Xilai, Li Chunyu’s advisor, wasn't leading a team. Tang Wen, Ziye's advisor, also wasn't leading one. Consequently, they ended up choosing Professor Budika, the mentor from Exbent.

Professor Budika was quite elderly, possessed a booming voice, and had somewhat rough movements. To mask his less-than-academic demeanor, he deliberately wore a pair of glasses that looked suspiciously like reading spectacles—which was odd, given that in this Interstellar Great Age, presbyopia was a thing of the past.

Indeed, were it not for those glasses, one might mistake him for a farmer cultivating vegetables in the Asteroid Belt.

Professor Budika was a legendary Mecha God forty years prior, possessing profound experience in mecha combat tactics, though his theoretical foundation was admittedly weak. Furthermore, as he was based at Dongdian Military University while the team’s lab was in Lings, face-to-face discussions were infrequent; most communication occurred via their optical computers.

Fortunately, his deep familiarity with mecha combat meant he could detail potential issues that might arise with the mechas during battle, allowing them to sidestep these problems right from the initial design concepts.

This time, the five team members visited him together to hand-deliver the proposal.

He scanned it from beginning to end, nodding. "Hmm, looks quite well done."

The five exchanged smiles, but before the expressions could fully settle, he added, "To reach a level I can't immediately comprehend—that's genuinely good."

The smiles on the faces of the five instantly solidified into awkward grimaces.

Professor Budika waved a large hand and cheerfully signed his name on the mentor endorsement line. "Work hard, children. This is a team gathering the elites from Lings and Dongdian. I have faith in you."

The five finally managed to wipe the grimaces away.

In reality, everyone participating knew that a mentor could offer assistance, but rarely substantial help.

Some teams felt that passing the mecha theory—the proposal stage—was the key to clearing the initial screening, so they leaned toward selecting professors from the design department.

However, choosing a design professor meant they would lack practical advice during the final mecha combat phase.

Other teams felt their design skills were solid, but they struggled with manufacturing. They would opt for a professor from the Armor Fabrication department, reasoning that if they could build a game-changing mecha under their mentor’s guidance, the combat rounds would be a sure win.

The Vanguard Squad chose Professor Budika partly because Exbent was Dongdian’s dual ace faction, and all five were confident they could shine during the combat phase.

Yet, for now, everything depended on their own exploration.

The Mecha Competition tested comprehensive ability. No matter how prestigious the school or how skilled the professor, no one could be an expert in every aspect. Therefore, regardless of the mentor chosen, the ultimate success rested on the individuals.

Lings had over three hundred registered teams for the Mecha Competition. By the proposal submission deadline, 201 teams remained.

In truth, the initial round—the theory stage—was both the simplest and the most arduous.

It was simple because passing only required submitting a complete proposal; any team dedicated enough could achieve it.

It was arduous because the design philosophy, manufacturing specifications, financial analysis, and system architecture—everything—needed to be fully envisioned at this stage.

Now, the Vanguard Squad had conquered both the simple and the arduous aspects; all that remained was preparing for the final exams. Once the tests were done, the school would announce the teams whose proposals had passed, clearing them for the next stage.

Teams whose proposals were rejected would, despite their efforts, receive only a consolation prize.

Finally free from the preliminary round, Ziye let go of a massive weight on her mind and focused intently on studying for her exams.

She harbored no illusions about scholarships; just passing her courses would suffice.

Furthermore, she needed to utilize this time to complete the next phase of robot development for Mengya Group. Mengya Group was originally intended to focus on combat mechas but had instead become synonymous with high-end robotics—a truly tear-inducing irony.

Most importantly, however, she had to complete the assignments Tang Wen set for her.

Although Tang Wen had returned home to recuperate, he hadn't forgotten his struggling student, sending an email periodically. These emails weren't inquiries about her general well-being but direct assignments.

For every problem, she had to spend one or two weeks investigating, researching, and testing before compiling a report for him.

In the quiet evenings, she often wondered how he was doing now. Was he still slacking off, draped over a piano like when she last saw him?

Recalling his childlike behavior, Ziye couldn't help but let out a soft smile.

Perhaps she should find time to visit him?

But she lacked a proper pretext—how to justify it?

Ziye shook her head, returning to her exam review.

Imagination was secondary; exams were paramount.

Tests, tests, tests—the teacher's ultimate weapon; Grades, grades, grades—the student's lifeblood.

The examination period lasted an entire month.

Ziye underwent a significant psychological transformation, shifting from intense anxiety to calm, then to numbness, and finally resorting to cheating with Little Sprout on two subjects. After the final exam, Ziye packed her things, exchanged goodbyes with the students in her classroom, and headed out across the campus.

Two hours of sitting had left her backside aching.

Relief washed over her, free from the competition stress, the assignment pressure, and the tension of tests. She just wanted to wander the campus, summoning her robot to bring Douzai along so she could take the little one for a walk amidst the rare green foliage.

Douzai was ecstatic. He pounded his short, thick legs, chasing the Little Sprout, which zipped high and then low, until, losing its footing, Douzai tumbled head-over-heels like a rolling gourd.

Why had she ended up with such a fat, dull creature? And it barely produced droppings, denying her even the chance to clean up after it.

It was truly vexing.

Ziye sat on a stone, watching the two pets play happily.

Just then, she felt a strange shift in the atmosphere. She turned back, but there was no one there.

A mere illusion?

She turned her head back, propping her chin in her hand, continuing to watch the two little creatures play. Little Sprout, caught up in its fun, zipped into a patch of flowers; a gentle brush of its wings snapped off a branch.

Little Sprout extended a tiny sprout, carefully scooped up the blossom, and flew happily back to Douzai, hovering to place it on the creature's head.

After shedding its coat, Douzai now boasted sleek, glossy brown fur, white paws, and a tuft of white hair on its head. Adorned with a large flower, over 8cm in diameter, covering half its face and obscuring one eye, it looked like a veiled beauty emerging from a long seclusion.

Ziye couldn't help but laugh.

A slight chuckle sounded from behind her.

Ziye didn't turn around. She walked over, scooped up the piggy-like Douzai, and started walking, with Little Sprout fluttering along behind.

"Student Ziye, please wait!" called a strange male voice from behind her.

Ziye paused. A moment later, a boy ran up the cobblestone path—a tall, blond young man—and stammered, "I really didn't mean to follow you. I just... I just..." He scratched his head. "I'm from Armor Fabrication, Year One, Class Three. My name is Bortherton. I noticed your team was missing someone from the fabrication department, and I thought you might need help, so I followed you here to put myself forward."

He paused, then added, "I have a lot of free time during the break and can participate in team activities, no problem." He opened his optical screen and sent his resume to Ziye via nearby transmission. "This is my resume. I've participated in many competitions before and consider myself decent at fabrication."

Ah, he was looking to join a team. Ziye smiled. "You don't need to be so nervous, but this isn't my decision alone. I need to discuss it with my teammates."

Bortherton was overjoyed. "Thank you so much, Ziye."

Ziye waved her hand. "It’s nothing. Some of my teammates haven't finished their exams yet. I'll speak with them later and get back to you."

Bortherton beamed. "Student Ziye, you are such a kind person."

Ziye's face immediately clouded over.

Bortherton continued, "You are nothing like what they described; they said you were very aloof. It turns out you're quite approachable."

Ziye was left speechless, only able to manage a strained "Heh heh."

After he left, Ziye opened his resume and scanned it.

She couldn't verify the truth of the claims within, but she noted that his resume formatting was excellent—clear layout, easy to read, and highlighting key points effectively.

She paused, then forwarded his resume to the team's competition chat group, asking for their input.

The twins saw it first. "Ziye, you are handling the fabrication aspect now. Can you manage it all by yourself?"

Ziye was touched by their concern. She could manage it—at worst, she could summon a batch of robots for assistance. However, she was already quite busy; on fabrication matters, she only consulted Little Sprout or poked people on the Mecha Movement Forum.

She wasn't a fabrication major, so her knowledge wasn't entirely systematic. Having a teammate specializing in that area would naturally be better.

The slight downside was that he was a first-year student, raising concerns about whether his expertise in fabrication was truly professional grade.

Ziye honestly shared her thoughts.

Axel pondered. "Forgive me for being suspicious, but Professor Budika mentioned our proposal was rated 'Excellent' in the preliminary round. I don't know if he’s trying to sneak in for an award based on that."

Spence chimed in, "If you need an upperclassman specializing in fabrication, we could just find one directly. There’s no need to randomly accept someone."

Ziye considered this. The twins were ensuring team quality, but recalling Bortherton’s hopeful gaze before he left, she wasn't sure how she would refuse him later.

If she rejected him, would he respond with something like, "I thought you weren't an arrogant person, but you have disappointed me..."?