Kaisin Grez left in a hurry, oblivious to the nickname Bai Sha had given him. Cen Yuehuai, however, caught sight of it and burst out laughing.
"Your Highness, why not just call him 'Dumb Dog'?" Cen Yuehuai asked.
Bai Sha sighed. "Honesty isn't a bad trait. He keeps his word, even agreeing to Xino's half-joking condition, and he's essentially apologizing for that Gis Grez."
She tilted her head, pondered for a moment, and closed her holo-brain. "I think he's decent enough."
Best to leave some room for goodwill—makes future encounters easier.
Cen Yuehuai nodded in agreement.
Indeed, Kaisin Grez had only been prickly at first. He hadn't caused trouble off the battlefield, and after the Star-Devouring Insect incident, he'd personally come to thank them.
Xino, upon hearing the news, showed no surprise.
"That's the demeanor of a family heir, got it?" Xino Us said with a sigh. "As the future leader of his family, he's duty-bound to protect his people. When we saved those Xizhou Academy students, he took on the debt himself out of loyalty. This time, even if the provocateur was older—maybe barely connected to him—they're still from the same family. When someone stirs trouble or offends, no one escapes the fallout. Him stepping in to defuse this quietly is the most fitting and least costly move."
"So you're saying he's got a strong sense of responsibility?" Cen Yuehuai asked.
Xino nodded thoughtfully. "That could also be a weakness to exploit…"
As the heir of a beast-type marquess family, Xino was bound to cross paths with Kaisin Grez in the future. It made sense to start gathering intel on him now.
But they were still military academy students. The tensions between beast-types and feather-types were largely political, not yet tied to broader societal or economic issues. It was too early to dwell on such matters.
Xino quickly shifted focus, raising an eyebrow and slinging an arm around Cen Yuehuai's shoulder. "Now we've cleared out another tough competitor. Yuehuai, give it your all—maybe Tianquan Academy can really sweep all four pilot slots."
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Take Nanmi Academy's Ji Ya, someone we all know," Cen Yuehuai said, clearing her throat and tapping the table lightly. "To claim all the slots, we'd need to beat her. Do you think we can?"
Xino: "I could give it a shot. Yu Yan, though…" He turned a questioning glance toward Yu Yan.
Yu Yan shook his head slowly. "I'm not confident. Ji Ya's presence is formidable—her mental energy feels forged through countless trials."
Yu Yan often gauged people's traits by their mental energy aura, and his instincts were uncanny.
If he said he couldn't win, he probably couldn't.
And if even Yu Yan wasn't up to it, Cen Yuehuai, whose skills were a step below, stood even less of a chance.
"See?" Cen Yuehuai spread her hands. "I told you your plan's a long shot."
They'd scoped out the other 3S-rank students from Xizhou, Nanmi, and Dongluo Academies and felt confident they could handle them. But Ji Ya was an immovable mountain.
"If going against her won't work, why not try a different approach?" Bai Sha rubbed her chin, her eyes glinting slightly. "What if we pull her into our team?"
Cen Yuehuai, Xino, and Yu Yan all turned to stare at Bai Sha.
"Your Highness, I know you're dying to pet Ji Ya's mental entity, but there are only four pilot slots for the main team. We can't exactly rewrite the team competition rules, can we?" Cen Yuehuai said earnestly, then paused as a thought struck her. "Unless you mean—"
"I'll go to the mech engineer department and compete for the sole engineer slot," Bai Sha said matter-of-factly, nodding. "That way, we free up all four pilot slots, don't we?"
Cen Yuehuai/Xino/Yu Yan: "…"
Is that even allowed?!
"But Your Highness, during the four-academy competition, you competed as a pilot, not an engineer," Xino said. "Will they let you switch roles now?"
"Why wouldn't they? I'm the top scorer in Tianquan Academy's mech engineer assessments this semester," Bai Sha said calmly. "If even the top student isn't qualified to compete, how are they supposed to select the best engineer?"
"That… makes sense, I guess… No, no, no, Your Highness, can you stop trying to become an engineer?!"
Despite her friends' skepticism, Bai Sha went to see her Tianquan Academy advisor that evening. When she announced her intention to switch from a pilot slot to an engineer slot, the advisor was so flustered he nearly broke out in a cold sweat.
"Hold on, Bai Sha, what are you thinking? You're a top contender among the mech pilots—almost guaranteed a main team slot. Why on earth would you go for the engineer slot?"
Bai Sha blinked, facing a roomful of bewildered advisors. "I think my skills as a mech engineer are pretty solid too."
The advisor rubbed his forehead, choosing his words carefully. "We've discussed the engineer candidates before. Since the role requires quick repairs on the battlefield, engineers need self-defense capabilities, lightning-fast repair speed, and at minimum, an intermediate mech engineer license…"
Bai Sha pulled up her pre-prepared electronic "Senior Mech Engineer Certification" and showed it to him.
Advisor: "…"
What in the world?! When did she climb to senior mech engineer status?!
Even among the four major academies, not every student could achieve senior mech engineer certification by graduation. Those who did often earned the title of outstanding graduate.
Typically, students who earned intermediate or senior certifications would report it to the academy for rewards. But apparently, this one, with her vast resources, didn't care about such trifles and never bothered to mention it!
The advisor clutched his forehead, while two mech engineering advisors, who'd been sipping tea and spectating, suddenly lit up. They crowded around Bai Sha, eagerly asking what project had earned her the senior certification.
"I used a pseudonym for the submission, so it's confidential for now," Bai Sha said with a smile. "Besides, think about it, Advisors. As a mech engineer, I'm as good as anyone. And I'm a full-fledged mech pilot. In a team match, wouldn't that give us the firepower of five pilots right from the start? We might not even need mid-match repairs—we could just steamroll the opponents with sheer combat strength."
The advisors exchanged glances.
They had to admit, Bai Sha had a point.
There'd been prodigies like this before—exceptional pilots who were also gifted engineers. Without fail, they became legends, breaking conventions and delivering unexpected miracles.
If this arrangement could genuinely boost the team's chances in the military exercise…
The advisor who'd been speaking with Bai Sha pondered for a moment, then made up his mind. "I'll need to consult with the higher-ups."
The outcome of the consultation was a foregone conclusion. The directive from above was clear: don't waste a single talent.
As a royal with a legendary mentor like Jiang Gui, Bai Sha wouldn't face deliberate obstacles in switching to compete for the engineer slot.
Half an hour later, the advisor returned with the decision and sighed. "They've approved it. But once you make this choice, there's no going back. And you won't automatically get the slot just because you're Tianquan's top student—you'll have to compete with engineers from the other academies."
"No problem," Bai Sha nodded. "What's the competition for the engineer slot?"
"It tests your understanding of mech blueprints and your speed in repairing mechs," the advisor said. "On the battlefield, every second counts. Repairing a mech in a match isn't just about fixing it—it's about doing it fast… Tell you what, the mech engineering department is holding a mech modification test tomorrow. Why don't you go check it out?"