Master Smith Under Ministry of National Defense

Master Smith Under Ministry of National Defense

168 – Reorganization

 

“Are you serious about reorganizing the teams?”

Many trainees were in a state of panic upon hearing the announcement about the reorganization. They had just started to sync well with their teammates after overcoming countless life-threatening situations. Under the previous system, where team composition was entirely up to the trainees, they had established their own systems.

Myung-jun was already aware of the existing system that the trainees had been using among themselves.

“I understand that you’ve built your own system to adapt to the previous structure. You called it the Gate Score system, right?”

Gate Score.

It was a metric that quantified each individual’s impact on gate conquests, similar to how sports leagues assign salaries to players to determine their value. For example, to recruit a team member with a Gate Score of 500 points from another team, you would need to offer a team member with an equivalent score of 500 points.

This was a system the trainees had devised to pursue rationality within the freely configurable team structure. The system had evolved to the point where even equipment had assigned values, and deficiencies could be compensated with gear or materials.

Hearing about this system, Myung-jun found it interesting that the trainees had created such a training system, the Gate Score, without any guidance. However, he also noted that the current scoring method needed improvement.

Instead of discarding the system the trainees had created, Myung-jun planned to propose an improved system that could reflect more concrete and realistic values.

“I understand that the Gate Score system you’re using for team member exchanges is based on the contributions each team member makes during gate conquests. Is that correct?”

The trainee with the highest Gate Score, Emilia Ramos, the ‘Queen of Mirrors’ from Spain, raised her hand and answered, “Yes, that’s correct.”

‘Emilia Ramos. She’s the one with the ability to reflect attacks using a multidimensional cube, right?’ Myung-jun recalled her information as he spoke to her, noticing her anxious expression.

“Miss Emilia Ramos, correct? Based on your current criteria, what is your Gate Score?”

“72,372 points, Instructor Cha Myung-jun.”

“Do you think you can maintain that score if you enter gates of higher difficulty?”

Surprisingly, she shook her head and replied, “It would be difficult. My score would likely drop to less than half.”

“Why is that?”

“My ability completely reflects attacks below a certain intensity back at the attacker, but there’s a limit to the number of mirrors I can summon in a day. To handle stronger monsters, I’d need to layer multiple mirrors, reducing the number of monsters I can block.”

Her ability was one of the most powerful among the trainees, but it had the drawback of rendering her as vulnerable as a non-Awakener once she exhausted her mirror summons.

Myung-jun then turned to Luthando Sithole, a general applicant trainee with a high Gate Score. “Mr. Luthando, you also have a high Gate Score, correct? How much is it?”

“65,723 points, sir.”

“You’ve been partnering with Lucas Gauthier for gate conquests, haven’t you? Could you achieve the same score without Lucas in your party?”

“It would be difficult. My ability provides good durability but lacks mobility and attack power. Without Lucas’s support equipment, it would be hard to achieve the same results.”

“I believe the main flaw of the Gate Score system you’ve devised lies in that aspect. While the idea of using a single, easily understandable score to organize teams, similar to a sports player’s salary, is interesting, no team in reality selects players based solely on their salary.”

To address this issue, Myung-jun proposed a new standard. This new system divided each Awakener’s abilities into six categories, allowing for a more nuanced assessment that could intuitively fill gaps in a team.

The large screen behind Myung-jun displayed the new Gate Score system, which consisted of six categories: Penetration, Endurance, Blocking, Versatility, Flexibility, and Strategy, arranged in a hexagonal pattern. The trainees’ eyes lit up with interest as they saw the new scoring system.

“Penetration refers to the ability to break through the encirclement established by monsters. It’s similar to the concept of attack power and measures the capability to lead party members to safety in crisis situations.”

In the new system Myung-jun created, Endurance measured how long one could sustain combat, Blocking assessed the ability to withstand enemy offensives, Versatility indicated how useful one’s abilities were in various situations, and Flexibility quantified how well one could utilize their abilities regardless of the party composition. Lastly, Strategy was not just about planning and strategizing but also about the ability to execute those strategies effectively.

As Myung-jun finished his explanation and snapped his fingers, the trainees’ smartphones began to buzz simultaneously. When they checked their phones, they saw their new Gate Scores, calculated by an AI analyzing their past combat data.

“Of course, you’ll still receive an overall score like before, but this new system allows you to see which areas your team lacks and what you need to improve to form a stronger team.”

Luthando raised his hand and asked, “Wouldn’t it be better to maintain team composition under this improved system? Using the new scoring method, we could form much stronger teams.”

“I’m afraid that’s not feasible. The current Flexibility scores don’t accurately reflect your adaptability. To truly measure high flexibility, we need to test your adaptability by forming teams with members deemed to have low flexibility.”

Myung-jun explained that the changes in team composition were necessary to accurately measure each individual’s abilities. To determine if an Awakener truly had high flexibility, they needed to be tested in teams with members who had low flexibility.

Additionally, Myung-jun announced plans to attempt higher-difficulty gate conquests with the newly formed teams. This raised concerns among the trainees, who were already experiencing injuries with their current teams. In response, Myung-jun showed them a chart depicting the reduced injury rates.

“When you first joined Icarus, most of you didn’t know how to utilize your abilities effectively. Your teammates were also inexperienced or lacked coordination. However, as you repeatedly tackled gates, the severity and frequency of your injuries significantly decreased,” Myung-jun said.

He emphasized that although the current training at Icarus involved risks, it was still far safer and more comfortable compared to actual gate conquests.

In reality, attempting to conquer a gate ranked higher than one’s own was an unimaginable feat. There were no medical pods to perfectly restore all injuries without aftereffects, nor were there instructors to save the conquest team in emergencies.

Myung-jun explained that now, in this safe environment where they had the opportunity to tackle higher-ranked gates, was the best time to aim for rapid growth, even at the risk of injury.

“The moment you leave Icarus and join a clan outside Liberty City, such opportunities will no longer be available. Once you step out with the emblem of an Icarus graduate, you’ll transition from being protected to being the protector. More often than not, you’ll find yourself leading teams with members significantly weaker than you, rather than forming teams with peers or stronger members.”

The trainees nodded in agreement with Myung-jun’s explanation. If they wanted to carry the emblem of an Icarus graduate, they needed to demonstrate the appropriate level of competence. As Myung-jun pointed out, outside of Icarus, they would be facing the risk of death rather than just injury while conquering gates.

Myung-jun emphasized that the higher the current injury rate, the lower the risk of death they would face after graduation. Most injuries sustained during Icarus’s training were in situations where other Awakeners might have died. However, injuries, even in a safe training environment, were always a source of fear for the trainees—not because of the pain or fear of getting hurt, but because of the fear of falling behind during recovery.

In situations severe enough to require instructor intervention and the use of medical pods, trainees would realistically have to forgo gate conquests for about a week. To alleviate the trainees’ fear of such situations recurring, Myung-jun presented a new “carrot” he had prepared.

“I understand that coordinating with unfamiliar team members and tackling higher-difficulty gates is no easy task. So today, I’ve prepared a special gift for you all.”

As he spoke, Myung-jun nodded towards the corner, where the man with the Masamune High-Tech badge, whom Lucas had noticed earlier, walked over to join him. Several employees accompanied him, struggling to move a heavy-looking box that seemed impossible to transport without a cart.

The employees, dressed in work clothes typical of engineers, contrasted with the man in the suit and badge. They strained to pull the cart with the box to the center of the stage.

“It seems we won’t be needing a microphone,” Myung-jun remarked.

The 17th Presentation Room, designed by Soo-jeong, was equipped with an intelligent amplification system that automatically focused and amplified the speaker’s voice. This allowed Myung-jun and the trainees to present their opinions without the need for a microphone.

The AI-controlled system quickly recognized that the man in the suit wanted to address the audience and amplified his voice so it could be heard clearly throughout the room.

“Ahem, ahem. Greetings, trainees of Icarus. I am Kato Daichi, CEO of Masamune High-Tech, a company established by the collaboration of major Japanese corporations specializing in Awakener equipment manufacturing.”

As he finished speaking, a hissing sound emanated from the three boxes placed on the stage by his staff. The boxes began to open slowly, following his words.

“The reason I am here today is that we at Masamune High-Tech have the honor of providing new equipment for your restructured training program. For this provision, we developed a new series of equipment exclusively for you, based on the foundational design and technical consultation provided by the Liberal Clan.”

Daichi gestured towards the three power armors standing proudly inside the now fully opened cases.

“I am proud to introduce the pinnacle of Japanese engineering, created by the collaboration of Japan’s leading corporations. These power armors from Masamune High-Tech boast the highest performance of any power armor available.”

Captivated by the impressive appearance of the power armors, the trainees listened intently as Daichi continued.

“Today, I am here to find the first owners of the Kabuto series.”