“I… I’ll only hold you back.”
Xing Meng remembered how enthusiastic and sincere Wang Tingting had been when she first made a temporary contract with her.
At that time, she truly believed she had met a very, very good driver—even if they lost the competition, Wang Tingting would patiently encourage her. But as they lost more and more assessments, much of that warmth gradually cooled into sharp, cold knives.
“You can’t say that…” Su Chen stroked his chin. “Mecha Girl can be upgraded, right? I remember that upgrading from D-class to C-class only requires meeting the attribute standards plus a Star Core of the corresponding attribute. Is that very difficult?”
To smoothly integrate his work into this world, he had also briefly supplemented his knowledge of Mecha Girl, though it was only superficial.
“Yes, it’s quite difficult, meow…” Xing Meng lowered her head and pouted:
“To meet attribute standards, you need modifications, and the better the Mecha Girl, the lower the modification cost. For someone like me, it would cost a lot, a lot of money.
And then there are Star Cores; those are special resources obtained by achieving high rankings in competitions.
A D-class like me would definitely come in last in any slightly large-scale competition.”
The more Xing Meng spoke, the sadder she became, her voice growing softer and softer, feeling utterly useless.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to be Su Chen’s Mecha Girl.
She was just afraid her clumsiness would disappoint this Modifier shop owner.
She didn’t want to see that kind of disappointed and rejecting gaze again. To gain and then lose, she’d rather not gain at all.
Oh~ So it’s about being afraid of spending money~
Su Chen’s eyes darted around. He leaned in closer, smiling as he coaxed, “I am a Modifier, and I can tell you clearly that modifications don’t actually cost that much money. Market prices are generally at least ten times higher than the cost. As a Modifier, I get materials at rock-bottom prices, so don’t worry.”
“Really?” Xing Meng looked at Su Chen eagerly, her fingers repeatedly rubbing the corner of her clothes.
She didn’t know much about modification costs, only that the owner had given her one for free.
Perhaps it was true, as the owner said—it doesn’t cost a Modifier much to modify his own Mecha Girl?
Then, then maybe she could try?
As the saying goes, a rotten mud cannot be propped up the wall, but it can’t stop the mud from being plentiful, meow~
“Of course, it’s true.” Su Chen puffed out his chest and spoke righteously, “Comrade Xing Meng! A driver’s self-worth is realized by constantly sprinting and winning on the track, but do you know what a Modifier’s self-worth is?”
Xing Meng stared blankly at Su Chen, tilting her small head.
“I… I don’t know…”
“It’s about making Mecha Girl stronger and stronger!” Su Chen patted Xing Meng’s shoulder, continuing to entice her, “So, do you think modifying an A-class Mecha Girl to SSS-class is more fulfilling, or modifying a D-class Mecha Girl to SSS-class is more fulfilling?”
Xing Meng tilted her head and thought for a while.
She seemed to be seriously comparing the two.
After a long moment, she timidly glanced at Su Chen and said uncertainly:
“Maybe, maybe modifying a D-class to SSS would be a bit more fulfilling?”
“Exactly! That’s right!” Su Chen seized the opportunity to grasp the girl’s cold small hand, forcing their eyes to meet. “So! Comrade Xing Meng, are you willing to contribute to my ideals and the realization of my self-worth?”
“Meow?” Xing Meng’s pretty face flushed slightly, and she instinctively turned her head to avert her gaze.
The man in front of her was too enthusiastic.
His fervent gaze was like an approaching wildfire, making it difficult for her to meet his eyes.
“I… I don’t mind.”
“As long as, as long as you don’t dislike me…” Xing Meng mumbled softly.
She had originally thought she was dispensable to Su Chen.
But now Su Chen seemed to need her very much, and it was this feeling of being needed that allowed her to regain a tiny bit of confidence.
“Of course, I won’t dislike you…”
Su Chen was overjoyed.
He had finally subdued this little cat girl.
He smiled like a hungry wolf, kneading Xing Meng’s soft small hand: “But how do you contract with you Mecha Girl again?”
Xing Meng: “ರ_ರ ...”
…
Ten minutes later, Xing Meng gave Su Chen a simple explanation.
There are three main forms of contracting a Mecha Girl.
First, a temporary written contract, similar to hers with Wang Tingting.
Second, a Bond Contract, a level higher than a temporary written contract.
Third, the highest level, a Soul Contract.
The differences between these three are clear.
The first type of contract can be terminated at any time. Neither the Mecha Girl nor the driver needs a reason or bears responsibility. The maintenance of their relationship relies entirely on conscious effort and conscience.
The second type is slightly more complex. Both parties need sufficient reasons and motivation to terminate the contract, such as the Mecha Girl being scrapped, or the driver being unable to continue participating in competitions. Moreover, these types of contracts are often linked to club agreements and personal agreements.
The third type can only be signed with the Mecha Girl’ voluntary consent and cannot be terminated once signed—it means the Mecha Girl voluntarily binds herself to the driver forever. It is a form of contract that a Mecha Girl would only be willing to sign under circumstances of absolute trust in the driver.
Su Chen’s demands weren’t high; he was quite satisfied with signing the first type of contract with Xing Meng.
He could upgrade it later when their relationship improved; haste makes waste.
In front of the Modifier shop’s cashier, the two sat opposite each other, the atmosphere serious yet a little comical.
“Um, Xing Meng, I’ve thought about it carefully, and we can just sign the first type of contract. That way, you’ll have more freedom.” Su Chen looked at the cat girl opposite him, saying seriously, “If there’s anything you find unacceptable about me, you can leave at any time, although I don’t think that situation is possible… Why are you crying?”
Before he could finish speaking, Xing Meng’s expression darkened, and tears welled up in her eyes again.
“Is signing the first type of agreement just to make it easy to abandon me at any time, like my previous driver…?”
Su Chen quickly waved his hands, “That’s not what I mean at all! Then we’ll sign the second type!”
Actually, he most wanted to sign the third type.
A cat girl who can transform into a racing car, just thinking about it was exciting!
But it was just a thought; Xing Meng would definitely not agree.
After all, they had only just met a few days ago?
…
Since Su Chen didn’t have a club.
The most complicated part, the club agreement, could be directly omitted.
He only needed to take Xing Meng to the local Mecha Maintenance Association to witness and sign the contract.
There was only one Mecha Maintenance Association in Bincheng, conveniently located near the League Academy.
Su Chen greeted the construction site owner and left with Xing Meng.
The owner didn’t say much; in his opinion, Su Chen was just bringing his Mecha Girl to ‘show off’ to him.
Young people, you know~ It’s understandable.
If he had owned a Mecha Girl when he was young, he would have announced it to the whole world, not even sparing a dog on the street.
Mecha Maintenance Association—the abbreviation for the Mecha Girl Protection Association.
This organization oversees second and third-class contracts, disputes between Mecha Girl and drivers, and protects the basic rights of Mecha Girl.
The prerequisite for discussing basic rights is that the Mecha Girl and driver have signed a second-class or higher contract.
If it’s a first-class contract, the Mecha Maintenance Association cannot intervene.
The signing process was simple. Su Chen signed an electronic agreement provided by the staff, and Xing Meng saved a copy of the electronic agreement in her memory.
Afterward, Su Chen only needed to record his fingerprint on a spot just above Xing Meng’s tail. This spot was similar to a start button; successful fingerprint recording would signify the signing of the Bond Contract. From then on, no one other than Su Chen could drive Xing Meng.
The contract process took less than ten minutes and was very smooth.
“From now on, you are my Su Chen’s Mecha Girl. Please take care of me!”
At the entrance of the Mecha Maintenance Association, Su Chen solemnly extended his hand to Xing Meng.
It was also Xing Meng’s first time signing a second type of contract, making her nervous yet feeling like she was in a dream. She scuffed her toes on the ground, then extended her small hand to grasp one of Su Chen’s fingers. Her fluffy cat ears perked up joyfully, but her voice remained as soft as ever.
“I’m sorry… oh no, thank you!
Please, please take care of me… Master.”
‘Master’—the moment this soft English address fell.
A row of prompts simultaneously appeared in Su Chen’s eyes.
Main Quest 2.0 Completed — Talent Unlocked: God’s Eye
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