Wow! The item-dropping rate is really high!

"Come in,"

The instructor settled into the simulation pod and greeted Bai E, "First, let me introduce all the functions the templates inside the cabin can have when operating a mecha."

This work should have been done by Benson, as it is a longstanding tradition for an old soldier to mentor a new one in the mech pilots reserve.

He was a reserve member of the last batch of formal mech pilots, and because he was not qualified for frontline mecha combat, he was lucky to survive the last battle against the Bug Race.

And now, the previous batch of reserve members had become the reliable main force of today's mech pilot training camp.

When the main force couldn't be relied upon, the instructor had to step in personally.

"The mechas you will be able to get your hands on are currently only this type of Owl Dragon I, as more types of mechas are generally not used as your regular vehicles. Of course, if one day you have the chance to deal with the Mechanical Court, then you might also see a few other kinds of mechas, but for now, we will only talk about this one.

"The entire control module inside the Owl Dragon I model is mainly composed of four parts, which are motion, action, the arsenal...and the energy center."

[You are learning "Knowledge—Specific Vehicle (Armed Mecha) Operation," progress 1%.]

"Motion refers to wide-ranging movements like walking, running, jumping, moving left, right, forward, and backward, etc...."

"Action, on the other hand, is the precise control of smaller areas such as forearms, upper arms, calves, thighs, back, waist, and other parts."

"The arsenal can be regarded as tactics for combat, our armed mechas' standard arsenal includes the Alloy Chainsaw Sword, the Fire God Machine Gun with a firing rate of 3600 rounds per second, the Giant Flamethrower, two small missile arrays, and two small-yield nuclear warheads.

Of course, the mecha has reserved slots for special equipment, so if you have a particular weapon you are fond of, you can apply to your superiors for individual fitting or minor modification. We can talk about this more once you're familiar with operating the mecha."

"As for the energy center, it's a bit special; we'll talk about that later."

"Normally, it takes two mech pilots to operate this model and engage in combat."

Simply put, a mecha is a large human body, and the mech pilots act as the nerves and blood vessels inside the mecha.

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Imagine the intricate coordination of bones and muscles inside the human body during battle for any possible action; the existence of the mecha is to finely dissect those numerous processes that are instinctively smooth on the human body into independent actions.

Pilots in the cockpit transmit commands and force to the respective parts at the exact moment to simulate the agility and adaptability of human movements.

"Typically, one person controls the motion module and selects from the arsenal, and we call this person the 'main mech pilot,' who is primarily responsible for strategic decisions like advancement, retreat, and selecting tactical weaponry against specific opponents—essentially the brain of the mecha."

"The one who solely controls the action module is called a 'combat mech pilot.' To achieve agility similar to the human body, there are a vast number of small parts on the mecha that can be individually controlled. The 'combat mech pilot' has total control over these parts. Tactical combat movements in battle are mostly led and completed by the 'combat mech pilot.'"

"As for the energy center I mentioned earlier... different parts require constant adjustment of driving power, and control over it is not fixed in either pilot's hands."

"Only with teamwork between the two can one perfectly operate an Owl Dragon I model armed mecha. The more skilled the group of pilots, the more agile and sensitive the mecha's performance becomes, approaching the sensibility of the human body."

"I've heard that you are quite good at both combat and shooting, right?"

As he spoke, the instructor suddenly turned his gaze towards Bai E.

Meeting the other's gaze, Bai E lowered his eyes somewhat "at a loss," "I can... do a bit."

"Be confident... I've heard quite a few legendary stories about you," the instructor patted Bai E's shoulder and continued to explain.

"In fact, operating a mecha has certain similarities to the bare-handed and armed combat you do with your body. Warriors good at combat tend to have astonishing performances in mecha operation as well.

But there are many differences too. For example, to throw the most powerful punch with the human body, you typically need to draw your fist back as far as possible to ensure there is enough distance to generate force. However, a mecha with an internal power system does not need to do this.

As soon as the command is given, it can complete the maximum output within a limited success rate in the shortest distance.

Of course, the commands given by the mech pilot also need to be preempted, to ensure the mecha's internal power systems have enough time to produce power, but the mecha itself will not be constrained by the human body's limitations and need not perform some of the excess movements. You will be able to feel the difference between them when you operate the mecha practically."

[You are learning "Knowledge—Specific Vehicle (Armed Mecha) Operation," progress 17%.]

"Your actual combat ability is formidable; maybe in the future, you could become an excellent 'combat mech pilot.'"

Having said these words, the instructor paused, seemingly concluding the introduction.

Bai E finally had an opening to ask his own question, "Is it impossible for someone to operate a mecha alone?"

"Hehe~," the instructor chuckled heartily.

The pinpointing from others just now might not have caused much turmoil in his mentality as a man-made warrior, but it might also have stirred some pride.

If no one wants to pair with me, then I'll just form a team by myself.

But that, is impossible.

"Many new mech pilots, like you, have such ideas when they first encounter mecha training, but you have to understand, it's not possible. Now, imagine you want to do a forward roll right now, how would you operate?"

As the image of a forward roll flashed through his mind, Bai E's gaze towards the cockpit's layout filled with various buttons and joysticks became somewhat bewildered.

The instructor didn't push them too hard, his words were just meant to spark Bai E's imagination.

While speaking, he also started explaining and demonstrating, "Come, let's break down this movement step by step—starting with the motion aspect, we need to use our legs to generate power and jump forward, right?"

[You are learning "Knowledge—Specific Vehicle (Armed Mecha) Piloting," progress 21%.]

"Mm-hmm," Bai E nodded, indicating he was listening.

"Then our upper body needs to lean forward as much as possible to move the center of gravity forward. You have to understand, a mecha's body is not limited by human muscle tissue, but it still has to follow the laws of physics."

"Hmm..."

"What about the arms? To maintain the center of gravity, and to ensure we maintain the right combat posture after rolling, they need to move accordingly. It's not too different from making a normal rolling motion with your own body, right?"

"Right."

"So in this seemingly simple action, how many movement commands do we need to execute?"

"Three?" Bai E tilted his head, following along with the instructor's explanation.

"No..." The instructor shook his head, "It's nine. To jump with the thighs, first we need to send a command to the power center to adjust the leg's energy supply level and then we can leap; that's already two commands. At the same time, upper body pressing forward, upper arms, forearms bracing forward, that's three commands.

After the hands press against the ground, the waist drives the legs to flip backwards, increase the arm's energy supply, upper arms, forearms straighten to push the body back to a standing combat posture, that's four commands. Nine in total. Complicated, isn't it?"

When the human body wants to do something, once the idea is there, the body naturally allocates the energy and carries it out like an instinct.

But a mecha is an inanimate object; humans are its brain and nerves, its blood vessels.

Every tiny decision requires a decisive command from the human for thorough execution.

Increase the power supply but don't move the body, and you'll just be roaring in place.

Move the body without giving it energy, and of course it won't budge.

[You are learning "Knowledge—Specific Vehicle (Armed Mecha) Piloting," progress 23%.]

"What I've described is the simplest procedure already... To go into more detail, when we do a forward roll, our body can't do without the process of bending the knees, right? That's something the body must do to exert force."

"Mm-hmm." Bai E nodded.

"But in piloting a mecha, the process of 'bending the knees' isn't actually necessary to accomplish the action of 'rolling forward,' right? Because a mecha's body doesn't need to rely on 'bending the knees' to generate force."

"Right."

"But what if we don't input the 'bend knees' command? What do you think would happen?"

Images flashed through Bai E's mind—

The mecha fell forward stiffly, and then, like a diver's motion in reverse, its legs straightened out and were pushed up stiffly by the arms.

"Do you understand?" the instructor looked at Bai E as if he were deep in thought, "We could choose not to execute 'bend knees,' but that would undoubtedly increase the magnitude of the movement, take more time, and expose bigger vulnerabilities. In real combat with our own bodies, that moment could be enough to decide life or death.

And you have to understand, all of this is based on a simple environment without any interference. Imagine—if you were on a battlefield, after you've completed this forward roll dodge, you have to immediately decide which weapons to counterattack with upon getting up, where to launch your attack, and so on.

Leave aside the complexity of these tactical decisions and the simultaneous or sequential command outputs in an instant; even deciding whether the bullets about to be chambered in the Fire God Machine Gun are armor-piercing, concussion grenades, or incendiary rounds requires you to make a quick choice in the blink of an eye. Do you think you could handle that?"

"..."n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

It did sound, indeed, a little difficult.

"What if there were more people?" Bai E asked curiously.

"More people?" The instructor shook his head, "As I just explained, the execution of a major action relies on the coordination of various commands. Even cooperation between two people is a test of understanding, let alone with more operators. One arm forward, the other back, thighs squat, calves drive a jump up... Can you imagine that kind of chaos?"

Mechas are different from tanks and airplanes; to achieve the flexibility similar to a human body, the fewer "brains" there are issuing commands, the better.

One person can't handle it, and more people just add to the chaos.

Two people, as has been determined after long-term practice, is the most reasonable configuration to pilot a single mecha.

"Oh~" Bai E nodded, committing it to memory.

[You are learning "Knowledge—Specific Vehicle (Armed Mecha) Piloting," progress 25%.]