Pirate: My Piltover technology is far ahead!

Chapter 23 Vegapunk, MADS' Invitation

Wearing sunglasses and a plaid shirt, the person in front of Oran was Vegapunk, the director of MADS, who was later hailed as a genius scientist who was 500 years ahead of the world.

Not long ago, when Judge and Queen broke away from the group to act independently, Vegapunk also came to the newly built smelting plant in the Kingdom of Sorbet.

Vegapunk could sense a discordant feeling; the entire smelter's style didn't quite match the Kingdom of Sorbet, both in terms of technology and architectural style.

MADS's regular researchers discussed the pricing with the workers, while Vegapunk, after making some inquiries, found Oran, who happened to be there providing technical guidance.

"Hello, I'm Vegapunk, the director of MADS. I heard this place was built under your guidance; it's a brilliant idea."

Oran also remembered Vegapunk; many of his inventions were related to Vegapunk.

Although many techniques are replicated from ancient documents, this is still a skill in itself. Researching this kind of thing cannot be done by simply glancing at the documents and then immediately putting it into practice.

Putting everything else aside, the artificial Devil Fruits created by Vegapunk in the original timeline are worlds apart from the inferior Devil Fruits created by Caesar.

Vegapunk doesn't have that much fame or achievement yet, and compared to those future things, his big head is more attractive to Oran.

"Is it strange? I'm a user of the Brain-Brain Fruit, so my head is a little big."

The Paramecia-type Brain-Brain Fruit allows the user's brain to expand to an infinite size, making it a valuable asset for researchers.

Oran himself doesn't oppose Devil Fruits, which are arguably the most mysterious things on the sea and can always provide a lot of help. The Paw-Paw Fruit of Kuma has helped Oran a lot.

Oran himself was also interested in several Devil Fruits, such as the Gluttony Fruit, which was on Oran's list of plans. With this fruit, the material restrictions would be completely removed.

Several other fruits, either inherently powerful or conceptually significant, have also caught Oran's attention, but there's been little opportunity to see them within the Kingdom of Sorbe.

"It's nothing, I've seen plenty of people even stranger than you."

I'm Siddiel Oran, the technical director here.

After a brief self-introduction, the two casually chatted about some technical topics, and their different research ideas began to intertwine. It was at this moment that Kate called Oran.

"Didn't you just say you were the director of MADS?"

"MADS isn't a very formal organization, and its members have a lot of freedom. I can go with you to take a look. If they cause you any trouble, I'll handle it."

MADS is more like a salon gathering of science enthusiasts who exchange experiences while researching the same thing, without a clear hierarchy.

Vegapunk's ability to manage others also relies on funding. Due to trust issues, Du Field also entrusted the management of funds to Vegapunk. If anyone causes trouble, Vegapunk can cut off their research funding.

Science is inherently expensive, and most people cannot be self-sufficient without an organization, which is why MADS has maintained relative stability.

"There might not be any trouble, but let me make this clear first: I'm not going to pay any medical bills."

Kate explained it very clearly: the other party caused the dispute. In this situation, let alone injuring someone, even triggering Blitzcrank's annihilation mode would be perfectly reasonable to Oran.

Vegapunk simply nodded silently. This was also an unspoken rule of MADS: members had a high degree of freedom and could act freely. Consequently, if someone caused a major disaster, no one else would share the burden.

This place is not close to where Blitz is fishing, and even if Oran sets off immediately after receiving the news, it will still take some time to get there.

When Oran arrived there, it had already turned from noon to dusk, and in the glow of the setting sun, three figures were running along the beach. It was Blitzcrank's first long-distance run since his birth, and a youth that some people never want to remember in their lives.

"How come this thing hasn't run out of energy yet?!"

"How should I know! It's all your fault, you idiot, that caused all this trouble!"

Blitzkrieg followed closely behind Judge and Quinn, maintaining a rather ambiguous distance—neither running them over nor letting them escape. If they were too slow, they would experience what it meant to be hit by an electric fist.

Quinn and Judge deduced from the steam behind Blitz that it was a steam-powered robot. They figured they would win if they could wear it down until it ran out of fuel. Blitz's endurance exceeded their expectations.

After all, Hextech Crystals are Blitzcrank's true energy core, and it's unrealistic to expect to deplete them completely.

"Blitz could chase you guys all day!"

This is a result of the learning module. Oran only wrote a basic operating method for Blitzcrank. Blitzcrank is essentially emotionless now; anger and resentment are just interjections used to threaten.

Blitz did this because the program code determined that the other party's behavior needed to be taught a lesson. Blitz had been spending a lot of time with Kate recently, which caused Blitz to develop some feline habits, such as how to toy with prey.

"Blitz, that's enough, that's enough."

The sound wasn't loud, but Blitzcrank's sensors picked up on it, causing him to stop and head back towards Oran and Kate. Quinn and Judge, now free, also breathed a sigh of relief and collapsed onto the beach, panting heavily.

"Master, Blitz awaits instructions."

"You are free to move around in the vicinity and are ready to be deployed at any time."

"clear."

Blitz swayed to the side and helped Kate process today's catch; if it wasn't processed soon, the fish would probably rot.

"It's hard to imagine that it could actually carry out such a vague order?"

This was the first time Vegapunk had ever seen a robot with such a high level of intelligence. Although he had some achievements with robots, those robots required very detailed commands to avoid ambiguity.

Send it to buy a bamboo stalk; who knows what it might bring back in the end?

But Blitz is different. If Blitz were to buy bamboo now, he would choose the bamboo that best suits his current situation.

"Since it calls you master, it must be your creation. May I ask what your thought process was when you researched it?"

A thirst for knowledge also arose in Vegapunk's heart; for someone like him, the allure of unknown technology was too great.

"I just stood on the shoulders of giants and made some minor improvements to existing technology. It's nothing special."

"The metaphor of standing on the shoulders of giants is quite apt. Isn't that how science is passed down from generation to generation?"

Mr. Siddirell, would you be interested in joining MADS?

(End of this chapter)