The Real Daughter Just Wants to Pilot Mechas - Chapter 36

“How did you get it here? Didn’t the Jiang family notice?!”

[Of course they didn’t. I didn’t take it directly from them. Jiang Yuan recently bought a new ship and was planning to send this one to the junk planet for scrapping, so I intercepted the system and flew it back to you.] The Siamese cat raised its head proudly, as if the words ‘praise me’ were written all over its face.

“Little Eight, you’re amazing! So clever! I’ve always wanted this ship!” Jiang Momo showered it with praise.

[I ran a scan. The ship’s combat system is still functional. If you modify it, the performance should match the original.]

Little Eight scratched its face with a paw. [I have no idea what Jiang Yuan was thinking. This ship is clearly better than the new one he bought. None of the ships currently sold in the Federation have combat capabilities.]

“He probably doesn’t know,” Jiang Momo said.

If she hadn’t encountered interstellar pirates on her way back to the Capital Star and had no choice but to take over the spaceship’s operating system, she never would’ve discovered there was more to it than met the eye.

At that time, she checked the operation logs and in recent years, she was the only one who had taken over the system.

[It doesn’t matter. Either way, he took a major loss.] Little Eight turned back to continue watching the comedy movie.

Seeing Little Eight fall silent, Jiang Momo opened the spaceship door and happily jumped in.

The interior layout of the spaceship was exactly the same as the first time she rode it to the Capital Star. Jiang Momo had always liked the sofa, so much so that even the couch in her floating island apartment didn’t compare in softness.

She flung herself onto the sofa but quickly sat up again. “I almost forgot the important thing.” She walked to the cockpit and expertly took over the operating system, preparing to import Little Eight’s data.

Little Eight stopped her. [Don’t import the main data. Backup data will do. The combat system probably won’t get much use anymore. It’s kind of pointless to me now.]

Besides, Jiang Momo wouldn’t be staying in the spaceship all the time, so Little Eight preferred being in the light brain. Boring as it was, at least it meant being with her every day.

“Alright then.” Jiang Momo rarely went against Little Eight’s advice, so she immediately changed the data transfer to backup.

The backup data ran in the background and could only share a unified consciousness when linked to the main data.

She glanced at the lazy Siamese cat sprawled across her optical screen. “Are you planning to activate the combat system right now?”

[Of course not. There’s no need for that in the Central Star System,] Little Eight rejected the idea directly. [We’ll activate it when we leave the Central Star System.]

“Okay.”

Once the data was fully imported, Jiang Momo switched the operating system to intelligent control.

A Siamese cat identical to Little Eight crawled out from the system screen, its eyes dull. [Please input destination.]

“Apartment Building 3221, Floating Island 76,” Jiang Momo said.

[The spaceship will depart shortly. Please sit tight and hold on,] a calm, emotionless mechanical voice rang out and the spaceship began to lift off.

Jiang Momo nestled into the soft sofa, pulled a thick Introduction to Mecha Manufacturing out of her pants pocket and started reading.

She soon fell asleep.

When she woke again, she found herself lying in her apartment bedroom.

By then, the sky had already lightened.

“What the—? Didn’t I fall asleep on the spaceship?” Jiang Momo sat up. She had no recollection of how she got back.

[I had the spaceship and the apartment’s mechanical arm move you through the window.]

A mechanical arm descended from the ceiling and handed Jiang Momo a cup of warm water.

She took it, rinsed her mouth, and then rubbed her face in frustration. “I’m doomed.”

She was now seriously worried that if she read directly to her students in class, she’d end up reading herself to sleep. The textbook was densely packed with text and she just couldn’t absorb any of it.

[What’s wrong?] Little Eight directed a mechanical arm to shove a small booklet into her arms from the bedside. [I finished reading the book Ge Qing gave you. The content logic checks out. Based on simulations, you could build an A-grade mecha.]

“Whoa, that was fast. You’re amazing, Little Eight!” Jiang Momo excitedly took the booklet and began reading it carefully.

The first page showed a breakdown of the mecha structure, detailing the name of each component and listing the page numbers that described the required materials and structural details for each part.

Jiang Momo skimmed through the book from beginning to end. The process of building a mecha vividly played out in her mind. “When I have time, I’ll buy some materials and try making one.”

According to the book, compared to B-grade mechas, A-grade ones not only had more complex energy pathways but also a different core structure, with significantly higher cockpit strength and energy storage.

She closed the book, got dressed, and stuffed the book into her pants pocket.

“Where’s my Introduction to Mecha Manufacturing?” Jiang Momo lovingly stowed Ge Qing’s book and then remembered her dreadful textbook, asking Little Eight.

[It’s in here.] Little Eight handed her the small bag she had packed earlier.

“This material is pretty rare, right? I’ll keep it safe.” Jiang Momo grabbed the keychain hanging from the bag and tried to remove it.

It was something she prepared when trying to get a Capital Star Residency permit through Ling Yelin but it didn’t seem to be needed. The other party had just helped her without asking for anything in return.

Little Eight had said that if someone didn’t want what was being offered openly, it probably meant they wanted more.

[Don’t bother. No one can recognize it,] Little Eight replied.

“Alright then.” Jiang Momo let go, slung the bag over her shoulder, checked the time, picked up the spatial storage box that Little Eight had packed with her belongings overnight, turned off the apartment’s smart systems, and left.

***

After returning to the school, Jiang Momo first went to her dormitory to drop off her belongings.

The teacher dormitory was a sleek, futuristic-looking building. From the outside, it was a tall, cylindrical structure in silver-white, with shifting lights flickering across its surface. It was flashy, though she wasn’t sure if they served a purpose.

She entered the elevator and when the doors opened again, she found herself in a small living room.

It was her dorm room.

[Beep. Jiang Momo’s identity detected. Door unlocked.]

She walked inside and the door closed behind her, leaving a green button in its center.

Directly opposite the door was a large, transparent window that let in plenty of natural light, brightening up the entire room.

She looked around. It was a very basic dorm with standard furniture, with just one bedroom and one living room, and around 60 square meters, but it had everything. It was small but fully functional.

Jiang Momo set her storage box on the coffee table and picked up her small bag, ready to head downstairs for class.

Just then, the same mechanical voice from earlier spoke again, [Beep. A package has been delivered. Would you like to accept it?]

“What package?” Jiang Momo asked.

[Beep. Contents identified as clothing. Origin verified. No toxic or harmful substances were detected. Not a cash-on-delivery item. Would you like to sign for it?]

“Sign for it.” Jiang Momo nodded.

Soon, the door opened again.

A group of robots filed in. Some cleaned the living room while others put the clothes away in the bedroom wardrobe. Whatever didn’t fit was hung on racks that had been installed in the living room.

“Did the school send this?” Jiang Momo was squished in the corner, watching the busy robots, and asked.

[Beep. According to our scan, this is a personal order.]

“Could it be Yan Chang who bought it? I’ll ask him next time I see him.” Jiang Momo rubbed her chin. “Why’d he buy so much?”

They’d basically turned her living room into a walk-in closet.

She gave the clothes a rough once-over and was pleased to find that most were pants, no dresses. She hated wearing dresses!

[Momo, want to try one on? This set would look great on you!] The Siamese cat excitedly pointed a paw at a nearby outfit.

“I’ll change after class. What I’m wearing now looks more mature.” Jiang Momo glanced at her black tank top, then at the colorful clothes in the room, and reluctantly decided not to change.

She grabbed her bag and headed out.

Downstairs, Jiang Momo ran into Yan Chang who was rushing toward the teaching building.

“Oh! Master! Are you headed to class too? The voting results are out! You really are the star teacher!” Yan Chang stopped excitedly to tell her, then glanced at the time, and grabbed her wrist. “Come on, we’re going to be late!”

Seeing Yan Chang’s completely neutral expression, Jiang Momo was sure he hadn’t bought the clothes.

If he had, he’d definitely be pestering her about why she wasn’t wearing them.

The two of them arrived at the teaching building ten minutes early. Yan Chang let out a long sigh of relief, wiped his sweaty bangs, and bent over to look at Jiang Momo, only to see that she was completely unfazed, barely even breathing hard.

“Master, your stamina is insane.”

“You could train like that too if you were being chased back and forth by alien beasts every day,” Jiang Momo blurted out while her mind was still running at full speed.

Yan Chang didn’t take it seriously and joked, “Then I guess I’ll need to find a desolate planet to train properly.”

The two walked into the elevator.

Jiang Momo was currently checking the voting results announced on the academy’s official homepage.

She had 85% of the votes, a landslide first place.

Because of that, her class schedule has been updated. Each class now lists a classroom number and the class designation.

The elevator doors opened and a small group of students walked past them.

“I think the academy’s gone crazy. Why did the voting have to be set in the middle of the night? I stayed up till 3 AM just to vote for Teacher Momo!”

“Seriously, can’t they set the voting for a reasonable time for us upperclassmen? Why do we have to vote with the freshmen?”

“Hehe, but she’s going to be teaching our Mecha Manufacturing Practical class. We might actually learn something useful. She’s teaching Introduction to Mecha Manufacturing this morning. Do you want to audit the class?”

“No thanks. Introduction is so boring, even dogs wouldn’t listen to it.”

Even though they said that, Jiang Momo glanced at the academic building map. The direction they were heading in was clearly toward the classroom where she was about to teach.

“Whoa, your classroom’s packed. I’ve been in school so long and never seen a turnout like this.” Yan Chang craned his neck to look from behind Jiang Momo. “It looks like there’s no seat for me. I’ll just sit in the aisle later.”

Jiang Momo looked back in confusion. “Didn’t you run over here so fast to attend class?”

“I don’t have morning classes,” Yan Chang replied righteously. “I came to cheer you on so you wouldn’t be nervous.”

“Thanks but that just makes me more nervous.” Jiang Momo pushed him out.

“Alright, alright. Find me after class and I’ll show you around campus.” Yan Chang walked off a few steps by himself.

After sending Yan Chang off, Jiang Momo took a deep breath and walked into the classroom.

The room went quiet for a moment and then erupted into loud cheers.

Jiang Momo smiled and waved to the students, then checked the time. Five minutes left.

She sat on a bench in the corner of the room and activated the Do Not Disturb mode on the wall. A transparent light screen separated her from the rest of the room.

She flipped open her book and her light brain suddenly lit up.

It was an email from Ling Yelin.

The subject was ‘Latest Mecha Manufacturing Course Materials.’

“Little Eight, scan this for me.” Out of caution, she didn’t open it right away.

[Scan complete. It’s a standard educational package for mecha manufacturing, using holographic projection.] Little Eight added, [It’s very expensive.]

Jiang Momo lightly tapped with her right index finger, thought for a second, and then opened the chat with Ling Yelin.

[Jiang Momo]: Did you send the clothes?

Ling Yelin replied instantly.

[010]: Yes but I didn’t know your size. If they don’t fit, I’ll get you another set.

[010]: Those clothes can’t be washed. Just toss them after wearing them. A robot will restock for you.

Jiang Momo frowned.

[Jiang Momo]: What do you want?

[010]: Are you free after class? Let’s talk in person.

[Jiang Momo]: Yan Chang will be with me after class.

[010]: Why is that brat always haunting you?! Tell me when he’s not around and I’ll come find you.

[Jiang Momo]: Fine. I’m going to class now.

The class bell rang. Jiang Momo turned off the Do Not Disturb mode and stood up.

The classroom was still chaotic. Students were chatting, taking photos, and jokingly calling for autographs, completely ignoring the bell.

“Teacher Momo! You look so young!”

“You traced the energy pathways so fast. How did you train that?! Can you teach us?!”

“We love you so much! Can we take a picture together?!”

“Teacher Momo, I got here at 7 AM to grab a seat. You’re super popular lately!”

“Thanks, everyone, but class is starting. Please put away unrelated items.” Jiang Momo tried to bring the class to order.

No one listened. Everyone kept doing their own thing. The room was full of cheerful energy.

Jiang Momo took a deep breath, composed her expression, and firmly smacked the podium, leaning on it with one hand. Then she slowly swept her gaze across the students, using the same stare she used to confront alien beasts on the desolate planet.

She was used to facing alien beasts who bullied the weak and feared the strong. If your gaze was fierce enough, there was a good chance you could scare them off without fighting.

The students who made eye contact with her quickly quieted down.

Once the room was calm, Jiang Momo opened the email from Ling Yelin.

A full-scale replica of a mecha appeared in the air and next to it, floating text quickly appeared.

The students gasped softly, “So cool!”

Jiang Momo began reading from the floating text, “A mecha refers to a humanoid armored vehicle driven by internal power and joint systems, requiring human operation. It is characterized by comprehensiveness, specialization, and advancement.

“Comprehensiveness means a mecha has high offensive power, high defensive power…”

By the end of class, Jiang Momo calmly packed her book into her small bag and the students quietly gathered their things as well.

Yan Chang burst through the door, about to throw his arm around Jiang Momo’s shoulder. She dodged and gave him a look, as some students were still taking pictures.

“Okay okay, Teacher Momo, how was your first class?” Yan Chang asked.

“Not bad. The students were all very cooperative. They love learning.” Jiang Momo smiled.

Much better than her who got sleepy just looking at a textbook.

The students: “…”