Leon slept for 2 straight hours.

When he woke up, he felt groggy but he quickly became alarmed. 'I overslept!'

The first thing he did was check the time, and his face quickly turned solemn.

[01:34am]

He quickly did the calculation. "I have less than 10 hours remaining". He mumbled as his face twisted into a grimace.

He rubbed his forehead with a sigh. The throbbing pain already reduced massively compared to 2 hours ago, but he could still feel the mental exhaustion of having overexerted his brain and ADE for the past 32 hours.

Leon didn't dally around.

Compared to Talia's exciting promotion Trial, his seemed a little underwhelming. In comparison, it was by far the most boring of the two Trials.

His life didn't seem to be on the line but Leon knew that this was just a deception.

'It's the quiet types that kill fastest'. He shuddered.

Despite how quiet everything seemed, and despite how it felt like the only thing in line was Mr. Grok's ownership of the Big Gig Construction Company, Leon knew the truth that his life was on the line too.

If he dared sleep and become lazy, he would pay for it dearly with his life.

If he failed to meet the quota, at least for Mr. Grok it would be just losing his life's work, but for Leon, he would literally have to forfeit his life.

He never forgot Talia's words.

Failing a Trial was equivalent with death! According to Talia, majority of Ascendant deaths every year was due to Trials.

And after his own experience this time, Leon no longer doubted her words.

Unlike Talia's Trial where she and fellow Data Wardens had to fight in a siege against the Omnicore Federation in a high-stakes blood-pumping action, his was a boring slugfest. It was a grind that he needed to power through with sheer willpower.

To complete this Trial, Leon already realized that what he needed most was will and determination.

Thinking of Mr. Grok, he felt melancholic. 'We're in this together'.

He may not have a big impression of the old Synth but their desperation to meet the quota of the Omnicore Federation became a glue that bonded them.

'I wonder if he's still alive in reality'. He suddenly had such a thought. 'I doubt. I didn't ask Talia, but I believe that even if not all Ascended get extended lifespans, Gene Augurs definitely do'.

'To still be alive, he has to have lived for more than 131 years. Considering his original age, let's make that at least 200 years'.

'It's unrealistic to live that long but maybe if he somehow became a Gene Augur later in his life, maybe he's still alive somewhere'. Thinking of this, Leon could not help but smile, but then he cursed. 'F*ck, I'm procrastinating!'

"Ahh, f*ck it!"

Without hesitation, he stood up and left his office. He first walked to the Testing Area where he intended to confirm the current figures of the construction work for the past 2 hours while he slept.

"Good morning sir Leon, welcome back". The beautiful female Synth at the counter greeted him with a smile once he came back.

Leon reciprocated her smile this time, then he looked at the figures.

[Work Targets:]

[17,389/18,000 melee weapons crafted]

[21,011/28,000 guns crafted]

[78,333/120,000 rounds of ammunition crafted]

[721/800 basic missile chassis parts crafted]

[85/85 retrofitted light-armored Trucks constructed]

Staring at the work targets, one thought rang through Leon's mind. 'They slacked off'. His face darkened immediately.

'They think we're already ahead of schedule, so they think they can slack off?' His face twisted into a malevolent smile. 'They dare slack off when my life and promotion is on the line?'

Sensing the sudden change in his emotions, the beautiful Synth receptionist was taken aback. "Mr. Leon?"

Leon didn't answer her as he turned and stormed off the Testing Area.

Originally, he intended to jump straight back into work once he woke up but he just changed his mind.

Instead, Leon went to Manager Rodolfo's office to get access to the speakers all over the construction factory, and then he went on a heartfelt rant, berating all the engineers who dared slack off.

By the time he was done, Rodolfo was left shivering in his chair.

Leon flashed an apologetic smile at the Synth, then he turned to leave. He went a little bit overboard with how offensive his words got, but he needed to vent, and besides his rant achieved the exact effect that he wanted.

His fearsome reputation in the factory already became stuff of myths and legends, and when he went on a rant, all the engineers were forced to sit up.

Instantly, production speed ramped up again.

Leon walked straight to the Raw Material Handling Area next. This area of the Big Gig Construction Company was divided into two parts; one part was for processing raw materials, and the other part was for working directly with raw materials.

The part where engineers worked directly with raw materials was a familiar place to him. Afterall, that was where his Trial started.

It was the large hall where guns and ammunition are being crafted.

After observing the figures of the work targets that were yet to be met, he concluded that meeting the quota of 120,000 rounds of ammunition seemed to be the hardest for now. That was where needed his immediate attention.

When he walked back into the hall, everywhere he went, the engineers were distracted as they looked up from their work tables and looked at him with newborn curiosity and respect.

Leon reminded them to work with a simple, "focus on your work".

"Yes sir!" They immediately responded.

The moment Supervisor Jeff saw him, the A.I Construct quickly walked to his side to escort him.

"Welcome back sir, how may I help you?"

Leon didn't even look at the A.I Construct as he responded. "Materials, I need lots of them to craft ammunition".

"Yes sir, they'll be delivered immediately".

By the time Leon got back to the familiar work table, the engineer that previously occupied it already stood up as he packed all the materials in the work desk and vacated it for him.

After sitting down, Leon waited for less than a minute before a truckload of raw ammunition materials were sent to him.

"Good". He nodded in satisfaction at Supervisor Jeff, then he resumed work.

Construct!

DING!

~----~

[You have crafted 10 bullets]

[You have crafted 10 bullets…]

[You have crafted 10 bullets… ×18]

[You have crafted 10 bullets… ×18]

[You have crafted 10 bullets… ×18]

[You have crafted 10 bullets… ×18]

~----~

Leon lost track of time again.

…

5 hours later…

[05:36am]

Leon trudged into the Testing Area.

The female Synth receptionist who Leon still didn't know her name sat straighter immediately, then she showed him the new figures.

[Work Targets:]

[18,000/18,000 melee weapons crafted]

[24,627/28,000 guns crafted]

[120,000/120,000 rounds of ammunition crafted]

[721/800 basic missile chassis parts crafted]

[85/85 retrofitted light-armored Trucks constructed]

Leon rubbed his throbbing forehead painfully, but then he forced a smile. '4 hours remaining, but there's hope now'.

At that moment, the female Synth receptionist suddenly pushed a white mug of an unknown brown liquid substance towards him.

Leon looked at her with a silent question and she blushed shyly. "I-it's coffee," she stumbled on her words. "It's good to combat sleep".

"Oh," Leon understood as he smiled and took the mug of coffee. "Thanks".

He turned to leave but then he remembered something. "By the way, what's your name?"

"Sonas Foray".

Leon smiled again. "Sonas, nice to meet you, and thanks for the coffee again".

She blushed. "Thank you sir".

Leon walked straight towards the Welding and Assembly Area again this time, the compartment of the large hall where the missile chassis parts were being crafted by engineers.

Compared to the other work targets, this seemed to be lagging behind, but this was only because the engineers needed his final input to complete certain missile parts due to integrating nanotechnology.

They were already done with all the hard work, now they just needed Leon's input to finish the quota for missile parts.

The moment Leon entered this compartmented area of the Welding and Assembly Area, all the engineers stood up to welcome him.

"Welcome sir".

Leon nodded to acknowledge them and without any idle chatter walked directly towards the work desks where the missile parts were arranged in order, waiting for his final input.

There was a palm-sized silver crystal on the left pocket of his overalls. At this moment, Leon took a deep breath and dipped his left hand into his pocket.

He immediately felt ADE flowing into his body.

He ignored the throbbing pain in his head and used his Mechanist ability again to complete the final step of the missile parts construction.

Construct!

DING!

~----~

[You have crafted a complete missile part]

[You have crafted a complete missile part…]

[You have crafted a complete missile part… ×10]

[You have crafted a complete missile part… ×10]

~----~

Approximately 50 minutes later, Leon added the finishing touches to his work and finally, after more than 40 hours, they met the quota for the missile chassis parts that the Federation Army needed.

None of the engineers said a word but Leon could see the expectant look in their eyes as they stared at him excitedly.

Despite the throbbing pain in his head, he didn't kill their joy.

He forced a smile and said. "Congratulations, you can now celebrate!"

"YESSSSS!" They roared as having prepared for this sentence from him, some of them brought out hidden Synth-wine as they popped the Champaign right there and celebrated meeting the quota.

Leon smiled, enjoying the joyous atmosphere for 2 minutes and then he decisively left towards the Raw Material Handling Area again where the engineers worked on the last target, the guns needed by the Federation Army.

As Leon walked, he felt the exhaustion all over the factory, but he also felt the bubbly energy of celebration that lingered in the air.

Before his arrival, no engineer here believed that the factory could actually meet the ridiculous target set by the Federation.

And yet, here they were, over 45 hours later and the target looked like it was in sight!

They were exhausted but they were also giddy in disbelief.

By the time Leon arrived at the Material Handling Area, he saw a familiar face, Sonas, the female Synth receptionist who was supposed to be in the Testing Area behind the counter.

When the female Synth noticed his arrival, she blushed before arranging her gray suit in a flustered manner, then she raised her chin and flashed a proud smile.

She showed him the figures.

[Work Targets:]

[18,000/18,000 melee weapons crafted]

[27,356/28,000 guns crafted]

[120,000/120,000 rounds of ammunition crafted]

[800/800 basic missile chassis parts crafted]

[85/85 retrofitted light-armored Trucks constructed]

They were less than 1,000 guns away from meeting the target!

Leon sighed in relief. 'There's still time, I don't need to do more. They can do the rest'.

Sonas's bubbly energy infected him as he smiled, then ignoring the throbbing pain in his head, he asked. "Why is the hall so full?" He already noticed that engineers that were supposed to be in other areas gathered here, making the hall look congested.

"It's the boss!" Sonas smiled excitedly.

"Mr. Grok?" Leon was surprised.

"Yes," Sonas nodded energetically like an Agama Lizard. "The Manager have been updating him on the progress, he's also excited".

"He decided to throw a celebratory party to commemorate the moment, he's already on his way here".

"Oh". Leon was surprised, then he smiled. "This is indeed worth celebrating".

He raised his right hand to massage his forehead again.

Noting this, Sonas walked closer to him in concern. "Sir, do you need to sit down?"

Leon didn't stand on ceremony. "As a matter of fact, I do".

Sonas offered him a comfortable chair which he sat and from where he witnessed history being made in the Big Gig Construction Company.

Tik… tok…

Time moved and the work progressed.

In what felt like the blink of an eye, the engineers were now just 50 guns away from meeting the target!

Leon leaned back on the chair, ignoring the pain in his head as he smiled tiredly. 'It was hard, but I did it'.

He looked up at the ceiling. 'We did this'.

At that moment, he noticed a familiar luxury purple car drive into the parking lot through the transparent glass walls of the factory.

Leon flashed a smile. 'He's here'.

'Ah, I really wish I could have one bottle of wine with him before I leave'. He sighed. 'It wasn't easy'.

And then, his System suddenly lit up in front of him.

DING!

~----~

[You have met the target!]

[Well-done engineer, you can now rest…]

~----~

'Ahhh…' Leon sighed and closed his eyes.

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