"Still.. With great risk comes great reward. What If I turn this equation around?"
Another way of looking at this risky opportunity was that Ves held the key to the Skull Architect's lifelong obsession!
If Ves wielded his absolute advantage in this poorly understood field with finesse, then he might be able to extract a lot of concessions from the Skull Architect!
As an influential mech designer in a region of space where Masters didn't exist and capable mech designers were in short supply, the Skull Architect should be one of the region's peak characters.
Gaining access to this channel should be a boon to him. It added another contingency option to him should his other channels prove to be useless. Forming a relationship, however faint, to the Skull Architect would enable him to establish a foothold in the frontier.
