Neither Lockheed Martin—who had just found a goldmine with this simulator—nor Boeing or Northrop Grumman, who were rushing to catch up, could operate as freely as Castle's own "Castle Labs." Unlike Castle, who could throw money at anything he wanted without a second thought, these corporate giants were drowning in bureaucracy.
Even though they now had the full schematics and software, mass production of the simulator wasn't going to happen overnight.
At the very least, they had to conduct market research and—more importantly—sell the idea to the countries buying their still-in-development F-35s.
"Gentlemen, our co-developed F-35 may take a few more years to enter service…"
"BUT, we now have a full-scale, 1:1 ultra-realistic flight simulator that can train your pilots in advance! Interested?"
"Want a discount? Because you invested in the JSF program?"
"Are you dreaming? This simulator is a separate Lockheed Martin product! If you want it… pay full price."
As a defense contractor, they weren't about to blindly start manufacturing an expensive system without guaranteed buyers.
And then, there was the supercomputer problem.
Castle had already warned them:
"If you want the simulator to run at full capacity, you need a supercomputer."
The chubby kid's software had been designed from the ground up with massive computing power in mind—using both a private supercomputer and advanced AI to push it to the absolute limit.
So now, every country that wanted this simulator would have to ask themselves:
"Do we even have the computing infrastructure to run it?"
Even among F-35 partner nations, how many could casually allocate a supercomputer just for pilot training?
This restriction immediately narrowed the market.
For now, the only place to experience this simulator was Castle's home.
This was precisely why the test pilot had suddenly offered to personally train Castle in aviation—not out of generosity, but simply as an excuse to keep flying the simulator.
The technical director, however, had a different motive.
Beyond mastering the simulator's technical details, he had questions for Castle—many of them related to previous projects.
Specifically, Lockheed Martin and Boeing had both successfully modified an RC-135 electronic warfare aircraft using Castle's adaptive optical camouflage technology. The U.S. Air Force had already approved it for active service, and it had been performing exceptionally well.
Now, the Pentagon had greenlit a massive expansion:
Lockheed Martin would retrofit the entire fleet of AC-130 gunships, while Boeing would do the same for the A-10 Warthog.
These weren't just trial runs anymore.
This was a massive contract—potentially worth billions.
And everyone wanted Castle's technical expertise to gain an edge over their competitors.
Yet Castle had no idea he was about to become the center of another corporate war.
---
The first person to break the news was Mark—the technical director from Northrop Grumman—who had previously been Castle's "student" when Castle had given lectures at the company.
Mark flew in that afternoon and immediately told Castle everything.
Castle's reaction?
"Not my problem."
He leaned back lazily and smirked. "I already delivered the technology. If they think I'm flying all over the country again, hopping between Skunk Works and Boeing's Chicago HQ, they can forget it."
And he wasn't joking.
Castle had checked the numbers.
Between Lockheed Martin's AC-130 modernization program and Boeing's A-10 upgrades, the total number of aircraft being modified was staggering.
If he got involved, he'd be buried in work just as Beckett's due date approached.
And that? Absolutely not.
For the next year, until his child was at least a year old, Castle had no intention of taking on new projects.
He was fully committed to waiting for his firstborn.
Even when Mark tried to tempt him with Northrop Grumman's secret project—the "Super Tomcat" revival—Castle still refused.
He shut it down completely, giving only one reason:
"My child is about to be born. That's my priority."
And with that, Mark had nothing left to say.
---
Castle wasn't dumb.
He knew that Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and Northrop Grumman were all fighting to secure his time and expertise.
That was exactly why he forced all three companies to send their technical directors to one meeting.
His goal?
Finish the job in one go, kick them out, and finally learn how to fly.
Because at the end of the day, he still had one regret.
---
Then…
He remembered.
He had a cheat code.
The moment the thought hit him, Castle froze in place.
His system—the very thing that had brought him into this world—had given him rewards for completing previous missions.
More importantly…
He could exchange two random rewards for one specific skill.
And yet…
HE HAD COMPLETELY FORGOTTEN ABOUT IT.
"Are you serious?!"
Castle stared at himself in disbelief.
"I've been busting my ass trying to learn how to fly… when I could've just exchanged my rewards for 'Aircraft Piloting Mastery' from the start?!"
His entire soul shattered at the realization.
"Do I have early-onset Alzheimer's? How the hell did I forget something this important?"
"I must've been having too much fun lately…"
---
That night, after Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and Northrop Grumman had finished their simulator evaluations and their test pilots had been kicked out, Castle locked himself in his study.
With gritted teeth, he summoned his system.
And just like that—
With two stored rewards, he exchanged them for a single skill:
"Aircraft Piloting Mastery."
And, according to the system…
This skill didn't just cover standard aviation.
It included all types of aircraft—even beyond Earth's atmosphere.
The moment the knowledge flooded his mind, Castle finally understood something.
"I have been the biggest idiot in history."
He had been wasting time struggling through flight school…
When he could have just unlocked his cheat code from the start.
---
What shocked him even more?
The system wasn't mad.
In fact, it was pleased.
According to the system, the fact that Castle had forgotten about his "cheat code" meant something important:
He was finally integrating into this world.
He no longer saw himself as an outsider, desperately relying on a foreign power.
Instead, he was living—truly living—as Castle.
But all Castle could think about was:
"I've been struggling for NO reason."
"All this time, I could have just pressed a button and instantly become an ace pilot?"
Still, he wasn't complaining.
With this skill, he could now fly third-generation fighters like the F-14 and F-15 with ease.
As for fourth- and fifth-generation jets—where the control stick had moved from between the pilot's legs to the right-hand side console—he only needed a little adjustment time.
This unfair advantage was exactly what a lazy bastard like Castle needed.
______
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