Book 5: Volume 1 Chapter 18, Postwar Settlement

Translator: Kazumi

Editor: Silavin

 

As the negotiations drew to a close, Floria suddenly spoke as if remembering something.

 

“That’s right. We’ll return the floors Amamiya Tower seized.”

 

“Oh, I see…W-What!?”

 

King Pedro nodded at Floria’s casual statement, then caught himself and asked again, his carefully maintained composure slipping.

 

The lapse in his usual diplomatic restraint revealed his genuine shock.

 

It was understandable. Who would willingly return territory they had worked so hard to seize?

 

Floria held the same thought, but she continued without acknowledging it aloud.

 

“For Amamiya Tower, gaining a new Tower is enough. Keeping more than that would only invite complications, wouldn’t it?”

 

On the surface, her reasoning was sound. But beneath the diplomatic language lay a different calculation entirely.

 

In essence, with a new Tower to manage, they no longer needed the floors captured during the Conquest Battle.

 

Pedro grasped the implication immediately and nodded with understanding.

 

“I see. I understand your position.”

 

Pedro maintained his composure outwardly, but inwardly he felt profound relief.

 

He had anticipated losses from the Conquest Battle he had initiated, yet losing floors permanently remained deeply scarring.

 

Truthfully, Sarita Tower would be immensely grateful for the return of what had been taken.

 

Considering it was an exchange for a Tower that had not been actively managed, the terms were remarkably favorable.

 

“In that case, we would be pleased to accept.”

 

With Pedro’s reply, the negotiations between both parties concluded smoothly.

 

The transfer of captured floors would be handled through the Tower’s System, to be finalized once the seventh battle ended and settlement was complete.

 

With this arrangement, Amamiya Tower had gained an entire Tower, minus whatever damage the monsters had inflicted on various floors.

 

Who benefited more? Undoubtedly Amamiya Tower, thanks to the advantageous political arrangement.

 

All that remained was for Amamiya Tower’s members to capture the Tower within the Santo Emingo Kingdom, and this entire conflict would reach its conclusion.

 

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The seventh battle commenced the day after Floria returned from negotiations.

 

Both sides had agreed, however, that neither would engage in hostile action during this final battle.

 

Sending even minimal forces to opposing floors would nullify the negotiated terms entirely.

 

Fortunately, Sarita Tower deployed no military forces, and the seventh battle concluded without incident by the end of the day.

 

Since Sarita Tower was designated to request a ‘settlement’, Kousuke waited for that formality before granting his ‘permission’.

 

Simultaneously, the screen displayed ‘Amamiya Tower wins’, acknowledging that Amamiya Tower had seized two floors from Sarita Tower during this conflict.

 

This marked the formal end of the Conquest Battle.

 

What remained was executing the necessary procedures to transfer the two seized floors back to Sarita Tower.

 

They had only discovered this transfer capability after the Conquest Battle began, a revelation in itself.

 

Kousuke reflected that perhaps the greatest benefit of this entire conflict was confirming how the Tower’s System actually functioned.

 

While the Tower’s administrative procedures were complete, Kousuke and his team still had obligations to fulfill.

 

They needed to conquer one of the Towers within the Santo Emingo Kingdom, as promised.

 

“That’s why I’m asking Mia to accompany me on this mission.”

 

“Eh? Me too?”

 

Mia’s eyes widened in surprise.

 

“Of course. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be able to become that Tower’s Head Administrator.”

 

At Kousuke’s words, Mia’s eyes widened further still.

 

She had never imagined she would be entrusted with managing a Tower herself.

 

Moreover, Kousuke planned to establish it as a completely independent Tower, rather than placing it under Amamiya Tower’s umbrella like the Tower of Sacred Magic and the Tower of the Four Elements in the Central Continent.

 

“S-So I’m going to manage a completely independent Tower?”

 

Watching Mia transition from shock to near-panic, Floria exhaled deeply and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

 

“Mia, considering what we learned from this Conquest Battle, do you understand the significance of having a Tower that isn’t under Amamiya Tower’s control?”

 

Conquest Battles required combat, yes, but they had discovered these conflicts could dramatically accelerate monster evolution.

 

There were casualties, certainly, but the accelerated evolution carried substantial strategic value.

 

Given that Towers beyond Amamiya Tower were currently leveling up at unprecedented rates, this presented an attractive opportunity.

 

Furthermore, there was another significant benefit to conducting Conquest Battles.

 

“I’m not only thinking about monster evolution when I have Mia manage the new Tower, you know?” Kousuke’s words drew everyone’s attention.

 

“Huh? Haven’t you all noticed? There’s a huge advantage to maintaining an ongoing Conquest Battle with the Tower we received from the Santo Emingo Kingdom, you know?”

 

At Kousuke’s emphasis, Kouhi and Mitsuki were first to show some understanding.

 

“I see.”

 

“As expected of our Master.”

 

Following their acknowledgment, Shrein and Floria displayed some understanding as well.

 

“Ah! Of course.”

 

Mia spoke up as well, her tone suggesting she’d grasped the implication.

 

Sylvia and Peach, however, remained visibly puzzled.

 

“Mia, would you explain this to Sylvia and Peach?”

 

“Yes. Essentially, by deliberately maintaining an unresolved Conquest Battle, we can prevent declarations of war from other Towers.”

 

“Ah!?”

 

After hearing Mia’s explanation, comprehension finally dawned on Sylvia and Peach’s faces.

 

As this incident had demonstrated, there was no escaping a declaration of war once another Tower initiated it.

 

So how could one prevent such declarations entirely? Simply by maintaining the exact situation Mia had described.

 

That was Kousuke’s primary objective in claiming this particular Tower.

 

Fortunately, upon reviewing the Conquest Battle rules, he had discovered there was no time limit imposed.

 

Conquest Battles ultimately concluded either through ‘manual settlement’ or when one Tower’s floors were completely overtaken.

 

Given that Towers scattered throughout the world varied considerably in size and floor count, this design made logical sense. However, Kousuke intended to exploit it.

 

As long as the specifications remained unchanged, the Conquest Battle between Mia’s controlled Tower and Amamiya Tower could continue indefinitely.

 

Incidentally, if a Tower like Amamiya Tower controlled multiple Towers, and another Tower challenged Amamiya Tower specifically, the subsidiary Towers would not receive declarations of war.

 

This protection did not apply, however, if the gate to the lowest floor remained open to the public, as capture attempts on the Tower could occur at any time.

 

Regardless, the concept of using Conquest Battles defensively had occurred to him during this very conflict.

 

During the Conquest Battle, Kousuke had recognized that if he could secure another Tower, not under Amamiya Tower, this strategy might just work. However, successfully obtaining another Tower solely through negotiations exceeded his expectations.

 

All that remained was successfully capturing the Tower within the Santo Emingo Kingdom.

 

This Conquest Battle had begun with a declaration of war, yet Kousuke considered it a meaningful fight with valuable lessons learned.