Toward the Postwar System part 1
A month had passed since the peace treaty was established.
Reconstruction of the P336 Fortress Area, which had lost a significant portion of its sectors, was progressing rapidly. Kou was also taking action—it was part of his commitment to the P336 Fortress Area itself.
Using independent supply chains from trading companies and various corporations, they were stockpiling vast quantities of reconstruction materials. Some mercenaries remained behind to assist with the recovery efforts. Their contributions, utilizing their own Silhouettes, came at a relatively low cost.
Today, Kou was called to the Silhouette Base, where the top Development Engineers he met when he was learning how to do Bricolage Academy, and Jenny and the executives of Metal Iris had convened.
「The Stones have transferred more Defense Domes to us than we anticipated. They might even be considering a temporary withdrawal from the Scheelite Continent.」 Fuyuki said as he used a monitor to outline the situation across the continent. The Scheelite Continent, once the main battleground of the Asia War and home to many corporations led by transferees, remained a critical region.
「A great victory, no doubt. But there’s an issue. As soon as we won, hordes of companies started declaring their intention to join Ulysses. I had to unilaterally halt the applications.」
Kelly said, sounding exasperated.
The hypocrisy was glaring—many of these companies had stayed neutral or indifferent during the worst parts of the war, only to jump on the bandwagon of victory now.
「That’s how it is. The postwar framework will likely revolve around Ulysses, with a division between those who participated in the Asia War and those who joined after it ended.」
Yunlan said, trying to calm the discussion.
「Not to mention, quite a few of them ended up siding with Sthe tones when things got rough.」
Hyoue pointed out with a wry smile, noting the current situation.
Many companies had refrained from joining Ulysses, instead opting to bide their time. The tipping point came when the P336 Fortress Area was half-destroyed, leading several corporations to align themselves with the Stones faction. No one had anticipated the remarkable turnaround that followed.
Should those decisions be deemed the misjudgments of their leadership? On the other hand, some companies rose to the occasion, joining the fight after witnessing the devastation. Those companies were fortunate in hindsight.
Moreover, the time between the Megareus assault operation and the peace negotiations was extraordinarily brief. It had been widely assumed that determining the war’s outcome would take weeks, leaving little time for some to declare their intentions. This has led to excuses surfacing everywhere—claims that there simply wasn’t enough time to make a move. Only a handful of companies had managed to join at the last minute.
「The designated special zones will be the Silhouette Base, the P336 Fortress Area, the R001 Fortress Area—the base of our orbital elevator—and the nearby Defense Domes to the three bases. These key locations will undoubtedly become prime real estate. Newly joining companies wishing to relocate here will likely be placed in areas farther from these strategic points, but they’ll need to accept that.」
Barry explained, displaying a map of the continent on the screen.
「Skunk Technologies will relocate to Silhouette Base as a research institution, while the Albion branch of BAS will remain as is.」
Kelly was a key figure in forming Ulysses, he had every right to rebuild his company in the very center of the special zone, the Silhouette Base. Although his early arrival to assist Astraea was notable, the primary reason lay elsewhere. Skunk Technologies was not aggressive in its own manufacturing but instead focused on training Development Engineers. Meanwhile, the Albion branch of BAS was often mocked as the ‘Panjandrum Division’. In short, neither company posed an economic threat; instead, they were valuable assets in terms of technical expertise.
「The P336 Fortress Area will continue to host Kurt Maschinenbau and will see the relocation of Wangcheng Industrial Group Company. Gallop Corporation and Aegis Corporation will also remain in place as well.」
Kurt Maschinenbau specialized in flying units, while Wangcheng Industrial focused on ground units. Gallop Corporation would continue producing silhouettes for the Therianthropes, and Aegis Corporation would serve as a dedicated weapons production division when necessary. Reconstruction was paired with redevelopment, transforming the Fortress Area into an industrial hub capable of supporting four major corporations.
「As for the R001 Fortress Area, it will house Misumaru Heavy Industries, Gogyou Heavy Industries, General Arms, and BAS Corporation. Meanwhile, Atou Group and Landstrom Corporation will be distributed across three nearby Defense Domes.」
The coastal defense efforts during the war owed much to Misumaru and Gogyou, two Japanese firms that frequently collaborated. Similarly, General Arms and BAS shared a similar relationship and had also contributed greatly to the war in the sea.
Defense Domes near the orbital elevator were considered prime locations. Atou Group and Landstrom Corporation, strategically placed in these areas, could be counted among the victors in the postwar restructuring.
「TAKABA Corporation is missing from the list?」
Kurt interjected, evidently curious.
「TAKABA will expand and rebuild the Defense Dome where the old TAKABA facilities were located, the I250 industrial Defense Dome. According to the employees, it’s affectionately called ‘New Shell.’」
「Sorry for putting them through the trouble of rebuilding a Defense Dome from scratch.」
「Additionally, two nearby Defense Domes will also fall under TAKABA’s jurisdiction. Even so, their production scale will be somewhat inferior to the factories in the Fortress Areas.」
「That makes sense.」
Kinukawa from Misumaru agreed with a nod. The advantage of industrial Fortress Areas lies in their abundant production facilities.
「Our company has always been mid-sized. This much is just right for us.」
「And being close to the Silhouette Base is a nice perk.」
Jenny added. Knowing that Takaba Hyoue would be near Kou put her at ease. If the company leader himself was content, there was no issue. With their efforts aligned with Asia’s technology-sharing initiatives, TAKABA’s facility was set to become an optimized heavy-industry Defense Dome.
「As I mentioned earlier, many companies are eager to join and relocate, but the timing of their involvement and their contributions to the war effort will determine their placement. Kelly and I will handle that part.」
「Barry and Kelly? Not Asia?」
Kou was surprised. He had assumed that achievements and timing of participation would be judged impartially by the super AI.
「We can’t just shove all the responsibility onto the AI, can we? The final decision has to come from us humans. Even if Asia does the allocation, not everyone will be satisfied. And if resentment ends up directed at her—our main protection target—it would defeat the purpose.」
「I see. Yeah, we need to take responsibility ourselves.」
Kou said, reflecting on his own naivety. He realized that any decision, no matter how fair, carries a burden of accountability. Barry was right—humans must bear the weight of those judgments.
「No matter how you decide, the way it’s interpreted can stir emotions. There’s no point troubling Asia with such trivial matters.」
「Thank you, Kelly, Barry. I’m relieved to hear that, especially when you consider the factors numbers can’t account for.」
「No problem. I’m used to this sort of thing!」
It was clear Kelly had made many such decisions in the past. His bold personality undoubtedly meant he had been the target of resentment on more than one occasion.
「Managing such a large organization is bound to be a challenge. I’ll be counting on you, Asia.」
「Of course. I’ll do my best to help.」
And so, the allocation of corporate locations as part of the postwar framework continued smoothly.
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