Let’s Manage the Tower - Volume 17 Chapter 1,

 Volume 17 Chapter 1, Checking the situation on the 5th Floor

Regular meeting.

Once a month, the primary members of the 5th Floor gather at the Administration Floor meeting hall to report on the status of the town.

Kousuke didn’t think it was particularly necessary, but the town members insisted. So it was decided that they hold regular meetings.

The members representing the town were made up of different groups. Three department heads from Crown. One from the Six Marquises, Alec. His three subordinates from the executive branch, and five summoners.

Meanwhile, all Administrative members of the Tower were present.

—

First, Alec explained the current situation of the town on the 5th floor.

He began by reporting that the population of the town, which had recently exceeded 10,000 people.

This was not the total number of people, but just the number of permanent residents.

The term ‘permanent residents’ referred to those who had taken up residence in the town of the 5th Floor.

Those who lived in rented accommodation were also included in the number.

However, guests of inns and hotels were not included.

In short, thus the total number of registered residents and non-registered residents far exceeded 10,000.

The majority of the government’s income came from the use of the transfer gate from outside the Tower, and rent paid from leasing land.

As the number of permanent residents increased, so did government revenue.

At the moment, there was no tax levied on residents, but it had been announced that a tax per head would be imposed in the future.

If they registered as residents, they would be subjected to this tax. So, there were people who prefer not to register, but that was fine.

Registering as a resident would mean making one’s affiliation clear, and it would also be a form of identification.

This was why the same method was used in towns apart from the 5th Floor.

Rather, Alec and the rest of the executive branch decided to use a similar method.

—

For now, that was the only tax on the residents, but there was another tax on those who did business.

This was also the case for those who opened their own stores.

At the moment, the most common private stores were restaurants.

The town on the 5th Floor was mostly made up of adventurers. So, a lot of businesses target them as clientele.

The major commercial guilds took over as innkeepers and hotels, and bought and sold objects that adventurers gather.

With the increased number of permanent residents, the guild had established a formal security force that was previously left to the adventurers.

Most of the members were former adventurers, though.

As the population increased, so did the number of crimes.

Without a security force, the town would be in shambles, so this organization was of absolute necessity.

However, there was a huge difference between the security forces in each town.

One of the punishments was being exiled from the Tower.

If they received this punishment, they would never be able to return to the Amamiya Tower again.

They would be marked by an inrevoakable magic patter, which would last a lifetime.

Some had already been sentenced to this punishment.

In addition to the security forces, various other organizations seemed to be on the move, and the council was beginning to function as a full-fledged government.

Alec and the others expected that the current population growth to continue for a while, as those who had lost their jobs in other towns had heard rumors of the 5th Floor town and were moving there.

Since the town was still new, there were still plenty of jobs available.

Thus, migrants would come for these job opportunities.

—

He then reported on Crown’s activities.

With the addition of the Six Marquises, a new produce division was created.

The department was responsible for the management of mainly agriculture, forestry and livestock.

The Produce Department was to be completely responsible for producing food for the growing population of the town.

The head of the Produce Department was to be rotated among the Six Marquises.

At the moment, most of the produce was being purchased from outside the Tower. However, some produce from the 5th Floor was being increased little by little, including those from the farmland that had already been developed.

It seemed that the Six Marquises were aiming to produce most food within the Tower, with the idea of trading it outside the Tower afterwards.

Rather, they hoped to achieve this goal once the farmland and pastures they were currently developing became fully functional.

The ever-increasing population of the town has also been factored into the plan, so the Six Marquises’ skills are being put to full use.

The Produce Department is managing not only agricultural products but also livestock products, but it would be awhile before results were seen from that.

—

In addition to the newly created Produce Department, a Development Department was created.

Naturally, Isnani was the head of the department. However, she had been the only member in that department until now. Now, she had to recruit other members.

Isnani had been doing research on the Administration Floor, but it was decided that they would set up a new development room on the 5th Floor, which they would pass on the technology from.

Schmidt, Alec, and the rest of the team insisted on this, so it was decided to build it.

The reason why it was suggested, was because they had witnessed the first golem.

When Schmidt heard about the materials used, he was puzzled. However, these golems still seemed to be extremely valuable. Thus, he wanted to sell it as a highlight of the Tower.

Considering the time and effort involved, Kousuke and his team couldn’t go to the trouble of making and selling them. So, they decided to create a new department to handle it.

Even though golems did not use divine power, they function using very advanced technology. Thus, creating a processing plant with enough golems would be time consuming and difficult. Nonetheless, they expect to make a good profit out of it.

Schmidt was a master in this area of expertise, and he had done his calculations.

If all goes well, they would be able to export not only to the Central Continent but to other continents as well.

After all, some materials from the Tower were already being exported to other continents.

—

The Craft Department was still operating as usual, except that some work had been transferred to the Produce Department.

The demand for construction work was as high as ever, and there was always a shortage of workers for it.

This was probably a good thing for the town, since people were coming from other towns in search of such jobs.

The problem would be when these jobs disappeared. This issue had been discussed many times between the executive branch and Crown.

It was a long-term issue, and one that would not end with a single decision. Thus, it would be a topic that would be discussed as long as the town continued to exist.

—

The last two reports were from the merchant and adventurer divisions.

There was a good reason why the two were reported at the same time.

The main topic of discussion was the Crown Branches that had been established in the towns to the east, west, south, and north of the Central Continent.

As for these branches, he mentioned that they were up and running smoothly and that temporary Crown cards were being issued without issue.

Although the status wasn’t displayed on the temporary cards, rumors of Crown had spread, and there are many adventurers in each town who wish to register.

He was told that there were demands from each of the towns to install transfer gates, but he flatly refused to do so.

The biggest concern was the distribution of goods from the four cities with transfer gates to the towns in the east, west, south, and north. The adventurers registered in Crown’s adventurer department were used to solve this problem.

In addition to escorting them during transportation, Crown also requested them to investigate the roads used for transportation.

Even so, it was common for them to be attacked during transportation, so they hired guards to protect them.

At one point, there was talk of an increase in the number of monsters on the road, but it seemed like they had managed to keep it under control.

This meeting concluded with news that Crown was beginning to be recognized as an important part of the Central Continent through its activities.