Elsewhere, the others had not been idle either. After speaking with the Sanctuary Emperor, Aili distributed the Witch Tower hearts, erecting Witch Towers along every front while discussing how to fight the rest of the war with the Sanctum military.
Although Isaac had given their side an overwhelming advantage, allowing them, in theory, to end the war as quickly as possible and spend the remaining time extracting resources, they could secure whatever they could first. That way, even if they ultimately lost the demigod battle, their losses would not be too great.
That was also what the Sanctum wanted. As far as they were concerned, ending this war as soon as possible was best. As for the resources—
Those had never belonged to them anyway. There was nothing to feel bad about.
However, this clearly did not align with Isaac's wishes. War was the best catalyst for technological development, no matter the era. To Isaac and his companions, victory alone was of little use; it merely meant gathering some resources, and that amount meant very little to the three of them now.
What they truly valued was the demigod treasure at the end. To seize it, they only needed to win the war within the Small World to receive a measure of empowerment that would help in the final battle. Whether that victory came sooner or later made no difference.
Thus, although the Sanctum was eager to end this war quickly, doing so without Isaac and his companions' cooperation was nothing but a pipe dream. Fortunately, even though the war would drag on, they did not have to send their own people onto the battlefield—at least, not most of them. They only needed to provide supplies and technical support from the rear.
That was still acceptable, and their cooperation proved