Guided by the information Asalina had sent back, the Imperial expeditionary fleet led by the Winter's Wrath began moving toward the sea shrouded in clouds and mist. As the sunlight grew stronger, the aftereffects of the Chaotic Turbulence gradually subsided, and the clouds blanketing the sea surface slowly dispersed with time. Amid the thinning mist, the "pillar" that seemed to connect heaven and earth gradually emerged.
Byron stood on an observation platform at the bow of the Winter's Wrath, gazing out over the boundless blue ocean. In his line of sight, the "tower" that had already pierced the clouds and vanished into the end of the sky was becoming an increasingly distinct dark silhouette. As the sea mist dissipated, it seemed like a heaven-reaching pillar from myth descending before mortals, bearing down upon them with suffocating grandeur.
The sound of enormous wings beating the air descended from above. The red dragon clad in mechanical armor flew over from the direction of the tower, circling above the Winter's Wrath as she gradually lowered her altitude. Finally, with a thunderous bang, Asalina transformed into human form midair and landed on the nearby "Princess Landing Pad." The dragonkin lady smoothed her slightly disheveled red hair and stepped lightly over to Byron. "You see it, right? This thing..."
"It must have been left behind by the Voyagers. The style is obvious—this isn't something a civilization from our planet could have built," Byron said gravely, keeping his eyes on the distant sea. "The envoys from Tarlonnd said that the Voyagers once left three 'towers' on this planet. One was at the North Pole, and the other two were on the equator, one at sea and one on a continent. His Majesty mentioned these towers too... It seems the one before us is the tower in