The battle was completely over by noon the next day.
When dawn came, the demons finally began breaking through the encirclement in panic, trying to return to the black fog. Yet when they reached the City of Flowers again, they discovered that the fog had long since vanished without a trace. As dazzling sunlight slashed toward them like a blade, all that awaited them was despair.
They desperately tried to evade it, but to no avail. Vast numbers of demons died in the sunlight. Some of the survivors tried to conceal themselves in dark shadows, but airship bombardments drove them out or destroyed them all the same.
After that, the ground forces took over. Imperial soldiers would conduct thorough searches of the major cities throughout Francis, eliminating as many remaining demons as possible and investigating conditions in each location.
Those were matters for the soldiers under his command, however, and Li Wei paid them no mind. He had more important things to do. For instance, as soon as the war ended, he took the Holy Maiden straight to the bottom of the abyss in Gloom Canyon and showed her his discovery. "Can you tell me what this is?"
Li Wei pointed at the object before them and looked toward the Holy Maiden as he asked. It was a golden tower, almost identical in shape to the towers he had seen elsewhere that the demons used to sustain the black fog. The only differences were its color and material. At the very least, this tower was not built of flesh and blood. It looked more like something cast from pure gold. Furthermore, enormous, heavy chains completely sealed off the area around it. Li Wei certainly did not dare approach to investigate.
Through [Soul Sight], a golden radiance shone from within the