Chapter Summaries

Li Wei and Jeanne explored the Holy Maiden’s vast underground castle, where Li Wei concluded that its army of dolls had fought demons. Jeanne appeared to regain some of the Holy Maiden’s memories, then separated Li Wei from her and set him a test; the chapter ended as frozen demons awakened and attacked him.

• Li Wei recognized the armor fragment as belonging to the Holy Maiden’s doll army, and Jeanne recalled commanding similar soldiers in her dreams.
• Li Wei and Jeanne continued through the castle, finding extensive remains of dolls and demons and signs that the fortress had never been fully finished.
• Jeanne spoke in the Empire’s language and seemed more composed before leading Li Wei onto a rising platform.
• At a junction, Jeanne said Li Wei had to prove himself worthy of entering the castle, then a stone wall separated them.
• Li Wei followed the open passage to a frozen chamber, where demons thawed, broke free of the ice, and attacked him.

The Holy Maiden watched as Li Wei fought demons in the frozen room, wondering whether humanity in this age could defend itself. Li Wei destroyed the demon forces with the Night Raven Mecha, but the enormous demon sealed in ice awakened and struck at the Mecha.

• The Holy Maiden questioned whether modern humanity still had the strength to fight the enemies lurking in the darkness.
• Li Wei shot down the Dog-Headed Demons and dodged attacks from Bull-Headed Demons and a Humanoid Demon while the remaining demons tried to thaw a huge creature sealed in ice.
• Li Wei summoned the Night Raven Mecha, which tore through the Bull-Headed Demons and killed the three Humanoid Demons.
• Li Wei rushed toward the cracking ice, but the enormous demon broke free and swung a massive sword at the Night Raven Mecha's head.

Li Wei passed the Holy Maiden’s test and learned that the Holy Lord Church had betrayed Emperor Arthur, summoned demons, and concealed the truth about Hell’s Gate beneath the City of Flowers. The Holy Maiden brought Li Wei to the castle’s core and revealed the Philosopher’s Stone.

• Li Wei used the Night Raven Mecha to kill the giant demon, then the Holy Maiden accepted him and asked him to protect humanity and destroy Hell’s Gate.
• The Holy Maiden explained that the Holy Lord Church had summoned demons in her castle, and that Hell’s Gate was sealed beneath what was now the City of Flowers.
• Li Wei realized that the Church’s claim that demons were defeated followers of other gods could alter collective perception and weaken Arthur’s seal.
• The Holy Maiden revealed that she had survived her execution through a contingency built around the legend of the Savior Saintess, though the legend had affected her personality.
• The Holy Maiden led Li Wei into the castle’s core and showed him the Philosopher’s Stone.

Li Wei and the Holy Maiden activated the Philosopher's Stone, which lifted the castle out of Holy Maiden Peak and revealed it as a flying Sky City. The Holy Maiden planned to use it to destroy Hell's Gate, but Li Wei tried to stop her before she could carry out the plan.

• The Holy Maiden explained that the Philosopher's Stone converted energy to power the castle, rather than making gold or granting immortality.
• The Holy Maiden activated the Philosopher's Stone, causing Holy Maiden Peak to crack and collapse as the castle rose into the sky.
• Lieutenant Horn ordered the Eye of the Sky to retreat, and its crew confirmed that Li Wei was safe.
• The castle's protective slabs lowered, revealing the floating fortress as a Sky City.
• The Holy Maiden said she planned to drop the Sky City on Hell's Gate and detonate the Philosopher's Stone, but Li Wei urgently objected.

Li Wei questioned the Holy Maiden about Emperor Arthur’s founding of the Holy Lord Church and learned it was designed to let the gods share mortal faith without being changed by it. Their discovery that the faith had vanished pointed toward demons, and the revelation that Bishop Mephistopheles came from the Kingdom of Kront left Li Wei suspicious of Cront’s connection to the church.

• Li Wei challenged the Holy Maiden’s plan to sacrifice the City of Flowers and asked why Emperor Arthur founded the Holy Lord Church.
• The Holy Maiden explained that gods were changed by believers’ ideas of them, so Arthur created the Holy Lord as a shared vessel for the gods to draw faith from.
• Li Wei told the Holy Maiden that the Night Goddess said most gods had gone dormant despite the Holy Lord Church’s many followers, and they wondered who had taken the missing faith.
• The Holy Maiden named Bishop Mephistopheles as the person who implemented the church’s system of shared faith.
• The Holy Maiden said Mephistopheles’s fief was in the Kingdom of Kront, which Li Wei connected to Cront’s annexation of Francis and its search for her castle.

Li Wei learned that Mephistopheles could foresee the future and agreed to search for records that might explain the Holy Lord Church’s plans. The search led him to a Secret Archive beneath Cront's Royal Palace, whose guarded entrance forced him to consider making a conspicuous move.

• Li Wei decided to investigate what had happened to the Holy Lord Church’s faith before taking action against the City of Flowers.
• The Holy Maiden explained that Mephistopheles had been a priest who foresaw the future and was known as the “Bird of Ill Omen.”
• The Holy Maiden told Li Wei that Mephistopheles might have left useful records in a Secret Archive beneath Cront's Royal Palace.
• Li Wei learned that the archive’s entrance was in the royal audience chamber and opened by a switch behind the throne.
• Li Wei surveyed the heavily guarded palace and considered taking the opposite approach to avoid being caught.

Li Wei used an attack on Cront’s Royal Palace to sneak a Little Sprite into its underground shelter, where a message from Mephistopheles warned that Hell’s Gate had opened. Li Wei realized the Holy Maiden’s plan to crash the Floating City into the City of Flowers could unleash the demons, and he brought the warning back to her before asking what Mephistopheles meant by the Rose Church.

• Li Wei ordered Lieutenant Horn to fire high-explosive shells near Cront’s Royal Palace, prompting William II and his guards to enter the underground shelter.
• Li Wei sent the Little Sprite into the shelter, where Mephistopheles’s message appeared and warned that Hell’s Gate had opened and needed a trigger to unleash the demons.
• Li Wei returned to the Holy Maiden and told her what Mephistopheles had said, including the warning about Hell’s Gate.
• Li Wei reasoned that deaths caused by the Holy Maiden’s plan could provide the souls needed to activate Hell’s Gate and bring about an apocalypse.
• Li Wei asked the Holy Maiden what Mephistopheles had meant by calling the Rose Church ugly and hideous.

Li Wei reported Jeanne’s history and the danger that fighting in the City of Flowers could open Hell’s Gate, prompting the Empire to reconsider its invasion plans. He agreed to investigate the Holy Lord Church for evidence of demon worship, with Katie accompanying him.

• Li Wei told the Old Butler that Jeanne was a Homunculus who had survived by transferring her consciousness into successive bodies, and explained the clues about Hell’s Gate in the City of Flowers.
• Li Wei warned that heavy casualties in the City of Flowers might open Hell’s Gate and unleash countless demons, so he recommended attacking Cront from Delai Port instead.
• The Old Butler said the Empire needed evidence before changing its plans, and Li Wei offered to show him the frozen demons but could not prove the gate’s seal was broken.
• The Old Butler asked Li Wei to investigate the Holy Lord Church’s alleged demon worship and said Katie would accompany him.
• Li Wei accepted the mission, believing it would be easier to find evidence of demon worship than to prove Hell’s Gate was close to opening.

Li Wei reunited with Katie at the Floating City, where Sister Elizabeth challenged the Holy Maiden over whether she was a demon and whether the Holy Lord Church worshipped demons. Their dispute over faith and humanity’s responsibility ended with Li Wei declaring that he fought for humanity, leaving Elizabeth questioning her convictions.

• Li Wei explained to Katie that the Floating City depended on outside supplies, while Katie marveled at its flight and warned him that Sister Elizabeth was angry.
• Sister Elizabeth confronted the Holy Maiden, who denied the Holy Lord Church’s authority and said its worshippers revered demons; Elizabeth accused her of impersonating the Holy Maiden.
• Elizabeth tested the Holy Maiden with holy water, but it caused no reaction, and the Holy Maiden challenged Elizabeth to prove she was not a demon worshipper.
• The Holy Maiden and Elizabeth argued over whether humans needed divine guidance, while Li Wei said people had to hold one another accountable and that police, not angels, arrested criminals.
• Li Wei asked whether Elizabeth would still fight for humanity if the Holy Lord abandoned it, then said he acted for humanity rather than God and left with Katie.
• The Holy Maiden praised Li Wei’s view, while Elizabeth silently questioned whether her faith served the Holy Lord or humanity and began to pray.

After leaving a tense discussion about the Holy Lord Church, Li Wei explained to Katie why he believed humanity should rely on itself and why ordinary people drove history. The Holy Maiden compared his views with Arthur’s, and Katie ended by asking whether she could play with the demons nearby.

• Katie and Li Wei discussed the Holy Lord Church’s influence and the Queen’s support for the Pure Rite Sect.
• Li Wei told Katie that people should rely on themselves rather than remain under the control of the Holy Lord or the church.
• The Holy Maiden joined them and said Arthur believed a hero would lead people through hardship, while Mephistopheles had little faith in humanity.
• Li Wei argued that ordinary people’s work made heroes’ achievements and the Empire possible, citing the construction of the Eye of the Sky.
• Katie grew tired of the discussion and asked Li Wei if she could play with the demons.

Katie easily killed a demon, prompting the Holy Maiden to explain the rare abilities of Saints. Li Wei, Katie, and Sister Elizabeth then launched the Night Raven toward the Holy Lord Church headquarters to investigate its restricted areas.

• Katie destroyed a demon by punching off its leg and head, delighting in the fight.
• The Holy Maiden told Li Wei that people with innate powers were called Saints and said Katie seemed unusual even among them.
• Li Wei decided to force his way into the Holy Lord Church headquarters to search for evidence, and Sister Elizabeth joined because she knew its restricted areas.
• Li Wei, Elizabeth, and Katie boarded the Night Raven, with Li Wei controlling the Mecha and Katie manning its fire-control cockpit.
• Li Wei launched the Night Raven from the airship toward the City of Flowers.

Li Wei and Katie broke into the Holy Spirit Church headquarters in the Night Raven, following Sister Elizabeth’s lead toward the secret Underground Grand Cathedral. After crashing through its defenses and plunging down a shaft, they reached the bottom and discovered something that stunned Elizabeth.

• Li Wei crashed the Night Raven through the Holy Spirit Church’s stained-glass window, and Katie celebrated while Sister Elizabeth grieved the damage.
• Sister Elizabeth recalled how she learned of the Underground Grand Cathedral and how a nun once attacked her for overhearing its name.
• Li Wei blasted through Holy Knights and destroyed the stone door leading to the cathedral’s passage.
• The Night Raven broke through the door, plunged down a deep shaft, and landed at its bottom.
• Li Wei switched on the searchlight, revealing something that left Sister Elizabeth stunned.

Li Wei and his companions discovered that the Holy Lord Church’s underground hall was the site of bloody rituals, and the clergy defended killing and eating people as the Holy Lord’s will. Li Wei declared them demon worshippers and attacked, leaving the underground hall engulfed in gunfire and flames.

• Li Wei, Elizabeth, and Katie saw murals depicting grotesque rituals, bloodstains, and an enormous winged All-Seeing Eye statue in the Underground Holy Hall.
• Blue flames lit the hall, and robed priests and nuns emerged from the shadows as demons.
• Pope Franz defended the rituals, claiming that believers willingly gave their flesh, blood, and souls to witness the Holy Lord’s miracles.
• Li Wei asked Elizabeth and Katie whether the Holy Lord would demand people kill and eat one another; Katie rejected the idea, while Elizabeth remained silent.
• Li Wei declared that the clergy worshipped a demon rather than the Holy Lord and ordered an attack, unleashing a barrage of shells across the hall.

Li Wei attacked the clergy in the Underground Holy Hall, prompting the All-Seeing Eye mural to awaken as a winged monster. After escaping the collapsing church, he faced the creature in the sky, which Elizabeth identified as a Punishment Angel.

• Li Wei concluded that the Holy Lord Church’s clergy were carrying out their deity’s wishes and decided to attack rather than continue negotiations.
• The clergy turned into a shadow that entered the All-Seeing Eye, which opened and revealed a winged monster.
• The monster fired red beams at the Night Raven, but Li Wei dodged and fled toward the exit.
• Li Wei called in an aerial strike, escaped through the collapsing church dome, and avoided a crimson beam that destroyed most of the building.
• The creature flew after Li Wei, and Elizabeth identified it as a Punishment Angel.
• Li Wei raised the Night Raven’s weapons and prepared to fight the Punishment Angel.

Li Wei and Katie destroyed the mutated angel and completed the Seal Release quest, but a black mist poured from a pit beneath the Holy Lord Church and began turning Cront soldiers into monsters. Li Wei flew back toward the Eye of the Sky to find the Holy Maiden and learn what was happening.

• Li Wei used the Night Raven’s mist and missiles to approach the angel, then struck its All-Seeing Eye with the mecha’s pile driver.
• Katie hurled a shell at the damaged eye, shattering it and releasing a golden light that escaped into the sky as the angel disintegrated.
• Li Wei completed the Seal Release quest, gained lifespan and a divine-type damage bonus, and advanced Demon Hunter to LV4 to acquire Death Mark.
• Li Wei saw black mist erupt from a pit beneath the Holy Lord Church, where it swallowed Cront soldiers and turned their souls crimson.
• Li Wei told Katie they needed to find the Holy Maiden and flew the Night Raven back toward the Eye of the Sky.

Li Wei and Katie learned that the seal had failed and demons were entering the City of Flowers through spreading hellish fog, though the barrier between worlds still prevented a full invasion. The Holy Maiden said the seal could be restored if people’s understanding of demons was corrected, and Li Wei discovered that King Solomon had originally opened Hell’s Gate; they decided to report the crisis to their superiors.

• The Holy Maiden showed Li Wei and Katie images of demons attacking the City of Flowers through black fog, where Cront soldiers retreated and Chimeras mutated.
• The Holy Maiden explained that the seal had stopped working, but the remaining barrier between worlds limited demons to possessing people inside the fog.
• The Holy Maiden said the seal could work again if people learned that demons came from hell rather than being heretics, but restoring that belief would not help once the barrier was destroyed.
• Li Wei learned that King Solomon had opened Hell’s Gate by sacrificing his subjects in the former royal capital, and he connected the account to the murals he had seen.
• Li Wei and Katie agreed to report the situation and leave the response to their superiors.

Li Wei accepted the Holy Maiden’s help and gained the Life Drain ability, then spent the night with her. The next morning, an imperial Airship arrived carrying a visitor Li Wei recognized as Her Majesty.

• Li Wei told the Old Butler that the Holy Maiden would be a major asset to the Empire because of her alchemy and material formulas.
• The Holy Maiden visited Li Wei at night, offered to help him become the Empire’s ruler, and gave him the Life Drain ability.
• Li Wei refused to pursue the throne and learned that Life Drain let him absorb some of another person’s vitality.
• Li Wei and the Holy Maiden spent the night together, then woke to Lieutenant Horn announcing the Empire’s Airship arrival.
• Li Wei and the Holy Maiden went with Katie to welcome the armed delegation, and Li Wei was startled when Her Majesty emerged from the Airship.

The Queen visited Li Wei and Joan Dark aboard the Floating City, asking them how to stop hell’s fog and proposing that Li Wei use comics to change people’s view of demons. She left the Floating City to support the Empire’s coming war against Cront, while Li Wei was tasked with making the comic and supplying its next issue.

• The Queen arrived by airship and greeted Li Wei and Joan Dark, then Katie teased Li Wei about his intimacy with Joan.
• Li Wei and Joan explained the spreading black fog and the failed seal to the Queen, who learned that the Holy Lord Church had misled people about demons.
• The Queen asked Li Wei to create and distribute a comic like “Betty the Puppy” to change public opinion about demons, and he agreed to try.
• The Queen asked to use the Floating City as the centerpiece of the Empire’s next war against Cront, and Joan agreed.
• The Queen departed after telling Li Wei to handle the comic and not forget the next issue of “Betty the Puppy.”

Li Wei proposed using Guided Missiles to break Kront’s defenses, and the Queen watched a test launch near Delicate. The missile obliterated a warehouse and carved a huge crater into the hillside, leaving Li Wei stunned by its unexpected power.

• The Queen ordered the Empire to conquer Kront by taking Deburg and then advancing on Derrin, despite General Haig’s warnings about Kront’s defenses and Blaze Bird patrols.
• Li Wei proposed firing Guided Missiles from beyond the enemy’s reach, and General Haig agreed they could break Kront’s defensive line if their range and power were as described.
• The Queen asked to see a missile test, and Li Wei arranged a launch at a test site near Delicate.
• After John Dun confirmed the target coordinates, the missile launched and struck near the warehouse several minutes later.
• The explosion destroyed the warehouse and blasted a crater into the hillside, leaving Li Wei shocked by the missile’s immense power.

Li Wei and the Queen saw a guided missile devastate its target, prompting her to order the Cyclops refitted to carry missiles and production increased. Li Wei learned how the missiles were guided and what they needed for combat, then warned John that the factory would soon be very busy.

• Li Wei and the Queen inspected the enormous crater left by a guided missile, and General Haig judged the weapon capable of breaking through Kront's defenses.
• The Queen proposed launching several guided missiles from a warship, then decided to fit them aboard the Cyclops Airship instead.
• The Queen ordered General Hao to begin the Cyclops's refit and told Li Wei to increase guided-missile production with the Empire's support.
• Li Wei went to the Munitions Factory, where John explained that a small Difference Engine used airflow sensors to make course adjustments.
• John told Li Wei that the missiles required the launch and target coordinates to be entered before firing, and Li Wei said the factory should prepare for urgent work.