The moment he pushed the door open, the Hall of Deception swallowed both of them whole. The walls vanished. The ceiling vanished. What spread before them instead was——a dimly lit room he recognized. Seiya's feet stopped. Peeling wallpaper. A ceiling stained with water marks. The cold sensation of floorboards beneath his feet. This was... the orphanage. The place Seiya had spent his childhood before the Graad Foundation took him in. The dim single room from those memories was spreading out before his eyes exactly as it had been. In the corner, there was a child. Hugging their knees, sitting slumped against the wall. A small back trembling. The sound of sniffling. Crying. It was himself——his younger self, alone and crying. (Why is something like this......) His mind understood. It was an illusion. A false scene created by the Hall of Deception. But his body wouldn't move. He couldn't tear his eyes away from that back. "[scared]Seiya-san......" Signum's voice came from beside him. A tone he'd never heard before. Seiya shifted his gaze. Signum was crouched down, one hand pressed against her mouth. Her violet eyes were seeing something. Something Seiya couldn't see. That normally composed face was now completely pale. Her eyes squeezed shut, her lips bitten. Her shoulders trembled in small, rapid movements. Seiya understood. The wound Signum had carried——the death of a comrade she couldn't save back then——was being replayed right before his eyes now. He understood it not through words, but through his body. Both their Cosmos were in chaos. The combustion rhythm was breaking down, and his footing felt unstable. (This is bad. If things continue like this......) He tried to call out to her. He tried to say "Are you okay?" ——In that moment, he realized he was still staring intently at his younger self's back. Both of them had their feet caught by the illusion. "......We're even, aren't we" He said it quietly. To no one in particular. Signum, still crouched, seemed to smile thinly. There was no poison in that smile. Just a sense of strength draining away. "[sarcastic]......How pathetic we are" "[sarcastic]Yeah" For no good reason, he could laugh a little. The moment that laughter faded——space fractured with noise. The illusion wavered. The wallpaper, the peeling ceiling, distorted like ripples and disappeared. The stone space spread in its place. The Hall of Deception's true form returned. Standing at its center was a human figure. Its outline flickered. A semi-transparent body. Long hair mixed white and purple in a two-tone blend, existing as if frozen in the cold air. Eyes of different colors on each side——one blue, one red——looked straight at Seiya. The stone wall beyond the body was visible through it. An existence that couldn't be called either alive or dead. But Seiya felt the Cosmos. Faint, but definitely felt it. "[serious]It has been long, Pegasus" His tone was old-fashioned. A low, calm voice. "[surprised]......Saga" The Gold Saint of Gemini——Saga. Now standing here as an existence drifting between life and death. "[serious]There is no time. Listen" Saga spoke without moving his emotions. "[serious]Beyond this point lies Hades' chamber. The space leading there is saturated with Thanatos waves. Your Bronze Cloth cannot withstand it. The moment you touch it, your Cosmos will freeze and your heart will stop" "[serious]......What does that mean" "[serious]Exactly what I said. The Bronze Cloth cannot endure the underworld beyond this point" Saga's hand moved. The sensation of Cosmos being wrung out——it should be faint, but its quality was completely different. Cosmos with the density of Gold seeped into the space. The Gemini Gold Cloth began to materialize. The golden armor corresponding to Gemini. Golden light fell on the stone floor, illuminating the Hall of Deception. Signum rose to her feet, squinting against that light. "[serious]I entrust this to you" "[angry]Wait" Seiya's voice cracked. "[angry]If you use all of that up right here and now, what happens to you. What happens to you" Saga didn't answer. "[angry]You'll disappear, won't you. You'll disappear completely! There's no meaning in me moving forward by using your life as a stepping stone!!" Saga's expression didn't change. Only silence remained. "[gentle]You have already surpassed Gold long ago" "That's not the point——" "[gentle]I stake my Cosmos on your will" His voice was calm. He was smiling. There wasn't a shred of hesitation. That single statement sealed Seiya's objections. Signum tried to move. She was searching for words to stop him. But nothing came. The moment she saw Saga's eyes, she understood. This resolve couldn't be stopped with words. The Gold Cloth touched Seiya's body. The next instant—— Boom!! Impact tore through his entire body. The sound of bones creaking. Not bones——something inside the bones creaking. Blood vessels rose beneath his skin. White steam erupted from his entire body. From his shoulders, his arms, the tips of his feet. If worn by anyone other than a Gold Saint, the body would collapse——Seiya's body groaned as it crossed that very edge of the limit. (It's hot... no, it's not heat, it's Cosmos——!!) His knees nearly buckled. He bit down hard on his molars and held his ground. He forced strength back into his broken knees. His broken right arm screamed. Still, he stood. Signum stepped forward toward Seiya. Saga's Cosmos became a wall, blocking the space between them. Signum understood what that meant——"Only Seiya must cross this." Her fists clenched, unable to move. Saga's body began to transform into particles of light. Crumbling from the edges. White and purple hair melting into the light. Eyes of different colors looked straight at Seiya one last time. "[gentle]Come back alive" With only those words, Saga vanished into the light. Without sound. Without a trace. The moment the Gold Cloth completely accepted Seiya, golden light filled the Hall of Deception for just an instant. All illusions were burned away. The orphanage walls, Signum's comrade's death——everything disappeared. Only the stone space remained. Seiya reached his hand toward where Saga had been. There was nothing to touch. Signum approached. Her trembling hand touched Seiya's arm. "[gentle]......Are you alright" The Gold Cloth's influence was causing Seiya's body temperature to spike rapidly. Signum reflexively pulled her hand back from the heat. But her fingers paused for a moment before fully withdrawing. She grasped his arm again, firmly this time. It was an action to check his condition. But the strength in that grip held something beyond mere confirmation. Seiya felt it. He didn't put it into words. In that instant—— Space trembled. Something came from the depths of the Hall of Deception. Formless pressure. Thanatos waves——the death energy Hades commanded was radiated throughout the entire chamber. The sound of cracks splitting the walls. The ceiling groaned. Hades had sensed it. The Gold Cloth being worn. "[scared]The ceiling——!!" Crack!! A massive stone block tore free. Directly above Seiya. Still unstable from the Gold Cloth's burden, his body's control wasn't steady. His evasion judgment was a moment too slow. Signum shoved Seiya away. Boom!! A dull sound echoed through the stone space. Debris struck Signum's right shoulder directly. She fell. Slammed against the floor. Her right arm bent at an unnatural angle. The sound of multiple ribs fracturing——a wet, crushing sound reached Seiya's ears. "Signum!!" He rushed over. Signum lay motionless. Her face twisted with each breath. Something red leaked from the corner of her mouth. But. Her eyes still looked at Seiya. "[crying]......I followed you, believing in your will" She forced the words out. With broken ribs, each word made the bones shift. Still, she spoke. "[crying]So......please, hold true to your own will" There were no more words after that. Tears spilled from Seiya's eyes. He couldn't stop them. He didn't try to. ——Still, Seiya stood up. He dragged Signum to the shadow of the collapsed debris. A hollow in the wall where the ceiling wouldn't fall. He laid Signum there. He peeled fragments from his Pegasus Cloth and pressed them against her wounds. He searched for something to secure them, stabilizing Signum's body against the wall. When he finished everything, Seiya stood. He looked back once. Signum's eyes were closing. But her lips moved. No sound came out. But he could read them. ——Go. Seiya couldn't say anything. He nodded. That was all. He turned his back and ran. As he ran, Saga's and Signum's faces alternated in his mind. Saga had vanished. Signum couldn't move. It was all because he'd decided to come to the underworld——the moment that thought began, Seiya forcefully suppressed it. Don't think now. Just run now. If you decided to move by your own will, you can only keep moving——Saga's voice seemed to echo from somewhere. The words "come back alive" still lingered in his ears. Beyond the deepest part of the Hall of Deception, a passage opened. Dark. A darkness where the bottom couldn't be seen. The concentration of Thanatos waves was the highest he'd ever felt. He could feel the Gold Cloth receiving it. The sensation of bones creaking was still there. But he could move. There were no more comrades. He was completely alone. Seiya took one step into the darkness.