The doors to the throne room slammed shut with a deafening roar. A circular hall fifty meters in diameter. No ceiling—instead, eternal darkness stretched overhead. The floor was obsidian, and each of Seiya's footsteps echoed through the chamber, swallowed by the vastness. The air was different. With every breath, cold seeped deep into his lungs. Thanatos waves—the energy of death—had soaked into the very fabric of this space. In the center stood a throne. The man sitting there slowly lifted his gaze. Pallid skin. Jet-black hair cascaded from his shoulders. Eyes of deep violet looked upon Seiya. That alone made the Gold Cloth creak. Hades—the god who rules the underworld. The Underworld King, manifested in a human body as his vessel. This man's Cosmo was fundamentally different from that of any Holy Warrior. Death energy existed here as the very air itself. "[cold]...You have come, Pegasus Holy Warrior," He didn't even rise from his throne. Only his deep violet eyes tracked Seiya, the rest of him motionless. "[cold]Without Athena's command, you come alone. Laughable—yet intriguing," Before his words even finished, Thanatos waves flooded the entire space. Boom!! Seiya's arms froze in an instant. The golden light dulled, his Cosmo's combustion suddenly suppressed. Sensation vanished from his fingertips. A grinding sensation from within his body. His life force, sensed through Seventh Sense, was—being shaved away. (This is bad. Is this... the power of a god?) But he couldn't stop. "[serious]...I didn't come because of orders," Seiya took his stance. Battered body, Cosmo nearly depleted, yet he faced Hades straight on. "[excited]Pegasus Meteor Fist—!!" Boom boom boom boom boom boom boom!!! Dozens of sonic punches per second rained down on Hades. Thunder roared through the hall. Each strike tore through the air— Hades didn't move an inch. No way. Seiya's ultimate technique. A blow unleashed while wearing even Saga's Gold Cloth—didn't leave a single scratch on the god's body. "[cold]What meaning does human will hold," His right arm moved. That was all. A single Thanatos wave—Seiya didn't even see it coming. By the time he realized, his body was flying through the air. Crash!!! He slammed into the stone wall. The sound of cracks spreading across the Gold Cloth's chest. All the air left his lungs. He fell to the floor. The cold touch of black obsidian pressed against his cheek. (Stand up...) He forced strength into his knees. They trembled. Bones creaked. Something was wrong with his right arm. The old injury screamed again. But— Slowly, he stood. Hades' deep violet eyes shifted slightly. "[cold]Why do you stand," His voice was emotionless. Merely confirming a fact. "[serious]...Because my heart is telling me to stand here," Blood dripped from his mouth. Still, his eyes never wavered. Hades unleashed another Thanatos wave. This time stronger than before. The floor of the hall began to shatter. Seiya was hurled back, slamming into the wall again. Fragments of the Gold Cloth scattered across the floor. His vision turned red. (Stand. Stand stand stand—) Unsteadily, he dropped to his knees. Placed his hands down. Slowly, slowly—with a grunt of effort, he somehow managed to stand. Hades furrowed his brow for the first time. That moment of hesitation in the midst of battle with a god briefly lightened the weight of the chamber. Yet—the simple fact that Seiya continued to rise spoke more eloquently than anything else about the strength of his will. The third Thanatos wave. This time, at full power. Crash!!! The floor of the throne room split open. Cracks raced across the walls. A black pillar of energy erupted toward the ceiling-less darkness above. Seiya was blown away, rolling to the edge of the chamber. The sound of two ribs breaking. The Gold Cloth's remaining Cosmo rapidly dissipated. His body wouldn't move. His vision blurred. Darkness crept in. And in that darkness—light appeared. A gentle golden light. It was Saga. A dream? An illusion?—yet he was unmistakably there. The Gemini Gold Saint, who had smiled and vanished into light in the Hall of Deception that day. There were no words. Only warm Cosmo flowing into his body. Live and return—that intention transmitted as heat. Then came a voice. "—Go." It was Signum's voice. From beneath the rubble, with broken bones, she had shaped those words with her lips alone. The warmth of her hand from that moment—remained deeper in his body than any logic, any strategy. And then— "[gentle]Come back," A voice that transcended dimensions. Just six words. Not an order. Not a command. Simply one human asking him to come back. And Shura. The man who had condemned with logic, yet silently carved a path forward. All of it—converged in this single moment. Thump. Deep within his chest, something pulsed. The dying flame of his Cosmo—ignited. The Gold Cloth began to shine. Pegasus silver and Gemini gold intertwined, overflowing with a light never before seen. The world slowed. Every movement became visible. The path of the Thanatos waves—visible. Hades' internal structure—visible. Eighth Sense—the power that lay beyond the boundary between life and death. "[serious]...Let's go," He spoke briefly. That was enough. For the first time, Hades took a proper stance. In his deep violet eyes—for the first time, there was "caution." "[excited]Pegasus Meteor Fist—Full Power!!!" Boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom!!!!!! One second. Two seconds. Three seconds—blows approaching light speed hammered into Hades' chest without pause. Saga's Cosmo, the warmth of Signum's hand, Saori's voice asking him to come back, the path Shura had carved—all of it became fuel, driving this fist forward. Hades' body—began to shatter from within. "..." The human body that had been his vessel reached its limit as a container for divine Cosmo. Cracks spread. Light leaked out. His deep violet eyes, for just an instant—took on a color as if he wanted to say something. But faster than that— Crash!!!!!!!!! Hades' body exploded into fragments. The shockwave spread across the entire chamber. The floor split. Walls crumbled away. Cracks raced through the darkness of the ceiling. The underworld itself—began to collapse. Seiya dropped to his knees. His body wouldn't move. His Cosmo was completely empty. The Gold Cloth's radiance was nearly extinguished. (I did it...) That was all. That alone filled his mind. Rocks fell from above. Walls crumbled. The entire underworld was ending. But—his body wouldn't move. He couldn't stand. No Cosmo remained. Then it happened. The Gold Cloth—suddenly blazed with intense golden light. Saga's final words echoed in Seiya's mind. The one thing he'd said in the Hall of Deception, just before vanishing. "Live and return"—it wasn't an order. It was Saga's will, everything he was. And that will had been carved into the Cloth itself. Designed to activate as automatic defense when its wearer faced death—prepared to expend everything. A pillar of light enveloped Seiya. Falling rocks were repelled. As the floor cracked and crumbled, light alone continued to shield him. The Gold Cloth's radiance grew stronger. Stronger and stronger— Then it faded. Saga's Gold Cloth vanished without a trace. It had sent Seiya's body to the surface, spent everything, and disappeared. Nothing remained in Seiya's hands. Only—the residual warmth of Cosmo in his chest. The temperature of that gentle smile still lingered there. —— The morning light was blinding. When he opened his eyes, he saw sky. A Greek dawn. Orange and gold blended together in soft hues. The sensation of stone beneath his back. This was—the exit of Yomotsu Hirasaka. The place where the underground of the Sanctuary connected to the surface. His body wouldn't move. That was fine. He was on the surface. "[sarcastic]...You survived," A voice spoke. Looking to the side, Signum sat with her back against the wall. Her right arm hung in a white sling. Stone dust clung to her silver braided hair. Her cold violet eyes gazed at Seiya's face. She should have been critically wounded. Multiple broken ribs, a fractured arm—yet she had crawled this far and waited for him. Signum's voice trembled slightly. "[serious]...Signum," "Rest assured," Her voice was carefully controlled. But—her left hand, the one not in the sling, was placed just beside Seiya's. Their fingertips were mere centimeters apart. Seiya noticed and glanced at it. He said nothing. Signum said nothing. They simply sat side by side in that distance, beneath the dawn light. Running footsteps echoed. It was Kido Saori. Her long purple hair flowed in the wind as she ran across the Sanctuary's stone path. The Athena mark on her forehead glowed faintly in the morning light. With her usual serene presence—yet tears streamed down her cheeks. Saori knelt before Seiya. She gently took his bloodied hands in both of hers. "[crying]...Welcome home," That was all. Not an order. Not a duty. Not words spoken as Athena. Simply—one human welcoming him home. Tears spilled from Seiya's eyes. He couldn't stop them even if he tried. He didn't want to. There was someone here who had asked him to come back, not commanded him to go and return. Someone here who welcomed him home. That alone—was enough. From the stone steps above, someone watched. It was Shura. The guardian of Capricorn, the Capricorn Gold Saint. Arms crossed, quietly observing the three. His sharp eyes softened slightly in the dawn light. That was all. Not a word. He simply—nodded and turned away. Shura's footsteps receded. One step at a time up the Sanctuary's stone stairs, methodical and steady. Saga's Cloth was gone. But in Seiya's chest, that Cosmo's warmth remained. A heat that would never fade, forever present. The Holy War that Athena never commanded ended by Seiya's will alone. Whether it was right or wrong—no one could say, even now. Shura's logic might still be correct. And yet. Seiya had lived and returned. Saori's hand was warm. Signum's fingertips were centimeters away. The dawn light painted the Sanctuary's stone path in gold. That was enough.