In the Pope's Hall, beneath Athena's statue.
Athena looked at Kaiser's eyes, surprised.
They seemed to have undergone some evolution.
"A slight mutation, nothing major."
"In fact, it's been helpful."
Kaiser replied with a smile.
"Why did you summon me?"
Kaiser looked at Athena.
With the Holy War underway, why would Athena call for him now? Was the Underworld plotting something?
"The Underworld is in trouble."
"This Holy War is ours to win."
Athena's words left Kaiser momentarily stunned.
A guaranteed victory?
Kaiser frowned, asking.
"I sensed Hades' divine power awakening."
"But it's highly unstable."
"Compared to past Holy Wars, his cosmos is significantly weaker."
"This means his reincarnation this time is flawed."
"Without Hades as a threat, we cannot lose this Holy War."
Athena's words jogged Kaiser's memory.
He recalled a few fleeting details from Lost Canvas.
Due to the betrayal of the old Pope, Itia, the Sanctuary's Golden Saints were nearly wiped out.
Yet they still won that Holy War.
Kaiser had always been puzzled, but now he seemed to understand.
It was likely because Hades' reincarnation was compromised.
In the original story, when Hades reached the Sanctuary, facing attacks from the Saints and Athena, his body couldn't withstand the strain and he vomited blood.
His reincarnation couldn't handle his cosmos, leading to physical collapse.
Hades' soul was forcibly expelled from his body.
Now it made sense... his reincarnation was defective.
"Could it be related to the Hydra?"
Kaiser thought of his old foe.
The Hydra's venom was potent, extraordinarily so.
In the Mythological Era, its poison could kill gods outright.
This time, with a plague sweeping the earth, though Hades' reincarnation was protected by his cosmos, the Hydra's venom likely caused some unseen damage.
Leading to his body's abnormality.
"So, what's your plan?"
He wanted to know Athena's thoughts.
"Preserve the Sanctuary's forces."
"In the next Holy War, we'll settle things with Hades."
"Hades knows he's doomed to lose this time."
"So he'll do everything to eliminate our key fighters."
"Especially you, Saga, Shion, Itia, and Cresto."
"If you survive until the next Holy War, you'll likely be eighth-sense powerhouses."
"That would put the Underworld at too great a disadvantage."
"They'll use this Holy War to weaken our forces by any means."
"You, Saga, Shion, Itia, and Cresto must not fall!"
Kaiser hadn't expected Athena to think so far ahead.
Her words were clear.
This Holy War was already decided.
The Sanctuary needed to preserve its strength.
"I understand." This text is hosted at NoveI-Fire.ɴet
"Unless absolutely necessary, I won't leave the Sanctuary."
Itia and Cresto were Athena's personal guard, staying wherever she was.
Saga was the Pope, with Shion as his aide.
They rarely left the Sanctuary.
That left Kaiser, the Libra Golden Saint, as the primary concern.
Once the Holy War began, combat and support missions would be inevitable.
A thoughtful glint passed through Kaiser's eyes.
The Lost Canvas Holy War was undeniably brutal.
One of the toughest the Sanctuary ever faced.
Several eighth-sense Golden Saints perished.
Great Leo Ilias, Little Leo Regulus, and Sagittarius Sisyphus... all eighth-sense masters from the same lineage... fell.
A family of loyalty, all lost.
Virgo Asmita took down Terrestrial Star Atavaka, then died by suicide.
The Sanctuary's strongest, Aquarius Cresto, grew weary of battle, turned traitor, and defected.
Aquarius Dégel, in a battle at Poseidon's palace, froze gods and himself with Absolute Zero Light.
The Underworld, too, unleashed all its forces and trump cards... Celestial Stars, Terrestrial Stars, and various gods.
"It's an opportunity."
A knowing look flashed in Kaiser's eyes.
Athena surely knew Pegasus' reincarnation cycle.
With a god-slaying force in the next war, she must have a plan.
"I'll likely die this time."
"The next Holy War is in your hands."
Athena's words held no fear of death.
For a god, it was merely reincarnation.
"Athena, I'm curious... where is your true body?"
"As the goddess of wisdom and war, your strength must rank among the top in the heavens."
"You could end this Holy War yourself."
"Why keep fighting these repetitive wars?"
Kaiser voiced his doubts.
The Holy War, since the Mythological Era, had been fought countless times.
"Because our true enemy isn't Hades."
"It's something far stronger."
"The ancient gods, hidden above the rest."
"They're crueler than the gods we know."
"The earth is the homeland of the gods."
"It holds the secret to becoming a god above gods."
"Only by unlocking that secret can I ascend to the supreme god and stabilize everything."
"But even now, I haven't uncovered what that secret is."
A bitter smile curved Athena's lips.
Even gods had their limits.
Kaiser's pupils contracted sharply at her words.
Others might not know, but he did.
The earth concealed the ultimate power of the gods.
A force second only to Chronos, the creator of this world.
If Athena could claim that power, she could indeed become a god above gods.
"For the next two hundred years, I'll strive to grow stronger."
Kaiser nodded, acknowledging her words.
Reborn into this world, he had no desire to remain a pawn in the gods' endless conflicts.
Even Cresto couldn't withstand the intensity of such a war.
Kaiser had no desire to experience it himself.
Since Athena was determined to end it all, he was happy to stand by her side.
Now that he thought about it, in the Saint Seiya era, Athena's direct slaying of Hades likely stemmed from sensing that ultimate power.
Hadn't Seiya in the Omega era reached main god-level strength in his base form?
But who would ultimately claim that power remained uncertain.
Kaiser had his cheat ability.
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