"Rather than tears, I would rather listen to a gentle song."
"Rather than sorrow, I yearn more for your warmth."
A comfortable night breeze blew gently, like a maiden's soft hand caressing your cheek.
When Seiya opened his eyes, what came into view were the constellations shining in the midsummer night sky, a sight only visible in places with clean air.
And also, a silver crescent moon shining in the sky.
Unlike the constellations, the moon looks the same whether in Asia or Europe. Like a queen ruling the night sky. In his memories, in the Fairy Realm, and in a past life, there had been times like this when he had looked up at the moon. When was that?
Distant, ancient scenes flashed through Seiya's mind, like fragments of stained glass illuminated by moonlight... a sorrowful sea of white flowers, a fist raised above his head, a boy and a girl under a giant banyan tree... the god who dragged the world into endless darkness, turning around to reveal a familiar, gentle face...
Joy, anger, hatred, battle—complex, interwoven emotions spread endlessly in his heart. Under the banyan tree, he slammed his fist into the boy on the ground. The shattered scene split into different fragments like a kaleidoscope. The moment Seiya raised his hand, another hand grasped his outstretched palm—
—It was the face of Athena.
Hair that shone with a faint silver, as if dissolved in the moonlight.
Pupils as black as night, as if they had condensed all the darkness.
The Heretic God, Athena. And at this moment, his head was resting on her lap. That pleasant scent was emanating from this ancient goddess in her youthful form.
"Seiya, what is it that you seek?" Athena asked, her voice light and ethereal.
Seiya didn't answer. He just tried to get up from Athena's lap; for a fifteen-year-old boy like him, this was a bit too embarrassing. But Athena's hand, though gentle, firmly pressed him back down.
"You can rely on your mother more, my child, Pegasus," Athena said, her light voice uttering the words of a goddess.
Hearing this, Seiya immediately wanted to struggle, but Athena had no intention of letting go of his hand. Her hand was very soft and small, but it was like a snake wrapped around his palm. People only know that snakes themselves can be frightening, but they never think about how snakes are also nervous and afraid when facing humans.
In this moment, Seiya suddenly sensed the emotion hidden beneath Athena's skin.
He looked up and met the goddess's eyes. The goddess was looking down at him, her bright, owl-like eyes reflecting only his own figure. This gaze was not unfamiliar to Seiya, because the two masters he had once mistaken for Marin and Shaina would also look at him with such a soft gaze.
He saw in Athena's eyes a joy and delight in his very existence. What he didn't know was that he held a different meaning for her.
For Athena, countless believers and humans had prostrated themselves on the ground and looked up at Her, but that kind of gaze was different, filled with awe and too much desire. But Seiya was different. He was fighting with life and limb out of an absolutely pure faith. Before, even with all her wisdom, Athena could not fathom what this was.
But the fact that he was Pegasus made everything understandable.
It was precisely because he was Pegasus, the child who symbolized her other half, the side of the Gorgon. It was only natural for a child to have such a devout and pure feeling for his mother.
"Athena, has your divine power recovered?" Seiya asked, seeing the burning intensity in Athena's gaze and taking the initiative to change the subject.
"This humble one is the chief priestess of war, and also the Queen of the Night. As a descendant of the Great Mother, this soil provides me with much convenience. The divine power consumed by the blessing I bestowed upon you has already recovered by more than half. But to return to the honored position of the triune holy mother goddess who rules the Mediterranean, I still need my lost half."
Although Athena very much wanted to talk more with her Pegasus, especially to look at his eyes, which were so similar to her own, what was most crucial for her right now was to find her other half.
"My wisdom has already perceived that the lost half was brought ashore on the Calabrian coast by humans. But it was quickly sealed by a very skilled magician, and even I cannot sense its specific location. I can only perceive through spirit vision that you will meet it very soon."
"I will retrieve your other half for you, Athena." Seiya was finally able to stand up. His expression was resolute as he was finally able to show the goddess the proper courtesy of a Saint once more.
"I believe in you. Please be careful as well. Because in the future I have dimly perceived, you will clash with two god-slaying beasts."
One must be Doni. Who's the other? The old wolf Marquis? He's the most enthusiastic about this sort of thing, Seiya frowned.
But when he lifted his head, only a feather fell from the sky. Seiya let out a long, slow breath. He turned his head to look out the window. Outside, the sun was shining brightly. He had just woken up from bed. It was now morning.
In a place far beyond the shore, even outside this multiverse cluster.
—Japan. The Graude Foundation. A purple-haired young woman was sitting at a desk, writing.
As the reincarnation of Athena, Saori Kido already sensed that a terrible darkness was about to envelop the world. But for some reason, Seiya, who had gone to Sanctuary to train six years ago, had vanished without a trace. Even using the full power of the Foundation, she could find no news of him.
Right now, she was writing a letter by hand, stroke by stroke, entrusting her longing to the envelope.
"If you truly have a spirit, if fate will allow me to see him again, then please deliver this letter into his hands." Saori Kido folded the letter, tucked it into the envelope, and then held it out to the beak of an owl, watching as it disappeared into the night.
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Three days later, Milan, Italy. Herodias's Manor.
This manor, named after Herodias, the wife of Herod II, the ruler of Galilee in Palestine from the Bible, was welcoming guest after guest.
The brownish-red, carved iron gates opened in succession. Guards in ancient Roman chainmail bowed to the arrivals. There were no people of the outer world here. Even the most ordinary maid was a sworn keeper who had made a pact with a fairy or a witch.
After passing through a three-tiered fountain with hundreds of sculpted spouts and cascading clear streams, one reached the main hall of the banquet. At this moment, those holding wine glasses and conversing at either end of the long white table were either the heirs of ancient magical families or witches or knights of high rank. But they were either sitting on the lawn in the garden outside, chatting at the long table, or taking their children to eat dessert at the buffet table.
But their gazes all drifted, intentionally or not, towards a certain spot on the second-floor balcony.
That was the location of the Seventh Godslayer, whose name was Seiya. Whatever his identity had been before, after he slew a god and usurped its supreme divine power, he was now the most honored sovereign in this mortal world.
More than half of the guests in this manor had come for him.
But at this moment, only a few could stand before him. Erica, her spirits high, lightly held Seiya's arm, introducing him to the guests before them.
At sixteen, Erica was the youngest person here.
"These two are the commanders of the 'Old Dames' and the 'She-Wolves'. Even in this country where the magical world flourishes, the Old Dames and the She-Wolves are both ancient and powerful knightly orders. In the old parlance, they are Grandmasters."
"Before the great and supreme Rakshasa King, 'Grandmaster' is but a humble title passed down among ourselves." Although they held the title of Grandmaster, the two old women looked at Seiya with the expression of ordinary old grandmothers doting on their grandchild, as if they might pull out a piece of candy for him to taste in the next second.
Next, she introduced the young commander of the knightly order—the City of Lilies. He was a rare young man, probably in his early thirties. A Great Knight, nearly one hundred and ninety centimeters tall, with a scruffy beard on the lower half of his face. His features were regular, but he gave off a gloomy impression.
This man was of the same status as Erica. Like Erica, who represented the "Copper Black Cross," he was also a knight who had obtained the rank of Great Knight.
From ancient times to the present, tens of thousands of magicians have appeared.
Besides the great magi, there were also no shortage of charlatans. And the knights who studied the skills of swords and spears alongside magic were also among them. Erica and the others were descendants of the Knights Templar who were active in the Middle Ages and worshipped both the Son of God and the demon god Baphomet. They were not only magicians, but also warriors.
And the title of Great Knight, among them, was only bestowed upon the most outstanding of warriors. This was their greatest pride. But seeing Seiya's placid gaze, the pride in their hearts instantly vanished.
A fifteen-year-old Godslayer, one of the seven strongest people in the world. Who was qualified to be proud in his presence?
But it was at this moment that they heard the sound of the brownish-red carved iron gates opening again. They exchanged surprised glances. The banquet was already in its middle part; who would be arriving now?
And from the sound of it, they had driven their vehicle all the way to the front of the banquet hall. But this action made the old women frown.
When the main door was opened from the inside by a servant, a young woman appeared, silhouetted against the light. Seeing the newcomer, Erica's face lit up with joy. "Seiya, let me introduce you, this is..."
"Greetings, esteemed Seventh Majesty. I am the current president of the Greenwich Sage's Council, Alice Louise of Navarre."
The golden-haired woman curtsied to Seiya, holding the hem of her skirt. She was an elegant woman in her twenties. Her golden hair shone with brilliance. Her tone was steady, her aura like perfume. She wore a high-quality white jacket, paired with black long boots. Beneath the jacket was a short knit dress and leggings.
But the smile on Erica's face froze. She quickly realized that her close friend had not come to this banquet with good intentions. That was why she had so rudely interrupted her introduction. But murmurs were already spreading through the crowd. Words like "Duke of Godin," "strongest witch in Europe," "Princess Alice," "Sage's Council," "current president" could be heard.
The origin of the Sage's Council, if one had to say, was a circle of curious busybodies.
Magicians, occult scholars, fairy doctors, and others deeply involved in magic. Or general scholars just a step away from being experts, common researchers, priests, pastors, monks, Shinto priests, artists, capitalists, nobles, royals, and imperial family members—a circle established by like-minded individuals with ambition, a thirst for knowledge, and wealth, for the exchange of information.
This council gradually accumulated wisdom, and its influence gradually increased. Then it established its headquarters in Greenwich, London. And now, in the present day, it was almost equivalent to the official organization of the European magical world.
Of course, in regions like Italy, Greece, and Romania, it certainly couldn't compare to organizations like the Copper Black Cross or the City of Lilies, but it had an extremely wide influence throughout the entire European magical world.
Without giving her friend Erica a chance to question her, the current president of the Sage's Council, Alice, stepped forward and spoke in a clear voice, "Commanders, esteemed guests, are you not curious who the host of this banquet is? Most of the people here have come specifically because they learned that the Seventh Godslayer, Seiya, would be attending this banquet. But have you considered one thing? That all of you have been deceived."
At this moment, the strongest witch in all of Europe looked up towards the top floor. "Come out, Beheader, the Fairy Princess, Miss Salome!"
A Jewish beauty wearing a white veil appeared in the public's view. Seiya raised his head slightly, looking at the familiar face. She slowly descended the spiral staircase, her chin also slightly raised, gazing at her aggressive nemesis.
"Beheader, you still dare to remain in Milan?" Alice said, looking at her enemy who was now appearing so brazenly before her, a rare excitement showing in her eyes.
"If even you dare to leave your main body from the headquarters in London, why can't I come to Milan to relax?" Salome's gaze moved away from Alice and settled on Seiya. "I have yet to congratulate you on becoming the seventh god-slaying beast to grasp victory, little master."
Alice's face was now grim, and Erica, who had been observing her friend, was at a loss.
Although the Sage's Council was powerful, it was not without its rivals. The most well-known of them was the Divine Ancestor of the snake god's descendants, Guinevere. The faction she led had brought considerable pressure to the entire Western European magical world. Even the Royal Factory of His Majesty Alexander and the Sage's Council had to request outside help to repel her.
And this mythological Salome was an ally of that ancient Divine Ancestor, and even an extremely crucial Fairy King. She actually knew the Seventh Godslayer, and it seemed their relationship was quite good. "Seiya, you must not be deceived by this woman. I can sense from the spirit you exude that you are a knight who holds a noble faith, but this Beheader is an out-and-out poisonous flower of the south," she said hurriedly.
Salome completely ignored the slander from her old rival. She walked up to Seiya and slowly opened a box.
"Coincidentally, while passing by the Calabrian coast, I came across a relic from the age of myth that had been salvaged by local fishermen. I thought this ancient Greek divine artifact would be a suitable gift for you."
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