Saint Seiya: Heretic Athena?

For a god, death is not the end. To fight to the death with a mythological rival, to die heroically at the hands of a fated enemy—for most gods who hold the concepts of heroes, war, and the like, this is in itself an honor.

But if one were to speak of a god's shame, it would be the complete opposite.

The secret rite was transmitted into Seiya's body through the kiss. In this moment, the subject and object were inverted, the lover and the beloved were reversed. Sensing the instant her divine body was being dismantled, Stella suddenly remembered the fate the Moirai, the goddesses of destiny, had once revealed to her in the divine realm: in the not-too-distant future, she would be devoured by a human, her soul commanded by him.

Once, as the goddess of love and beauty, Stella had scoffed at this prophecy, because all the humans in the world combined could not possibly resist the power of her love. But now, the prophesied future was playing out at this very moment.

At this moment, the feedback from the God of Combat's victory Authority also came to the mind of the Saint, Seiya.

It was to offer up the entirety of the goddess before him as the harvest of his victory. And for Stella, it was a reenactment of a myth.

If one were to ask what the two goddesses, Athena and Stella, who were at such odds, had in common, it would be that they both shared a mythological origin with the ancient Babylonian Ishtar.

Legend has it that Ishtar killed her husband, Tammuz. However, because Tammuz was the god of vegetation, his death caused things on earth to stop growing, leading to natural disasters. So Ishtar ventured alone into the underworld, passed through seven trials, defeated her sister Ereshkigal, and brought back her husband, bestowing bounty and vitality upon the mortal world once more. The Babylonians believed that the lack of harvest every winter was because Ishtar and Tammuz were in the underworld during those months.

So after the harvest, the ancient Babylonians knew to fertilize the land. The fertilizer represented the dismembered body of Tammuz, and the act of fertilizing represented Tammuz nourishing the earth with his own flesh and blood. While fertilizing, the women had to wail loudly to express their mourning for Tammuz's death. And every spring represented Tammuz's return. At its root, it was all a product of nature worship.

Stella's flesh, blood, and divine soul were now being devoured in reverse by Seiya. Even her divine artifact, the Belt of Friendship, which was considered a part of her, was now being reshaped into a weapon that suited Seiya's needs.

And in the real world, a faint light emanated from Seiya's entire body, which meant he was receiving all of Stella.

At the same time, Athena also sensed that the changes within Seiya's body were nearing their end. She had originally intended to depart like the night wind as she usually did, but an inexplicable palpitation made her gaze at the Pegasus's face. She reached out and wiped his lips, then kissed the Pegasus on the forehead.

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The sun was high in the sky, and its somewhat scorching rays fell on Seiya's face.

It was already noon. Had he really slept for so long?

The moment Seiya opened his eyes again, the second effect of his God of Combat Authority had already given its feedback after the victory.

[Sixth Sense has been broken through. Please check for receipt.]

[Combat Techniques: Demoniac Rose, Royal Demoniac Rose, Piranhan Rose, Lustful Rose, Guiding Rose, Pegasus Flash Fist (Introductory), Pegasus Laser (Introductory), Atomic Thunderbolt (Simplified)]

[Divine Artifacts: Wheel of Friendship, Victory-Simulated Golden Arrow—Mastered.]

[The third stage of rewards will be distributed shortly. Please check for receipt.]

His Sixth Sense had been broken through. A brand new realm. The power of his Cosmo flowed through his limbs and bones. All of his senses had been significantly enhanced; his hearing, vision, and touch had all multiplied. His brownish-black eyes surveyed a brand new world.

It was a world that was nearly still. The flapping of a butterfly's wings, the dust suspended in the air—whether it was the scenery of the surrounding courtyard or the unpredictable changes of the wind and clouds in the sky, all had ceased their movement in this moment.

But this was not time stopping. It was just that his own thoughts had accelerated a thousandfold, causing a qualitative change in his perception of time. It was a feeling for time. Seiya looked back again and saw that the scene before him was actually reversing.

Cosmo is the Seventh Sense, or rather, the Seventh Sense is the essence of Cosmo. Because the Seventh Sense is not something you can awaken just because you want to. It is closer to the talent of a Godslayer, an innate talent. But even with just this most rudimentary application, it could still allow him to distort the laws of physics to a certain extent, to reach a level where he could fight with the gods.

Even though he had just barely crossed into this level, compared to his previous Sixth Sense, it was a qualitative leap.

In the end, it was just that the divine avatars were not strong enough. A Saint should be a warrior who is constantly tempered in arduous and outstanding battles. The battle not long ago had not felt particularly oppressive to Seiya. If not for the forced victory feedback from his Authority, the most important factor was probably the goddess of the dark night, Leto's, manipulation of obscuring his five senses. He might not have been able to cross that threshold otherwise.

Sigh. First day of missing Apollo's mom. I miss her.

Speaking of goddesses, Seiya looked in another direction, at the bed in the room. In the blankets, there was a little thing about thirty centimeters long, hugging a pillow and drooling.

For a god, the most humiliating and unacceptable thing had happened.

Stella had a nightmare. In the dream, her divine soul, and even her body, were twisted by the old virgin's secret rite, becoming the property of the God-slaying Rakshasa. This was a nightmare that made her entire consciousness tremble. Her soul would be branded with a mark worse than a beast's, never to rise again for all eternity.

But when she opened her eyes, what came into view was the youth sitting in the pavilion, staring into space.

"Waah! I don't want to be the slave of a base human!" Stella cried out, clutching her head.

Hearing this, Seiya couldn't help but frown. "Shut up."

It was not an incantation, but for Stella, it was more terrifying than one. Because as Seiya's command was issued, she completely and involuntarily shut her mouth. Even her crying stopped.

This was Stella's current state. An inverted master-servant relationship. From her body and mind to her divine soul, all had become the property of the God-slaying Pegasus.

Seeing the goddess before him choking back sobs but unable to speak, Seiya curiously leaned closer to her. "Do a golden rooster stands on one leg."

Completely unable to control herself, Stella was forced to lift her left leg. She looked hatefully at the Pegasus who was commanding her, trying to warn him with her gaze not to go too far. But Seiya continued to issue commands. "Strike the pose of the Pegasus Meteor Fist."

As expected, Stella's hands traced the trajectory of the Pegasus constellation in the air. Seiya's eyes lit up, and then he gave one last command. "Stella, awaken the Super Omega Great Universe right now and unleash the Samsara Everlasting Dance! Annihilate a Myriad Chariots!"

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