The familiar sensation of spatial transition faded. Setsuna found himself on a desolate, cold land filled with the aura of death.
The sky was an unchanging leaden gray, devoid of sun, moon, or stars. Only the distant, faint outlines of rugged mountain peaks were visible, like silent tombstones.
"Specter Universe, correct." Setsuna calmly surveyed his surroundings, sensing the rules and energy fluctuations of this world. "However, the timeline seems different from last time."
He thought for a moment and understood the reason.
The last time he intervened in the Holy War, he had taken the [Sword of Hades] that was supposed to pierce Seiya, causing Athena to reverse time.
Without this key item, the future timeline where 'Seiya kneels to the Sun God and everyone's memories are erased' would naturally not occur.
'So, the 'orthodox' future timeline is what I've arrived at this time?' Setsuna mused.
But exactly which point in the original work's timeline it was needed further confirmation.
Just then—
A force carrying a mandatory contract, like invisible chains, appeared out of nowhere and entwined around Setsuna's soul.
For a Specter's soul, this force might have been an irresistible forced summoning.
But for Setsuna, this force was too weak.
So weak that he could completely shatter and annihilate it with a single thought.
However, Setsuna did not do so.
A glint of amusement flashed in his eyes.
"Just after returning to the Specter Universe, an old friend is summoning me so enthusiastically? How delightful."
He relaxed his resistance to this force and even actively allowed his soul to respond to the summoning.
...
A short time earlier, inside the Temple of Hades.
Deep within the temple, the giant throne of Hades stood empty.
Beneath the throne, four figures stood solemnly.
On the left were the three Judges of the Underworld: Griffon Minos, Wyvern Rhadamanthys, and Garuda Aiacos.
In front of the three Judges stood a young woman dressed in a magnificent black dress… Pandora, the human representative of Hades.
At that moment, they were preparing to perform an important ritual.
Minos's voice carried hesitation, breaking the silence: "Pandora-sama, are we really going to summon the soul of that 'sinner'?"
His gaze swept over the hexagram array on the ground, his tone heavy. "It was because of him in the last Holy War that we suffered an unprecedented defeat, even Hades-sama himself..."
"That is precisely why we should summon him!" Rhadamanthys interrupted, his voice resolute.
"Just think about it: summoning the greatest contributor to the Sanctuary in the last Holy War, Athena's most loyal Pope, to the Underworld, granting him a Surplice, and having him fight for our Underworld!"
"Having him personally destroy the earth he once protected, kill the goddess he once served, letting his hands be stained with the blood of his comrades and juniors!"
"This ultimate betrayal and irony, this pleasure of dragging a hero into darkness... this is most in line with Hades-sama's taste, is it not?"
Minos fell silent.
He had to admit, Rhadamanthys had a point.
Manipulating the hero who protected the earth into destroying it was indeed the kind of malicious taste His Majesty preferred.
After all, they, the three Judges of the Underworld, were the best example.
They were once sons of Zeus, heroes who protected the earth, but now they were the leaders of the Hades forces.
"Hades-sama's will is not to be questioned." Pandora spoke slowly. "Begin. In the name of Hades-sama, summon the soul of the Pope from the previous Holy War, Chiaki Setsuna!"
With her words, the array on the ground lit up.
A powerful divine power of the Underworld crossed the boundary between life and death and began to search for that soul.
Then, the array shook violently.
A figure with black hair and silver eyes, as if walking from illusion into reality, appeared within the array.
Seeing the figure, Pandora's body began to tremble uncontrollably.
It was the fear left by the previous Pandora, passed down like a soul brand.
This was the man who had made His Majesty taste pain for the first time since the Mythological Era.
Pandora's face turned pale, but she forcibly suppressed her fear.
She took a deep breath, trying to make her voice sound majestic and cold: "Athena's Pope... no, former Pope, Chiaki Setsuna."
Her eyes met Setsuna's gaze, her heart tightening again, but she still forced herself to continue:
"I, Pandora, on behalf of the great Hades-sama, summon you back to this world."
"Past grudges and positions are meaningless before the will of Hades-sama."
"Now, there is only one path before you: fight for the honor of the Hades forces!"
"As a reward, Hades-sama will grant you eternal life! Free you from the fragile shell of mortality and fleeting time, to be with the Underworld forever!"
A faintly amused smile appeared on Setsuna's face. "Oh? A Specter? I never imagined that I, Chiaki Setsuna, would become a Specter."
He seemed to be genuinely considering the proposal, asking with interest, "So, which 'throne's' Surplice do you plan to grant me?"
Pandora gently waved her hand. A set of ferocious, pitch-black Surplice, its surface flowing with dark purple light, appeared before Setsuna.
The aura emitted by this Surplice far exceeded that of ordinary Specters, even deeper and more evil than the Surplices of the three Judges.
"In the name of Hades-sama!" Pandora's voice was solemn and majestic. "I grant you… the title of the Heavenly Chief Star and its Surplice!"
"From this moment on, you are the foremost of the 108 Evil Stars of the Hades forces, the Heavenly Chief Star: Chiaki Setsuna! Put on the Surplice and offer your loyalty and power to Hades-sama!"
Setsuna found it somewhat amusing and frustrating. He hadn't expected his Surplice to be the Mephistopheles.
However, Setsuna did not refuse.
His fingertip lightly touched the Surplice. The Surplice seemed to awaken, suddenly decomposing into countless pitch-black components, which, as if possessing life, rapidly fitted and assembled onto Setsuna's body.
In an instant, that ferocious and magnificent Leader Star Surplice was already worn perfectly on Setsuna.
The pitch-black armor covered his entire body. The demon helmet obscured most of his face, leaving only a pair of eyes gleaming in the shadows.
Seeing Setsuna put on the Surplice, the stone that had been hanging in Pandora's heart finally fell.
The Surplice was both a source of power and a shackle of restraint and control.
The reason Specters did not need to undergo arduous training like Saints was that the core of their power lay in the Surplice itself.
Most Specters were less the masters of their Surplices and more the puppets of their Surplices.
Pandora chuckled inwardly: 'No matter how powerful you, Chiaki Setsuna, were in the past, as long as you put on this Mephistopheles Surplice, your soul will ultimately belong to the Underworld!'