“When evil spreads across the world, warriors of hope are certain to appear.
The Saints.”
“Long ago, several young men protected the Goddess Athena.
They were known as Athena’s Saints.”
“They used their bodies as weapons.
Their fists could tear through the sky, and their legs could split the earth.”
“And now, youths with conviction, courage, and strength are reborn as a new generation of Saints.”
…
Deep within a forest on the outskirts of the Acropolis of Athens, a bare-chested youth stood before a tree.
The enormous trunk was covered in bloody fist marks.
Nor was it the only one.
Every thick tree trunk nearby bore the same marks.
The youth straightened and raised his right hand, staring intently at the massive trunk before him as Marin’s words to Seiya surfaced in his mind.
“Stones are made of atoms.
Your body and mine are also made of atoms.
Everything in this world is the same, even the stars in the sky.”
“Do you understand?”
“The key to destroying an object is Atomic Destruction.”
“Seiya, gather all your strength.
Focus the spirit within you on the stone you want to shatter.
Concentrate everything into a single point, into that fist.”
Marin’s words echoed through the youth’s mind again and again.
At last, he threw his punch, pouring all his heart, spirit, and conviction into that single blow.
Crack…
The giant tree, thick enough that it would take two people to wrap their arms around it, snapped beneath his fist.
The spot he struck was pulverized outright, and the towering tree crashed to the ground with a heavy boom.
As he stared at the shattered trunk and the fallen tree, delight flashed through the youth’s eyes.
Finally…
Six years.
He had finally brought down that giant tree with his own strength.
His name was Ryosho.
He was a die-hard Saint Seiya fan.
Six years earlier, while organizing his collection of Saint Seiya figures, he had accidentally cut his finger on the Cancer figure.
He lost consciousness soon afterward.
When he woke again, he found himself in Athens, his body reduced to that of a ten-year-old.
He was later adopted by a craftsman from the Sanctuary, and it was through him that Ryosho learned about Athens, the Sanctuary, and the Saints.
He quickly realized that he might have transmigrated into the world of Saint Seiya.
For a time, he had been overjoyed.
After living such an unremarkable life before, he believed he would finally have the chance to accomplish something in this extraordinary world.
Reality, however, was cruel.
He had neither a system nor any special advantage.
He did not even have an official identity.
The craftsman who had adopted him could take him in and out of the Sanctuary to forge weapons and armor for its foot soldiers, but he had none of the connections needed to get Ryosho into Saint training, much less the Saint selection tournaments.
Even so, Ryosho refused to give up.
From what he knew about the Saints, he believed he could awaken the Cosmo within him on his own, even without formal Saint training.
Once he tried, however, he discovered that it was far more difficult than he had imagined.
Day after day, he forged metal, trained his body, and practiced his punches.
Little by little, his body grew stronger.
Every time he threw a punch, he recalled everything he knew about the Cosmo and replayed Marin’s words to Seiya in his mind.
Yet not once had he managed to shatter a tree trunk or a rock, much less crush atoms.
Seiya had shattered a rock after hearing Marin’s explanation only once, but that miracle had never happened for Ryosho.
His Cosmo had remained dormant.
Until today, he had never displayed strength far beyond that of an ordinary person.
Ryosho suppressed the wild joy surging within him and calmed his mind.
He carefully recalled the sensation of that punch and contemplated what he had experienced.
He had to secure this breakthrough and use it to awaken the Cosmo within him.
Gradually, the world grew quiet.
He heard leaves rustling in the wind, birds singing, insects chirping, and even ants crawling across the tree trunks.
At last, a faint sensation stirred within his body, accompanied by the sound of a glacier cracking.
Then the world fell completely silent.
He felt as though he were standing in the depths of space.
Vast galaxies and nebulae converged upon him from across the boundless cosmos.
A universe seemed to unfold within his body, and he could faintly hear a shooting star streaking past.
His eyes snapped open, and he threw a punch.
The Cosmo within him exploded in an instant.
Its power surged through his chest, arm, and wrist before gathering in his fist.
His fist tore through the air.
The ground rolled like ocean waves, and a thick tree trunk dozens of meters away shattered beneath the force of the punch with a thunderous boom.
Ryosho stared blankly at the scene, unable to believe his eyes.
He lowered his gaze to his fist.
Had he really thrown that punch?
Was this the power of the Cosmo?
Just as he was savoring the joy of finally awakening his Cosmo after six years of struggle, his vision suddenly blurred, as though a thin mist had descended over his eyes.
A moment later, something resembling a game interface appeared in the center of his vision.
“What is this?
A system?” Ryosho stared at the game-like interface in astonishment, unable to process what he was seeing.
Three boxes appeared on the system interface, each bearing a label.
The first was the [Cloth Forging and Repair Guide], the second was the [Material Shop], and the last was the [Cloth Compendium and Saint Spirit Tablets].
Ryosho raised an eyebrow.
Was this system trying to turn him into a Cloth Forger?
Still puzzled, he opened the [Cloth Forging and Repair Guide].
As its name suggested, it was a technical guide to Cloth Forging and Cloth Repair.
It contained a detailed account of how the Goddess Athena had commissioned Hephaestus, the God of Fire, to lead the Alchemists of the Mu Continent in forging the Cloths.
It also explained the forging process and included the blueprints and design concepts for all eighty-eight Cloths.
Ryosho skimmed through it.
In addition to what he already knew, the guide contained an enormous amount of forging knowledge.
Fortunately, he had been adopted by a craftsman.
He had learned a great deal about forging and had made plenty of tools himself.
Otherwise, he would not have understood any of it.
He closed the guide and opened the [Material Shop].
Its interface was extremely simple.
It was more or less what he had expected.
The [Material Shop] allowed him to exchange Soul Crystals for materials used in Cloth Forging and Cloth Repair, including Orichalcum, Gammanium, and Stardust Sand.
Soul Crystals were the shop’s designated currency.
The [Material Shop] also listed six ways to obtain Soul Crystals.
Repairing Cloths.
Directly exchanging Cloth Fragments.
Drawing them from the Cosmo through meditation.
Unlocking entries in the Cloth Compendium.
Allowing the souls housed within the Saint Spirit Tablets to naturally produce them.
Finally, thwarting the ambitions of evil forces, in other words, participating in the main storyline.
This final method was marked with the words [large quantities].
Ryosho scanned the list.
It did not specify how many Soul Crystals each method would provide, so he would have to test them himself.
He then checked how many Soul Crystals were required for each of the three materials.
One unit of Orichalcum cost 10 Soul Crystals.
One unit of Gammanium cost 50 Soul Crystals.
One unit of Stardust Sand cost 100 Soul Crystals.
At first glance, they did not seem too expensive.
Ryosho left the [Material Shop] and opened the final section, the [Cloth Compendium and Saint Spirit Tablets].
As its name suggested, it contained the Cloth Compendium and the Saint Spirit Tablets.
The Cloth Compendium was remarkably comprehensive.
It included not only the Cloths of the Saints, but also the God Robes of the God Warriors, the Scales of the Mariner Saints, the Surplices of the Spectres, and more.
As for the Saint Spirit Tablets, there was no detailed explanation because the interface was currently empty.
However, judging by the final method of obtaining Soul Crystals, they were probably meant to house the souls of Saints after death.
After examining the Saint Spirit Tablets and gaining a general understanding of the system, Ryosho was about to close the interface when he noticed a tiny line of text in the bottom-right corner of the Cloth Compendium.
The letters were so small that anyone not paying close attention would have missed them.
Fortunately, Ryosho had sharp eyes.
The text read: [For each Cloth Compendium entry unlocked, Cosmo Comprehension and Strength +1.]
Well, well.
So it was hiding the good stuff in the fine print.
Ryosho had thought his system was merely a way to obtain the materials needed for Cloth Forging and Cloth Repair.
He had never expected it to increase his combat power as well.
Only now did he realize that he had truly stumbled upon a treasure.
He just did not know exactly how much [Cosmo Comprehension and Strength +1] would improve him.
“Brother Ryosho!”
“Brother Ryosho!”
Just then, a girl of seven or eight came running toward him from the distance, calling his name.
It was Cynthia, the seven-year-old granddaughter of the old craftsman who had adopted him.
“Cynthia, what’s wrong?”
Ryosho turned around and asked in high spirits.
Cynthia ran up to him.
When she saw the fallen tree behind him and the trail carved across the ground by the force of his punch, her innocent eyes widened in shock.
“Brother Ryosho, did you do this?
Did you awaken your Cosmo?”
“You have to keep this a secret, all right?” Ryosho crouched down, closed one eye, and pressed a finger to his lips.
“Brother Ryosho, Cynthia will definitely keep your secret.” Cynthia’s eyes shone brightly as she patted her chest and made her promise.
Then she hesitated.
“Does that mean I can’t tell Grandpa either?”
“I’ll have to think about that.” Ryosho looked upward and pretended to consider it.
Seeing the anticipation on Cynthia’s face gave his vanity a tremendous boost.
“I’d like this to be a secret between the two of us.”
The little girl’s eyes grew even brighter.
She nodded solemnly.
“I won’t tell anyone.”
Ryosho smiled and rubbed her head.
“By the way, Cynthia, did something happen?
Why did you come running over in such a hurry?”
At his question, Cynthia suddenly remembered why she had come.
She slapped her forehead, grabbed Ryosho’s hand, and spoke in her childish voice.
“Hurry, Brother Ryosho!
We have to go!
The Pegasus Cloth Selection Tournament you’ve been following has started.
It’s being held at the Sanctuary Colosseum!”
Ryosho froze for a moment.
“Today?”