We will slowly get into the territory of the Specters in this arc, almost like I did with Poseidon. The difference is, this arc will differ much more greatly from the original, and the time to get to the next war will be greater, meaning a lack of battles until then. There will be a focus on interpersonal relationships, flashbacks, fleshing out the world, and preparing to fight stronger foes. More elements from Heaven Chapter and Next Dimension should creep in here, so I hope fans of those notice where I'm going. Nonetheless, the end result will be different from anything else.
I would also like to point out some major changes incoming, including one announced in this very chapter. The Underworld will be extremely far from what it was in the original. The Specters and Judges are being revamped, redone from the ground up, with some characters repurposed, and plenty of new characters to boot. If the Specters as they were are a big reason why you loved the series, I apologize for ruining them for you, but I have chosen to completely transform them. Conceptualizing the new Underworld has been fun, and I hope others also find it fun to read my rendition.
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Despite the urban smog, the sky above Saori Kido's mansion shone starry enough to display some of the constellations the Saints were used to seeing elsewhere. It was the darkest of them that could not be observed, like Cancer, which one unaccustomed to observing the heavens wouldn't be able to locate in such condition. This was the case for both of those who rested in the garden that day, and who studied the view above.
Shaina sat in front of one of the benches, on a path's rocky tiles, head and hair leaning aside on someone's legs. Having been mostly raised in Sanctuary, she never learned the ins and outs of the night sky; neither did Seiya, who sat on the bench itself, back relaxed. Both of them dressed in casual wear, the woman in a white t-shirt and denim pants, and the man similarly, with his sleeveless red tee.
They didn't speak for an extended time, and while she only rested in wait for something, he had the curiosity of uncovering whatever went on above. Since Pegasus himself was raised without care for the stars, and then trained a long while in Sanctuary, he couldn't identify a single drawing in the skies. It was too hard an effort to comprehend where ancient folk saw those vivid shapes, whereas he could barely identify a couple lights.
Suddenly the man lifted a hand and revealed he had some kind of can, and the fizz hinted at it being a carbonated beverage. He gulped a bit and looked as puzzled beyond the clouds as he did before. One of the stars glimmered the brightest, and he pointed at it as if to follow its slow route above the Earth.
"So when Hades is coming, it's going to show somewhere up there," he said.
"Somewhere," Shaina mumbled after a while, as she was near a nap before. "I am not sure where."
"But Shiryu's master definitely knows."
"That is his job," she reinforced.
Seiya took another sip while in thought. "That's another thing I don't get. Why do we need a guy just sitting there in China?" he asked.
"Beats me. My guess is that, at any given time, we cannot expect Saints to watch the stars from the Earth's surface, so we have someone live in a place with clear skies to warn us," Shaina conjectured.
The young man groaned, not yet having understood how any of it made sense. One of the mansion's back doors was slowly swung open, and from it came Ichi, also dressed plain. Seiya turned the head slightly when he heard the sound, having expected it, and so his friend called out: "You two, quit dating and come help, van's back already!"
The pair began to get up. "I am warning you in advance, tonight is the night I cut that man's jugular," Shaina menacingly whispered as they did so.
Seiya shook the head and waved an arm as if to ease her fury. "Ichi's just being funny," he said, "he's not actually a bad person."
"Insufferable still," the woman insisted, then the two walked their way into the mansion, through the main hall, and out to the front, where Seiya left his can aside.
A black van had been parked past the gate by two Graad employees. Piles of boxes, folders, and other containers had been left by the front door, so they loaded them into the back of the vehicle with the aid of Geki and Hyoga, the latter of which spotted several patches for his injuries, including one that enclosed the eye he himself had afflicted. Seiya, Shaina, and Ichi naturally joined them.
After a while helping them, Pegasus placed a box by a corner and accosted one of the men. "Where are you taking these again?" he questioned.
They weren't used to chatting up the Saints, so the worker was caught in a momentary surprise. "Ah, a warehouse in the outskirts," he said.
"She's getting everything out of here, right?"
"Miss Kido wants to get those out of the house, in case there's a probe. That's…" the older man paused and leaned in ere completing "… classified information, by the way."
"Eh…" Seiya scratched his chin lightly and continued "… what probe, if you don't mind?"
"The media covered a lot about the Galaxian Wars after the attack. It was everywhere for a while, but we pressed the right people, got them to focus on something else — usual procedure," the employee went on explaining while nodding to him. "Ever since Miss Kido's office in Athens was hit, talks started again, Saints this, Saints that… politicians started complaining too, and here you know that means the government's actually about to do something."
The other worker, that came to load up a pile of folders, chimed in: "They won't find Miss Kido, but they'll definitely find us."
"So she told us to conceal everything and feign ignorance."
"Huh!" Seiya muttered enlightened.
With Geki's raw strength, they were able to fill in loads of cargo in little time, therefore soon they had the back padded to the brim with an assortment of documents. Barely an extra paper could fit inside, so an employee carried the last couple of folders in the front seat.
Once they were over, they shut the doors, and the driver had filled his seat again. Geki tapped the side of the van twice, then informed him: "Done, you're free to go!"
"Alright. Is the archive already empty?" the employee asked from the window.
"Unless you want the shelves, yeah," Shaina was the one to reply.
"This is our last trip then. Take care!"
The Graad folk drove away, so Ichi and Hyoga closed the window behind them, before going back inside to their activities. Shaina crossed the arms and watched the vehicle leave into the surroundings districts, while Seiya stopped beside her, his attention to the sight of the reformed mansion.
"Seems things are getting too hot for us here," he commented.
"She did not send us to stay for long anyhow," said Ophiuchus.
"You're right." The man had a timely realization, that haply there would come a day when they would no longer need to return to that mansion. Without the documents there to be tended to, such a day seemed to be rather close. "It's kind of ironic looking back, but I think I'll miss this house when we leave for good."
Ever since the end of the war against Poseidon, only a handful of Saints were sent to Japan to help the Graad Foundation in these urgent operations. Of course, they would eventually be called back to Sanctuary, where most others had been posted to. June stayed back to converse with Ethel and the amazons of Paximadia, who stayed in turn to follow Aiolia's orders while the latest battle raged; Shun and Nachi, as expected, had to focus on their intelligence work, even more with the danger of Hades looming in the horizon; Jabu, in the other hand, was appointed to instruct the ranks of new recruits and aspiring Saints.
Sanctuary had returned to its lively self with the return of Athena, the army, and the majority of the Saints. They were in some way thankful that the latest ruin came to Earth and Atlantis, and not to them, since the pains of the civil war had left them lifelong scars. Trade went back to its usual volume, as did schools, academies, and entertainment. The only view reminiscent of the last war those civilians had suffered were the many makeshift hospitals, for the injured were numerous, and the hospitals could not care for all.
One of such hospitals had been set up as far as the amazon's barracks, built of wooden poles and sheets that sheltered the patients. Medics and volunteers oversaw lines of wounded, some conscious and some not, a diversity of ills in sight. Though some had only received concussions and shallow bruises, others had been more severally struck, with avulsions, burnt skin, trident wounds, and else.
Nearby, masked women continued a diligent training regiment, though a row of them sat in the sidelines of the field and chattered among themselves. These had to be girls from Paximadia, for amid them was Lepus Ethel sitting on a raised marble platform while speaking to June. Chameleon had become admired among the amazons, and so her presence came with a sense of royalty she herself did not notice. Approaches would've been frequent if Sanctuary's women weren't a hard-nosed, stoic bunch; or if June hadn't amassed a reputation of being a fearsome fighter as per the deaths on her back, the bloody battle with Milo, and a growing friendship with Shaina, both feared Saints. The ignorant rumors were that it was best not to get on her bad side.
"It just wouldn't be right having me test them for a Silver Cloth," Ethel said in the middle of their conversation, "that's why they'd only let you do it."
"I'm a Bronze Saint too," June said.
"You're different though, no one will debate that. They think of you like a Gold Saint now."
"I'd do it anyway, I was just saying…"
"They also mentioned giving us Canis Minor, who died in battle. Aries will get her Cloth back in shape and send it on its way," Lepus briefly whispered.
"Canis Minor is Bronze?"
"Yep." In that moment the girls noticed the slow approach of Athena's intelligence, that being Shun, Nachi, and Anka — Kiki absent in account of his ankle. The three were in the sort of plain clothes and light armor worn by recruits, whereas the two female Saints still had their Cloths on.
"Whatever, I wouldn't mind the extra work," June spoke with a slight shrug, not interrupting the talk, "but Lady Athena told me to not go anywhere. She said she'll need me for something."
"Ah, really? It would be so much easier with you around…"
"I know. If it's something quick, I'll travel to Paximadia and train them with you."
At last Shun and the others came close, nodding respectfully. "Morning!" Andromeda exclaimed with a smile.
"Ah, yeah, it's morning…" June mumbled. "It never feels like morning here."
"Aiolia sent us to ask you some things, Ethel," Nachi said to the other girl.
"Me?" she asked in surprise, as if she had been caught in a bad act.
"Are we interrupting something?"
"We were just having idle talk," Chameleon assured them.
So Shun explained: "He said there were investigations while we were gone in Atlantis, and you were a part of them."
"It was about fears of espionage, or so it seemed to me," Ethel told. "Leo sent a bunch of retinues under Saints — not a single army officer led anyone. Two or three groups got sent to crazy places, like, far into the corners of Sanctuary, and one got sent outside the gate."
"That sounds thorough," Nachi remarked, staring at Shun.
"He wanted it to be," Lepus went on. "Put me and the girls in a high-traffic road off the square, ordered us to strong-arm anyone suspicious, and we got nothing."
"Aiolia seems absolutely certain that Specters infiltrated in anticipation for when Hades is released," said Shun.
Ethel nodded and said: "I'm not doubting him, he's right, but we're empty-handed here. Zero evidence."
The trio in front eyed each other, exhaling much through expression alone. Shun muttered and shook the head. "We should start investigating it ourselves then, since I doubt others found anything useful thus far," he assumed.
"You and me both," Ethel corroborated his suspicions.
"Well, thanks for your time then, Ethel. Have a good trip back!" Shun spoke as they walked away and waved. "See you later, June!"
"Bye-bye!"
The intelligence people left the amazons behind, passing through the less busy streets of areas near the outskirts. Few stores could be seen on the fronts, and instead they saw homes of several sizes, including the largest residential buildings that each housed many dozens of civilian families. Enjoying the quieter ambiance away from exerting women, Shun looked at his colleagues from the corner of the eye.
"You want to bet this will be another dead end?" he asked.
"A tad too early for predictions," Nachi said.
Thus Andromeda referred to the girl: "What do you think, Anka?"
Caught in slight surprise, the girl straightened her back. "W-well…" she stammered "… maybe we're… we're looking at this the wrong way." She paused a long while as the boys quietly stared, Nachi raising the brow. She hummed a bit, realizing that they anxiously awaited her to conclude that thought. "Ah, it's not… as in, uncovering some secret the Specters left behind. It's more like predicting what the Specters are likely to do!"
Shun appeared subtly illuminated, and Nachi nodded along in deep thought. It was the latter who came up with further questioning: "How do we go about that?"
"The usual way is cakewalk," Shun told, "a change in perspective. We plan an invasion of Sanctuary as if we were the Specters."
"But invading Sanctuary, that's… that's so difficult!" Anka remarked.
"It is their best shot. If they attack on Earth, Hades would face terrible consequences in Heaven. Attacking us here, they get a chance to cut us at the root, or worse, take Lady Athena," Shun continued.
Nachi recalled: "Like Poseidon did in Athens."
"We cannot let such a situation recur."
Thereon they strolled their way back to their next responsibilities, while the vivid day in Sanctuary continued further into its center. Deeper past the square, beyond the theater, the strips, and up the stairway to the House of Aries, Mu had already returned to his intense duty repairing Cloths, since the latest war had ravaged many of the weaker ones, a common trend.
Absent Kiki, he had no aide to bring parts and tools, so his work was somewhat slower, and the hammering felt unending. Thankfully, unlike at the penultimate war's outcome, no migraine assaulted him. This meant he could work from the beginning of the day until the night, only eating and drinking water amid intervals.
From the next stairwell, the sound of an incoming visitor reverberated. Mu set a plate to cool off, leaving tongs and hammer onto the same table where Athena once lied wounded. He went to the hall as to welcome his visitor, and found that this was Aldebaran, who, different from him — Aries was in naught but a tunic and white mantle — wore the full Taurus Cloth, helmet under an arm.
Seeing that his friend was sweaty from the forge's heat, Aldebaran spoke up: "What's up, buddy? Working hard again, I see."
Mu nodded somberly. "Much easier to endure this than all the fighting and… all the killing," he said with a rather melancholic tone.
The other's eyes wandered awhile, and he shrugged in response. "I'll go to the meeting now," the man eventually told. "So you really won't go, yeah?"
"I want to hurry with those Cloths," said Aries, therewith he started to go towards his bedroom, closely followed by his friend. "Working without a headache, I feel reinvigorated in a sense."
"I wonder who were your recommendations," Taurus mumbled as he watched Mu search some shelves over his bed. "Ah, you know, I'm voting for that boy, Seiya! I say give him the Sagittarius Cloth, might as well."
The other eyed him with an unserious grin. "We are not meant to tell our recommendations out here," he reminded him.
"Really?" Aldebaran stopped on his tracks and stared bemused. "I-it's not that bad to say, I mean, I'm going to have to reveal it in the meeting anyhow!"
"Technically it is a secret meeting." Mu gave up on searching there, and instead went to his desk, where hardcover books were piled or lined up. "Where is that thing?"
"Lost it?"
He flipped a handful of notes on the Cloths to be fixed, and found nothing. "It should have been under some papers like these," he explained. "Usually when Kiki is around…"
Saying that, Mu fell noticeably quiet, hiding a grave semblance as he turned the books over. He gave up on this and instead sat on the chair before the desk, slipped some clean letter paper nearer, then grasped the nearby quill to start writing.
"The boy will be fine, Mu," said Taurus in an attempt to ease him.
Mu dipped the quill in ink and rewrote his view on the affairs to be discussed before Athena, pending to answer for many a second. "I do not get why they sent him, with all of the Saints stationed here," he bemoaned.
"The kid is intelligence now. Our Lady trusts him as much as she does us!"
"He is still a kid."
"So is Deathmask's successor," the man argued. "You seen the figure, in the robes and stuff, ringing that little bell?"
Mu nodded and confirmed: "The High Priestess claims she is no older than fourteen."
"A kid!" Aldebaran accentuated.
To that Aries was mute for moments, till he cracked an uncontrollable smile. This puzzled his friend. "Come to think of it, it is quite becoming for Kiki to assume a great responsibility so early," the Gold Saint said.
"Hmm?" Taurus furled the brow humorously. "Suddenly you look proud."
"In truth I am," responded the other after a chuckle. "With how Master Shion vanished, I was awarded the Aries Cloth at the age of twelve. To complain about what Kiki had to do is hypocrisy."
"Like master, like pupil."
Mu chuckled once again, then wrote the remainder of the letter. "And there is no sense in mourning someone who yet lives," he uttered as a reminder to himself. Finished at last, he folded it, then sealed it with heated wax and stamp.
Once done, the Saint stood blowing on the front. He offered the thing to the visitor at once, lest he lose it again. "Not going to tell me your picks?" Aldebaran curiously questioned.
With a playful frown, Mu pushed the letter against the other's cuirass. "Quit being nosy and deliver these upstairs!" he exclaimed.
So Aldebaran laughed aloud as he oft did, took it, and turned to leave. "As you will, as you will, Mister Mu!"
He went out of the Temple of Aries, walking up towards Athena's. Surely this would take hours, but it was clear that, the longer it went, the more Gold Saints left their own temples to join whatever meeting this would be at the summit. Some soon arrived, whereas those lower to the ground unavoidably took more hours to reach it.
Much later, Aldebaran did walk into his Lady's temple, and despite the greater number of folk inside, it was no less peaceful. Out of respect, the Gold Saints that convened had a most serene chatter around a finely carved wooden table. Blue fabric had been draped over it, outlined in twists of yellow; a slender, tall vase overflowed with roses in the center, certainly of Aphrodite's hand. These, one would assume, were not poisonous like the ones he employed as tools of war.
In the back, near or behind Athena's empty throne, cultists exchanged their own words, only one among them sweeping the floor with a broom. They all turned when Taurus entered, for all the other armored Saints other than him had arrived, that being Aiolia, Shaka, Milo, and Aphrodite. Those variably sat or stood near their seats, and Leo greeted the newcomer upon his approach.
"And Mu?" he asked.
Aldebaran raised the sealed letter as part of a response. "Honed in on those Cloths, you know the type," he replied with a smile.
Priestesses had signaled into the quarters, whence Athena soon walked out in a long, luscious white dress, almost proudly exhibiting the small bruises left from her previous battles with her uncle. The Saints cut their talks upon her presence, and she came hither accompanied by three women, one being her attendant, Zamira; another being a much older one among Aleka's protégés, Thalia; and the other being that same priestess that accompanied them to Switzerland in the van.
The warriors bowed and knelt, including those who sat beforehand. "Let us take our seats, please," the goddess said, a sign for them to get back up and return to their chairs. She did the same, taking a place in the center ahead, whereas all of the Gold Saints sat on the longer sides.
Cultists remained in guard behind her, like witnesses to the meeting. Zamira, in fact, held a board of papers, placing a bundle of notes from it right ahead of the woman. This Athena carefully read, addressing Aiolia before anyone else.
"Aiolia," she calmly called him.
"Yes, my Lady," the Saint made himself available.
"I am told searches occurred in my absence."
"At Lady Aleka's suggestion," Aiolia clarified, "assuming this was Libra's strategy leaving us behind."
"Nothing was found."
"We thought we had leads, but…" his eyes drifted quite briefly, but he admitted "… yes, nothing."
"Nothing can be found, not so early, despite there being agents of the Judges among us," said Athena, and there was a stark silence in the hall, apart from some visible discomfort amid the cultists. "Your worries and that of Aleka are rational, no doubt, yet I may speak with propriety that it was not Libra's intent having you flip Sanctuary inside-out."
Leo lowered the head and said: "I apologize, my Lady."
"Did I not just say there are agents of the enemy in our midst? You would not apologize for attempting to uncover them."
The man raised the head; he hid some nervousness behind a collected stare, but his voice tone shifted as betrayal. "Then I know not what to say," he admitted further.
That stare which she offered back was tranquil, yet far from agreeable; she tested him, it seemed, though on which grounds he knew not. "Question me the same you question others, Aiolia," the woman demanded.
Thus his eyes just barely made out the cultists nearby, not leaving her sight too long as to not lack with respect. He pended to respond, and the hall was quiet for a handful of seconds, till he chose to sate his curiosity. "My Lady, how do you know they are here?" the Saint asked.
Without delay, she explained: "Because it would not be the first, nor the second, nor the third time."
"Then perhaps we may study means to stop them in their tracks."
"No," she began to contradict him, despite a hint of satisfaction in the nod she gave, "each instance they elude us, they attack us in manners so unhinged as to border the unnatural." Thereon she looked around to the others who sat by the table. "Poseidon is an insect before Hades; the Marina are like pesky siblings compared to the Specters. Deeply malign beings, yes… their nature is perverted to produce that very malign essence, a plague made army. Apart from Seiya and the others raiding the Pillars, Mu and Aldebaran were all you needed to succeed in Atlantis. However, facing Hades, every single one of you will be crucial."
Milo raised her voice with joy, and said: "Then I will be there with all of you so we can crush them, Saints."
Despite Aiolia smiling, the others stayed silent and reacted more subtly; it was when they realized a grin in the goddess' face that the mood relaxed once more. No matter, she deliberately gave that no comment. "Such is the reason behind Libra's caution," Athena concluded to Leo.
"I had my suspicions," he said.
"No more searches are to be conducted. Investigations shall be left to Shun's people. Instead, I want you to redirect our defenses in accordance with their findings."
"Understood."
Athena handed things back to Zamira, who whispered softly to her. "I know," she mumbled back, proceeding to readdress the Gold Saints. "The next topic pertains to Cancer's Aspirant. I take it none of you believe she is ready to assume the role."
Unanimously the folk shook their heads left and right. Aldebaran raised a hand, so the goddess signaled with the eyebrows that he speak.
"My Lady, I heard the kid is no older than fourteen!" he shook the hands as he spoke, absurdity in his tone. "Won't it take too long for her to be ready?"
"Such age is no impediment, knowledge and ability are," she answered. "In my lives, I have seen much younger children made into Gold Saints."
Taurus recalled how young Mu claimed to be when he was inaugurated as Aries, but he viewed Cancer otherwise. "For a Cancer Saint, isn't it a little different?" he pressed.
"That is the least of our worries, it seems. Dancing with the dead seems like second nature to her," Athena told, and some of those present nodded along, for they had witnessed it first-hand.
"That she does," Aphrodite concurred.
It was this Saint whom Athena signaled to, saying: "Next, we have vacant Cloths, so I will hear your thoughts on candidates."
Aphrodite gently smiled. "Mister Camus' boy should take his place," he quickly told. "I know he would find it right. Moreover, if Aiolia is comfortable, I suggest Mister Seiya succeed his brother."
Athena turned the head halfway to her attendant, waving a finger for her to start noting these down, which she did without question. "Milo," the goddess called in sequence.
"Camus' apprentice to Aquarius," she simply said.
"Shaka," Athena went to the next one as Zamira wrote with haste.
"The same to Aquarius," Virgo started, "Pegasus to Sagittarius, Dragon to Capricorn, Phoenix to Gemini."
The attendant had some trouble writing these fast, though she was saved by Aldebaran's interruption, who raised the hand like prior. "Shiryu to Capricorn?" he questioned.
"He is driven and dangerous as was Shura. Only Phoenix would benefit us more than him," Shaka elucidated.
Taurus pouted in surprise, but Athena called for the next: "Aiolia."
"Not only am I comfortable with it, Aphrodite, I think it would be a sin to hand the Sagittarius Cloth to any other man," Leo said. "I have seen with my own eyes that Aiolos longs for Seiya to don it."
Athena confirmed with a nod in remembrance of that day in Japan, when the Gold Cloth so eagerly covered Pegasus' body. Therewith she called the next: "Aldebaran."
"Seiya to Sagittarius, one-hundred percent," he spoke so fast he almost stumbled on his words, but then he hummed unsure. He felt an answer so simple came as incomplete, especially with how many people had mentioned another prominent name. "And, uh… I guess Hyoga to Aquarius sounds good too."
"Did Mu leave his deliberation to you?" the goddess insisted on Taurus.
"O-oh, yeah!" he babbled a moment and reached under the cuirass, sliding it to the table. "Here."
His colleagues helped it on to Athena, who studied the seal, undid it, and then unfolded it to reveal its contents. Zamira closely read it with her, understanding Mu's script with the least amount of effort.
"Hyoga to Aquarius, Seiya to Sagittarius, and he shares the sentiment over Cancer's Aspirant," the goddess revealed, and after her attendant was finished, she put a notebook ahead of her with the results of the Saints' talks. Of course, this hinted at an overwhelming preference for two Bronze Saints; it was one among them whom Athena referred to initially. "Regarding… Seiya." She eyed Aiolia especially, who harbored hopes soon to be ruined. "I cannot have him assume Sagittarius momentarily."
Leo frowned, perhaps at the thought of one of Aiolos' last wishes being ignored, perhaps out of what he had seen Seiya suffer since his youth, including doubts his own. With the newfound freedom to question his Lady, he thought of speaking up, but refused to do so unless she offered him no reasoning.
However, she did offer so, quite lucidly saying: "The Pegasus Saint has served a particular purpose in my every life, and, as sour as it feels to admit, it awakens a superstition in me. Once this purpose is fulfilled, he shall become Sagittarius, as Aiolos demands."
Thus the Gold Saint was somewhat appeased, despite the mysterious source of the denial. The others were inquisitive of what this purpose was, albeit respectful of its superstitious nature — if a woman that wise placed something beyond her realm of comprehension, they surely were in no position to protest it.
"About Shiryu — oh, how preposterous it would be to have him receive a Gold Cloth other than Libra!" she said. "His master would raise a rebellion!"
Those present laughed, and Milo interjected jokingly: "We don't need any more of those."
"We have had plenty, have we not?" Athena agreed, then she turned back to Virgo. "Shaka, it did not surprise me that you spoke so highly of Ikki, nonetheless I wonder if you are aware of how he views himself."
"How do you mean, my Lady?" Shaka asked.
"Ikki does not accept the title of Saint, despite such oneness with the Phoenix Cloth. He does not claim to owe Sanctuary any loyalty, not you, not even his little brother. His sole loyalty rests upon me, and me alone. If I sent someone to deliver him news of promotion, he would scorn them and leave on a long walk."
"Your words ring true."
"With regards to Hyoga," she looked about to the others present, "no one objects to his legitimate claim to Aquarius." The Gold Saints looked at one another and confirmed their collective agreement, as no one raised protest. "He has been assigned to Japan in order to do chores; in his next coming, he shall make that temple his new home. You have my word."