North Pole Oceanic Pillar
"Isaac, after you left all those years ago, I never expected you'd become a General of the Sea. Truly… fate is a strange thing," Camus said, gazing at the [Devil Ray] Isaac with mixed emotions in his eyes.
"Indeed. Who would've thought that the disciple you once valued most—only to banish from the Sanctuary yourself—would now stand before you as an enemy?" [Devil Ray] Isaac replied with a self-deprecating smile.
[Devil Ray] Isaac was once a candidate for Saint Seiya, and Camus' most cherished disciple. Camus had almost raised him as the future inheritor of the Aquarius Gold Saint title.
But fate had other plans. Camus' excessive attention and high expectations ended up destroying his disciple.
One day, during a conflict over an unclaimed Cloth, Isaac lost control in a moment of rage and seriously injured his opponent.
This was a grave offense in the Sanctuary, where comrades were regarded as family.
Not only did Isaac's reputation collapse, but Shion sentenced him to five years of solitary reflection in the rock prison of the Sniwan Strait.
Originally, Isaac had the mental fortitude to endure the punishment. But what shattered him was that the master he most revered, Camus, never once visited him.
Not even once.
Had he come even once, Isaac's belief would not have wavered.
...
...
But sadly, not a single visit came.
Eventually, Isaac fell into despair. Respect turned to hatred. Faith turned into resentment. This twisted emotion became the fuel that kept him alive through his punishment.
But the Isaac who emerged was no longer the same.
He no longer viewed being a Saint as an honor.
His personality changed drastically. As soon as he was reinstated as a candidate, he nearly beat his training partner to death. On missions, he broke countless rules, acted recklessly, and hurt others without remorse.
Camus, thoroughly disappointed, had no choice but to expel him from the Sanctuary and permanently strip him of his Saint candidate status.
As for why he didn't kill him—perhaps as a final gesture of their bond as master and disciple.
When Isaac left, all his frustration erupted. He confronted Camus, demanding why he had never come to see him—not even once. That one visit might have changed everything.
Camus gave no explanation, only his usual cold expression.
At that moment, Isaac's fury, bitterness, and despair reached their peak.
After leaving the Sanctuary, he realized the dream he had chased his whole life was suddenly gone. He had nowhere to go.
He had knowledge and ability—he could live lavishly as a wealthy man. But so what?
Without a goal, even the most extravagant life felt meaningless.
In despair, Isaac walked to the sea, step by step, letting the water engulf him with hollow eyes.
As consciousness faded, water rushed into his mouth, nose, and ears. The flame of life flickered weakly.
"Am I going to die?" Visions of his past flashed before him—like a carousel of memories. His anger faded, replaced by acceptance and relief.
But at that moment, from the depths of the sea, an unfamiliar yet immense cosmos enveloped him and brought him to Atlantis.
There, he found a new path and new faith. He became one of the Generals of the Sea: [Devil Ray] Isaac.
"Different positions. The only choice is battle," Camus replied.
"So it really is you, Master—still as cold as ever."
"Enough talk, Isaac. Come, show me how far you've come."
"Then… let's go! [Glacial Chill]!"
Isaac summoned a blast of icy wind mixed with lightning and sent it hurtling toward Camus.
Camus remained motionless, letting the lightning pass through him and the cold freeze his body.
"You!" [Devil Ray] Isaac was stunned and his expression turned grim.
Crack~
The ice that sealed Camus split slightly, then expanded until it shattered into pieces.
"Is that all? Not enough," Camus said coldly.
"What are you doing?! Redemption? I don't need it! I admit my mistakes! I don't need your sympathy!" [Devil Ray] Isaac roared.
"No. I just wanted to see the measure of your resolve. Again!"
"You!" [Devil Ray] Isaac's face twisted with rage.
After gaining clarity, he never blamed Camus—only himself, for lacking a steady mind and committing a grave mistake. Being punished and expelled was his own doing.
Even as a General, he still saw Camus as an important master. He wanted to prove himself—a brilliant disciple who had surpassed his teacher!
So when Camus simply stood still and took his attack, it felt like the ultimate mockery.
"If you want to die… I'll oblige you! Feel it yourself—the absolute zero you once said I could never reach! [Diamond Dust]!"
Even colder winds surged forth, coated with frost, freezing even time and space.
This time, Camus moved—using the exact same stance as Isaac.
"[Diamond Dust]."
The two seemingly identical attacks clashed, blanketing the area in pure white and pale blue.
"Useless! Master, I've already surpassed you and reached absolute zer—what?!" [Devil Ray] Isaac had expected Camus to be overwhelmed, as his own frost had reached absolute zero—something Camus couldn't match.
But to his shock, Camus' [Diamond Dust] began to crush his own frost.
"Impossible! My absolute zero… how could it—"
Before he could finish the sentence, Isaac was struck by Camus' icy wind and instantly frozen into an ice sculpture.
Camus showed no expression as he gazed at his frozen disciple. He didn't move to destroy the ocean pillar.
"How much longer do you plan to make me wait?"
He spoke words that seemed utterly out of place, but they somehow resonated within the frozen [Devil Ray] Isaac.
Crackle~ crack-crack...
Electric arcs danced across the ice, lashing like whips, growing more intense. Cracks spread wider and eventually shattered the ice.
Huff... huff... [Devil Ray] Isaac knelt on one knee, gasping. The mist from his breath turned to glittering frost.
"You… how is this possible? Absolute zero! No—it's beyond absolute zero! How did you do it?" he demanded.
Camus had once told him with certainty that this was a realm humans could never reach.
And yet now, Camus had not only reached it—but surpassed it. Was it a lie? A deception?
"This is not absolute zero," Camus replied.
"Impossible! I—"
"Your absolute zero is also false. No one can truly reach it. Even gods call it a forbidden zone. Absolute zero is approximately -273.15°C—but that's only the lowest temperature we can observe with current science. It isn't an actual fixed limit.
Your frost reached -273.15°C, but mine has gone below that, though still not at the true absolute zero. That place remains unexplored—a realm no one has ever reached."
Camus had studied thermodynamics—specializing in absolute zero. No one in the world understood it better than he did.
"No! You're lying!" Isaac shouted—not because he didn't believe it, but because he didn't want to believe. Absolute zero was his greatest pride—the proof he had surpassed his master.
Now, Camus had crushed that pride with ease.
"You should know—I never lie," Camus said.
"I don't believe it! You're lying! Take this—[Aurora Borealis]!"
Driven mad by self-doubt, Isaac unleashed his ultimate move—combining frost that surpassed theoretical absolute zero with the lightning from his [Devil Ray] Scales to create a devastating energy beam.
"Is this your resolve?" Camus felt the fierce determination behind Isaac's madness—the pride to surpass his master. Camus responded with full recognition.
He clasped his fists and raised both arms high.
Behind him appeared the silhouette of a beautiful woman, holding a water jar above her shoulders.
"[Aurora Execution]!"
A rainbow-colored aurora burst from the water jar and collided head-on with Isaac's [Aurora Borealis].
The moment they touched, Isaac's pupils shrank in shock—his beam was freezing!
From the first point of contact, [Aurora Borealis] was gradually turned into ice. It spread along the entire energy beam and reached Isaac himself.
"How is this possible..."
"You've forgotten, Isaac—ice doesn't destroy atoms. It stops their motion."
"Stops... motion… heh… heh…"
Understanding why he lost, [Devil Ray] Isaac also reached the end of his life. The frost encased him completely, halting all movement within him.
Camus didn't linger. He walked straight to the ocean pillar. Between his hands, a strange drop of water appeared—surrounded by icy cold, yet it didn't freeze. Instead, it radiated warmth.
"If not for your help, I would've lost. Thank you, [Eternal Frozen Water]."
Plop plop~ The ice trembled slightly, and ripples danced on the water's surface in response—like it was praising him for a job well done.
"Yes, I will. But for now, let's destroy this pillar."
Plop plop~
A blast of bluish-white light erupted. A storm of frost engulfed the pillar, completely freezing it.
Camus turned and walked away. Behind him, the pillar melted from the top down into pure water—like it had never existed.