Pandora seals away Alone in his quarters so that he can focus on the creation of the Lost Canvas, and completely awaken as Hades. In the shadows, Hades's councilors Hypnos and Thanatos, worried about the Pegasus Saint and his connections to Hades, begin to take action. At the Pope's orders, the Cancer Saint Manigoldo follows after Tenma. On his way to Hades's Cathedra...

Upon entering the Forest of the Dead, Yuzuriha is separated from the others. She is confronted by her brother Tokusa, who she thought died years ago. His voice sends her back to the past. Meanwhile, Yato is cornered by a giant centipede. As his consciousness fades, he too remembers his past, and thinks about his reason to fight. Will the two arrive in time to help Ten...

Tenma, Yato, and Yuzuriha are surrounded by Veronica's zombies, only to be saved by the Cancer Saint, Manigoldo. Manigoldo had come to protect Tenma at the Pope's orders. With his overwhelming power, he splits Veronica's body in two. But even this isn't enough to kill the Specter, and Veronica tries to cause them all to rot along with the forest. Meanwhile, the twin g...

Cancer Manigoldo finds the location of the twin gods, but is helpless before the might of Thanatos, the god of death. Pope Sage arrives to help his disciple. As he struggles to withstand Thanatos's attacks, Manigoldo remembers how he met Sage when he was young - the Cancer Saint, a war orphan, once thought that human life was valueless - as Thanatos finally reveals hi...

Thanatos finally gets serious after being wounded by Manigoldo. But even in the worst position imaginable, Sage doesn't falter. "Don't use the word despair so loosely", he says, and Manigoldo remembers his old days with his master and the desperation he felt when he saw the destiny of humans after death, regaining hope and determination to fight. The two use their Sek...

Hypnos gathers his subordinates, the Four Gods who control dreams. One of them, the beastly Vision Icelus, appears in the Sagittarius Temple, avoiding Capricorn El Cid's attacks, and steals the soul of the unconscious Sisyphos. El Cid leaves the Sanctuary alone to get it back. El Cid, who had always been by Sisyphos's side, Knows the reason why he wouldn't wake up.

Nearing Hades's Cathedral, Tenma suddenly finds himself standing before his village, seemingly undamaged. He can't shake the feeling something is wrong as Alone and Sasha - who appear as their children selves - tell him everything up until now has been a dream - the truth, however, is the other way round. Carrying out Hypnos's orders, the dream gods trapped Tenma, Yat...

With one of the four gods down, El Cid finds himself confronted by Icelus. The beastly god continues to overpower El Cid with his dimensional abilities, but the Capricorn Saint is determined to rescue Sisyphos. Meanwhile, Tenma fights his way out of his dream prison and faces against Morpheus.

Tenma and El Cid are helpless before the combined might of Oneiros and his fellow Dream Gods: Phantasos, Icelos and Morpheus. But Athena appears in the Dream World in order to save Sisyphos; Tenma and El Cid begin the fight anew to protect Athena, and succeed in removing Oneiros from the Dream World, taking the fight into the real world.

Athena enters Sisyphos's dream. There she finds that Sisyphos torn by guilt over taking her away from Alone and Tenma. He thinks he ruined her life, and caused the Holy War. Athena risks her life to attempt to persuade him to open his heart and rise from darkness. With Sisyphos awakened back at the Sanctuary, he shoots an arrow blessed by Athena toward Oneiros. El Cid...

With the four Dream Gods finally vanquished, Hypnos's divine barrier is lifted, and Athena's forces are free to march forward into Hades's Cathedral. Hakurei gives them a rousing speech posing as Sage, then enters the Cathedral alone to fulfill his deep-seated vengeance against Hypnos, who killed his comrades in the previous Holy War. Meanwhile, as Alone paints the Lo...

Hakurei ventures into the Cathedral alone, protected by a blade blessed by the previous incarnation of Athena. He tears apart the opposing Specters until he reaches the center of Hades's dark barrier that permeates the castle and hinders the Saints. When he attempts to destroy it with his sword, Hypnos appears, revealing to have intercepted and defeated Hakurei's pupi...

Hakurei finally defeats and seals Hypnos' soul by using his most powerful technique, the Seikishiki Tenryouha, with the aid from his deceased fellow Saints from the last Holy War. However, Hakurei is murdered by Hades just as he was about to destroy the dark barrier. Shion, enraged, attacks Hades causing him no harm. Amidst all this debacle, Dohko, Tenma and Yato arri...