Scorpion

Orion is the greatest hunter of Greek mythology — son of Poseidon, gifted with superhuman beauty and strength, able to walk on water. His hubris — his excess — leads to his downfall. Orion boasted one day of being able to kill every animal on Earth. Gaia, the Earth-mother, offended by this arrogance, sent the Scorpion against him — a creature whose venom could be cured by no art.

Orion's death by the scorpion is inscribed permanently in the sky: the two constellations are placed at opposite ends of the celestial vault, so that when Scorpion rises in the east, Orion sets in the west — and vice versa. The two enemies are never in the same sky at the same time.

The myth of Orion and the Scorpion has several versions. In one of them, it is Artemis — goddess of the hunt — who sends the Scorpion, jealous of Orion's hunting reputation. In a more dramatic variant, Apollo, Artemis's brother, guides his sister's arrow toward Orion by tricking her: he shows her a head emerging from the waves in the distance saying "you cannot hit that target" — it was Orion swimming.

Artemis, realizing her mistake, prayed to Zeus to place Orion among the stars. Zeus consented, but also placed the Scorpion in the sky — maintaining the cosmic separation of the two enemies. It was Asclepius, god of medicine, who vainly attempted to resurrect Orion with Gorgon blood.

The Scorpion's main star is Antares — "Rival of Ares" or "counter-Ares" — whose blood-red hue recalls the planet Mars. A red supergiant of monstrous size, it is about seven hundred times larger than the Sun. If placed at the center of our solar system, it would engulf the Earth, Mars and nearly reach Jupiter.

Antares is one of the four royal stars of Antiquity — with Regulus (Leo), Aldebaran (Taurus) and Fomalhaut — which structured the sky as four guardians of the cardinal points. The constellation is one of the most recognizable in the southern sky, with its characteristic hook shape.

The Scorpion borders the galactic center of the Milky Way: it is in this direction that the maximum density of stars, nebulae and globular clusters concentrates. M4, the globular cluster closest to Earth, lies near Antares.

The technique of Milo of Scorpio — the Scarlet Needle — is one of the most precise and sadistic attacks in the manga. His 12 cosmos needles mark the opponent's vital points, leading them progressively toward death. This system of gradual poisoning is a direct reflection of the mythological Scorpion's venom: it does not kill brutally, it condemns inexorably.

Like the mythological Scorpion sent by Gaia to punish Orion's excess, Milo is an instrument of divine punishment — Athena's armed arm that strikes those who transgress sacred rules. His blood-red color recalls Antares, the red heart of the Scorpion, the rival star of Ares, god of war.

The duality between Orion and the Scorpion — who can never be in the same sky — echoes in Milo's relationship with the Bronze Knights. Their ultimate encounter during the siege of the Sanctuary is the moment when the two constellations finally cross paths.