Rise of the 13th Zodiac

Two years later…

Today the city of Satria was enveloped in a jubilant atmosphere. Colorful decorations covered its buildings and streets, and most of the citizens had taken the day off and gathered at the wide city plaza.

A large majestic platform stood at the north end of the plaza; it was specially prepared for this joyful occasion. Numerous guests were seated at the tables on the platform, waiting for the arrival of the main stars of this event.

A handsome man was standing near the edge of the platform, speaking to the crowd with a sonorous voice. The man was the event's host who was currently doing his best to raise the atmosphere of the venue.

As the crowd's anticipation neared its peak, sounds of trumpets suddenly filled the area, inciting a loud commotion throughout the plaza.

"Honorable guests and citizens of the empire, please welcome the heroic Legatus Legionis Lev Awlin and his bride, Floresca Modicus!"

Following this, the Hall of the Exalted's large gates next to the plaza swung open, and a striking chariot pulled by six white horses emerged with Lev and Floresca standing in it.

The loud commotion turned into a deafening cheer as the couple entered the crowd's sight. All the guests on the platform immediately rose from their seats and applauded.

Lev and Floresca smiled and waved at the countless people that had attended their wedding celebration, slowly making their away to the platform.

Lev was donned in a dashing golden and white suit whereas Floresca wore an elegant wedding dress with similar colors.

Minutes later, the two finally arrived at the platform. They stepped off the chariot and waved once more to the crowd below before heading toward the honored seats at the center.

After the bride and groom had sat down, the guests followed suit, waiting for their names to be called so they could give their congratulations to the joyous pair.

"His Holiness Pope Cleador the Second, along with his entourage, Her Eminence Cardinal Cynthia, His Eminence Cardinal Praeno, and His Grace Archbishop Tethawin," the host announced, following which a group of people in white and gold robes stood up and walked toward the pair.

Lev and Floresca stood up and received the group with a smile.

"I never thought I would live to see the day where our little Lev finally got himself a partner. Praise the Lord for letting me live this long!" the elderly pope remarked after shaking the couple's hands.

"You jest, Your Holiness. You're a picture of health considering your age," Lev replied.

"His Holiness has a point, little Lev. I remember the day when you first arrived at the Holy City. You were reserved yet so bluntly rude that I thought you would never have any luck with the ladies," Cardinal Cynthia added, smiling amusedly as she recalled her memories of Lev.

"Oh, how people change, Cardinal Cynthia! Even our scrawny Lev has grown into a gallant man. And if I didn't hear it wrongly, he's even gotten a lot softer too," the other cardinal chimed in, smirking.

Upon hearing the elders' teasing, Lev could only scratch his head helplessly. Floresca seemed to enjoy her husband's predicament though, as she kept giggling whenever Lev was teased.

Meanwhile, the archbishop was mostly quiet since he was a generation younger than the cardinals and wasn't too familiar with Lev.

The group was taking their time with their congratulations, but the other guests didn't mind because these elders held the highest positions and power in the empire. This was also the reason they were the first to be called.

"By the way, I've heard from Theo that you rejected the promotion offer," Pope Cleador said. "Don't you pity that old man? He's been longing for retirement for years, and now his most apt successor doesn't want to take the office."

"Desk work doesn't suit me, Your Holiness. Besides, you know the reason I'm doing this."

The group briefly fell silent upon hearing this.

"With how the crusade's going, it doesn't look like you'll be able to fulfill it anytime soon, Lev," Cardinal Cynthia said, sighing.

"Hey, don't bring the mood down, Cynthia," Cardinal Praeno quickly scolded, even forgetting to include his friend's title.

"It's fine, Your Eminence. It's a known fact that our expansion has stagnated in the recent years. It turns out war can't be won with a single person's strength, and soldiers don't grow on fields, so it's getting harder replenishing the army," Lev said.

"It will be fine as long as you do your best, Lev. I'm sure Lord Leo will be gracious, especially toward such a devout servant," the pope encouraged smilingly.

Lev nodded silently, hoping for the pope's words to come true.

After the ecclesiastical group were done and returned to their seats, the host called for the next group of guests.

The celebration lasted all day long, and at the end of the day, Floresca was completely drained. But Lev was in a jovial mood as he had truly enjoyed the festive break—a short reprieve from the iron-scented air of the battlefield to which he would have to return soon.

***

Five years later…

Lev was walking up the stairs that led to the holy chamber of the Divine Leo Church, the biggest church in the empire as well as the most important building in the Holy City from which the most important matters of the empire were managed.

Reaching the top of the stairs, Lev was greeted by a large hallway where the offices of the most important members of the church were situated.

Walking down the hallway, Lev spotted Cardinal Cynthia who was standing in front of her office.

"Why, hello Lev," she greeted, smiling amicably.

"Your Eminence," Lev nodded, smiling back.

"Did His Holiness summon you?" the cardinal asked.

"Yes. I believe I am to receive a commandment," Lev replied. He had received similar summons several times in the past, of which the commandments were mostly related to urgent cullings of heathens.

"I see. By the way, how's your family? I heard that Floresca is pregnant again."

"Ahaha, yes. We're expecting a daughter in two months if everything goes well. Floresca doesn't seem to have many complications, so I think we'll be getting a healthy baby girl.

"And Valens is healthy and can already walk and talk relatively well for his age. We're already planning to hire a tutor for him, perhaps next year or the year after that depending on his rate of development," Lev replied, looking rather proud.

"Are you perhaps preparing him to enter the military academy?"

"We'll probably send him to a scholarly academy or the like depending on his blessing, but certainly not the military academy. I don't want him to follow my footsteps," Lev replied with a woeful smile.

"Then I wish the best for you, Lev. Now go on your way, don't keep His Holiness waiting," Cardinal Cynthia said.

"Thank you, Your Eminence. I wish the best for you too," Lev replied. After bowing slightly, he continued heading toward the holy chamber.

Not long after, Lev arrived at the holy chamber doors. He greeted the two guards there who promptly opened the doors for him.

The chamber was not too large and there weren't many things inside. The lighting was dim since there were only a few small torches around, not enough to completely light up the dark marble which most of the chamber was made of.

The most prominent object in the chamber was the large golden lion statue standing at the center of the chamber. The lion was in a sitting pose, facing the chamber doors with its head slightly looking downward. At the foot of the lion was a short circular podium which served as a spot to communicate with the Lord.

Pope Cleador was standing there beside the podium, looking at Lev.

"Forgive me for my tardiness, Your Holiness. I had to make a quick stop earlier," Lev apologized as he walked toward the pope.

"You are forgiven, child. Now you may stand in the Lord's circle to receive his commandment."

"Wait, am I the one who will be receiving it directly, Your Holiness?" Lev surprisedly asked since it was always the pope who had been receiving the commandment before passing it to Lev.

The pope nodded. "It is Lord Leo's will."

Lev was still quite baffled as he had always thought that direct communication with the Lord was the pope's exclusive right, for he had never heard of anyone besides the pope who had done this.

Quickly composing himself, Lev replied, "If so, then I shall receive."

The pope watched silently as Lev stepped onto the podium.

Lev had never witnessed the pope doing this, so he didn't know if he had to do something in particular to commence the rite. However, his worry was unnecessary as a golden light emanated from the lion statue, enveloping him.

Lev's consciousness soon left his body and he was now an apparition floating in a sea of darkness. Suddenly, countless stars lit up all over the dark space, dazzling Lev.

As the sea of darkness turned into a sea of stars, a certain constellation rapidly brightened and eventually shot out a ray of golden light toward Lev.

A second later, the ray stopped before him, morphing into a majestic golden lion that wasn't much bigger than Lev; this was Leo's theophany.

However, Leo's unimposing size didn't stop Lev from palpitating, as he could sense the unfathomable power dwelling in this entity. Lev was sure that if the Lord willed it, reducing him to dust would only take an instant.

Therefore, Lev couldn't help but kneel in fear as he greeted his master—the true owner of his powers. This was the basic instinct of a feeble human when facing an almighty Zodiac, akin to a match flame facing the sun.

"M-my Lord. This servant g-greets you."

"Hm? Why is the Harbinger of Blood acting so meek?" Leo questioned. His voice was deeply layered and it resonated through Lev's whole body, unlike anything Lev had ever heard.

"T-that is but a foolish moniker spoken by the masses, My Lord."

"Hm. I see that you've used my powers quite well. My empire has grown plenty since you started your servitude, along with my overall divinity," Leo said, scratching his chin.

"It's been my honor to serve you," Lev remarked, feeling a tad of relief that the Lord seemed to be pleased by his effort.

"And your divinity has also risen pretty significantly since I lent it thirty-one years ago."

Silence ensued as Leo kept eyeing Lev, seemingly contemplating. After a short while, he finally broke the silence.

"That being said, what have you been doing in the last few years? Not only did your oath's progress stagnate, even your divinity has regressed."

Hearing Leo's words, Lev's heart quaked.

"Forgive me, My Lord! There has been some difficulty in recruiting more soldiers due to the war weariness, and the Taurus Empire has also concentrated their forces since they have less land to defend now, making progress even harder!"

"Hm. Understandable. You've made a rather arduous oath after all. But that doesn't explain your divinity regressing though," Leo remarked nonchalantly while sharpening his front claws.

Lev's mind spun rapidly, rushing to find an excuse. He couldn't actually measure his divinity, but Lev had an inkling on what Leo was referring to and what might have caused it.

"Maybe it's because I'm getting older, My Lord," Lev finally said.

Leo didn't immediately respond, still sharpening his claws.

Lev waited silently, hoping that his excuse made sense to the Lord.

"You know what I think, Lev?" Leo finally said, blowing his claws that he had finished sharpening.

"I don't, My Lord…" Lev replied, gulping nervously.

"I think someone's taking their power for granted."

Leo then raised a finger, which froze Lev in place and slowly dragged him closer.

"You think I don't know about your tedium, your sickness of war, your reluctance to slay the heathens? Or about your regret for making such a tiresome oath?"

Lev's heart dropped. He wanted to look away from those knowing eyes—to run away from his imminent doom.

"Have you finally succumbed to the thing that you used to avoid so hard?

Leo lifted his other paw, showing a projection of the pregnant Floresca and Lev's firstborn, Valens. The mother and son were napping peacefully in Lev's bedroom.

Seeing his family, Lev's eyes reddened as he unleashed all his might in an attempt to release himself from Leo's hold, surpassing the power he had ever released on the battlefield.

Yet, with a snap of Leo's finger, the power that was swelling inside Lev was instantly quelled.

"Blame me not, Lev Awlin, for I have been benevolent and merciful. I granted such a power to an unworthy child because I admired his zeal. I closed my eyes to your indolence, hoping that one day you'll regain that fervor."

Leo lowered his paw, dismissing the projection of Lev's family. He then pulled Lev closer until they were just inches apart.

"Before you stray any further, I shall reclaim my blessing. Since your oath remains unfulfilled, I shall consider your years of servitude and this extra bit of divinity as compensation."

Following this, Leo proceeded to stab his claws into Lev's chest. A golden aura surged from Lev, converging into Leo's paw.

Seconds later, Leo retracted his claws which was now holding a golden orb.

With his powers gone, Lev's apparition limped as it floated before Leo. However, Lev somehow had maintained his consciousness, as he was slowly raising his head, staring at Leo with a mix of unwillingness and hatred.

"Ah right, that was just the compensation," Leo remarked upon seeing Lev's expression. "As for the punishment for your impiety… I believe death will suffice."

Leo then raised his front leg toward Lev's head, extending a claw.

As Lev watched Leo's claw draw near, his loving wife's face flashed in his mind.

'Floresca…'

Leo's claw finally touched Lev's forehead, bursting his apparition and turning him into stardust.

Leo then swallowed the golden orb before reverting into light and returning to his constellation.

Meanwhile in the holy chamber, the light that enveloped Lev's body suddenly vanished and his body slumped onto the floor.

Pope Cleador silently gazed into the lifeless eyes lying before him. The pope's face was expressionless, his thoughts unknown.

***