The Taurus Assassin's fist was inches from Xylo's face when the world turned gold. A massive, burning broadsword slammed into the pavement, the shockwave of Leo Mana blowing the red Aries mist away in a single burst.
"Back off, Hounds," a familiar, cocky voice barked. Nile stood over Xylo, his golden cape fluttering. "You're making the Leo Sect look bad by picking on a 'Normal' in a back alley."
Before Xylo could speak, a cool, shimmering blue fog rolled over his wounds. The searing pain in his ribs vanished instantly as the water-based mana knitted his flesh back together. Celince stepped out of the mist, her eyes glowing with the calm, deep blue of the Aquarius Sect.
"Still getting into trouble, Xylo?" she whispered, though her hands were shaking. They were risking execution by the Agencies just by standing here.
The assassins roared, preparing to lunge at the newcomers, but the world suddenly dissolved into a thick, oily Black Fog. Xylo felt a hand grab his collar, and the sensation of falling through space took over.
The Secret Room
When Xylo finally opened his eyes, he wasn't in the alley. He was in a cold, stone-walled bunker hidden deep beneath the city. The air was thick with the scent of ozone and incense.
Standing by the door, playing with a silver coin, was a boy with dual-colored eyes. Nahore.
"You look like hell, Zenorth," Nahore sneered, though there was no real malice in it. As a Gemini Sect follower, Nahore had always been the one person who could keep up with Xylo's "Enhanced Physique" back in school.
"Why?" Xylo rasped, clutching his chest. "You're a Gemini Elite. You should be turning me in for the bounty."
Nahore stopped flipping the coin. "The Agencies are becoming monsters, Xylo. They aren't just 'ruling' anymore; they're consuming. My Sect wants you dead because you're the only thing they can't predict. And if there's one thing a Gemini hates... it's a story with a boring, predicted ending."
The air in the underground bunker was cold, but the warmth of the reunion was real. Xylo looked at Nile, whose golden Leo armor was scuffed and dull, and at Celince, whose Aquarius robes were torn at the hem. Even Nahore, usually so sharp and composed, looked like a man who had walked through fire.
"They stripped your ranks," Xylo whispered, his voice cracking. "The Leo Agency... the Aquarius Sect... you gave up everything."
Nile just grinned, though it didn't reach his tired eyes. "Those Agencies were turning into a cage anyway, Xylo. Besides, who else is going to keep you from getting your head kicked in?"
"We always knew there was something different about you," Celince added softly, her blue mana flickering as she finished healing the last of Xylo's bruises. "Even back in school, when the teachers ignored the bullying. You had a fire in you that didn't need a God's blessing."
Nahore leaned against a stack of crates, his dual-colored eyes scanning Xylo. "I don't care about the 'power' part. I just wanted to see the guy who beat my high scores actually do something with his life. Don't make me regret losing my Gemini standing for a dead man."
The Great Revelation
Xylo took a deep breath. He knew he couldn't hide it anymore. He told them everything—the blood in the apartment, the Star-Glass Map, the ancient castle, and the shadowy figure of Augustino Zenorth. He told them about the 13th God, Ophiuchus, and the curse of the fading fragments.
When he finished, the room went dead silent.
Nile blinked, looking at Celince, then at Nahore. "Xylo... buddy... did one of those Taurus punches hit you a little too hard in the head?"
"Thirteen?" Nahore scoffed, though his hands were trembling slightly as he checked his equipment. "The history books, the constellations, the laws of the Upper Gods—they all say Twelve. A thirteenth isn't just a myth, Xylo. It's a mathematical impossibility. It's a glitch that should have crashed the universe."
"It's real," Xylo said, his eyes suddenly flashing with that terrifying Emerald Green light. He unfurled the Obsidian Fang, the whip-sword hissing as it uncoiled across the stone floor. "And the 12 Agencies aren't trying to 'fix' the glitch. They're trying to hide a murder that's been happening for ten thousand years."