The Lion Zodiac

— — — — — — — 

In front of a gravestone near a secluded mountain waterfall, Loke stood in silence.

Suddenly, a voice called out, "So you really were here!"

"Lucy?!"

Loke turned around in surprise, not expecting Lucy to find him here.

"This is Karen's grave, isn't it? Karen Lilica, the Celestial Spirit Mage—your former master. Loke… No, your real name is Leo, of the Lion Zodiac."

Loke sighed. "So you figured it out… my identity as a Celestial Spirit."

Lucy shook her head. "No, I didn't figure it out—Kitaro did. But honestly, as a Celestial Spirit Mage, I must be pretty bad at my job. You were standing right in front of me, and I didn't even realize it."

She continued, "Normally, when a Celestial Spirit Mage dies, the contract between them and their spirits is automatically broken. The spirit is then forcibly returned to the Celestial Spirit World until a new master appears."

"Karen died. Your contract should've been voided, but you're still in the human world. Something must be preventing you from returning. Just like how humans can't survive in the Celestial Spirit World, spirits can't survive for long in the human world. If a spirit stays here for too long, their life force gets drained away… and eventually, they die."

Loke smiled bitterly. "I've been in the human world for three years now."

"Three years?! Even lasting a year is unbelievable!"

"Yeah… I'm already at my limit. I can't even use my magic properly anymore."

"I… I might be able to help you! Tell me why you can't return! I'll open the gate for you!"

"I don't need help."

"Don't be ridiculous! If this keeps up, you're really going to die!"

"The reason I can't return is simple. I broke the forbidden rule between a Celestial Spirit and its master… and for that, I was permanently exiled from the Celestial Spirit World."

Loke looked down, his voice filled with pain. "This is my punishment. I accept death as my sentence. I am a traitor to the Celestial Spirit World… because I killed my master, Karen."

Lucy trembled at his words. "You… killed Karen? Your own master?"

"A spirit that kills their master can never return to the Celestial Spirit World. All I can do now is wait for my existence to fade away."

"That can't be…" Lucy shook her head, unwilling to believe it.

"It happened three years ago. Karen was a Mage of Blue Pegasus…"

Loke then explained everything to Lucy. Three years ago, when he was still under Karen's contract, she was a well-known beauty among the Mages. However, she was also promiscuous, constantly bringing different men back to the guild. Sometimes, to entertain her admirers, she would summon Celestial Spirits against their will, forcing them to accompany her.

If they refused, she would punish them—yelling, hitting, and abusing them. Karen's cruelty became infamous, and soon, no Celestial Spirit wanted to form a contract with her.

Loke couldn't stand it any longer. He forcibly opened the gate to the human world and refused to return. Since Karen didn't have enough magic to summon two spirits at once, as long as Loke remained, she couldn't summon anyone else.

He told her to release Aries from her contract. He only meant to scare her… but three months later, he didn't receive an apology—he received news of her death.

Because of this, Loke lost his right to return to the Celestial Spirit World. He was trapped in the human world, waiting for his life to fade away.

"But that doesn't make sense! You didn't kill her! It was an accident!" Lucy protested.

Loke just smiled bitterly. Then, suddenly, his body wavered, and he collapsed to the ground. His form was beginning to turn transparent.

"It's time… Lucy, please… tell everyone at Fairy Tail… that these past three years have been the happiest of my life. And… meeting a kind Celestial Spirit Mage like you… makes me feel at peace, knowing my fellow spirits have someone who truly cares for them…"

"If you can just return to the Celestial Spirit World, your life force will recover! I'll find a way! I'll get you back!"

"That's impossible…"

Suddenly, a new voice interrupted. "No, it's not. There's still a way."

"What?!"

Both Lucy and Loke turned in surprise to see Uchiha Kitaro standing a short distance away.

"Kitaro?! You're saying you can send Loke back to the Celestial Spirit World?"

"I can't be sure… but I'd say there's a good chance."

"How?"

"Summon a spirit first."

Without hesitation, Lucy pulled out one of her Golden Zodiac Keys. "Open! Gate of the Maiden—Virgo!"

A magic circle appeared, and from it emerged Virgo, dressed in her maid outfit, her hands and feet bound in shackles.

"Princess, are you here to punish me?"

Lucy's eye twitched. "Why are you appearing like that?! That makes me look like a total pervert!"

"I thought you would enjoy it, Princess."

"I DO NOT! Anyway, this isn't the time for that. Kitaro, I summoned Virgo—now what?"

Kitaro handed Virgo a kunai.

She took it with a sly smile. "Oh? Are we playing the 'Punish the Kunoichi' game?"

"No!" Lucy snapped.

Kitaro ignored the exchange. "Alright, now send Virgo back."

"That's it?"

"Yes."

"Okay… Virgo, you can return now."

"Until next time, Princess!" Virgo said before vanishing in a puff of light.

Kitaro then placed his hands on Loke and Lucy's shoulders.

Whoosh!

In an instant, the scenery around them changed. Lucy gasped as she looked around. They were now in a vast starry space, filled with floating celestial bodies.

Loke's eyes widened in shock. "This… This is the Celestial Spirit World!"

At the same time, he felt his body stabilizing—his life force rapidly recovering.

"Wait… this is the Celestial Spirit World?!" Lucy exclaimed in disbelief.

A familiar voice chimed in, "Princess, do you wish to punish me here as well?"

"Virgo?!" Lucy spun around to see Virgo standing behind them. Since Virgo had just been sent back, that meant… this really was the Celestial Spirit World.

"Kitaro, what just happened?! How did we get here?!"

Kitaro smirked. "It's simple. The kunai I gave Virgo acted as a coordinate. When she returned to the Celestial Spirit World, the moment the gate opened, the two worlds were momentarily connected. Using my Space-Time Ninjutsu, I teleported us through."

Lucy was stunned. "That's… incredible!"

She didn't fully understand how it worked, but one thing was clear—Kitaro's abilities were absolutely insane.

.

.

.