Bonds of the Zodiac

After about 15 minus of walking from the village, the newly formed party found themselves standing at the edge of the forest. Lily held her wooden staff in a vice like grip, her knuckles turning white as the anxiety of a dimly lit forest was nerve racking to her. 

"Are you sure we are going to be okay?" 

She peered into the depths, looking to see if she could see anything through the foliage but was unable to really do so. 

"There are 4 of us here. We should be fine. Though if you ladies are ever scared, know that you will be safe in my arms~" 

Ouroboros attempt at teasing them to reduce their anxiety resulted in a glare from all three of them. 

"Sheesh. Tough crowd" 

He could only back away holding his hands up in surrender. He didn't want to be torn apart here. Leo took this time to issue the warning that had been simmering since he met the man. 

"Listen here….you! Don't you get any bright ideas about my sister or I won't let you off!"

 Leo quickly realized that he didn't know the mans name nor had anyone really introduced him. He was just..there. Ouroboros, took a glance at Luna as Leo tried to get in his face to defend her. 

She had a cold indifferent expression on her face but her ears were a cherry red. She was somewhat embarrassed but also happy that her brother was standing up to someone for her. 

"Don't worry lil brother, I value my life" 

His answer was calm yet honest as he smirked a bit back down at Leo. After all, if he ever seriously tried to do anything to her, she would probably kill him herself. 

"The names Leo. Not 'lil brother'" 

The smile didn't leave the Snakes face as Leo approached him, trying to appear intimidating but failing miserably. 

"Well then 'Leo', my name is Ouroboros. But you and the lovely ladies can call me 'Horo' here". 

With nothing more to say to him directly, Leo nodded his head with a soft grunt before he turned away from the man and began addressing the two girls as well.

 "So I want to try something. The Blacksmith was able to get some help and reveal a bit more information on Astra. Some of its skills are party based apparently but I don't know how long it will last. You two won't mind right?" 

he asked, holding up his wrists as their party officially formed with Leo as the party leader due to him being the highest level among the four of them. 

"Hmm. Astra? Who is she?" 

Ouroboros had a somewhat confused smile yet was curious upon hearing a new name out of nowhere. 

"Astra is not a person, its his bracelets" 

Luna scoffed at the snake like he was some sort of country bumpkin which made Horo feel a bit offended. How was he supposed to know that?!

She quickly turned her back to her brother with a bright smile on her face. 

"Absolutely! We won't mind. Anything to make us stronger right?" 

Lily did look nervous at the thought of combat but she too nodded her head saying it was okay. 

"Well my vote doesn't matter at this point does it?" 

Even Horo gave his okay, seeming to imply he was okay with whatever the party decided if it was in a majority agreement. 

Leo took a deep breath to steady himself he then called out 

"[Bond of the Zodiac]".

To Leos surprise, his voice came out far deeper and more majestic than normal. The party blinked in surprise at the unexpected voice before A large screen appeared in front of Leos eyes followed by 3 smaller ones. 

-Bond of the Zodiac has been used. 

-3 Individuals have been detected to have High Affinity with a Zodiac Bond

-Up to (3) Zodiac signs can be given out in total. 

-Maximum number of Zodiac Signs players can have outside of Skill User is 1.

-Displaying Current Affinities

-Player: Luna

-Level: 1

-Highest Affinity: Rabbit

-Element: Beast

-Bond: Family (High) 

-Player: Ouroboros

-Level: 1

-Highest Affinity: Snake

-Element: Poison

-Bond: Acquaintance (Lowest)

-Player: Lily

-Level: 1

-Highest Affinity: Tiger

-Element: Wood

-Bond: Friend of Family (Low)

Leo was surprised to see something like this. He was also reminded that his Unique Skill also revolved around the usage of various elements. 

Beyond that, there wasn't much detail. The only thing that he learned from this was that the Zodiacs were identical to the Chinese Zodiac symbols of the Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig.

After assigning the party their respective Zodiac that they had the highest affinity for, Leo closed the screens. Moments later, faint silver lights floated up from Astra before splitting into 3 beams, striking each of his party members in different areas. 

Luna was struck on the thigh, Lily on her shoulder while Ouroboros was struck on his chest where his heart was supposed to be. The three, while surprised, didn't feel any discomfort from the light. They turned their gaze back to Leo who too didn't understand what was going on. 

'Bond of the Zodiac is a long term buff. The longer you have it, the greater the effect.'

 Astra seemed exhausted somehow as Leo could even swear he heard a yawn while Astra explained. 

[We feel tired so we are going to have a rest. Do not miss our voice too much while we are gone. We will be having a quick nap'.

Leo was surprised by the fact that a piece of equipment needed rest but didn't say much about it. 

WIth nothing else left to do, the party of 4 entered into the forest, starting their quest on wiping out the goblins. However a few steps in and Leo became stunned. Another notification appeared before his eyes. 

Elemental Conversion in Progress. 

Detected Bonds to Players with different attributes. 

Creation of Elemental Prism(s) underway. 

Current Prism Progress

Beast Prism: 1%

Wood Prism: 0%

Poison Prism: 0%

Leo was stunned because his unique skill had begun to activate, forging these so-called prisms based on the Elemental characteristics of his party members. 

Ouroboros, noticing Leo standing still, stopped in place himself and called out with a teasing expression on his face. 

"You coming along Boss. Or are you scared of the trees~?" 

"You wish!" 

Leo immediately retorted before walking forward once again, this time with a small smile on his face. 

"Why did you just call me Boss?" 

"Why not? You are the party leader no? Technically you are the boss of this party" 

Ouroboros shrugged as the playful nature of his disappearing as he began to look around. Keeping an eye out for any potential danger.

 "Do you not like it or something? Want me to call you something else?" 

"No…No I like it. Thanks Horo. Feel free to keep calling me Boss" 

Leo soft laughter caused him to feel a bit closer to the snake-like man who gave a small smile in response. Luna seeing her brother getting happy over a single word made her shake her head 

"Boys will be Boys…". 

The party ventured deeper and deeper into the forest, the sounds of wildlife slowly fading as they did so. Lily kept looking around, feeling a bit panicked as she stood near the back of the party. 

All of a sudden, the other 3 members of her party came to a dead stop. Luna glanced at her brother and Ouroboros, the other 2 nodding before they readied their weapons.

 Leo readied his gauntlets while Luna and Horo pulled out their own weapons. Leo stared into the darkness as his voice served as an announcement to rally his party. 

"Brace yourselves…..Here they come!"