In his dream that felt like it will never end, only showing him suffering and hatred of someone he didn't know but, felt like he was connected with this person.
Luce began to think that maybe the dream was showing memories of his past life that managed to get into his dream.
So, he rummaged through all the memories, from the oldest to latest. He saw his brother from his last life getting killed in front of him with a jade sword and him falling from the sky.
He saw his comrades drinking with him and partying, calling the event 'sabbath'. And when he peek through his latest memories, he saw his wife, he called her Lily, that was a pet name that he gave to her.
Luce was happy that he had memories of his wife even though he doesn't know where he is now.
Maybe, the only thing that kept him awake from this dark realm is the voice of someone echoing from the darkness.
"Luke, my son.", it echoed in that endless abyss over and over again, keeping him from losing his consciousness or his hope.
Luce was happy that Luke looks like Lilith. If Luke had the same face of his old man, he will be in so much trouble.
There's so many people that knows Luce's face well. Bunch of them are the Zodiacs.
'The Zodiacs grew strong because of me', he pondered proudly. They are close friends and they travelled together.
The three that was closest with him were the 'Martial King'-Mu, the ' King of Sands'- Dastan, and the 'Saintess of Flames'- Joanne.
His heart ached when he thought about Joanne. She is supposed to be coming with him and make her his second wife but, the Emperor kept her and made her the Empress.
The thought about the Emperor made Luce mad. His blood boiled when he rummaged the memories of that man that made his life and his friends miserable.
The root of it all and the one who took out their deepest persona and desires. They have become evil at this point, but Luce thought 'maybe not'.
The Emperor just wanted to change their personalities and that's the end of it. Luce thought.
"You foolish soul, that's why you lose to him, your thoughts are so shallow.", a low voice echoed through Luce's mind, startling him.
"W-who are you?! Show yourself!"
" You don't have to be scared, man. You just have to think that I am you and you are me, except I'm more good looking and smarter."
The voice crept closer to Luce and then he saw it's silhouette. Standing in the darkness, looking at him directly into his eyes.
" Y-your voice, that's the familiar voice I've heard in here. Who the hell are you?", Luce asked the figure while his thoughts are all over him, 'This figure, it's just like looking at myself at the mirror except it's a blurry one.'
"Yeah, you're right, it's mine or should I say it's yours, too?", the figure answered.
"What the hell do you mean by that?! I'm not you. And our voices are different.", Luce denied that what it said was real.
"Damn it, man. Stop saying the 'hell' word, I feel irritated just hearing it. And face it, I am you and you are me. I'm your deepest part, you're hidden persona. But my soul is in a different realm than yours.", the figure said, scratching his head, clearly irritated by the moron in front of him.
"So you're going to dominate me, just like the others. But, I won't let you defeat me easily!", Luce get to a fighting stance.
"Oh come on, chill out man. I'm gonna eat you like a demon or anything. Well, I was a demon god but-"
"What?!"
"Anyway, I'm not gonna dominate you, bro. I mean, me. Ah, forget it! You listen to me you idiot of a man, we got no time arguing here who's gonna eat who while my son, your son is being hunted by the dogs of the empire.", the figure sounded more irritated now.
"Just get to the point.", Luce is still patient for answers. He is intrigued in this soul or his other persona but he is also wondering what happened to the Zodiacs that was caught with him.
"Just touch the palm of my hands so that we can begin the soul fusion and let's get out of here. I still have to see my son. You will get the answers when we both fused."
Luce reached out to touch both of the figure's hands, at closer look, he looks just like but, with more energy, ' he really is my hidden persona', he thought.
" We will be an another being, together as one. We will hold all but, also grasp none. Me and you, forever gone. The time comes to emerge, fused one!", the figure chanted while they are touching each other's hands.
A dark vortex sucked both of them forming a new being, alone in that darkness.
' Pfft, what was that chant for?', he thought while suppressing his laughter. It took him a while suppressing the laughter. That's when he realized that he became a playful person with a serious demeanor now. 'No time ponder about it'.
Now calm, Luce concentrated and reached out his senses, bringing him back to reality. He woke up on his bed, and stood hastily.
' Letting Leopold do his ritual has become beneficial to me. Now, I'm someone they can't mess up with', Luce thought while checking what changes have happened to his body.
And he was surprised that his level has now became level 90. When the emperor chained them, Luce didn't struggle at all and just focus on gathering his thoughts and concentrating on breaking through immediately but, the crimson shadows made the chains hard for him resist and he was suppressed in the end, but thanks to his fusion, the benefits have shown itself.
The guards on his door felt his overwhelming presence and didn't move a muscle even when Luce came out of his room, wearing his black robe with deep purple lines on the end of the sleeves, matching his black hair and deep purple eyes.
" I didn't think that you would reach the [Demi-god Rank] at such a young age, Black Minister.", Luce was confronted by a man with a monocle, clapping with a slight smile.
" I would say the same to you, my lord. I don't recognize your face, maybe your some expert that Leo picked?", Luce kept a poker face but his thoughts are not the same, ' Ha! who is this dog blocking my way, I don't remember garbages being thrown inside the castle!'.
The man with the monocle seems to read his as he deeply bow and introduce himself. "I'm sorry for my late introduction. I am Lumiere Argent, a commoner recently named by the Emperor to be his aid, just like you, Black Minister.", he kept his smile with his closed. And that made more suspicious.
"Where's the Emperor? There's something I need to talk to him. Take me there, aid.", Luce just passed by him without even introducing himself to Lumiere.
He is showing his authority here, his authority is second only to the Emperor himself.
Lumiere did his job and lead Luce to where the Emperor is. They passed by the training hall and saw the guards training there. Luce watched them slash at each other using wooden swords.
"Irritating isn't? They say they use these tools to protect others but, use it to harm them too if they made a crime.", Lumiere said while walking with Luce through the training hall, both of them watching the soldiers. He unsheathed his sword in his left and glanced at its sharp blade, that made him a cut at his fingertips and blood run trickled downward all the way to the hilt.
"They say justice must be done for the oppressed. But, in the world where the strong eats the weak, there's no justice. Only the strong creates the rules and abiding those rules are the job of the latter.", Luce said as he watched Lumiere sheath his sword and wipe the blood on his hands.
They continued walking down the hall and turned left, the next hall they went to is the court room. There, they saw the nobles and the elders bowing in front their ruler, it was a hall with no doors, indicating that justice must not be blocked and always be judged fairly.
"And that man on the throne, is someone who makes rules. But his authority will not forever be absolute. There's still someone out there that can make him kneel.", Luce continued talking to Lumiere that has a surprised face.
He never heard someone talking bad about the Emperor. And the first person he heard talking bad words about the Emperor was none other than his most trusted minister. He can't believe the irony.
"How can you say that? Do you think the Emperor will forgive you if he heard you?! He can kill order everyone in the castle to kill you, you know.", Lumiere bickered with Luce. And the man just shook him off.
"He is my friend, I can say anything bad about him, I can even curse him loudly here, even though it will be inappropriate because of the echo, but still, don't worry, I got your back.", Luce patted Lumiere's back twice and started to walk fast to get ahead of him.
'That man was really not the old Black Minister that I heard of, he definitely changed his attitude drastically. It's fearsome to know what are his hidden personality.', Lumiere thought while tilting his monocle back to position that came loose because the man who is now standing in front of the Emperor.
"Hey Leo, haven't seen you in a while, how's the kid?", Luce gave him a friendly smile with his hands waving fast. That made the people in the court room all confused.
'Who is this man?! That's definitely not the Black Minister that I know!'
'That's the Black Minister?! Last time I saw him, he glared at me for bringing the slavery industry back.'
'Young man, you're talking to the Emperor, show some respect!'
That's what Luce imagined what they're saying when he saw the faces of the nobles in there.
Even the Emperor were taken aback by that greeting. Even the 'Martial King' who has little knowledge of etiquette never greeted him like that, but he hid it well with a straight face. He can't have his dignity ruined by that surprise greeting.
"I'm glad to see that you're okay, Luce. My son is with Joanne, he never let go of his Mother when she fed him this morning when he woke up.", Leopold answered Luce happily with pride for his son.
'This version of Luce must be his other personality. And I'm gonna suffer for it permanently if the heavens remained unsealed. Luckily, Lumiere said that they will not have the memory of the ritual that was done. ', Leopold thought warily.
"You look troubled, Your Majesty. Is there something bothering you?", Luce asked him. He smile is still there, not even bothered by the glares of the nobles.
They were all hostile to Luce but they cannot show it openly. They knew that he can wipe them out of existence together with their families if they directly opposed him.
Plus Luce has the backing of the Zodiacs. And the Zodiacs are they're heroes who defeated the Demon King just a year ago. They are all at least [Level 50] and the nobles only have a few guard that were just like a child's play to defeat for the heroes.
"No, I'm okay. There's nothing bothering me. I just thought about my kid and I already miss him so much even though I just saw him this morning. This must be what it feels to have a child. *Sigh*, I'm tired now, you can all go home and tend to your work there, I must see my son.", the Emperor dismissed the nobles in the court room, lying about the reason why he seemed bothered.
"May the heavens bless the Empire eternally!", they all said harmoniously and then left hurriedly to spread the rumor from what happened earlier.
Luce remained standing in front of the Emperor, now with a calm demeanor at his eyes. He inspected the Emperor from head to toe. He has a crown on his head, being cushioned by the golden hair he has. His sharp eyes are still looking at Luce but but dark eyebags under it. The Emperor is looking at him with a stare that almost look like he's frowning.
He wears his formal attire, emblazoned with the colors of the Regulus Imperial family, gold and crimson. He bears the crest of the Regulus Empire on his chest that was embroidered intricately, a lion leaping from the clouds.
"What's your reason for being here, Black Minister?", the Emperor asked him directly by his title, it indicated that the Emperor is putting his higher authority to ask him.
"I came here to ask some suggestions about the decorations that will be added on the day of the prince's banquet, Your Majesty.", Luce answered him politely in return as he notices Lumiere pass by him to bow to greet the Emperor.
The Emperor just waved at him while still looking at Luce sharply with his chin atop of his knuckles.
"You are putting so much effort in this banquet for my son and I thank for that, but why so? Are you planning on leaving?", Leopold is now suspicious of Luce's actions. And it happened after the ritual.
'Maybe this is what he really is, deep inside. He is hiding something from me and it's clearly shown now, than before the forceful ritual happened.', Leopold thought.
"Just like you, I also have a son and a wife to take care of, Your Majesty. And after seeing that now is a peaceful era for us and knowing heroes having children too, I'm thinking of ending my business here and be a family man, once and for all.", Luce said with a simple smile while looking at the Emperor.
'Let me go now! I don't want to with you here any longer!', Luce thought. He could've directly said it to him but, he is being cautious by that Lumiere wiping his monocle standing next to the Emperor.
"Is there any other reason why you wanted to leave?", Leopold asked again. His suspicions are still lingering.
"Well, you will have your new 'White Minister' even though I will be gone.", he looked at Lumiere while he answered.
"I'm honored for you the title you are giving me, Black Minister. I promise that I will serve his majesty well.", Lumiere bowed lightly to Luce for recognizing him.
"I still have the final say to these!", Leopold cut in, irritated by the two beautiful man staring at each other while smiling.
"Luce, are you sure you want this? I still have many plans for you and the prosperity of the Empire.", Leopold is convinced that Luce really wants to go home. But, there's still something telling him that he can't let go of Luce.
"Leo, please I'm begging you as friend, no, a brother. Let me go home.", Luce bowed deeply, this is the first time in his life that he has to beg for something he can easily have.
It hurt his pride but, for safety, he is doing it this way to trick the
Emperor.
After thinking for a few breaths, the Emperor finally made a decision, sighing loudly on surrender.
"I don't have anymore suggestions regarding the banquet. You've done your job beautifully and I can't thank you enough for what you've done for the Empire. I'm gonna miss you, my friend.", Leopold stood up from his throne and climbed down after talking to Luce and gestured a hug for his departing comrade. That's a white lie.
Luce stood up and hugged the Emperor back, patting him twice on his back.
They broke the hug and Luce bowed again to Leopold. He also glanced at Lumiere and nodded at him before leaving the hall.
They both watched him exit the court room then head to the Empress' chamber after that.
While walking, Lumiere kept one step backwards from the Emperor. He can't disrespect him right after the moment he got the position he wanted.
'The right hand of the king, the 'White Minister'. Not bad...', he thought but, he suddenly bumped at the Emperor. He immediately bowed to apologize but, he was disrupted.
"Do you know the tale of 'The Demon's Demise'?", the Emperor asked him.
"I only know that you were with the Zodiacs when they defeated the Demon King. I also know that Lord Luce was with you too.", Lumiere is still in his knees when he answered.
"Get up... That's all so true but, there's a little lie in there to hide the real truth. We started our journey from being weaklings to becoming heroes. We summoned the Zodiacs so that we can ease the burden that the demons are putting on us.", Leopold said to Lumiere while continuing their walk, not looking back as if he is telling the story only for himself.
"They're weapons are unique and powerful but all have terrible restrictions: they can only be wielded by a person with a powerful soul and his descendants.", he kept on.
"That's why we used the nobles' children to become a vessel together with two commoner children that we picked based on their father's reputation. But, some miscalculations happened and we summoned Mu, the 'Martial King', with his body and soul so, I wasn't given a chance to wield an artifact."
"My father refused to summon Mu back to his world due to his original location and time being unknown when he was summoned. He was probably still alive when he got summoned here unlike the others that we were sure about, that are souls of the dead heroes or the most influential people of their era."
"My father, my uncle, the children's parents, and I greeted the summoned heroes respectfully, even though they're bodies are of 12 years old children, they're souls were fused with the souls of the children together with their memories. The children's personalities changed too. But, they still called their parents 'father' and 'mother'."
"We waited a month for them to get used to their bodies and then I trained together with them. We got our levels high by training and killing star beasts in the outskirts of the capital. We were confident after three years of defeating the same beasts. We formed groups too, I'm with Joanne's group.", the Emperor smiled at the sentence he said his wife's name. He then looked at Lumiere, he is still listening to him while keeping his distance.
Leopold decided to continue, they're still a long way from the Empress' chamber. "We got arrogant and proud of our selves. Then I begged my father to finally start the conquest for the Demon King's head. We traversed through the Desolate Zone, we formed 3 groups of five, including me in Joanne's group and the one Imperial guard each for the others."
"It was easy at first in the outer ring, we managed to level up and have powerful cores. But, it got tough when we entered the middle ring, the star beasts have herds and groups, we were simply outnumbered everytime we encounter them.", the Emperor stopped walking again, they are walking in the dining hall, what Leopold saw put a smile on his face.
He saw his wife having tea while the prince is in a crib filled with cushions.
They approached them hurriedly and when Joanne recognized who is approaching them hurriedly she gave them a beautiful smile. That scene was so beautiful it made the Emperor gasp. It looked like a goddess smiled at him and thinking that goddess is his wife, it made him more happy.
"Hello dear, how's your morning? I just had a breakfast together with Leon. You could've informed the maids you would come.", the woman of his life said to him while sipping tea. Up close, her beauty can only be described as divine, her platinum blonde hair is shining due to the sunlight and also her skin was like it was basked in milk this morning due to it's white complexion and it's smoothness.
"I was busy this morning so I never had a chance inform the maids.", Leopold gave her kiss on the cheek and then go his son. They were bonding like father and son will do. Cute little chuckle were made by the little boy that felt his father touch his hand.
Joanne's sky blue eyes looked at Lumiere and they stared at each other. For a moment, Lumiere finally had a chance to introduce himself. "I greet the moon and star of the Empire, I am Lumiere Argent. Pleasure to meet you."
Joanne gave him a nod. And Leopold seated at the chair next to his wife. "Ah, now, where were we?".
"You're in the middle ring of the Desolate Zone, Your Majesty.", Lumiere said.
"Then, I will continue to tell it for you. Leo, go play with Leon. He seems lonely.", Joanne said to Leopold after hearing what he said. It piqued her interest so she volunteered to tell the story herself. She pointed at her husband who sighed in submission, the man can't beat his wife.
"So, when we were in the middle ring, we encountered single horned beast. It was massive and has thick skin. Dastan tried to slice it's leg but it was to no avail. Even Andres who has the most strength among us was thrown away. We battled with it an hour but, we can't beat it. So, we decided to run away from it. We were running at our full speed that Michel can keep up with us but, the beast seemed to have unlimited stamina and we were all exhausted, event Leo who has 10 or so levels above can't fight that thing for a minute.", Joanne sipped her tea, then continued.
"That's when brother Luce saved us. We first saw him running towards us and we thought he was a scavenger waiting for us to be exhausted so that he can take the rewards easily. We panicked and attacked him with full powered attacks we can muster at that moment. Then suddenly, our attacks passed through him and only left a blur. It was his after image! But, when we finally realized that, he killed the star beast that on our backs with a single hit on its forehead using only his dagger.", she was so excited when she told this part. 'Maybe it's her favorite part of the story.', Lumiere thought.
"He then gave the core the beautiful demon girl that suddenly got behind him. We were again surprised to see a girl that also probably came in his direction to be behind him suddenly. They were really a strange couple. But not only was the demon girl pregnant, it was also his child that she was carrying! They said that it was few months old and they only go in the middle ring for an afternoon walk when they saw us! Can you believe it?! A walk in the Desolate Zone?! Who does that?!", She's now breathing heavily as she became more excited. 'I didn't know that the Saintess of Flames was this so energetic', Lumiere thought, smiling at her while Leopold is trying to calm her down.
"Do you get it now why I had a difficulty letting him go?", Leopold is now pouring tea into his wife's cup.
"What happened after that? How did Lord Luce joined you?", Lumiere became curious about it. 'They were simply just acquaintances that he met but he joined to defeat the Demon King? Why?', he thought.
"When we continue to level up, we didn't know that Luce met with the other groups too. He helped us and also them to live in the Desolate Zone easily. He gave us tips to gather gracia to our cores and what beasts should we integrate to it.", Leopold is now the one telling the story.
"And after we knew that his wife gave birth to his child, we begged him join us on our journey to the inner ring. We spent almost 3 years training in the outer and middle rings. We made plans to defeat the Demon King and with Luce together with us, it was made easier."
"How was the inner feel like?", Lumiere asked.
"It sent shiver down my spine the moment we step foot in there. The whole space was saturated with gracia, you can do any techniques you have in there without being exhausted.", Joanne barged in.
"So, how was the fight with the Demon King?", while touching Leon's cheeks, Lumiere asked again like a kid.
The two monarchs stared at each other silently, gesturing who's going to reveal what happened back there.
"The truth is, we didn't even fought seriously with the Demon King.", the Emperor said with a sigh.
"What?! Why?! Is he too weak?!", Lumiere was appalled by that.
"No, we were all too weak for him to fight against. I think he can even squash us using only his pressure if he wanted to.", Joanne said, ashamed that she's too weak at that moment.
"He greeted us all before fighting with us and Luce. All the Imperial guards that went with us were all dead by then. He told us that he was honored to finally meet the weapon holders that would break the seal of the world. He then bowed deeply in gratitude as he revealed his presence. It was so heavy, like the pressure we felt the first time we came in the inner ring but, a hundred times more."
"We couldn't do anything. We can't even breathe but, Luce finally beheaded him. Blood spilling all over the floor while the roof the castle was blown off by the shockwaves of the battle. And then, when we finally can breathe again, we all saw Luce, looking at the moonlight that shone on his whole body smiling devilishly. It was pure terror. He was like a monster, smiling after defeating his prey in a bloody battle except it was all the prey's blood.", Joanne caressed her arms to not show the goosebumps she had when she told the story.
"It was then that I knew Luce was someone who was also summoned here when I heard the last words of the Demon King: "The thirteenth's fate is the bloodiest". He has a weapon just like the twelve but, his power is unfathomable.", The Emperor said while leaning on the table. Then looked up to face Lumiere.
"Go capture him, use the Zodiacs."