As Olbrunah confidently strode down the dark hallway, torches lining the walls ignited one by one with a haunting green flame, as if guiding him forward. At the end of the corridor stood a double door made with marble and gold. As he reached out to push it open, the door erupted into flames, a beautiful light green fire that emitted neither heat nor cold. It was a soul fire, one of the highest levels of flames in the universe, reserved for those with authority over the underworld, the gods of the different hells.
Normally, such a fire wouldn't faze Olbrunah in the slightest. However, this was no ordinary soul fire, it was the highest level conceivable, bearing the essence of Death itself. It served as a reminder that even the mightiest beings were subject to the fundamental concepts of the universe.
After burning for a few moments, the door underwent a startling transformation. What was once a magnificent masterpiece crafted from marble and gold now morphed into a black door adorned with macabre decorations. Skeletal motifs and grotesque engravings of tortured souls trapped in hell were etched into its structure. It was a door truly befitting the entrance to the realm of Lady Death. Suddenly, two completely red eyes appeared on the door. They scanned Olbrunah from head to toe before vanishing, and with a creaking sound, the door slowly swung open.
Slowly, Olbrunah entered the room, feeling as though the world changed the moment he passed through the door. The environment shifted entirely, he found himself in a luxurious chamber, predominantly adorned in black and gold. A fireplace crackled with green fire, casting eerie shadows across the room. In front of him, a colossal bay window dominated the entire wall, as if the wall was made entirely of glass. Through it, the very essence of Hell unfolded before his eyes: towering volcanoes, rivers of blood, souls wailing in torment and Demons soaring through the air.
In front of this unsettling spectacle sat a regal chair. Upon it, rested a tall woman with long black hair, pale skin, and white eyes, the epitome of Lady Death. Despite her sickly appearance, she exuded a dangerous beauty that was undeniably captivating. Slowly, she turned her head to gaze upon her guest. Rising gracefully from her seat, she approached him.
"Welcome, Dragon Emperor Olbrunah Draconis" she greeted, her voice carrying an otherworldly allure. With a flick of her finger, two sofas materialized, accompanied by a table bearing a tea set. "Please, be my guest" she invited, gesturing towards the seating arrangement.
Before she could add anything, as they both took their seats, Olbrunah interjected with a smile. "Please, you don't need all those formalities. Call me Olbrunah, like you always do."
"Alright, Olbrunah then. You wanted to tell me something ?" she responded, her tone calm and composed.
"Ah, yes," Olbrunah chuckled, "But first, I have to say, I truly enjoyed that little show. It was quite amusing to see you attempting to intimidate me with all that fanfare" he remarked with a playful grin on his face.
"It was a test" Lady Death replied.
"Oh! A test from Lady Death herself? I'm honored. Tell me, what were you trying to test?" Olbrunah responded.
"I wanted to see if you were the same man I knew after all these years, and I can see that, sadly, you've become a softy. If it were the old you, you wouldn't have waited at the door when my guards tried to stop you. With your pride as a dragon, you would have destroyed them and come directly here. I must say, I'm quite disappointed" she remarked.
Following Lady Death's observation, a heavy silence settled over the room. Then, suddenly, Olbrunah burst into uncontrollable laughter, echoing through the chamber like the wild cackling of a madman.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!"
His laughter seemed to know no bounds, reverberating off the walls as his aura leaked from his body. The very room trembled, cracks appearing under the weight of his power.
Meanwhile, Lady Death remained silent, her expression unchanged as she calmly observed Olbrunah's outburst.
As Olbrunah gradually regained control of his power, the room settled into a calm stillness once more. He composed himself, his laughter subsiding into a contented smile.
"Ah... that's the best. It's been so long since I laughed like that" he remarked as the tension of the moment dissipated. "What you just said is not false," he continued, "playing the role of the Emperor forced me to hide my true self behind a serious mask to appear dignified or some other bullshit that every 'good' emperor needs to look like."
"I don't think that's the role of the emperor that changed you, it started when you married that slave and had that daughter of yours…" Lady Death began, but before she could continue, a tremendous pressure enveloped her. It was incomparably greater than before, as if several planets were weighing down on her.
Suddenly, Olbrunah's voice, colder than ever, cut through the air, "Hey Death, it's not because I show some respect by calling you 'lady' that I will let everything slide. For the first and last time, don't you dare mention my wife or daughter, or I swear even all the concepts of the universe won't be enough to stop me from killing you."
Before she could say anything, he added, "I only came to tell you that I was leaving, since you're responsible for the stability of the dimension." Then, he stood up and started to leave. As he was about to pass through the door, he retracted his aura and said, "And for the guy behind the wall, I hope you enjoyed the show." His focus shifted to the hidden person, and suddenly, a cough mixed with blood could be heard emanating from behind the wall.
Lady Death looked up at the door as she saw him leaving. She then said, "You can show up." Suddenly, a man with short blond hair and light blue eyes appeared next to Lady Death, blood staining the corner of his mouth. "I told you he would sense you, Life" she said to him, her tone calm despite the situation.
The man with an angelic voice responded, "I didn't know he was this strong. I couldn't even look up with that pressure. He is not called the strongest being for nothing."
"He became stronger again, that monster" she responded. Then she added, "Next time you want to test the strength or temper of someone, do it yourself."
"Yeah, I'm sorry, my dear sister. It will be the last time" he apologized. Then he asked, "So, this is the famous Dragon Emperor, huh?" Life turned to where Olbrunah had been seated and continued, "I thought he would be a little more polite. Normally, dragons don't use this kind of fool words because of their pride, they believe only lower beings talk like that."
"Normal dragons, raised with the memory of their ancestors, don't, but he is an exception" she responded.
Life looked at Lady Death with a puzzled expression.
Lady Death let out a sigh and began to explain. "Normally, when a dragon is born, its parent stay by its side until it can hunt by itself. Then, they leave the baby dragon alone so it can become autonomous. The young dragon will then use its instincts to survive, unlocking the memories of its ancestors in its blood in the process, which will help it during its journey and aid in its learning." She paused, then added, "But Olbrunah is an exception. He was not born from another dragon, but from the universe itself. Like Chaos, the one who wields the concept of chaos, he is a dragon born from the cosmos. Therefore, he has a chance to claim the concept for himself in the future if he becomes stronger than Chaos and can then become the god of all dragons. That's why Chaos cursed him. Since he couldn't directly interfere with mortals, he used his authority as the god of all dragons to curse the blood of Olbrunah so that he, or any of his descendants, would not inherit the memories of their ancestors. He thought that by doing that, he could prevent Olbrunah from growing up safely and ensure his death while still being a newborn."
Life was shocked. 'Chaos, the Chaos, the dragon god who represents the pride of all dragons, stooped so low that he cursed a newborn !?' he thought to himself.
"But by doing that, Chaos couldn't have been more wrong. Instead of killing Olbrunah, he transformed him into a pure monster" Lady Death explained. "Since he didn't have the memories of his predecessors, he had to learn everything by himself. He tried and failed and learned. Compared to other dragons who knew the dangers without experiencing them, he learned the hard way, by experiencing every obstacle by himself. While other young dragons knew they just had to hide and wait to become adult dragons to be powerful, Olbrunah believed his power would only grow if he fought and devoured his enemies. So, from the moment he was born, he fought and learned his way around the world the most difficult way, by bleeding and bleeding over and over until he became so strong that he could not bleed anymore. That's why he is superior compared to other dragons."
"So he learned everything by himself, what a talent" said Life in a low voice. Then he asked, "Since he didn't have the memory of his ancestors, how did he learn to talk and use his draconic powers?"
"Cael Draconis..." she responded. "That's the name of the man who raised him, Cael Draconis, the last descendant of the 'Dragon Hunter, Olbrunah Draconis'."
Life's brain stopped functioning, and his jaw dropped in utter shock.