Emperor Vlad was having his meeting with his officials, even though it had been about a week since he returned as an Emperor, there were a lot of things that were yet to be put in place.
Vlad was begining to learn the heavy responsibilities that came with being an Emperor, and it felt unbearable. He was the type who didn't like it when too many people worked under him. As a micromanager, so he wanted to know everything going on in the Empire and manage as much as he could from meetings such as this. It had been quite productive so far, as they were able to address multiple major problems reakted to rebellions and keeping the peace between regions. But ever since Dracula came back, the meeting had never been the same. It became unproductive, and the officials were stressed, given what had just happened. Just a mere encounter with the Prince had upset everyone in some way, and nobody was in the right frame of mind anymore. TheEmperor Vlad entered the room with his head held high, ready to face whatever lay ahead. As he looked to his side, the doors closed behind him. Zaraki had said that the Prince would be waiting for him in the room, and he was tight. "I believe it is now time to do the needful" Dracula said as he stood there. The light from the setting sun outside the window caused his shadow to be casted down to the other side of the room. And it made his sihoutte all the more frightening with his red eyes glowing in contrast to his dark figure. "I understand this has to be done" the Emperor said as he drew forth his sword. "But you ask me for the impossible." "You can't bring yourself to kill your own son?" asked Dracula. "How predicatable. But don't worry. I could tell before now that you wouldn't be able to do it. But one thing I know is that we share the same blood. Unlike most people, we both truly appreciate power, and for peo
Just as Vlad had instructed the butler, the death of the Emperor was framed as a suicide. And the way Zaraki testified of it perfectly coincided with the final testimony the Emperor gave before he dismissed the last meeting. This made a lot of the nobles and senators think back to the meeting and shake their heads, not believing the Emperor literally meant what he said when indirectly implying that he would take his own life. It was tragic, as most of them had been with the late ruler from the beginning, a few being old veterans who served Chief Nosferatu before Vlad was made ruler. Zaraki went through the hard work of pulling the strings together, making sure there would be no hint of the truth leaking out anytime soon. This plan had to go perfectly, no matter what. And that meant there had to be no eyewitnesses. So as many servants who came to know about that event in the Emperor's room in great detail, he killed.
It was now a different time in Brannuka, the capital city of the Wallachian Empire, and the world at large. Vlad, the Dragon was dead, and his son, Dracula, was now Emperor. Now there were three Emperors in the known world, and they were: *Vlad-Nosferatu Dracula, a Ketsuki, 22, sovereign head of the Northern Wallachian Empire, a territory that comprised only of humans - save for the Emperor and his bride, and a few weak inferior sentient creatures bought as slaves. *Dastan Alexander, a human, 19, sovereign head of the Eastern Nihonian Empire, a territory that was a mixed bag comprising mainly of humans and elves. Both races mingled and copulated but always produced purebreeds of either side, and they went along quite well. It was thanks to their alliance that each of them succeeded as a race. *Rumulus Thorgrinson, 26, a human also, sovereign head of the Southern Langford Empire. His empire comprised mostly of humans and goblins, with an e
As one, all four Ketsuki went along with Lord Dracula, heading towards the prison cells where the others were held captive.Zaraki wondered why they were going without a guard and asked his Master about it."If we take a prison guard with us, you would have to kill him," he replied. "Is that what you want, Zaraki?""Why would I have to do that?" asked the butler. "Aren't there several prison guards stationed here as well? Aren't they the ones bowing to you as you walk past them? And why would I have to kill them?""If you insist that we take a prison guard with us, I will order you to kill and feed on him. I can't have too many people know what we are doing until I have revealed to everyone the glory of our new race," Dracula replied. "But if you still insist on bringing a guard, then it will be on you."Zaraki remained silent, not wanting to say anything until they reached their destination.But along the way, Dracula pressed a
Now was the time for another meeting. As usual, the nobles and senators were ready to have their discussions, and after they had come to their agreement on the important matters, they would document their conclusions and send them to the Emperor for approval.This was against custom, and it felt uncalled for that an Emperor would be this distant from the matters he should be taking care of. But nobody had the guts to call him out on that, and so, as if the Emperor were present with them, they went on with the meeting's agenda.But right when they were about to start discussions, they could hear footsteps approaching from the dark hallway behind the Emperor's throne. There was only one person who was missing from the meeting, and that was no one else but the Emperor, yet there were multiple footsteps approaching from behind the empty throne.And from behind the large seat came Dracula, and as soon as all the nobles and senators saw him, they got on their fe
Just as it had been when Dracula went on his own to find the Philosopher's Stone, this time he had set out to find Cosmos, the Cosmic System.The Spirit was said to grant infinite power to the one it possessed, and Dracula wanted it for himself.He was convinced that fate was on his side, and no one could convince him otherwise. The fact that all the lines fell to him in pleasant places just so he could find the Philosopher's Stone was enough proof to show that fate was on his side.The factors that led to his success weren't all carefully planned ahead of time but fell into place so naturally that it could only be fate.Fate wanted him to reach his goals, and thanks to his success with the Philosopher's Stone, he was immortal. But that wasn't enough for him, as he also wanted to be truly invincible. Even for someone who had "immortality", he could still die from starvation and perhaps other undiscovered factors.But only as a god would h
For days, the cart went on, and when they got to a point, it stopped. At this point, most of the servants had dropped out to meet with their families in their various homelands, and it was just the rider and the master left with Dracula and his new friend, Darius."We are here," the old man said to the Duo. "I can't go any further from here. From here on out, I will be heading west, where my home is, while you will keep heading north, where the Land of the Cursed is.Now I know you have already made up your mind, but just in case, I could drive you both to my home to rest for the night so you could head back home instead of doing what you are about to do. I won't charge you extra."The Duo looked at each other and smiled."I appreciate the kind gesture, sir," Dracula said as he came down from the cart. "But we can't turn back now.""He's right," Darius said as he came down as well. "We can't forget why we came here just beca
The duo hopped and jumped from little, steep platforms until they finally arrived at the foot of the mountain. And where they landed was a totally new environment. They found it hard to believe that what lay on the other side of the mountain was a barren wasteland because the place they were in looked like a typical rainforest, with vegetation that wouldn't thrive in arid conditions.Darius walked ahead, and Dracula followed, each admiring the environment around him. They could also see animals native to the area, like sloths clanging off tree branches and barpy eagles looking down at them from the top of the highest trees.What Dracula heard next was a hissing sound, and he looked around, convinced that it was a snake. Then, before him, he could see Darius turning back to him with a huge snake in his hand. It was large enough to devour him if it wanted to, and Dracula's eyes widened at the way the Prince was handling it casually."A green anaconda," he sa