Esper Harem in the Apocalypse

Drums and loud banging noise of various instruments repeatedly echoed in the distance.

At first, the sound seemed random, but it was a rhythmical, followed by the chiming chords of soothing tunes.

That noise alone could stir up various emotions in those who listened to it.

Leaders and representatives of various races were sitting on the throne with their heads lowered. It was a tense situation followed by an ominous feeling.

Suddenly, everything went quiet, and an indescribable ethereal voice sounded.

[Art ye aware of mine presence?] It asked.

The voice neither belonged to a man nor a woman. It was mixed-pitched and sounded as though multiple entities were speaking from one voice.

"..." None of them dared to speak.

[Very well, ye shouldst stay quiet. Let us start the—]

The Lord\'s voice was disrupted by the crying noise of a baby.

[Who durst to interrupt me! Hmm? A baby?]

"My deepest apology, my Lord. He is my son," a red-haired individual spoke.

[Vlad? Thy hath a child?]

"Yes, my Lord. He is my youngest son."

[Hmm~ Why didst thee bring it here? What\'s its name]

"We haven\'t named him yet."

[Hmm? But it looks old. Hath thee not named thine son?]

"That\'s why I brought him here, my Lord. I want you to name him and give him your blessings," Vlad stated.

[Oh? Why? Thy art aware of my terror, art though not?]

"It\'s okay if you don\'t want to. Please forgive me."

[I can dost that.]

"You have my thanks, my Lord."

[Throw it on the ground.]

"What?!" he exclaimed.

[Didst I stutter?]

Vlad gulped down nervously and let go of the baby to the ground. However, it was teleported into the Lord\'s lap before it could hit the floor.

The Lord raised the baby in the air with his hands, which didn\'t have a particular color or shape.

[Hahahaha! Thee hast beautiful eyes. Thou shalt be called Virgil, and thou shalt one day become the strongest vampire of all time.]

—

"Virgil!"

Virgil jolted and came back to his senses from a distant memory.

"Are you listening?" Rudy asked in frustration. "I have been calling your name for ages, but you were staring at the Lord\'s throne with a dazed expression on your face."

"Ah… yes. What is it?"

"Can anyone enter or leave this place?" Rudy asked with a sigh, seemingly it was his fifth time asking the same question to Virgil.

"Yes. But coming here is tough and leaving from here is not." Virgil pointed his finger at a closed door at a distance and said, "There is only one way to leave from here, which is through that door. However, it leads to a different destination every time someone passes through it."

"I see. So if someone is from the dragon world, will they go back to the dragon world?"

"Indeed," Virgil nodded in response. "It\'s good to see you catch on quickly. It saves me from an explanation."

"But what if there are three people from the dragon world, and each of them is from a different kingdom or something?" Rudy asked curiously. "Will they all be transported to the same place or the kingdom they belong to?"

"Where they belong. The door knows where they are from and where they belong."

"That\'s interesting, not going to lie." Rudy placed his hand on his chin and muttered, "But it\'s also similar to the portal at a statue in the vampire academy."

Rudy gazed at the Lord\'s throne and stared at it for a few seconds.

[...]

"...?"

[.....]

"...."

Virgil noticed Rudy staring at the throne with an alluring gaze and asked, "Rudy? Is everything alright?"

"So, how does all this work? Every year people from different kingdoms and different races come here and sit on the throne to check whether they are the incarnation of the Lord or not?"

"You were almost correct. The only thing you got wrong is that no one can sit on the throne."

"Uhh…" Rudy finally moved his gaze from the throne and turned to Virgil to ask, "So… how do they confirm?"

"Only the Lord can sit there."

"Yeah, I get that part. But how do they check if they can\'t sit there?" Rudy asked with a visibly confused look on his face.

"Let me show you a practical example." Virgil climbed the floating rocks— which were the stairs— and asked, "What do you see?"

"I see you jumping here and there," Rudy responded.

"Do you see me progressing? Am I getting closer to the throne?"

"Uhh.. no, actually. You are jumping back and forth on the same two rocks."

"Exactly! From my eyes, it looks like I am getting farther and farther away from the throne. The straits would never end as long as I tried to get closer to the throne. It\'s an infinite staircase that doesn\'t lead anywhere."

"Hmm~ Now I get it," Rudy muttered while nodding.

GASP!

He raised his brow and asked, "But what if someone flies and lands on top of the throne?"

"Let me show you that too!" Virgil flapped his wings and hovered above the throne.

"What do you see?"

"I see you flying above the throne."

"Now, watch me closely." Virgil retracted his wings and landed on the throne.

However, as soon as Virgil landed on the throne, he was teleported to the floor in front of Rudy.

"Oh…"

Virgil shrugged his shoulders and said, "There you have it. That\'s what I mean by no one can sit, let alone reach the throne."

"That was kind of awesome. Let me try it too."

Rudy walked past Virgil and stepped on the first stair.

"...!"

Virgil\'s body shivered as chills ran down his spine. He fell to his knees as he slowly raised his head and saw Rudy sitting on the throne with a haughty look on his face.

He saw a shadow overlapping Rudy that took the shape of horns and wings.

"So my guess was true…" Rudy and Virgil muttered at the same time.

DRUM~ DRUM!

Once again, the Lord\'s chamber was filled with the noise of the drums banging in the distance with various other instruments.

"I… am the Lord."

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Thanks, @puremichigan, for the gift!!