The location was known as the Graveyard of Gods or Gravebound Realm.
It got that name from old legends passed down over time. According to those stories, it was once a prosperous land, filled with life and power. But everything changed after a battle between gods. That fight turned the entire place into something hostile — a land where nothing could survive. Not even gods, or so the legends claimed.
Whether that part was true or not, one thing was certain.
The land was dangerous.
No race tried to claim it. Not demons, not angels, not anyone. It didn't belong to anyone because it rejected everyone. Only the strongest individuals could even stand there for a short time, and even then, it wasn't worth the risk. Sure, there were rumors about divine remnants hidden there, but no one wanted to gamble their life for something uncertain.
That was exactly why it was chosen as the battlefield.
No race had an advantage there. The environment itself kept everyone in check, suppressing their abilities to a similar level. And most importantly, whatever destruction happened there wouldn't affect their own lands.
"So they decided to fight in a place where even gods died?" I said. "Not exactly a smart move."
Draken smiled faintly at that.
"You're not wrong," he said. "But that wasn't the only reason they chose that place. There was something else… something only the top leaders of each race knew about."
I felt my breath hitch slightly.
If something was hidden from even the strongest beings, then whatever it was… had to be far beyond anything I could imagine.
Draken noticed my reaction and seemed amused for a second, like he had finally managed to shake me a little. But he didn't dwell on it.
"The war that lasted for millions of years," he continued, "the one that killed billions… it wasn't really about dominance. That was just the story told to everyone else."
I let out a slow breath.
Honestly, that didn't surprise me as much as it should have. Even in the modern world, people fought for reasons they didn't fully understand. The real causes were always hidden behind something easier to accept.
Draken looked directly at me.
"The real reason was simple," he said. "Power. Absolute power. The kind that would make whoever possessed it the strongest existence."
He paused for a second before continuing.
"It sounds cliché, I know. But it was real. That secret was passed down in every race, generation after generation. And that greed… that desire for that power… was what fueled the war."
I frowned slightly.
"If that power was what everyone wanted," I said slowly, "then why agree to a final battle like that? Don't tell me…"
Draken's smile widened.
"You've figured it out," he said.
"The power they all wanted… was hidden somewhere in the Gravebound Realm."
So the battle wasn't really about fighting.
It was about searching.
"The whole 'final battle' thing was just a cover," Draken continued. "Each race agreed to send their strongest, but the real goal was to find the power first. Once someone got it, then the real fight would begin."
I shook my head slightly.
"That's… messed up."
"It gets worse," he said.
"The fight and the search both happened. But then something went wrong. The records aren't clear, even to me. But the general conclusion is this… the power wasn't meant to be taken."
His tone grew heavier.
"The Gravebound Realm wasn't just a battlefield. It was a cage."
"And when they broke that cage…"
I didn't need him to finish.
"…something came out," I said.
Draken nodded.
"Something violent. Something beyond their control."
"They tried to stop it. All of them, together. But they failed."
"And then they ran."
The silence stretched for a moment.
"When they returned to their people," he continued, "they lied. They said they were attacked by creatures from outside the universe. That the fight had created cracks in space."
I let out a quiet breath.
"But that wasn't the truth," I said.
"No," Draken replied.
"The truth is… the Gravebound Realm started producing those creatures."
My chest tightened.
"The monsters…"
"Spectres," he corrected. "Or at least, one type of them. The weakest kind."
He paused for a moment before adding,
"If you had encountered a real one… you wouldn't be here right now."
I didn't even want to imagine that.
I shook my head and looked back at him.
"Alright," I said. "Interesting story and all, but how does this connect to us? Or were you just in the mood to tell me ancient history?"
His expression twitched slightly, like he was holding himself back.
"I was getting to that," he said flatly.
"Try not to interrupt."
I raised my hands slightly in surrender.
"Go on."
He continued.
"As the spectres kept increasing, the races had no choice but to act. They held another meeting and came to a single decision."
"If they couldn't destroy the source… they would isolate it."
That didn't sound reassuring.
"The strongest beings of each race worked together and sealed the Gravebound Realm into a separate dimension," he said.
"And in the process… the world itself was divided."
"Six main realms were created," he continued. "Each belonging to a different race."
"Heaven for angels. Hell for demons. The Dragon Realm. Nightlands for vampires and werewolves. Valinor for elves. And the Human Realm."
"And all of them surrounding..."
He looked at me.
" ..the Gravebound Realm."
"So every race is responsible for dealing with any breach into their own territory," I said.
"Exactly," he replied. "For millions of years, that's been the system. Spectres appear, and they're hunted down."
He paused.
"But that's not the only reason they maintain it."
I narrowed my eyes slightly.
"…they gain something from it."
Draken smiled.
"Yes. When a spectre is killed, it releases energy. That energy can be absorbed… and used to grow stronger."
Of course.
"None of them wanted the others to get stronger faster," I muttered.
"Exactly."
I sighed and rubbed my temple.
"So now tell me," I said, "how does any of this connect to you and me?"
This time, his expression didn't have any amusement in it.
His voice dropped slightly.
"When the representatives fled the Gravebound Realm… the demon representative—my ancestor—was heavily injured."
"On the verge of death."
"But then…"
He paused.
"A mass of red and black energy came out of the realm."
"And entered his body."
My eyes widened slightly.
"It healed him," Draken continued. "Gave him enough strength to escape."
"But he kept it a secret."
"Of course he did," I muttered.
"He grew stronger over time," Draken said. "Far stronger than anyone expected. But that kind of power attracts attention."
"And eventually…"
"He was killed."
Silence.
I looked at Draken slowly.
If what he was saying was true…
He pointed at me.
"That power," he said, "is inside you now."
"…and you're in far more danger than he ever was."
I let out a long breath.
"…why?"
"Because even at his peak," Draken said, "he never used even one percent of its true power."
My expression tightened.
"He couldn't control it," Draken continued. "No one could. It wasn't something given to him willingly. It just… used him as a vessel."
"And now…"
He looked straight at me.
"…it chose you."
"Me?" I repeated.
"Yes," he said. "And trust me, I'm more surprised than you are."
"No one in my bloodline was ever accepted by it. Not even me."
He paused.
"And yet, it fused me with you."
"Do you really think that's normal?"
I didn't answer.
Because no matter how I looked at it…
It wasn't.
It was a lot to take in at once.
Honestly, "a lot" was an understatement. My head was already spinning trying to process everything he'd said so far, and now there were at least a million more questions piling up behind it. But I knew better than to ask all of them. Half of them wouldn't get answered anyway.
So I focused on the ones that actually mattered.
I looked at him.
"Why did you come here in the first place?" I asked. "And don't tell me all of this is common knowledge. This sounds like something no one's supposed to know… so how do you?"
For the first time since this conversation started, he hesitated.
The little fireball shifted slightly in the air, and—very noticeably—avoided looking at me.
That alone was enough to tell me I probably wasn't going to like the answer.
I didn't say anything. Just kept staring at him.
After a few seconds, he let out a quiet sigh.
"…Like every generation before me, I was the one who inherited the secret," he said. "The truth about that power… it was passed down within the bloodline."
He paused.
"But with my father… things didn't exactly go as planned."
I gave him a flat look.
"That already sounds bad."
"…It gets worse," he muttered.
Then, like someone admitting something they really didn't want to admit, he continued,
"My father accidentally revealed everything… to one of his wives."
I blinked.
"…You're joking."
"I wish I was."
He still wasn't meeting my eyes.
"She wasn't just anyone," he went on. "She was a spy. Sent by another clan."
I slowly put a hand on my face.
Of course she was.
"So once the information got out," he continued, "everyone started hunting him. Every major force in the realm. They all thought he still had the power."
"But by then…" he added quietly, "it had already been passed to me."
I lowered my hand slightly.
"…And they didn't know that."
"No," he said. "They didn't."
He finally glanced at me for a second before looking away again.
"My father probably died because of it," he said. "And after that… they came after me too."
There was a brief pause.
"I barely got away."
"…and the rest," he finished, "you already know."
I stared at him for a moment.
Then slowly dragged my hand down my face again.
Of course.
Of course this is how it happened.
I took a breath and looked back at him.
"What else?" I asked.
He froze.
Just for a second.
"…What do you mean 'what else'?" he said carefully.
I narrowed my eyes.
"You're still holding something back."
Silence.
Then he sighed again, like he'd just given up trying to avoid it.
"…Now that the power is with you," he said, "there's a chance… a small one… that the other races might find out."
"How small?" I asked.
"…Less than one percent," he replied.
I stared at him.
"That's not reassuring."
He hesitated.
"…Every realm has spies in the others," he added.
I didn't even respond immediately.
Just stood there, processing that.
Spies. Multiple races. A hidden power that could apparently turn me into a walking target.
And somehow, all of that had ended up with me.
I exhaled slowly.
"…Yeah," I muttered.
Then I looked at him, completely done with everything for the moment.
"fuck my life."