Chapter 209: Meeting with Lady Death
Dreadfort Castle, Bolton Lands
POV of Domeric Bolton
Domeric, at the end of his thoughtful walk, arrived in the Godswood. As he had done many times before, he sat down beneath the oldest Heart Tree.
This tree was the only one in the Dreadfort older than Domeric. Domeric had planted and nurtured the other Weirwood Trees and Heart Trees himself, but this Heart Tree was an ancient tree inherited from the First Men.
In his spare time, Domeric often came here to meditate and try to make his Deathly Hallows tattoo absorb magic more quickly.
Although the voice in his head during his fight with the White Walker had not told him what to do after arriving in the Godswood, Domeric could more or less guess what he should do.
So Domeric channeled his magic into the Deathly Hallows tattoo on his right hand, just as he did when his tattoo absorbed enough magic to travel to the Endless Void to claim his rewards.
But this time, his Deathly Hallows tattoo turned white, instead of its standard black-red color or the gold it turned into when it absorbed enough magic.
And while Domeric, who normally only traveled to the Infinite Void with his consciousness, disappeared entirely from the Godswood this time.
There was no sound, no magical activity. Only after his disappearance, a slight breeze blew, and a few red leaves from the Heart Tree he had previously been sitting under detached from its branches and fell to where Domeric was seated. It was as if Domeric had never been there.
At that moment, Domeric opened his eyes to a completely different place. He had been sitting a moment before, but now he was standing. The place he was in was completely white.
But it wasn't a white place like the Endless Void. It was more like a Grand Hall.
High ceiling, large, towering marble columns, a vast expanse, and decorative marble statues, but everything was white.
Frankly, Domeric thought it resembled the place where he had arrived and spoken with Dumbledore after Voldemort had struck him with the killing curse during the Battle of Hogwarts.
"You're right about your guess. We're essentially in the same place where you met with Dumbledore. This place is actually known as Purgatory. It's the only place where the Land of the Living and the Land of the Dead intersect."
When Domeric heard the voice, he reflexively turned back toward the source of the sound and realized he hadn't been alone here all this time.
Now, standing before him, seated on a throne atop a dais, was a woman. And she was the owner of the soft, ethereal voice that had spoken to him earlier, the same voice that had spoken with him during his fight with the White Walker.
The woman in front of Domeric had black hair and black eyes and wore a black dress. She also wore a black cloak that reached the feet of the black throne she sat on.
But this black was unlike any Domeric had ever seen. It was so dark that Domeric felt as if he would get lost in it if he stared at it for too long.
However, despite the deep blackness of her hair and eyes, the woman's skin was quite white. But instead of normal skin, it was as if her skin were made of marble.
Domeric wanted to describe her as beautiful, but the only word he could think of for the woman on the throne was ethereal.
"Hi, Harry… Or would you prefer Domeric?" she said.
"It doesn't matter. You're Death, I assume."
"Throughout history, I've been called many names. However, the name I'm most known by is Death. You can call me that too, but personally, I prefer Lady Death."
"Okay... Lady Death. You asked me to come here, and I am. Now what..." Before Domeric could finish speaking, Lady Death interrupted him.
"Sorry to interrupt you, Harry, but there are some naughty children outside my door and they want to come in. And in a very rude way. Will you excuse me for a moment? Don't worry, we'll have plenty of time to talk later." Lady Death said.
"...Of course." That was all Domeric could say.
At that moment, Lady Death raised her right hand toward Domeric, and with that movement, a piece of the cloak hanging from Lady Death's throne broke free and flew toward Domeric.
As the cloak piece reached Domeric, it grew larger, then fell on Domeric, completely enveloping him.
Domeric was naturally startled by Lady Death's movement and the approach of the cloak, but his body was frozen, unable to move.
But after the cloak fell on him, Domeric felt a familiar sensation. Despite being entirely covered by the cloak, he could still see clearly through it.
'The Invisibility Cloak,' Domeric thought.
Then, with another wave of Lady Death's hand, Domeric soared toward the dais where the throne stood, continuing his advance until he reached it. When his feet touched the ground again, he was now standing to the right of Lady Death's throne, looking down at where he had been standing a moment before.
"Just wait and watch the show, Harry." Lady Death said with a smile while looking at him.
It was as if Domeric didn't have an invisibility cloak on. However, it would be truly comical if Lady Death succumbed to the power of a piece of her own cloak.
The Tale of the Three Brothers now seemed like a complete fabrication to Domeric.
The smile Lady Death gave Domeric grew wider, as if she had read Domeric's thoughts.
Then she turned her head and looked back at the hall where Domeric had been standing a moment ago, but which now stood empty.
But in the next moment, some people suddenly appeared in the empty hall where Domeric had just stood.
There were quite a few of them. At first glance, Domeric saw that there were more than twenty of them. But the strange thing was that each one looked weird. Given their current appearance, Domeric could hardly call them human.
Among them was one completely soaked, with hair covering its face and its beard replaced by octopus tentacles, and another with a horse's head.
Domeric suddenly couldn't understand what was happening.
'Who were these… beings?' he thought. But it was Lady Death's following words that truly stunned him.
"Young gods. I want to say welcome, but frankly, I'm not entirely pleased with the way you knocked on my door. So don't expect any hospitality. You can stand there until you're done."
'Young gods? Gods? These beings?' Domeric was stunned and was beginning to wonder what the end of his meeting with Lady Death would be like if this was the beginning.
---------------
Author's Note: You folks can also read up to +60 chapters on my P@treon Page as an early access privilege.
You can also read "+3 Free Chapter" and see some pictures as aFree Member.
www.patreon.com/vanguard_v
P@treon Page Name: V For Vanguard
Next Chapters' Name:
Ch.210: Clash of Gods
Ch.211: Differences Between Gods
Ch.212: Is Domeric the Guilty One?