Chapter 67: The Chimera’s Maw

#67

The ordeal began with a thunderous shriek tearing from the chimera’s maw.

Piiieeeek!

The chimera thrashed violently, its monstrous form churning the water into foamy bubbles. The viper’s face, having taken the full force of the skill, writhed and contorted grotesquely.

It shuddered and pulsed as if gripped by an unseen hand, eventually deforming into a grotesque, indeterminate shape, coiling and twitching like a slug trodden underfoot.

‘Go up!’

Seizing the fleeting opportunity, Dokyeom swiftly kicked his legs, gesturing frantically upwards towards Agon.

He stretched his aching limbs, pushing upwards. Moments later, Agon, having bridged the gap, seized Dokyeom’s wrist, hauling him higher and propelling them with renewed speed.

Just then, a sudden *whoosh* heralded something lashing out like a whip. A perilous premonition immediately seized them.

Though Agon instantly perceived the threat and pulled Dokyeom into a protective embrace, it proved insufficient to fend off the snake’s arrow-swift strike.

Thwack!

A searing agony, as if every bone in his body had shattered, erupted, and he choked on a mouthful of blood.

‘…!’

The world tilted violently. A pain so profound it felt like death itself seared across his skin, akin to a burning brand.

Through his rapidly dimming vision, the monstrous, convulsing form of the serpent loomed.

The creature, which had been writhing so furiously, now gaped its cavernous maw, poised to engulf both Dokyeom and Agon.

He felt a powerful embrace tighten around his back. Agon, clutching the nape of Dokyeom’s neck, hunched his body, bracing for the inevitable.

Darkness enveloped Dokyeom’s head, as profound as a sudden eclipse.

‘We’re being swallowed.’ His heart gave a violent lurch at the terrifying realization. Yet, he was utterly helpless to do anything but watch.

The serpent’s maw engulfed everything, swallowing them whole, and then, with a deafening thud, absolute darkness descended, blotting out the world.

Within that suffocating darkness, all he could distinctly perceive was the powerful, ebbing current, dragging him into an unfathomable abyss.

His already tenuous consciousness soon faded entirely.

****

A dull ache hammered at his temples. He blinked, but the oppressive darkness remained absolute.

Dokyeom drew a breath, but a searing pain in his throat made him cough sharply.

In that very instant, a startling realization struck him with the force of a physical blow: he was breathing.

“Th-this… Inventory.”

He fumbled open his inventory, retrieved a portable flashlight, and swept its beam across the suffocating darkness.

The first sight that greeted him was Agon, his massive form hunched protectively over Dokyeom’s head.

Agon, his back hunched and pressed against a fleshy wall, was breathing in ragged gasps, his body still curled protectively around Dokyeom.

The cloying tang of blood hung heavy in the air.

“You… *cough*, why is your breathing so… ragged?”

Shhhk- Shhhk-

The beads of cold sweat clinging to Agon’s pale face were anything but ordinary.

Dokyeom lowered the flashlight, his gaze urgently sweeping over Agon’s body.

Thankfully, he spotted no discernible wounds.

Finally, Dokyeom’s eyes landed on the wall Agon was propping himself against. The source of the pervasive blood scent became instantly clear.

From the heavily clawed wall seeped an incomprehensible fluid mixed with blood.

“You’re doing great, really great.”

It appeared he had desperately clawed at the flesh, attempting to escape, but the sheer thickness of the wall rendered his efforts utterly futile.

Dokyeom exhaled a long, shuddering sigh of relief, then sagged against the spongy wall.

Taking the opportunity, he picked up the flashlight and surveyed their immediate surroundings.

They were deep within the beast’s body. Glistening crimson flesh formed a long, pulsating tunnel, and mysterious, cobweb-like membranes hung everywhere like grotesque draperies, constantly weeping digestive fluid.

At this rate, Dokyeom’s current position would soon be drenched in the corrosive digestive fluid.

“Ha…”

‘What an utterly wretched situation. I can’t even begin to fathom where everything went so horribly wrong.’

“It seems they just dropped Ju Uiryeong outside and dumped us here to die. Too bad we’re not dead.”

Gapp had likely only teleported Ju Uiryeong to solid ground, leaving any other unfortunate souls who had been dragged along to be plunged into the water, observing their demise from afar.

It was nothing short of a death sentence.

Having somewhat expected such treachery, he wasn’t overcome with rage. The real issue, however, was this—

“Why aren’t my anomalous phenomena working on the chimera…?”

‘Is it because it’s S-rank or higher?’

Even Agon, a materialized being, had found his movements hampered in the water, yet the chimera appeared remarkably less constrained by such conditions.

Even acknowledging Agon’s status as an AA-rank monster, it suggested that anomalous phenomena weren’t entirely without their limitations. Did this mean only S-rank entities could truly move unhindered within water?

What was undeniably clear was that, unlike the ‘hastily concocted’ SS-rank boss encountered in the Eulwangri Gate, this chimera was a ‘perfected’ boss from its very inception, its capabilities vastly superior to any half-formed counterpart.

The moment its rank escalated further, this entire situation, just as it had in the original narrative, would irrevocably spiral beyond Dokyeom’s control.

Before such a catastrophic escalation, he had to find a solution, and quickly.

Dokyeom, lost in silent contemplation, finally broke the silence, speaking into the empty air just as another gush of digestive fluid erupted from a nearby membrane.

“‘Orias’.”

Only silence answered him.

Dokyeom wearily pressed a hand to his throbbing forehead, closing his eyes in resignation.

“This is just awful.”

At this rate, he was as good as a lost duck’s egg, completely adrift and abandoned. It was enough to drive anyone to sheer madness.

As the corrosive digestive fluid continued to spray, the air grew progressively thinner and more acrid.

Dokyeom pulled the collar of his shirt up to cover his mouth against the noxious gas, then glanced down at his hand.

Even in his current state of mental fog, he apparently hadn’t wanted to part with such a valuable item; a gun remained clutched tightly in his grasp.

Dokyeom, who had been staring blankly at the gun for a prolonged moment, finally lifted his head as Agon resumed frantically tearing at the stomach wall.

Agon, his brows furrowed in a grimace, was desperately trying to rip through the stomach lining.

…

Even if they were to somehow escape this internal prison, Agon’s power alone would be insufficient to defeat the chimera. Their survival during the Eulwangri incident had been a stroke of sheer fortune.

‘What should I do?’

Here, there were neither magic stones nor any hope of reinforcements. While the dearth of information about this place was undoubtedly the primary cause of their predicament, Dokyeom’s own complacency in initiating this venture was also a significant failing.

“That’s the only way… it seems.”

No matter how deeply he pondered, only that single, desperate option remained. A solitary scheme, the only one that could possibly extricate them from this dire situation, surfaced in his mind.

The only option was to perform with Agon.

Once the thought took root, his movements became swift and decisive.

Dokyeom seized Agon’s wrist, yanking him back sharply from his relentless assault on the stomach wall.

Instantly, Agon’s sharp, honed gaze clashed with Dokyeom’s.

Dokyeom’s pale face was perfectly mirrored in Agon’s slowly blinking eyes.

Agon’s expression shifted to something peculiar. He sniffed Dokyeom’s body, scrutinizing him, then twitched his ears, and tilted his head as if unable to find the cause of something.

“You understand the situation, don’t you?”

Dokyeom spoke abruptly, and Agon’s frantic movements ceased just as suddenly.

A tense silence descended upon them. The faint hiss of leaking gas could be heard, and a fresh torrent of digestive fluid splashed beside them.

From the instant their gazes locked, both remained utterly motionless, their eyes fixed solely on each other.

Then, Dokyeom’s voice resumed.

“This time, let’s have you compromise a little.”

‘Whether it’s venting or cursing, I’ll listen to it all once we get out.’

Dokyeom didn’t truly understand why Agon resisted . He only vaguely knew that it wasn’t simply out of ‘dislike’.

Whenever their eyes met during attempts at conversation, Agon would invariably regard Dokyeom with an expression that defied easy description.

Dokyeom had only ever vaguely surmised that Agon’s refusal stemmed from a divergence in their core values, a factor entirely separate from simple aversion.

“Even if it’s just once, let’s live first, then we can talk.”

Perhaps it was a reluctance to share his thoughts and emotions with another. Whatever the reason, it had to be better than passively waiting for oblivion.

“So, choose.”

Dokyeom grasped the collar of his shirt, pulling it wide and tilting his head, baring his neck completely.

A predatory gleam sparked in Agon’s eyes. A distinct *gulp* echoed in the confined space.

“Eat your fill and help—”

Dokyeom pulled Agon’s hand towards him, guiding it to the mark on his neck.

Agon’s trembling fingertips felt searingly hot. His eyes, meanwhile, were clouded with a tumultuous mix of confusion.

“Or, remain here and drown in digestive fluid.”

“Choose,” Dokyeom whispered, his voice low and urgent. Agon, rigid as a stone statue, finally yielded to instinct, slowly raising his hand.

Slowly, deliberately, Agon stroked and caressed the mark, his lips parting and closing several times as if struggling to speak.

His massive body slowly bent, and Dokyeom waited with bated breath as Agon positioned himself before him.

The end of that anxious wait came surprisingly swiftly.

With no warning, Agon lunged, slamming his body savagely against Dokyeom.

“Ugh…!”

Crunch!

Thorny fingertips painfully clamped onto the back of Dokyeom’s head.

His neck, held rigid to prevent any movement, was sharply twisted to the side, and teeth, raking against his skin, greedily clamped down on the mark.

“G-gently, h-hngh…! You… *cough*!”

Agon’s ragged breaths ghosted over the mark. *Huuuh, hah*, he panted, his brow furrowed, eyes squeezed shut.

Only after crushing the mark with his tongue, scraping the flesh with his teeth, and settling into a position of possessive satisfaction did he begin to draw out the mana, holding Dokyeom utterly captive.

“F-fast, hah… too fast… slowly…”

Dokyeom’s hand, which had been weakly scratching at Agon’s shoulder, fell limply to his side.

His heart hammered so violently it felt as though his breath would fail. Mana drained from him in an instant, as if his very blood were being siphoned away, leaving him utterly pale.

Dokyeom, too, leaned his forehead heavily against Agon’s shoulder, closing his eyes with great effort. His lowered eyelashes fluttered violently several times, twitching erratically. A sharp, grating sensation clawed at his throat. He shuddered, yet, with his neck held immobile, he could only helplessly writhe.

The seemingly endless act eventually began to subside.

Dokyeom, gasping for air, gently stroked Agon’s head in a soothing gesture.

‘Please, let him have understood.’

As he closed his eyes, a profound darkness enveloped him. Every sensation became vividly clear: the pounding thrum of his heart, the slow, contented sighs, and the act of Agon, sated, pressing his tongue against the mark and licking it.

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