Chapter 290

Chapter 290: Dragon of the Hearth #2

Back when I was still in college, my younger sister and I went to the zoo in the city because she had some sort of assignment or another to complete.

In this age of the internet and YouTube, zoos are pretty much only good for field trips for young kids or as a dating spot for couples—but—

Surprisingly, I was profoundly moved by the animals at the zoo even as an adult.

Sveeeeeew, that elephant is monstrously HUGE.

The massive size of animals like the giraffes and elephants was far greater than what I’d imagined. Even the horses were impressively tall, and the wolves were no small fry either.

The subtle awe and sense of disproportion from seeing creatures bigger than I’d perceived in my mind was nothing short of shocking.

So why am I talking about this? It’s because the size of the dragon that emerged from the cave was significantly larger than what I’d expected.

I’d seen the Bone Wyvern Agumon, which was about the size of a large sedan, so I thought the dragon would probably be around that size, or maybe as large as a van.

A breeze carrying the scent of the nymphs is mixing with the air—

As the massive presence slowly revealed itself outside the cave, its size was comparable to that of a city bus.

Sveeeeeew, is the city bus talking to me right now?

Ordinary humans would never think of fighting a bus, nor would they imagine winning such a fight. A bus is something you ride, not something you fight against.

Seeing this massive red body, the thought of fighting it disappeared from my mind.

It must feel like this for mice in front of cats or snakes. When I noticed someone gripping my arm, it was Luna.

Poor Luna, trembling so badly—it made me feel sorry for her. I checked on Paranoi, wondering if she was okay, but surprisingly, she seemed quite calm. I’d expected her to scream or shout.

“….”

Hmm? Looking closer, she had fainted on her feet before she even had the chance to scream.

“Are you the Dragon of the Hearth, Gesvalam? I am Hippolyte, daughter of Mars.”

But Hippolyte showed no fear in the face of this massive dragon’s imposing aura. Hippolyte is someone who can fight even trucks or buses, truly extraordinary.

Thinking about it, Hippolyte once shattered the Bone Dragon created in Kalan’s Swamp. With that in mind, she seems quite dependable.

Mars’ daughter, Hippolyte. For some reason, I felt an overwhelming presence of the gods’ power—my name is Daa.

The dragon opened its enormous mouth and began explaining its name, but the pronunciation was so slurred and strange, like a grumble, making it difficult to understand. What did it say?

But it would be hard to understand in human language anyway. Just call me Gesvalam. So, why have you come to this cave?

“Gesvalam. We have something to discuss.”

Indeed, someone who is so bold to speak like this. It’s extremely rare to hear voices so brave. Daughter of Mars, Hippolyte. I respect your courage and will hear what you have to say.

This Gesvalam was a rather gentlemanly dragon, despite its enormous size.

Hippolyte had previously said that dragons serving as underlings to Vestas’ followers wouldn’t be excessively cruel or savage, and it seems that’s true.

With that in mind, I was able to get a closer look at this massive Dragon of the Hearth named Gesvalam.

Its massive claws, wings sprouting from its back, glittering scales.

The four horns atop its head, the fangs protruding from its closed mouth like a thorn bush—it looked pretty cool. It felt like it had an attack power of 3000 and defense power of 2500.

What was most surprising was that its eyes bore significant scars.

“Hassan, this dragon is blind.”

Realizing the same, Luna whispered to me. Just like Luna said, where the dragon’s eyes should have been, there were only large scars.

I can’t imagine what could have blinded such a massive and gentlemanly dragon.

So, what is it you’d like to discuss? Daughter of Mars—.

“We would like to pass through the caves you occupy. Also, the Hearth in Dragon Scale Village has been losing its power. Would it be possible for you to breathe fire there?”

Of course, that’s possible. Maintaining the fire of the hearth is also part of what I do. But first, I have a favor to ask as well.

Swishhh—

Woosh—

A massive wind swept around our bodies. It was none other than this enormous Dragon of the Hearth Gesvalam, who had inhaled deeply through its nose. I felt a strange sensation, as if my soul were being sucked into its nostrils, when it opened its massive mouth to speak.

There’s a nymph among you. Let that one be placed inside my mouth. If you do so, I will heed your request.

As soon as those words were spoken, someone let out an enormous scream—hi-iiiik!— that echoed throughout the cave. Paranoi, who had been unconscious, woke up, her mouth agape.

“T-this… this creature says it wants to eat me! Absolutely atrocious dragon…!”

Paranoi was practically screaming in a state of extreme hysteria.

I understand her reaction. It’s impossible to remain calm when faced with a monstrous creature demanding you as food right away.

What a spirited nymph. Very fortunate indeed. So, what will you do? Will you let the small nymph be placed inside my mouth?

“Looking at its enormous size, I can tell how many nymphs it must have eaten! From within its belly, I can hear the cries of my fellow nymphs…!”

Fear not; I won’t eat her. Nymphs are all friends of the Goddess Vesta, after all. I just want her placed inside my mouth.

“This monster is cunningly trying to deceive us with smooth words…! Even though it claims allegiance to the gods of Hypo, it’s really just a lackey of Titan! A filthy monster…! It’s pretending to be a devotee of Vesta to lure and eat noble nymphs like me—pretending to convert…!”

That’s rather hurtful. I simply wish for the thorn stuck in my throat to be removed.

“Thorn?”

Responding to the dragon’s toneless voice, Luna asked, trembling.

“Is there a thorn in your throat?”

Yes, Juvenile.

“My name is not Juvenile; it’s Luna Noxdotty!”

Indeed, Juvenile Noxdotty. Anyway, I have a large thorn stuck in my throat. It’s a very powerful curse that prevents me from breathing fire.

If a thorn is stuck in the throat, it must indeed be quite inconvenient for various tasks.

While I was piecing together the cause-and-effect, the massive, blind dragon added a few more words.

Not only that, but this thorn is gradually consuming my sanity. The moment I leave this fiery, heated volcano, I might lose my mind and turn into a beast.

Swishh…

It then finally flattened its head to the ground and opened its massive mouth wide. The gaping mouth and throat looked like another cavern opening inside the cave.

A nymph of such small size should easily be able to enter my throat and remove the thorn. So, hurry up and place the nymph inside my mouth. Then, remove the thorn.

After hearing its words, we glanced at each other’s faces. Even though we didn’t say anything aloud, it was as if we were asking each other, “What should we do?”

Our eyes eventually settled on a small nymph with pointed ears and crimson short hair.

“That’s a lie…! The moment Paranoi enters its mouth, it will surely close its jaws and swallow her whole…!”

Apparently, Paranoi couldn’t trust the enormous and gentlemanly dragon. She firmly grabbed my arm and spoke.

“You must completely believe in this Paranoi…! I had a vision in my dreams that seemed to foretell this situation…! If I go into its mouth like this, I will surely become a meal…!”

“But you said you couldn’t remember your dream earlier, didn’t you?”

“Ah, it just came back to me now…!”

Sveeeeew, is that really true? It sounds suspicious.

I pondered deeply about who was lying between the enormous dragon and Paranoi.

I quickly came to the conclusion that Paranoi was lying. This one has a talent for dishonesty and betrayal.

“Paranoi, if we successfully resolve this matter, I’ll raise your share to 10%.”

“Is, is that really true…?”

“Yes.”

“Even so, I refuse…!”

What?! To reject even a raise in your share—it must be that she really didn’t want to do it. It seemed there was no way to persuade Paranoi.

When Paranoi insisted she wouldn’t go in, no matter what, there was nothing we could do. We fell into brief silence, wondering what to do next, when Luna spoke up.

“Then, I’ll go in. I’m a bit bigger than Paranoi, but I’m still the smallest after her.”

There was reason in what Luna said. But wasn’t the dragon, Gesvalam, asking for a nymph to enter its neck? As if sensing our dilemma, the dragon responded.

Anyone will do. I’d appreciate it if you could remove the thorn. It doesn’t have to be a nymph specifically. My neck might hurt a bit more, but…

“Ahh, if that’s the case, then I’ll go.”

At that moment, Hippolyte, who had quietly been listening to the conversation, spoke up. Truly, she is exceptionally courageous. I could call her big sister.

Just looking at Luna’s furrowed eyebrows, it seemed she was somewhat worried about the bold Hippolyte.

“Hippolyte, are you sure it’s safe to enter the dragon’s mouth?”

“Entering the dragon’s mouth is the whole point. It should accumulate quite the karma in my body, which has been stagnating lately. This reckless endeavor is just right.”

Indeed, it seemed Hippolyte wanted to enter the dragon’s mouth because her life was getting too monotonous. It’s just like a rat who, no longer satisfied with a comfortable life, willingly enters a cat’s mouth.

Zjerik…

Hippolyte marched into the dragon’s wide-open mouth without hesitation. There was no time for us to exchange words.

Swish, swissshh…

Hippolyte, who is over 170 centimeters tall with a model-like figure, seemed to struggle a bit getting inside the dragon’s massive throat.

But dragons have mouths and throats large enough to rip apart and swallow a bull, so she soon disappeared into the distant darkness without much trouble.

Now what’s going to happen?

At that moment, the Dragon of the Hearth Gesvalam, who had swallowed Hippolyte into his mouth, began to close it.

That massive mouth.

Closed slowly but surely.

The fact shocked us, freezing us in place.

Paranoi was the only one whose mouth was open.

“See that creature there…! I already knew the blind dragon was just setting a trap to eat us…! I already didn’t trust that name, Gesvalam…”

Indeed, as Paranoi said. The moment Hippolyte entered its mouth, it closed. Wasn’t this the obvious behavior of a predator?

We were all greatly alarmed by the situation when the dragon once again opened its mouth.

Ah, I almost swallowed her. Hurry up and pull out the thorn, then come back out. Because of the thorn, I haven’t eaten in a long time, so I might accidentally swallow her.

What, sveeeeew.

While we were trying to figure out if those words were genuine, Hippolyte’s figure reappeared from the now widely opened mouth.

“It’s certainly true that something powerful is embedded inside. It’s too firmly lodged for me to pull it out on my own.”

“Hippolyte, are you saying you can’t pull it out?”

Luna was shocked, as if she’d heard something unbelievable. If Hippolyte, who had the highest level and tier among us, couldn’t do it, who else could?

But Hippolyte was looking at me.

“Hassan, among us, you’re the strongest in mere physical strength now. Looks like there’s no one else but you. You should try to go inside and pull out whatever is firmly embedded.”

Sveeeeeew.

So, it’s come to this, has it?

Huuuuh…

After taking a small deep breath, I slowly approached the dragon’s mouth. The closer I got, the more the imposing aura of this massive creature was felt.

I’d described it earlier as being about the size of a bus or truck, but looking at it up close, it seemed even larger.

To maintain such a huge body, it must eat an enormous amount of everything. Even though I’m relatively large, I might only be a single meal for this one.

Is the one who’s going inside my mouth you now, Juvenile Noxdotty?

“No, I’m Hassan.”

Ah, looks like I got confused. Your strong aura made me mistake you for someone else.

Swishhh…

The dragon’s breath blew through me. It felt like all the little parts of me were being carried away by that wind.

But more importantly, you have a very peculiar smell. Living and dead, life and d*ath, spring and winter. Two entities that cannot coexist are swirling inside you. It’s so rare that… I want to swallow you and see.

“Tch, siih, don’t swallow me.”

I’ll try…

Knowing fully well that this was an insane act, I slowly started to insert my body into the dragon’s mouth.

I expected the inside of an animal’s mouth to be rather unpleasant, but surprisingly, it was surprisingly comfortable. Of course, that’s different from going deep into its throat.

Slowly, I squeezed my way into the dragon’s esophagus. Activating “Graceful Hands,” the interior, though dark, became visible.

Of course, the passage was only barely wide enough for my body to fit through, so I had no choice but to crawl along like I was swimming.

Gruuuu…

Even for the dragon, who was trying to let me pass through its esophagus, it must have been quite a nuisance. But the real trouble came from what was visible ahead in its throat.

Could you really call that a thorn?

I stared at the object firmly embedded in its throat.

It was some kind of sword.

“What is this?”

[Closing Note] Hayat123, Gwigu, Kss0419, Chromelond, YayaYeaH, HuhHingHen, TegGuni, Caffuccino, BosinTangEatingWalWalLee, DangerousEye, Bittdah, PotatoServer, and to wkwkdakt who sent a king’s coupon!!! Thank you so much!!!

Many of you also sent sponsorship coupons!

The funds from your sponsorship coupons are being used by our Nymph Rescue Foundation as settlement funds and educational expenses to help nymphs assimilate into society rather than remaining in the wild, securing them proper jobs!

As an example, we’ve created a quintet nymph bard group called Muse using ditchwater nymphs. They are set to perform in areas around Delphi!

When you listen, I hope the nymphs’ chorus sounds to you like a round song!

---