Chapter 7 — The Mouth in the Void
Pain should have been the first thing Lucas felt.
Agony. Crushing pressure. The tearing of flesh.
That was what being eaten alive was supposed to feel like.
But Lucas felt… nothing.
No pain.
No body.
No breath.
Just silence.
Then—
Darkness.
An endless, boundless void stretched in every direction. There was no ground, no sky, no sense of gravity. Lucas simply floated there like a forgotten thought drifting through space.
He blinked.
Or at least he thought he did.
Strangely, he could still see.
"...So this is death."
His voice echoed softly across the emptiness.
Lucas sighed.
Not dramatically.
Just tired.
"Well… that was fast."
For someone who had been swallowed alive moments ago, he looked surprisingly calm. No screaming. No panic. Just quiet acceptance.
He folded his arms behind his head and slowly floated backward.
"I thought the afterlife would be more… dramatic."
Silence answered him.
For several seconds nothing changed.
Then—
Something appeared.
At first it was just a speck in the void. A small dark shape drifting toward him from far away.
Lucas squinted.
"…What?"
The shape grew larger as it approached.
Then larger.
And larger.
Until Lucas could finally see it clearly.
It was a mouth.
Just a mouth.
No face.
No body.
No head.
A floating human mouth suspended in the darkness.
Its lips curved upward slowly.
And then it spoke.
"Well… well…"
The voice that came out of it was deep, ancient, and dripping with amusement.
"What a disappointment."
Lucas stared at it.
"…Excuse me?"
The mouth clicked its tongue.
"You had potential, boy."
It circled him slowly like a curious predator.
"And yet you chose something so boringly heroic."
Lucas raised an eyebrow.
"Heroic?"
The mouth scoffed.
"You stood there and let a monster devour you to save others."
Its voice grew mocking.
"How painfully cliché."
Lucas scratched the back of his head.
"…Not quite."
The mouth stopped moving.
Lucas shrugged casually.
"Since day one, everything I've done has been for the same goal."
He raised a finger.
"My siblings."
Silence filled the void again.
Lucas continued.
"I needed money."
He raised a second finger.
"I needed stability."
A third finger.
"And I needed to make sure they were taken care of."
His hands dropped back to his sides.
"Miss Elvanor is strong."
His tone was matter-of-fact.
"She's also kind."
The mouth tilted slightly, as if listening more carefully now.
Lucas continued calmly.
"She'll compensate my family. Probably more than the guild would."
He shrugged again.
"My sister Sarah will get a proper retirement fund."
"Anya can finish school."
"And my little brother will continue his treatments."
Lucas smiled faintly.
"So my end goal is achieved."
Silence followed.
The mouth didn't speak.
Didn't move.
For several seconds it simply stared at him.
Then—
It burst into laughter.
A deep, thunderous laugh that echoed endlessly through the void.
"HAHAHAHAHAHA!"
Lucas winced slightly.
"Damn, that's loud."
The mouth kept laughing.
"You foolish…"
It paused mid-sentence.
Then continued, voice filled with delight.
"…genius."
Lucas frowned.
"Which one?"
"Both."
The mouth circled him again, faster this time.
"Humans are amusing creatures."
It spoke like a scholar observing a rare animal.
"You sacrificed your life not for glory…"
"Not for morality…"
"Not even for righteousness…"
Its voice sharpened.
"But for something so… mundane."
Lucas shrugged again.
"Family's important."
The mouth snorted.
"Yes."
It drifted closer.
"So I see."
Lucas suddenly frowned.
"…Actually, can I ask something?"
The mouth hummed.
"Go ahead."
Lucas gestured around them.
"Why does my afterlife contain a talking mouth?"
The mouth froze.
Then sighed dramatically.
"…This isn't the afterlife, boy."
Lucas blinked.
"…Oh."
He looked around again.
"So what is this?"
The mouth spoke slowly.
"This is your subconscious."
Lucas tilted his head.
"…Right."
The mouth continued.
"And you are currently inside my space."
Lucas blinked again.
"…Your space?"
The mouth hummed thoughtfully.
"You could call it a domain."
Lucas stared at it for a moment.
Then nodded.
"Okay."
The mouth narrowed its lips suspiciously.
"That's all you have to say?"
Lucas shrugged.
"I've seen weirder things in dungeons."
That answer seemed to satisfy the mouth.
It floated backward slightly.
"I suppose I should introduce myself."
Its voice carried a strange pride now.
"I am what your kind once feared."
"What kingdoms once prayed to avoid."
"What heroes once devoted their lives to destroying."
Lucas waited.
The mouth spread into a wicked grin.
"A Demon Lord."
Lucas blinked.
"…Oh."
The mouth waited for a bigger reaction.
None came.
"…That's it?"
Lucas scratched his chin.
"Well… you're just a mouth."
The Demon Lord looked offended.
"I was once Arcadrim Greatheart, ruler of infernal legions."
Lucas raised a finger.
"You killed yourself."
Arcadrim paused.
"…Yes."
Lucas nodded.
"Because you were bored."
Arcadrim's grin slowly returned.
"…Yes."
Lucas folded his arms.
"So you're basically a bored ghost mouth."
Silence.
Then—
Arcadrim laughed again.
"You are truly a strange human."
Lucas smiled slightly.
"Thanks."
Arcadrim floated closer again.
"But let us move to the important matter."
His voice lowered.
"You are not dead."
Lucas froze.
"…What?"
Arcadrim's voice carried amusement.
"Your body is still inside that monster's stomach."
Lucas blinked slowly.
"…Being digested?"
"Correct."
"…That sounds unpleasant."
Arcadrim chuckled.
"But it doesn't have to end that way."
Lucas stared at him.
Arcadrim continued.
"I killed myself centuries ago because existence became predictable."
"Kings rose."
"Heroes appeared."
"Wars began."
"Demons invaded."
"Heroes won."
"Kingdoms celebrated."
His voice turned bored.
"Over."
"And over."
"And over again."
Lucas nodded slowly.
"Yeah, that does sound repetitive."
Arcadrim suddenly grinned.
"But you…"
His voice sharpened with interest.
"You are not predictable."
Lucas blinked.
"…I'm just a guy."
Arcadrim laughed.
"You had the option to survive."
Lucas stayed silent.
Arcadrim continued.
"Many died in that dungeon."
"None had a choice."
"But you did."
Lucas looked away.
Arcadrim's grin widened.
"And yet you chose death."
Lucas shrugged.
Arcadrim's voice rose with excitement.
"Not for heroism!"
"Not for justice!"
"But because you calculated the financial outcome of your death!"
He burst out laughing again.
"Even at death's door…"
"YOU WERE PLANNING!"
Lucas rubbed his temple.
"…When you say it like that it sounds worse."
Arcadrim howled with laughter.
"PEAK!"
Lucas sighed.
"So what do you want?"
Arcadrim's voice calmed.
"A deal."
Lucas raised an eyebrow.
"I will give you life."
Lucas's eyes narrowed.
"I will give you power."
Lucas remained silent.
"And I will give you grace beyond mortal limits."
Lucas finally asked.
"In exchange?"
Arcadrim's grin returned.
"Nothing complicated."
He floated inches from Lucas.
"I simply wish to watch."
Lucas frowned.
"That's it?"
Arcadrim nodded.
"I will exist within you."
"I will see the world through your eyes."
Lucas considered that.
Arcadrim continued.
"If I took your body as a vessel…"
"My actions would be predictable."
He paused.
"But you?"
"You are delightfully unpredictable."
Lucas stared at him.
Arcadrim's voice dropped to a whisper.
"I want to see what a man like you does with power."
Silence filled the void again.
Lucas thought about it.
Then shrugged.
"…Sure."
Arcadrim blinked.
"…That was fast."
Lucas raised a finger.
"I have nothing to lose."
Arcadrim smiled.
"Excellent."
The void suddenly began shaking.
Arcadrim opened his mouth wide.
Dark crimson energy erupted from it like a storm.
"Then let us begin."
---
Miles away.
In a quiet apartment kitchen.
Sarah Dilihavia sat at the small table.
Steam rose from the cup of coffee in her hands.
Her eyes were red.
But dry.
Across from her sat Elvanor August.
Bandages wrapped around her arms.
Her posture straight.
Her expression calm.
The room remained silent for several minutes.
Then Sarah spoke softly.
"…Thank you for coming personally."
Elvanor nodded slightly.
"It was my responsibility."
Sarah smiled faintly.
She placed an envelope on the table.
Elvanor noticed it immediately.
"…Compensation documents."
Sarah pushed the envelope back toward her.
"I'm not accepting them."
Elvanor frowned.
"It is standard protocol—"
"I know."
Sarah lifted her coffee calmly.
"I'll accept Lucas's final paycheck."
She took a sip.
"But nothing else."
Elvanor stared at her.
"…Why?"
Sarah smiled gently.
"Because my brother isn't dead."
Elvanor froze.
"…I saw him get swallowed."
Sarah waved her hand dismissively.
"That's fine."
Elvanor blinked.
"…Fine?"
Sarah leaned back slightly.
"It's a sibling thing."
Silence.
Elvanor opened her mouth.
Then closed it again.
Sarah looked directly at her.
"My brother is annoying."
She smiled faintly.
"Stubborn."
"Ridiculously calm."
"And always thinking five steps ahead."
She took another sip of coffee.
"So if Lucas decided to die…"
Her eyes softened slightly.
"…Then it means he didn't."
Elvanor had no idea how to respond.
So she stayed silent.
Sarah looked out the window.
Her voice was quiet.
"But thank you."
Elvanor looked at her.
"For what?"
Sarah smiled gently.
"For being someone my brother believed in."
The room fell silent again.
But far beneath the earth…
Inside the stomach of a monstrous beast…
Something was beginning to change.
The end....