Chimaera's Conquest: The Legend Of The Devourer
Chapter 49: Prisoner’s Fate (1)

Chapter 49: Prisoner’s Fate (1)

Darkness surrounded Adrian when he woke up. Confused, he got up and walked around to find something... anything. It was then he heard a familiar voice calling out to him.

"Vesper!" he exclaimed and ran towards the direction of the voice.

However, he wasn’t expecting to see the horrifying sight before him. Vesper was surrounded by those Raven bastards as they continuously shot her, all the while laughing their minds off.

"LEAVE HER ALONE!" Adrian yelled at the top of his lungs and charged towards them.

But something was amiss. He tried to reach her, to fight them off, but my movements were sluggish as if stuck in slow motion.

It was then he noticed Vesper’s eyes. There was no pain in them. Nothing. Strangely enough, she looked happy and peaceful as she stared at Adrian.

"What are you doing?" Adrian asked her, but a minotaur approached them from behind before she could reply. "Watch out!"

Adrian shouted to warn her about the creature. But his voice seemed distant, drowned out by the strange silence. The minotaur swung its sword in her direction, slashing her back... still, her smile didn’t disappear.

"Carry on, Adrian..." she whispered, a faint smile on her face. "I’ll be waiting for you."

Adrian struggled against invisible chains that bound him to his place. But no matter what he did... nothing could have saved Vesper as the minotaur and the Ravens teamed up to slaughter her right before his eyes.

***

Adrian jolted awake with a gasp, his heart pounding in his chest. Sweat soaked his clothes as he tried to shake off the haunting images.

"What... what was that?" Adrian mumbled, looking around himself.

He noticed his wound had healed, but his head continued to throb. It looked like even the Troll’s blood could not cure his headache from crossing the veil in an unconventional way.

As he gathered his senses, Adrian realised the place around him looked unfamiliar. The bed beneath him felt hard and uneven, which wasn’t surprising as it was made of grass and stone.

"Where am I?"

Confused, Adrian attempted to sit up, only to discover his legs bound by a chain. But that wasn’t all. His hands were tied as well, and a leather collar gripped his neck, ensuring he couldn’t get up even if he wanted to.

"What the hell is this!?" he yelled.

He was naked and bound by chains and ropes. It wasn’t a great feeling for a guy who wasn’t into BDSM.

"Calm down... deep breaths... and think about it," Adrian mumbled before looking around the ’room’.

The room, if it could be called that, was a tent constructed from various animal skins held together by stitches while massive wooden columns hoisted the tent and kept it in place. Although not confident, Adrian soon realised where he was. As he did, a sinking feeling settled in his gut.

"I was caught by one of the tribes?"

It wasn’t a situation Adrian wanted to get stuck in. The tribes hated anyone and everyone from Nexaria. To them, it didn’t matter if one was summoned by the Church or not. Any outsider was their enemy, and enemies were swiftly dealt by them.

"There has to be something I could use to escape," Adrian said, scanning the tent again.

But there wasn’t anything he could use. It wasn’t like one of those movies where the villains would leave the key or a knife or some shit to help the protagonist escape. It was real life, and he was stuck there with no way out.

While he struggled to find something to free himself from his chains, the tent flap lifted, revealing a man’s silhouette against the solar light.

A moment later, the guy entered the tent, and his features became clear. The tribal man had a solid, muscular frame, his bare torso adorned with intricate tattoos that Adrian didn’t know the meaning of.

But tattoos weren’t the only thing that marred his body as it was filled with scars, both old and fresh. Weathered by the age, the man’s face carried the marks of wisdom and resilience.

Adrian should have felt endangered, but for some reason, he felt calm and at peace, as if he knew the old man wouldn’t harm him.

The man’s hazel eyes didn’t seem threatening, which may be why Adrian felt he didn’t need to be on guard. Long beaded hair hung down by his shoulders, mingling with his long beard that swayed as he moved.

"Ah, you’re awake," the man said, his tone neutral as he carried a wooden bowl with something steaming within.

"Wait... did you-"

"Yes, I speak your language, outsider," the man smiled. "And so does most of our tribe."

"I see..." Adrian mumbled. "Well, since you’re here, would you mind telling me what’s going on? Why am I here? And most importantly, why the heck am I naked?"

"You trespassed into our territory, outsider. So we captured you," The man said, placing the bowl on the ground beside Adrian and getting up. "As for your clothes, we don’t know what you’re on about as we found you in your current state."

He continued, "I know outsiders like yourself have a low opinion of us, but we aren’t savage fools who would jump your bones. You were naked when we found you, and judging by your tool... I would say you have nothing to worry about from our women."

"Really?" Adrian rolled his eyes. "You bind me with chains and rope, then comment about my Johnny and then said you aren’t savages? Colour me surprised!"

"I apologise for my rude behaviour." The man replied with a straight face.

The apology took Adrian by surprise as it was the last thing he expected from him.

"I-It’s alright..." Adrian replied. "If you don’t mind, could you tell me what you want from me? I mean, I would like to get out of these chains, but it doesn’t seem like you’ll let me do that without wanting something in exchange."

The man remained stoic as he replied, "You’ll be judged by the elders. Until then, you stay here."

"Naked and bound by chains... great!" Adrian smiled sarcastically, but the man seemed to have taken the hint.

"...I’ll send someone over with some clothes."