CHAPTER 9. LOST

In the dark, dank belly of the giant snake demon, Diego continued to fight with all his might. The conditions inside were increasingly suffocating, and the lack of air made him feel like he was drowning in darkness. Mainly after Nagara ate a Bidaru leaf that made the demon's digestion actively secrete acid.

The acidic fluids from Nagara's digestion began to eat away at his clothes, and Diego felt an excruciating burning sensation all over his body. Meanwhile, the stench of undigested prey made him feel nauseous. Several times, he almost lost consciousness due to a lack of oxygen.

“I need to get out of this disgusting place immediately! Don't let me be digested and become the feces of that bastard demon!" he said, and his vision blurred. Finally, in a state of near unconsciousness, he slumped into a stupor, his body fragile in the darkness of the snake demon's belly.

After falling unconscious, Diego found himself lost in a dream that seemed more real than reality inside the belly of a snake demon. He felt lifted out of his body and imagined himself somewhere else.

The dream took him back to a beautiful village on a mountainside. This is where she grew up with his family and people, a life of freedom and happiness.

He saw his old self running down the mountainside with the rest of the wolf pack. His father, the king of the wolf pack, always led the hunt during the full moon.

Come on, Diego! It would help if you speed up your running. Lest you earn the title of slow prince from your people." his father teased.

“I'm not slow, Dad! It's just that these two legs are too lazy to move," Diego replied. After reaching the top of the hill, the father and son rested and joked with the rest of the wolf pack.

As Diego dwelled on his past, a bright light suddenly came into his eyes, causing a glare. Diego tried to cover his face from the bright sunlight with both hands. When the blinding light disappeared, he was in another place, his room.

"Diego! How was your trip today?" The soft voice he missed the most came from behind him. With his heart pounding, he looked back with tears in his eyes.

“Mom, I missed you so much," he said as he walked up to the middle-aged woman so he could release his longing. However, his steps stopped when a young man hugged his mother first. The young man was himself in the past.

Then, suddenly, everything became a blur. When his vision cleared, he was in the most painful place of his life. He saw his family, including her father, mother, and siblings, become cold, motionless stone. In his dream, he witnessed a horrifying moment of divine curse.

Diego also saw how miserable he looked alone, screaming for the gods to free his loved one from the curse.

In his moment of despair, a woman came up to poor young Diego. She embraced him with warmth and affection.

“Who was that girl? Why don't I remember her?" muttered Diego, who could only watch his past misfortunes. It crossed the man's mind to know about the girl dressed all in white like a priest. But the girl's face was covered by her shawl.

Suddenly, the sky darkened, and three gods descended from the sky to punish young Diego. "You will be severely punished for your deeds, demon!" shouted one of the gods of war. The other gods were ready with large chains to bind Diego's body.

"I accept any punishment from the gods. But please lift your curse from my family and my people. They are innocent."

The three gods ignored Diego's pleas. They only wanted to capture the wolf prince alive so that the king of heaven could try him.

"It's not our job to free those who have been cursed. We're tasked with capturing you!"

"Then I will never come with you. Unless my family and people are freed!" Diego said firmly.

Diego's refusal ended in a fight. Although Diego was young then, his strength was enough to overwhelm the three gods.

Knowing that the three gods would lose, the king of heaven immediately intervened by taking all the power Diego had. The wolf prince immediately fell weak and helpless.

Despite having no strength, Diego didn't want to give up. He fought back and cut the face of one of the gods. Furious at Diego's actions, the god became enraged and took out his sword to slash the wolf prince.

But what happened was not as expected; the sword did not hurt Diego, but the body of a girl Diego loved dearly. She was willing to sacrifice herself to save young Diego.

"Why, why are you protecting me, Arabel?" asked Diego as he hugged the girl's bloodied body tightly.

"Because I love you so much, Diego. It would help if you didn't get hurt. I hope we'll meet again in the next life and live together forever."

After saying her last words, the girl named Arabel died. Diego was devastated by the death of his non-werewolf lover.

"No! Please don't leave me, Arabel! Wake up, Arabel! Arabel!" Diego shouted while crying and hugging his lover's body.

Seeing past events brought back a deep sense of guilt for Diego because back then, he had stolen a forbidden book from the divine world, which ultimately led to curses and disasters for loved ones.

Diego, who had just woken up from his past, was burning with strong emotions. His regret for past mistakes gave him an overwhelming urge, as well as a burning sense of anger within him. Making his animal instincts dominate and take complete control of him.

With great determination, Diego's body was suddenly flooded with tremendous strength. His eyes glowed reddish light, and his muscles became harder than gems.

Meanwhile, his fingernails grew longer and more robust, allowing him to pierce the demon's hardened stomach. Diego felt the power of nature in his favor, as he had the right to change his destiny.

Diego struck sharply at the wall of the snake demon's belly. The barrier shattered into pieces, and quickly, a bright ray of light from outside illuminated a new way out. With a burst of strength, he burst out of the snake's belly with ease, like a mighty wolf prince.

Nagara roared in pain again, and this time, it hurt more than before. Black, fishy-smelling blood flooded the surface of the forbidden forest ground; however, like before, the snake could repair every cell of its damaged body.

"How dare you rip out my stomach! I'll make you suffer - "

All of a sudden, an attack was quickly aimed at Nagara. He was making his scaly body slashed in several parts. Of course, the snake demon took Diego's injuries lightly. Because he believes that his wounds will get better again as before. Until it was time for Diego to tell Nagara something

"This time, you'll lose because those wounds won't get better."

Nagara laughed at the statement and mocked Diego instead. "Really? How could you do such a thing, wolf boy?"

Diego didn't answer but instead crawled swiftly toward Nagara's neck. He then slashed the snake demon's neck, almost severing its head and body. Screams of pain echoed through the forest.

"I've coated these claws with my saliva. So, your wounds will fester quickly," Diego explains.

"That's impossible!" Nagara looked at each of her wounds, which apparently could not heal again; in fact, the opposite happened. Nagara's wounds were getting bigger, and the flesh on his body was rotting.

"I can't die in the hands of a little demon like you!" Nagara was both furious and panicked. However, it was Nagara's destiny to perish at Diego's hands.

“If I die, then you must also die with me in this place!" said Nagara, who sprayed his fire in all directions of the ban.

"You will be roasted to death in this place!" After his last sentence, Nagara died.

After Nagara's death, Diego was challenged to survive a massive fire that was ready to burn him alive.

"Help! Help! Help me!" Diego faintly heard Sandra's voice. The man moved quickly towards the woman.