The Devil’s Cage

”Sister Mony!” the middle-aged guard greeted the woman with respect.

Kieran could tell that she had not earned that kind of respect because of her age or status as a sister.

”Leave it to me, Reed,” the elderly Sister replied with a kind, warm smile.

”Yes, Sister!” Reed took a bow and walked away.

As he passed by Kieran, his eyes were full of warning.

He did not go far though. He stopped just beside the school gate and stood guard there.

Kieran was sure that if he behaved inappropriately towards the Sister in any way, Reed would rush over in a flash and pull out his gun without a second thought.

His immense awareness said it all.

”Reed has no hostile intentions. He is a responsible man, it’s just that at times he can be a little… reckless,” the Sister explained to Kieran with a kind smile.

She had the same expression she’d had when she’d talked to Reed, as if Kieran and Reed were the same person to her.

Her attitude made Kieran feel a little uneasy.

He could not have done it, smile at everyone like that.

To Kieran, a friend was a friend and a stranger was a stranger. The two were entirely different and could not be mixed together.

Although he could not have displayed such kindness himself, he still did not mind showing respect to other people’s kindness, especially towards the elderly.

Kieran took a bow and stated his intentions, ”Good day, Sister. I’m Kieran, I’m here to-”

”It’s about Altilly Hunter, isn’t it? Please follow me, this is not the place to talk,” Sister Mony said lightly, asking Kieran to follow her.

They walked around the new building until they reached a field. What attracted Kieran’s attention though, was the church on the other side of the field.

It was not big. Its maximum capacity had to be around thirty to forty people.

Following Sister Mony, Kieran crossed the field and entered the small church.

Inside, on the other end of the room, was a merciful goddess statue, though not one that Kieran recognized.

Two rows of long benches were arranged neatly, extending to the entrance of the church.

When they entered, Sister Mony walked up to the goddess statue and lowered her head in prayer.

Kieran was right behind her. He could clearly hear her say the words ”The merciful Bernadette” and other things along that line.

”Please have a seat. I am Mony, the principal of St. Paolo,” the sister said as she turned around.

”I’m Kieran. I’m a detective,” Kieran gave the identity that he had been given.

”Yes, I’ve heard of you. You’re the greatest detective in the city. Mr. Hunter was right to come and ask for your help in finding Altilly. That little girl could be naughty at times, but she had never caused such trouble. She knew what she was allowed to do and what she was not,”

Sister Mony explained.

Her kind look was mixed with worry.

”Sister Mony, had you noticed anything unusual about Altilly lately?”

Sister Mony seemed willing to cooperate, so Kieran asked his question quickly.

”No, Tilly was like all the other children. Just a little bit naughty, but nothing out of the ordinary. After Mr. Hunter’s last visit, I talked to the children who were close to her, but they said nothing had been going on,” Sister Mony replied after thinking for a while.

Kieran believed her.

As the principal of St. Paolo, she wouldn’t have ignored such an incident.

”Did you know that Altilly was quite skilled?” Kieran followed up with another question.

Sister Mony looked startled by it.

”What do you mean?” she answered with a question herself.

”I mean she was very good at fencing, shooting and other sorts of skills,” Kieran elaborated further.

”Our school offers equestrian lessons, but we do not teach fencing or shooting. I’m sorry, detective, but I would like to rest. I am a bit tired. If you may, we could continue this conversation tomorrow,” Sister Mony replied in an apologetic tone, looking at Kieran sadly.

Kieran could see that Sister Mony was intentionally avoiding the topic. She was not a good liar.

Obviously, she knew something, but she was unwilling to share it.

Before Kieran could inquire any further, Reed, the middle-aged guard, appeared outside the church with a couple of his men.

The men all wore the same outfit and were armed with weapons.

”Detective, please leave!” Reed was not exactly polite.

”Reed!” Sister Mony looked at him unpleasantly.

”Sister Mony, I am the captain of the School Security Force, and I have the responsibility to protect everyone inside this school and exterminate anyone who comes here with bad intentions!”

Reed stared at Kieran.

The part about the bad intentions had clearly been addressed toward him.

”Detective, please don’t mind Reed. He has gotten nervous due to recent events. Please excuse him!” Sister Mony apologized again and again.

”It’s fine, Sister. I’ll come by again tomorrow,” Kieran smiled and headed towards the exit.

Reed escorted Kieran out with his men. They didn’t return to their post until Kieran was well out of the school and onto the street.

However, the security captain had not noticed the shadow trailing him.

Kieran’s Master Level [Undercover] skill, allowed him to slip past the school guards with ease and trail behind Reed as he headed back to the church.

Sister Mony was praying in front of the goddess statue again.

Her prayer lasted around twenty minutes. It seemed like it was a full prayer this time.

Reed was waiting silently by her side.

When Sister Mony finished her prayer, Reed went over and offered a hand to help her up. He led her to a nearby bench and sat down.

”It’s fine, Reed. The detective has no bad intentions. He was different from the other greedy men,” Sister Mony told Reed before sitting down on the bench.

”They all looked the same to me. My job is to protect you and the school, and I’ll eradicate any danger in order to do it!” The security captain shook his head, standing by his own point.

Sister Mony looked at Reed and eventually let out a long breath. She said, ”Go back to your patrol, Reed. I need some rest.”

”Yes, Sister!” Reed left the church with big strides.

After the security captain had left, Sister Mony did not rest as she had said she would. Instead, she left the church as well, following a small path that headed deeper into the school grounds.

She was too old to make it in one trip, so she had to rest frequently before finally arriving at a wooden cabin.

It was at the most secluded corner of the St. Paolo’s school compound. Other than the wooden cabin, there were only trees as far as the eye could see.

As Sister Mony came to a stop, the cabin door opened and a white-haired, bearded man came out. The man looked huge. He was wearing a plain rucksack shirt, and his arms and feet were bare.

His strong arms did not show any signs of aging, and his muscles exuded a sense of exploding power.

”Mony!” the old man greeted Sister Mony with a warm smile.

”Guntherson, was it you who taught Altilly Hunter?” Sister Mony asked in a stern voice as she frowned.

”Of course,” Guntherson did not deny it. Denying facts did not seem like his style. ”That girl had some serious talent. It would have been a waste if she hadn’t exercised it,” he said straightforwardly.

At Guntherson’s admission, Sister Mony began to breath hard and take deep breaths.

”Did you forget what you’d promised me!?” she asked him in an angry tone. ”Don’t you understand that such actions could have put Altilly in harm’s way?”

”I just taught the girl a thing or two. Besides, those skills could only protect her,” Guntherson shrugged.

”But now Tilly is missing! My dear Guardian Knight!”

Sister Mony started coughing. It seemed like her body could not stand such a high-tension conversation.

Guntherson unconsciously moved towards her in an effort to comfort her. Suddenly he stopped and turned towards the shadow in the bushes.

”Who’s there? Come out!”

With a loud roar, Guntherson leapt towards the shadow, punching out in its direction like a strong wind.

The punch found its target, and suddenly Kieran’s face hurt as if he’d been blown by a powerful wind.

Kieran regretted getting distracted by the ”Guardian Knight” mention. It had messed up his breathing and allowed Guntherson to discover him.

He was still very much in shock by the immense level of strength displayed by the old man in front of him.

Guntherson’s body and build alerted others to his strength, but Kieran had not expected him to be quite that strong.

He was definitely over E Rank. He might even be higher than E+.

Since Kieran could achieve E Rank with his legs, he guessed that E+ Rank would not be that hard to reach either.

Such a powerful punch could only have been achieved by a higher level than E+ Rank.

Kieran was shocked by his own speculation.

He had not expected to encounter a superhuman person in his first time in the dungeon.

Kieran suddenly felt excited.

No one could understand the situation better than him. It meant that he could get stronger in the game and earn rewards.

Huge rewards!