The Devil’s Cage

After a night of rest to relieve his mental fatigue, Kieran had to eat fast food again to fill his stomach. The taste of the food was like sending his tongue straight down to hell. After his daily routine, he logged into the game once again.

When he was inside, it was just as Lawless had predicted. The guild war between the Steam City and the Iron Chariots had stopped, and so had the constant gunshots and explosions.

When Kieran walked towards the lobby door, he discovered that the notifications were different as well.

[Do you wish to leave the lobby? Yes/No]

”Yes!”

[Do you wish to camouflage your looks? Yes/No]

”Yes!”

After agreeing to both options with a clear voice, the iron door before Kieran slowly opened up. As the door began to move, a ray of sunshine bathed Kieran in warmth, and a light, cool breeze hit him.

Kieran opened his eyes wide and looked at his new surroundings.

Although Lawless had already explained to him in detail what the environment of the open world outside the player’s lobby was like, Kieran’s jaw still dropped in awe when he witnessed it himself.

Under the dazzling sun, the two-tailed flag on the big old castle was moving against the wind.

The glass on the skyscrapers reflected the sunlight on the streets, shedding light down on the busy road.

A pitch black steam-powered train with dozens of cabins was running on the rails, shuttling back and forth between the streets.

There were all kinds of oddly dressed people on the streets. Some were unarmed, while others had swords on their waists or guns on their shoulders. Some were wearing long black robes, while others were wielding shields as tall as men.

However, under the protection of the system, all the faces of the players had been blurred off slightly. Even if one had exceptional vision, they still wouldn’t be able to see the faces of the players under that layer of blurriness.

Kieran was also protected by that function, just like everybody else.

Carrying a huge backpack, he turned around and looked at his own house. It looked the same from the outside, so he did not give it another thought.

Whether looking at it from the outside or the inside, it was still nothing more than a broken warehouse. It could even possibly be considered abandoned.

Yes, his house looked like an abandoned warehouse to anyone who laid eyes on it.

There was also an address plate on it saying ”13th Wallway Street”.

After memorizing his own address, Kieran took off for the designated location of his meeting with Lawless.

He didn’t go on foot. He took the public transportation that he had seen moments before, the vehicle that looked like a steam-powered train.

It was only similar to one, because other than its steam-powered front, the rest of its parts had nothing in common with an ordinary train, certainly not when it came to speed or comfort.

Kieran boarded the vehicle at a train stop. He walked to an empty, spacious cabin, and settled down on a wide, comfortable couch. He felt quite satisfied as he squinted his eyes in comfort.

However, he had not forgotten Lawless’ advice. He needed to quickly enter the address of his destination on the LED screen and wait for the conductor to find the fastest route for him.

Even when players were out of the dungeon, they were not granted teleporting abilities. Other than walking, the only other way to reach another place was by taking public transportation.

It was the only other option provided to the players, but fortunately it was free of charge.

If a player had enough time, they could cruise around the whole city without paying a dime.

Kieran did not have the luxury of time, but he still did not mind enjoying the scenery outside his window.

The images flew past, forming a line of rainbow light. If Kieran’s D+ Intuition had not granted him exceptional vision, he would not have been able to see a thing outside at the speed that he was travelling.

However, Kieran had the privilege of enjoying every single one of the buildings and sights outside his window.

He was enjoying the scene in satisfaction as the spacious cabin was not hosting any other players at the moment.

After about a quarter of an hour, the conductor gave a notice to its only passenger.

[Player 2567 has reached his destination. Please disembark!]

The sudden notification that popped up in his vision prevented him from further enjoying the scenery or that comfortable couch. He stood up, took his luggage and got off the train.

The train did not leave immediately after Kieran’s disembarkment. It departed after about three minutes. If Kieran had still been aboard the train, the conductor might have had to reschedule its journey for him.

Kieran looked around his destination and spotted Lawless not far from the stop.

He was very recognizable, despite the layer of blur on his face. His strong, buff body and the cigar in his mouth were pretty eye-catching.

”Hey! 2567!” Lawless waved his hand.

He had spotted Kieran as well. No matter how ordinary Kieran looked, the two of them had been in a team together recently, so Lawless was able to tell that it was Kieran when Kieran’s eyes landed on him.

”So how was it? It was your first time on the train, right? Any romantic encounters? I’m telling you, if you want anything good to happen, you should sit by a window...”

Lawless came over and grabbed Kieran by the shoulder, naturally going into BS mode again.

Kieran quickly shook off Lawless’ hand and took two steps away from him, putting some distance the two of them.

”Hey, I thought we were friends! Or did your journey here suck? Don’t worry, I am the prince of the romantic train encounter! I’ll show you a whole new side of life!”

Lawless pretended to be hurt, but instantly turned on his BS mode again, even going so far as to give himself that absurd title.

Kieran kept a distance of at least two meters from him as he walked towards a two-storey building not far from there.

Although he did not know what kind of place would host the secret bazaar, based on its given name, Kieran could not imagine any place big enough to accommodate the amount of players participating.

While Lawless had talked BS, Kieran had noticed at least ten players entering the building, and even more players heading towards it.

Kieran reached the building quickly.

From the outside, it looked like nothing special. Its ordinary decoration made it look more like a coffee shop or a house cafe of sorts.

If it wasn’t for the three-meter tall robot and the servant by the entrance, no one would even pay attention to the building.

”Entry Fee 10 Points!” the robot said as a trading option appeared in front of Kieran.

Kieran accepted the trade. He’d already known there would be an entrance fee to get in. A chip-sized entrance ticket was printed out from the robot’s left hand.

What caught Kieran’s attention though, was the robot’s right hand and the weapons on its shoulder.

There was a six-barrel revolving machine gun on its right hand and two mobile cannons on its shoulder.

”This is Broker’s baby!” Lawless introduced the robot as he caught up with Kieran.

”Hi, Jensen!” Lawless greeted the robot.

”Good day, Sir Lawless,” the robot replied, making a polite gesture.

As the robot welcomed them in, the five gazes that Kieran’s Intuition had picked up staring at him disappeared. It seemed like Jensen was not the sole defense line around the place.

Kieran followed Lawless, entering the shop.

Once they were inside, he quickly scanned over their surroundings, There was no one there, or on the second floor.

Kieran unconsciously activated his [Tracking], and a series of footprints appeared before him.

The footprints were leading to an oil painting on the wall before disappearing.

The oil painting was the height of a grown man and was depicting a door.

”What’s this?” Kieran asked in surprise.

”Follow me!” Lawless replied with a smile as he walked towards the painting. He knocked on the door on the painting three times.

One knock followed by two continuous ones, and the door within the painting opened up.

Lawless ventured into the painting, Kieran following closely behind him.

This was Lawless, so it was doubtful that it would be a trap, but Kieran still inspected the painted door closely out of habit.

Even his [Tracking] and [Mystical Knowledge] could not provide him with any further information, though.

Kieran frowned as he carefully extended his hand inside the painting.

It felt like going through a water veil. Before he could feel the veil, an unknown force had sucked him inside the painting.

Instantly, the deserted shop was once again empty.