The Devil’s Cage

Being infected by the wolf plague granted the aide powerful life force. After it was pinned down on the floor, it didn’t die and instead, it struggled fiercely

It even growled and howled relentlessly.

“Damn it! Release me! I…”

Kieran raised his foot and stepped on the monster’s head as it growled.

The perfectly controlled power from his feet knocked the monster out cold.

If [Mesly Ring] wasn’t on cooldown, Kieran wouldn’t even waste time with the aide and would control it directly, asking the things he wanted to know.

Now?

Kieran raised his hand. Gregori, who had been waiting close by for a while now, grabbed the unconscious monster and placed it in the jail cell beside.

Walloon watched his aide being taken away. He opened his mouth wanted to say something but in the end, he failed.

No explanations, no sighs.

None of those was needed. In front of cold hard facts, everything would sound unnecessary.

Kieran, on the other hand, was more direct. He didn’t even bat an eye at the aide being taken away, instead, he fired his request at Walloon directly, “I want to know what happened in Burning Dawn!”

“Although I am still investigating, it’s better if someone can explain it to me so I can have a broader view of things. The more details, the better,” Kieran emphasized.

Walloon didn’t reject Kieran’s enquiries.

Kieran’s identity as the imperial envoy and the powers he just displayed allowed the major to compromise his position and willingly comply.

Walloon took a deep breath and arranged his words.

“Burning Dawn was assaulted. No signs were noticed and darkness suddenly covered the whole camp! Then… I heard agonizing wails in my ears. I took my weapon and wanted to fight but I couldn’t even see my enemies. When the darkness faded, all I saw was bodies. Bodies that died a gruesome death, as though they were cruelly slaughtered. It’s an unbearable scene.”

As he spoke, the major had obvious terror on his face.

Obviously, the incident had terrorized this professional military man.

“Darkness? Slaughter?”

Kieran was searching for the terms in Walloon’s statement that concerned him.

“Yes! The darkness came during the day and it covered the sun, enveloping the flames in the camp. There were torches that were prepared for a smoke signal around camp but none of them shed any light in the darkness. My comrades suddenly had multiple wounds on their bodies and most of them weren’t even lethal. The only lethal blow was the one that pierced the heart. It seems like the attacker enjoyed the process.”

As he continued, the terror on Walloon’s face faded away, being replaced by anger.

He clenched his fist and teeth to express his emotions.

“Then why are you fine?” Kieran pressed the question.

His question sounded offensive and helpless but Walloon didn’t refute it at all. He said with a bitter smile, “I’d rather die in the darkness than live in fear like I am right now.”

“A while after the darkness faded, the wolf plague appeared on the survivors. The tremendous power and wildness turned men into animals. They started to strike their old comrades and brothers-in-arms and when they woke up, the animal in them were awoken. A lot of them couldn’t accept the fact, so many of them committed suicide over the incident and a portion of the soldiers vanished from camp.”

“As for the remaining ones, once the symptoms of the wolf plague were obvious, they would imprison themselves while they still remained sane. Even if they recovered from the transformation, they weren’t willing to come out, afraid that they might commit something they found unforgivable.”

“Some, however, were different… You’ve seen it with your own eyes, even my aide thinks it was an opportunity. I understand his point of view because if I was infected, I would be at a loss. So please, save them!”

Walloon stood up and kneeled on one knee.

He reached his right hand over his chest and struck it hard.

Pang!

His fist struck his chest hard and produced a heavy noise. He looked at Kieran with eyes of hope and pleading.

“You are our only hope!” Walloon said with utmost sincerity. The soldiers behind him mimicked his pose as well.

“Please save our comrades and colleagues!” They chanted.

Kieran looked down at the person kneeling before him, he saw the request that came from the bottom of their hearts, the anxiety that came with their worried emotions.

In the end, Kieran nodded slightly.

Weird things always happened in the world.

Inside a world, where everyone was out for themselves, being greedy and selfish about fortune, there would be a group of deviants among them.

They never thought of themselves but always placed others in first.

They might seem like fools, idiots even, but were still respectable.

Before Kieran was a group of respectable men.

Within what he was capable of, Kieran would not reject the request from these bunch of respectable folks. More so, he had to because of the triggered special event.

“You’ve agreed?” Walloon asked in joy.

“Mm. But I have a condition, you guys have to listen to me at all time and will not be allowed to question my orders! I guarantee you, I’ll do my best to save your comrades and colleagues but I can’t guarantee success in the end,” Kieran added.

Since he promised, he would give his best effort.

Although he had some vague guesses about this wolf plague’s appearance, no one could assure safe progress without accidents. So it would be best for him to set things straight before they started.

“Not a problem! When do we leave?” Walloon agreed right away.

Everyone from Burning Dawn felt like someone who was drowning, they wouldn’t give up on any hope before their eyes even if they saw a floating straw, they would reach out and grab it with all their effort.

“Now. Gregori, bring our captives and gather 5 men to come with us. We’ll move once you are ready.”

Kieran then walked outside after that.

He was falling behind his competitors a lot wished not to delay any further.

The earlier he got to the Burning Dawn camp, the earlier he could find out what in the world happened there, only then he could regain some advantages to compensate for his current state.

“Yes, my lord!” Gregori bowed.

Soon, the group left Shatterstone Town with Sharly, Evie Dan, and the transformed aide.

“It will take a day for us to travel from Shatterstone Town to Burning Dawn’s north camp. There is also a Burning Dawn outpost six hours from our departure point. A hundred elite soldiers were stationed at the outpost and are decently equipped, so we should be safe on the journey. We don’t have to worry about supplies either.”

Walloon rode side by side Kieran as they traveled through Supreme Road.

The major was explaining the general situation on the road to Kieran.

When he mentioned the Burning Dawn outpost, the major’s face looked proud of his affiliation but soon, his prideful looks were replaced by shock and embarrassment.