The Devil’s Cage

“Wait! Let’s not be impulsive! I’ll give you the weapon!”

Ed Wong felt serious discomfort when he saw the lit up molotov cocktail in Kieran’s hand.

‘Did I run into a crazy person?

Any disagreement and he wants to die together?

Couldn’t he converse properly?

I will never come here again! It’s too exhausting for me mentally!’

Just as the decision was made in Ed Wong’s heart, the lit up molotov cocktail was tossed out, grazing Ed Wong’s head and landing at the entrance.

Pak!

Fuooosh!

The bottle broke and the gasoline inside was ignited by the sparks, causing a puddle of flame.

The flame shed light in the area, a few spirits hidden in the dark were burned to cinders by the flame.

Ed Wong looked at the scene blankly.

When he turned back to Kieran, inconcealable surprise all over his face.

“How did you…” Ed Wong asked.

Because of [Memory Wiper], he wasn’t in his prime form and was sitting against the entrance, but that didn’t mean Kieran could simply notice the spirits outside the door.

Even if Kieran was at human peak performance, he shouldn’t have done it, unless…

He was beyond human peak performance!?

Ed Wong instinctively shook his head when the answer came into his head.

He couldn’t believe the young man had achieved such a level. Even in the Herders, only those reaching ‘Bringepeist’ could go beyond human limits.

And himself?

He was just reaching the edge of ‘Bringepeist’, he still wasn’t a true ‘Bringepeist’.

“The danger in the mountains is beyond your imagination. Any misstep will cost you your life, so I am used to being vigilant of my surroundings,” Kieran replied.

“A trait worth learning,” Ed Wong nodded, he acknowledged Kieran’s answer.

After that, Ed Wong took out another [Crossing Copper Coin] and placed it on his index finger, his thumb then flipped it.

Ding!

A clear noise later, [Crossing Copper Coin] was flung into an arch over the air and landed on the entrance of the restaurant. The coin didn’t bounce at all when it came into contact with the lingering flames, rooting itself and an invisible force burst out, like a gale blowing around the restaurant.

A while later, [Crossing Copper Coin] swiftly turned from its orangey yellow to a gloomy dark brown, like a common corroded coin.

Ed Wong heaved a breath of relief after he sensed the presence was gone.

“Those fellas you’ve sent off are much more aromatic than you think, but they won’t appear for the time being. For the sake of safety, I suggest you and your brother leave this place at once, not for too long, at most a week or two. It’ll keep you guys safe,” Ed Wong emphasized.

“Running away isn’t solving the problem. We can run the first time, the second time, but what about the third? The fourth? We can’t run forever! Rather than wasting our efforts, we might as well stay and learn how to fight,” Kieran shoo his head.

Running away is not the way because one day, you will realize you can’t run anymore.

Once a problem occurs, try to solve it, not stack it or delay it, otherwise it will eventually turn into something unsolvable.

“You learned this from the mountains too?” Ed Wong asked out of curiosity.

“I guess so,” Kieran gave a vague answer.

He didn’t learn this in the mountains, it was his own life experience.

Until now, Kieran could never forget the despair, the helplessness, the suffocation in front of death, and now all those became his fuel to press forward.

Kieran put his hand on the bar counter.

“What?” Ed Wong got stunned.

“You said you’ll give me a weapon,” Kieran reminded him.

“I thought…”

“Trying to back away from your words?” Kieran interrupted him, and Ed Wong flushed.

“Who’s backing away! Here!”

Ed Wong took out a sword from his backpack.

The sword was wrapped in animal pelt and had no sheath. After the pelt was removed, the glaring blade shone, 5 cm thick and 80 cm long.

Kieran got a hold of the wooden hilt and the information of the sword appeared in his vision.

[Name: Sharp Standard-Issued Blade]

[Type: Weapon]

[Rarity: Magic]

[Attack: Strong]

[Attribute: 1. Lacerate; 2. Scorch]

[Effect: None]

[Prerequisite: Strength E]

[Able to bring out of dungeon: No]

[Remark: The standard issued sword for the Harstarty and Weirest of the Herders. Most were given by teachers and seniors, some can get it from the organization itself. It isn’t the best weapon, but the most common one. You don’t need any techniques in wielding it, only sufficient strength to move it.

[Lacerate: The special runes in the blade made it effective against the dead; after stabbing or slashing the dead, the wounds created is hard to recover.]

[Scorch: The blade deals extra +1 damage to the dead, form or formless.]

Kieran held the hilt tightly and performed a slash.

Wung!

The air-slashing noise echoed in the restaurant.

“Not bad,” Kieran commented honestly.

In Kieran’s current state, nothing was better than this sword which required only strength and no techniques to wield.

“Of course it’s good! Even though it isn’t those special weapons, it’s considered a fine weapon among the standard equipment. It’s also a symbol of the Harstarty and Weirest, but you are different! As your father’s old friend, I am really worried about you guys getting into danger, that’s why I give it to you for self-defense, it’s not symbolizing your identity or anything,” Ed Wong spoke on himself.

“Em,” Kieran nodded without arguing.

The Sharp prefix said it all.

What Ed Wong said after that told him the origin of this blade and he would not force Kieran into joining the Herders anymore.

Even though Ed Wong was repaying his debt, Kieran could feel his sincerity.

“Besides, as your father’s old friend, it’s my duty to take care of you guys. I’ll deal with the things that happened here, and everything that happens after this, other than harming the normals or breaking the law, just push it to me, I’ll take care of those. However, if you really hurt the normals or break the law…

Ed Wong didn’t finish, the keen presence from him saying it all.

The keen presence then went off, Ed Wong returning to his middle-aged look and starting to nag.

His nagging went on for a full 2 hours before he left and his face was like he hadn’t fully expressed himself.

“Finally cleared,” Kieran said as he saw Ed Wong walking away.

“Cleared? The two debts?” Ed Wong asked without stopping or turning back.

“No, it’s the action of trying to erase my memory,” Kieran said.

Ed Wog paused for a while, not understanding Kieran.

Wasn’t erasing his memory and owing him the debt the same?

“Weird fella.”

Mumbling, Ed Wong waved without looking back and left into the darkness before dawn.

After making sure Ed Wong left, Starbeck carefully walked out of the kitchen.

Starbeck would be nervous every time he met someone new, let alone those from the mystical side of a dungeon world.

Every contact these kinds of people represented danger, battle, or endless troubles.

“It’s fine. What’s for breakfast?”

Kieran smiled at Starbeck and switched the topic.

“Chicken wonton and Sanxian buns,” Starbeck replied.

The tacit understanding between the two of them saved them the use of words, they’d be minding their own business with each other’s consent.

Further away on the horizon, light began to shine.

The sun rose and a new day was starting.

After Starbeck went to bed, Kieran leaned on his and held [Sharp Standard-Issued Blade] in his hand, quietly adapting to his weakened body and also feeling the Origin Forces in his body.

Time flew as Kieran tried to adjust to his body.

In the afternoon, Starbeck opened his eyes. He saw Kieran beside the bed basking in the autumn sun, quietly shrinking back into the blanket, showing only his eyes and arching his back.

He was used to it.

Smiling, Starbeck quietly snuck out of the blanket and went downstairs to prepare lunch.

After Starbeck put on his shoes and walked down, Kieran also stood up quietly and followed him.

Starbeck realized Kieran was behind him when he was going down the stairs.

“You should rest a little longer. Didn’t Ed Wong say the dead won’t show during the day? It’s safe, I’ll call you when lunch is ready,” Starbeck pushed Kieran and told him to go back to rest.

“What he said was normal situations, there are also special situations at times. Don’t worry, I’ll sleep on the chair, it’s the same.”

Kieran then dragged Starbeck down the stairs and pushed him into the kitchen. He then sat on his chair, put his legs up on the counter and shut his eyes with the sword in his arms.

He had gotten used to the weakened body and he was confident enough to bring out the full potential of his current body.

As for the 5 Origin Forces?

Even with multiple enhancement, it was still very weak.

There weren’t any signs of the Origin Forces other than their basic existence, let alone the Origin Forces breaking their own shackles.

“I’m still too far away,” Kieran muttered.

His nose then picked up the smell from the kitchen.

He smelled roasted meat, meatballs, fried tofu, potatoes, cabbage, and noodles.

A mix pot?

Kieran was surprised, quietly looking into the kitchen.

He saw Starbeck with a pair of mittens holding a pot out.

Gulp, Gulp!

Spark Spark Spark!

The soup boiled, the charcoal burned.

When the lid was opened, the aromatic steam rose into the air.

The sparks of fire also flew out towards Starbeck as he was trying to put down the lid, but before Starbeck could dodge the sparks, Kieran reached out and blocked the sparks for him.

“Did it burn you?” Starbeck quickly took off his mitten and grabbed Kieran’s left hand, examining it carefully.

The sparks left a few black spots on Kieran’s palm, Starbeck blowing and tapping them away, cleaning Kieran’s palm.

He only heaved a breath of relief when he saw that Kieran’s palm wasn’t burned.

Starbeck suddenly noticed Kieran’s fingers were long, his palm was strong, and there were calluses around his fingers and the gaps.

‘So this is 2567’s hand?’

It was the first time Starbeck saw it up close, so he immediately felt shy about it.

“Those calluses are from wielding swords, it’s nothing. Let’s eat.”

Kieran explained with a smile and was captivated by the mix pot, not even noticing the unusual expression from Starbeck.

The traditional charcoal pot had charcoal burning hot in the middle, boiling the soup. On top of the soup was a layer of roast pork which had an even thickness and size.

Underneath the roast pork was round meatballs and under the meatballs were fried tofu and potatoes. The cabbages and noodles were placed at the very bottom.

Kieran dug in from top to bottom.

The flavour was evenly distributed in layers, together with the rich soup, everything was tasty. The roast pork was fat but not oily, the meatballs were springy, the fried tofu was creamy on the inside and the potatoes tasted very filling—the cabbages and noodles at the bottom absorbed the substantial flavour of the meat above them.

After the soup got a refilled from Starbeck, Kieran ate the veggie and soup together, which provided an extra sense of satisfaction.

The whole pot was finished by Kieran alone.

Starbeck had to refill a third time before Kieran was finally full. He leaned back in his chair in satisfaction.

Many deep breaths later, Kieran stood up and took the pot for cleaning.

Starbeck was in charge of cooking, but he was in charge of washing, just like how they agreed upon.

However, Starbeck followed Kieran into the kitchen, taking the two bags of leftover ingredients, which he kept from cooking the mixed pot, and walked out the restaurant.

The restaurant didn’t have a back door, only a front exit.

Standing inside the kitchen, Kieran saw Starbeck open the back of leftover ingredients and poured them beside the road. Starbeck waited patiently.

A while later, several stray dogs came over with wagging tails and dug in the leftover ingredients.

Several more stray cats at the street entrance were meowing too.

Starbeck took another bag of leftovers and put it further away, allowing the cats to help themselves.

Starbeck smiled as he caressed the cats and dogs.

The alarmed stray animals were tamed by Starbeck and allowed him to touch them.

When all the leftovers were cleared, the dogs wagged their tails and the cats meowed.

“Come back at night, I’ll prepare more things for you guys to eat.”

Starbeck collected the empty bags and threw them into the garbage can, waving at the dogs and cats.

As though the dogs and cats understood his language, they quickly left.

Humming a melody, Starbeck hopped back into the kitchen.

“You aren’t afraid of cats and dogs?” Kieran asked in a surprised look.

In his mind, Starbeck should be afraid of everything.

“I was at first but after getting Afu, I’m not afraid of dogs and then I realized I am not afraid of cats either, they seem to get close to me easily. The birds and squirrels are also very friendly, but I can’t take them all in,” Starbeck was a little depressed about that.

“Then you can try taking them in here and then bring them back,” Kieran suggested.

“B-But…”

“Leave it to me,” Kieran smiled.

He was familiar with contracts, because he had a follower that had multiple contracts with him, he could even recite the contracts backwards.

Perhaps he wasn’t able to craft powerful contracts but the normal ones were not too difficult for him as long as he had the required ingredients.

“Great!”

Starbeck was overjoyed by Kieran’s promise, jumping happily.

The kitchen was filled with Starbeck’s joyful laughs.

Kieran was also infected by the joyous feelings, his smile visible all afternoon.

Until at night when the restaurant was opened for business, Kieran finally kept away his smiles.

He frowned at the customer, which caused him discomfort.

“O-Owner, I want alcohol! Alcohol!”

Amy rammed in and staggered over to the bar counter, managing to get a hold on the counter before she fell to the ground, but she was too weak to sit on the chair. She leaned down at the counter and mumbled gibberish.

She reeked of alcohol and it furrowed Kieran’s brows tighter, but what Kieran was concerned about was the rattling that followed the drunkard.

Rattle Rattle Rattle!

It was the rattling of chains.