The Devil’s Cage

Sean’s grin quickly reverted back to normal but he furrowed his brows after that.

“Gino, what are you doing?!”

Bellowing, the chivalry captain walked in and closed the door along the way.

Although the two deacons at the door were trustworthy, for the things that were going to happen next, the less who knew, the better.

After all, the Inquisition didn’t just activate a single ‘spy’ to deal with the slums in Lower Seventh Ring, where a large amount of heretics amassed, it wasn’t that simple. The Inquisition needed a plan with more specific targeting, like the well-known pair of sisters plus… the traitor, Sivalka!

The traitor must die! It was a decision from the Inquisition, but sacrificing a ‘spy’ in the process was unforgivable, even though it was directly related to the dignity of God of War his Majesty.

However, as the news spread, the higher-ups of the Inquisition made some changes.

They changed from the initial ‘watch’ to the new ‘assassinate’!

The swift change of order of the Inquisition, the untimely death of Etorin, all those made the captain feel a sense of anxiety in the bottom of his heart.

He felt like there was something important hidden beneath the surface, yet he was unable to grasp it.

Therefore, he investigated all the recent happenings in Edatine Castle, then listed out several key characters from his findings.

Colipo, Ludus, Kurtzargert.

Kuer Horton and Marquis Horton plus Edatine VI, the king.

Anderson, Simon and Colin.

Three groups, nine suspects.

Everything that happened recently was somehow closely related to all nine of them.

Though the last suspect, Sean initially wrote down Erin Sicar, the new lord of Sicar, but it was right after he got the news from the palace, he changed it to Colin.

Similarly, the Inquisition’s target was also this newly crowned prince, his Highness.

A worthless heir who only knew how to eat and drink and an heir brought up by Demon Hunters were two very different concepts.

Sean understood why the Inquisition suddenly changed their target, because he too never expected the king, Edatine VI, to hide his real son so deep and away from the public eyes.

As he recalled the unusual commotion that happened in Edatine royal court back then during the Black Cataclysm, Sean was really eager to fly over to the palace and kill the king.

How dare the king work with the Demon Hunters to fight back against the God of War, his Majesty!

Those wretched bastards!

With the grudge in his heart, he conveyed his thoughts to the higher-ups of the Inquisition, then he was sent here.

The higher-ups of the Inquisition assigned this mission to him, granting him maximum authority.

Now, he could do more than just assign the Apologetics Chivalry of the cathedral, he could even move all the known spies on the list, yet the captain did not do so.

In his point of view, it would be best to lay low and not cause a scene, therefore he needed Gino.

A pawn on the bright side to cover the assasination of the spies.

With Gino attracting all the attention, the spy in the dark could maximize his potential. Besides, this young knight here, who was obviously bewitched by a heretic, would surely attract the heretics’ attention with his appearance, he was the best bait!

If it wasn’t for the bait, why would Sean be here?

A guy with weak willpower like Gino should be pinned on the stake and burned to death, that would be the best place for him.

His heart filled with disdain and killer intents, but his face showing anguish, the captain walked closer to Gino.

“This is just a test! Do you understand me? This test is to see whether or not you can be independent!”

The voice with slight disappointment made the absent-minded Gino lift his head, the young man’s face showing bewilderment.

The captain did not avert his gaze, instead looking straight at him.

“What we face isn’t just monsters that bear fangs and claws, we also have to face those wretched and tempting words. Before we move forward, the latter is much scarier, it will rob your body of its strength, rush your sword. As a person who is favoured, everyone has to go through the test just now… and Gino, you have failed the test,” sighed the captain.

“Failed? I’ve failed? It was all a test just now?” muttered the young man. Then, as if he was reborn, he stood up suddenly, grabbing the captain’s arm and saying excitedly, “Captain Sean, give me another chance! Give me another chance!”

The strength of his hands, the arousing words, all of those made the captain understand that the young man before his eyes remained simple and naive.

A young man that had never seen the dark side would never grow.

Sean chuckled in his heart when he thought of the famous saying in the Inquisition.

He didn’t care whether or not it was a lie, all he cared about was completing his mission.

As for the sense of guilt?

He was troubled by it the first time, but then, he slowly got used to it and forgot about it.

An orphan without any special gifts, what was there to remember?

The thought in his heart made the captain perform with more calm.

“I can give you another chance! But bear in mind, this is the last chance, and if you fail, you will lose everything,” said the captain solemnly.

“I understand,” the young man also replied solemnly.

“Very well. Follow me.”

The captain then turned around and walked out. Since he was so confident, he did not notice that the moment he turned around, the solemn look on Gino’s face suddenly turned gloomy.

‘Same! It’s exactly the same as the voice said! I was abandoned a long time ago, if they didn’t need me for something… I’d be executed right away.’

The young man curled up his hands into fists, his nails sinking deep into his flesh.

Pain suffused him, making him feel like he was going to suffocate, but he didn’t stop there, he followed the captain outside.

He wanted to live.

……

“Cough, cough, cough.”

Pinching the red ruby from Edatine royal court, Bloody Mary lightly coughed.

It has been a while since it spoke in that gloomy, eerie tone, especially in a place like the cathedral, it pounded its heart furiously. If it wasn’t for its boss, it would never have come.

But…

“The limits on God of War are much bigger than we thought. Southern? Hehehe, the south!”

Bloody Mary thought of something and couldn’t help but reveal a trace of delight in its eyes.

The situation at hand had finally turned from a passive one to an active one.

Next?

It would be its on-stage performance once more!

Getting hold of the initiative wasn’t enough, the boss wanted absolute victory! Therefore it must work hard towards that goal!

Returning to the palace via phasing underground, Bloody Mary appeared in the small council room. The moment it appeared, it transformed into Edatine VI with a crown, the tall physique, gleaming eyes, and aged face looking refreshed after the transformation.

When Bloody Mary opened the door of the small council hall, the royal guardians in the area obviously noticed the changes on their king.

Everyone felt delighted without surprise.

A father that longed for his son’s return was finally able to see it happen before his eyes, and after a good rest, it would be strange if the king didn’t look refreshed, right?

As for his presence that grew fierce and keen?

It was also good news for the royal guardians!

How many years had it been since they last saw their king present himself in such a sharp form?

It was great!

Sensing the aroused emotions in the royal guardian members’ heart, Bloody Mary nodded in subtle acknowledgement, then it asked, “Where’s Colin?”

“His Highness is heading to the Upper Seventh Ring…” replied the royal guardians honestly.

Bloody Mary listened nonchalantly and after the guardians finished reporting, it said, “Summon Monte over.”

“Yes, Sire,” the guardian quickly left to carry out the order.

Around five minutes later, Monte appeared before Bloody Mary.

“Your Majesty,” the vassal bowed and greeted.

“What happened?” Bloody Mary asked dumbly, but the vassal knew what his king was asking.

What else was more important and more concerning to the king than the prince right now?

“It’s the people from Silent Night Secret Society, they somehow unintentionally offended his Highness, so they wanted a peaceful meeting to solve the misunderstanding,” the vassal reported honestly.

“Silent Night Secret Society? They are not people who are good with words. Last night when I was resting, what happened throughout Edatine?” asked Bloody Mary.

“A fire broke out at Etorin Tailor and the old tailor is dead. At the same time, there’s a body of a Silent Night Secret Society member found at the scene. Based on what we know and what happened after that, the old tailor seemed to be an armed priest and rather powerful. Both of them must have perished together in a fierce fight,” said the vassal.

“Etorin, eh? Oh, Monte, things are not as simple as you thought. He isn’t just a tailor or a spy,” Bloody Mary chuckled.

Immediately, Monte shuddered.

‘Not just a tailor or a spy? Meaning, he must have other identities!

But of course, none of that is important, the important thing is Sire is telling me all this!

He never told me any of this in the past, could it be… His Highness?’

Monte thought carefully and unconsciously looked at Bloody Mary.

“You should be made clear about something now, because there are many trivial things that Colin needs your help with,” said Bloody Mary as it turned back into the small council room.

As excited as he could be, Monte, looking at Edatine VI’s back, inhaled deeply several times before he walked in.

The door was closed once more.

The royal guardians stood guard outside the door, the secret agents were all over the place, as if an iron defense was put up, and not even a fly could pass through.

Anyone who saw the level of security would only think of one thing: safe.

However, most of the time, the safest place was also the most dangerous place, because people knew it was safe, hence all the eyes on it, watching every move and action.

A quarter of an hour later, the news of Monte going into the small council room had spread to the cathedral.

Captain Sean, who was performing the last preparation, locked his brows tightly when he heard the news.

Monte wasn’t an easily aroused person, he was as cunning as a rat or a fox, the only thing that could arouse that old fox must be Etorin’s matter…

Some deep thoughts later, he walked to the praying room of the cathedral.

The moment he entered the room, the captain sliced his palm. When blood started to drip, he pressed one side of his palm, allowing the blood to drop on the carvings of the mystical formation.

This was a communication method used only during an emergency.

Sean never used it before, but this time, he thought he’d put it to good use.

“What’s the matter?” A cold voice sounded.

“I think there’s something wrong about Etorin,” said Captain Sean without a single doubt.