The Devil’s Cage

This ‘body’ didn’t spring up suddenly; instead, it moved slowly.

If one didn’t place any attention on the ‘body’, no one, including Wilberst and his collaborator, who were engaged in battle, would ever notice the slight movements.

The punch and claw collided, causing a blast of air upon impact, wreaking havoc across the hall.

The ceiling, floor and walls were swiftly torn apart after the glass containers and other furniture. A dust storm brewed uncontrollably and clouded the entire hall.

All traces seemed to vanish in the dust clouds, but both Wilberst and his collaborator didn’t mind revealing their location.

“Cook? Wilberst? This is interesting,” said the collaborator in his cold, gloomy voice.

“Yes, it is interesting. Erbus. K, the revered Marquis K that just came back from the dead. I bet that even the Monster Hunter D isn’t aware that he had killed a substitute, correct? And I never thought my collaborator would be a Blood Kin!” Wilberst exclaimed as if it were really an interesting story.

But as a matter of fact?

His body was quietly moving, not towards the place where Erbus. K’s voice was coming from, but towards the place where the cone was.

Compared to fighting Erbus. K, Wilberst cared more about the cone, and he knew his collaborator was thinking the same as well.

Throughout the whole process, Wilberst was very careful.

The cone had already drifted away from the place where it first landed because of the powerful wind, but, even with a thunderous blast, Wilberst was able to lock onto the cone’s exact location a moment before the dust storm swept across the hall.

Ten steps!

Five steps!

Three steps!

Just when Wilberst was nearing the location where he remembered the cone to be before the dust storm, he stopped and didn’t move to take it right away. He waited instead.

When his nose picked up a stinging bloody stench, he curled his lips into a grin. He infused his power into his right punch and launched it in the direction where the blood reeked.

…

Before going into the collaboration, Erbus. K had known its collaborator was a cunning and sinister person.

Therefore, before the sound broke out, it moved.

It wanted the cone desperately, it had planned for countless years just to get his hands on the thing.

It was eager and, at the same time, confident.

Erbus. K knew what its advantages were!

Speed!

It had been hiding its true speed!

Its speed was something Wilberst couldn’t compete with.

Everything unfolded as Erbus. K expected—it beat Wilberst to the location where the cone landed and scooped it up without a second thought, but…

He got nothing!

There was nothing in the location where it remembered the cone landing!

Was it beaten to it?

Erbus. K was stunned, the aura on its body shaking uncontrollably, and almost out of instinct, it thought of its collaborator, Wilberst.

But before Erbus. K could think of anything else, a ferocious force appeared behind it—

Wung!

Wilberst launched the punch that he had been charging up; it landed on Erbus. K’s body like a battering ram sieging a city.

Bang!

A sickening, heavy blow later, Erbus. K was sent flying away, its already pale face looking even uglier.

Based on its speed, it should have had the chance to dodge it, but it didn’t manage to because a formless restraining force bound it the moment he tried to dodge.

Not only that, the spot where he was punched was hurting him like he was burnt by fire.

He thought, ‘I am a Blood Kin, but this was set up specifically to target me?’

Erbus. K quickly reacted to the attack, rage filling its head. Its mouth grumbled heavily and its body that was sent flying did a sharp turnaround in mid-air, sending itself back to Wilberst.

Its bloody claws shone.

The claws looked like they were formed from blood; it appeared out of thin air above Wilberst’s head and slashed down.

Wilberst couldn’t help but laugh when he saw the bloody claws coming down for his head.

“That’s why I am willing to work with you inhumans! You believe whatever you hear and are easily infuriated! You are nothing compared to a human’s cunning and doubtful nature!”

Wilberst didn’t move or dodge the incoming bloody claws; when the claws truly touched Wilberst’s head, the bloody claws produced a sizzling noise before vanishing into thin air.

Wilberst, however, wasn’t unscathed either. His clothes were torn to shreds by the bloody attacks, thus revealing a shining silver softmail underneath.

When this shining silver softmail dazzled, Erbus. K, who had jumped further away, growled in pain. Its body that was in mid-air felt like it was struck by lightning; it quickly retreated to the corridor outside the hall.

Erbus. K’s retreating speed made Wilberst shake his head in pity.

He couldn’t catch up with Marquis K—it was an indisputable fact.

Even though he had made preparations beforehand, all he managed to do was heavily wound Erbus. K, not killing it off.

“Too bad. If it really was the ‘Silver Sanction’, how could a petty Blood Kin escape like this?!” Wilberst sighed.

He then heaved a heavy breath.

Huu!

A strong gale appeared with his breath, blowing away the remaining dust from the hall swiftly.

Everything in the hall, including the cone, was within Wilberst’s sight again.

It was two steps away from where Wilberst remembered it to be, still floating in mid-air. Everything was clear to Wilberst now.

“The powerful wind caused it to deviate from its original position. Then that Blood Kin beat me to it, but didn’t get it and exposed its presence out of shock.”

Wilberst’s heart gave him a reasonable answer for the scene that had taken place. He took the cone.

The cone looked and weighed exactly the same as the one in his memories, and Wilberst couldn’t hold back his smile.

“You are mine,” Wilberst said.

He then walked out of the hall righteously.

Of course, he knew that Erbus. K was outside, but as long as he had the ‘Silver Sanction’ with him, even though it was only a replica with less power than the original and had a time limit, it was still enough to assure his victory for the time being.

As for what followed afterwards?

As long as he obtained the secret in his hand, what was a Blood Kin to him?

Even the Monster Hunters would no longer be a worry to him.

He would step up to the clouds and look down on all life.

The feeling must be great.

Thinking of the endless fantasy of his future, Wilberst walked faster. He went through the long, narrow corridor and reached the surface again.

Then, his strides stopped all of a sudden.

He saw the night of Eiders.

He saw that darkness that represented chaos.

He saw an abysmal figure that stood in the dark.

He saw—Death.