The Devil’s Cage

‘Who is the strongest?’

The Inhumans were stunned when they heard what Kieran said.

They had to choose the strongest as a representative to negotiate with Kieran?

Or… was he preparing to make an example out of the strongest?

No one knew what Kieran meant but there was still someone who walked out from the Inhuman group.

A tall and fit young man with a handsome face came out. The young man wore a blue and white chinese robe and despite it being tainted with blood, it did not diminish his countenance.

It even made the young man look a little bewitching.

The Inhumans didn’t say anything to stop or object the young man, it seemed like the young man was indeed the strongest among the Inhumans who stayed, but when Kieran saw the young man, he frowned.

Weak!

Too weak!

Weaker than he expected!

This Inhuman young man was even worse than Song Shi.

Even Song Shi…

The question popped up in Kieran’s mind and was quickly discarded with a shake of head, but his shake of head was misunderstood by the young man who walked out.

“Dear sir, you don’t agree that I am the strongest in the group?”

Even though he was scared of Kieran’s powers, he asked nevertheless because it was related to his pride.

Besides, he didn’t think Kieran would do anything to him.

When the two ox and horse monsters slaughtered the other monsters, Kieran told his subordinates to avoid hitting the Inhumans, plus the other Herders standing behind him. It was enough evidence to prove that Kieran was on the Herder’s side.

The Herders and Inhumans were allies and it was widely known.

From a certain aspect, the Herders had to rely on the Inhumans, so whenever the Inhumans faced the Herders, they had a natural advantage and this kind of advantage would sometimes cause them to make the wrong decision.

Kieran didn’t care about the question asked, he wanted to leave after getting what hs sought.

The young Inhuman got anxious when he saw Kieran leaving.

“Wait, make yourself clear be-…”

The Inhuman tried to stop Kieran but when the words escaped his mouth, Kieran blasted his killer glare at the Inhuman. The sheer coldness struck the Inhuman like a bolt of lightning, making him stagger back a few steps and fall on the ground on his last wobbly step.

Pam!

He fell on the ground in a very ugly posture, but none of his peers laughed at him because they too were frightened by the killer glare from Kieran’s eyes. It was cold and chilly, like snow during June!

None of the Inhumans dared to speak as they saw Kieran and company walking away.

They were horrified beyond words.

Before running into Kieran, they had never thought a person could be this scary, a single glare could cause the heart to pound anxiously.

After seeing Kieran and co. off, the Inhumans looked at each other with confused looks. They had no idea what Kieran wanted to do.

To be honest, even Paladia, Lucan, and Pangnard behind Kieran felt as doubtful as the Inhumans, so it was natural that the unfamiliar Inhumans knew nothing.

As for the minotaur and horseman?

Both monsters were there to carry out Kieran’s orders only, they didn’t think that much.

Both of them were enjoying the sunlight which was the ability that they had gained through hardship, they were pretty excited.

[Seodi Stone] might bind them with shackles, but it also granted them protection, at least they wouldn’t have to hide like mice from the sunlight.

The minotaur moved its hoof over the horseman’s shadow and stepped on it happily; the horseman used its greatsword and poked the minotaur’s shadow, as if it was really poking the real thing.

Both monsters were playing around like kids.

The delight lasted until the group got out of the city and arrived at the edge of the outskirts.

“My lord, the predator is in this area!”

“Please be careful!”

The minotaur and horseman warned Kieran.

“By predator you mean the crocodile head, chicken body monster that can flap in silence?” Paladia asked.

“Yes! You’ve ran into that monster?! I guess you are still alive because the lord is beside you, right?”

The minotaur nodded and replied with his question.

Paladia’s face turned sour, grunting and then turning away.

He ought to argue with the bull, but what it said was the truth.

If it wasn’t for Kieran, Paladia might have ended up in that monster chicken’s stomach.

Pangnard then walked up to Paladia and asked him softly about the encounter with the predator. After getting the general idea, the coastal area Herder looked even heavier.

This place was much scarier than he thought.

There were monsters lurking around, regardless of day or night.

If he would move alone, it would be hard for him to assure his own safety because humans required rest.

No one could guarantee to open their eyes and stay awake while taking a rest, so teaming up became a must.

Fortunately!

Pangnard looked at Lucan and then Kieran and Paladia, heaving a breath of relief.

Lucan’s strength was undoubted and Kieran was ridiculously strong.

Paladia also performed great back in the temporary campsite. Although he wasn’t the strongest, he could easily be in top 10, and Pangnard was suspecting that Paladia was hiding his trump card, like himself.

So if Pangnard had such a team around him, he could be rest assured about security.

However… Pangnard quietly looked at Kieran, feeling the man was too hard for him to grasp and understand, like what he did just now was totally unnecessary in Pangnard’s point of view.

When the Inhumans and monsters appeared and fought, leaving quietly and hiding the ox and horse monsters as a trump card for a critical moment was probably the best choice.

Plus that question for the Inhumans, asking who was the strongest, it also confused Pangnard badly but he knew how much he was worth so he did not ask why.

He didn’t want to break the seemingly ideal situation, or rather, he knew how much he was worth in Kieran’s heart.

The group moved forward with the minotaur and horseman taking the lead. They then arrived at a forest, the horseman sniffing before it snorted.

“My lord, this place is free of those bastard’s scent. It’s safe!” said the horseman.

“Set up camp.”

Kieran looked around to double check and then he nodded.

The minotaur and horseman quickly went to work.

Both of them swung their weapons and cleared out an empty space in the woods, Paladia building a fire in the center.

Lucan, who was injured, fell asleep beside the fire when it was built.

Pangnard went hunting for several rabbits in the woods.

He cleaned and cut the rabbits skillfully, skewering them and placing them over the fire, the aroma of roasted rabbit spreading a while later.

“Wanna have a taste?” Pangnard asked the minotaur and horseman.

Although both of them were monsters, since everyone was on the same side, getting to know each other wasn’t a bad thing.

In Pangnard’s point of view, buying their hearts with food was an easy task.

In fact, in the eyes of most of the Herders, they viewed the monsters in a plain way. Other than a grudge, what was left in the monsters were purely predatory instinct.

However, what monsters eat and what humans eat were different altogether, so when Pangnard was roasting the rabbit, he purposely added in some soul shards.

Soul shard, the crystallization of a soul.

There’s a percentage to obtain one when eliminating evil spirits.

It was one of the necessary items for alchemy and also the favourite food for monsters.

Though the minotaur and horseman weren’t tempted by the invitation because they were staring at Kieran, or more accurately, Kieran’s backpack.

The backpack contained the food Starbeck prepared for Kieran.

The minotaur and horseman yearned for a taste, hoping that Kieran would spare them some food from his backpack. The food inside made them drool and if the backpack wasn’t Kieran’s, they would have snatched it.

Kieran wasn’t bothered by the stares from the minotaur and horseman at all, reaching out to his backpack and taking out a food container.

Gravy beef rice.

The gravy was frozen into jelly and wrapped around the rice.

When the container was placed on the fire for a few minutes, a rich aroma filled the mini camp.

Lucan woke up from his sleep, Paladia also came back from his deep thoughts, and Pangnard was the first to be attracted.

Even more so when Kieran opened the container, the aroma exploded and spread in every direction, far stronger than before.

The minotaur and horseman looked at Kieran with a pitiful look while they drolled.

After they realized Kieran wouldn’t even spare a glance at them, they snatched the roasted rabbit from Pangnard while holding a grievance.

“Pui!”

“This is disgusting!”

“What kind of cooking is this?!”

“Waste of food!”

The minotaur and horseman stood on the same size and dissed the roasted rabbit without holding back.

What the f*ck?!

Pangnard felt so stupid because he thought of getting along with the two ox and horse monster. These kind of boorish, savage monsters could never be roped in!

After the heavy dissing, Kieran finished his first container.

The minotaur and horseman threw the rabbit away and ran to Kieran.

“My lord, do you need me to wash the container for you? Please leave it to me”

“No, my lord, leave it to me!”

The two monsters rubbed their hands, lowering their heads and speaking with flattery.

“No need.”

Kieran simply replied and put the empty container back into the backpack. Another new container was taken out and put beside the fire.

The two monsters went back to their spot like they had lost the battle of their lives, staring at the new food container and then picking up the roasted rabbit again.

“It’s like eating a candle.”

“It’s like eating the fire beetle last time, the thin kind.”

Pangnard didn’t show any expression on his face as the conversation entered his ears but his heart was scolding them with the F word and the C word, greeting the monster’s family with all sorts of vulgarities in his mind.

The rich aroma exploded again after a few minutes.

The woods they were in failed to cover up the smell of Starbeck’s food, even though it wasn’t cooked on the spot.

Many animals were attracted to the camp by the smell but none of them dare to step closer to the landmine because of the presence of the minotaur and horseman.

However, not all were afraid of the two monsters.

ROAR!

A loud roar came from the sky.

The crocodile head chicken body predator appeared right above the group.

The minotaur and horseman grew back to their original size, picking up their respective weapons and looking at the predator in caution.

Lucan, Pangnard, and Paladia were nervous too, only Kieran reacting differently.

He sat there with his second food container calmly and opened it up.

Kak!

Inside the container were two giant buns.

The fillings were unknown but the golden caramelized exterior tingled their appetites, hence distracting the minotaur and horseman.

The Herders knew they should be alarmed in front of the predator but they couldn’t stop their noses from sniffing.

The aerial predator did the same also, shaking its crocodile head and diving down at the ground.

It came for food and with the smell tingling its senses, it wouldn’t just glide in the air without doing anything, but someone else was quicker.

A moment before the predator landed on the ground, a white handkerchief slapped the crocodile face!

“Go away!”

After a feminine shout, the giant aerial predator was sent flying away.

Kamboom!

It crashed through the wood, bringing down several big trees before crashing on the ground. It felt weak after landing, shaking its head, trying to stand up but it failed to do so.

It seemed like that slap wasn’t just sheer strength.

Lucan, Pangnard, and Paladia looked at the person who slapped the predator away in a heavy look.

The minotaur and horseman, who could perceive more, were very alarmed, like they were facing their greatest enemy.

However, the person wasn’t here for the Herders or the monsters. She used a very special moving technique, sliding through the guys and arriving in front of Kieran.

“I knew it! Only Roye can cook such good food with such a good smell! Spare me some? If you spare one third of your food, I will team up with you throughout the Battle of Winter NIght!”

As the lady stood on her feet, she voiced her proposition to Kieran but Kieran did not care, stuffing the second bun into his mouth.

The response from Kieran upset the lady, forcing her illusory tails and ears out but it was just a flash.

Paladia stared at the lady who stood before Kieran. She already felt familiar when he landed his first glance on her and after the ears and tails making an appearance, Paladia finally knew who he was looking at.

“Song Shi!” Paladia screamed in shock.

Lucan and Pangnard heard the name too and they looked even more nervous.

Song Shi wasn’t exactly a decent name among the Herders.

“You bastard!

Why are you always so cold?!

Don’t you want to become the victor of the battle?!

I tell you, I will stop you!”

If you don’t spare me food, I’ll make a mess!”

Song Shi said in an angry grunt.

She was the first of many Inhumans that left the city upon arrival, thinking about finding a quiet place for observation, but who knew she would pick up the smell first before she found an ideal spot.

Subconsciously, Song Shi chased the smell, and she had a guess where the smell came from. She wasn’t exactly surprised when she saw Kieran, though she didn’t think anyone else other than Roye could cook such food, similar to the fact that she didn’t think there would be another person who was as cold as a rock as Kieran.

They were considered familiar acquaintances and yet Kieran did not spare any food for her.

“There won’t be a victor in this Battle of Winter Night,” Kieran shook his head.

“What do you mean?” Song Shi frowned.

Although she hated Kieran, she knew Kieran wasn’t a person who would draw attention with fancy words.

In short, Song Shi believed Kieran must have discovered something to be saying something like that.

Under Song Shi’s curious gaze, Kieran took out the watch he got from Daliphen before he entered this city and tossed it into the fire. Song Shi tossed hers into the fire right away too and did not even hesitate about it. She did not care about those watches, she was curious about what Kieran found out.

With the restrains from [Seodi Stone], Paladia had no choice but to follow.

Lucan followed too simply because he believed in the person who saved his life.

Pangnard hesitated for a while before he too mimicked everyone by tossing the watch into the fire. He didn’t want to get kicked off this little group.

After everyone tossed their watches into the fire, Kieran looked at Song Shi and said, “It’s simple, we were all deceived. We are in a giant trap now, especially people like you. You’ve become someone else’s hostage.”