The Devil's Cage

Kieran opened the door.

He saw the people kneeling down before his door, but he remained as dull and expressionless as ever.

However, a sense of hesitance flashed in his eyes, and in the end, he nodded.

"I'll try my best to save you," said Kieran.

"Thank you so much, merciful Majesty!"

"I will devote my life in following you!"

"I will only believe in you from now on!"

...

The cries went away, joyous cheers swirling in the space in front of the house.

The lord of Gordor, who was the elderly man in plain clothing, was also cheering among the crowd.

The lord of Gordor was smiling but his eyes were cold and had a sense of mockery.

A demigod, so what?

As long as his weaknesses were exposed, a mortal could take him down!

After all, a demigod still wasn't a true God.

"Lord Gordor."

A whisper sounded in his ear, causing him to quickly switch his cold eyes back to a tender gaze. He turned around and saw a slightly nervous Luphus. He asked, "What's wrong, Wise Man Luphus?"

"Can we speak somewhere else?" Luphus asked.

"Of course," the elderly nodded right away.

Soon, the two men crossed the mini tower and reached the streets of Gordor.

After getting further away from the frantic crowd, all of whom were eager to survive the plague, Luphus looked even uglier, because he saw a lot more people swarming over to Kieran's place.

Some brought stretchers with them and what was on top of the stretchers was self-explanatory.

"You told everyone about His Majesty's arrival?" Luphus looked into the elderly man's eyes.

"Yes. This is the only hope. I can't hold it to myself."

The elderly nodded and admitted his act, his face showinga perfectly-timed helplessness.

"Luphus, did you know that yesterday, more than 50 people in Gordor died, and the Plague of Decay was at its mildest level. Once the Plague of Decay spreads in it's full force, the whole of Gordor will become a dead city overnight. Do you wish for something like that to happen?" the elderly asked.

"Of course I don't want that to happen. This is my home, I want it to be safe! But… do you know His Majesty?" Luphus asked slowly, his tone stern after the little pause.

"No, but I've prepared for the worst. I'll bear all the responsibility alone."

The elderly man had a calm look, as if he was going off to face death, presenting himself as a fearless man.

Luphus stared at the fearless expression blankly. In the end, he shook his head and turned back to the mini tower.

The elderly man watched Luphus go through the mini tower and reach the manor beyond the walls before he smiled coldly.

"Don't be careless."

A voice from the shadow reminded the elderly man.

"How could I be careless? This is a rare opportunity, I'll be as careful as possible. What about you?"

The elderly kept his cold smile, his lips moving and his whisper entering the shadows.

"The news will soon spread all over Yort Fields. Everyone infected will swarm this place and beg for treatment from His Majesty. I hope… he can really cure that many people."

The voice in the shadow showed mockery with his words.

How could a demigod do anything about a plague even a real God couldn't cure?

If he really could, what would they become?

His food?

"Of course he can! Don't forget, Gods and humans are different!"

The lord of Gordor smiled and turned to the streets. The figure in the shadow followed him quietly.

Soon, the duo reached a house at the edge of Gordor Land that was on lockdown because of the outbreak. The elderly man simply walked inside.

Kak!

The elderly man shuttled through the house like it was his own backyard and opened the secret passage hidden in the corner of the house.

"My lord."

A guard greeted the lord of Gordor from the secret passage. The elderly man waved his hand and the figure that had been hiding in the shadow came out too.

A white robe, a kind face, it would leave an impression at first sight.

The Wandering Doctor Ager.

"Doctor Ager," The guard greeted.

Unlike the elderly man's overpowering demeanor, the doctor bowed at the guards, who possessed decent fighting capabilities, before he walking deeper into the passage.

At the end of the secret passageway, a large hall, as big as two football fields, came into sight.

A cone-shaped glass container that looked like a funnel stood straight in the middle of the large hall. A gray colored liquid was rumbling inside, as if it was boiling, gurgling bubbles coming out of it.

The bubbles didn't fly away though, still contained within the instrument. They went through a 30 meter long spiral tube before dripping into a normal sized beaker.

Unlike the gray colored liquid in the big container, after the liquid went through the spirals, it transformed into a pinkish green tone.

Pink and green were normal colors but when they were mixed together in that beaker, it became something rotten, something disgusting.

The lord of Gordor walked to the beaker, carefully inspecting the concoction in the beaker.

When he saw the beaker was almost half full, the elderly lord couldn't hold back his smile.

"A decent progress. It's much faster than we thought. We can soon finish the collecting process."

The elderly lord voiced his anticipation.

"It's quite normal to be honest. After all, many died because of this. As the plague continues to spread, with even more death coming, the collection speed will be even faster," said the doctor in a casual tone.

"So I guess… happy working together?"

The elderly lord turned to Doctor Ager and the doctor extended his hand without saying anything.

They shook hands and smiled together. Their smiles looked sincere but in reality?

Hmph!

After Doctor Ager left the premise, the elderly lord grunted coldly. He took out a potion and rubbed it over his palm, the one that shook the doctor's hand.

A cold, killer intent flashed in the eyes of the elderly lord, but soon enough, it was tucked into the deepest parts of his heart.

It wasn't time yet, there was a little bit more to go.

He still had to be patient.

...

When the doctor returned to the streets, he strode over to the only post office in town.

"Carrier pigeons! I need more carrier pigeons! I want to deliver good news to the people out there, to those who are suffering from the Plague of Decay!"

The pigeons flew out, one after another.

They were flying towards many locations all over Yort Fields.

They carried delightful news with them.

Of course, the news wasn't about a demigod trying to cure the Plague of Decay. It was something more hidden, more profound.

An hour later, the doctor finally left the post office.

His kind and smiling face was full of anticipation.