The Devil's Cage

Harvest Inn, the gathering spot for a portion of the lone wolf players.

During dungeon intervals, many players would gather at the place to trade off the spoils of war from the previous dungeons. Most of the deals made were scattered but when some Rare items appeared in the inn, bigger dealing ranges would take form.

The only exception was whenever Lemour the Alchemist appeared in the inn.

Fortunately, the alcoholic alchemist wasn't in the Harvest Inn that day.

Lawless who always lingered in the inn wasn't present either.

After sending a message to Lawless, Kieran glanced over the handful of customers in the inn.

Rachel, the owner was behind the bar counter, wiping her glasses. Her blonde hair shone brilliantly under the lights, even her purple bib pants and white shirt were reflecting the lights, making her look very energetic and experienced with an added layer of exoticness.

Though, the usual lone wolf players of the inn knew the true nature of the female owner. No one dared to take an extra look at her as they turned their head down, minding their own business.

Therefore, none of them saw Rachel's absent-minded state when Kieran walked in.

"Crow…" Rachel mumbled like a fly's buzz and stared at Kieran blankly.

The black figure plus the new Fire Raven on his left shoulder converged with the image in her memories buried deep in her heart which she still hadn't forgotten.

"Hey, Rachel!" Kieran reached out to greet her.

"Hmm!"

Rachel replied with a cold tone and tilted her head down in silence. She looked like she was wiping the glasses but the white linen cloth in her hands had completely stopped working.

Rachel then turned around, showing her back to Kieran. Droplets of water started to wet the white linen cloth in her hands.

Kieran was looking at the scene awkwardly as he touched his nose.

He couldn't be as reckless and carefree as when he was with Lawless though. Although Kieran acknowledged Rachel as a friend, the difference between man and woman prevented Kieran to act naturally like he did with Lawless.

Kieran knew that he wasn't skilled in handling such a situation, so he directly went over to Raven sitting in the other corner.

"A decent companion!"

Raven said after inspecting the Fire Raven on Kieran's shoulder.

It was the first thing Raven said when Kieran sat down, however, Kieran went directly to the point. "Where's the player selling the companion contract?"

Since he stepped into Harvest Inn, Kieran glanced over the available players at the place.

Other than Raven, there were couple more lone wolf players yet none of them were showing items to trade or screenshots of items.

"There!"

Raven pointed at the other corner of the inn without any wasteful words and continued caressing the cat in his arms with his head down.

Kieran carefully observed the cat in Raven's arms but it was just a stray cat of the big city, there was nothing special about it.

Raven then went quiet again. It also added another layer of understanding to Kieran's impression of the title Loner.

Kieran then went over to the direction that Raven pointed without caring whether the person at the other corner saw him or not.

Harvest Inn wasn't big by any means. It would only take a few big steps to reach the other corner.

As Kieran went over to the potential seller, he pulled out the chair of his table and sat down.

"You have the companion contract?"

"Hmm."

The player nodded and pulled out a screenshot.

[Name: Companion Contract]

[Type: Contract]

[Rarity: Magic]

[Attribute: Form a contract with any life form that fits the regulations, to become your companion and fight with you. (Doesn't include natives)]

[Prerequisite: None]

[Remark: You can choose any life form within the regulations, cats, dogs, even birds. As long as you aren't afraid of their death!]

....

Below the screenshot was a price tag of 100,000 Points. An optimal price on the market.

Kieran glanced over the [Companion Contract] and sent out a trade request before placing his eyes on the player himself.

A camouflage bulletproof vest with a big handgun at his waist, the gun model was concealed but it should be a unique one. Under the vest was a military outfit, together with, multi-purpose military pants plus a pair of military boots.

If it wasn't for that big handgun, the person would look like a newbie player that had just purchased a set of armor from the system shop.

"Disguise? Or something else that I don't know off?" Kieran wondered after his habitual commentating.

Surprisingly, the player rejected the trade request.

"2567?" The player asked.

Even though with a covered face, Kieran could pick up the disdainful tone from his words and tone.

Kieran raised a brow and kept quiet, waiting for a follow-up reaction.

"I, General will never sell things to anyone who is related to that fricking bastard Lawless!" He said.

General? Kieran suddenly went into deep thoughts, and moments later he recalled the conversation that he had with Lawless before.

"General? That business grabbing prick hasn't died yet? That bastard is a business competitor in my mercenary business. Not too strong, though his reputation was guaranteed!"

As the conversation floated in Kieran's mind, he knew this trade was off.

Lawless wasn't a saint, he too had friends and enemies.

Kieran and Lawless were friends and General before him wasn't really Lawless's enemy but definitely a rival.

Even though both of them hadn't reached the fighting stages, sneering and mocking between the two was inevitable.

The enemy of my enemy is my friend.

So what would the rival of my friend be?

Enemy! Without a doubt!

Kieran stood up and walked off without a second thought.

Kieran never had the intentions of staying on and try to work on the deal either.

While enjoying the convenience that Lawless brought him, would he still wish for Lawless's rival to have a decent conversation with him?

Kieran wasn't that naive nor did he have a thick face.

Since the deal was off, Kieran didn't plan on staying in Harvest Inn for long.

He would leave the place after he greeted Rachel again. Though before Kieran could utter a word, Rachel presented him with a glass of wine.

[Name: Orange Light Sorante]

[Type: Wine]

[Rarity: Fresh]

[Attribute: Recover 100 HP within 10 seconds, recovery rate increased by +100%]

[Prerequisite: None]

[Remark: This is a special cocktail cooked up by Rachel, the taste is nothing special but it has a special effect!]

...

Kieran took up the glass of cocktail and looked at Rachel with a confused face.

"Drink it! It's good for you!" Rachel said softly.

"Do I have a choice?" Kieran smiled and toasted his glass.

With much experience in talking with Rachel, when she spoke with such a tone, it was definitely a serious one, so it would be best for Kieran to play along.

More so, Kieran believed that Rachel wouldn't hurt him.

So, bottoms up!

The wine in the glass was a little harsh on the smell but it tasted sour and sweet and wasn't as spicy as it smelled.

"A little fruit j…"

Before the word "juice" could escape his mouth, Kieran plunged his head on to the wine bar as snores echoed the area.

Just before Kieran fell asleep, the system notification popped up before him.

[Player consumed Osiris Brew…]

...