The Devil's Cage

The golden accessories on the Prairies King were shining in a lively manner under the sun, showing off the prestigious presence of a King.

That wild wolf pelt that he wore over his shoulder even added an extra layer of impressiveness and dignified manner to him.

The Prairies King turned his head around casually as he was riding on his horse.

Roar!

A sudden roar of wolf sounded in Kieran's ears.

The Prairie King who had been in his human form had suddenly transformed into a giant white wolf, bigger than a horse and stronger than an ox!

The giant white wolf threw itself at Kieran with its mouth wide open.

Fear notifications kept popping out at his vision.

Although it was just an illusion created by the Prairie King's aura, the Fire Raven that shared a connection with Kieran and was tasked in surveying over the cliffs couldn't help but flapped its wing in panic, as though it saw some fearsome mortal enemy of its kind.

The defending troops over Lightning Fortress wobbled and staggered before falling to the ground like drunkards.

The Raven and Viper Sect members were affected by that fearsome aura as well but they were much stronger than common soldiers. All of them shivered for a little while before returning to normal, still, from the looks on their face, they were frightened as well.

Especially Maxim, Celty and the other Raven Sect members who had seen the Prairie King before, each of them exchanged gazes of anxiety.

They had tried to think highly of the Prairie King's strength but from the looks of the situation, they'd still underestimated him by a mile.

Some of them even exchanged gazes secretly, obviously having alternative thoughts in their mind.

Though Mary wasn't affected because Kieran stood in front of her and blocked the aura, but the surroundings allowed the girl to know how fearsome the King was.

The Prairies King didn't even need to show himself, all he needed was a blast of his aura and the entire troops were utterly routed.

The scene was far beyond what the girl could imagine.

"2567…"

The girl wanted to dissuade Kieran out of worry but Kieran shook his head.

With his main mission binding him down and even triggering the special event, Kieran had no room for retreats.

He placed his hand over Mary's head and his eyes were glancing over the Viper and Raven Sect members, the "allies" that already sounded a retreat before even truly fighting in the battlefield.

Perry Kaner wasn't showing any weakness from her stance and returned her own gaze at Kieran. Her mouth was grinning into a mocking smile as she was planning to see what Kieran had in mind.

Maxim, on the other hand, lowered his head without any hesitation after he caught Kieran's gaze. After being blasted by the Prairie King's aura, the Raven Sect recorder instantly put away his wild ambitions.

Kieran hadn't much thought about Perry Kaner's mocking glance. The contract that he formed with her was forceful will and if he wanted Perry Kaner to smile at him in times like this, it wouldn't be normal either.

Though, Maxim was a little disappointing. Having ambitions wasn't scary enough, the scary thing was that he didn't possess the ability and bearing to grasp his ambitions.

Kieran finally understood why the Raven Sect had suffered an internal splintering for so long after that.

Kieran could tell what the rest of the Raven Sect masters were like from the sole look at Maxim's behavior. If only they could be a little more persistent or stubborn, they might have already given birth to a new Crown Raven a while ago.

"A bunch of lobbyists", recalling what Mary said before, Kieran somehow felt the truth of those words.

The Raven Sect was no longer the king of the skies that burned everything with the flames in their hand which was recorded in "Words of Sects". Following the disappearance of the Crown Raven, the current Raven Sect was nothing but a bald crow that couldn't be of any use other than making noise.

"If you people wished to leave, leave now! There will be a war to the death right here afterward" Kieran said slowly.

Just as Kieran's words subsided, most of the Raven Sect members left in a hurry. They didn't even bother to greet Kieran, similar to when they arrived.

Kieran didn't feel like holding back those who left. He knew clearly if he were to force them to stay, those with alternatives would cause more accidents during the war, might as well let them leave.

However, to Kieran's surprise, Maxim who dare not even look Kieran in the eyes before, rallied Celty and a couple more members staying back.

"I have no other choice… I am afraid to die but I've bet my life on you, my lord! All I can do is risk it!"

Maxim was the obvious leader among the remaining Raven Sect members and when the recorder saw Kieran's gaze again, he didn't dodge it this time but smiled bitterly.

"I'll try my best to not let you down," Kieran replied before turning to Perry Kaner.

"If you are willing to cancel the contract, I will lead my men away immediately!"

Perry Kaner spoke her mind directly.

"Well, thank you for your help by staying back!"

Kieran didn't go along with her conversation but bowed to express his gratitude.

Perry Kaner grunted coldly at his pretending act.

"Although our numbers have decreased a lot, it's more than I expect… So everyone's mission will be much easier." Kieran said in a decent voice before the remaining crowd.

"Everyone in Viper Sect, I need you to show off your best assassination moves and Raven Sect will tell you which targets are you going after."

Kieran wasn't giving a motivational speech but simply assigning tasks.

"What about you, "my lord"?" Perry Kaner tried to pry more information out of him.

Kieran looked at the collaborator who obviously had alternatives in her mind, he couldn't help but smile. He pointed at where the aura came from and said, "It's king versus king from here on, wanna join?"

"Hmph!"

Another cold grunt later, Perry Kaner didn't pay further attention to Kieran.

The contract with Kieran and the vows of the Viper Sect might bring severe consequences if violated but it was better than dying for it.

The blast of aura from that Prairie King robbed the intention of battle from the Viper Sect leader.

Perry Kaner's eyes towards Kieran suddenly had a sense of sympathy because, from her point of view, Kieran was going to die.

Why though?

Perry Kaner turned her eyes to Mary. She really couldn't understand how a little girl before even hitting puberty had such charm.

Mary too felt the gaze from Perry Kaner but she didn't care, her attention was placed at Kieran.

"We can still leave." The little girl said softly, she even purposely lowered her voice but still, it couldn't escape the ears of the others who bore intentions.

Those who stayed back weren't idiots by any means, every one of them was worried that they might be the discarded pawn just to cover a retreat.

"If we do, where would we go? The Prairie King's ambition isn't just to plunder and raid Warren, he wanted the whole region for himself and expand his territory. As Warren royalty, no matter where you go to, there will be mercenaries and bounty hunters that will come for your life like a flock of birds and exchange it for rewards with the Prairie King."

Kieran tapped the little girl's head again. It seemed to turn into a habit of recent.

"2567, you can protect me!" She said out of instinct.

"En! But I prefer to be more active than passive. Rather than waiting for danger to descend upon us, why not eliminate the danger while it's still in the cradle?"

Kieran nodded and before Mary could refute anymore, he waved at Fanner and Jyaichi further away who were donning a thick and tight mantle.

"My master!"

The traitors of the Viper Sect bowed at Kieran with respect under the [Mesly Ring]'s effect.

"Protect Mary till my return!"

Kieran then took a step back and merged himself into the shadow.

Mary reached out to him and wanted to hold him back but all she grasp was a handful of air.

"2567…"

Mary uttered softly.

Her despondent feeling made her feel a loss of actions and words. She raised her head and saw through the men who were protecting her, she saw Perry Kaner with her arms crossed waiting for a good show.

She saw Maxim with a pale face that looked like utter despair.

The others didn't care, didn't smile nor will they support Kieran's endeavor, all she saw was a bunch of living dead who acted perfunctorily.

"No! No! These people can't share 2567's burden, instead, they will drag him down!"

"I...I...I will lose 2567 like this!"

The thought appeared in Mary's heart and fear spread like a plague in her, as though the despair when she lost her mother descended upon her again.

"No! I don't want to! I've lost my mother! I can't lose 2567 again!"

She screamed in her heart, screaming at her weakness and her urge to avoid reality. Her scream forced her to properly look at the problem in front of her.

The fear of losing Kieran gave her courage. She forced herself in calming down and started to recall Kieran's plans.

Soon, the despondent feeling vanished from the girl's face and all that was left was a steady expression.

Perry Kaner who was staring at the girl was stunned. She didn't expect the girl would recuperate so fast.

However, neither the Viper Sect leader nor the little girl noticed that the [Thorn Blade] that Mary has been carrying with her since was vibrating softly even without anyone controlling it.

It shook for a second and returned to its stillness.

It might seem like nothing special but it was like a seed being planted into the soil, as long as it had enough time, it would grow into a giant tree that pierced even the sky!