The Devil’s Cage

Under Kieran’s gaze, Swordsmith Alisritter’s aura grew slightly stronger after the forging.

It was slim but he really did grow stronger!

Kieran’s eyes squinted with judgement.

He wasn’t really surprised that players could grow stronger on their own because both [Knights of Dawn Body Tempering Art] and [Knights of Plague Body Tempering Art] were able to achieve that if given sufficient time.

However, getting stronger through external means like forging was a first for Kieran.

“Some kind of secret technique?” Kieran wondered in his heart, but he quickly turned away his prying gaze.

Everyone had their secrets, and they had the right to keep them.

Kieran had secrets of his own so he didn’t mind others keeping theirs either.

So, Kieran turned away and left without another look at Swordsmith Alisritter.

The scene had been enough to tell Kieran that the Swordsmith wasn’t the guy he was looking for.

The Swordsmith’s intricate “forging art” was not suitable to repair [Extreme Night].

Judging from a certain aspect, Alisritter wasn’t “forging” swords, he was forging himself. Any kind of sword that underwent his forging would become his own nutrients, strengthening himself.

Giving up the biggest reward of a dungeon to succeed a stranger?

Sorry, it wasn’t Kieran’s style.

“So I have to search for a suitable blacksmith in the dungeon worlds?” Kieran wondered.

He started to recall all his dungeon runs, trying to find out which one would have a blacksmith or someone of a similar job.

Without a doubt, [The Shaman’s Partner] had the highest chance, but in order for him to enter the said dungeon, there were still two more dungeon intervals first, [The Queen’s Shield III] and [Primordial Invasion III]. The duration wasn’t long by any means, but nor was it short either.

Kieran had no control over what kind of missions he would have to experience in the two said special dungeons or how long they would take. In simpler words, he couldn’t tell what he would run into.

Every single dungeon run was just the tip of the iceberg of what the world contained. Only through excavating would a player really see the truth beneath the surface, but what followed would be countless dangers as well.

Kieran, however, would not alter his already decided way of clearing a dungeon just because of the dangers. Not just because he had experienced the perks of his risky ways, but also because his foes forced him to do it this way, leaving him no space for return.

The strange and unusual Broker.

The mysterious Guardians.

No matter which, all of them had longer game time than him, thus also having a deeper understanding of the game than he did.

With such foes on the line, Kieran choosing to be passive would be suicidal for himself.

While Kieran was concentrating on thinking about his foes, his habitual vigilance was still swirling around him, therefore, when the aura behind him changed, he noticed it right away.

At the same time, he also noticed another faint malicious gaze from further away. It wasn’t from the Swordsmith but someone else.

“2567? Blade of the Daybreaker?”

Following the Swordsmith’s rough voice, a keen aura appeared on him, making him look like a real blade unsheathed, emanating glares and sending chills down one’s spine.

“Um.”

Kieran didn’t turn around nor stop to reply to the Swordsmith. Instead, he continued walking away.

As for the keen aura, Kieran ignored it completely.

A keen aura of this level was like a breeze caressing his face.

There was no need to care, it was not worth his time.

What concerned Kieran more was the malicious gaze instead; the owner seemed to be good at hiding, to the point that even Kieran couldn’t precisely locate the culprit despite noticing his presence.

“Interesting.” Swordsmith’s rough voice became more sonorous.

It seemed like the Swordsmith hadn’t spoken for a while, thus the rough voice at first, then his true voice, which was actually very sonorous.

Following his voice, a keener aura appeared on him.

If the previous keen aura was a common blade, this keener aura was like a famous sword, sharp and unrivaled, but that aura was soon interrupted by the scorching and chaotic one that appeared on Kieran suddenly.

When the scorching heat appeared, even famous swords could melt.

There weren’t any ripples caused, no waves rumbling around, the whole process was silent like drinking a gulp of water.

Kieran still didn’t turn back as he walked away.

“This is very interesting.”

The Swordsmith’s sonorous voice had an extra sense of excitement, but before he could make his move, an explosion occurred in the sky.

No, it was a roar that sounded like an explosion!

RAWR!

A sulphuric scent went rampant in the air, scorching heat starting to twist and distort the space around.

A gigantic, mega figure with straight horns that could pierce the sky faintly took form.

Following its gaze, the air was torn apart!

Its blazing eyes were emanating ruthlessness and overflowing with killer intents.

The scorching air blew at the Swordsmith’s face, hair and outfit, and even his hair started to burn, but he didn’t care at all.

He stared excitedly at the devil mirage, his grip on his giant hammer unconsciously growing tighter, but then the Swordsmith quickly frowned.

He remembered his long-time goal.

A new opponent might excite him but he couldn’t just forget his old rival as well. He wasn’t a person that abandoned the old in favour of the new.

Therefore, the Swordsmith held back his urge to battle the worthy opponent in front of him.

“After I finish my battle, can I fight you?”

His sonorous voice sounded with anticipation.

“Not interested.”

Amid his cold reply, Kieran raised his left hand as he continued forward and hurled out a rapidly gathered Devil Flame like a comet.

He finally found the precise location of that malicious gaze.

Just as the Swordsmith invited Kieran for a duel, the malicious gaze heighted its danger level to a never before seen level.

Kieran was perfectly clear what that malicious gaze wanted to achieve.

Unlike the Swordsmith behind him, the malicious figure wanted to see both of them severely injured from the potential fight, thus reaping benefits from the weak.

What else would Kieran say to such a person?

BOOM!

As the blazing wave rumbled, the watcher that was further away was burned to ashes without even grunting.

The Swordsmith, on the other hand, felt even more excited when he saw the rumbling blazes.

He strode forward and gave chase to Kieran.

“A Legendary weapon! Fight me!” the Swordsmith said.

“Not interested,” Kieran replied with the same answer again.

At the same time, he hastened his steps in leaving.

He wasn’t only fast, together with [Dark Movement Technique], Kieran vanished within a flash of light.

The Swordsmith jolted before he laughed wholeheartedly.

“Great! This is great! Another opponent that is worth challenging! This is indeed a great life!”

His loud laughs spread further away and clearly entered Kieran’s ears.

“This guy is sick…”

Kieran commented his honest thoughts on the Swordsmith before boarding the train to return.

However, the moment Kieran sat down, his PM tab pinged him.

…

J. Pearlman: I heard that you are searching for a blacksmith to fix weapons?

J. Pearlman: If you don’t mind, pay me a visit. I can assure you that you won’t be disappointed.

…

The message from J.Pearlman popped up the moment Kieran opened the PM tab.