The Devil’s Cage

Kurtzargert climbed up from his bed.

He started to tidy up his things and equipment—although they were just items that he might use later, he was still very meticulous with the process.

A narrow, short knife and a long stinger.

Leather armor that could be concealed by his long robe perfectly and a pair of boots that had extra cowhide laced outside.

As one of the councilmen of the Silent Night Secret Society, he knew his old rival, Colipo, very well.

Cunning and seeking nothing but profits.

It was a fitting description to Colipo because he would betray anything as long as there were enough profits.

Loyalty? Honor?

These righteous words had nothing to do with that person.

If Colipo had really involved himself with the Snake Sect Demon Hunters, Kurtzargert wouldn’t be surprised.

As for Ludus?

Kurtzargert also knew the councilman who rooted himself in Edatine Castle and had a very strong sense of presence very well.

Vigilant and arrogant.

He was very careful at everything yet took pride in his abilities. He was considered a very easy person to grasp because his ambition was widely known.

Kurtzargert was certain that as long as a chance was presented to him, Ludus would surely get himself involved in this mess.

Everything was as he expected.

Ludus couldn’t hold it anymore and had agreed to hold the Council Meeting, there was even a letter from him.

Kurtzargert had no idea about what secrets Colipo held, he only knew that if he wanted to uncover Colipo’s secret, he would have to agree to Ludus’ suggestion to hold the Council Meeting.

Ludus wanted to force Colipo into the curb and Kurtzargert was happy to lend a hand.

However, there were still some details that he would have to think it over.

Therefore, Kurtzargert answered to the meeting.

…

Bringing his right-hand man, Clairehore, with him, Kurtzargert travelled to Upper Seven Ring, Ludus’ bungalow, without taking the wagon.

“Wait here,” said Kurtzargert.

“Yes, my lord,” Horlaika bowed right away before walking into the shadow, hiding himself away from sight.

With the Undying watching him from the dark, Kurtzargert strode into the room.

“My lord, good evening. Please follow me.”

Ludus’ attendant had been waiting for Kurtzargert’s arrival the whole evening, quickly welcoming the guest with a bow before guiding Kurtzargert to Ludus’ study room.

The door was pushed open. The rich fragrance of tea and sweetness of pastries welcomed the guest immediately.

Kurtzargert smiled, glancing over the pastries on the ceramic plate quickly. Ludus was much more anxious than he thought.

“Snow Owl Candy House’s candy and Moose Pastry Maker’s pastries, they do taste good. Too bad my age has caught up to me, and my teeth have failed me, I can’t eat these anymore,” said Kurtzargert in a casual way.

He hoped to use his casual tone to get through this certainly delightful conversation.

One thing worth taking note was that both of them shared a common goal and what they needed was to segregate the minor parts only.

He believed Ludus would surely tolerate him in this matter.

After all, Ludus came for him in the first place, meaning he had the right and initiative to call the shots, didn’t he?

Kurtzargert sharply noticed that after he revealed his casual tone, Ludus opposite him seemed to have heaved a breath of relief.

Right away, Kurtzargert further solidified his own guesses and did not think of anything else other than that.

If it wasn’t his meek attitude that made Ludus feel his goodwill, then could it be because he didn’t touch the pastries on the tea table, Ludus heaved a breath of relief?

Stop joking, it’s impossible.

“Oh really? It’s a shame then. That aside, let’s talk about Colipo. What do you think? I want to hear your opinion on this,” Ludus went straight to the topic after the breath of relief.

“I want 70%!” Kurtzargert voiced out his ideal number, which he had in mind very early on.

“Impossible! It’s impossible!” Bloody Mary shook its head, emphasizing with a heavy tone to express its firm stance.

Kurtzargert wasn’t surprised at all about the resistance.

If Ludus agreed in a heartbeat to the number that he offered, Kurtzargert would have to think it over, suspecting that Ludus and Colipo had teamed up and ganged up on him.

The other thing worth taking note of was that the 70% that he asked for wouldn’t just consist of Colipo’s wealth and properties, it also represented his power, the very core of his power!

The latter was very important, whether to him or to Ludus, so neither of them could just give it up like that.

Therefore, the number Kurtzargert uttered was just a test, including what he was about to say.

“I think it’s fairly appropriate for me to get 70% out of all this. It’s not just because you need me to agree to hold the Council Meeting, it’s also because I will face Colipo myself!”

Kurtzargert stated his reason behind the number and at the same time observed Ludus.

When he saw the agitated Ludus swiftly calm down after what he said, he couldn’t help but smile.

Everyone knew how to play dumb. Kurtzargert knew and so did Ludus.

The agitated shout from Ludus just now was just to fight for a better gain at the end and after Kurtzargert stated his ‘true intention’, the calmness that followed was the true emotion.

“Think about it. You don’t have to do anything and can get 30% of the shares. What else would be better than this?” Kurtzargert asked back.

“Are you sure you can handle Colipo alone?” Bloody Mary asked heavily.

“I wouldn’t have confidence if it were the others, but Colipo? I am very certain! Give me a chance to be with him alone and I will show him a graveless death,” Kurtzargert said with a smile, expressing his confidence.

Bloody Mary squinted its eyes, as if it was really thinking about what Kurtzargert said carefully.

Was Colipo powerful? Undoubtedly powerful.

The icy ability he possessed was utterly strange, but at the same time, the weakness was also very pronounced.

The weakness wasn’t from the icy ability, it was from Colipo himself. His mental state had a huge flaw. As long as one could grasp the flaw, anyone would be able to deliver the killing blow under one strike.

Coincidentally, a demon’s forte was finding the flaws in people’s mental state, let alone a Superior Demon and how well it could perform.

Bloody Mary didn’t just locate the flaw in Colipo’s mind, it even found and got access to many of his memories. Kurtzargert was among the memories Bloody Mary found. Colipo viewed him as an arch nemesis, as did Kurtzargert to Colipo.

Your enemy was the one who knew you the most.

Bloody Mary believed the saying deeply, therefore Kurtzargert really thought he could deliver the fatal blow to Colipo under a single strike.

As a matter of fact, Colipo was also waiting for the chance. He too had a similar confidence to achieve what his enemy was trying to do to him.

If both of them were put together in a room, Bloody Mary had many reasons to believe both of them would die altogether.

Unfortunately, Colipo was dead, having died by Bloody Mary hands, but the good thing was that Bloody Mary knew that particular method Colipo saved up for Kurtzargert.

Although it couldn’t apply the method as effectivly as Colipo would have done, it would be enough as an entry point.

Seconds turned into minutes. Kurtzargert waited patiently.

Matter of utter success had no reason to fail in his mind.

As expected, things went smoothly and according to plan.

Half a minute later, Ludus nodded.

“If what you claim is true, I can agree with the numbers but it must be you! If others intervened…”

Kurtzargert understood the unfinished words right away.

“Others? Don’t worry. Even if those guys at Edatine Castle have any thoughts of their own, they wouldn’t have the power and willpower to carry it out. As for the south… that place is much more dangerous than expected,” Kurtzargert said with a smile.

“Then… deal!” Bloody Mary extended its hand. Kurtzargert also extended his for a shake.

Things were being carried out smoothly after that.

The bell in Silent Night Town was rung.

The Council Meeting was officially held.

Colipo struggled to his last stand, but it was useless!

Everything was just as Kurtzargert expected. He killed Colipo according to plan, absorbed whatever power his arch nemesis had and grew his own rapidly. His growth boosted him to the level of those Southern Councilmen.

The only unfortunate thing was that he had to split 30% of the power he’d gotten, causing him to be unable to surpass the Southern Councilmen once and for all.

Though it wasn’t anything severe.

He still needed Ludus as an ally to attract other people’s attention.

It wasn’t time for him to consume Ludus’ powers year, but he would very soon.

Time flew by quickly.

Three years passed since then.

He finally achieved the last part of his plan and subtly took control of the entire Silent Night Town. He even started to extend its claws to many aspects in Edatine Castle. Ludus accidentally died at the hands of Edatine VI.

Kurtzargert finally surpassed the Southern Councilmen after all those years of scheming.

‘Although I’ve lost the advantages at first, the final victor will be me!’ Kurtzargert thought in his heart and did as such.

He then went after the Southern Councilmen. It was difficult.

Before this, he spent almost 20 years and couldn’t even achieve half of what he planned.

Now, the Southern Councilmen had reacted to Kurtzargert’s schemes but it was already too late.

Kurtzargert had far surpassed them. The reason why he laid low and schemed in the dark was because he wanted to achieve it smoothly.

But since he was exposed, there was no need to fake it again.

A war involving the entire Southern Land broke out.

Three months after the war broke out, the entire Southern Land was set ablaze by the fire of war, becoming a wasteland. Farms were abandoned, ports were destroyed, and bodies piled up into a bloody mountain.

And Kurtzargert finally emerged as the final victor.

All the councilmen had fallen under him, all the powers he reaped powered his body to a new height.

The only thing left was to fight those two monsters.

This war with the Gods was truly a devastating one.

Compared to this war with the Gods, the war with the Southerners was child’s play.

The sky cracked, the ground collapsed, the sea flooded the land.

As though a punishment from the divine, the whole world started to fall apart.

Yet, he still won! He became the supreme lord, transcending above every other living being.

The survivors, both humans and animals, were saved by his mercy; they knelt down and worshipped him as the new God.

The flood started to subside and life was bestowed to the land once more.

Cities were being built after the catastrophe and in the middle of all of them, temples worshipping him were built.

He received worship every single day from that day onwards, from sunrise to sunset.

The days of blessing extended into years and many, MANY, years passed since then.

He had long forgotten about the time.

To him, the supreme lord, time was no longer a unit of measurement.

The only thing that he could measure his existence by were the things that interested him, such as a bunch of enemies who thought so highly of themselves.

He never thought his enemies could be this cute. He carefully raised his enemies just so he could get more excitement from the fight.

Unfortunately, even the strongest among them only aroused him for less than 3 seconds.

His enemies weren’t weak by any means. As a matter of fact, the strongest one had reached the level of the two monstrous Gods in the past.

But so what?

He was too powerful, to the point that his power exceeded everything.

Even he himself had no idea how powerful he was.

Nothing could stop him anymore, but at the same time, everything became boring.

He then fell into slumber. He would wake up for a while from time to time but he would go back to sleep soon enough because he noticed that every time he woke up, the world changed drastically. It ushered an idea into his mind: go to sleep and wake up in a more exciting world.

He didn’t mind taking a longer slumber, it would only increase his anticipation.

Even if his temples no longer exist, he didn’t mind because his powers weren’t from temples, he had no use for the temples a long time ago.

The new world excited him more.

Looking at the iron birds that soared the sky, the iron boxes that shuttled on the widest road of Edatine Castle, the giant boat that was made out of iron, he was utterly aroused.

When he realized the mortals started to seek for worlds beyond theirs, he joined them eagerly to seek for more excitement.

He spent only days and learned what the mortals studied for their entire lives.

The newly acquired knowledge granted him many top-tier achievements. He, as a mortal, became one of the explorers of outer space and the first batch to search for worlds beyond theirs.

He reached outer space in the space shuttle, looking back at the world he once ruled.

It was too small! It was very, VERY, small.

Thankfully, he had gotten away from that blue sphere.

Then… WHAT?!

A giant figure of darkness towered over the planets in space.

That pitch black figure absorbed all the light in space; that wing on its back shrouded millions of planets. Darkness filled the figure’s eyes yet it stung him like the bright sun.

However, the figure didn’t even budge. It stood in the middle of space with a small white flower in its hand.

Quietly, without moving a muscle.

Who?

Who is this?

I should know him!

He is…

Kurtzargert searched his memories for answers but the pain from the back of his neck ended everything.

He was still in the study room.

He saw Ludus sitting in front of him and his arms helplessly lowered down.

“Good job, better than the last time,” Kieran commented on Bloody Mary’s extensive illusions.

As the owner in the contract, Kieran was able to see Kurtzargert’s growth history through Bloody Mary’s eyes.

Some matters that he once felt suspicious of became clear.

Of course there were still things he left out but it was enough for Kieran.

He had already gotten what he had to know. He wasn’t stingy with compliments.

Praising with words wouldn’t cost him a penny, so praise away!

More importantly, Kurtzargert brought him actual spoils.

Kieran looked at the long, narrow short knife, the long stinger, the leather armor, and the pair of boots.

The golden radiance from the items rose and shone under Kieran’s stare.