The Devil’s Cage

Mier was shocked by Kieran’s sudden move.

A Monster Hunter never cared about coming in contact with the dead, but they still maintained the fundamental respect for the dead and a rude action such as kicking a gravestone was very rare.

Unless…

Unconsciously, more speculations appeared in Mier’s mind.

But before she questioned Kieran, she saw Kieran take out a cowhide bag from underneath the gravestone.

Mier then acted quickly.

“Can I…”

“No.”

“Can you tell…”

“No.”

“Do you dare…”

“No.”

“Listen first…”

“No.

“Wanna eat…”

“Eat.”

“…”

Facing failures at first didn’t force Mier to give up, her quick wit allowed her to remember that ‘happy meeting’ with Kieran during lunch.

So, Mier changed her tactics, and the changes quickly provided Mier with the anticipated answer.

But she couldn’t be happy at all.

She didn’t hate food, but when she herself and food were placed on a scale, she hoped she would trump food.

It was a reasonable thought, but reality was always cruel, it always reminded people of how harsh it was.

Fortunately, Mier was smart enough to not ask questions like ‘choose between me or food.’

Because she knew what the answer would be.

When she suggested a unique local restaurant, Kieran didn’t just agree, his eyes slightly shone and her thoughts were verified.

With Mier following him, Kieran walked out from the graveyard’s front gate.

The grave keeper saw Kieran, they were surprised, but because of Mier’s identity, they didn’t question it.

Just like Mier’s claim, her identity was beneficial at certain times, but not all the time.

Just like when they reached the restaurant in an alleyway after shuttling through a few streets, the restaurant without a sign denied their entrance.

The reason was that they were 10 minutes away from opening.

“10 minutes? I can wait,” Kieran said before he queued up in front of the restaurant.

Mier was shocked by how easygoing he was.

Mier sized up Kieran from top to bottom, if she didn’t confirm it was Kieran and that he wasn’t swapped on the way here, she would really think she was with the wrong person.

No, no, Kieran was swapped!

Kieran was already another person in front of food.

The Monster Hunters hated the so-called rules, but now Kieran followed the rules.

But…

Mier didn’t dislike a Monster Hunter like him.

Compared to the rumored Monster Hunters, Kieran before her eyes was more real, more likable.

A faint aroma from the restaurant entered Mier’s nose, she couldn’t help but hum a pleasant melody and became happier than before while waiting.

10 minutes was up.

When the restaurant opened up its doors, a worker put out a black signboard with its specialty dishes and ‘welcome’ written on it. Kieran then walked in.

Unlike the other restaurant that had a central dining area and a big kitchen window, this restaurant located in the alleyway didn’t have a kitchen window, even the door was made out of wood.

In simple words, customers wouldn’t be able to see the interior from the outside.

Only when they entered, would one be able to see that there were only two tables and light bulbs were required to shed light over the dark interior.

Following the waiter’s guidance, Kieran and Mier were seated down one of the tables. Kieran glanced over the lowered light bulb and waited patiently.

Mier already told him that the customers couldn’t order dishes, the chef would provide what they had for the day instead.

The dishes prepared that day were written on the black signboard.

Soon, dishes were served on the table one after another.

Mier couldn’t wait to dig in. She took the black pepper and sprinkled it over the lamb chop, the egg salad was pushed aside.

It was not that she disliked vegetables, it’s just that the sequence was different.

Gobbling like a hungry tiger, Mier looked up and wanted to grab a roasted sausage, she then noticed Kieran was done with his plate.

“Can I have two more servings?” Kieran asked the waiter.

“Of course,” the waiter was hesitant for a while before nodding.

Soon, another serving of food was served.

When the lid was lifted, the rich aroma of the served dish filled the entire restaurant, Mier couldn’t help but take a deep breath at the smell.

Then, she suddenly felt dizzy.

Mier’s body quivered, she had to support herself by pressing down on the table to prevent herself from falling, and when she wanted to speak to warn Kieran, she suddenly realized her tongue was numb without her knowing, she couldn’t talk.

Mier, who was silenced, tried her best in supporting her body, she was very anxious when she saw Kieran pick up his fork and knife again.

Mier kept signaling Kieran with her eyes, but Kieran was captivated by the food in front of him, he didn’t even care.

One serving, two serving, three serving…

When the waiter who served the food had his forehead covered in sweat, Kieran finally placed down his fork and knife.

The waiter beside him was drenched in sweat, his forehead was covered with concentrated sweat beads. Kieran acted like it was nothing, he stretched his back and looked at the waiter with a smile, asking slowly, “Did you make this?”

“Yes.” The waiter slowly retreated after the affirmative answer.

“Not bad,” Kieran nodded and stood up from his seat.

The waiter quickly hastened his retreat, his body didn’t even turn around, he was still facing Kieran, but his body retreated like an arrow let loose.

But at the next moment, Kieran vanished from the waiter’s sight.

Then, the waiter felt pain from the back of his neck before blacking out.

Holding the unconscious waiter, Kieran returned to his seat. He threw the waiter at this feet before taking out the cowhide paper bag that he got from the graveyard and read through it.

Seconds turned into minutes.

Mier throughout the ordeal was sitting in an uncomfortable position.

One needed to know she was known for her perceptive observation in the Special Operation Division.

An unknown shame rose in her heart, causing her to blush, she didn’t want Kieran to see her in this shameful manner.

She really wanted to stomp on the waiter and vanish from Kieran’s sight.

Unfortunately, the anesthetics were much more effective than expected.

Almost half an hour later, the numbness finally weakened, but Mier still couldn’t move her body, all she regained was her ability to speak.

“When did you notice?”

To shift the awkwardness, Mier asked.

“From the start.”

Kieran replied without even looking at Mier.

“From the start? Then why didn’t you warn me?” Mier was stunned before asking, she sounded like she was grumbling.

“I’ve warned you to not follow me,” Kieran said calmly.

“So you’re telling me this is the consequence of following you?” Mier raised her voice.

Kieran looked at the angry Mier, he slowly put the documents back into the cowhide bag before standing up. He then grabbed his captive and walked outside.

He said, “Cows like to be in a herd, while a beast prefers to be alone.”