The Devil’s Cage

A faint glow came out from the box, the temperature in the car plummeted, even Cook’s breath turned white.

A bluish-white crystal the size of an index finger was embedded in the middle of the box.

Around the crystal were mythical inscriptions, glowing with the crystal’s faint pulsating glow. It seemed like the box with the mythical inscriptions was a container for the crystal.

Cook wore a leather glove and carefully took the crystal out of the box, he carefully moved it closer to Kieran.

In that short process, a layer of frost formed over the thick leather glove.

“This is a sign of my good faith, I hope that you like it,” Cook humbly said.

Kieran didn’t simply take the crystal. He had to make sure the crystal and the box were safe through [Mystical Knowledge] and his Intuition before he truly accepted it.

[Name: Ice Remnant]

[Type: Relic]

[Rarity: Above Rare]

[Attack: None]

[Defense: None]

[Attribute: 1. Consume; 2. Compatibility]

[Effect: None]

[Prerequisite: None]

[Remark: A small chance of dropping from a Frost Lord. It’s cut and isn’t complete, but the coldness still can cause frostbite.]

…

[Consume: Consume the Ice Remnant. There is a great chance to acquire the Frost Lineage (Constitution authentication required)]

[Compatibility: It can empower items with ice/frost ability (The lower the item’s rarity, the higher the chance of success)]

…

“[Ice Remnant]?”

Almost instantaneously, Kieran thought of [Ghastly Sapphire]. The only difference between the two was that [Ghastly Sapphire] was a gemstone, [Ice Remnant] was a relic.

“I got this by accident.”

“I think rather than keeping it as my collection, it may be of better use in your possession,” Cook said humbly.

Kieran looked at the man again.

Kieran wasn’t surprised that Cook knew what happened that night at Stove-grilled Fish, what surprised him was Cook was able to get his hands on relics like [Ice Remnant], and also the intact storing method.

An ancient coin dealer could achieve this, but the cost would be huge. It might even cost him all his fortune.

And after paying the substantial cost, all Cook wanted was for him to keep something?

Then…

What was the thing that Cook wanted him to keep?

Or more precisely, what led Cook to this decision?

Kieran’s mind spun rapidly, he was combing through the events that happened from the moment he stepped into the dungeon world until the latest, and a confident guess appeared on top of all of that.

Because of this guess, Kieran accepted Cook’s suggestion.

Kieran didn’t mind taking the risk, what he was worried about was there not being sufficient rewards after the risk.

However, judging from the current situation, he didn’t need to be worried.

“En,” Kieran nodded.

Cook was thrilled when he saw Kieran’s nod.

“This is great, I…”

“Let’s form a contract. You must state that the things inside the box will not harm the people around me or me,” Kieran interrupted the overjoyed man and said indisputably.

“As you wish.”

Cook quickly took out a piece of contract paper from the drawer of his car—Kieran could feel faint mythical energy from the contract.

He swiftly signed his name on the contract, and after Kieran made sure the contract wasn’t trifled with, he took it and the two boxes out of the car.

Cook watched Kieran vanish into the hotel before he told his driver with a smile, “Let’s go.”

…

Lagren saw the two boxes in Kieran’s hand, he frowned but didn’t say anything.

Cook’s car wasn’t attempting to hide, so through the surveillance camera, Lagren clearly saw Kieran go into Cook’s car and bring two boxes out with him.

It was Kieran’s personal business. It wasn’t something an outsider could intervene in, especially other Monster Hunters. If they didn’t want to be in Kieran’s blacklist, the important thing was to learn to respect his privacy.

As the contact for Monster Hunters, Lagren did a great job at this.

“What do you want for breakfast?” Lagren quickly diverted the topic.

“You choose, I’m not a picky eater.”

Kieran replied while he continued to his room.

He still needed time for the thing inside the unknown box, but as for the one with [Ice Remnant], he had an idea of how to use it.

“Meals up in 20 minutes.”

“Okay.”

Kieran replied before opening the door to his room. He then took out [Ice Remnant] and used it on [Wilco’s Redemption].

Although [Seattle Right Hand] was also a frost and ice oriented equipment, it was already at Legendary rank. After understanding [Ice Remnant]’s attributes, [Wilco’s Redemption] was the only choice.

[Using Ice Remnant on Wilco’s Redemption, rarity increase!]

[Wilco’s Redemption increased to Legendary!]

[Name: Wilco’s Redemption]

[Type: Accessory]

[Rarity: Legendary]

[Attack: Weak]

[Defense: Strong]

[Attributes: 1. Chilling Touch; 2. Chilling Spike; 3. Chilling Spirit]

[Effects: None]

[Prerequisites: None]

[Able to bring out of the dungeon: Yes]

[Remarks: A mission that Wilco had considered easy ended up leading to his death. Wilco’s hatred and grudge are sealed in this ring!]

…

[Chilling Touch: You need to touch your target with the ring for the skill to be activated. It strikes with an Extreme Cold Attack that lasts 5 seconds (When combined with other equipment on your body, it still lasts for the same amount of time), twice per day]

[Chilling Spike: Fire a long ice spear at your target, maximum range of 50 meters. When the ice spear hits the target or any other obstacle, it will trigger an ice explosion of 4.5 meters in range. Directly hit targets will receive Extreme ice attack, additional targets will receive Average ice splash damage depending on how close they are to the blast point. Twice per day]

[Chilling Spirit: Summon an Evil Frost Spirit based on Wilco’s model (Has Powerful attack, possess traits of evil spirit and Frost Beings. It’s not a human anymore and doesn’t have the memories and thoughts of when he was alive, only loyal to you), once a day]

…

“Chilling Spirit? Is it because of the curse.”

Kieran glanced through the simple description and thought of Wilco who died with grievances. Wilco never thought a simple mission would be his end and what was more saddening was even after death, he has to serve his enemy.

If Wilco still had his memories and thoughts from when he was alive, he would have curse Kieran again.

Now?

Kieran re-equipped the crystal ring filled with blue mist, took the black leather box and headed downstairs.

Although it was 10 minutes away from breakfast, Kieran was eager.

Likewise, Kieran knew someone else was eager as well.

Kieran didn’t hold much hope in these people, whether in terms of actions or value.

He hoped these people wouldn’t interrupt his breakfast.

If they did?

They would have to bear the consequences of his bad mood.