The Devil’s Cage

 The gunshots sounded in an instant. Gorbor grabbed Eckart and Lyn Amie and pushed them to the floor, kicking over the wooden dining table to use as a shield.

The dining table was not of much use in blocking the shooting, but after the stray bullets penetrated the walls, windows and seats, the table became an important line of defense. As long as none of them got hit in their weak spots, they would not die, at most suffering some flesh wounds.

Three of Gorbor’s men dodged the bullet’s trajectory skillfully, attacking the car outside the coffee shop window without orders from their leader.

Bang Bang Bang Bang!

Muzzle flashes shone relentlessly.

Aside from Gorbor’s men, Lin An and the bodyguards from Riton Lystie joined the fight as well.

Moments later, the bodyguards and the sole officer managed to suppress fire from the unknown assailant.

Further away at the museum, when the security guards heard the gunshots, they rushed to the scene too.

The assailant in the car noticed things were going south, thus quickly driving away.

“Go! Go after him! I’ll freaking throw the bastard behind bars forever!”

Lin An lost his temper after the gunshots, since he had endured quite a lot of blame for losing Curseman Vase. No one would feel good after being showered by bullets from a machine gun.

Moreover, if either 2567 or Riton Lystie were hurt, or worse, dead, due to the gunshots, Lin An would fall into the worst possible situation. 2567 was the most popular person in recent times and Riton Lystie was the heir to a family that had deep connections with powerful people in the Neo Union.

Should any one of them get hurt or die, Lin An would not only have to remove his badge, he might also face prosecution.

So, Lin An dashed into his cruiser and chased the fleeing car.

After the gunshots stopped, Riton Lystie tried to get up but was pressed down by Kieran before he could do so.

“Be careful of snipers,” Kieran said softly.

Riton Lystie’s face turned sour right away.

Although it was just a possibility, Riton Lystie knew Kieran’s words weren’t crazy talk.

Right after that, Riton Lystie signaled to his bodyguards; Gorbor also made a move.

Five minutes after the assailant car drove off, Gorbor finally gave the signal, stating the coast was clear.

After standing up, Riton Lystie swept away the courteous and warm manner and said with a never before seen seriousness, “Thank you, 2567. I am forever in your debt. I swear on my family’s name that you will be an important friend to me.”

“Mr. Lystie, I was also saving myself. I was also within the firing range.”

Kieran smiled and waved his hand.

Kieran had saved Riton Lystie from the gunshots to protect his reputation. Other than that, it was just an instinctive action taken along the way.

Had the situation been beyond his reach, Kieran would have only saved himself, even if he had to bear the name of ‘putting customers in harm’s way’.

“But you pulled me back to safety at the last moment. So you did save my life. And 2567, just call me Riton.” Riton Lystie shook his head.

It was true that Riton Lystie was saved, and if he ignored the fact, how would the public view him? The Lystie family would never allow an ungrateful person to be its leader, at least not in front of the public.

“Fine, Riton. But I think you should get more reliable bodyguards. It seems like their target wasn’t just the Curseman Vase,” said Kieran.

“They realized that even if I lost the vase, it wouldn’t affect my identity as first in line to inherit the family.” Riton Lystie coldly grunted and looked gloomy.

Kieran saw how Riton Lystie reacted but he didn’t say anything.

The internal conflict of a big family was not of Kieran’s interest. He neither wanted to be involved or participate.

Kieran then turned around and walked towards Eckart and Lyn Amie, who were still frightened.

“How are you doing?” Kieran asked.

“S-Still holding up.”

Eckart showed a smile uglier than his crying face, while the makeup artist was pale as paper and could only nod.

After a long rest, Eckart finally returned to normal.

“What should we do next?” Eckart asked.

“You can go to Riton Lystie and collect the payment we deserve. And me? I’ll go take a walk,” Kieran said casually.

“Take a walk?” Eckart looked at Kieran with doubtful gaze, but before he could further ask anything, Kieran waved at Gorbor and walked out.

Eckart heaved a breath of relief when he saw Gorbor was accompanying Kieran.

With Gorbor around, it wouldn’t be a problem if Kieran decided to take a stroll.

Just as Eckart wanted to walk over to Riton Lystie, he saw Lyn Amie when he turned around. The makeup artist was still quite frightened and it forced Eckart to stop by him.

Since they had spent a few days together, plus the sudden gunshots, Eckart had already began treating the kind makeup artist as one of his own.

So, when he saw how frightened Lyn Amie was, he couldn’t help but tap his shoulder for some comfort.

“Don’t worry, it’s over now. It’s just some lousy accident,” Eckart said.

“Em. But, but…” Lyn Amie nodded, but he was stuttering with his words.

“But what?” Eckart was baffled.

Lyn Amie didn’t know how to convey the message, so he pointed to the window where the gunshots came in instead.

“What about that place?” Eckart still did not notice anything wrong after a long stare.

“T-The pastries. 2567’s pastries were all destroyed!” Lyn Amie finally spilled out what he was trying to convey.

Eckart jolted. His eyes then saw the splattered pastries all over the place.

Most pastries would break into pieces when they fell on the ground, let alone being shot by bullets. If the makeup artist did not remind him of this, Eckart would have forgotten about the two tin cans.

“It’s just some pastries. I’ll find someone to prepare more for 2567. I know 2567 is gluttonous, but he wouldn’t go after the armed thugs because of some pastries. I’m sure of that,” Eckart said with a strong tone and looked confident.

Similar to how fear was infectious, confidence was too. Lyn Amie also nodded when he saw the confidence in Eckart.

“Hmm, you are right. I know 2567 hates people interrupting his mealtime or wasting food, but he wouldn’t have gone after the armed thugs because of some pastries right?”

“Right, you are overthinking. How could that happen?” Eckart laughed.

Then, he went over to Riton Lystie.

He didn’t believe someone would seek revenge from dangerous armed thugs because of some pastries, but…

Whether or not he believed it, it didn’t mean it would never happen.

There are some things in the world that are exactly that bizzare.