The Devil’s Cage

Ascended to Godship?

Kieran kept quiet and drank a spoonful of his fish soup.

According to the level ranking of the big city, his current state, rank V, was somewhat around a First Generation Divine Descendant, but it seemed like it had some differences with the Gods in this dungeon world.

Recalling back Lady Wealth’s power, doubt grew in his heart.

It seemed like her powers couldn’t even be considered as godly, and yet it had some special traits that only a God could wield.

No doubt the Gods in this dungeon world and the Gods in his mind were somewhat different.

As for why?

Kieran couldn’t figure it out with his limited information.

While Kieran stayed quiet, Archpriest Pelder seemed to have misunderstood his meaning.

After all, he had previous examples to take reference from, hence this kind of misunderstanding was far too natural.

300 years ago, the Devourer appeared, followed by a sea of Gods.

300 years later, the Devourer came back, and a new God ascended. What’s wrong with that?

“Your Majesty.”

Archpriest Pelder stood up, kneeling before Kieran with the most solemn salutation and greeting him loudly.

The people around them saw the scene. A bit stunned, everyone mimicked the archpriest and knelt on the ground.

“Your Majesty.”

The loud greetings sounding in unison broke the silent night, pulling Kieran back from his thoughts.

He didn’t explain himself since he felt the fire in his mind was jumping actively.

Sometimes, a wonderful misunderstanding was more acceptable than harsh reality.

“En.”

Kieran nodded before taking another spoonful of his fish soup.

The ingredients were fine, but the cooking wasn’t that great.

Of course, he hadn’t met anyone who was a better cook than Starbeck.

…

Inside Arya Outpost, Atrina was discussing matters with Nelson softly.

“Lord Priest, as you expected, those people sent out their emissary and internal conflict broke out amongst them. As of right now, they are still arguing about who should be the First Ride of the group, and according to the reports of our scouts, they are going to fight again because of this naming.”

“They are really a ridiculous bunch.”

The outpost master thought for a while before giving a truthful comment on those ‘bastards’.

“Yort Fields is a richly endowed land, and it made their fights look like child’s play. If it wasn’t for the agreement made 300 years ago, the whole of Yort Fields would have fallen under Naveya’s territory.”

Atrina showed disdain when she mentioned Yort Fields.

As a person who wanted to become a priest, she had to learn a lot of things, including etiquette, miscellaneous trivia, and the history behind the temples, which was the top priority amongst her list.

Therefore, Atrina was very familiar with the dozens of lords in Yort Fields and how they worked.

Whenever something happened, they’d ask for Naveya’s help.

And during times of peace, they’d pry into Naveya’s streets for benefits.

Stupid, arrogant and thinking too highly of themselves, every single one of the mentioned words could be used to describe these lords.

It wasn’t meant to be insulting though, because it was a fact and the fact was unacceptable.

Similar to this time, those lingering, scattered monsters managed to sneak into Yort Fields after their major defeat, startling everyone in Yort Fields.

But after the initial reaction?

The lords shifted responsibility, not wanting to bear the responsibility and risk, delaying the deployment of their soldiers.

In the end, they paid a price much higher than the initial predicted numbers before the monsters were eliminated.

After that though, the ’emissary group’ they sent out argued with each other, trying to fight for the title of ‘number one’.

Atrina was afraid these lords might not even know what a ‘fight’ was.

Hitting each other with wooden swords and sticks, crying aloud when one of them was hit…

“Tsk.”

Whenever she pictured that scene in her mind, Atrina couldn’t hold back her cold grunts. After being around Kieran for such a long time, she couldn’t stand that kind of sissy behavior.

However, she didn’t mind taking in the things these ‘sissies’ brought over.

“We need to raise our price. Rations, weapons, double the amount on everything. And… I want their men here to help us build another outer wall around the outpost,” said Atrina.

Of course, Atrina kept her truest thoughts to herself: those men the lords sent to build the outer walls would not be returned.

Atrina was certain that with the increase of population, she could strengthen her position as the one in power.

In a certain aspect, population was more important than land. Positions without the guarantee of a population was something unrealistic.

“I bet Ryan will be happy when he sees the population in Arya Outpost has increased by tenfold. At this rate, Arya will not just be an outpost station, it will be a new city, maybe even replacing Naveya in the future. And when the time comes…”

Atrina was plotting the future, her palm, hidden under her sleeves, shaking uncontrollably because she was very excited.

However, she knew everything was built around a single person: Ryan!

Without Ryan, Arya Outpost would not become Arya City, but Atrina was confident Ryan would agree with her methods.

Even without solid evidence, Atrina had a hunch that her methods would work.

What Ryan sought after shouldn’t be a position as an archpriest in a temple, since all the temples were wiped out. Based on common sense, Ryan should draw back wisely when in the face of overwhelming odds.

But in reality?

Ryan didn’t just stay back against the Devourer, he fought on, with the identity everyone was hoping for.

It may seem normal to common folks, but as Ryan’s partner, Atrina had more thoughts and guesses.

And because of those thoughts and guesses, she loved Ryan even more.

He was a powerful and ambitious man, how could she not be infatuated?

Men conquered the world, while women conquered the men who took over the world.

With that thought in mind, Atrina loved Ryan beyond anything. She was too deeply in love to be saved. But she’d only show infatuation and incurable love in front of that man. While in front of others, Atrina kept her dignity as a priest.

“Build another outer wall? Will they agree to it?”

Outpost Master Nelson was stunned for a while before asking Atrina in a hesitant tone.

Nelson didn’t refute the statement because he originated from Thorn Temple and his position had determined him to never refute a priest’s words, but likewise, he didn’t want to ignore the problem.

The former was the inborn instinct of a believer, while the latter was the adapted instinct of a knight.

“Believe me, they will. And… they will rush over to agree to our terms,” said Atrina confidently.

Just as Atrina’s words subsided, the ordering officer outside delivered a message.

“Priest Atrina, Outpost Master Nelson, a person claiming to be the emissary from Blossom Flower Land requests a meeting.”