The Devil's Cage

A dark figure slowly emerged from the dark.

He was wearing long jeans and a jacket, matched with a long golden mohawk. His hair was long enough to cover his shoulders if it hadn’t been tied up with a metal hairband.

His sharp brown eyes were scanning Kieran with a curious expression.

"2567? The Bird of Death? The kingsley man who will reign the land?"

Kieran felt very unsettled by the guy’s questions.

Before he could utter a word though, the guy with the mohawk waved his hand at him.

"It’s fine, I don’t need any explanations. I’m just a messenger. On the first of December, the Shepherd of Death will be awaiting your arrival!"

As he waved his hand up, a black invitation letter was thrown against the windshield of the Picard. When it came into contact with the glass, it took a sharp detour and span inside the car, landing on the passenger seat next to Kieran.

The guy with the mohawk waved again and disappeared back into the darkness.

The Picard started up again, and both the car lights and the streetlights turned on once more.

Even the clouds blocking the moon dispersed, allowing its mystic blue light to reach the land.

Kieran squinted his eyes, scanning his surroundings. The streetlights in the distance had started to shine again as well.

To be honest, Kieran had noticed the guy with the mohawk the moment he had appeared, but the way he could merge with the darkness had been kind of magical. Still, it was nothing new for Kieran, who possessed Transcendence [Undercover] with a similar attribute.

The thing that concerned Kieran was how that guy had been able to block electricity.

Or had he found a way to block all energy that powered technology?

The latter was just a wild guess.

"The Shepherd of Death? What kind of organization is that?"

Kieran picked up the black invitation and saw a skull with an open mouth. There were two cyan-colored spirit fires burning in its eye sockets.

...

To the Bird of Death

We await your arrival on the 1st of December Er999.

Sincerely,

Shepherd of Death

4.11.Er999, Midnight

...

"They sent this invitation to me as soon as it was written? But then where is the address... Here comes trouble again!"

Kieran smirked a little as he finished reading the invitation.

The way they had appeared and delivered the invitation screamed of trouble, but Kieran still had to step in and solve the problem, because a Sub Mission had appeared.

[Sub Mission Unlocked: The Invitation of the Ancient Society]

[The Invitation of the Ancient Society: The Shepherd of Death has sent you an invitation. However, there is a lot of mystery surrounding them, so you need to be careful in your dealings with them! If you can find where they are first, of course! Beware, as this Sub Mission will affect Nikorei’s prophecy about you and your reputation in this dungeon world!]

[Note: If you complete this Sub Mission regarding the Shepherd of Death with a perfect rating, your dungeon rating will increase significantly.]

"A perfect rating?"

Kieran glanced over the description and lingered on that particular phrase.

From the sound of it, the Shepherd of Death was not some ordinary enemy one could come across.

In fact, he was as much trouble as he sounded like.

...

"What? The Shepherd of Death?"

Kieran went back to the house on 1st Black Street and enjoyed his long-awaited dinner, which was chicken stew with rice.

The slightly charred taste of the onions and the tender chicken meat gave him a mouthful of flavor and an abundance of meaty juice when they were chewed together. The freshness and crunchiness of the onions filled the gaps between Kieran’s teeth with a refreshing taste, further increasing his appetite.

The white pepper seasoning quickened Kieran’s gobbling speed even more.

Of course, Kieran did not forget to elaborate on his encounters to Simones while he enjoyed his dinner, nor did he hide his intention to ask for help.

However, Simones hadn’t heard of the Blood Queen Tiara or the Fantos’ manuscript either. He said he needed to do some research on them.

When Kieran mentioned the Shepherd of Death though, Simones looked astonished. The spoon in his hand fell on the table.

The clear noise the spoon produced when it hit the wooden surface seemed extremely loud in the wide dining area.

Kieran swallowed another piece of chicken and stared at Simones’ ever-changing face.

"Are they strong?" he asked.

"Very strong indeed! Back in the old days, the Shepherd of Death shared the same name and rank as the Dark Star, Night Demon, Unicorn, White Deer and Polaris societies. Aren’t you curious about why you never heard of them if they are so famous and powerful?" Simones asked Kieran, who nodded.

"It was because 30 years ago, Rei eliminated that society! Who would’ve thought that they would rise again from the ashes..." Simones said slowly.

Kieran was rubbing his swollen temples, grunting as if he was in pain.

"The Shepherd of Death shared the same name and rank as the five major societies?"

"Yes."

"And Rei eliminated this so-called society 30 years ago?"

"Yes."

"So they’ve come back to take revenge?"

"Yes."

Each and every question was answered in an affirmative tone.

"The Shepherds were quite formidable, They were masters at communicating with the dead, and used the power of the dead for their own bidding. Some people had even heard rumors about them possessing a secret forbidden technique that could bring one back from the dead! Their members moved around like ghosts and always conducted business under extreme circumstances. They had no regular meeting points! Whenever anyone in the mystical realm spoke of the Shepherds, they felt reverence for them!"

Simones drew a deep breath, as if he recalled how scary the Shepherds had been back then.

"So why would Rei eliminate them?" Kieran asked out of curiosity. "Rei was not fond of fighting."

"Because they’d had their eyes on Ferad. They thought Ferad was good research material..."

Simones opened his hands helplessly.

Kieran kept eating his dinner quietly.

The Shepherd of Death had had their eyes on the spirit butler. It was obvious how that had turned out.

Nikorei had never been a battle fanatic, but she was not someone who would sit quietly when she was being bullied either.

Especially not when people around her were involved. Kieran could only imagine how furious she must have been during her prime time. He suddenly felt some sympathy for the Shepherds.

Despite their extreme measures of conducting business, such as moving around like ghosts and having no meeting point, they had been no competition for Nikorei.

The whole dungeon world was revealed to Nikorei’s sight.

Following those leads, Kieran could already paint a picture of how this society, which had shared the same rank as the five major societies, had been eliminated.

At the same time, his opinion of Nikorei improved once again.

"She dealt with a society that shared the same rank as the five major societies single-handedly... No wonder Morenderke and Serdenk are afraid of Rei! There really is a story behind this! So, what shall I do about the Shepherds now?"

Kieran was thinking quietly as he finished his dinner.

Suddenly, a light bulb went on in his brain, shedding light on this serious matter.

He instantly smiled in delight from the bottom of his heart.

Translator’s Thoughts

Dess Dess

I suppose this is the 6th society that Fenkes mentioned before