The Devil's Cage

Unconsciously, Kieran walked over to the chair from his secluded spot.

Bang, bang bang.

When he turned around and sat on the chair, his fingers were mindlessly tapping the armrest again.

Everyone has their own habits, especially when deep in thought.

Kieran preferred to sit on a chair or sofa, holding his chin with one hand while he tapped on the armrest with the other hand. It allowed him to concentrate.

"A normal person's highest stats are around E+. After reaching the limit, without any special aid, there's no way a common man could go beyond the limit. What about something other than a common man? Something more powerful? There must be a limit as well, and this limit would probably be B rank!"

Kieran's finger-tapping paused as he related into more things.

Character Model Template Limit.

Talents.

And… Chosen Ones!

"The shackles of a common man don't apply to those with gifts, and for chosen ones, the shackles of the gifted ones doesn't apply. However, there's only a slim chance for such a person to exist. Even in terms of a country, there might be only one in a few decades or even a hundred years. But… In the game, the big city, this 'rate' is amplified, because of Golden Attribute Points! It infinitely shortens the distance between a common man and a Chosen one. Although there is still a cost to pay by risking one's life, it is better than being completely hopeless."

Kieran suddenly thought of the history of the real world. Those ancient generals during the war era who fought off a thousand men alone, with only sharp weapons, those brave warriors with superhuman strength, those wisemen who could calculate every possibility and maybe even predict the future, no doubt all of them were gifted people, and maybe some of them were Chosen Ones.

Back in the ancient times, these gifted ones or even Chosen Ones were outstanding among the normal people. Kieran could picture the despair their enemies had to face during the war.

Huu!

Kieran sighed softly, he was grateful and also deeply felt the… kindness.

The kindness that was given by the big city in the game.

The game gave these normal people a chance. It had a cost but at least after paying the price, the hard working souls would be rewarded.

Kieran believed it deeply, therefore he believed the kindness from the big city, at least for now.

"Kindness, kindness…" Kieran was mumbling to himself.

A weird smile then appeared over his face."

"I see." Kieran muttered.

He then stood up from the chair as his mind provided him with an idea.

He had no evidence to support his guess at the moment, but it didn't stop him from altering his plans again for this particular guess.

"Unlocking Constitution for the first time took me two weeks time… If my guess is correct, I may be running out of time… Should I move something up the schedule?"

Kieran then walked over to the sandbag and training equipment.

After unlocking his Constitution from the sealed state, he felt like he had recovered from a great illness, he felt refreshed, but he didn't forget he had to quickly adapt to his new body.

Another round of training started.

Constitution reaching B rank allowed Kieran to have sufficient Stamina to train his plethora of skills and it also granted him more concentration to notice small details that he had neglected before.

When Kieran started to chase after these small details, the skill-related knowledge that he had gained in the past and was branded in his brain slowly reappeared.

A deeper understanding appeared in Kieran's heart, causing him to train harder but a while later, a message from above interrupted him, forcing to stop his excited training.

Kieran wiped his sweat off with the towels, walking up towards the living room and the moment he reached the surface, he saw Lin An with a heavy face.

It must be anything but good news, Kieran thought, but he still asked Eckart.

"What happened?"

Since Lin An was back, Kieran had no way to dodge him anymore, otherwise Eckart wouldn't have interrupted his training.

"Mei Huasheng is missing." Eckart told Kieran softly after going up to him. He even signaled Kieran with a meaningful gaze.

Kieran nodded and went over to Lin An.

"2567, did Mei Huasheng look for you?" Lin An asked anxiously after Kieran sat down in front him. The anxiety on the officer's face was obvious.

"No. You know, Mei Huasheng and I are not that close. She tried to follow me and it worsened the relationship. So…"

Kieran shrugged and didn't continue but his meaning was self-explanatory.

Lin An would be finding the wrong person here if he was asking for Mei Huasheng.

"I'm sorry. I apologize on behalf of her."

"She is not a bad person, it's just that her ways of doing things are a little strict and old-fashioned." Lin An bitterly laughed and took a deep breath.

Then, the officer continued in an embarrassed tone, "C-Can you…"

"No." Before Lin An even finish his sentence, Kieran rejected.

"Why? If it's because of the less pleasant relationship between you and her, I can apologize again and compensate you rightfully, as long as you can locate her."

Lin An looked at Kieran with a shocking expression before explaining in a rushed tone.

"How long has she been missing?" Kieran asked without answering the question.

"A week! She is a very strict person and follows the rules tightly. Even if she is on a mission, she would call me and report in everyday during a specific time. But a week ago, the calls stopped. I went over to her place to find her but based on the expiration date on the milk in her refrigerator, she hasn't been there for at least a month. We expanded our range to search for her but it's like she vanished into thin air! Not only her, even her car didn't leave any trails! I am here to ask for you help after we have exhausted all our methods and still can't find her. I hope you can help us." Lin An said sincerely.

"I really want to but a week is too long. It's beyond my league." Kieran shook his head in regret.

It wasn't lies or to brush Lin An off though, but the simple truth.

[Tracking]'s sight might be powerful but not almighty, traces and trails left behind would disappear with time or rain.

Why was the city named Rain City?

Because of the rainy weather all year long.

In fact, the downpour had been going on for the past three days.

The rain was merciless outside the window.

"I see…" Lin An sighed and leaned on the sofa helplessly and limp.

Kieran stood up, and wanted to return to his training.

Since he couldn't help, he might as well leave.

However, the moment Kieran turned around, the house phone of the villa rang.

Riiing! Riiing Riing!