Debuff Master - Chapter 1149
Chapter 1149
“Ha! Truly amazing!”
“As expected of Emperor Siegfried von Proa!”
“By the gods! You have achieved yet another monumental feat, sire!”
Siegfried was showered with praise upon his return to the command center.
What he had accomplished was truly nothing short of remarkable, as an operation of this scale would have required an entire corps and a full-scale amphibious assault supported by battleships.
However, Siegfried managed to pull it off with just a handful of elite troops.
“The Corals will not be able to deploy any more of their motherships for the time being; we should be able to focus on the battles on the frontlines,” Siegfried said. Then, he turned to Hansen and asked, “Are there any updates from our spies?”
“Unfortunately, we have not received anything concrete, sire,” Hansen replied, bowing slightly.
“Hmm…” Siegfried pondered for a moment. Then, he said, “Finding the Coral Emperor’s location is our top priority now. Once we eliminate him, they will no longer be able to deploy their powerful warriors. That will tip the scales in our favor and eventually win us this war.”
“Yes, sire! I will report the moment I receive anything from our spies,” Hansen replied with a bow.
“Good,” Siegfried nodded.
“Thanks to Your Imperial Majesty’s exploits, we have managed to recover from the losses dealt by Cain’s betrayal. I will start preparing a strategy to push our forces forward. We will apply as much pressure as we can on the enemy’s capital city.”
“I leave that in your capable hands, then.”
Siegfried trusted no one more than Hansen when it came to coming up with strategies and tactics. Siegfried could leave all the strategizing to him while he focused on what he did best.
‘Time to go kill some more aliens and grind up to Level 500,’ Siegfried thought.
The growth stimulant was still active, and he was not planning to waste even a single second of it.
Every single second from now on had to be spent on obtaining as many Experience Points as he could in order to reach Level 500, which was the requirement for his third class advancement.
It was then.
“Urgent news from the empire, sire!”
A messenger came running in with hurried steps.
“Urgent report? What is it?” Siegfried asked.
“Here, sire!”
“Let’s see…”
Siegfried took the sealed document and unscrolled it. He scanned the report written before stopping, and his eyes widened.
It was a detailed account of Sigurd’s sudden intrusion into the Proatine Imperial Palace, and even a transcript of the conversation that took place between him and Deus.
‘Eh?! I had an elder brother?!’
Siegfried was shocked beyond belief. He had never once heard from Deus that there was another disciple before him. Moreover, the disciple, who was Siegfried’s elder brother, had been so drunk on power and ran wild, which ended up in him being captured by the Marchioni Empire and getting locked up in Alcatraz.
“Dame Oscar has tasked me with relaying a message to you, sire! She says that Sigurd will surely come for you, so please be on guard at all times,” the messenger said before bowing.
“Okay, got it. Tell Oscar she doesn’t have to worry about me,” Siegfried replied with a nod.
“As you command, sire!”
Siegfried was not afraid. It did not matter what sort of monster was coming for him, as he was confident he could win against them. However, he still couldn’t help but think, ‘Hold on… If he is my elder brother… does that mean he has the same class as me?’
However, Siegfried figured that they would not be exactly the same. Deus’ skills were evolving endlessly, and its form could shift depending on the user’s path.
Still, the core principle of Deus’ skillset remained unchanged—debuffs.
Weaken the enemy, beat them up, and win.
That was the one thing that would never change about the class that he had inherited from Deus.
‘Judging from their conversation… I think master wants me to handle him myself,’ Siegfried thought, understanding Deus’ intentions perfectly. After all, Deus could have squashed Sigurd like a bug and killed him long ago if he wanted him dead.
Why had he decided to let him?
The answer was quite simple. It was a test. Deus wanted Siegfried to destroy Sigurd and prove that he was worthy of being called the true disciple of Deus.
Moreover, this was a lesson for Sigurd himself, and it was one that he would learn the hard way. Besides, Siegfried couldn’t ask for a better target, as Sigurd was a Grandmaster who possessed the very same unique skillset Deus had created.
A duel between two Debuff Masters was an extremely rare opportunity for Siegfried to test himself.
‘It won’t be easy for sure,’ Siegfried thought.
He could tell that Sigurd would be absurdly strong, and his chances of winning weren’t that high at all. In fact, he could even lose against Sigurd.
However, he was neither afraid nor fazed.
He was confident he could take whatever came his way, as the Siegfried of today had complete faith in himself and the path he had been walking on.
***
The next morning, Tae-Sung purposely made time to drop by the hospital and check on Daytona.
“I’m fine.”
Daytona seemed to have pulled himself together a bit more over the last few days, and he looked far calmer than before.
However, Tae-Sung could see clearly that despite Daytona’s calm look on the outside, he was actually rotting away inside.
“So, are you really thinking of quitting the game?” Tae-Sung asked carefully.
“No,” Daytona said, shaking his head. Then, he said in a cold and low voice, “I have to get my revenge first.”
“Revenge…”
“Even if I quit, I’ll make sure I settle my score first.”
A chill ran down Tae-Sung’s spine. He could feel the killing intent buried deep in Daytona’s eyes.
This was no longer just simple anger directed at someone. This was rage that had gone way past its limit and turned into a hatred so strong that it could only be resolved by spilling blood.
Daytona loved Amelia with all his heart, not caring whether she was an NPC or not.
His love was real, and it was perhaps even more real than the love shared by some couples in real life.
His lover was murdered before his eyes, so his thirst for Lee Geon’s blood was inevitable. Only a blood vengeance could quench his thirst, and he couldn’t care less whether it was in the game or real life.
If Lee Geon were to appear in front of Daytona right now, then the former would have a knife stuck between his ribs.
Daytona no longer differentiated between the virtual world and the real world. He would get his revenge one way or another.
“Even if I do quit the game, I’ll do it after I get my revenge.”
“Let me help you.”
Without missing a beat, Tae-Sung offered to help in Daytona’s vengeance.
He, too, hated Lee Geon’s guts for obvious reasons, and he had already been planning ways to round up that bastard and his fanatics.
It was only a matter of time before the prisons were built. Once the prisons were built, all he had to do was lock up those bastards and make sure that they were banished from BNW forever.
“Just hold on a bit longer. I’m doing everything I can to finish those bastards once and for all,” Tae-Sung said.
Then, he proceeded to share his plan in a low voice.
“Okay, Tae-Sung. Don’t worry about me. I will be fine,” Daytona replied with a faint smile.
“Hey, of course I’m going to worry about you. How can I not? Anyway, just rest for now. I’ll be waiting for your comeback.”
“Thank you… really…”
After finishing his visit to Daytona, Tae-Sung made time to meet Yong Seol-Hwa.
He ought to be making full use of the growth stimulant, but he still decided to squeeze in a moment with her first.
“Look forward to it, oppa.”
“Huh? Look forward to what?”
Tae-Sung tilted his head in confusion while halfway sipping his coffee.
“I’m working on a new project with Quandt.”
“Wait, what? The two of you?”
“We’re crafting the best armor and weapon just for you. It will be the best gear available out there.”
“All of a sudden?”
“Lee Geon’s not an easy opponent. And you’ve been using the same gear for a while now, haven’t you?”
“Well, yeah… that’s true…”
“My blacksmithing level has gone up a ton lately, so I can start crafting legendary items.”
“Whoa! Really?!”
“So just hang tight for a bit longer and look forward to it.”
“Thank you!”
“Don’t mention it,” Yong Seol-Hwa said with a smile.
“I’m pouring everything into leveling up these days. And you probably heard about the plan I’m working on to round up Lee Geon and his lackeys, right? I’m going to lock them away for good.”
“I know you will, oppa.”
Both of them decided to do their best in their respective positions and strive toward their common goal. Of course, they would not forget to spend quality time together, no matter how busy they got in BNW.
***
On that same afternoon, Siegfried volunteered to be deployed to an operation targeting yet another enemy base.
The Marchioni Imperial Army had finally acknowledged Siegfried as a strategic weapon of mass destruction, so they were more than eager to put him to use wherever they could.
This was a normal response, as Siegfried single-handedly pulled off most operations that required the development of a full corps.
Even though Siegfried was an emperor, the Marchioni Imperial Army was more than willing to deploy him if it meant winning this war.
Of course, Siegfried welcomed it, too.
Crushing the Corals was the perfect outlet for stress. Moreover, every single Coral he killed earned him a ton of Experience Points, which was boosted by the growth stimulant.
Killing two birds with one stone never felt so satisfying, and the results proved it.
[Alert: You have reached Level 480!]
[Alert: You have reached Level 481!]
[Alert: You have reached Level 482!]
[Alert: You have reached Level 483!]
[Alert: You have reached Level 484!]
[Alert: You have reached Level 485!]
By the end of the afternoon, Siegfried leveled up six whole times.
He killed, killed, and killed so many Corals that he reaped a crazy amount of Experience Points. Coupled with the growth stimulant, his growth speed seemed almost unfair to others.
“Truly magnificent work, sire,” Hansen said, practically beaming with delight.
He had been extremely stressed, coming up with strategy after strategy to undo the damage caused by Cain’s betrayal.
Thanks to Siegfried’s brilliant display of martial prowess on the battlefield, the battle was slowly starting to shift heavily in their favor.
“I’m calling it for today. I’m exhausted,” Siegfried said.
“Excellent work, sire. I hope you have a pleasant rest,” Hansen replied with a bow.
Leveling up six times in one day meant that he never had even a moment of rest. He fought from the moment he stepped on the battlefield until he returned to the command center without stopping even for a second.
Despite the exhaustion, Siegfried was proud to say that he made full use of his day, so he had no regrets.
However, he knew better than to push himself further, as pushing himself more than this could cause him to slip up and cost him dearly.
“I’ll be back tomorrow morning. Make sure to have the next operation ready.”
“As you command, sire.”
With that, Siegfried ordered Hansen to prepare the next place for him to feast on experience points before logging out.
Meanwhile, the Corals were on the edge of ruin.
Ever since Siegfried’s sudden appearance on the battlefield, their entire army had been thrown into chaos.
The Coral Forces had suffered catastrophic damage. Just in the past few days, tens of thousands of Coral Soldiers had fallen at Siegfried’s hands, which was a huge blow for a species with an already limited population.
On top of that, the three motherships under construction had gone up in flames.
Thus, it was only normal for the Coral’s high command to be at their wit’s end after suffering a series of unfortunate events.
“Chancellor, sir! A human named Cain requests an audience with you.”
The Coral Chancellor, Maximus, received the report and ordered that Cain be brought before him.
“It is an honor to stand before you, Chancellor Maximus,” Cain said, bowing deeply.
This was his first meeting with Maximus since he betrayed the Marchioni Imperial Army.
His envy toward Siegfried and the poor treatment he had been receiving drove him to betray the Marchioni Empire and defect to the Coral Race with his entire guild. Now, his only choice was to prove his worth to the Corals and be of service to them.
“So, you’re the one they call Cain. Your defection has given our people a moment to breathe. You have our gratitude, human.”
“I am undeserving of such high praises,” Cain said, shaking his head. Then, he continued, “They are nothing but vile invaders who used us as pawns. They never showed me a shred of respect or dignity, so why should I offer them my loyalty?
“I merely did the right thing.”
“Hmm…” Maximus muttered, looking at Cain with wary eyes.
“Chancellor Maximum,” Cain called out.
“Hm?”
“I believe you have heard of that bastard, Siegfried von Proa, have you?”
“I certainly have.”
By now, Siegfried’s reputation had spread through every corner of the Coral Planet that taking him out had become the highest priority of the Corals. Any Coral who claimed that they had not heard of Siegfried’s name would most likely be a spy at this point.
“I can help you remove that damned bastard from the battlefield,” Cain said. Then, he added, “Of course, that is if you want me to.”
“Oh?” Maximum raised a brow, his interest piqued.
If there was even the smallest chance to kill Siegfried von Proa, then Maximus was willing to sell even his soul if he had to do so.
