Debuff Master

Chapter 565

“Yeah, you only live once, so better make full use of it,” Siegfried muttered. He became completely different after making the decision to join the Super Rookie Tournament.

“Just you wait..." Siegfried growled under his breath with gnashed teeth. "I’m going to show you hell once I catch you...”

He requested the police to investigate who had dared to pretend to be him and registered him for the tournament. He even went as far as hiring a high-end private investigator to investigate the matter separately from the police.

It was still unclear who in the world would be crazy enough to pretend to be him and use his IP address just to register him for the tournament, but he swore to make them pay dearly for what they had done.

Siegfried headed for the Bavarian Workshop while cursing the culprit behind his misery.

“Oh! What brings you here? Are you looking for something?” Quandt welcomed him with open arms.

“Yes,” Siegfried replied.

“What is it? Our workshop will always work hard to satisfy you!”

“I’m joining a tournament.”

“Oh! So you need a set of artifacts specialized for arena duels?”

“Yes, exactly.”

Unsurprisingly, Quandt instantly understood what Siegfried was looking for.

“All right, I will prepare a set of artifacts specialized for arena duels.”

It was a given that arena duels required a separate set of gear compared to day-to-day gear to hunt monsters. The arena only had other Adventurers as opponents, so having a set of gear that focused on Attack Speed, Movement Speed, and Casting Speed was far more advantageous rather than focusing on damage alone.

In terms of defense, focusing on stats that allowed the user to either withstand knockbacks or recover from them was far more advantageous compared to focusing on defense and magic resistance.

Last but not least, HP Regeneration.

HP Regeneration was arguably one of the most important stats in duels, as this would allow the user to withstand the enemy’s attacks while eyeing for that single window of opportunity to unleash a combo that would either kill their opponent or turn the tide of the duel in their favor.

“I will prepare a full set for you, don’t worry!”

“Oh also... I will be using lots of hand-to-hand combat techniques and grappling moves, so please keep that in mind, too.”

“Hmm?”

“I learned a few things from Grappling Master Leonid, so I mix in a punch or kick frequently and even attempt some grappling moves if the opportunity presents itself.”

“W-What?! Grappling Master Leonid?!” Quandt exclaimed out of shock. Then, he asked, “Are you telling me you received his teachings?”

“Yes?”

“Whoa...” Quandt could not help but be in disbelief after hearing that Siegfried had received teachings from not only Weapon Master Shakiro and Sword Emperor Betelgeuse but from Grappling Master Leonid as well.

Who else in this world had received the teachings from three out of the Five Star Heavens of the continent?

“D-Don’t tell me... Did he teach you his secret technique, too?”

“Oh, this?” Siegfried asked in response before extending his hand at a decorative statue in the distance.

Woooong!

A small black hole appeared around his wrist that sucked in the statue toward him.

Bam!

He then punched the statue, smashing it into smithereens with the secret technique of the Grappling Master, Blackhole Strike.

“I-Isn’t that Blackhole Strike?!”

“Oh? You know about it?”

“How could I not know about it?! Many people have fallen to Leonid’s Blackhole Strike in the past!”

“Oh, you do...”

“To think you would even learn Leonid’s secret technique...”

“I got lucky.”

“Just what are your limits...? Haha...”

“Come on, you’re praising me too much.”

“But...”

“...?”

“That statue just now was carved from a meteorite... so it was very expensive...”

“Heok?”

“I usually won’t say anything, but you will have to reimburse us for that one...”

“Ughh...” Siegfried groaned and cursed himself for showing off the Blackhole Strike, causing him to lose a huge sum of money. Of course, he had already amassed enough wealth for such reimbursements to not make a dent in his bank account.

***

Siegfried returned to the Proatine Kingdom after commissioning a set of artifacts specialized for duels. Then, he headed straight to the training grounds and went to Bruce.

“Hi, Bruce.”

“My name is Bruce—Bruce Wood!”

“Long time no see.”

“My name is Bruce—Bruce Wood!”

“I want to spar with you.”

“My name is Bruce—Bruce Wood!” Bruce exclaimed. Then, he got into stance and motioned with his fingers as if asking Siegfried to bring it on.

“Here I come!” Siegfried exclaimed and lunged at the training dummy.

Bam! Bam! Smack!

“Ack! D-Don’t hit my bone! That hurts!”

As expected, Siegfried was beaten to a pulp by Bruce. The training dummy created by Deus was indeed strong, and it possessed far greater combat ability compared to Seigfried. In fact, its combat abilities alone were already on par with a Grandmaster.

Thus, it was only a given that Siegfried would be beaten to a pulp by it every single time. However, Siegfried tried his best even while he was getting beaten up by Bruce, and he'd manage to get some hits from time to time, too. Well, he would get pummeled ten times after managing to hit Bruce once, but he was still happy with that result.

Siegfried focused solely on preparing for the Super Rookie Tournament.

Deus was passing by when he saw Siegfried getting beaten up by Bruce, making him curious as to what he was up to.

“What are you doing?”

“I greet my master,” Siegfried hurriedly bowed low to the ground and greeted him.

“Tsk... Tsk... Can you wipe away that blood on your lips first before greeting me?”

“Haha...”

“But why are you training all of a sudden? It seems that you’re focusing on training for one-on-one combat these days.”

“That is...” Siegfried proceeded to explain regarding the Super Rookie Tournament.

Surprisingly, Deus’ reaction to it was not what he expected.

“Kekeke! Since when have you become so praiseworthy, my disciple?”

“Huh...?”

“So you have finally decided to chase after glory!”

“What do you mean by...?”

“Were you not going to showcase to the world just how amazing the techniques that this great one has created?”

It was then...

‘Oh right!’ Siegfried suddenly realized what Deus wanted. Deus wanted Siegfried to defeat the descendants of the powerful people whom he had failed to defeat four hundred fifty years ago and show just how powerful the Debuff Master truly was.

Would Deus think negatively of the fact that Siegfried was going to join the Super Rookie Tournament?

The answer was NO!

Deus was actually delighted that Siegfried was using that chance to show off to the entire world just how amazing the Debuff Master was.

“That’s my disciple! Hohoho!” Deus said with a laugh, completely misunderstanding the situation. Then, he looked at Siegfried with eyes full of affection and said, “My disciple.”

“Yes, <aster?”

“It’s still too early, but I will teach you a powerful technique.”

“Whaaat?!”

“Arise!” Deus exclaimed in a commanding voice and snapped his finger.

Snap!

Ding!

A message popped up in front of Siegfried’s eyes.

[Alert: Deus has cast a buff on you!]

[Alert: Omnipotent: Buff of Transcendence has been cast on you!]

[Alert: A skill you cannot use in your current level has been unlocked due to the buff!]

[Alert: You have obtained a new skill!]

Siegfried gained a new skill of the Debuff Master with just a snap of Deus’ fingers.

“This is...” Siegfried was rendered speechless after seeing his new skill. Then, he looked at Deus and said, “Master, this skill is too... powerful.”

“Kekeke! Is that how it looks like?”

“Yes, Master.”

“It is a powerful skill! I dare say that it has most of my affection even among the skills I have created, so it has to be powerful!”

“I agree, Master.”

“Anyway, go on and continue your training.”

“Yes! Master!”

“Ah, before I forget. If you come back without winning the tournament, then...” Deus said. Then, he drew a line with his finger across his neck and said, “I will be in a very, very bad mood.”

“H-Hiiik!”

“Well, I’m sure my disciple will easily win such a small tournament. Am I right, my disciple?”

“Y-Yes, Master! I will definitely win the tournament!” Siegfried exclaimed while profusely sweating. He was suddenly forced to win the Super Rookie Tournament.

Why?

It was all because he knew very well that Deus’ wrath would fall upon him if he lost.

***

The other participants were preparing for the tournament as well. They were without a doubt going to give their all in this tournament, as it was their chance to obtain both money and glory if they won it.

Thus, they trained with the goal of emerging as the tournament’s champion.

Failure was not an option for them. Well, failure was not an option for Siegfried, too, but for a completely different reason.

“How’s Tae-Sung doing these days?”

“He’s gone insane, hyung-nim.”

“Huh?”

“He’s really working hard preparing for the tournament.”

“T-That guy is?!” Cheon Woo-Jin could not believe what he was hearing. Then, he asked just to make sure, “He’s preparing for the tournament?”

“Yes, hyung-nim.”

“I thought he didn’t care about the tournament?”

“No, you’re wrong.”

“But why? I can’t think of a reason he would—”

“Elder Deus-nim threatened to kill him if he failed to win the tournament.”

“Oh... I guess that explains it...”

Cheon Woo-Jin finally understood the reason behind Siegfried working so hard. He knew very well what was going to happen if Siegfried incurred Deus’ wrath after failing to win the tournament.

In addition to training with Bruce, Siegfried also dueled against other Adventurers at the Hall of War God.

Unfortunately, he soon ran into a problem.

“Ah... I’m stuck in queue again...”

He waited thirty minutes for the automatic matching system to find an opponent for him, but it still hadn't been able to find an opponent for him. Eventually, he canceled the queue and headed for the square located at the center of the Hall of Martial God.

It seemed that his undefeated record made it difficult for the system to match him with an opponent regardless of his rank.

Thanks to that, he was forced to go around the Hall of Martial God, looking for someone to duel.

“Looking for a sparring partner!”

“Kyu! Anyone wants to spar with my owner punk?!”

The two of them were going around the square in search of an opponent when a ruckus suddenly made them turn around.

“Catch him!”

“He’s over there!”

“Surround him so he doesn’t escape!”

The knight templars of the Temple of Martial God surrounded both of them.

“Huh? What’s going on?” Siegfried tilted his head in confusion, flustered at the sudden encirclement.

Then, the knight captain stepped forward and said in a commanding voice, “King Siegfried van Proa.”

“Yes?”

“You will have to come with us for a while.”

“Eh? Me?”

“Yes.”

“But why?”

“We have received numerous reports that you have committed unscrupulous acts in this holy place.”

“Unscrupulous acts?” Siegfried asked in response, seemingly baffled by the sudden accusations.

The knight captain smiled icily and explained, “There are accusations that you are cheating to maintain your rank and win rate in the arena.”

“Ah...”

“We also think that your win rate is abnormally high. Therefore, we have decided to investigate the matter.”

“...”

The knight captain smirked smugly and said, “I suggest you come with us without causing a scene, or else—”

Siegfried interrupted him and said, “Sure, I’ll go with you. But...”

“Speak.”

“I will settle things however I want if the investigation shows that I have committed no crimes.”

“Do as you please,” the knight captain shrugged and easily agreed.

‘Ha! There’s no way you didn’t cheat. I’m sure you’re just trying to act tough right now. Don’t underestimate me, kid,’ the knight captain thought. He was confident that Siegfried was cheating, as his win rate did not make sense at all.

“Then, shall we?”

“Sure.”

Siegfried was escorted by the knights to the interrogation room. He was not cuffed by them, as it was a courtesy not to cuff royalty in public.

“What? He was an abuser?”

“I thought he wasn’t an abuser, though? People were saying that he was really good.”

“Maybe he was abusing until Hero III because he couldn’t be bothered to rank up properly?”

“Hey, he won against pro gamers. How can he be an abuser?”

“But won’t he get disqualified from the tournament and get banned for a year from the game if found guilty?”

The Adventurers grew noisy after Siegfried was escorted away by the knights.

“Memo... Siegfried van Proa... Arrested by NPCs... Accused of abusing...”

“One of the Super Rookie Tournament candidates... Arrested by NPCs for abusing...”

The reporters hurriedly wrote down the scene of Siegfried getting escorted away by the knights.

The whole incident threw the square into a guessing frenzy, but there was one individual hidden within the crowd grinning ear to ear.

“Kekeke... Kekeke!”

The individual flashed a sleazy smile as they stared at Siegfried's departing figure under the knights' escort.