Debuff Master

‘This bastard is… the real deal…’

Siegfried instinctively knew he was facing the worst enemy he had ever faced thus far.

After all, this wasn't just a battle of strength but a battle of justification and public sentiment as well.

A powerful enemy? Siegfried could just beat the living hell out of them if they were a villain, as nobody would say anything about that.

However, that wasn't the case here. His opponent was not a villain but was someone with the public's sentiment on his side. The people believed that he had come here for a great cause.

There was no way Siegfried could beat up someone like that without feeling burdened.

Why?

It was all because BNW wasn't a single-player game.

The NPC in BNW saw, listened, spoke, and thought just like human beings. Even the most powerful Adventurer would soon walk the path to ruin if the NPCs decided to turn their backs on them.

The only exception would be someone like the invincible Deus. Aside from him, an Adventurer would find it hard to keep playing the game if the public's sentiment was against them.

An officer with the Proatine Forces approached Siegfried and whispered, “Your Majesty, that man is wearing our uniform, but he's not one of us. I do not recall such a face among my men.”

Siegfried nodded and replied, “I’m aware. He’s an actor planted by Count Arial. There’s no way one of our men will do something like that.”

The Proatine Forces were an extremely disciplined army that had unshakeable loyalty toward Siegfried and the kingdom, so there was no way one of them would kill someone without Siegfried’s or the commander’s commands.

Unfortunately, the people were unaware of this fact.

“B-Bring him back! Bring him baaack!”

“Why would you kill someone brought back to life?!”

“I will curse you! I will curse you for the rest of your life!”

The families of the soldiers screamed and hurled curses at the fake Proatine soldier, who had just killed the resurrected soldier

But that was just the start of the mess…

“Fuck! So what if you’re the king?! Can you do whatever you want just because you’re the king?!”

“Who are you to say who lives and dies?! Are you God?! Why would you kill someone who was raised back to life?!”

“Go fuck yourself! You killed them, and you’re killing them again!”

“What? Don’t bring them back to life? Who are you to say that?!”

“Who gave you the authority to judge what God can do?!”

“Kill them if you can!”

The enraged crowd, who were mostly family members of those who had died in the battle, hurled all sorts of insults and curses at Siegfried. They were so enraged that it wouldn't be strange for a riot to erupt, which would definitely end in bloodshed.

In fact, a few people picked up rocks on the ground and threw them at Siegfried.

“Hey, I think we just got screwed over. Don’t you think so?” Cheon Woo-Jin whispered.

“Can’t you tell?” Siegfried grumbled. Then, he grimaced and said, “We’re completely fucked.”

“W-What should we do now?”

“We have two choices.”

“What are they?”

“The first is…” Siegfried muttered. Then, he smiled icily and said, “Massacre.”

“M-Massacre?”

“Screw sentiment. We kill that cunning bastard along with everyone worshiping him. Do you think the people will sit still if we attack him? They’ll come after us the moment we do that. Civilian casualty is inevitable since that bastard will use the people as his shield.”

“...!”

“We will have to be prepared to kill everyone here if need necessary.”

Siegfried looked really scary as he talked about the justification to commit a massacre.

“C-can we even do that?” Cheon Woo-Jin asked, stuttering.

“Why not?” Siegfried replied with a shrug. Then, he explained, “I’m not an apostle of justice or anything like that. I’m a gamer so it’s only normal that I prioritize my own benefits. You should already know that I’m not some legendary hero or wise ruler, right?”

“I-I know, but still…”

“I have to do it if it’s necessary.”

“Hmm…”

Cheon Woo-Jin was at a loss for words upon realizing just how far Siegfried was willing to go for the sake of his vested interests. The Han Tae-Sung he knew seemed lazy, easygoing, and even sometimes downright stupid, but he knew that he could be far more ruthless than anyone else when it came to these kinds of situations.

“What’s our second option?” Cheon Woo-Jin asked.

It was then.

“Your Majesty,” Count Arial said and walked toward Siegfried. The enraged mob instantly calmed down and parted to create a path for the count, just like how Moses parted the Red Sea.

***

Count Arial was about five meters away from Siegfried when he suddenly kneeled on one knee.

“Your Majesty.”

“What?”

“I, Arial de Gray, is Your Majesty’s subject.”

“So what about it?”

“Please do not be hostile toward your humble servant.”

“Hostile?”

“Who am I trying to save right now, sire?”

Siegfried didn't respond to that question. Instead, a thought popped up in his mind, ‘This bastard… is a pro…’

He knew that Count Arial was asking a rhetorical question with a predetermined answer, so he didn't bother responding to the question.

However, it seemed that the count had seen right through Siegfried and proceeded to answer his own question.

“I am trying to save Your Majesty’s own people,” Count Arial added with his head lowered.

“...”

“I implore you to allow me to use my powers to bring back Your Majesty’s people to life.”

The people were deeply moved by Count Arial’s words, and they prostrated on the ground, worshiping him.

“Oh my god!”

“You are the one true god!”

“How could a god bow to a tyrant?!”

“Please protect us from that man’s tyranny!”

“We will protect you!”

“We are your guards! We will offer our lives to you!”

There was no question that the public sentiment had already shifted to Count Arial’s side. This was only obvious for the bereaved family members, as the count had brought their father, son, or brother back to life, which made him a god in their eyes.

“Haha…” Siegfried laughed in disbelief at the absurd sight in front of his eyes.

“Hey, Tae-Sung. What should we do now?” Cheon Woo-Jin asked, whispering.

“What else can we do?” Siegfried replied with a shrug. Then, he rubbed his chin and said, “I think committing a massacre is a bit too much.”

“Y-Yeah, I think so, too.”

“Then we bash that bastard’s head open!” Siegfried exclaimed and charged at the count.

Bzzt! Bzzzt!

Siegfried activated the third stage of Overclocking and charged at Count Arial. Sparks flew from him, shoving everyone in his path a few meters away.

Why was he going all out from the beginning?

It was all because Count Arial wasn't someone he could afford to underestimate.

Siegfried’s second option was actually to retreat and find a solution to the problem, but he erased that option from his mind the moment he saw the public sentiment rapidly shifting toward the count’s side.

‘That bastard… He’s going to become a big problem if I let him be. His number of followers is going to snowball, and it will be too late to beat him up then. This is my best chance at dealing with him,’ Siegfried thought, intent on destroying Count Arial before he became an even bigger problem. He could deal with the backlash from the people later on; eliminating the root of evil came first above anything else.

‘I have to lock him up first,’ Siegfried decided to use the Grand Duel to lock Count Arial up and make sure that he wouldn't be able to escape.

Rumble!

He slammed his +13 Vanquisher’s Grasp on the ground.

C-Craaack!

The barrier of victory formed around Siegfried and Count Arial, swallowing them up.

This proved to be an excellent decision, as the count was a magician. Siegfried held a clear advantage when fighting against a magician in enclosed spaces. He could easily catch Count Arial and give the latter a taste of his explosive DPS.

On top of that, the Barrier of Victory could withstand a lot of damage, so the people nearby wouldn't be harmed by their battle.

In other words, Siegfried chose the best course of action available to him, but…

“...?”

Siegfried was flustered upon realizing that he was alone inside the Barrier of Victory. The Grand Duel had activated, and the barrier was made, but there was nobody inside with him.

“So there was a reason he knelt over there…”

He realized that Count Arial had calculated the distance between them before kneeling and putting on that show.

Meanwhile, Cheon Woo-Jin and the Guardians were at a standoff with Count Arial.

“Wow, this guy’s good. He managed to deceive Han Tae-Sung of all people?” Cheon Woo-Jin muttered, sincerely impressed by the count’s cunningness.

He was excited just from the thought that he would have to exert his real strength after a very long time. He might give quests to heroes to uphold the peace on the continent as the Quest Maker, but that did not mean he was weak.

No, he was actually strong—really strong.

He possessed a Hidden Class, the Quest Maker, which was one of the Epic Code, just like Siegfried's class as the Debuff Master.

Wooong!

Cheon Woo-Jin channeled the strength he had gathered from giving out quests all this while and released them all at once.

“I’m not really a fan of doing the work myself, but…”

It was then.

Swoosh!

A bright light flashed, forcing Cheon Woo-Jin to cover his eyes.

“H-Huh?” Cheon Woo-Jin muttered after seeing that there was nobody around him.

Whoosh…!

Tens of thousands of people disappeared, and not even an ant was left in sight. The only thing left was the blood shed by the imposter wearing the Proatine military uniform and the Barrier of Victory set up by Siegfried along with…

“Meeeeh!”

A random goat that had lost its owner and was crying in front of Cheon Woo-Jin.

“H-He warped away with that many people? Without even channeling it…?”

Cheon Woo-Jin was stunned. Was it even possible to warp away with so many people without even channeling a spell?

Was that even possible for those who weren't Grandmasters?

Krwaaaang!

The Barrier of Victory collapsed, and Siegfried emerged from it.

“What the hell happened here…?” Siegfried muttered in disbelief while looking around.

“T-That's…” Cheon Woo-Jin stuttered in response. He had no idea how to explain the situation. In the end, he simply recounted, “So what happened was…”

“You lost him?”

“Yeah…”

“Fuck!” Siegfried growled in anger.

He felt like a dog chasing after a chicken right now.

***

Count Arial had warped himself and the people into the depths of the Capucines Territory.

“Oh! God has descended upon us!”

“Oh my god!”

“Please bestow us your miracle!”

The multitude was in awe of Count Arial’s powers. They suddenly found themselves in the Capucines Territory, after all.

Just then, someone shouted, “That tyrant will surely come after us! What do we do?!”

Count Arial looked like he had been waiting for that question as he smiled and replied, “I am God.”

He emphasized the fact that he was God.

“God is omnipotent, so even a tyrant cannot threaten Me.”

Then, he waved his hand lightly at the walls in the distance.

C-Crack…! Crack…!

The walls grew taller and taller until they towered twenty meters above the ground, but that was not all…

Poof! Poof! Poof!

The latest cannons from the Marchioni Empire appeared on its walls. This was nothing short of a miracle, and it seemed that he could turn stone into bread and muddy waters into wine at this point.

“God has descended upon us!”

“Oh my god!”

The multitude prostrated on the ground and worshiped Count Arial upon witnessing his miracles.

Count Arial raised his arms and addressed the crowd, “Lift up your eyes and look at me, my people. I am God, and I am with you. Look at My face—look at God’s face.”

“Oh! God is with us!”

“Do not fear death. God’s grace will bring you back to life. I, God, will become your king, and you will become God’s chosen people.”

And just like that, Count Arial declared that he was God and established a new kingdom in the Capucines Territory.

The kingdom ruled by "God" was called the Holy Kingdom.

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