Debuff Master-Chapter 838

While Siegfried was frantically running around to clear up the misunderstanding, elsewhere, the Silver Dragon, Keanus, sought out Dragon Lord Gerog to discuss the current crisis and seek advice from him.

“What? Angels have appeared in this world? What is that madness?”

Gerog was a venerable ancient dragon that was 9,112 years old, and he was also the very dragon who, a year ago, was reprimanded and punched by Deus.

“And you’re saying a single Dragon Slayer hunted down so many of our kind? That’s impossible!”

Gerog was utterly shocked upon hearing that the angels had descended, but the news of a single Dragon Slayer killing nearly twenty dragons shocked him even more.

Dragon Slayers were unfortunate creatures who would only ever encounter dragons that were running amok. They would be forced to use up all of their strength and perish just after awakening their powers. It was rare for a Dragon Slayer to actively seek out dragons and hunt them down first.

However, Dragon Slayer Phoenix was markedly different from the other Dragon Slayers. Not only had he survived his awakening, but he also began hunting dragons down out of pure instinct.

This could only mean one thing.

“A true incarnation of Garuda has appeared. Ah... the Creator’s wrath has begun to descend upon us...” Gerog muttered, his massive frame shuddering from dread.

“Is it truly the Creator’s wrath?” Keanus asked carefully.

She was still a relatively young dragon, so she lacked much of the knowledge that Gerog possessed.

“Without a doubt. Such a powerful Garuda hasn't been seen since the Crusade for Freedom,” Gerog replied, nodding solemnly. Then, he explained, “For one to appear now is a clear sign of the Creator’s anger.”

“Oh...”

“What are we to do? Our kind will be driven to extinction if multiple incarnations of Garudas arise!”

“E-Extinction? But surely, if you, the Dragon Lord, intervenes then—”

“You foolish child,” Gerog interrupted, his tone almost pitying the young dragon. Then, he explained, “No matter how mighty we dragons are, to the Garudas, we are nothing more than prey for them.”

“Even you, Lord?”

“As the Dragon Lord, I am indeed powerful. But I am still a dragon in the end. Against a true Garuda, even I would be nothing more than a mere lizard.”

“H-How can that be possible?!” Keanus gasped in horror.

“What are we to do? O the heavens above!” Gerog lamented, his booming voice reverberating throughout the vast chamber.

Then, he calmed himself down and revealed a determined look before saying, “This cannot go on. We must convene a council of all the dragon lords. The leaders of each dragon clan must be informed, and we must formulate a plan before it’s too late.”

The dragons were divided into seven clans, namely the Gold Clan, the Silver Clan, the Green Clan, the Black Clan, the Blue Clan, the White Clan, and the Red Clan.

Gerog was the lord of the Gold Dragons and the leader of all dragonkind, and each clan still had its own leader.

“I shall summon them at once,” Gerog declared.

He activated a magical pendant exclusive only to the dragon lords.

“...”

“...”

“...”

There was no response.

“Damn it all!” Gerog roared. His patience evaporated when none of the dragon lords responded to his summons. Dragons were notoriously reclusive creatures. They hated being disturbed and preferred to laze about in their lairs or sleep for centuries on end.

Thus, communication among them was quite difficult. Moreover, older dragons often disappeared without a trace, making it hard to tell whether they were alive or dead.

“There’s no helping it. We’ll have to go find them ourselves. Come, child, you shall accompany me.”

“Yes, Lord,” Keanus responded.

Gerog and Keanus set out to visit the lairs of the other dragon lords, but their efforts proved fruitless.

Every lair they visited was either completely abandoned or showed signs of neglect. It was like the dragon living there had long since moved to another place.

At the lair of the White Dragon Lord, they found skeletal remains, which suggested that the dragon could have succumbed to old age.

“These fools! I told them to report their whereabouts regularly! And if they’re going to die, couldn’t they at least appoint a successor first?! How irresponsible!” Gerog fumed, slamming his tail in frustration.

“P-Please, calm down!” Keanus pleaded in a desperate attempt to soothe him.

“Damn dragons! There’s no choice. We will have to continue searching one by one,” Gerog grumbled, and his voice dripped with disdain despite being a dragon himself.

“I will assist you to the best of my abilities, Lord.”

“Thank you, child.”

“It is my pleasure, Lord.”

“The survival of our race depends on how united we can be,” Gerog lamented. Then, he said, “I will track down the lords myself. Meanwhile, I need you to warn the other dragons.”

Gerog handed her an ancient directory of dragon residences that was last updated more than three centuries ago.

“Of course, Lord.”

“We will regroup at my lair later.”

“As you command.”

Thus, Gerog and Keanus parted ways, each embarking on a mission that would decide the survival of the dragon race.

***

“Ah, right!” Siegfried came to a screeching halt and changed his destination from where Brunhilde was to Oscar’s office. “If anyone can prove my innocence, it’s Dame Oscar!”

He knew that actions spoke louder than words, and with Fragarach, he could provide irrefutable evidence of his innocence. This was truly a surefire and convincing solution to his predicament.

Bam!

The door to Oscar’s office burst open as Siegfried rushed into the room, but—

“...!”

Oscar was changing her shirt, and she froze at the unexpected intrusion. She had accidentally spilled some tea on herself while she was working, forcing her to change clothes.

Siegfried had rushed into her office while she was in the middle of changing clothes.

“...!”

Siegfried froze at the sight and was paralyzed by the awkward tension in the air. He hurriedly tried to close the door while apologizing profusely, but before he could leave, Oscar’s words made him stop in his tracks.

“Now is not the time, Your Majesty.”

“What?! W-What are you talking about?!”

“In the royal palace in broad daylight, Your Majesty? Please, maintain your dignity.”

“Wait, that’s not what I–”

“Not an hour had passed since news of Her Majesty being in distress had spread throughout the palace, Your Majesty...”

“N-No!”

“If Your Majesty desires me, then I will... have no other choice but to obey. But I implore you to exert self-control, as now is not the right time for this.”

“...?”

“Please exercise restraint. And now, pardon me for a moment.”

Oscar walked over and gently shut the door, leaving Siegfried stunned.

‘What in the world happened just now...?’

Siegfried could not help but doubt his ears. Oscar’s words were not only incomprehensible but were absolutely absurd, too.

One minute later...

“You may enter now, Your Majesty.”

Fully dressed, Oscar reopened the door and invited Siegfried into her office.

“I’m really sorry, Dame Oscar! I was in such a rush that I barge in without thinking and—”

Oscar interrupted him, “Your Majesty. If you truly wish for me to submit to your demands, I must ask that you—”

“No!” Siegfried cut her off this time with a scream. Then, he cried out, “I’m not that kind of person! I came here to ask for your help, nothing more!”

“...Pardon me, sire?”

“I need you to prove my innocence, Dame Oscar!”

“Oh... I see...”

Oscar’s face flushed bright red after realizing that it was all a misunderstanding. She remained silent for a few seconds before finally recovering her composure.

“I understand. I will assist Your Majesty in proving your innocence.”

“Ah, thank goodness...” Siegfried let out a sigh of relief. Then, he said, “Please don’t think of me as that kind of person. I swear I’m not! The idea of... taking advantage of you is utterly absurd!”

This chapt𝒆r is updated by frёewebηovel.cѳm.

“I believe you,” Oscar replied with a solemn nod. Then, she thought, ‘Yes, there’s no way my liege would ever behave in such a way.’

A wave of guilt washed over her, and then she rebuked herself for even doubting Siegfried.

“Now, let us proceed. I will help prove Your Majesty’s innocence.”

“Thank you, Dame Oscar. Let’s hurry up now.”

Together, Siegfried and Oscar set out to find Brunhilde.”

***

“Mother, is something wrong?”

“No, everything’s fine.”

When they arrived, the duo found Verdandi consoling Brunhilde.

“My love,” Siegfried approached her and explained the whole situation. Then, he asked for Oscar’s assistance to prove his innocence by being tested by the Fragarach.

Oscar placed the sword on his neck and asked, “Have you been unfaithful?”

“Absolutely not,” Siegfried replied confidently.

“Do you intend to be unfaithful in the future?”

“Never.”

“Do you have plans to take concubines?”

“Not at all.”

The interrogation continued. Siegfried answered question after question with unwavering honesty until his innocence was proven.

“My love...!” Brunhilde gasped, tears flowing down after learning the truth.

It turned out that she had misunderstood him.

“I’m so sorry! I shouldn’t have doubted you!”

“It’s okay.”

“But... I think I could accept it if you decided to take concubines,” Brunhilde whispered while holding him tightly.

“Absolutely not,” Siegfried replied, shaking his head. Then, he explained, “Monogamy is the norm in where I come from.”

“But...”

“Sure, some people cheat, but most decent folks stick to one partner for life. So, don’t worry about that,” Siegfried said, reassuring her once more while holding her gently.

“I shall take my leave now, sire,” Oscar said with a bow and exited the room.

“Thank you so much, Dame Oscar! I’m forever grateful to you!”

“I was merely doing my duty, sire. Well then, I wish you a pleasant time.”

With a warm smile, Oscar left after making sure that the couple had reconciled.

‘I will always protect Your Majesty’s happiness,’ Oscar thought.

With that resolve in mind, Oscar headed straight back into the main hall and immediately summoned the entire palace staffers.

“Those of you who had spread baseless rumors about His Majesty, step forward at once,” Oscar said sternly.

She had no intentions of letting this incident go without a stern reckoning.

While Siegfried could shrug off the incident as a mishap, Oscar, a knight with a strong sense of honor, considered their behavior toward their liege to be an unforgivable offense.

***

The incident brought Siegfried and Brunhilde closer together, and their bond strengthened more than ever.

Siegfried decided to take a full week off to spend quality time with Brunhilde and Verdandi. Yes, his growth and quest progression were important, but he also knew just how important it was to cherish moments with his in-game family.

Meanwhile, Oscar handed harsh punishments to the servants and maids who had spread rumors regarding Siegfried by sending them all to undergo intense military discipline training.

For Oscar, who not only served Siegfried loyally but also respected him deeply, it was unacceptable for people serving him to gossip and tarnish his royal name.

Just like that, an uneventful week passed...

“I should go to the Great Rift from today...”

Siegfried decided it was time to challenge the highest-level dungeon on the continent, the Great Rift. At Level 299, he had hit the insurmountable wall that had stopped countless others from growing even stronger.

If he wanted to follow Deus’ advice, he had to keep pushing himself to his limits and overcome the wall.

“Let’s go, Hamchi.”

“Kyuuu! Let’s go!”

And so, Siegfried set out from the Proatine Kingdom with Hamchi by his side. The duo traveled west across the continent for the Great Rift.

Along the way...

Rumble!

Suddenly, a small warp magic circle appeared underneath Siegfried and Hamchi’s feet.

“Huh? What’s this?”

“Kyuuu?!”

The two were caught off guard as the warp magic circle pulled them in.

Resistance was futile.

Siegfried tried jumping around to escape, but the magic circle remained firmly underneath his feet.

“Why won’t this thing stop?!” Siegfried screamed out of frustration.

Flash!

A radiant light exploded from the warp magic circle, swallowing both Siegfried and Hamchi whole.