Debuff Master

Chapter 1293

“H-Hey! What is the meaning of this—ack!”

The Ego dwelling within the Annihilation’s Grasp, the one Siegfried referred to as a third-rate evil spirit, stumbled backward in panic—only to take a punch to the face and go flying several meters back.

“Y-You lunatic! What the hell was that for?!”

The third-rate evil spirit tried to resist, but it was futile.

Why? Because defying Siegfried within the World of Despair was simply impossible.

“Oh? Let me help you remember.”

“Gah! Y-You crazy son of a—aaaagh!”

“I told you to know your place, didn’t I? How dare you bare your fangs at your master?”

“Gaaaaahk!”

“You’re in serious need of re-education.”

“AAAAAACK!”

After another round of merciless beating—no, re-education...

“Hic... Sniff... Sniff...”

The third-rate evil spirit, the Ego within the Universal-rated weapon, started crying.

It sounded pitiful as it asked, “Why are you beating me? Why...?”

Siegfried narrowed his eyes and asked, “Are you playing dumb now? You think I don’t know you’ve been disobeying me?”

“When did I ever disobey you?”

“You’ve been rebelling constantly! Running wild and all!”

“And how is that my fault?! Do you really think that’s my fault?!”

“Huh...?”

“Why is it my fault that you’re too weak to fully control your own weapon?! Tell me! I didn’t do anything!”

“R-Really? You didn’t do anything? Are you sure you weren’t doing it on purpose?”

“How many times do I have to tell you?! I didn’t!”

“...”

“It’s all your fault! You’re too weak, so my body is rejecting you!”

“So all that... because I’m weak?”

“With your current strength, your physical body can’t handle my full power! Even if I want to help you, there’s only so much I can do when you’re so laughably weak!”

“S-So that’s what it was all along?!”

“Yes! And you were beating me up as if it were my fault! You damn psychopath! The weapon is my body, and I am the mind. I’m trying to cooperate with you, but my body simply refuses to! It’s going against my will and rampaging because you’re too damned weak!”

“I-I see...” Siegfried stammered. Then, he scratched the back of his head awkwardly and said, “Haha... I thought you were trying to take over my body so...”

“Gaaah! You’re damn frustrating!”

“S-Sorry about that...”

“I’ve never been this wrongly accused in my entire existence... You didn’t even ask and just started beating me up! Sniff, sniff!”

“Hey, don’t cry.”

“Forget it. Just leave me be...”

“Man, you’re really soft, aren’t you? You’re crying like that just because I hit you a few times?”

“A few hits?! Did you just say a few hits?! Do you even know how many times you hit me?! You beat me up so much I lost count!”

“O-Okay, okay! I said I’m sorry!”

“I don’t need your sorry. Sniff, sniff!”

The third-rate evil spirit sobbed for quite a while after that.

After all, it had been beaten senseless for no reason, so it had every right to be upset.

“So, what do I have to do to handle you properly?” Siegfried finally asked after the third-rate evil spirit calmed down a bit.

“Isn’t it obvious? You have to get stronger!”

“How much stronger are we talking about?”

“I told you before already. Right now, you can barely handle ten percent of my powers!”

“Hmm...”

“You’re basically hanging by a thread right now. If you were even a tiny bit weaker, you would have been ripped apart the instant you laid your hands on me!”

“I see...”

“So stop taking it out on me and go get stronger, damn it!”

“Got it,” Siegfried replied with a nod. Then, he flashed an awkward smile and added, “And... sorry for hitting you. I really thought you were after my body.”

“...”

“But with the way you acted before, you can’t blame me for being suspicious of you. Still, I promise I won’t hit you for no reason from now on, so let’s just call it quits, ok?”

“...Fine.”

The third-rate evil spirit finally accepted Siegfried’s apology after a while. After all, it had been the one to mouth off first about stealing his body when they first met, so it seemed reasonable for it to let things slide this time.

***

When the World of Despair dissolved, Siegfried sighed. “Sigh... So I was not strong enough."

He couldn’t help but feel embarrassed at his weakness.

“If I don’t get stronger soon, people will start saying that this weapon is wasted on me...”

Nothing could be more humiliating than possessing a Universal-rated weapon he couldn't wield properly. Of course, Annihilation’s Grasp was not just any ordinary weapon. When cranked up to max power output, it could unleash destructive power enough to annihilate the entire world.

Even a Grandmaster would find it nearly impossible to control it properly.

Most people would laugh after hearing that Siegfried could only utilize ten percent of its power properly, but most people wouldn't even be able to hold it for a second.

The fact that he could even use the weapon was a testament to his strength.

“Sigh...”

It was then.

“Hoho... What an interesting artifact you’ve found.”

Siegfried immediately turned at the familiar voice.

“Master!”

Deus was standing there, watching with an amused look.

“I came by to see how your training was going, and what do I find? I see my one and only disciple struggling with a cursed little trinket?”

“I-I was...”

“Let me see it.”

Deus extended his hand and—

Whoosh!

—The Annihilation’s Grasp was sucked into his palm, as though obeying his command.

Wooong! Wooong! Woong!

The Universal-rated weapon hummed softly, vibrating slightly. Surprisingly, it was the stark opposite of the usual noises it would emit, as this one sounded oddly calm and soothing.

‘What the hell? Don’t tell me... it actually likes being held by Master?!’ Siegfried thought, his eyes widening in shock.

Whenever he held the Annihilation’s Grasp, it would crackle and lash out with violent energy, but in Deus’ hand, it trembled as if quivering in delight. This was pure discrimination at the highest level, as the difference in how it behaved in his hand and in Deus’ hand was simply ridiculous.

“This is the first and only weapon I’ve found worthy of being called a proper weapon,” Deus said, sounding amused.

“I-Is it that incredible, Master?”

“Watch closely. I’ll show you.”

With a flicker of light, Deus teleported them both to the middle of the ocean.

“My disciple.”

“Yes, Master.”

“Open your eyes and learn.”

Shwoooo!

Deus thrust the Annihilation’s Grasp forward.

Vwooooom!

The very air trembled, waves swelled, the sea roared, and a vortex began to rampage violently before them.

“I-Is that a typhoon?!” Siegfried shrieked.

Before his very eyes was a massive storm forming, one so colossal that it tore across the sea like the very force of nature.

And it did not stop there...

Shwaaaaah!

A tidal wave rose at least one kilometer high and crashed down with tremendous force.

If that storm ever made landfall, it would wipe out an entire kingdom with ease.

‘That must be the Eye of the Storm... It was one of the materials required, right?’ Siegfried remembered.

Then, Deus turned toward him and said, “I didn’t use any of my own power just now.”

“H-Huh...?”

“I merely used this weapon’s innate ability.”

“How is that possible...?”

“Hmm... This world would cease to exist if this thing’s full power is unleashed.”

“...”

“It’s quite impressive that you managed to obtain something like this. From now on, tread carefully, my disciple. Depending on how you wield it, this weapon could either save lives or wipe out all life.”

Deus was reminding Siegfried that with great power comes great responsibility, that he should wield his powers properly.

“I will etch your teachings onto my heart, Master!”

“But at your current level... Forget about destroying the world! Keke! You’d be lucky not to get devoured whole by that thing!”

“Hahaha...”

“Do you wish to wield its full power?”

“Yes, I do, Master.”

“Then grow stronger.”

“I will diligently train, Master!”

“Good. Then let us begin your training.”

“Eh?”

“Why do you think I brought you out to the middle of the ocean?”

“T-To show the weapon’s full power... h-hold on!”

Siegfried finally realized why Deus had chosen this remote place to demonstrate the weapon’s power. He initially thought that Deus wanted to use the weapon without restraint, as the imperial palace would be destroyed and nothing would be left standing if he were to unleash that force of nature there.

No, not just the imperial palace... the entire imperial capital, Preussen, would be wiped off the face of the map. However, it turned out that Deus had another reason for dragging him to this remote place.

Siegfried had become a Grandmaster, so any training he had to undergo would need to be far more intense than before. Thus, Deus chose to train him in this remote place, as a single Splitting Heaven and Earth unleashed by Deus could very well split the literal heaven and the earth.

“We can train without any worries out here. Kekeke!” Deus cackled.

A chill shot down Siegfried’s spine at those words.

“M-Master...? What do you mean by that?”

“If you don’t focus...” Deus said. Then, he suddenly appeared right in front of Siegfried’s face and continued, “...You won’t survive this.”

It was then.

Whiiiing!

The Annihilation’s Grasp spun like a drill and shot toward Siegfried.

Deus’ brutal training regime officially started.

***

A few days later...

“All preparations are complete, sir.”

“...Okay.”

Tae-Sung left his house looking completely worn out.

Today was the day of his live broadcast match against Lee Geon, but his condition was anything but good. As he made his way toward the stadium, he dragged his feet with his back hunched and arms dangling.

Deep eye bags formed under his eyes, his gaze looked lifeless, and his lips were so dry they were cracked and bleeding.

The reason was simple...

‘Even the Invincible Spear Art didn’t work...’ Tae-Sung groaned inwardly.

He tried to use the Invincible Spear Art to at least get a single hit on Deus, but it was easily subdued. No matter what Tae-Sung tried, he couldn’t land a single hit on Deus.

At best, he barely managed to brush against the edge of his robe, but that was just out of pure luck as well.

Thus, Tae-Sung spent the past several days being beaten up like a training dummy, so he ended up being completely exhausted and haggard.

Still, the training was not for naught.

‘I don’t think I’ll lose today. No, it’s more like I don’t think I can lose,’ he thought.

He grew immensely during the past few days, even though he was just being one-sidedly pummeled. His combat instincts had sharpened to a terrifying degree that he was confident he could take down anyone—of course, that was excluding Deus.

‘I’m going to crush him.’

With that determination blazing inside him, Tae-Sung arrived at the stadium and began his preparations.

A few hours later...

“The world’s greatest pro gamer! The true protagonist of BNW! Please welcoooome! Han! Tae! Suuuung!”

A thunderous roar from the crowd erupted as Tae-Sung stepped onto the stage and walked toward his VR capsule.

All of the seats in the Olympic Stadium[1] were packed without a single empty seat in sight.

It was only natural that the tickets were sold out, as this was the ultimate showdown that would decide the greatest gamer of this era.

‘Ignore the crowd and focus,’ Tae-Sung thought as he lay inside the capsule.

Once the hatch closed, the outside noise instantly vanished.

The match would follow the traditional format:

One-on-one battle, best out of five rounds, randomly selected stages.

Whoever won three rounds first would be declared the victor.

[Alert: Selecting battlefield...]

[Alert: Field selection in progress...]

[Alert: Field selection complete!]

[Alert: The first battlefield — Grave of Swords!]

A moment later, Siegfried found himself standing in a field littered with countless swords thrust into the ground.

Whoosh...

A cold breeze swept through, and in the distance was his opponent—Lee Geon.

Siegfried could tell even from afar that he had grown stronger, as the energy radiating from him was far more intense than before.

However, Lee Geon was not the only one who had grown stronger.

After enduring days of brutal training under Deus, Siegfried’s senses were far sharper than ever before.

‘I’m going to win decisively this time.’

With that resolve, Siegfried walked toward his opponent.

“Han Tae-Sung,” Lee Geon growled.

As expected, he, too, had sharpened his resolve for this match.

Lee Geon walked toward him and drew his swords.

‘Hm?’

Siegfried was surprised after seeing the swords.

The twin swords used by Lee Geon were not items, but rather, were weapons made out of light and darkness.

‘It looks like this guy came prepared,’ Siegfried thought.

He had expected Lee Geon to overcome his previous weakness of relying heavily on his weapons, as that was the only explanation why Lee Geon had publicly challenged him with such confidence.

As expected, Lee Geon had come wielding weapons made out of light and darkness.

‘I don’t know what those are capable of, but it doesn’t matter. I’ll win anyway,’ Siegfried thought, clenching his weapon.

As soon as he clenched his Annihilation’s Grasp...

“I’ll prove to the world you’re just an overhyped lucky bastard,” Lee Geon growled with a vicious smirk.

Then, he charged forward—no, he became light itself and attacked at blinding speed. His speed was so incredibly fast that no one could follow his movement.

‘Too slow!’ Siegfried swung the Annihilation’s Grasp in response.

Boom! Boom!

The Annihilation’s Grasp clashed with the weapons made of light and darkness.

Kaboom!

A violent shockwave erupted from the impact.

Whoosh!

In that same instant, Siegfried twisted and used the rebound from the impact to deliver a spinning kick straight at Lee Geon’s face.

Bam!

His heel struck Lee Geon squarely on his jaw.

“...!”

Lee Geon’s eyes widened in shock.

Why? It was all because he had not anticipated a counterattack at all.

Crash!

He was sent flying, crashing into the ground and tumbling across it several times before coming to a stop.

Meanwhile, Siegfried blinked in disbelief and muttered, “Huh? That actually worked?”

That counterattack just now was done out of pure reflex. He did not even have to depend on the Invincible Spear Art, as his body had moved on its own out of pure instinct. Deus’ brutal training had carved such moves deep into his bones.

1. One of the main stadiums in Seoul. It has a capacity of about 70k seats. More info here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seoul_Olympic_Stadium ☜