Debuff Master

Chapter 1298

When Siegfried’s knee strike landed, the entire stadium froze.

— Ah...

— He hit him... He actually hit him...

— That’s a bit... I'm in pain just looking at it...

The commentators all gathered their hands just below the belt and groaned in unison.

“Whoa...”

“I think he went a bit too far this time...”

“Oh no...”

Even the crowd couldn’t bear to watch, and many turned their eyes away from the jumbotron.

— Hwangano8: Ouch...

— slrspawltrldjfudna: Holy nuts...

The viewers watching the live broadcast let out the same groans.

Many people hated Lee Geon, but the sight of him taking a direct knee strike right there resonated with every male viewer.

Those who witnessed the vicious knee strike could practically feel the pain—the kind that made one’s soul separate from their body for a moment—themselves, and they couldn’t help but wince in shared agony.

[Alert: Status Ailment!]

A notification popped up in front of Lee Geon’s eyes.

[Alert: Your character has entered into a state of coma!]

[Alert: You have lost control over your character!]

[Alert: Adult content has been disabled!]

[Alert: You have been crippled!]

[Alert: You have obtained a new title!]

The details of the title he obtained were the following...

[Cracked Egg]

[What did you say...? Did you say I’ve lost my... function? I can’t get it up anymore...?]

[A title granted to those who suffered a critical injury to their family jewels during battle, resulting in permanent loss of all sexual function.]

[All adult content will be locked forever once this title is acquired.]

[Type: Title]

[Rating: Legendary]

[Effects]

- Immune to all charm-type status ailments

- Damage reduction from Succubus +100%

- Libido -9,999%

The fact that Lee Geon had earned the "Cracked Egg" title was broadcast to the entire world.

— Ah! Lee Geon has lost it! He can’t perform as a man anymore!

— G-Good thing it’s not in real life. That’s just brutal...

— I offer my sincerest condolences to him and his children.

Of course, Siegfried couldn't care less.

‘Can I get an encore?’

With that thought, he threw another knee strike.

Bam!

The second strike landed cleanly in the exact same spot.

Lee Geon’s nether region turned crimson red, as blood seeped through his inner pants and dripped down through the gaps in his armor.

“Time for a beating,” Siegfried said with a grin, grabbing him by the collar.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

Whack! Bam!

Siegfried pummeled Lee Geon in the face mercilessly.

“G-Ghaaak!”

Lee Geon couldn’t fight back. He had completely lost control of his character, so he couldn’t evade, counter, or do anything. His genius talents and top-tier reflexes were useless if he couldn’t control his own character.

All he could do was stand there and take the beating.

“...”

In the end, Lee Geon gave up controlling his character and gave up.

The fact that he was incapacitated meant that the odds of him winning dropped to zero, as victory could be decided in a tenth of a second in a duel between gamers of their caliber.

Lee Geon couldn’t move his character at all for at least thirty seconds, and that was plenty enough time for Siegfried to kill Lee Geon more than ten times over.

Shwiiiiik!

Siegfried unleashed the Transcendent Torrential Flower Rain, sending countless aura blades into the air.

The aura blades shone brightly as they surrounded their target.

The Devouring Grand Art had been deactivated after Lee Geon was incapacitated, so Siegfried could unleash his skills freely now.

Whoooooosh!

The aura blades rained down, turning Lee Geon’s body into a beehive.

Shwiiiik!

Lee Geon was barely standing—no, it was more like the tens of thousands of aura blades were propping him up.

“Get lost,” Siegfried said icily and snapped his finger.

KABOOOOOM!

The aura blades embedded in Lee Geon detonated all at once, engulfing him in a massive explosion.

[Beowulf]

[HP: □□□□□□□□□□]

And just like that, Lee Geon lost.

The world’s most talented gamer, the one regarded as the genius of the century, had been brought down.

He had reigned undefeated for the past ten years, but that legendary streak was finally broken.

Silence filled the stadium.

One, two, three...

WAAAAAAAAAAAH!

A deafening roar erupted from the stands.

One hundred thousand people screamed in unison, and their voices shook the entire stadium as they celebrated Siegfried’s victory.

***

Click... Clack!

Tae-Sung opened the VR capsule door and stepped out of the booth.

“Ughh...”

The first thing he did as soon as he emerged from the VR capsule was cover his ears.

WAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

The roar from the audience was so loud that it felt like eardrums might burst.

Flash! Flash! Flash!

All of the spotlight was aimed at him, and powerful upbeat background music filled the air.

The emcee ran up to Tae-Sung and shouted at the top of his lungs into the mic, “Ladies and gentlemen! The winner and the undisputed number one BNW pro gamer in the world, everyone, give a round of applause for—Han! Tae! Sung!”

The match was over, and it was now time for the interview.

“That was an amazing win, Han Tae-Sung! Do you wish to say anything to your fans?”

“Yes, I do,” Tae-Sung replied with a nod. Then, he accepted the mic and said, “I want to thank all my fans who came to watch the match today, my comrades who supported me, and my beloved family...”

He began with the standard victory speech everyone would give.

Then, as the interview went on, he started becoming more comfortable and honest.

“How did you manage to rise and become the best pro gamer in the world? Was there some sort of secret behind your success?”

“Well...” Tae-Sung hesitated for a second. Then, he shrugged and answered honestly, “To be frank, I was lucky. I got a hidden class, and I had the chance to learn directly from a powerful NPC.”

“I see!”

“Honestly, I never imagined I’d make it this far. There wasn’t really any special trick. I just clenched my teeth and kept pushing through everything that was thrown at me.”

“Still, no matter how much grit you have, reaching the top in any field isn’t an easy thing, is it not?”

“As I said, I got lucky. My comrades helped me, and so did countless NPCs. In the end, what I really want to say is this...”

Tae-Sung paused for a moment, then he looked at the massive crowd filling the stadium.

“I hope none of you ever give up on what you love. Keep going and keep clinging to it until it works out. If you give everything you have, someday, you will see results. I believe that if you put your heart into it, it will somehow work out. Just like me, I was a nobody, yet I managed to come this far.”

Don’t give up!

This was the message Tae-Sung wanted to convey to his fans.

For someone who once worried about simply making a living, the drive that turned him into the world’s greatest BNW gamer could only be described as pure tenacity and grit.

It was this stubborn determination that earned him Deus’ recognition.

Persistence, stubbornness, and grit—the refusal to quit were Tae-Sung’s greatest assets.

“He’s saying he just worked hard for all that?”

“So he’s one of those who says work hard, and you will be rewarded type of people.”

“Ha! Everyone would be the best if the world were that simple!”

Of course, some grumbled and couldn’t relate to what he was saying.

“Thank you! Now, shall we hear from the player who lost today? Please come on stage for a few words, Lee Geon!”

The emcee called out to him, but the interview never happened.

The match had already ended, yet he remained inside his VR capsule.

“Ah... It seems he has taken quite a psychological hit. He’s not even coming out of his capsule!”

It was then.

Thud... Thud... Thud...

Tae-Sung began walking toward Lee Geon’s VR capsule.

Meanwhile, Lee Geon sat and stared into space.

“I... lost? I actually lost...?”

A notification popped up on the screen.

[Alert: Your account has been deleted!]

[Alert: As per the Terms of Service, you are prohibited from re-registering for the next 3,650 days!]

Lee Geon’s account was permanently deleted right after he lost the match to Tae-Sung.

However, none of that mattered to him right now.

“Damn it... I might as well just die. What’s the point of living? Hehe... Hehehe...” Lee Geon laughed bitterly.

It was then.

Click... Clack!

The VR capsule door suddenly opened.

“Hey, what are you doing in there?” Tae-Sung asked.

“...”

“Come out.”

“What do you think you’re doing right now? Are you here to drag me out and publicly humiliate me?”

“Hey, why are you acting like a kid? What’s with this behavior?”

“Me? Acting like a kid?”

“You lost. Big deal. Are you gonna mope around like a sore loser?”

“...?”

“Come out and do the interview.”

“What if I don’t want to?”

“Then people will remember you as the biggest coward in history. The guy who got crushed three times in a row now refuses to even show his face. Is that how you wanna be remembered? You’ve got the talents, you’ve got the name. Don’t throw those away.”

“...”

“You’ve actually got incredible talent, yet you wasted it on trampling others. Have you ever imagined how much people would admire and love you if you used it for something good?”

“Shut up. Don’t start preaching just because you won.”

“Think about it. I suggest you look back at the life you’ve lived.”

“I said shut up! I don’t need your lectures!”

“Quit acting like a brat and come out.”

Tae-Sung extended his hand toward Lee Geon.

Snap!

A photographer snapped a picture of that moment, which would eventually become one of the most iconic scenes in gaming history.

The fact that Tae-Sung had reached out first to Lee Geon—someone hated by almost every single gamer in the world—was undeniably a powerful scene.

In truth, Tae-Sung had approached him out of concern.

‘It will be really bad if he ends up doing something drastic because he lost today.’

He was worried that Lee Geon would end up killing himself after losing the match and having his account deleted.

As a gamer, Tae-Sung did not wish for someone to die over what was, in the end, just a game.

“Fine... I’ll play along for now,” Lee Geon muttered.

Then, Lee Geon took Tae-Sung’s hand.

***

That evening, Tae-Sung celebrated with his friends and family at a high-end restaurant they had reserved entirely for themselves.

His mother was there along with his younger sister, his friends from the game, Yong Seol-Hwa’s parents, and even the retired legends who had once dominated in their respective games.

‘Ah, this is actually good,’ Tae-Sung thought.

This was the very definition of happiness for him.

A good day, with good people, in a good place.

This was something he would not have even dared to dream of in the past. A life like this had been far beyond his reach, but now, everything was different.

He finally had people with whom he could share these precious moments, people he wanted to have around even decades from now.

Once upon a time, Tae-Sung had lived alone in a cramped room with nothing but an old VR capsule.

And now, here he was, the man who had it all.

‘Honestly... I think I don’t have any more regrets,’ Tae-Sung thought.

He truly felt that he had achieved every form of happiness a person could wish for. He had wealth, fame, recognition, and love—nothing was missing.

Unfortunately, that peace did not last long.

Seung-Gu approached him discreetly and whispered, “Something happened in the game, hyung-nim.”

“Hm? What happened?”

“The pillars of light appeared again.”

“What?! How is that possible? Didn’t Lee Geon’s account get deleted today?”

Tae-Sung’s eyes were wide in shock.

As far as he knew, the Executor of Destiny, Lee Geon, had his account deleted right after the match, meaning that the Creator’s descent should have been stopped.

But now another pillar of light had appeared? That did not make any sense at all.

“Hold on,” Tae-Sung said, getting up from his seat.

Then, he stepped out of the room and called Lee Geon.

— What?

Lee Geon’s lifeless voice came through.

It was no surprise that he would sound so down given what had happened just hours ago. Anyone who had been humiliated publicly would sound exactly the same as him.

“Are you really going to keep being a sore loser? It hasn’t even been a day, yet you’re breaking your promise already?”

— What are you talking about?

“The pillar of light. Two more appeared during our match.”

— That has nothing to do with me. Once you agreed to our match, I stopped everything.

“How can I believe you?”

— Believe what you want. I get why you’d suspect me, but I’m really not in the mood for this right now. Go find someone else to accuse.

Beep!

The call ended.

‘It didn’t sound like he was lying...’ Tae-Sung thought.

Lee Geon was the kind of person who lived and died by his pride. He'd rage and do all sorts of stupid things after losing, but he was not the type to stoop so low and go back on his words.

In that case, there was only one other possibility.

‘A new Executor of Destiny has appeared.’

Tae-Sung felt dizzy the moment the thought struck him.

He had gone through all that trouble to remove Lee Geon from BNW for good, yet a new Executor of Destiny had just appeared. Moreover, the new Executor of Destiny was already trying to summon the Creator.