Debuff Master

“Sigh… That bastard… He should just come if he wants to meet or just don’t come at all. I’m really going to bash that bastard’s head in later…” Siegfried grumbled while pouting.

He looked like he could not be bothered after hearing the report that Count Arial had come to meet him.

Why?

It was all because he knew that the Count Arial who had come to see him was nothing more than a phantom. He had received reports about something strange happening throughout the Espadrille Province recently.

“I miss you, my son!”

“Father! I want to see you! Save me!”

“Mother… Please help me…!”

“Go to the Capucines Territory. God will let us meet again…!”

The dead had appeared in the dreams of their loved ones, begging to be saved or asking them to go to the Capucines Territory.

On top of that, there were reports that Count Arial had been seen in numerous places across the Espadrille Province, which meant that the count was using the power of the soul fragment to show illusions to the people, effectively deceiving them.

“He’s digging his own grave,” Siegfried muttered while shaking his head. Then, he told the servant, “Let him in.”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” the servant replied with a bow.

Cardinal Shrink objected after the servant left, “But Your Majesty.”

“Yes, Cardinal Shrink?”

“If I may speak, I believe listening to the words of that heretic is not a good idea.”

“And why is that?”

“Those heretics possess a glib tongue to deceive others. Therefore, I am worried that some of our men might be deceived by the venomous lies they will spout.”

Cardinal Shrink had a point, but Siegfried thought otherwise.

“I believe that every single man gathered here today for this holy war will not be deceived by some words spouted by those heretics.”

“Hmm…”

“Also, why should we stop him when he came to dig his own grave?” Siegfried asked with a smirk.

“Pardon me?”

“You will see what I mean soon enough, cardinal,” Siegfried said nonchalantly. Then, he gave a hand signal to the servants to let Count Arial enter the room.

***

Five minutes later…

“I, Arial de Gray, greet His Majesty.”

As absurd as it sounded, Count Arial knelt on one knee and paid respects to Siegfried just as a subject would to a king.

“What brings you here?” Siegfried asked.

“I am Your Majesty’s humble servant, so why are you persecuting me?”

“Oh?”

“I stumbled upon enlightenment during my training in isolation and managed to obtain the power of omnipotence… how could Your Majesty accuse me of stirring up a rebellion? Nothing could be further from the truth.”

Count Arial started playing the victim, which was the exact same thing he had done to deceive the masses.

‘Do you honestly think I don’t know what you’re thinking? Kekeke!’ Siegfried snickered inside.

The count was very cute in his eyes right now. He had no idea Count Arial possessed the soul fragment, which was the main reason he had gotten stabbed in the back during the memorial services.

Unfortunately for Count Arial, he could no longer stab Siegfried in the back.

“O holy men gathered here today! I implore you to speak on my behalf to His Majesty! I am innocent! I merely wanted to return those who perished back to their loved ones, so how am I a heretic?”

“Silence! How dare you speak with that filthy mouth of yours?!” Cardinal Shrink shouted, his voice thundering throughout the room.

“I beseech you to reconsider! Numerous gods coexist on the continent, so why should I be the only one being persecuted as a heretic? If I have any fault in me, then it is only that I—”

It was then.

“Hey,” Siegfried cut him off. Then, he raised a brow and asked, “What did you say earlier?”

“Pardon me, sire?”

“You said you were omnipotent with your own mouth, right?”

Count Arial was rendered speechless for exactly three seconds.

‘Oh my god!’

He froze after realizing that by claiming he was omnipotent, he was basically putting down the other gods and emphasizing that he was the one and only God on the continent.

“You did say you were omnipotent, right? Eh? Doesn’t that mean you’re the only god in town?”

“...”

“I have a feeling the other gods are greatly offended by what you said. I mean, isn’t that just blatant blasphemy? Hahaha!” Siegfried said, bursting into laughter.

Count Arial—no, his apparition, to be exact, gnashed his teeth and trembled in anger.

Siegfried was basically accusing Count Arial with a single word he said, but that was more than enough justification to move the other religions to brand him a heretic.

“T-That heretic dares to!”

“You dare utter such blasphemous words when you’re nothing but a deceptive heretic?!”

“Life and death is a natural cycle of life! No god can ever go against it! But you dare to claim you can bring the dead back to life? Nonsense!”

“That’s not a miracle! You’re just deceiving people!”

The representatives from each of the churches raged at Count Arial.

“...”

Upon realizing that the tables had turned against him, Count Arial did not utter a single word. He planned to use the continent’s culture of having multiple gods and bring the other religions to his side, but running one’s mouth truly proved to be costly at times.

He didn't expect the word "omnipotent," which he spouted endlessly after obtaining the soul fragment, would set him back.

“Also, you're my subject, aren't you?” Siegfried asked. Then, he grimaced and further questioned, “Are you or are you not? Why don’t you tell me right here and now?”

“That is…”

“Are you a citizen of the Proatine Kingdom or not?”

“I-I am…”

“So, I’m the king, and I want to kill you, yet you’re refusing to die, stubbornly resisting until the end. What do you call that?”

“...”

“Eh? Don’t tell me you don’t know? What you’re doing is called treason,” Siegfried said, rendering the count speechless once again.

The relationship between a king and his subject was absolute servitude, and raising an army against the king was, without a doubt, an act of treason. The subject could justify his actions through excuses, but it wouldn't change the fact that he committed treason.

Ironically, it would only be called treason if it failed, as it would be called a revolution if it succeeded.

“A loyal servant would just accept his fate if his king wants to execute him, no?”

“...”

“That’s what true loyalty is. There’s no reason or justification needed for loyalty.”

“Heh…”

In the end, Count Arial ended up dropping his charade and smirking. It was his complete defeat; the reasoning and justification that Siegfried had prepared was far too strong.

“Siegfried van Proa… So you have chosen bloodshed over—”

It was then.

Swoosh!

Oscar drew her sword as quickly as lightning and decapitated Count Arial.

Thud…!

Count Arial’s head flew into the air before his entire body disappeared like a mirage.

Oscar could not stand and watch as a mere rebel was about to threaten her liege, Siegfried, so she drew her sword and executed him on the spot.

“Good job, Dame Oscar.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“Alright, now that’s over,” Siegfried said with a clap. Then, he addressed the representatives, “I shall now convene the strategy meeting on how we're going to wage this war.”

***

Meanwhile, Count Arial was in the underground training facility of the Gray Family in the Capucines Territory, gnashing his teeth while thinking of Siegfried.

“Siegfried van Proa…!”

Crack!

“I want to kill you… I will kill you… no matter what it takes…! I’ll grind you to dust with my own hands and drink you up…! Kehehe… Hehehe!”

The humiliation he had suffered had infuriated him so much that he was already teetering on the edge of madness. In fact, the soul fragment had been trying to drive him mad ever since he started using its powers.

He had been trying to keep his sanity in check, but it was proving to be quite the challenge. He had been able to keep himself sane so far, but he was slowly losing his sanity due to the annoying things Siegfried had been pulling against him recently.

Moreover, that was not the only thing that was driving him mad...

“Damn it… Things aren’t going according to plan…”

He was feeling frustrated—no, he felt suffocated right now. His main base, the Capucines Territory, had been completely surrounded, and he was not getting as many people as he initially thought he would.

To make things worse, the crusaders from various churches were soon going to besiege the walls, and his beloved daughter was currently in Siegfried’s hands.

He was suffering loss after loss, and the only victory he gained was when he convinced the people that he was God during the memorial services—that was it.

“If only I hadn't underestimated that fool…”

Count Arial regretted not biding his time and moving more carefully. Unfortunately, it was difficult for him not to rush things, as the Proatine Kingdom’s king, Siegfried van Proa, looked like an utter fool in his eyes at the time.

If only he had been more meticulous and careful… he wouldn't have been cornered to such an extent.

However, it was too late for regrets, as the milk had already been spilled.

The only thing left was for both sides to shed blood.

***

The next day, both the Proatine Forces and the crusaders gathered in front of the Capucines Territory.

“The enemies are approaching!”

“I am ready to fight for the god I serve!”

“God is on our side! He will grant us victory!”

The Capucines Forces raised their voices and showed their eagerness to gift Count Arial with victory.

“You are correct, my chosen people! We will prevail! Cast your doubts away for this battle is ours! Whom shall you fear when I am with you?!” Count Arial rallied his soldiers.

The tension rose, and it seemed that the Capucines Territory would soon turn into a powder keg ready to explode at any second now, but nothing happened even though the sun was starting to set.

Count Arial climbed a spire and observed the Proatine Forces in the distance after sensing that something was wrong.

“W-What in the world…?!”

He could not hide his shock after seeing countless tents pitched right in front of the Capucines Territory.

Why did they pitch their tents when they were supposed to be sieging the walls by now?

To make things even more confusing, the savory fragrance in the air showed that the assailants were preparing for dinner, too.

“Damn it…!” Count Arial growled in anger after realizing what the Proatine Forces were doing. They gave up on sieging the walls and switched to a battle of attritions, waiting for Count Arial and his soldiers to sally out.

Meanwhile, Siegfried was in the commander’s tent with the other representatives.

“All right, I’ll shuffle the deck now.”

They were enjoying a game of good old Hardstone.

“Our strategy for this war will be… waiting it out.”

Forget about a siege; Siegfried had no plans to attack first, as his strategy was to just wait things out.

“I am sure I do not have to explain that fighting on plain ground is far better than sieging the walls. We will be the defender, and they will be the attacker, which will give us the advantage. Please trust me on this one and just take it slow for now.”

None of the representatives could understand what Siegfried was plotting, but they decided to just go along with his plan for now.

Thus, that was how they ended up pitching their tents and playing Hardstone.

“Kyuuu! Owner punk!” Hamchi cried out while Siegfried was busy shuffling the cards.

“What?”

“Will those bastards really come out? Is it alright if we let them be like this? Kyu?!”

“It’s fine,” Siegfried said, waving his hand. Then, he smirked and added, “They will come crawling out soon, so just be patient.”

“Kyu?”

“Why would I send our men to their deaths? That’s only going to benefit that bastard, you know?”

There was no need to mention that defending was far more advantageous than attacking in a war. This was especially true in a siege, as the assailants were always at a disadvantage while the defenders had the overwhelming advantage.

“Just wait and see. We will be on defense soon.”

“Kyu?”

“Alright, I’ll be dealing the cards now.”

Siegfried didn't feel the need to further elaborate his plans and proceeded to deal the cards.

‘One card from the bottom for Hamchi. One card from the bottom for Cardinal Shrink. One card also from the bottom for Saintess Jannette. One card from the top for me. Bottom for Hamchi, bottom for Cardinal Shrink, and lastly—”

It was then.

“Kyaaaaaaaaah!” Hamchi shrieked like a vengeful spirit and grabbed Siegfried’s wrist.

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