Debuff Master-Chapter 1041

Chapter 1041
Fwaaaah!
The +16 Vanquisher’s Grasp burst into flames. The flames burned with terrifying intensity, and the weapon’s temperature soared so high that it emanated a terrifying red sheen.
The Eternal Flames, which had been gnawing away at the Defense and Magic Resistance of the High-Ranking Fallen Angels, transferred their power into the +16 Vanquisher’s Grasp.
As a result—
[Alert: The Attack Power of +16 Vanquisher’s Grasp has increased!]
[Alert: The Attack Power of +16 Vanquisher’s Grasp has increased!]
[Alert: The Attack Power of +16 Vanquisher’s Grasp has increased!]
(omitted...)
[Alert: The Attack Power of +16 Vanquisher’s Grasp has increased!]
A string of notifications popped up in front of Siegfried’s eyes.
‘
Good.’
Siegfried nodded in satisfaction after seeing the effect of his new skill.
[Essence Plunderer]
[Converts a portion of the Defense and Magic Resistance reduced by Eternal Flames into Attack Power and Magic Attack Power, infusing it into the weapon.]
[The higher the weapon’s Attack Power and Magic Attack Power, the greater the Basic Attack Damage and Skill Damage increase.]
[The conversion rate increases the higher the skill's level.]
[Type: Active Skill]
[Skill Level: 1]
[Cooldown: 2 minutes]
[Duration: 1 minute]
Converting the enemy’s reduced Defense and Magic Resistance into your own strength.
This was an absurdly unfair skill from the enemy’s perspective. Just getting debuffed and having one’s defenses reduced was bad enough, but the skill boosted Siegfried’s attack power as well.
‘
Now, this is what I call creativity. I’d seriously rage quit on the spot if I were the victim of this,’
Siegfried thought, marveling at how broken the skill was. ‘
As expected of Master... Only he could come up with such a vicious and evil skill.’
He was starting to suspect that the true Demon King was not Baal, but rather, Deus.
The Essence Plunderer was that nasty and despicable.
But that was not even the end of it...
The truly terrifying part was that the conversion rate would become higher the higher the skill's level. In other words, the boost on Siegfried's Attack Power and Magic Attack Power would increase the higher the skill's level.
As Eternal Flames' skill level increased, its Defense and Magic Resistance shred would also increase, which meant that the synergy between the two skills would become even more monstrous.
‘
I wonder how much damage I can deal now?’
Wanting to test the power of Essence Plunderer, Siegfried swung the blazing red +16 Vanquisher’s Grasp and smashed it straight into the face of the nearest High-ranking Fallen Angel.
Baaam!
The feedback was more deafening than earlier, and the High-ranking Fallen Angel was sent flying like a ragdoll.
“
Kuheok!”
The angel spewed blood as he writhed in agony. He was not killed in a single blow, but the damage was devastating. His face was mangled and horribly burned—charred and twisted beyond recognition.
The fire attribute energy packed into the +16 Vanquisher’s Grasp dealt immense damage and charred the angel’s face.
‘
W-Whoa... This is crazy...’
Siegfried was genuinely impressed by the weapon’s newfound destructive power courtesy of Essence Plunderer.
He had never imagined, even in his wildest dreams, that he could deal such massive damage against a High-ranking Fallen Angel with a single basic attack.
‘
This is so fucking cool!’
Right after seeing the effects of Essence Plunderer, Siegfried immediately activated Embrace of Despair and blanketed the advancing angels with a debilitating, slow debuff.
“
Argh!”
“Y-You heretic! How dare you use such tricks on us?!”
The angels snarled and struggled, flailing helplessly in the slowing debuff hell.
Recently, Siegfried had been pouring nearly all of his skill points into leveling up his bread and butter skills, Eternal Flames and Embrace of Despair. He knew that fundamentals were important.
Not once had he forgotten that debuff was the very essence of his existence.
“Die, you bastards,” Siegfried said icily. Then, he swung his +16 Vanquisher’s Grasp and unleashed a brutal storm of attacks on the slowed angels.
“
Argh!”
“Ack!”
“G-Ghraak!”
The angels were beaten up like punching bags, collapsing one after another. Siegfried’s damage output with Essence Plunderer was simply too overwhelming for even them to withstand.
[Alert: You have gained Experience Points!]
[Alert: You have gained Experience Points!]
[Alert: You have gained Experience Points!]
(omitted...)
[Alert: You have gained Experience Points!]
Thanks to that, Siegfried quickly wiped out the angels and raked in a huge amount of Experience Points. Given that High-ranking Fallen Angels were roughly equivalent to Masters, the experience points they gave were unbelievable.
[Alert: You have leveled up!]
[Alert: You have reached Level 391!]
He leveled up once again.
The fact that he could wipe out such powerful enemies in an instant was a testament to just how absurdly powerful his new skill, Essence Plunderer, was.
However, the moment of triumph did not last long.
“You heretic!”
“Catch him!”
A horde of angels swarmed toward Siegfried from afar.
The problem? Their numbers were easily in the hundreds.
‘
I shouldn’t keep fighting here.’
Siegfried briefly considered using Demon Lord’s Descent, but he quickly dismissed the idea.
After all, he was deep inside enemy territory.
Rampaging with Demon Lord’s Descent would be fun, but what was going to happen once he fainted from the aftermath?
He would be as good as dead.
After struggling so hard to reach his current level, suffering a death penalty and losing a level would haunt him for nights on end.
‘
Time to make a run for it,’
Siegfried quickly made his decision and chose to retreat.
“Stop right there!”
“You won’t escape!”
“Don’t let the heretic get away!”
The angels roared in anger and took off after him, but none of them could catch him.
"Pesky Brat" was activated, and Siegfried darted away at a speed so ridiculously fast that not even the High-ranking Fallen Angels could catch up to him.
“So long, suckerrrs!” Siegfried exclaimed, bidding the angels a gleefully obnoxious farewell. Then, he disappeared into the distance, leaving nothing but a trail of dust behind.
***
It took less than two hours for the Allied Forces to seize the naval base of the Holy Alliance on the Piaro River. The reasons for their swift victory were none other than the Nordic Tribe and the Blanc Clan.
Of course, the bombardment unleashed by the Green Isles’ fleet had also played a decisive role in determining the outcome of the battle.
However, just as the saying went—"the infantry will ultimately plant their flags in enemy territory," it was the Nordic Warriors and Blanc Warriors who had carried out the brutal melee combat aboard the enemy ships.
The pirates of the Green Isles were formidable fighters in their own right, but they could hardly hold a candle to the Nordic Warriors and the Blanc Warriors.
Thanks to this, the Allied Forces captured the Holy Alliance’s naval base surprisingly easily, seized all of their warships, and even succeeded in capturing a large number of their senior naval officers.
A decisive and overwhelming victory.
The operation aimed at severing the Holy Alliance’s most critical supply line had been a resounding success with minimal losses.
But the joy of victory did not last long...
“You bastards!”
“Die, you sons of bitches!”
Another brawl broke out between the Nordic Warriors and the Blanc Warriors. They started squabbling everywhere over which tribe had achieved greater merits during the battle, and before long, it had escalated into a full-blown brawl.
Oscar simply shook her head and turned away after seeing how the two tribes began to brawl yet again.
After all, the battle was already over, and as long as they did not start stabbing each other with knives, it was not important.
As long as they did not fight during combat and carried out their missions properly, there was no need for her to worry about them.
Rather than trying to talk sense into those blockheads, Oscar decided it was better to just ignore them altogether.
***
Burning the supply depot in the Pallas Fortress and severing the supply lines along the Piaro River were two major objectives that gave the Allied Forces an overwhelming advantage in the war.
Why?
It was all because there was no longer any need for them to take the initiative. They just had to wait for the rations within Pallas Fortress to run out, and sooner or later, their starving enemies would be forced to come crawling out.
Thus, the positions of the Allied Forces and the Holy Alliance were completely reversed.
Normally, the defenders would have the advantage in a siege. But in this siege, the attackers held the upper hand.
The next morning dawned, and a strategy meeting was convened.
At Siegfried’s command, Hansen was tasked with briefing the officers.
As a private from a rural village of slash-and-burn farmers, he could never dream of briefing so many important people on such an important topic.
The room was filled with the Proatine Empire’s highest-ranking officials, and the fact that Hansen had not fainted outright was impressive in itself.
“Private Hansen,” Siegfried called out.
“Y-Yes, Y-Your Imperial Majesty!”
“There’s no need to worry. No one here is going to scold you. So just take it slow and speak calmly.”
“A-As you command, sire!”
“Relax. Take your time and explain it to us,” Siegfried said with a smile to ease his nerves.
“Y-Yes, sire!
Um,
so...”
Thanks to Siegfried’s gentle encouragement, Hansen managed to pull himself together and continued his .
“All we need to do is lie down from here on.”
“Lie down?”
“I mean, we should build fortifications and wait for the Holy Alliance to come crawling out of Pallas Fortress.”
“And after that?”
“If they try to come out of the fortress, it will be extremely difficult for them to break through our fortified positions. But if they stay inside, they will eventually starve,” Hansen replied.
“
Oh?
”
Then, Hansen continued, “Since we have secured control over the Piaro River, we can set up traps and simply wait for any additional reinforcements from the Holy Alliance. Well, in my humble opinion... this battle is practically already won.”
As soon as those words left Hansen’s mouth—
“
Ooooh!
”
“An excellent strategy!”
“Marvelous!”
“That is absolutely brilliant!”
The generals present at the meeting expressed their admiration for the strategy that Hansen had presented, even though the latter was a lowly private. Everyone seemed to agree that his strategic judgement was nothing short of brilliant.
“Very well done, Private Hansen,” Siegfried praised warmly. Then, he turned to address the officers in the room, “We will fortify our positions and prepare to crush the Holy Alliance forces once they emerge from Pallas Fortress. Begin immediately.”
“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty!” the officers roared in unison.
“Private Hansen!”
“Y-Yes, sire!”
“Effective immediately, you are hereby promoted from Private to Second Lieutenant.”
“W-What?!” Hansen shrieked, jumping in shock at the words.
Even though Second Lieutenant was the lowest officer rank, it was still an officer’s rank.
Traditionally, it could only be awarded to someone who had either graduated from a military academy or completed knighthood training.
“B-But, Y-Your Imperial Majesty...! I-I am just a lowly—”
“How could you possibly make proposals regarding strategy and tactics while wearing a Private’s uniform? You need to be at least a Second Lieutenant to carry some authority.”
“W-What...?”
“I have decided to appoint you, Second Lieutenant Hansen. From now on, please carry out your duties to the best of your abilities—as an officer of the Proatine Empire.”
“I-I am forever grateful, Your Imperial Majesty! Your grace is immeasurable!”
Overwhelmed, Hansen prostrated and bowed deeply at Siegfried’s feet.
He had never imagined even in his wildest dreams that he—a lowly slash-and-burn farmer—who had neither graduated from an academy nor been knighted, would end up becoming commissioned as an officer of the Proatine Empire.
It was no exaggeration to say that he was truly blessed beyond measure.
***
Second Lieutenant Hansen was the one who had devised the grand strategy for this battle, but the one who turned that strategy into action through tactical execution was none other than Siegfried.
Two days later, Siegfried ordered the Proatine Empire’s labor force to begin fortifying their position, while mobilizing the soldiers to host a massive barbecue party right in front of the Pallas Fortress.
But that was not all...
“Adjust the wind to blow toward Pallas Fortress. It does not need to be strong—just keep it steady.”
“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty.”
Siegfried instructed Duke Decimato to shift the wind’s direction toward the enemy stronghold.
Whoosh...!
A gentle breeze began to carry the savory scent of grilling meat straight toward the Pallas Fortress.
‘
Kekeke! Even one day without food is enough to make someone feel like they’re starving. But after two days? They will be at their breaking point. I’m sure the smell of meat will drive them crazy!’
By letting the mouth-watering, scrumptious smell of roasted meat into the fortress, Siegfried was attacking the morale of the starving troops.
But that was not the end of it either...
“Scribe Gringore.”
“Yes, Your Imperial Majesty?”
“Play them a lullaby, would you?”
“As you command, sire.”
Siegfried summoned Gringore and had him sing through the night.
The song he sang was the Nightmare Lullaby, a sinister song designed to disrupt a person’s biorhythm and give them nightmares. Anyone who listened to the Nightmare Lullaby would be left feeling exhausted even after sleep.
During the day, Siegfried tormented the enemy with unbearable hunger, and by night, he robbed them of rest with haunting melodies. Without a doubt, it was a ruthless and unrelenting psychological warfare that would leave even the Demon King impressed.