Debuff Master-Chapter 1092

Chapter 1092
Siegfried did not give a damn whether the other demon lords were shocked or not. Instead, he pressed his +16 Vanquisher’s Grasp harder on Azmodan's nape. Blood dripped down from Azmodan’s nape.
“Should I chop it off or not?”
“
Aaarghhh!”
“Hey, I asked you a question. Do you want me to chop your damn neck or not?” Siegfried threatened, looking absolutely vicious.
Even for a demon, threatening to carve someone’s neck while they were still alive was truly beyond vicious.
‘
That bastard’s a psychopath!’
‘H-He’s insane!’
‘So this is the human who became a demon lord... Now it all makes sense.’
The demon lords instinctively flinched from Siegfried’s sheer brutality.
“I’m asking one last time. Do you want me to slice it or not?” Siegfried asked, delivering his final ultimatum.
“...”
“Not answering?”
Azmodan said nothing despite having a blade pressed to his nape. Sure, he wanted to live, but his pride did not allow him to grovel in front of the other demon lords.
“Not gonna answer, eh? Okay, I’ll do whatever I want then. Now, hold still. It won’t look pretty if you move,” Siegfried said with a shrug.
“W-Wait!” Azmodan cried out in panic.
“
Hm?
”
“I-I...”
“What?”
“Ru...”
“I can’t hear you. Speak up.”
“I was rude...”
Instead of letting Siegfried chop his head off his shoulders, Azmodan chose to live, even if it came at the cost of his pride.
“This is your final warning. If you ever bring up someone’s background or call them lowborn in front of me again, I will chop your head off on the spot,” Siegfried whispered icily. Then, he grinned and added, “I don’t have to remind you what happened to Dantalion and Sidon, right?”
“...”
“Answer me.”
“...I understand,” Azmodan replied in a faint and trembling voice.
“There we go. That’s more like it,” Siegfried said with a smile before lifting Azmodan up to his feet. Then, he dusted off Azmodan’s shoulders, straightened his collar, and tapped his cheek a couple of times in a casual manner.
“Let’s be good teammates, okay?”
“S-Sure...”
“Good,” Siegfried said, raising a hand.
“
H-Hiiiik!”
“No need to be so scared,” Siegfried said with a smirk, lowering his hand.
With that, Siegfried let out a faint chuckle and returned to his seat after curing Azmodan’s
anger management issues
for free.
Meanwhile, the other demon lords were in utter shock.
Why?
It was all because Siegfried’s actions reminded them of someone.
‘
B-Baal...?’
‘No way... Why is he just like the late Demon King?’
They saw a shadow of the late Demon King, Baal, in Siegfried.
Baal was once the lowest of the lowborns, yet he climbed to the pinnacle of the Demon Realm. The other demons initially refused to acknowledge him due to his background, but he crushed those who mocked him for his lowly origins.
Ironically, Siegfried had crushed Azmodan in the precisely same manner as Baal used to crush those who mocked him. With this incident, Siegfried had made his point clear to the other demon lords.
He was a true psychopath that they wouldn't want to mess with. He showed that he was capable of committing any horrific atrocity without any hesitation if they dared cross him.
***
After Siegfried and Metatron's dramatic entrance, the Demon Realm Assembly finally began.
“That was quite impressive.” Belial, who had remained silent until now, looked at Siegfried with a curious face. “I am the Demon Lord of Hatred, Belial. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Siegfried von Proa.”
“The pleasure is mine,” Siegfried replied with a slight nod.
It was the bare minimum show of respect to a demon lord more senior than him.
“They say you’re a rising star among demon lords. It seems your reputation was not exaggerated at all, Siegfried von Proa.”
“You flatter me.”
“Let’s get along from here on out.”
“I will be counting on your guidance as well.”
“But still... I'd appreciate it if you were to avoid acting so rashly in these kinds of settings from now on.”
“Excuse me?”
“There is a place and time for everything.”
“Well... I would do so if the other party knew that, too,” Siegfried replied with a smirk.
“What did you say...?”
“He acted like a total asshole first, so am I supposed to sit there and take it?”
“Are you talking back to me right now?” Belial said in a low voice. A fierce blue flame even flickered in his eyes.
‘
Whoa... This guy’s the real deal,’
Siegfried thought upon sensing the aura that Belial was unleashing. The Demon Lord of Hatred was clearly different from the second-rate demon lords he had faced so far.
However, Siegfried wasn't one to back down.
“An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. If someone picks a fight with me, I won’t sit quietly and just take it. I mean, would
you
tolerate it, Lord Belial?”
“That’s...”
“And surely you are not the type to spout some old-man nonsense about juniors talking back to their seniors, are you?”
Siegfried’s words hit Belial right where it hurt, causing his anger to boil up inside of him.
However, Belial did not lash out.
Why?
It was all because he couldn’t refute what Siegfried said.
Siegfried’s logic was sound, and more importantly, Metatron was standing right beside him. He was the second strongest demon in the realm, but going up against both Siegfried and Metatron would still be far too risky.
“I was merely asking you to avoid causing unnecessary commotion. But pay no heed, as you seem to have taken it a bit too personally,” Belial said, waving his hand.
“
Ah,
if that was all it was, then I will be patient... to some extent,” Siegfried replied with a smirk.
Belial found him unbearably irritating, as he did not back down an inch. Still, the Demon Lord of Hatred held it in.
Getting into a war of words with a newbie would only end with him losing face, and if things were to escalate, there was a risk that it could turn into a full-blown brawl.
Thus, Belial decided to move the meeting along while suppressing his rage.
“The reason we’ve all gathered here today, as you all might be aware, is to address the passing of His Majesty the Demon King. But before we proceed further, I will now reveal his will.”
With that, Belial placed a black orb at the center of the table.
Wooong!
The orb hummed and shone. Moments later, a spectral image of Demon King Baal appeared.
Rather than a written will, it was a holographic message of Baal projected by the orb.
— It looks like you’ve all gathered.
Baal’s image spoke casually to the demon lords seated in the room.
— If you’re seeing this, then I guess that means I got killed by Lucifer.
At first, it looked like a pre-recorded message, but they soon realized that it was not the case at all.
—
Tsk, tsk...
So you ran your mouth again and got your ass handed to you?
Baal was looking at Azmodan.
“Y-Your Majesty!”
— I warned you to cool your temper and stop running your mouth, didn’t I? But your anger only cools down when you run into someone stronger than you.
“...”
— Judging by the situation, it looks like it was you who administered the
treatment.
Baal was looking at Siegfried this time.
“Yes, my lord,” Siegfried replied with a slight bow.
–
Bwahaha!
I really like this one. Despite being a human, you’re more of a demon than actual demons!
“Now hold on a second,” Siegfried pushed back. Then, he grumbled, “What do you mean I’m more of a demon than actual demons? I may have been reborn here, but I’m still human. I’m fundamentally different from you, wicked demons. Hold on, are you trying to say something about my personality, huh?”
At that moment...
‘
I mean, he’s got a point, no?’
‘Why is he so offended by the truth?’
None of the demon lords could bring themselves to agree with Siegfried.
From a third person’s point of view, Siegfried was clearly a psychopath and a morally bankrupt degenerate. He had the perfect personality for a demon.
In fact, even the demon lords who disliked the fact that he was human had to admit that his personality perfectly suited that of a demon lord.
—- Getting all worked up? Don’t you know denial is a form of strong affirmation?
“I’ve never heard of that in my life.”
— Listen to this punk! Are you talking back to your elders now?!
“Whatcha gonna do about it? Hit me?”
— I can’t. As you can see, I’m just a hologram now.
“Then let’s get on with it,” Siegfried said with a shrug.
— This little rascal...
Baal cast a warm, amused look at Siegfried before turning his gaze to the rest of the demon lords.
— You’re all here today because of the upcoming succession war, right?
“Yes, my lord,” Belial quickly responded. Then, he thought, ‘
Fufufu! Finally! My moment has come!’
He was confident that he would become Baal’s successor.
After all, with Baal gone, he was the most powerful demon.
—
Bwahaha!
I figured this would happen. With me gone, it was inevitable you guys would fight for the throne. But if that happens, the Demon Realm will become chaotic once again. That would seriously weaken us, and as the Demon King, I can't let that happen.
“So then, what are you trying to say?” Belial asked cautiously.
— I’ve already come up with a way to choose my successor.
“
Ooh?!
”
— No wars. Just a competition between you lot, one-on-one.
“A very wise proposal, Your Majesty,” Belial replied with a smile.
For obvious reasons, he readily agreed to the proposed method.
‘
It will all be mine anyway, so it makes sense not to lose any troops over it,’
Belial thought, convinced that the throne was already his. He didn't want to inherit a ruined realm. As a matter of fact, no one wanted to wage war over the throne and ruin the Demon Realm.
What kind of king would want to rule over a pile of ashes?
A succession war could easily result in everyone losing, including the victor.
Why?
It was all because even though they had claimed the throne, they would be stuck rebuilding things for the rest of their lives.
— So? What do you all think?
“Well, I agree.”
“So do I.”
“We’ve got no other choice, right?”
The remaining ten demon lords all voiced their agreement after Belial.
— Excellent. Then here’s what we will do. All of you will enter the Maze of Evil.
“T-The Maze of Evil?!” Belial exclaimed, jumping in shock.
The Maze of Evil was a massive underground labyrinth located in District Zero, and it was an infamous place that barely anyone in history had managed to conquer.
— That’s right. I placed one of my sacred relics and a portion of my power deep in the heart of the maze. The first one to reach it will be crowned the next Demon King.
“B-But! Do you know how many in our history have ever reached the center of that maze?!” Belial exclaimed in disbelief.
— So what?
“W-What...?”
— You know as well as I do that I reached the heart of that maze back in my younger days. It’s not that hard, you know? Just go in, suffer like hell, and you’ll make it through eventually.
“You can’t be serious!” Belial lashed out, dumbfounded.
The proposal was not just extreme—it was flat-out ridiculous.
“That was only because it was you! Are you joking right now?! Out of all demonkind, only two have ever made it through that maze!”
—
Pfft!
And you want to be the next Demon King? Seriously? When you don’t even have the guts or spine to venture into the Maze of Evil?
“T-That is not the issue here! You need to give us something more realistic!”
— Are you saying it’s impossible?
“What?”
— But you said it yourself a while ago, no? I’ve done it before, so it’s possible.
“I mean, yes, but this is just... too much—”
It was then.
“Where is this Maze of Evil?” Siegfried asked, standing up.
— Just grab the nearest demon and ask. Everyone knows where it is.
“Really? Okay then,” Siegfried replied with a shrug. Then, he turned to Metatron and said, “Hey, let’s go.”
“M-My lord!” Metatron scrambled after him in panic.
With that, Siegfried and Metatron left the meeting hall.