Debuff Master

Chapter 725

The servant girl whispered into King Deville’s ear, “Just so you know, I’m a thief, not an assassin. But whatever, you’re just... not my type.”

“Urk...!” King Deville groaned while glaring at the servant.

“Can you please die quietly?” the servant girl said icily before putting her weight on the dagger to push the king’s head underwater.

Glurg! Glurgh!

Blood poured from King Deville’s neck as he struggled to stay alive. Unfortunately, his strength failed him, and his consciousness slowly faded away as he sank into the tub.

The foaming bath, once a sea of white fragrant bubbles, was dyed red by King Deville's blood.

“Phew!”

The servant girl—no, Ninetail, watched as the lifeless king's figure was submerged in the tub.

“Tsk... This really isn’t my thing...” Ninetail grumbled, clicking her tongue before pulling a cloth over the bath to cover up her crime.

‘But there’s no other way. I can’t let my new home fall.’

She was once branded a criminal, but she had already cast off her dark past. Now, she was a patriot prepared to take on the most dangerous missions. She was prepared to risk her life for her new homeland.

Ninetail cleaned all traces of blood on her before leaving King Deville’s tent.

“His Majesty has retired for the night. He has commanded that nobody disturbs him until the morning, so please be mindful.”

“Yes, understood.”

The guards were utterly convinced by her words that they no longer questioned her or checked up on King Deville.

‘I have about eight hours until dawn. That should be enough time for one more,’ Ninetail thought before making her way to the tent of General Luminox, the newly appointed commander of the Bayerische Army.

This was child’s play for her. She was a master of disguise, stealth, infiltration, and every single clandestine cover operation out there. Slipping undetected into an enemy camp was hardly a challenge for her.

Thus, she decided to roam through the enemy camp, eliminating the Bayerische Forces’ chain of command one by one.

The night passed, and dawn finally arrived.

“H-His Majesty has been slain!”

“Assassin! Assassin!”

“Commander Luminox has been murdered!”

“An assassin is in our camp!”

After finding out that King Deville, Commander Luminox, several legion commanders, division leaders, and even high-ranking noble officers were assassinated, the camp erupted into chaos.

All in all, more than twenty prominent figures were found dead by daylight.

Meanwhile, Ninetail joined with the others in a nearby forest. She wasn't the only one busy assassinating Bayerische Officers last night.

“Good job, everyone. His Majesty will be greatly pleased by this,” Ninetail said with a smile. Then, she added, “Our mission is complete. Time to return to base.”

Thus, Ninetail and her team withdrew from the camp, bringing this news of what would become a legend in the future.

Without a doubt, every single agent who participated in this legendary mission was going to be promoted at least three ranks and be commended as a war hero.

***

After desperately evading the falling debris from the Iron Fleet, Siegfried safely returned to camp. Upon arriving, he was met with exhilarating news from the southern front.

“Your Majesty! Our covert operation was successful! King Deville and his officers have been assassinated!”

“Oh!”

“And the Bayerische Forces have retreated back inside their borders. It seems unlikely for them to launch another invasion any time soon, as they no longer have any legitimate heir to the throne.”

“I knew I could count on them,” Siegfried said with a smile.

He had sent Ninetail and the other agents as a desperate measure. He hoped that they could at least assassinate some of the Bayerische Kingdom’s officers, slowing their invasion down.

The assassination of King Deville was the best result he had been hoping for, as the entire Bayerische Kingdom would be thrown into turmoil without any legitimate successor to rally their forces.

Surprisingly, Ninetail and the agents got an even better result than the best one Siegfried hoped for, as they not only assassinated King Deville but also the entire command structure of the Bayerische Forces.

“Dame Oscar,” Siegfried called out.

“Yes, Your Majesty?”

“Grant Ninetail the title of Countess and promote the ranks of all the agents that went on this mission with her by three ranks each.”

“As you command, sire.”

“And let’s award them the Royal Order of Merit and distinguish them as war heroes.”

“Your Majesty’s grace is truly immeasurable.”

After granting honors and merits to Ninetail and her agents, Siegfried convened a strategy meeting.

“This is an excellent start. The successful operation carried out by Ninetail and our agents has bought us much-needed time to catch our breath,” Siegfried said. Then, he turned to his allies and continued, “But this is only the beginning. The real invasion will be upon us soon, so let us brace ourselves and fight with all we have.”

The allied commanders smiled and offered words of support.

“Have no fear. Victory is certain.”

“Leave it to me, brother!”

“I shall bring victory to the Great Chief!”

Siegfried smiled back at his allies. He could not help but feel grateful for their support yet there was a sense of uncertainty lingering in his heart.

‘Can we... really win this war...?’

They only had a combined force of fifty thousand troops. They managed to obliterate the enemy’s most powerful war machine, the Iron Fleet, but that was merely the tip of the iceberg.

The Zavala Kingdom’s military strength was so powerful that they were capable of crushing the Proatine Kingdom and its allies without relying on their Iron Fleet.

Moreover, there was no room for strategic maneuvers here. The Zavala Kingdom could push through with raw strength by throwing their soldiers like a tidal wave, and all the allied forces could do was brace themselves for impact.

“The meeting is adjourned. Please prepare for the siege defense at your respective positions.”

After the meeting, Hamchi rushed to Siegfried and exclaimed, “Kyuuu! Owner punk!” Hamchi exclaimed.

Then, he brought Siegfried to a corner and asked, “Are you worried about the war? Kyu?”

“It’d be weird if I wasn’t, no?” Siegfried replied with a shrug.

“Kyuuuu!”

“But what can I do? We have no other choice but to grit our teeth and hold the line.”

“Kyuu!”

“Don’t worry. I’m good at these kinds of things. I’m used to it, and I did it even back when I had nothing and nobody to rely on,” Siegfried said with a wry smile. Then, he smirked and added, “Except for my sheer grit and stubbornness.”

“Kyu?”

“But it’s different this time...”

Back then, he had nobody to help him and nothing to lose.

However, things were different this time.

Now, he had far too many things to protect, and the weight of it all was weighing down on him.

Siegfried clenched his fists and said, “But we’ll make it through.”

“Kyuuu! You’ll overcome this crisis, owner punk!”

“Anyway, let’s go eat. I’m starving.”

“Kyuuuu! Me too!”

Siegfried made his way toward the mess hall with Hamchi by his side.

***

The shocking news of the Iron Fleet’s demise quickly reached the Zavala Kingdom. Surprisingly, King Frederick did not fly into a rage nor he seemed surprised by it at all.

“It seems there were gaps in our fleet,” he remarked. He was reading the report with such calm that the messenger in front of him trembled from fright.

“Hmm... Perhaps this is a blessing in disguise,” he added.

The court officials were puzzled by his response.

“What do you mean by that, sire?” one of them asked.

“Think about it. It is far better that the Iron Fleet’s weaknesses were exposed in this minor battle against a small kingdom like the Proatine Kingdom. Had this happened against a rival of equal strength, we would have faced a far greater threat from our fleet falling.

"Thus, I believe we should count ourselves fortunate,” King Frederick said nonchalantly.

Instead of seething with fury as most kings did, King Frederick turned the loss into an opportunity to learn. He calmly analyzed the reasons for the Iron Fleet’s downfall with a very practical and objective mindset.

“Your Majesty’s wisdom is truly boundless!”

“Truly, Your Majesty, you are a wise and noble ruler!”

“I am simply in awe of Your Majesty’s wisdom!”

The officials praised King Frederick one after another, and their voices echoed throughout the hall.

King Frederick simply waved his hand and asked, “How long would it take to rebuild the Iron Fleet?”

“We can manage to rebuild it in two weeks or perhaps a month at the latest, provided we have ample resources,” one of the officials replied.

“Good. Prepare additional aerial forces to guard the new fleet,” King Frederick ordered. Then, he added, “And spare no expenses on it. I want them ready immediately.”

“As you command, sire!”

This was the true strength of a nation as powerful as the Zavala Kingdom. Losing the Iron Fleet was a devastating loss, but King Frederick seemed not bothered by it.

Why?

It was all because he knew he could simply rebuild the fleet if he wanted to do so.

The cost of building the Iron Fleet was not the main problem. It was actually the high maintenance cost that made it difficult for them to build more.

“Also, send Siegfried van Proa a gift. He helped reveal our Iron Fleet’s weakness, so he deserves a reward for that,” King Frederick further commanded.

“As you command, sire,” another official promptly replied. Then, he asked, “Shall we make it a gift worthy of his status, Your Majesty?”

“Ensure it’s enough to leave him pleased,” King Frederick replied with a faint mischievous smirk.

After issuing these orders, he instructed his military commanders, “Give our forces at the enemy’s border a full day of rest before launching the assault.”

The court officials bowed low and replied in unison, “Your Majesty’s grace is truly immeasurable!”

***

Meanwhile, Siegfried received news that a gift from King Frederick had arrived. He made his way to the throne room to receive the envoy bringing gifts.

The envoy came in and put down several chests brimming with gold and jewels that sparkled brightly under the light.

“Greetings, Your Majesty. I am the envoy from the Zavala Kingdom, here representing His Majesty, King Frederick, the Lion of Zavala,” the envoy announced before bowing deeply.

“What’s all this?” Siegfried asked, eyeing the treasure.

“His Majesty, King Frederick, sends this gift as a token of his gratitude. He wishes to thank you for revealing the Iron Fleet’s weaknesses,” the envoy replied with utmost courteousness before bowing deeply once again.

“Tell him I appreciate it,” Siegfried said with a nod, accepting the gifts.

The envoy bowed once again before leaving the throne room. Then, Seung-Gu, one of Siegfried’s closest confidants, could not hold back his suspicion regarding the gift.

“Is that king mad or something? His fleet was wiped out yet he’s sending you a gift? There must be something fishy here! What if there’s a bomb hidden in these chests, hyung-nim?” Seung-Gu asked, sounding skeptical.

“No, it’s not a trick,” Siegfried replied, shaking his head.

“Huh? Then why send all this...?” Seung-Gu asked, looking perplexed.

“This is his way of boasting,” Siegfried replied with a shrug.

“Boasting...?”

“Exactly. He’s flaunting his wealth, telling us that the loss of his Iron Fleet means nothing,” Siegfried explained. Then, he continued, “This is him basically telling us, ‘I can simply make another fleet. I have money to spare.’ These gifts are here to send that message to us.”

“But why go through the trouble...?”

“Because he can afford it. Frederick is no ordinary king. He’s probably one of the sharpest ones we’ve come across thus far. He’s a true ruler of a great power, and it seems he’s methodical and far-sighted too.”

“It’s hard to believe he’s such a powerful NPC...”

“I guess we’ll see for ourselves soon enough. But if one thing’s for sure... then this war isn’t going to be easy...”

***

It did not take long for Siegfried’s ominous words to come to fruition.

Two days later...

“They’re coming!”

“Enemy spotted!”

“Get ready, boys!”

The Zavala Forces finally began their advance toward the O’Toul Fortress, defended by the allied forces with Siegfried as their leader.

On top of the walls of O’Toul Fortress...

“They’re coming, hyung-nim!” Seung-Gu shouted, pointing at countless enemies appearing on the horizon.

“I can see them,” Siegfried replied, his gaze locked on the seemingly endless wave of soldiers advancing toward them.

This was the Proatine Kingdom’s first major confrontation with a true great power, and Siegfried nervously tightened his grip on the +13 Vanquisher’s Grasp as he braced himself for the oncoming battle.

Then, without any warning, a message popped up and flashed in front of his eyes.

[Alert: Your Divine Power has permanently increased by 5!]

[Alert: Your Divine Power has permanently increased by 10!]

[Alert: Your Divine Power has permanently increased by 6!]

[Alert: Your Divine Power has permanently increased by 0.5!]

(omitted...)

[Alert: Your Divine Power has permanently increased by 13!]

A surge of power, divine in nature, surged through Siegfried as the messages popped up one after another.