Debuff Master

Chapter 626

[Master’s Regret]

[Type: Quest]

[Details: Find and crush the seven successors of the people known as the strongest eight on the continent five hundred years ago.

[Progress: 28.50% (2/7)]

[Descendant of Thunder God Vajra 1/1] ?

[Descendant of Sword Saint Murcièlago 0/1]

[Descendant of Great Sage Sieghart 0/1] UP!

[Descendant of Blood Master Berserk 0/1] x

[Descendant of Enlightened King Maugris 0/1]

[Descendant of God Arrow Windforce 0/1] x

[Descendant of Supreme King Braum 1/1] ?

The progress of his quest, Master’s Regret, popped up in front of his eyes. It turned out that the Gray Family, which was a pillar of the Espadrille Province and the rulers of the Capucines Territory, were descendants of Great Sage Sieghart.

[Arial de Gray]

[Descendant of Great Sage Sieghart.]

[A talented magician who spent his youth studying at the magic tower.]

[Type: NPC]

[Level: 299]

[Class: N/A]

[Affiliation: Proatine Kingdom - Capucines Territory]

[Rank: Count]

[Position: Feudal Lord]

[Note: He has received enlightenment after his training in isolation.]

“I, Arial de Gray, greet Your Majesty,” Count Arial got on one knee and paid respects to Siegfried.

“Ah... Count Arial,” Siegfried muttered under his breath while looking at the count. Then, he nodded and replied, “It is a pleasure to meet you, Count Arial.”

“I apologize for not coming sooner. I was training in isolation and belatedly heard of what happened. Paying respects to Your Majesty and pledging loyalty is more important than my own training...”

“Hmm...”

“I apologize,” Count Arial said as he bowed low to the ground.

“Not at all. I am thankful that you rushed over as soon as your training was finished. Now, please get up,” Siegfried said.

“Thank you, Your Majesty,” Count Arial replied with a bow.

‘Huh? What’s up with this dude? Just what is this... Eh? This feeling is...?’ Siegfried was surprised after looking at the count. He did not seem human to him for some reason, but he could not really put a finger on what he was feeling right now.

However, Count Arial looked no different from a saint on the outside, which made it even more difficult for Siegfried to understand the feeling that he was getting from Count Arial.

There was an air of mystery surrounding the count, and Siegfried would probably believe Count Arial if the latter were to claim that he was a god or something.

‘So he’s the descendant of Great Sage Sieghart...’ Siegfried thought that Count Arial was no ordinary person, as befitting of the descendant of a Great Sage.

“Your Majesty,” Count Arial said.

“Yes, what is it?”

“I, Arial de Gray, pledge loyalty to the Proatine Kingdom and to her king, King Siegfried van Proa.”

“Eh?” Siegfried was flustered by the sudden pledge of allegiance. He did not expect the Descendant of Great Sage Sieghart to pledge allegiance to him so easily.

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The Proatine Kingdom had already gained control of the entire Espadrille Province, so it was only natural for the count to pledge allegiance to Siegfried, but he didn't expect it to be this easy.

“I'm a subject of the Marchioni Empire, but His Imperial Majesty has commanded the entire Espadrille Province, I included, to be Your Majesty’s subject. Therefore, it is only right that I would pledge allegiance to the Proatine Kingdom and Your Majesty.”

“I see...” Siegfried was rendered speechless after Count Arial bowed and swore allegiance to him.

‘I can’t kill him like this, now can I? Should I ask him for a duel or something instead...?’

There was a saying about how one couldn't spit at a smiling face. Well, Siegfried was someone capable of spitting not only saliva but even phlegm at a smiling face.

However, the Gray Family was a pillar of the Espadrille Province and was beloved by the people. If he were to beat Count Arial up without any reasonable justification, he'd surely suffer a backlash from the people.

If that happened, Siegfried’s reputation would plummet to being an evil tyrant, and he would be criticized by the NPCs.

‘Tsk... I would have beaten him to death right now if I already had the image of a villain. I should set a date and duel with him. Yeah, that should be for the better... I’m sure master will be delighted once he hears that the descendant of Sieghart has become one of my subjects,’ Siegfried thought and made up his mind. Then, he turned to Count Arial and said, “Alright, I hope we'll have a good relationship from now on, Count Arial.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty,” Count Arial replied and bowed. Then, he added, “But Your Majesty...”

“Yes?”

“May I request something from Your Majesty?”

“What is it?”

“I have heard that Your Majesty had no other choice but to use force and conquer some of the territories.”

“Yes, I did.”

“And blood was shed in the process...”

“Bloodshed is inevitable and necessary at times.”

“Of course, Your Majesty.”

“But why are you mentioning that?”

“If I may dare, what does Your Majesty think of holding a memorial service for those who have passed away?”

A memorial service was often held to honor those who had died, and this sounded like a great idea to Siegfried, who was trying to find ways to appease the Espadrille Province as much as possible.

***

The memorial service was not held to appease the souls of those who perished, as it was actually held to appease the bereaved loved ones.

Why?

It was because there was no guarantee that the dead would get appeased just because a memorial service was held, and there was no way to check whether they were even appeased or not.

Of course, the concept of souls, vengeful spirits, and wandering spirits existed in BNW, but it was irrelevant here.

“A memorial service... That’s an excellent suggestion,” Siegfried replied.

“Thank you for accepting your humble servant’s request, Your Majesty,” Count Arial said with a bow. Then, he added, “If Your Majesty hosts a memorial service for those who had perished and compensated their bereaved loved ones, then the Espadrille Province would surely turn their hearts toward Your Majesty.”

“That is true.”

“If it pleases Your Majesty, I will see to it that the grand memorial services for all sides will be...”

It was then.

‘No, that’s not right,’ Siegfried thought as he narrowed his eyes.

A memorial service? Yes, that was an excellent way to appease the people after such an event.

However, there was one thing he would not accept.

“Wait. I disagree with that,” Siegfried raised his hand and interrupted the count.

“Pardon me, sire?”

“I agree we should host a memorial service, but it cannot be a combined one.”

“What does Your Majesty mean by—”

“I could try for years, but the fact that I am the one who took their lives will not change for the beloved ones that they had left behind.”

“Your Majesty...”

“The bereaved ones from all over the Espadrille Province will gather in one place if we hold a grand memorial service.”

“Hmm...”

“Their hatred toward me will only grow if they gather in one place, and there is the potential for chaos if that happens.”

“That is...”

“We will proceed with the memorial service,” Siegfried said. Then, he added, “But there will be no grand memorial service. Every territory will have its own memorial service, and everyone who had fallen in battle will be promoted a rank for fighting for the Proatine Kingdom.

"We will spare no expenses for the memorial service to uplift our kingdom’s prestige, too.”

However, he did not stop there.

“Additionally, the families left behind will be treated with respect as bereaved families of patriots. I will see to it that they will be fully taken care of, as their beloved ones had fought for the kingdom.”

Siegfried was basically declaring that he would do everything he could to make sure the bereaved family members were taken care of. He was not doing this so he could be called a righteous king or because he had become a nice person overnight.

It was all because the people of the Espadrille Province were now citizens of the Proatine Kingdom. He had to do everything he could to make sure that they would turn their hearts and embrace their new identity as people of Proatine.

“Your Majesty’s benevolence is as vast as the ocean. Your grace is immeasurable!” Count Arial exclaimed with a bow. He did not dare refute what Siegfried said, as he himself knew that this was the best course of action.

***

“Ah, I’m hungry now...”

Tae-Sung felt famished the moment he logged out from the game and exited his VR capsule. He looked at the time and saw it was one thirty in the morning.

“Ah, the restaurant must be closed by now.”

He wanted to eat, but the one and only proper restaurant in the building was already closed, so he had no other choice but to look for food elsewhere.

“I guess the hungry one has to go fish for food...”

In the end, he had no other choice but to go to a twenty-four-hour charcoal barbeque place called Gangnam Myeon-Ok in his brand-new car—a Porsche 918 Spyder 3rd Generation Model.

Bzzt! Bzzt!

Tae-Sung connected his phone to his car’s Bluetooth and answered the call.

—Hello?!

Surprisingly, the caller was none other than Yong Seol-Hwa.

Clearly, she had belatedly seen the messages that Tae-Sung had sent her.

— Oppa!

“Ah, Ms. Seol-Hwa?”

— Oh! You really answered!

“I just logged out from the game and am on my way to eat. The restaurant for residents was closed.”

— Really? Ah! Can I join you?

“Huh?”

— We agreed to have lunch or dinner together, remember?

“Y-Yeah, I guess we did.”

— Let’s eat together.

“That's fine, but...” Tae-Sung trailed the ends of his words. Then, he said weakly, “...Are you not mad at me?”

— Huh? Hmm... A bit?

“...”

— But I know you didn’t do that on purpose. Well, I was a bit upset, but I’m alright now. It’s not like I don’t know how busy you are these days.

“Haha...”

— I should have been more understanding...

“I am sorry. I did not do that on purpose but—”

— It’s fine. So, will you dine with me or not?

“I will!”

— Where are you? I’ll be right there.

“I am on my way to Gangnam Myeon-Ok. I will wait for you there.”

— Okay!

Thirty minutes later...

Vroom!

A red Porsche Boxster parked in front of Gangnam Myeon-Ok, and a woman wearing a baseball cap alighted from it.

Tssss!

Tae-Sung placed a piece of tenderloin on the grill while sitting across from Yong Seol-Hwa.

“How have you been, oppa?”

“I am alright, but I have been kinda busy these days.”

“Yeah, it looks like you were.”

“Haha...”

“But until when do you plan to speak so formally to me?”

“That is...”

“Just speak casually to me. You know that I’m younger than you, right?”

“S-Should I...?”

“Come to think of it. Why did you order tenderloin? Do you like tenderloin?”

“It doesn’t have much fat, so I like it.”

“Oh? You don’t like oily food?”

“No, that’s not it.”

“Then?”

“Ribeye has too much fat, so it’s not good for building muscles. I have to watch my fat intake.”

It was then...

‘This is driving me nuts!’ Yong Seol-Hwa exclaimed while grabbing the back of her neck in her head. She was fine with him being a gaming addict cooped up in his room the whole day.

Why?

It was all because she wanted a man better than her at video games.

However, she was struck by a migraine when she heard Tae-Sung mention the word "muscle."

‘Is he... a gym fanatic, too? No wonder his body looked good...’

So what if a guy was addicted to games and the gym?

‘I still like him.’

Yong Seol-Hwa disliked what she had heard from Tae-Sung just now, but all of that disappeared as she watched him eat the grilled tenderloin like a hungry kid.

What else could she do? She had finally found the man of her dreams, and he was eating right in front of her.

‘Hmm... I want to feed him,’ Yong Seol-Hwa thought while honey was dripping from her eyes. Well, it was more like premium royal jelly was dripping from her eyes rather than honey at this point.[/ref]Honey dripping from one’s eyes is a Korean expression to use when someone looks at someone full of love. Like how a parent would look at their kids? The premium royal jelly is not a cultural thing, but the author wanted to portray how in love Yong Seol-Hwa was in Tae-Sung.[/ref]

Click! Click! Click!

Unbeknownst to both Tae-Sung and Yong Seol-Hwa, someone outside the restaurant was taking pictures of them dining together.