Debuff Master

Chapter 699

There was a bronze statue of himself, standing tall smack at the center of the street, gleaming proudly under the sunlight. There were several bouquets placed at the foot of the statue as well as offerings left by the citizens of Torrent City as a gesture of gratitude for Siegfried’s role in thwarting the demons’ invasion of the continent.

“Kyuuu! Look at that! It’s a statue of you, owner punk!”

“Shut it, will you?”

“Kyu? But why? You’re a hero, owner punk! The hero who had foiled the demon lord’s schemes!”

“I said, shut it!”

Siegfried ended up lashing out at Hamchi after feeling embarrassed by the sight of his own statue.

Just then, a flock of pigeons flapped their wings and flew over Siegfried and Hamchi.

“Hmm?” Siegfried muttered after sensing something was amiss.

He thought he noticed tiny tubes tied to the pigeons’ ankles as they flew overhead.

“No, that can’t be,” Siegfried muttered, shaking off the ominous feeling.

However, he decided to just ignore it and continue walking toward the guild, but—

“Ah! King Siegfried van Proa is passing by!”

“It’s King Siegfried van Proa!”

“Whoa! It’s really King Siegfried!”

The citizens of Torrent City recognized Siegfried and swarmed toward him like bees. They knelt in front of him and paid respects as one would to a king, and the crowd instantly multiplied in a matter of few seconds.

Then, a beautiful woman stepped forward.

“Thank you for protecting us, Your Majesty,” she said before kissing the back of his hand and planting kisses on each side of his cheeks.

“W-What?!” Siegfried exclaimed, startled by the sudden act of affection, but he did not resist the woman.

This kind of physical affection was not just a casual gesture but it was a formal way of greeting bestowed upon heroes in the continent. Kissing the back of the hand once and both cheeks was a privilege reserved for those who had made great contributions to the world regardless of gender or age.

After the woman was done, an elderly man with silver-white hair and wrinkled skin approached Siegfried. He did the exact same greeting, kissing his hand and both cheeks, just as the woman did.

Siegfried was stuck for nearly two hours, engaging in what felt like endless kisses and greetings from the citizens of Torrent City.

‘It seems my fame has skyrocketed these days...’ Siegfried thought, realizing just how much popularity he had grown in the game.

Then, a loud voice cut through the crowd.

“Make way! Make way for His Majesty the King!”

Siegfried soon found himself standing face to face with King Donkey II of the Furuna Kingdom.

“What? King Siegfried is here? We must go meet him!”

King Donkey II had rushed over upon hearing that Siegfried was in Torrent City.

“Greetings, I am Donkey II,” the king, a chubby middle-aged man, greeted with his hand extended.

“Siegfried van Proa,” Siegfried replied with a smile, shaking the king’s hand.

“It is an honor to meet you, King Siegfried. I believe we briefly met at the World Peace Conference, do you recall?”

“I certainly do.”

“Haha! I did not expect the hero who stopped the demons from invading the continent to remember me! I am overjoyed!”

“Oh no, you flatter me too much.”

“But tell me, what brings you to our kingdom?”

“Well, our kingdom does not have a branch of the Adventurer’s Guild, so I had to come here for business.”

“Oh! You should have told me in advance! I would have spared no expenses and prepared a proper welcome for you!”

Siegfried hurriedly waved his hand in protest after seeing King Donkey II looking apologetic.

“No, I am not someone who requires a grand reception. Meeting you in person is already an honor!”

“Hoho! You truly are a hero!”

“Huh?”

“A hero with such humility despite everything you’ve accomplished...”

“No, I don’t think that’s—”

“King Siegfried.”

“Y-Yes?”

“Would you care to join me at my palace if it is not too much trouble for you? I would like to host a banquet in your honor.”

“That is a bit—”

“Please. I wish to introduce you to my family and share a meal together.”

“Alright...”

In the end, Siegfried could not refuse King Donkey II’s sincere invitation. He thought it would be impolite to turn down the request of a king regardless of the Furuna Kingdom\'s size.

Moreover, he had some free time, so it did not seem like a big deal even if he spent a few hours at the palace.

“Come, let us go. I will make sure that you are well taken care of while you are my guest,” King Donkey II said.

“Thank you,” Siegfried replied.

Siegfried and Hamchi headed for the royal palace, escorted by King Donkey II and his men.

Flap! Flap! Flap!

As they made their way to the palace, Siegfried’s attention was once again drawn to the sound of pigeons flapping their wings.

‘What’s with all the pigeons today?’ Siegfried wondered, recalling the strange feeling earlier. He thought that perhaps he wasn\'t imagining things when he thought that he saw something tied to the pigeons’ ankles, but he couldn\'t take a good look this time as well, so he brushed off the thought and followed King Donkey II to the palace.

***

Siegfried and Hamchi were welcomed with a grand banquet. They dined with King Donkey II before being sent on their way to the Adventurer’s Guild by a carriage from the palace.

King Donkey II pleaded for Siegfried to stay the night, but his earnest request was politely declined. Siegfried had enough free time to stay for a meal, but he did not have enough to warrant an overnight stay.

Huff... Huff... Huff...!

Hamchi sprawled out on his back and panted heavily inside the carriage.

“Ughh... I think I ate too much. My belly’s too full! Kyuuu!”

Siegfried glanced at him with a mix of pity and disgust, “Why did you eat almonds by the sackful?”

“Because they were delicious! Kyuuu!”

“Those people would think that I\'d been starving you or something.”

“Don’t pick a fight with me now! I’m too tired and too full to argue! Kyuuu!”

Siegfried let out a sigh but could not help but chuckle as he gently patted Hamchi’s swollen belly.

“Your fur is surprisingly soft,” Siegfried muttered while patting the thick fur of the giant hamster.

It was then...

Flap! Flap! Flap!

The flapping of wings echoed along with the rattling of the carriage wheels.

“Hmm?” Siegfried narrowed his eyes after picking up the sound. Then, he turned to the giant hamster and said, “Hey, Hamchi.”

“Don’t talk to me, owner punk. I’m too full to speak right now.”

“That’s not it.”

“Kyu?”

“Don’t you think the sound of pigeons flapping has been unusually frequent today?”

“Kyu? Hamchi has no idea! Huff! Huff!”

Siegfried was hoping to ask Hamchi to use his Meerkat skill, but he decided otherwise. Instead, he pulled the carriage curtain slightly and opened the window. Then, he extended his hand out the window and sent an ice shuriken flying.

Whiiiish... Puuuk!

The ice shuriken pierced a pigeon perched on a tree branch with pinpoint accuracy.

“Stop the carriage for a moment,” Siegfried said before hopping out and retrieving the pigeon’s lifeless body.

“Kyuuu! What are you doing, owner punk?!” Are you going to fry the pigeon and sell it?!”

“...I don’t know how to respond to that,” Siegfried muttered.

Then, he ignored Hamchi’s nonsense and inspected the pigeon.

Unsurprisingly, he did not find anything tied to its ankles.

“Maybe I’m just being paranoid...? But it’s not like I’ve been stressed recently...?” Siegfried muttered under his breath.

In the end, he climbed back into the carriage.

“Hmm... It felt like the pigeons were following us, though...”

“Kyu?”

“Oh well, never mind. I guess I’m just overreacting. Let’s go.”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” the coachman responded, and the carriage resumed its journey.

After the carriage traveled a few distance, a lone pigeon hiding behind the thick branches flew up into the sky.

***

Siegfried arrived at the Adventurer’s Guild and began thinking, ‘Hmm... I’ll post a recruitment notice first and then call back my guild members... Ah, I gotta make sure to announce the recruitment on G-Tube, too...’

He stepped out of the carriage and walked toward the entrance of the guild when something unusual happened.

Whoosh!

An old beggar suddenly appeared and shoved a dented tin can toward him.

“Alms for the poor, kind sir?” the beggar said.

“Huh?”

“Please spare some change.”

Siegfried was baffled, but he reached into his coat and tossed a gold coin into the beggar’s can.

Clink!

The pleasant metallic sound echoed the moment the coin hit the bottom of the can.

But the very next moment...

“W-What? Why did I do that?” Siegfried muttered, shocked by his own actions.

“Kyu? What’s up, owner punk?” Hamchi asked, wobbling out of the carriage.

“I just gave him money,” Siegfried said, sounding confused.

“So? Well, you gave it to him, so what’s the problem?” Hamchi asked, tilting his head in confusion.

“That’s exactly the problem. I didn’t intend to give him anything,” Siegfried replied, shaking his head.

“Kyu? What are you talking about? You did give it to him! I saw it with my own eyes!”

“No, I didn’t..! My body just moved on its own!”

Hamchi narrowed his eyes suspiciously and said, “Don’t tell me you’re regretting giving a coin to a beggar? You have so much money already! Don’t be so stingy, owner punk!”

“It’s not about the money!” Siegfried protested.

The reason he was so worked up was that he had no control over what just happened. He did not mean to give the beggar anything yet he ended up giving him a coin.

Just a few moments ago...

“Alms for the poor, kind sir? Please spare some change.”

Those words wormed their way into Siegfried’s ears, causing him to pull out a gold coin and drop it into the beggar’s tin can before Tae-Sung could stop himself.

All of this happened in one fluid motion without even an ounce of hesitation.

Then, as if things were not already strange enough...

“Please, sir, just a little more?” the old beggar asked again, his voice carrying an odd sense of persistence.

“I think one coin should be plenty—” Siegfried was about to say, but his mouth betrayed him. Then, he asked, “Would you like another one?”

Right after he said those words, he ended up dropping another gold coin into the beggar’s can.

“What the hell?!” Siegfried screamed, his voice trembling with disbelief. Then, he doubted himself, ‘D-Did my body just move on its own again?’

He meant to tell the beggar that one gold coin was plenty enough, but instead, he found himself giving even more. This, of course, was not his intention, and his body had defied his will for the second time.

Unfortunately, the situation was about to get even stranger.

“Sir, I beg of you, life has been so hard. Please? Just a little more?”

This time, before Siegfried could even respond, his hand was already moving. However, the difference was that he pulled out his entire pouch filled with gold coins!

“Whoa! Owner punk! What are you doing?! Are you out of your mind?!” Hamchi shrieked in horror before jumping just in time to deliver a dropkick to Siegfried’s side.

“Ouch!” Siegfried squealed, tumbling backward. Then, he immediately snapped out of it and quickly reached for his +13 Vanquisher’s Grasp.

“Who the hell are you?!” he growled at the beggar.

However, instead of answering, the old beggar began to dance wildly, his limbs flailing in strange, almost hypnotic movements. Then, he sang a song that sounded just as eerie as the movement of his hips.

“Oh-ho! Heave-ho, let’s go, let\'s go! This year, and last, you still owe, still owe! I came last year, don’t you know? Here I am again, back for more!”