Debuff Master-Chapter 1193

Both Oscar and Siegfried waited for Irene to respond.

“I...” Irene clenched her fists and finally said, “...Have gathered information about the Proatine Empire and reported it back.” 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Not even Irene could resist the power of the Sword of Truth: Fragarach.

“What kind of information did you gather and send to the Marchioni Empire?” Oscar pressed.

“The policies of the Proatine Empire... the imperial family members... the movements of the troops... And anything I could discreetly uncover. I reported all of them back home...”

Irene struggled hard, trying to stop herself from telling the truth, but it was futile.

While she was the princess of the mighty Marchioni Empire and a magician, she lacked any exceptional abilities. Compared to Oscar and Siegfried, she was nothing more than an ordinary NPC.

“Were you aware that your actions amounted to committing espionage against the Proatine Empire, Princess Irene?” Oscar continued.

“I... Yes, I knew...”

“And if the Marchioni Empire were to invade our land—what would you have done?”

“As the princess of the Marchioni Empire and a member of the imperial house... I would lead the Eight Corps and reduce Preussen to ashes.”

Neither Siegfried nor Oscar flinched upon hearing her response. They had already expected this answer, as no matter how strong Irene’s personal feelings for Siegfried were, she was still a daughter of the Imperial House of Posteriore and was bound to serve the Marchioni Empire’s interests.

“That’s enough,” Irene said, pushing the blade gently away from her throat. Then, she said, “There’s no need for this charade. Ask whatever you want and I’ll answer truthfully. I am in no position to resist anyway, and I do not like having a cold blade pressed at my neck while having a conversation.”

Oscar looked at Siegfried and asked, “What are your orders, sire?”

“Withdraw your sword,” Siegfried said.

Irene's eyes told him that she had already accepted the fact that there was no way she could get out of this situation.

With that, he judged there was no point in pressing any further.

“Do you know what the Marchioni Empire is planning, Your Highness?” Siegfried asked softly.

“How could I not? I don’t know the exact details, of course. But I do know that the empire seeks to destroy the Proatine Empire and to wipe out the Adventurers from existence,” Irene replied.

“How do you know about that?”

“Because that’s what the Marchioni Empire is. That’s the philosophy of the empire built upon bloodshed. The empire’s history is written in blood, never allowing anyone to rival the empire. Use them, crush them, and erase them from existence,” Irene explained.

“My brother never tells me any secrets, but I don’t need to be told to know,” added Irene.

“Hmm...”

“My brother is a terrifying person. He might have spared me and my mother out of pity or perhaps obligation, but that’s it. I’m nothing more than a pawn to him. Someone he can use and discard at will. If I ever displease him, he won’t hesitate to remove—no, eliminate me.”

“What do you plan to do about it?”

“There’s nothing I can do. My mother will be tortured to death if I defy him. And eventually, I will share the same fate as her. That’s the burden I have to carry,” Irene said, her voice trembling with tears streaming down her cheeks.

Those tears showed just how much sorrow she felt.

She was a princess and had been enjoying all the privileges in life, but she was nothing but a pawn of her brother, the emperor. She also lacked the power to decide things for herself, nor did she have the right to do so.

‘This monster called power can be quite cruel...’

Once again, he realized just how scary power could be upon witnessing Irene's plight.

“So, what will you do with me? Are you going to kill me? But that would inconvenience you greatly, wouldn’t it?” Irene asked, wiping her tears away.

“I can’t do that. It would cause far too much trouble,” Siegfried replied.

“Then why come here and do all this?”

“Because...” Siegfried proceeded to tell her about the Marchioni Empire’s conspiracy.

“I see... But that’s not completely unexpected, no? So what now? What will you do with me?” Irene asked.

“I cannot allow you to continue spying on our empire.”

“And how will you stop me?”

“Like this.”

Siegfried placed his hand on Irene’s head, intending to turn her into an Irradiator.

‘Damn it...’ he muttered inwardly.

For all her faults, Irene had shown him genuine affection. In addition, she was a pitiful person, as she was trapped in a life she had never chosen to live.

To strip her will away and turn her into something else weighed heavily on him, but he had no other choice.

She was a constant threat to the Proatine Empire, and she had become the biggest threat to the Proatine Empire upon knowing the fact that Siegfried was aware of the Marchioni Empire’s schemes.

Thus, he had no other choice but to eliminate that danger, no matter how much it weighed heavily on him. If she were allowed to stay free, she would be a danger to the Proatine Empire.

***

Five minutes later...

“I greet my master.”

Irene knelt on one knee and bowed just like the other Irradiators did in front of Siegfried.

Siegfried’s heart was heavy at the sight of her subservience, but he composed himself quickly.

Having sympathy for her would endanger not only him, but everyone around him as well, including the Proatine Empire.

‘I will release her later...’ he resolved. Once the war was over, he would reclaim the radioactive microbes infesting her and give her freedom back.

Unfortunately, even he himself had no idea when that day would come.

“Irene.”

“Yes, Master?”

“Act as you normally would. Do nothing out of the ordinary.”

“As you command, Master.”

“But do not send real reports back to the Marchioni Empire. If they ask for anything, keep the reports vague. Make it seem as if nothing important is happening. Got it?”

“I will do as you command, Master.”

“And... We will find a way to rescue your mother, so do not worry about her. Once this is all over, I will make sure that you can live a life of your own.”

“I am grateful for your benevolence, Master.”

Irene obeyed every single one of Siegfried’s commands upon becoming an Irradiator.

While this choice weighed heavily on his conscience, it would greatly help the Proatine Empire deceive the Marchioni Empire while they made preparations for the inevitable war.

“Osar.”

“Yes, sire.”

“Draw up a plan to rescue Princess Irene’s mother. But we will not be executing it now, as that would make the Marchioni Empire suspect her. The rescue must take place just before they learn of the fact that Irene has switched sides.

“I will keep that in mind, sire.”

“And from now on, review every report Irene sends out to the Marchioni Empire. Not a single report is to reach them without first being vetted by us.”

“Leave it to me, sire.”

With that, Siegfried turned away.

The hidden danger Irene posed had been neutralized, yet his steps grew heavy.

‘Emperor Stuttgart... Your lust for power is ruining countless lives. Just how much more blood do you have to spill to satisfy your insatiable hunger? How will you pay the price for the atrocities you have committed?’ Siegfried thought, clenching his fists and grinding his teeth.

***

After neutralizing Irene and turning her into an Irradiator, Siegfried immediately set out to clear the remaining Ancient Dungeons that appeared within the Proatine Empire’s territory.

However, one thought lingered in his mind the entire time.

‘The weapon is the medium Lee Geon uses. It makes up for his Devouring Grand Art’s flaws and side effects. That means... he can’t use his skill properly without a weapon, no?’

Lee Geon’s skill, the Devouring Grand Art, could devour even Siegfried’s debuffs, which made it a truly broken skill. However, the energy it devoured was not technically stored in Lee Geon himself, but rather, in his equipped weapon.

The weapon acted like a filter or a reserve tank, nullifying the backlash of the technique and allowing him to run rampant with it.

‘If only there was a way... some technique or artifact that could destroy weapons outright...’

With that thought, Siegfried decided to change course and head for Quandt’s workshop instead of another Ancient Dungeon.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Tang! Tang!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The sound of hammer strikes never ceased, even for a second, inside the Bavarian Workshop. Orders for the new Sanctified-rated and Transcendent-rated items poured in endlessly, so every blacksmith was working around the clock.

“Hello. What brings you here today, Your Imperial Majesty?” Quandt greeted.

“Well, the thing is... Could you forge me an artifact that specializes in destroying weapons?” Siegfried asked.

“Hmm?” Quandt muttered, tilting his head in confusion.

“So what happened is...” Siegfried proceeded to explain why he needed such a thing and even detailed his recent battle against Lee Geon.

“Hmm... Destroying a weapon is not an easy thing to do. Artifacts of Legendary or higher are notoriously hard to break, and let us not even talk about the new Relic or Transcendent items. They won’t suffer as much as a chip unless abused by their owner.”

“I thought so, too...”

“A weapon can be destroyed by neglecting maintenance and using it till its durability hits zero, but to break one intentionally is far from simple.”

“Is there no other way at all? I cannot win against him unless I destroy his weapons.”

“I am afraid I cannot create an artifact dedicated solely to breaking weapons, sire,” Quandt admitted.

“Ah... That is a shame...” Siegfried said, sounding dejected.

“But... That does not mean there is no solution,” Quandt added.

“Oh?! You have a way?”

“It might be possible to craft a specialized blade that breaks weapons. A blade that can be mounted onto the Sky Piercer. But it will not be a permanent one. Perhaps... you will get ten uses at most.”

“Ten times...” Siegfried paused and thought, ‘For a weapon to suppress the side effects of the Devouring Grand Art... it has to be exceptionally powerful, right? How many of those could Lee Geon possibly have? Ten? More?’

He judged that the odds of Lee Geon carrying more than ten such powerful weapons were slim. While Lee Geon would carry spare weapons, he would definitely not have a stockpile of more than ten Transcendent weapons with him at all times.

“Can you craft it? I need that weapon-rending blade,” Siegfried said.

“The materials will not be easy to procure, sire.”

“What materials do you need?”

Quandt drew a breath and then...

Ding!

A quest notification popped up before Siegfried’s eyes.

[Mortal Blade]

[Bring Quandt the necessary materials to forge the artifact designed to specifically destroy weapons.]

[Type: Normal Quest]

[Progress: 0%]

[Materials Required]

- Relic Weapon x 100

- Legendary Fragments x 5,000

[Reward: Mortal Blade (Transcendent)]

“H-Hiiiik?!” Siegfried shrieked, nearly choking. The material requirements were absurd.

Relic-rated weapons had a very low drop rate, even in the Ancient Dungeons. They were also almost never sold on the market, as anyone lucky enough to obtain one would immediately upgrade them to a Sanctified-rated weapon.

This was not something that money alone could solve, as gathering one hundred Relic-rated weapons was nearly impossible.

“Your Imperial Majesty.”

“Yes?”

“Relic-rated artifacts are indeed scarce.”

“Tell me about it.”

“But perhaps you should pay a visit to the Tome of Swords?”

“Huh? The Grave of Swords?”

“It is one of the Ancient Dungeons that formed within our empire. They say one hundred swords are embedded there. And since it is an Ancient Dungeon... surely every single one of those swords must be a Relic-rated sword, no?”

“Ah!”

“The Grave of Swords dungeon remains unconquered, and if anyone can do it, then it will surely be you.”

“Then that’s where I’ll be heading next.”

Without a second thought, Siegfried set his sights on the Grave of Swords dungeons as his next destination. Clearing that Ancient Dungeon was his only hope to obtain one hundred Relic-rated artifacts. He had to do this to forge the Mortal Blade, which was a vital item he needed to defeat Lee Geon.