Debuff Master-Chapter 819

“What they had committed... Ahem...”

Archbishop Thermopylae was about to say something, but he stopped and cleared his throat awkwardly. He looked visibly strained, as if even uttering another word was unbearable for him.

Just then, Saintess Janette finally broke her silence. As both a religious leader and a ruler of a nation, her presence at this meeting was essential.

“Our ancestors and the gods we worship... they had betrayed the Creator.”

The room fell into a stunned silence once again.

‘What...? There’s a Creator?!’ Siegfried was stunned. His eyes widened from shock, and his mind was racing. This was a new piece of information, as there was no mention of the "Creator" in BNW’s lore or storyline.

‘A betrayal? What does that even mean?’

“Ahem”

“This is... unpleasant to discuss.”

“Truly, a shameful chapter of history.”

The religious leaders either turned away or lowered their heads, and their faces were tinged with shame.

Siegfried could no longer hold his curiosity back.

“Erm... Excuse me...?” He raised his hand slightly and asked in a tone that was a mixture of both confusion and urgency. “What do you mean by our ancestors and gods had betrayed the Creator?”

Siegfried's question was like a thunderclap. The leaders visibly paled as their faces were drained of all color, as if they were confronted with something they were forbidden from uttering.

Their reaction said it all. This was a taboo topic, one so disgraceful that it had been thoroughly purged from history books and the memory of people that even speaking of it felt like invoking a curse on the entire continent.

Only the highest-ranking members of each religious order were privy to it...

“That is... a shameful chapter in our past,” Saintess Janette responded, sounding somber.

“Then, can you tell me exactly what happened?” Siegfried pressed.

Saintess Janette hesitated for a moment before saying, “There are no precise records... but this was something that occurred tens of thousands of years ago.”

Saintess Janette paused to take a deep breath before continuing, “Back then...”

Thus, the long-hidden truth, the forbidden history of the Nurburg Continent, was revealed.

***

The exact timeline remained elusive, and the events that had transpired apparently tens of thousands of years ago were shrouded in mystery.

At that time, there existed a single unified religion that devoted itself wholly to the Creator, a divine being who had created the world. This religious order, naturally, held the greatest power and influence on the entire continent.

However, polytheistic beliefs were not entirely nonexistent on the continent.

The emergence of demigods—mortals who had ascended to the rank of gods—led to a proliferation of cults and sects across the land. Despite their exalted status, these demigods could not compare to the Creator, as their power paled in comparison to the one who had forged the world.

However, the word "ambition" was a scary beast with no bounds.

The demigods and their followers began to harbor a dangerous idea.

‘What if we destroyed the order devoted to the Creator? Would that not allow our faiths to grow even stronger?’

Divine Power was believed to stem from the collective faith of mortals, so they reasoned that even the Creator would weaken once abandoned by worshippers.

Some could argue that they were a bunch of ingrates, but their grievances were not entirely unfounded. The Creator’s religious order had begun persecuting and discriminating against the demigods and their followers. This, in turn, caused resentment to grow, which eventually put blasphemous thoughts into action.

One day, united in purpose, the demigods and their followers launched an all-out assault against the Creator’s religious order.

This conflict, later named the Crusade of Freedom, ended with the total annihilation of the Creator’s religious order.

Backed by numerous nations, the demigods managed to obliterate the Creator’s religious orders in mere moments, leaving nothing but ash and destruction behind.

After the war, the Creator’s religious order faced not only destruction but absolute erasure from history. All records containing their mention were obliterated, and even uttering their names became a crime punishable by death.

Over time, the Creator, the Celestial Realm, and the Celestial Beings faded from the memories of people, causing their existence to be reduced to mere myths not even mentioned in legends.

In their place, the demigods fabricated a false creation myth. They rewrote history to suit their narrative, which nobody would ever doubt.

With no remaining opposition, the demigods expanded their dominion until, eventually, they ascended to true gods.

This gave rise to the polytheistic culture that the continent used until today. Ironically, this coexistence of faith turned out to be not born out of harmony but rather from the guilt of having betrayed the Creator.

However, not everyone believed this story.

Some religious leaders saw it as a fabrication made up by some blasphemer rather than the shameful truth hidden by their ancestors. Regardless, it was truly a deeply uncomfortable part of history, one most were unwilling to acknowledge.

“At the time, the Creator remained silent. The Celestial Realm, too, said nothing,” Saintess Janette explained. Then, she paused for a moment before continuing, “But that silence has ended today. The appearance of angels in our world makes it clear—this erased part of our history is no mere truth, but rather, the cold hard truth.”

Siegfried raised a brow and asked, “So, you’re saying that... the Creator exists, and so does the Celestial Realm and the Celestial Beings?”

“It would appear so, given the angels’ sudden appearance,” Saintess Janette replied with a nod.

“That’s... kind of a problem, no? I mean, no matter how long ago it was, the Creator must be furious,” Siegfried asked, his face laced with worry.

“Your Majesty is correct. Today’s incident was undoubtedly a warning. It was a clear message that the sins of our ancestors and the gods they worshipped will not go unpunished.”

Siegfried let out a nervous laugh and said, “Haha... So this is just the beginning?”

Saintess Janette scanned the room and replied in a somber voice, “This is only the beginning. In fact, I received a divine revelation not long ago.”

The room tensed after she said those words.

“A revelation?”

“You mean... from the heavens?”

“What did it say?”

The room buzzed with anxious voices as the religious leaders pressed for details.

Saintess Janette turned to them, and her eyes were steady as she recounted the message she had received from the Nameless God.

***

“My beloved daughter.”

“A star will fall from the heavens soon.”

“That star from the highest place in the heavens is pure and righteous.”

“The star will warn you.”

“Heaven’s wrath will fall upon this world.”

“The immoral will be punished by divine justice, and Heaven’s will achieve vengeance.”

“My beloved daughter.”

“Listen to the star.”

“That is the only way this world can be spared from Heaven’s wrath.”

“And look for the star.”

“You must find the star that will be the savior of this world.”

“The savior that will descend upon the world possesses a dragon’s heart, and this creature is extremely despicable and greedy.”

“This creature is very honest to their own worldly desires.”

“The savior acts aloof, but there lies seriousness within them.”

“But my beloved daughter.”

“You must find the savior at all costs.”

“Remember my words.”

“Only the individual from another world can save this world from Heaven's wrath.”

Upon hearing Saintess Janette recount the divine revelation, the religious leaders of the various religious orders were thrown into utter chaos.

“Good heavens!”

“Wrath from the heavens above?!”

“Ah... is the dark history of our past coming back to exact bloody vengeance?”

But that was not all.

“In truth, our order received a prophecy quite similar to what the Saintess has mentioned just now,” Archbishop Thermopylae added.

He went on to explain the revelation previously received by the Church of Martial God, giving support to Saintess Janette’s statement.

The atmosphere within the room grew even worse at his words.

“Our former Archbishop Agis, though recently retired, had been diligently interpreting and researching a prophecy of the same nature. It appears that it pertains to a Star and a Savior...” he added.

The leaders of the various religious orders were bewildered, as none of them expected such a revelation.

The prospect of angels delivering divine punishment terrified them. After all, there was no telling what form of punishment they came to deliver or whether the Creator intended to bring about the end of the world itself.

Naturally, their focus shifted to the Star and the Savior mentioned in the divine revelation.

“Who or what is the Star, then?”

“And how do we find the Savior?”

“Are they one and the same person?”

“Shouldn’t we focus on locating the Savior first?”

Finding the Star and the Savior was clearly the top priority.

“The Savior...” Saintess Janette paused for a moment and put on a resolute face, one that seemed to show that she had been waiting for this exact moment before announcing, “...has already been found.”

For a brief instant, the room fell silent. Then—

“Oh, thank the heavens!”

“What a relief! This is truly a blessing!”

“If the Savior has been found, does that mean we’re safe now? Who is it? Who is this blessed being that will save us from the angels’ wrath?”

The religious leaders once again grew rowdy, eager to know the Savior’s identity.

Meanwhile, Siegfried had his suspicions about the Star.

‘Could it be... Mikhail?’

His suspicion was plausible. Mikhail's descent from the heavens had triggered the start of one of Brave New World’s main scenarios, the Holy War.

The prophecy mentioned a Star, and it could very well be Mikhail.

Just then, Saintess Janette revealed the identity of the Savior.

“The Savior named in the prophecy is...” she said. Then, she scanned the room before declaring, “...is none other than His Majesty, King Siegfried van Proa, who is present among us here today.”

“Wait, what...?” Siegfried lost in his own thoughts, blurted out reflexively. Then, he tilted his head out of confusion for a while before the weight of her words finally struck him right in the head. “Wha—ME?!”

Siegfried jumped to his feet, utterly taken aback.

“No way!”

He vehemently denied it, his voice cracking with disbelief.

“Me? A savior? That’s ridiculous! I’m not extremely despicable or greedy!”

Siegfried turned to the religious leaders, and he desperately exclaimed, “There has to be some kind of a mistake! Seriously, do I look like a vile or greedy person to you? Huh? Do I?!”

“...”

None of the religious leaders responded.

They all knew the truth.

Siegfried was indeed the hero who had repelled the invasion of the demons that threatened the continent, but his infamy of being extremely despicable and greediness far exceeded his fame.

***

“Hey! Why won’t anyone answer me?!” Siegfried fumed as he lashed out at the silence of the religious leaders. Unfortunately, none of them voiced any objection to the divine revelation despite his vehement protests.

“And what’s this about the heart of a dragon?”

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Siegfried recalled that the divine revelation mentioned that...

“The savior that will descend upon the world possesses a dragon’s heart, and this creature is extremely despicable and greedy.”

“Fine! I’ll admit it! Let’s say I’m extremely despicable and greedy. I’ll even admit that I’m someone who descended from another world since I’m an Adventurer, but the heart of a dragon? That’s a load of—” Siegfried stopped mid-sentence.

He was struck by a sudden realization.

‘Hold on... Didn’t I consume a dragon’s heart?’ Siegfried recalled that he had absorbed the heart of Inkarthus, the First Black Dragon, back at the Arctic Pangea.

If Inkarthus’ heart counted as the heart of a dragon, then the Savior mentioned in the divine revelation was undeniably him.

“I have come to this conclusion after carefully analyzing the prophecy and corroborating it with various pieces of evidence. His Majesty, King Siegfried van Proa, is without a doubt the Savior,” Saintess Janette declared, pointing directly at him.

Then, she added, “As it happens, His Majesty was at the Continent Religious Council earlier today on personal business when this incident unfolded.”

“Indeed, His Majesty played an important role in aiding our holy warriors in repelling the angels during that battle. Personally, I believe it was fate that placed His Majesty at the center of these events,” Archbishop Thermopylae chimed in, reinforcing the saintess’ claims.

“Hold on, I was just there to establish a new—” Siegfried tried to refute their assumptions, but it was too late.

“Oh! Your Majesty!”

“Our Savior!”

“Not only have you saved the world from the invasion of the demons, but now you are going to deliver us from heaven's wrath?!”

Blinded by terror and convinced by the divine revelation, the religious leaders had already convinced themselves that Siegfried was indeed the Savior prophesied.

“Your Majesty!”

“We are counting on you!”

Before Siegfried could even resist, the religious leaders dragged him to the center of the emergency meeting room by force and plopped him on the main seat.

“Wait, what?! H-Hey! What’s going on?!”

Like a floating buoy swept up in a storm, Siegfried found himself seated at the head of the table.

And just like that, it was unanimously accepted that Siegfried was the Savior mentioned in the divine revelation.

He had, unwittingly, been crowned as the hero destined to save the world from destruction.