Debuff Master

Chapter 760

Chapter 760

Despite having uninvited guests joining them, Tae-Sung had a wonderful time with his family. Cheon Woo-Jin and the others treated Tae-Sung’s mother like their own, and they played with his younger sister, Tae-Hee, as if she were their younger sister.

They took photos together, enjoyed water sports, and even went for massages. Some of them even went as far as to act like his mother’s personal attendants.

‘These guys...’

At first, Tae-Sung wanted to scold Cheon Woo-Jin and kick him off the island with the others. However, instead of causing trouble like he feared, they entertained his mother with their antics while being mindful to be respectful.

Tae-Sung's heart softened upon seeing comrades take such good care of his mother.

He felt unexpectedly grateful toward his comrades—no, his friends. In truth, he had very few friends, and the group of people he met in the game were, in fact, his only friends.

Thus, he decided to make the most out of this situation and enjoyed his time with them.

On that same evening, they held a barbecue party by the beach.

“Please try this, Mother.”

“Oh, how thoughtful of you.”

Yong Seol-Hwa struck close to Tae-Sung’s mother like gum and hardly left her side.

“Come to think of it, you look very familiar... Aren’t you that girl?”

“Pardon me, Mother?”

“You’re the young lady who was in that news article with Tae-Sung, right...?”

“Oh! Yes, that was me!”

“Oh, my...”

“Yes, that was me, Mother! Hohoho!”

“So, are you and Tae-Sung...?”

Tae-Sung quickly got up after being alarmed by their conversation in hopes of putting a stop to it, but he was unfortunately blocked by someone before he could interrupt the two.

“Hey, Tae-Sung. Come with me to the restroom.”

“Now?”

“Yeah, come on. Just come with me.”

“Why the hell are we going to the restroom together...?”

“Just come!”

Cheon Woo-Jin dragged Tae-Sung away, preventing him from interrupting the conversation between Yong Seol-Hwa and his mother.

“Just let them be, man. Let her enjoy herself,” Cheon Woo-Jin said.

“What?” Tae-Sung muttered in response, sounding baffled.

“Hey, think about it,” Cheon Woo-Jin said while shaking his head. Then, he continued, “Don’t you think any mother would get worried upon knowing that her son got married to an NPC in a game?”

“Eh?”

“No matter how successful or famous you are, she’s bound to worry if you spend all your time playing the game without having a life outside of it.”

“Really?”

“You’re a pro gamer, fine, but you still need to have some kind of life in the real world, right?”

“Hmm...”

“So just let her hear what she wants to hear.”

“Should I do that...?”

“Think of it as doing your duties as a son.”

“...Fine.”

In the end, Tae-Sung was convinced by Cheon Woo-Jin, and he decided not to bother about what Yong Seol-Hwa and his mother were discussing.

For the next three nights and four days, Tae-Sung stayed at the resort surrounded by his family and friends. During this time, he set aside all thoughts of the game, thinking that sometimes it was good to relax and live his life in the real world for a change.

***

After his dreamlike vacation, Tae-Sung returned home, took a nap to recover from the trip, and then logged back into the game.

[Proatine Kingdom: Royal Palace]

Upon entering the game, a message popped up in front of his eyes, showing his current location.

“We have received an urgent report, Your Majesty.”

Michele rushed over as soon as he heard that Siegfried had returned.

“Hm? What’s the urgent report about?” Siegfried asked.

“A large-scale riot has broken out in Feiogh.”

“What?! What happened?” Siegfried exclaimed, stunned to hear about the riot. He had anticipated some resistance from the populace after the Zavala Kingdom fell, but he did not expect a full-blown riot.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

“Rumors have spread in Feiogh that our kingdom has been abducting people and using them for dark magic. This ignited a city-wide uprising, and the riot has grown so large that nearly all of Feiogh’s citizens have turned into rebels.”

“How does that make any sense?! Where did this rumor even start from?!”

Michele proceeded to fill Siegfried in regarding the mysterious disappearance involving the Proatine Kingdom’s troops.

“Even so...”

“Some things simply can’t be helped. Besides, with so many civilians out there, I know you couldn’t afford to use force against them for fear of causing unnecessary harm.”

“I am still lacking in many ways, sire.”

“Please, enough with that talk,” Siegfried said as he got up from the throne. Then, he walked over to her and said, “Let’s focus on resolving the situation instead, shall we?”

“As you command, sire.”

“To begin with...” Siegfried pondered for a while. Then, he said, “I’ll go meet with their leaders. Do you know their whereabouts?”

“We have gathered a list of names along with their locations. Ninetail is currently infiltrating their ranks and collecting information on them.”

“Amazing. Your planning is as impressive as ever, Oscar.”

Siegfried truly admired Oscar’s foresight. Despite the chaos, she managed to send Ninetail into the ranks of the rioters to gather information.

“Let’s go together,” he said.

“Sire?”

“I want to speak with their leaders personally, but I think it would be helpful if you went there with me. Let’s go.”

“As you command, sire.”

With that, Siegfried and Oscar set out to meet with the leaders of the rioters, hoping to negotiate peace with them and put an end to these riots.

***

Tracking down the leaders of the people was simple. Thanks to Ninetail infiltrating their group, there was no need for Siegfried to waste Inzaghi’s Clairvoyance.

Late at night, the leaders gathered in an old mansion to discuss their next moves, which was a series of operations they planned to gain independence from their oppressors.

Their main targets were none other than the key figures of the Proatine Kingdom, such as Oscar and Carrell. They were hoping that by assassinating the enemy’s high-ranking officials, they could prove that the Zavala Kingdom had not fallen yet.

However, assassinating someone as prominent as Oscar or Carrell proved to be a daunting task, so they decided to aim for the Proatine Kingdom’s colonels and other commanders first.

“Tomorrow, we will take down the commander of the second division. I ask that each of you stake your lives on this mission.”

The one who spoke was a man named Andre, one of the leaders. He was a nobleman and former count of the Zavala Kingdom, and he was known for his unwavering patriotism and love for his motherland.

“Understood.”

“We will do everything we can to ensure the success of this operation.”

Nodding in agreement, Andre’s comrades expressed their support and willingness to die for their cause.

“But... I believe there may be a spy in our midst,” Andre added, his face clouded with suspicion.

“A spy?”

“Why would you think so?”

“Are you saying there’s a rat among us?”

The other leaders looked at Andre with shock on their faces.

Andre grimaced and explained, “Think about it. How many of our operations have failed recently? Something’s not right... It feels like our plans keep leaking—”

It was then.

Knock! Knock!

A sudden knock on the door silenced the entire room.

“Who’s there?” one of the leaders approached the door and asked.

The voice of a young man replied from outside the door, “Hello! My name is Siegfried van Proa. May I come in?”

“Huh...?” the representative’s eyes widened in disbelief. Then, he asked, “Could you repeat that?”

“I said, I’m Siegfried van Proa. Do you mind opening the door for a moment?”

“Siegfried van Proa...?”

Those in the room exchanged stunned looks with each other. The name they just heard was the most hated man, the King of the Proatine Kingdom himself, Siegfried van Proa.

Not only was he the most hated, he was at the top of their list of targets to assassinate.

But how could he have come to this secret gathering? It made no sense at all.

It was then.

Creak...

The door quietly swung open, and a young man stepped in.

“...!”

The leaders gasped in horror upon seeing the young man claiming to be Siegfried van Proa. He was standing right there with a smile, and he was, without a doubt, the King of the Proatine Kingdom, Siegfried van Proa.

A giant hamster and the enemy’s Supreme Commander, Oscar, were even standing next to him.

“Good evening. I apologize for visiting unannounced,” Siegfried said with a grin. Then, he asked, “But perhaps, you could still offer me a cup of tea? You know, as a show of hospitality?”

“Yes, that’s right! Bring us some tea! Kyuuu!” Hamchi exclaimed.

Siegfried looked around the room with a smile.

“...”

Meanwhile, the leaders were at a complete loss; none of them could utter even a single word at the sudden turn of events.