Debuff Master

Chapter 1214

“Whaaat?!”

Siegfried nearly jumped at those words.

Another person with the imperial bloodline was still alive?

That couldn’t be possible!

When Emperor Stuttgart ascended the throne, he butchered every last member of the Posteriore bloodline.

His own brothers, sisters, cousins, and even maternal relatives—all were slaughtered without mercy.

All except Princess Irene and her mother. Yet someone had actually survived the purge? This was absolutely shocking.

“Who is it? Is it another bastard of the late emperor? Or a distant relative of Emperor Stuttgart?”

Ninetail shook her head and replied, “No, that is not the case. It says here that the late emperor and empress had a youngest son.”

“What? If he were the empress’ son, then wouldn’t that make him the real deal in terms of legitimacy?”

“Exactly. His bloodline is far nobler than Stuttgart’s.”

While Stuttgart had ascended the throne and became the emperor of the Marchioni Empire, he wasn’t a legitimate heir.

His mother was not the empress nor even a concubine. He was just the child of some woman in a rural province fortunate enough to catch the emperor’s eye. In terms of succession, he was dead last among every single one of the Posteriore bloodline.

However, the empress’ youngest son was a different story. His claim to the throne would outrank everyone else, and with almost all of the imperial bloodline wiped out, he would be the sole uncontested heir to the throne.

He was someone Emperor Stuttgart could never hope to match in terms of legitimacy.

“At the time, the late emperor foresaw the princes’ rebellion and feared for the unborn child’s life, so he kept the empress’ pregnancy a secret.”

“So he was fine with his children killing each other, but he couldn’t bear the thought of his newborn getting slaughtered?” Siegfried grumbled with a grimace.

“Yes, I believe it is something like that,” Ninetail nodded and replied. Then, she continued, “And once it was clear that Stuttgart was about to succeed in his rebellion, the emperor had even more reason to hide the empress’ pregnancy. After all, Stuttgart’s sword was already at the late emperor’s neck at that point.”

“Tsk…”

“So they hid the child’s existence. And smuggled him out of the palace the moment he was born.”

“And what happened after that?”

“He had to be hidden completely. Otherwise, he would have been executed the moment he was discovered. He grew up not even knowing who he really was, and Lord Beggarius secretly protected and supported him all those years.”

“But now that Elder Beggarius is gone, there’s no one left to protect him, no?”

“Precisely.”

“Can’t we just leave him be? From his point of view, he would probably want to just live his current life rather than get caught up in some political whirlwind. We can just keep supporting him quietly, just like Elder Beggarius did, no?”

“Well, that would be the best. But that is no longer possible anymore.”

“Huh? Why?”

“I believe the Marchioni Empire’s intelligence bureau has already caught wind of his existence. That is the reason I have asked you about the will, sire.”

“Damn it…”

“And the empire’s intelligence bureau is relentless. Once they catch the scent of something, they will not stop until they have found it. And once they have a target, they want a corpse to show for it. It is only a matter of time before he is exposed.”

“Tsk…”

“That boy is as good as dead already. Ah, boy is probably not the right word to call him. Twenty-one years have passed since then, so he will be a young man now.”

“So what are you saying? Are you saying that we should go rescue him?”

“Yes.”

“But do we really need to? I mean, sure, I do feel bad for the guy. But it’s quite risky for us to stick our necks out too, you know?”

“That is true. But keeping him alive could prove invaluable.”

“Invaluable? How will someone like him be of value to us?”

“Our empire has no other choice but to go to war with the Marchioni Empire.”

“Right. And? What does that have to do with him?”

“We need to weaken the empire before the war. We have to divide them; we have to fracture them.”

“I agree. They’re too big for us to take head-on.”

“But don’t you think rebellions will erupt across the empire once the imperial household starts to show cracks?”

“Ah!”

Siegfried’s eyes lit up the moment he grasped what she was trying to say. Revealing that the true heir to the throne was still alive would have enormous strategic value.

Why?

It was all because that individual would have the right to lay claim to the throne. He would have full justification to it.

“Exactly. He is a weapon we can use to challenge Stuttgart’s legitimacy itself.”

“So, what you’re telling me is that we have to keep him under our protection even if it’s for that reason alone?”

“Yes. Precisely.”

“Hmm… What’s the right call here…” Siegfried muttered, mulling over the matter.

However, his hesitation did not last long.

“Fine. Let’s save the poor guy first and figure it out later.”

“Here, this is where you will find him,” Ninetail handed him a partially decoded excerpt from the Beggar King’s Last Will.

“Got it.”

With that, Siegfried set out on a new journey, one in search of the last surviving son of the late emperor and late empress of the Marchioni Empire.

***

The name of the last surviving true heir to the Marchioni Empire’s throne was Caiphos von Posteriore.

He was currently living in the Novan Kingdom, a small kingdom located in the southern region of the continent.

The Novan Kingdom was located so far south that it was more like a rural territory rather than a kingdom.

Caiphos lived as a poor herbalist, wandering the hills and forests to gather wild plants and mushrooms.

He made a living out of selling the medicinal plants he had foraged in the kingdom’s marketplace, and he could barely makle ends meet with it.

When there were no medicinal plants to be foraged, he would chop firewood and sell that instead.

‘I guess he’s dirt-poor,’ Siegfried thought.

He set out immediately for the Novan Kingdom to find Caiphos.

However, this was not a mission he could take lightly.

Why?

It was all because the Marchioni Empire’s intelligence bureau was constantly tracking Siegfried’s movements whenever he ventured outside the Proatine Empire.

The empire had been tracking his movements ever since the days of the Proatine Kingdom, but Siegfried did not really mind that at all, as he had a good relationship with the empire at that time and had nothing to hide.

Unfortunately, their relationship had soured in recent times, as the Marchioni Empire was plotting to annihilate him.

Thus, he couldn’t afford to make a single mistake this time, as he could be branded a traitor and be charged with treason against Emperor Stuttgart.

Siegfried took off his gear, put on the Metamorphosis Mask, and changed his appearance.

By the time he crossed the border, he was nothing more than one of the thousands of Adventurers traveling around the continent.

Upon reaching the Mopo Territory, where Caiphos apparently lived, Siegfried immediately set out in search of him.

Just then, he noticed something amiss.

‘Hm? What’s this? Where is everyone?’

There was something strange about the place.

Even though the Mopo Territory was a provincial territory, the fact that there was not even a single person on the streets was highly bizarre.

Siegfried took a closer look and noticed that the scenery was faintly warped, too.

‘Don’t tell me…’

A thought suddenly hit him, followed by the sound of a familiar notification alert.

Ding!

[Illusion Village: Javiern]

“Ah, damn it…” Siegfried grumbled under his breath after realizing what was happening.

The notification showed that he was currently in a place called the Illusion Village, meaning that the Mopo Territory had fused with an Ancient Dungeon.

Hamchi peeked out from his pocket and asked, “Kyuuu? What’s going on, owner punk?”

“I came to find this Caiphos von Posteriore guy. And of all places, he’s stuck inside a dungeon,” Siegfried replied. Then, he grumbled, “Can you believe my damn luck?”

“Kyuuu?”

“I mean, how the hell am I supposed to track down a herbalist here? Damn it… A normal person wouldn’t even last a minute here! One hit and he’s done for.”

“Kyuuu! Then let’s hurry up and get searching! Also, we can clear this dungeon while we’re here! Kill two birds with one stone! Find the boy and grow stronger!”

“Sigh… I guess I have no other choice…” Siegfried let out a sigh and muttered.

With that, he took in a deep breath before walking forward.

He decided to take Hamchi’s advice and think that he was here to level up while searching for the last remaining true heir to the Marchioni throne, Caiphos von Posteriore.

***

While searching for Caiphos…

“Man… the poor kid’s life is a mess. He was born at the pinnacle of royalty. Forget about a silver spoon, the kid had a diamond spoon.”

“Kyuuu! Exactly!”

“But instead of a crown, he nearly got murdered in his crib. Now, he’s living his life not even knowing who he really is. My god… Power is really a terrifying thing…”

“Kyuuu! He was born with a secret! A hidden past!”

“Born with a secret? A hidden past?”

“Kyuuu! Yes! He was just a humble herbalist, but in truth, he was the imperial prince! What a plot twist!”

“Are you into shows with shitty plots?”

“Kyuuu! You know nothing, owner punk! It’s the hottest thing in the capital! The theaters are packed every week!”

“…”

“Have you seen The Palace Rooftop? Nobles scheming against each other, affairs, divorces, remarriage, and pure chaos! Kyuu! It’s just glorious! A true work of art!”

“No thanks. I’m not into that crap.”

Siegfried and Hamchi continued chatting as they walked, only to slam face-first into something invisible.

Thunk!

“Ack! What the hell?!” Siegfried shrieked.

Rubbing his forehead, he staggered and observed his surroundings.

“Kyuuu! What’s wrong with you all of a sudden, owner punk?!”

“I… am not sure. Did something hit me? But I didn’t notice anything…”

He scanned his surroundings and did not find any enemies or traps. In fact, he heightened his senses and did not even notice any killing intent being directed at him.

‘What was that?’

Siegfried wondered but decided to ignore it and continued walking.

Thunk!

But it was the same this time.

Siegfried’s face smacked into something, causing his head to snap backward.

“W-What the heck?!”

“Kyuuu! Your nose is bleeding, owner punk!” Hamchi shrieked, pointing at his nose.

“W-What the hell is this?! What sorcery is this?!” Siegfried raged, shaking his fist at empty air.

Then, he threw a punch at the air, suspecting that there was an invisible barrier blocking his path.

And then—

Zwooon…!

The space in front of him warped, and a massive tree revealed itself.

“Huh? Why is there a tree here?” Siegfried muttered, tilting his head in confusion.

It turned out that a tree was blocking his path rather than an invisible wall.

“Kyuuu! Look at that, owner punk!” Hamchi exclaimed, pointing around them.

“Huh?”

Siegfried looked around and was startled to see the surrounding scenery twist, blending together like paint.

“Kyuuu! The entire scenery here is all tangled up! What you see and the actual space aren’t the same thing!”

“Oh? Really?”

“Kyuuu! Look at this!”

Hamchi tapped on a wall as if to demonstrate.

Swoosh! Swoosh!

His tiny paw slipped straight through the wall, as if it was not even there.

What looked like a wall was nothing but empty space.

“Whoa… You don’t even need monsters in a dungeon like this…” Siegfried muttered, his eyes wide open.

“Kyu?”

“You can just leave people wandering here long enough, and they will just kill themselves.”

“Kyuuu! That’s possible!”

“Damn… This is gonna be a pain in the ass,” Siegfried muttered and activated Inzaghi’s Clairvoyance.

Then, he brought up the search function and typed in Caiphos von Posteriore.

Ding!

[Alert: Searching…]

[Alert: Search complete!]

[Alert: Caiphos von Posteriore has been located!]

A green arrow popped up in front of him, pointing the way.

“Let’s follow the arrow, Hamchi.”

“Kyuuu! Roger that!”

Inzaghi’s Clairvoyance was an item capable of finding the path even in places where space and time were distorted.

It even helped Siegfried navigate through a realm where the past, present, and future overlapped. Thus, there was no doubt that Inzaghi’s Clairvoyance could help him navigate through this dungeon.

Unfortunately, following the green arrow was not as easy as it seemed.

“Aaack!”

“Kyuuuuu!”

Siegfried and Hamchi were walking in its direction when the ground gave way beneath them.

Thud!

With a crash, they tumbled down several meters.

The terrain was so different from what it appeared to be that simply following the green arrow was a struggle.

“Ugh… I hit my tailbone…” Siegfried winced in pain, rubbing his backside.

Swoosh!

Just then, a blue blade suddenly came flying toward his face.

It was an ambush.

An enemy had finally appeared in this seemingly empty dungeon.