Debuff Master

Chapter 393

Meanwhile, Michele was on the communication crystal with a diplomat from the McQueen Territory.

— What bullshit is this?!

The diplomat came out swinging from the start.

— Are you crazy?! A tiny kingdom like you dares to interfere in a territorial dispute of another kingdom?! I hope you’re not having funny ideas such as rescuing Salvatore and reclaiming Valencia. If so, I advise you now to drop those funny ideas and KNOW YOUR PLACE! How dare a weak kingdom like you try to meddle in the affairs of our—

“I apologize, but...” Michele said as he explained the situation.

He was forced to be on the receiving end of all sorts of curses and insults from the McQueen Territory diplomat.

‘I want to burn their territory to the ground...’ Michele thought of deploying the Proatine Military to the McQueen Territory.

“Dame Oscar, no, Free Knight Oscar is not affiliated with the Proatine Kingdom.”

— What?

“Free Knight Oscar has resigned from all posts in the Proatine Kingdom, so this incident is unrelated to our—“

— Ha! Do you expect me to believe that?

The diplomat scoffed in disbelief.

— So you’re trying to cut your losses?

“We are not trying to cut anything. This is simply the truth.”

Then, Michele brought Oscar’s resignation letter closer to the communication crystal.

“Free Knight Oscar one-sidedly left her resignation letter and ran away from our kingdom. In lieu of this, I can confidently say that she is no longer affiliated with our kingdom.”

— Ahem!

“We are greatly surprised by this incident too, but... There is nothing we can do about it. I sincerely apologize for that.”

— So you’re saying...

The diplomat flashed a sinister smirk.

— The Proatine Kingdom will not care if we capture that wench, Oscar, and behead her?

“Yes, of course.”

Michele was forced to respond that way for now.

The Proatine Kingdom was indeed strong, but it was not as strong as the Emporio Kingdom, which was one of the top ten powerhouses on the continent.

It would be a different story if only the McQueen Territory were taken into consideration as the Proatine Kingdom could sweep them away almost instantly, but the problem was the diplomatic repercussions doing so would bring.

The Emporio Kingdom would not mind their own lords bickering among themselves, but they were certainly going to retaliate if another nation tried to conquer one of their territories.

The Proatine Kingdom could not go to war for Oscar’s sake, so Michele was forced to agree and cut the kingdom’s losses.

—Really? Alright.

The diplomat flashed a spine-chilling smile.

—We are planning to behead her once we capture her, and her head will be salted and packaged nicely before being sent as a gift to your kingdom. What do you think?

“We will be grateful if you do us that favor.”

Michele did not bat an eye at the gruesome comment of the diplomat. In fact, he even smiled and expressed his gratitude to them.

“I guess we should prepare a gift for the lord to reciprocate his kindness.”

— Hmm...

“Then, we will await your good news.”

— S-Sure...

That was the end of the call.

“Phew...” Michele let out a sigh as soon as the call ended, and he looked at the ceiling and grumbled, “Not a single day is peaceful in this kingdom...”

He wanted nothing more than to go on a vacation right now...

***

Oscar was in a severely disadvantageous position.

She was definitely stronger than her opponents, but the McQueen Rangers were the elite of the elite that traversed these mountains and fought countless battles on them.

What did it mean if she stubbornly refused to use a real sword against them?

It was tantamount to committing suicide.

Slash

Oscar cut a ranger on his shoulder.

“Ack!”

The ranger screamed but was not incapacitated.

“Do you think you can beat me with that toy?!”

The ranger instantly got back up and lunged at her.

It was the same for the rest of the rangers.

Oscar couldn't incapacitate these hardened mountaineers with a dull sword and club. It would have been possible for her to incapacitate them if she went for their heads, but that was no different than her using a sharp sword, so she did not aim for their heads.

She refused to attack the rangers on their heads, and the consequences of her actions started piling up bit by bit.

Swoosh!

A bolt shot by one of the rangers dug itself into Oscar’s thigh.

“Oscar! Use a real sword! Both of us are going to die if you don’t use a real sword!” Salvatore desperately tried to convince her.

Unfortunately, his desperate pleas fell on deaf ears.

“Fuck! I said use a real sword!” Salvatore screamed at the top of his lungs.

However, Oscar continued to ignore him. Instead, she gritted her teeth and pulled out the bolt lodged in her thigh before hitting a ranger in the stomach.

“Kuheok!”

The ranger was flung back before crashing to the ground.

Then, the captain of the rangers stepped forward and said, “Do you have any idea what you’re doing right now, Knight of Proatine? Have you ever thought of the problems you will be causing for your lord? Your actions are going to result in severe diplomatic repercussions not only from our kingdom but also the empire.”

Oscar shook her head and replied, “I no longer have any ties whatsoever to the Proatine Kingdom. I am just a free knight now.”

“Hmm...”

“So, please treat me as a free knight and not as a Knight of Proatine.”

“Are you trying to say this is just a personal matter of yours?”

“Yes.”

“Is that why you’re using a dull sword and club while rescuing that tyrant?”

“...”

“You’re the same as ever, Oscar.”

“Do you... know me?”

“I’m your senior.”

It seemed that the ranger captain was an alumnus of the Macallan Kingdom Knight Academy, too.

“I’ve heard of you before. They said that you’re one of the finest knights our academy has produced.”

“I do not deserve such praise.”

“Unfortunately, I can’t let you go just because you’re my junior. However, I promise you that I’ll do my best to ask the lord to spare your life. So, please hand over Salvatore to us and—“

“I cannot do that,” Oscar replied as she readied her dull sword.

“My junior, Oscar. Your talents as a knight should not be wasted on that fool. Please value your life.”

“Thank you for your advice, senior, but this foolish junior has no intention of standing down.”

“You’re quite the frustrating one...”

“I am aware that you have no plans to let me go, so please come at me now.”

“...I guess I have no choice.”

The ranger captain could no longer suggest Oscar's surrender, as she had made it clear that she was not willing to do so.

The battle resumed, and the wounds on her body increased one by one.

‘Yeah... It’s better for me to...’ She could sense her impending doom as she started to feel heavier and heavier. This was the end of the line for her, and she no longer had the strength to continue this foolishness of hers.

Shwik!

A ranger’s shortsword dug into Oscar's torso.

‘Your Majesty...’ Siegfried's face popped up in her mind. ‘I, Oscar... will be leaving now... Please do not forgive my—‘

Swoosh!

A strange-looking hammer flew out of nowhere and bashed the head of the ranger in front of Oscar.

“Huh?”

The ranger tilted his head in confusion before his eyes rolled back, and he lost consciousness.

“...!”

The rangers instantly tensed up at the unexpected ambush.

“Who threw that?!” the ranger captain turned toward where the hammer came from and shouted.

Then, the bushes rustled before a man suddenly jumped out from it.

“I am a mountain bandit!” the mountain bandit exclaimed.

Unfortunately, that was a lie nobody was going to believe that there were bandits in the Casca Mountains...

***

“What bullshit—?”

“Is it a madman?”

“Where did that retard come from?”

The rangers grimaced after the man jumped out from the bushes and introduced himself as a mountain bandit.

Their reaction was understandable, as the Casca Mountains were so secluded that not even slash-and-burn farmers lived here. Not only was it teeming with monsters, but it was also a strategic location bordering the Proleta Kingdom.

This long mountain range was a disputed territory where the Emporio Kingdom and Proleta Kingdom often clashed.

However, there was actually a mountain bandit in these mountains?

BULLSHIT!

A mountain bandit needed customers to steal from, and these mountains were definitely not an ideal place for bandits to settle.

And what kind of moron was going to marauder in these mountains that were heavily guarded by the McQueen Ranger Squadron?

“Reveal your identity!”

“I told you, I’m a mountain bandit,” the man that threw the ugly hammer nonchalantly replied with a shrug. Well, it sort of made sense as the mountain bandit was wearing a tattered vest with leopard prints on it.

“Bullshit! There aren’t any mountain bandits in these mountains!”

“I opened shop today...” the mountain bandit muttered while awkwardly scratching the back of his head with his ugly hammer, and then he added, “Anyway... Why don’t you hand over your stuff?”

‘Your Majesty! Why is His Majesty here...?!’ Oscar instantly recognized the identity of the mountain bandit.

Siegfried winked and sent a signal to her. ‘Run, Dame Oscar!’

‘Your Majesty...’

‘See you later, okay?’

Siegfried, who had disguised himself as a mountain bandit with the Metamorphosis Mask, winked at Oscar before waving his ugly hammer back and forth.

The ugly hammer that looked like a squeaky toy hammer[1] was Horse Fly

Just like Oscar, Siegfried did not want to kill the innocent NPCs, so he transformed Horse Fly into a toy hammer.

“Y-You lovers can be on your way...” Siegfried stuttered before he stood between them and the rangers.

‘I’m going to fucking kill you if I see you again, you got that?’ He glared murderously at Salvatore.

Salvatore felt a chill travel down his spine as he froze like a rabbit in front of a predator. The mountain bandit’s eyes were exuding bloodlust, and a normal person would have suffered a heart attack from the former's gaze alone.

“You must be mad,” the ranger captain said before he gave the command, “Kill him!”

“Yes, sir!”

The rangers attacked together as soon as the command was given.

Squeak!

Siegfried bashed a ranger’s head with Horse Fly.

“Ack!”

The ranger let out a scream before losing consciousness.

This was the start of Siegfried’s Squeaky Toy Hammer Show.

Squeak! Squeak! Squeak!

He put on quite a show as a ranger would end up unconscious every time he swung his hammer.

“O-Oscar! Let’s go! Hurry!” Salvatore cried out.

“...” Oscar did not say anything as she stood rooted on her spot.

“Hurry up!”

Fortunately, Salvatore managed to drag her away and escape.

‘Your Majesty...’

A tear formed in her eyes.

‘I will... definitely repay this grace you have shown me, Your Majesty...’

Oscar swore loyalty to Siegfried once again as she ran away, leaving him behind.

***

Around seven hours later, Oscar and Salvatore safely managed to cross the McQueen Territory’s boundary and cross into the Proleta Kingdom.

“Let’s rest a bit.”

“Okay.”

Oscar and Salvatore sought refuge in a cave previously used by a wild animal, and they lit a campfire inside.

“Your wounds are deep.”

“I am fine.” contemporary romance

“Come here and let me have a look—“

“I can take care of it alone.”

Salvatore tried to help, but she coldly refused his goodwill.

Oscar took out potions and bandages as she tended to her wounds.

“I will say this one more time. Live the rest of your life in a rural village somewhere. Don’t you dare show up ever again. If you do, I will personally—“

Shwik!

Salvatore took out a dagger and stabbed Oscar in the stomach.

1. This is a toy hammer sold in Korea. I couldn’t find something similar in English. Video ref: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqPn9GAhaq0 ?

done.co