Debuff Master

Two days ago...

“I have something I want to ask you, Sir Bleigh,” Siegfried said.

“What is it?” Bleigh asked in response.

“Do we have a Recluse Elixir in the territory by any chance?” Siegfried asked.

“A Recluse Elixir? Hmm… I’m not sure, but why do you need it?” Bleigh responded.

“The Albino Goblins are fearsome because of their lightning,” Siegfried replied.

“…!”

“Killing the Albino Goblins won’t be that difficult as long as we have a few bottles of Recluse Elixirs,” Siegfried added.

“T-That’s right! There was that! Haha! Why did I not think of that? We can easily get rid of those Albino Goblins as long as we have that!” Bleigh exclaimed.

“Will you be able to procure a few bottles?” Siegfried asked.

“I’m not sure, but I will try my best to get some. We should have a few bottles in the castle storehouse,” Bleigh replied.

“I request your assistance on the matter, then,” Siegfried said with a bow.

“Alright, I will do whatever I can to prepare them.” Bleigh nodded.

Fortunately, Bleigh managed to find a few bottles of Recluse Elixirs tucked away in the castle storehouse that had been collecting dust for a long period of time, and they became the main critical factor in how Bleigh and the elite forces were able to last longer than five minutes against the Albino Goblins.

However, they only managed to last more or less five minutes against the Albino Goblins because of the level difference between them. Fortunately, this wasn’t applicable to Siegfried, who was now Level 30.

Siegfried could completely resist the Albino Goblin’s lightning thanks to his overpowered stats as the Debuff Master coupled with the bottle of Recluse Elixir he had taken before the fight started.

‘The Albino Goblins can’t do anything against me now. I just have to take care of them one by one while being wary of Gorgo,’?Siegfried thought.

He was planning to avoid confronting Gorgo as long as possible while focusing on dealing with the Albino Goblins first.

***

Things proceeded according to Siegfried’s plans.

Flash!

A bolt of lightning struck Siegfried once again.

[Siegfried]

[HP: ??????????]

However, the result remained the same as his HP did not even go below 90%, and he didn’t get stunned or electrocuted by it as well. The Albino Goblins were no longer a threat to him because his innate resistance coupled with his doping rendered their lightning useless.

Siegfried, armed with his overpowered stats and resistance, killed the Albino Goblins one by one with his steel rod.

Pak! Pukeok! Pak!

He smashed the goblins’ heads and knocked them to the ground.

[You have successfully hunted an Albino Goblin!]

[Experience Points +1,200]

One goblin.

[You have successfully hunted an Albino Goblin!]

[Experience Points +1,200]

Two goblins.

[You have successfully hunted an Albino Goblin!]

[Experience Points +1,200]

And three goblins…

“Kyaaaahk!?This bastard dares! You insolent human!” Gorgo shrieked with fury.

It seemed that the Goblin Lord was trying to intimidate Siegfried in an attempt to intimidate and distract him from the fight, but it was not that effective since the Albino Goblins weren’t a match for Siegfried in the first place.

[You have successfully hunted an Albino Goblin!]

[Experience Points +1,200]

Then, the final Albino Goblin fell at the hands of Siegfried.

“Y-You dare…! You dare kill my subordinates…! You insolent! Kyaaahk!”?Gorgo shrieked in an enraged voice.

This was the second time that the annoying human had made a fool out of the Goblin Lord, which would eventually become the King of the Goblin Kingdom.

The Goblin Lord had never imagined it would lose its eye and its subordinates to the same human.

Grrr… Fwwaaaaa!

Flames blazed on Gorgo’s skin, and sparks started jumping along with the flames.

Bzzt…! Bzzt…!

The Goblin Lord Gorgo was a monster with both lightning and fire attributes—it was a dual-attribute monster.

“I will kill you! I swear I will kill you! Kiiiik!?You dare show such insolence toward me?!” Gorgo shrieked as its temper made its body flare.

Tak!

While the Goblin Lord was shrieking in anger, Siegfried charged at it.

Words were unnecessary!

Siegfried responded to the Goblin Lord’s threats with actions rather than words.

***

The fight between Siegfried and Gorgo was an intense one that captivated every single creature on the territory, and it was not an exaggeration to call it the main event of the war. It was safe to say that it was the main event of the war since this was the fight that would decide the fate of the entire Biermann Territory.

The Biermann Territory soldiers were currently exhausted from their fight against the goblin soldiers, and all of the soldiers along with the citizens would certainly be massacred by the goblins if Siegfried were to lose the fight against the Goblin Lord.

Perhaps that was the reason the Biermann Territory residents, regardless of their age and gender, were anxiously watching the fight between the Goblin Lord and Siegfried from a safe distance.

“Go, Siegfried!”

“The fate of our territory lies in your hands! You have to win!”

“Hang in there Siegfried-oppa!”

“Please kill those evil goblins!”

The Biermann Territory residents cheered and watched as they anxiously hoped for their savior to dominate the evil goblin; however, that moment did not arrive.

“Kyahk!”?Gorgo shrieked while swinging its scythe.

Whenever the Goblin Lord swung its scythe, small wounds would appear on Siegfried’s body.

The Goblin Lord was simply too powerful. Facing it was a completely different task compared to when he fought against multiple Albino Goblins at the same time.

Fwaaa…! Fwaaa…!

On top of that, the pillar of flames summoned by Gorgo limited his mobility, and the flames also gnawed away at his HP. It was inevitable since he did not have any fire resistant elixirs.

Puuuuk!

Gorgo stabbed its scythe into Siegfried’s shoulder.

“N-No!”

“Siegfried!”

“Watch out!”

The Biermann Territory residents screamed in horror when they saw how their savior got caught by the evil goblin.

“Kuheok!”?Siegfried winced.

“Does it hurt? Yeah? Say it hurts! Tell me it hurts! Kihihi!?Kihihihit!”?Gorgo shrieked while laughing with a hideous smile on its face.

Puuk… Sukeok…

The Goblin Lord dug its scythe deeper into Siegfried’s shoulder and twisted it to inflict as much pain and suffering as it could on the insolent human.

“Keuuuugh…!”?Siegfried groaned in pain.

“It hurts, right? Yeah? Kihihit!?Let me give you more of that! More!” Gorgo shrieked before it pulled its scythe out and unleashed a barrage of attacks against Siegfried.

However, Siegfried did not stand by and let the Goblin Lord do as it pleased.

Pukeok!

He slammed his knee into the Goblin Lord’s abdomen.

Pak!

Then, he immediately continued with Smite before smashing his steel rod into the Goblin Lord’s face.

“Kyahk!” Gorgo shrieked as it was flung back by the impact.

[Gorgo]

[Level: 50]

[HP: ??????????]

However, Siegfried’s attack failed to reduce the Goblin Lord’s HP by even 5%, and this was all because of the level gap. The massive 20-level gap had rendered Siegfried’s combo of Smite, Circle of Mortality, and Circle of Weakness useless.

“Kyak?”?Gorgo got up and tilted its head in confusion, and then it said with a hideous smile on its face, “Keke!?I admit that you are nimble! Kihit! However, your attacks are useless against me! Kihihi!?Kihihihit!”

Then, the Goblin Lord arrogantly spread its arms wide open.

“Ah… I can’t deal even a single scratch… Is it because of the level difference…?” Siegfried muttered to himself.

“Kihit!?What are you mumbling about?” Gorgo asked with a smug smirk.

“Then, I just have to activate it,” Siegfried muttered.

“Kyahk??What are you mumbling about?! You dare ignore me…!” Gorgo shrieked in anger.

Fwoooosh…!

At that moment, a blue aura and red aura rose from Siegfried’s body and enveloped him, but it didn’t end there…

Wooong!

Another debuff circle appeared beneath Siegfried’s feet; the glow and the circle were Speed Restraint and Contempt for the Strong.

Siegfried activated the Level 30 skills of the Debuff Master at once!

***

A message popped up in front of Siegfried.

[You have activated ‘Contempt for the Strong’!]

[Skill Duration: 59 seconds]

[Cooldown: 300 seconds]

‘Now, it’s a battle of speed,’?he thought as he immediately realized what he had to do while Contempt for the Strong was active.

The skill explosively increased his strength for a short period of time, but it had a long cooldown of five minutes after the effect ended. This was what most players referred to as the ‘sage time.’

‘Time to get moving. I don’t have much time. I need to end this within a minute,’?Siegfried thought.

A minute…

The outcome of this fight—which would also decide the fate of the Biermann Territory would be decided in a minute.

***

Pak!

Siegfried smashed Gorgo’s head with Smite, but the effect was different this time around.

[Gorgo]

[Level: 50]

[HP: ??????????]

The Goblin Lord’s HP was reduced by 10% with a single Smite.

“Kyaahk!”?Gorgo shrieked in agony.

Then, it seemed to have noticed that there was something wrong with its body because it revealed an astonished look.

“Kihit? Kii??My body is heavy all of a sudden…!” Gorgo shrieked in surprise.

The Goblin Lord could not move its body as it did a while ago. It felt like both of its legs were shackled, and even the arms holding its scythe felt as heavy as lead. In fact, the Goblin Lord could not even speedily command the pillar of flames anymore, which was what it had been using to limit Siegfried’s mobility.

The Goblin Lord was caught right in the middle of Speed Restraint, and it would pay a heavy price for falling victim to the Debuff Master’s Level 30 skill.

Pak!

Siegfried smashed the Goblin Lord’s head with his steel rod.

Pak! Pak! Pukeok! Pak!

He smashed the Goblin Lord over and over again, and he showed not even an ounce of mercy while swinging his steel rod.

“Kuak!?Kuaa…!?Kuaaaaak!”?Gorgo shrieked in agony.

‘T-This human…! Why did he suddenly become so strong?!’?the Goblin Lord thought, astonished.

The power behind every single blow from the human felt different from before, and it even felt as if the human was getting stronger and stronger after each and every blow.

‘Is this even possible?! Kuak!’?Gorgo exclaimed inwardly. It felt like going insane from the pain.

However, that was none of Siegfried’s business as he continued to diligently and consistently smash his steel rod into the Goblin Lord’s head.

Pak! Pak! Pukeok!

[Gorgo]

[Level: 50]

[HP: ??????????]

Siegfried reduced Gorgo’s health to 30% thanks to his Level 30 skills.

However, the Goblin Lord didn’t just stand to take the beating. It finally decided to retaliate.

It started with a roar instead of a shriek.

“Kiee…?Krruuwaaaaah!”

Then, its golden body started to burn hot red.

“Kyaaaak!”?Gorgo screamed and swung its scythe.

Swoooosh!

The Goblin Lord’s scythe cut across Siegfried’s chest, which caused blood to flow down Siegfried’s chest.

Rampage.

Gorgo possessed a trait that would make it lose all reason and go on a rampage when its HP was reduced to 30%. While on a rampage, all of its stats were massively amplified.

‘Damn it! I never expected it to go on a rampage!’?Siegfried inwardly cursed.

A rampaging monster was a very annoying enemy to deal with since going on a rampage basically meant the monster on the verge of being successfully hunted would suddenly lose its temper and its stats would be amplified.

Sukeok! Puk! Puk!

Gorgo continuously stabbed and slashed Siegfried.

It seemed that even the Speed Restraint debuff wasn’t working that much against the rampaging Goblin Lord.

[Siegfried]

[HP: ??????????]

Siegfried’s HP was depleted in an instant.

‘Eh? This is getting dangerous,’?he thought as he grimaced.

[Contempt for the Strong is currently active!]

[Skill Duration: 10 seconds]

[Cooldown: 300 seconds]

[9… 8… 7… 6…]

[5… 4… 3…] 𝓫ℯ𝓭𝓃𝓸𝓋ℯ𝓁．𝓬𝓸𝓂

Even worse, the main buff Siegfried was counting on to stand toe to toe against the Goblin Lord was about to go on cooldown, and the conclusion of the fight would be obvious once Siegfried lost his buff while the boss monster was on a rampage.

While Siegfried was looking at the messages, Gorgo swung its scythe in an arc toward Siegfried’s waist. The latter immediately saw that it would be difficult for him to avoid it.

“Nooooo!”

“Aaack!”

“Kyaaaah!”

The onlookers cheering for Siegfried screamed in horror when they saw the Goblin Lord’s scythe carving its way toward Siegfried.

Puuuuuuk!

Gorgo’s scythe dug deep into Siegfried’s side.

“S—Siegfried!” Bleigh screamed in despair.

Pukeok!

However, Siegfried managed to smash his steel rod into the Goblin Lord’s head the moment the latter’s scythe dug into his waist.

It was a cross-counter.

1. Sage time is a term used to explain the low after a high, and this term is also used as the Korean version of ‘post-nut clarity’. You learn something new every day!