Debuff Master-Chapter 817

As soon as Siegfried acquired the Brainwashing Tortoise Rope, an unexpected notification popped up in front of him.

He had learned a new skill.

However, this was not a skill from his class, the Debuff Master’s skill tree.

[Ultimate Binding Technique: Tortoise Bind]

[A binding technique inspired by the shell of a tortoise.]

[The name originates from the rope’s pattern resembling a tortoise shell when binding an opponent.]

[Rest assured, no further symbolic meaning is intended.]

[Cooldown: None]

[Skill Level: None]

[Effects: 100% chance to bind and hypnotize sea creatures]

“Huh?”

Siegfried realized that the Brainwashing Tortoise Rope and the newly acquired skill, the Ultimate Binding Technique: Tortoise Bind were a set.

“This skill seems great but... Why does this feel strangely familiar?”

Siegfried felt a vague sense of unease from how familiar the skill felt, but he decided to test it out anyway. He twirled the Brainwashing Tortoise Rope above his head a few times before throwing it at Brutus.

Whoosh!

The rope shot out like a snake, slithering unnaturally through the air before coiling tightly around Brutus. To Siegfried’s surprise, the rope coiled and bound the creature tightly, even though he hadn't applied any extra force to it.

And then...

“Argh! M-My eyes!”

“Kyuuuu! Give me my sight back!”

Both Siegfried and Hamchi immediately shielded their eyes in disgust, groaning in unison.

The sight before them was nothing short of... mortifying. The terrifying sea beast, Brutus, was now tied up in a position so awkward and humiliating that it was impossible to look at without grimacing.

The ropes contorted the poor crocodile’s body into a bizarre pose, leaving its belly fully exposed and its limbs tangled in a way that made it look very... vulnerable.

‘What kind of lunatic invented this binding technique?!’ Siegfried was mortified.

He tried to understand Pirate King Freydlief’s reason for creating such a binding technique, but he could not understand it no matter how much he tried.

Was this some kind of practical joke? Had he really thought that this pose was necessary just to subdue his opponents?

The absurdity of it all left Siegfried dumbfounded.

But what made it worse was the fact that the skill worked flawlessly...

[Alert: You have successfully bound Brutus!]

[Alert: You have established mental control over Brutus!]

[Alert: The Pirate King’s affinity with sea creatures has come into effect!]

[Alert: Congratulations! You have successfully tamed Brutus!]

[Alert: Brutus will obey your every command as a loyal pet from now on!]

Siegfried successfully tamed Brutus, the sea beast that had been terrorizing the northern coast of the Green Isles for decades.

“Kyuuu! You’re amazing, owner punk!” Hamchi cheered.

However, Siegfried did not share the enthusiasm. Instead, he rubbed his temples and tried to process what just happened.

“All right, you,” he turned to Brutus, who was floating in place, still bound in humiliating fashion.

“Grrk?”

“Listen carefully. No more causing trouble, got it?”

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“G-Grrk!”

Siegfried narrowed his eyes and said, “And if I hear even a whisper of you acting up again... Well, let’s just say I’ll turn that scaly hide of yours into a nice leather bag. Got it?”

“...!”

The threat sent shivers down the massive creature’s spine, causing it to frantically nod in a gesture of absolute submission.

Fighting Siegfried was out of the question, and disobedience was not an option either.

“Good. Let’s go, Hamchi.”

“Kyuuu! Let’s go!”

With a flick of his wrist, Siegfried released Brutus from its restraints. Then, without wasting another second, he activated Seeker of Faith and opened a portal to his next destination.

When the portal opened, Siegfried muttered to himself, “Time to meet the next complainant...”

And with that, he stepped into the portal with Hamchi bouncing alongside him.

***

“That guy is...”

Just as Metatron was about to utter words of revelation, the air around them suddenly erupted with blinding crimson flames.

Fwaaaah!

The inferno surged, transforming the surroundings into a blazing sea of fire.

“Argh!”

“Ack!”

Metatron was forced to stop mid-sentence and leap away from the roaring flames. His trusty aide, Chaos, followed closely behind him, focused only on escaping the fiery blaze.

The old man’s identity was not important right now, as they had to fully focus on escaping from the flames.

Meanwhile, Shakiro, who had been attacking the old man with his aura weapons, noticed something unsettling.

‘Hmm? My attacks aren’t hitting him at all?’

His heart sank after realizing that his aura weapons, which had flown toward the old man with deadly precision, didn't inflict even a little damage.

It was not that they did not deal any damage, but rather, they could not deal any damage. In fact, one of the blades pierced the center of the old man’s chest, but there was not even a scratch, much less blood.

However, it wasn't only this specific weapon. Every weapon Shakiro had used to attack the old man was utterly useless. It was as if the old man possessed extremely high resistance to physical damage—no, he most likely possessed immunity to physical damage at this point.

“You pitiful mortal,” the old man sneered, still releasing flames with one hand. Then, he grinned while still releasing flames with one hand and said, “You are powerless against us.”

“What?!” Shakiro exclaimed, his voice laced with frustration.

“How could mere creations—failures born of Father’s mistakes—possibly harm us?”

“...?”

“Return to dust, mortal.”

It was then.

Shwiiing!

Countless swords of radiant light materialized around the old man. There were hundreds—no, thousands of them, and they hovered menacingly before raining down like a vicious storm.

“...!”

Shakiro’s eyes widened in horror at the sight of the overwhelming storm, as the rain of swords resembled the secret technique he prided himself on, the Torrential Flower Rain.

However, these radiant weapons created from a completely different energy source easily tore through Shakiro’s aura weapons.

After making quick work of the Weapon Master’s aura weapons, the storm turned its wrath toward Shakiro and Mikhail.

‘We’re dead if that hits us directly!’

Shakiro instantly understood that it was impossible to withstand such power head-on, so he swiftly recalled all of his aura weapons and commanded them to cluster together in one place.

Clang! Clang!

The weapons crossed and overlapped until they formed a shield—a dense protective barrier of weapons.

Using his makeshift shield, Shakiro deflected the oncoming rain of light. Then, he lunged at Mikhail without wasting another moment.

“Let’s go!”

“W-Where are we going?!”

“I don’t know! Staying alive comes first! Giddy up!”

Shakiro spurred his steed forward while grabbing Mikhail and riding off at full speed.

“Damn it! What are you doing, Chaos?! Get on the horse, now!”

“Y-Yes, my lord!”

“Giddy up!”

Metatron did not waste another second and hoisted Chaos onto his horse before galloping after Shakiro in a desperate bid for survival.

***

Meanwhile, Siegfried was still diligently completing Hero Hotline quests by resolving the grievances of those who had prayed at his statue.

With every request addressed, he'd not only win over the hearts of those who requested his help, but he also transformed entire villages into his devoted followers.

Along the way, he accumulated Divine Power.

[Alert: You have completed the Quest – Hero Hotline!]

[Alert: Congratulations!]

[Alert: A class advancement quest has been triggered!]

Suddenly, a notification window popped up before Siegfried’s eyes after clearing the final Hero Hotline request.

‘A-A class advancement quest?!’

The message caught him completely off guard. He already had the class, the Debuff Master, so what kind of class advancement quest was this?

It did not take long for him to find out that this new quest was not an ordinary class advancement quest. Instead, this was an opportunity to acquire a secondary class and become a dual-class owner.

[Establish a Religious Order]

[Head to the Continent Religious Council and establish a new religion!]

[Type: Epic Chain Quest]

[Reward: Acquire a new class! (Dual-Class)]

[Note: This new class utilizes the mysterious power of Divine Energy as its primary source of strength and will further enhance your abilities.]

“Wha...? WHAT?!”

Siegfried’s jaw dropped as he realized the quest’s objective was to establish a new religion.

“A r-religion?! Me?!”

“Kyuuu! What’s wrong, owner punk?!” Hamchi asked, tilting his head.

“They’re asking me to start a religion!”

“Kyu?!”

“Does that even make sense?”

“Kyuu! Why wouldn’t it?!”

“Huh?”

“People believe in you! They rely on you! They even pray to you! So why can’t you start a religion? Kyuu!”

“Well, yeah, but... religions are supposed to be sacred and mysterious, aren’t they?”

“Kyuuu! You can be such a moron at times! Who says that’s how it works?! Religion is just religion! All it takes is belief and faith!”

“You think so?”

“Kyuuu! Even dogs and cows can start a religion on this continent!”

“Oh...”

Siegfried suddenly remembered the polytheistic culture of the Nurburg Continent.

On the continent, thousands of religious organizations coexisted peacefully, and each faith respected the other, which allowed them to live in harmony.

Starting a religion wasn't a problem in this place at all.

‘Right... So that’s why I gained Divine Power...’ Siegfried finally realized.

The people prayed before the statue carved in his likeness, and their collected faith ended up channeling their will directly to him in the form of divine energy.

‘Master once said that the strongest energy source in existence is the willpower of sentient creatures...’

Recalling Deus’ wisdom, Siegfried finally understood what he needed to do. Why was he granted Divine Power? If creating a religious organization meant becoming stronger, then what was he hesitating for?

If his debuff abilities could merge with the miraculous strength of Divine Power, then he'd become unstoppable.

“Let’s go, Hamchi.”

“Kyu?! Where to?!”

“To start a religion.”

With that declaration and having made up his mind, Siegfried turned toward the nearest warp gate.

***

The Continent Religious Council was an organization formed by the numerous established religious orders on the continent, and its primary purpose was to support and officially recognize the creation of new religious sects.

Of course, one could establish a religion without undergoing the Continent Religious Council’s verification process.

However, without their official endorsement, expanding a new religion’s reach would be exceedingly difficult.

Having the Continent Religious Council’s stamp of approval alone was enough to show that a new religion was not some cult but a legitimate religion. A minimum level of virtue and integrity was required for a religion to be recognized by the people, so this was one of the fastest ways that a new religion could gain such recognition.

After all, the people of the continent might have lived with polytheism for centuries, but no one was willing to join a cult.

Upon entering the headquarters of the Continent Religious Council, Siegfried was greeted by a receptionist at the front desk.

“Hello, how may I help you?”

“Um, well... I was thinking of, uh, starting a new religion...” Siegfried muttered, his voice trailing off. He was barely audible and was fidgeting awkwardly, and the reason was that he found it embarrassing to state his purpose so directly to someone else other than Hamchi.

“I see. Please start by filling out these application forms,” the receptionist replied, her tone professional yet casual. She was smiling gently as if it was not a big deal as she handed Siegfried a stack of forms.

“Ah, yes, of course,” he replied, taking the stack of forms.

Then, the receptionist squinted, giving him a curious look.

“Excuse me, but you look really familiar. Have we met before?” she asked.

“Huh?” he muttered and blinked in confusion.

“Perhaps are you...” she tilted her head as if piecing her memories together.

Siegfried scratched the back of his head awkwardly, trying to think what he should do in this situation.

Was he supposed to say, “Yes, I’m Siegfried van Proa,” or something along those lines?

Or was he supposed to feign ignorance and keep his identity hidden for now?

But before he could answer—

“Were you, by any chance, the gentleman I danced with briefly at the ballroom last weekend...?”

“Eh?”

“Oh, never mind then. Perhaps I mistook you for someone else.”

“Ah, no, that wasn’t me.”

As it turned out, the receptionist had indeed recognized him from somewhere but failed to remember where she had seen him before. In the end, she simply shrugged it off thinking that she mistook him for someone else.

“Ah, I apologize for that. You just seemed so familiar.”

“Haha... It is fine,” Siegfried replied with a chuckle, brushing off the misunderstanding.

Then, he picked up a pen and began filling out the form, starting with his name.

Just as he was about to ask the receptionist for clarification on a section of the form that didn't make sense to him—

BOOM!

A thunderous explosion rocked the building, causing parts of it to collapse.

And then...

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Dozens of angels with black wings descended from the sky, and their menacing forms imposed dominance over the place. Upon descending, they mercilessly and unhesitatingly slaughtered the knights guarding the Continent Religious Council.