Debuff Master-Chapter 827

The island was peculiar. There was not a white sandy beach in sight, as it resembled more like a massive boulder sticking out of the waters.

Entirely draped in lush vegetation with sheer cliffs encasing it, scaling the island seemed nearly impossible without proper climbing gear.

“Hmm...”

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As the Aqua Runner reached the edge of the island, Siegfried gazed up at the cliff.

“Hey, this isn’t even an island. It’s just a giant rock, isn’t it?” he grumbled.

The shape of the island gave no indication of hidden treasures or anything of that sort, causing Siegfried to furrow his brow and grimace.

“Kyuuu! But what if there’s something up there, owner punk?!”

“You’re right. I’ll go check it out, so just stay here and wait.”

“Kyuuu! Got it!”

With that, Siegfried spread out his +10 Black Crow Wingsuit and flew up. Once he landed, his initial impressions proved to be correct. There was nothing on the island aside from dense vegetation and an abundance of trees.

“What the hell...”

Just as Siegfried was about to feel frustrated, something peculiar happened.

Ding!

The title "Treasure Hunter" popped up above his head.

[Treasure Hunter]

[A title given to those who had obtained a lot of treasures]

[Type: Title]

[Rating: Unique]

[Effect: +50% Chance of finding treasure rooms.]

The fact that this title popped up meant that there was, without a doubt, valuable treasure somewhere on the island. Unfortunately, there was a problem. The title had triggered, but it did not reveal the treasure’s exact location.

“So something’s definitely here...”

Trusting his title, Siegfried activated Inzaghi’s Clairvoyance to scan the entire island.

But...

“What the hell? There’s nothing?”

He found nothing unusual, as there were no hidden objects, no secret pathways, and no secret rooms.

The island was just a plain island.

‘This doesn’t make any sense...’

For the Treasure Hunter title to pop up, there had to be something valuable nearby him. Otherwise, the title would not have appeared above his head in the first place.

Determined, Siegfried scoured the island more closely.

“Huh?”

It was not long before he stumbled upon a peculiar sight. There was a pile of rocks with a glowing green arrow hovering above it as if pointing directly at the center of the pile.

“What’s this supposed to mean? Am I supposed to dig here?”

Curious, Siegfried inspected the pile of rocks before transforming his +15 Vanquisher’s Grasp into a pickaxe. Then, he struck the largest rock with the pickaxe.

Thunk!

The blade sank a good thirty centimeters into the rock, and then...

KABOOM!

A massive explosion occurred.

“...!”

Siegfried was blasted dozens of meters into the air before slamming into the ground with such force that he couldn't even make any attempts for a graceful landing.

Swoosh!

In the aftermath of the explosion, a dazzling multi-colored light filled the air. Blue, black, white, and red merged into a kaleidoscope-like display that radiated an aura of mysticism.

“Ugh...” Siegfried groaned while forcing himself up. Then, he turned toward where the explosion had come from and saw a towering multicolored mushroom cloud.

“Kyuuu! What happened, owner punk?!” Hamchi came rushing over, helping Siegfried to his feet.

“Ughh... The rock exploded out of nowhere.”

“Kyuuu?”

“I swear I nearly died.”

Siegfried’s HP bar showed just how powerful the explosion was. He was left with only twenty percent of his HP.

Had the explosion been slightly more powerful, he wouldn't have survived.

“But what the hell was that?” he grumbled. He pulled out his Infinite Flask and drank from it, restoring his HP, before cautiously approaching the blast site just in case there was another explosion.

Sparkle! Sparkle! Sparkle!

He approached the blast site and found various gleaming stones, each radiating its own unique color, scattered across the ground.

“Kieeek! Kieeeek!”

The Three-Legged Crow appeared and swept up the stones before placing them back into Siegfried’s inventory.

[Alert: You have obtained Grade A Mana Stone: Darkness!]

[Alert: You have obtained Aquamarine!]

[Alert: You have obtained Chaos Stone!]

[Alert: You have obtained Grade E Mana Stone: Fire!]

[Alert: You have obtained Raw Diamond!]

(omitted...)

[Alert: You have obtained Flame Stone!]

It turned out that the stones littering the ground were not ordinary rocks. They were mystical materials imbued with various properties, and some of them were even rare magic stones that were highly valuable as crafting materials.

***

There were many different mines throughout the Nurburg Continent.

Typically, mines that yielded mystical minerals such as mana stones or elemental stones were known to produce only one type of such mineral.

For instance, a mana stone mine would only yield mana stones, while a flame stone mine would only produce flame stones.

However, certain rare mines were capable of producing two or more kinds of mystical minerals. This phenomenon would occur in areas where multiple energies had converged during the formation of the mine, resulting in the presence of various minerals.

These kinds of mines were referred to as Mines of Abundance.

The island Siegfried stumbled upon happened to be one such rare mine, but this was more of an anomaly rather than just another rare mine.

“Oh!” Siegfried exclaimed in sheer delight after realizing the true nature of the island.

A Mine of Abundance was a treasure trove at least five times more profitable than a typical mine of the same size. Its reserves were fast, and its diversity of highly valuable minerals practically turned the phrase "digging for wealth" into a reality.

“Kyuuu! We’re rich, owner punk! FILTHYYYY RICHH!” Hamchi cheered alongside him.

For Hamchi, Siegfried’s wealth was directly correlated to their prolonged companionship, so it was only natural for him to celebrate.

“All right!”

Siegfried rolled up his sleeves and transformed his +15 Vanquisher’s Grasp into a hoe.

“Let’s get digging!”

“Kyuuu?! Right now?!”

“There might be Praystones here, too,” Siegfried replied with a grin.

Given that a Mine of Abundance yielded a variety of mystical minerals, there could be Praystones within it as well.

“Kyuuu! Then Hamchi will help!”

With great determination, Hamchi pulled a tiny hoe out of his pocket and prepared to dig alongside Siegfried.

Together, they carefully removed chunks of shattered rock and began excavating the buried minerals. They couldn't afford to use pickaxes and recklessly swing around, no matter how tempting it was to work even faster.

A Mine of Abundance was a volatile mix of minerals with different elements and properties. One wrong move could trigger an explosion—or worse, an even bigger explosion than the one Siegfried suffered a while ago.

Thus, the careful excavation began.

[Alert: You have obtained Praystone!]

[Alert: Praystone collected (1/150)]

Finally, Siegfried succeeded in getting his hands on a Praystone. As expected, the Mine of Abundance had proven itself capable of yielding these rare and thought-to-be depleted minerals.

“Perfect! Just as I thought!” Siegfried smiled proudly.

The duo continued digging carefully in search of more Praystones.

[Alert: You have obtained Gravity Stone!]

[Alert: You have obtained Ruby Ore!]

The digging went on, and they managed to unearth even more valuable minerals.

[Alert: You have obtained Praystone!]

[Alert: Praystone collected (2/150)]

Bit by bit, Siegfried amassed various precious minerals, including the elusive Praystones.

***

Meanwhile, the Naval Alliance was in an uproar.

The situation had taken a dramatic turn ever since Captain Francis de Drake, the notorious Pirate Butcher, ascended to the throne as the Pirate King and unified the Green Isles.

The uproar began when an official document sent from the Green Isles bearing Francis de Drake’s name was delivered to the Naval Alliance.

In the letter, it was declared that the Green Isles would no longer be a den of pirates but would instead rise as a legitimate maritime kingdom.

It went on to pledge that there would be no further acts of piracy from any pirates affiliated with the Green Isles, and they had requested the Naval Alliance’s cooperation while they sought recognition as a lawful nation that would adhere to international laws.

This letter threw the Naval Alliance into chaos.

While it seemed like excellent news that the pirates from the Green Isles were renouncing their ways and promising to live legitimate lives, the issue was not so simple.

Yes, nobody would object to having over half of the continent’s pirates laying down their weapons, but the real problem was that their past crimes would not just vanish just because they had a change of heart.

Moreover, the fact that the pirates had consolidated their power under Francis de Drake as their new king was not something they were glad about.

If Francis de Drake decided to wield this newfound unity to build a formidable navy and embark on legitimate campaigns of conquest rather than looting and plundering. Then, the Naval Alliance and its member nations would find themselves in an uneasy and vulnerable position.

As a result, the leadership of the Naval Alliance fell into intense debate, and arguments would break out daily whenever they convened to discuss the matter.

“Damn it! Just because a blue fish says it swam in deeper waters doesn’t make it a white fish! Once a criminal, always a criminal! We must immediately purge those criminals from the seas!”

“Bah! Go ahead if you can! Do you even know where the Green Isles is? Besides, if they have truly realized their mistakes and wish to reform, why stir them up?”

“Reform? Are you telling me you trust those filthy pirates?! You might as well as leave a fish in front of a cat!”

“You blockheads! Can’t you see we just need to observe for now?! Rushing will only make things worse!”

The meeting of the Naval Alliance was thrown into utter chaos with shouts and curses all over the place. There were even some who resorted to physical fights.

“Ughh...”

On the other hand, the Supreme Commander and Grand Marshal of the Naval Alliance, Marshal Claude, was rubbing his throbbing temples. Even he found it nearly impossible to devise a clear response to the letter.

On one hand, he wanted to use this opportunity to strike at the weakened Green Isles and eradicate the pirate threat once and for all. However, their location being a mystery made it impossible to do so, leaving him helpless.

Meanwhile, letting the Green Isles establish itself as a maritime kingdom left him uneasy, as it could give rise to future territorial disputes and inevitable naval conflicts.

While the news of piracy being ceased was a relief, he still had no clue on how to approach the situation.

‘What exactly are you planning, Captain Drake?’

He wished he could meet Drake face-to-face to peek into his true intentions, but he knew better than anyone that such a thing was impossible.

‘This could be the perfect moment to strike the Green Isles, but...’

With three of the four Pirate Lords confirmed dead, the Green Isles were sure to have weakened to less than a quarter of their original strength. If he were aware of their location, then he wouldn't hesitate to order a full-scale attack and rid the continent of the pirates once and for all.

It was then.

His aide entered the room in haste and whispered, “I have something to report, sir.”

“Hm? What is it?”

“Well... Someone has come forward claiming to know the exact location of the Green Isles,” the aide whispered, lowering his voice further.

“What?!”

Claude’s eyes widened in sheer disbelief. For centuries, the exact location of the Green Isles had remained a tightly guarded secret, but now, someone suddenly came forward claiming to know it.

“Are you certain?”

“Yes, sir.”

“But how can we trust this person? Is it possible they are a spy sent by Francis de Drake?”

“No, sir.”

“And what proof do you have?”

“Their identity has been confirmed, sir. There is no doubt.”

“Who is it? Who is this person that makes you so certain?”

“The person who claims to know the location is...” the aide said. Then, he looked around before leaning in and whispering a name.

“Oh!”

Claude’s eyes widened further as he listened to the report.

If what the aide said was true, then that person’s identity was indeed credible.

“Very well. I’ll see them immediately.”

“Yes, sir.”

Claude rose from his seat and addressed the gathered leaders, “I have urgent business to attend to. We will adjourn this meeting for today and take a break until further notice.”

With that, he left the room with his aide following closely behind.

‘If this person really knows the location of the Green Isles, then...’ he thought. His heart pounded as he walked. Even as the Supreme Commander of the Naval Alliance, maintaining his composure in this situation was difficult.

Why?

If the information were accurate, then the long-cherished dream of the Naval Alliance could finally come true.

The conquest of the Green Isles could finally become a reality.