Debuff Master

Chapter 524

‘It’s... perfect...’

The Phantom Thief had no choice but to accept her defeat. Yes, Siegfried had only managed to say for sure that she was disguised as Marquis Keitel because of his artifact, the Inzaghi’s Clairvoyance, but the deduction work he had displayed on top of purposely letting her go just to catch her later for the sake of finding out the whereabouts of her treasures, the portrait, and the marquis were more than enough to frighten her.

Who in their right mind would let a thief go just to catch them later and find out where their treasure trove was located?

Anyone could tell that the Phantom Thief had lost completely against Siegfried. The legendary thief had lost to the king of a small and weak country on the outskirts of the empire, and it would not be an understatement to say that he had crushed her.

However, the Phantom Thief was not the only one shocked by the sudden turn of events.

“Owner punk?”

“Your Majesty...?”

Both Hamchi and Oscar had their eyes wide open after realizing what Siegfried had done. They were aware of just how cunning Siegfried was and how adept he was when it came to stabbing others in the back. However, the cunningness and insight he showed this time were on a whole new level.

‘Hamchi is shocked and impressed this time, owner punk...’

‘Your Majesty’s wisdom never ceases to amaze me.’

The two were now staring at Siegfried in a new light. In their eyes, he was no longer just a cunning, backstabbing person but someone who knew how to use his brains and strategize.

Just then, a certain thought popped up in Hamchi’s mind.

‘What the hell...? He’s been using that brain of his to backstab others? What a waste of talent... Kyu...!’ Hamchi could not help but feel that Siegfried was the biggest waste of talent in this world.

However, there was one thing they had overlooked. Siegfried was not smart at all.

The only reason he could think of these kinds of things was solely due to his love and passion for money, which fueled his brain to operate at two hundred percent more than its usual capacity, allowing him to draw this ingenious picture to catch the legendary thief.

“I lost... I will admit that you beat me. You've captured me,” the Phantom Thief admitted.

“I know. How else would I capture you, Phantom Thief?”

“Just call me Selena. The Phantom Thief is already dead.”

“Huh? No? The Phantom Thief is still alive—well, she’s about to die soon,” Siegfried replied while tilting his head in confusion.

“I’m not going to die.”

“You won’t? Are you hoping Emperor Stuttgart will pardon you?”

“No.”

“Then?”

“Do you know what it means to capture the Phantom Thief?”

“Hmm...” Siegfried pondered for a moment. Then, he clapped and said, “I get to earn a lot of money!”

“No! That’s not it!” Selena screamed in retort.

“Hey... Why are you shouting all of a sudden?”

“Is that all this is to you?! Is catching the Phantom Thief all about money?! You money-crazed bastard!”

“Hey! Who are you calling a money-crazed bastard?! Me? Ha! I’m not obsessed with money! Not one bit!”

However, Hamchi and Oscar begged to differ.

‘You are crazy about money, money-craze owner punk...’

‘Well, I cannot deny Your Majesty has always held a great deal of passion for money...’

Still, neither of them bothered to voice out their thoughts.

Why?

Siegfried would obviously sulk if they did so. They knew how petty he could be, so they decided to keep their thoughts to themselves.

“Sigh...” Selena sighed and shook her head.“Can I really love a man like this for the rest of my life?”

“Eh?” Siegfried tilted his head once again. Then, he grimaced and asked in disbelief, “What was that just now?”

“I said, how can I live happily ever after loving a man like you, you bastard!”

“Huh? Excuse me, are you unwell?”

Siegfried was completely flabbergasted. He could not understand why this petty criminal was suddenly talking about love and living the rest of her life with him out of the blue.

“Did I hit you too hard and cause brain damage? But I don’t recall hitting your head...?”

“Well, I’m sure there’s no way someone like you would know.”

“Know what?”

“Did you know? The Phantom Thief is not a single person. The Phantom Thief is a title passed down for centuries and...”

“And?”

“If whoever arrests the Phantom Thief is of the opposite sex, then...”

“...?”

“The Phantom Thief has the obligation to love that person wholeheartedly and marry them.”

Siegfried narrowed his eyes and said, “What nonsense is this crazy bitch spouting...?”

***

Meanwhile, Brunhilde had just returned from her trip to Elondel with Verdandi, and her days after coming back to the Proatine Kingdom were peaceful. Deus came to the kingdom and was playing with Verdandi, so Brunhilde took this chance to have some time for herself.

Brunhilde was looking out at the lake from her room. “So this is happiness.”

She had learned the meaning of happiness after meeting Siegfried, and every day was filled with happiness since then. It was only normal for her to feel this way, as the elves had shunned her for her hideous appearance, which was really only because of the color of her hair and the strange standards of the elves.

However, her life had changed and was now complete after marrying Siegfried and having a child with him.

Of course, the fact that her husband kept venturing outside saddened her, but there was nothing she could do about that. Her husband, Siegfried van Proa, was a king and an Adventurer from another world, so he was born to journey out in the world.

Moreover, he was very busy running around trying to stop the destruction of the world, so it would be unreasonable for her to throw a tantrum just because she felt lonely.

Thus, she resolved to be a loving and understanding wife by giving him as much space as he needed.

‘I’m proud of him,’ Brunhilde thought with a smile. She was really proud of her husband for working so hard to uphold the peace in this world.

Brunhilde lifted her teacup and took in its aroma.

“This smells really good,” she said with a smile.

“I am glad it is to your liking, Your Majesty,” Jessie replied with a bow.

They enjoyed the gentle breeze coming through the window from the lake when Brunhilde’s eyes landed on a sword, the Holy Sword: Phoenix.

The Holy Sword: Phoenix was stored in the glass cupboard, and it had been months since she had last drawn it. She was focusing on raising Verdandi these couple of months that she did not have the luxury to even think about wielding her sword.

“I’m sorry. Please be patient and wait for me. I have to focus on my child for now,” she apologized to the sword.

It was then...

Whiiiiish!

A fierce gale blew through the window and...

Whoosh~

A man’s underwear plopped down on top of the plate of biscuits Brunhilde was enjoying with her tea just now.

“Ah! This is!” Brunhilde exclaimed after instantly recognizing the underwear.

This underwear was Siegfried’s underwear, and it most likely came from the laundry that the maids had washed in the morning.

“But how did this fly all the way here?” Brunhilde wondered, perplexed while inspecting the underwear.

“Y-Your Majesty...” Jessie said with her voice trembling.

“Hmm? What’s wrong, Jessie?”

“Please forgive me for my insolence, but I cannot bring myself to tell Your Majesty...”

“Hmm?”

“If the wind carries the underwear of a woman’s husband, it means...” Jessie trailed the end of her words.

“What does it mean?”

“That is... Your Majesty might not be familiar with it, but there is a belief among us people of the continent that...”

“Please feel free to say it. I am fine.”

“N-No, Your Majesty. I am far too embarrassed and ashamed to even utter such things! I must have mistaken it, so please ignore what I—”

“It’s fine. Just say it, Jessie.”

“Your Majesty...”

“What does it mean? Is it a superstition?”

“That is... We believe that if the wind carries the underwear of a woman’s husband, then... the husband must be philandering outside–”

Thud!

Brunhilde dropped the spoon she was using to eat her cake. She looked stunned by what she had heard, but she almost instantaneously composed herself.

“Come on, there’s no way His Majesty would do that,” Brunhilde said with a smile.

“Certainly, Your Majesty. It is only a mere superstition the commoners believe,” Jessie replied.

“What an interesting superstition. Hohoho~” Brunhilde said with a laugh.

‘I’m glad Her Majesty is not concerned.’ Jessie was relieved after seeing her response.

“That’s right. I wholeheartedly trust His Majesty, and I will not doubt him just because of some superstition,” Brunhilde added with a smile. She shrugged off the incident with the wind and Siegfried’s underwear and sipped her tea while looking out the window.

***

“I’ve heard a lot of bullshit in my life, but this is the biggest load of bullshit I’ve heard so far. What kind of cheap plot is that?” Siegfried said with furrowed brows. Then, he asked, “Marry the thief I caught? Do you really think that’s even possible?”

“Why not? The Phantom Thief is a legendary thief who is not supposed to get caught, and getting caught by someone of the opposite gender means the Phantom Thief must marry that person. This is how most of the Phantom Thieves end up getting married, so I’m not sure why you’re saying that it’s impossible,” Selena replied.

“All right, then what happens if the same gender catches them? Is it same-sex marriage, then?” Siegfried retorted.

“The Phantom Thief has to serve the person as their servant or maid for the rest of their life.”

“Oh? But what if you don’t ever get caught?”

“We will live alone until we find a successor to pass down our skills, or we just call it quits and marry someone ordinary.”

“This storyline isn’t adding up.”

“You think so? Then what do you think this is?” Selena rolled up her sleeve and showed a mark on her shoulder.

“W-What’s that?”

“This is the mark of the Phantom Thief.”

“And what does it do?”

“It is an ancient rune that forces the Phantom Thief to marry or serve the one who catches them.”

“Eh?”

“The First Phantom Thief, Blackswan, swore to marry only the man who catches her, and she carved this mark on herself. This is the tradition we—Phantom Thieves—uphold to ensure that our lineage will continue.”

“What the hell...?” Siegfried muttered in disbelief. Then, he asked out of curiosity, “What if you don’t obey it?”

“My heart will stop, and I’ll die from cardiac arrest.”

“Oh really? Well, you’re gonna die anyway, so you might as well die according to your tradition,” Siegfried replied with a shrug.

Then, he signaled at Oscar, ‘Hurry up and bring her to Duke Randoll.’

Oscar instantly understood what he meant and dragged Selena out of the room.

“Hey! What are you doing?! Are you seriously going to reject a beauty like me?!”

“Yup~ And I’m already married. My wife is much prettier than you, and she’s kind, too.”

“Ha! Liar!” Selena scoffed and accused him of being a liar, and there was a strange hint of certainty in her voice.

“L-Liar?! Hey! You crazy bitch! Let me ask you this, then. Why the hell would I marry a criminal like you?!”

“W-What?! Criminal?!”

“Dame Oscar! Hurry up and hand her over to Duke Randoll!” Siegfried exclaimed in anger.

However, Oscar did not budge an inch this time. Instead, she approached him and gave him a word of advice.

“Your Majesty.”

“Yes?”

“I believe it is not a wise decision to hand her over to Duke Randoll. Instead, why not coerce her to join us?” she said.

Siegfried doubted his ears and asked, “Huh? Why would we let a criminal join us?”

“Your Majesty, may I have permission to voice out my opinion regarding this matter?”

“Sure, go ahead.”

Siegfried was a wise king who knew how to listen to his subjects, so he readily gave Oscar permission to speak her mind.

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