*Swish!*
As the short swordsman swung his sword downward, a layer of dark energy instantly surged along the stabbing sword's edge, effortlessly tearing through the air.
Needless to say, this short swordsman was using a form of Special Swordsmanship—a swordsmanship capable of unleashing unique abilities in battle.
It was only natural.
Anyone who could become an expert Sword Master would surely have trained in at least one Special Swordsmanship.
Everyone knew that the higher the level of swordsmanship, the faster a practitioner's progress. Without a Special Swordsmanship, relying solely on Elementary or Advanced Swordsmanship, even the most gifted practitioner would find their growth limited.
As a result, once a swordsman reached the rank of Sword Master, if they had not learned a Special Swordsmanship, they would feel their progress slow to a crawl, with almost no visible improvement.
If they wanted to improve their skill and combat power—and to one day have a chance at stepping into the realm of the Sword Saint—most Sword Masters would seek out a Special Swordsmanship.
Whether by creating one themselves, buying it at a high price, joining a faction, or even resorting to theft, they would stop at nothing.
For example, Ain and Ian had already earned their Sword Master Medals, yet the swordsmanship they practiced was merely Advanced Swordsmanship. Since reaching the rank of Sword Master, its effectiveness had begun to diminish, so Yuri had been making plans to provide them with a Special Swordsmanship to help them continue on the path of the sword.
Even Raven Mavros, now hailed as the Guardian Sword Saint, had once roamed the continent before earning the title. Knowing he needed at least a Special Swordsmanship to advance further, he endured countless trials and eventually created his own—Dark Abyss Sword Style.
In short, any swordsman who successfully rose to the rank of Sword Master would almost always find a way to obtain a Special Swordsmanship—whether through creation, purchase, allegiance, or theft—unless they had no intention of ever reaching the realm of Sword Saint.
Otherwise, they would either have to secure such swordsmanship or spend decades painstakingly improving before they could truly advance as an expert Sword Master.
Since the short swordsman was one of the few expert Sword Masters in this place, he was either an aging swordsman content to polish his Advanced Swordsmanship for decades, or he possessed a Special Swordsmanship of his own.
Now, his actions confirmed the latter.
Although he had indeed mastered a Special Swordsmanship, this particular swordsmanship did not seem especially powerful—it just greatly enhanced the short swordsman's speed but offered no other effects.
Still, even a weaker Special Swordsmanship, when wielded by an expert Sword Master, could not be ignored—not even by Demon Swordsman Leo, the strongest swordsman in this place.
However, just as the short swordsman's slash ripped through the air and fell toward Riezel, the latter made no move to resist.
"Body of Effulgent Heliodor."
With a calm chant, a layer of golden-crimson magical light briefly flashed across Riezel's body.
*Pu-chi!*
Along with a tearing sound, the short swordsman's slash landed without mercy, cleaving into Riezel's head.
Yet, although the blade had clearly passed through Riezel's body, not a single drop of blood spilled, nor did a wound appear.
"What?"
Shock was the short swordsman's final emotion.
*Bzzz!*
A blinding bolt of lightning suddenly burst from beneath Riezel's cloak, clinging to a black sword that had appeared in his hand at some unknown moment.
In that instant, as the crimson patterns on the black sword were instantly dyed a brilliant azure, the last thing the short swordsman saw was a flash of lightning before his eyes.
*Pu-chi!*
A second tearing sound rang out, followed by a spray of blood into the air.
A lightning-charged slash cut clean through the short swordsman's body before he could even react, cleaving from the crown of his head down to his crotch.
No dying scream.
No cry of pain.
Still wearing a stunned expression, the short swordsman was split cleanly in half by that single lightning strike—his corpse, gushing blood, fell to the ground with a heavy thud, staining the earth red at Riezel's feet.
Riezel never once looked at the short swordsman.
In his left hand, Riezel weighed the box he had taken, while in his right, he held a lightning-wreathed black sword, calmly standing tall against the wind.
"..."
Silence.
A deathly silence.
In that instant, everyone who had been pursuing the short swordsman—whether expert Sword Master, ordinary Sword Master, or even those far below the rank of Sword Master—froze where they stood, unable to move.
Even those locked in fierce battle stopped all at once.
No choice.
Because their goal had been the box, when the short swordsman had seized it, he became the focus of the entire crowd—none could ignore him.
They all knew the short swordsman was an expert Sword Master—and yet, such an expert had just been slain in an instant, with a single strike.
Just one strike had ended the life of a swordsman who had the potential to one day reach the realm of the Sword Saint.
'N-No way...'
Everyone who witnessed it shared this same thought.
Only Rhea, coughing up blood as she struggled to her feet, widened her eyes in recognition.
'Isn't that... that guy...?'
Rhea naturally knew Riezel.
Even though the cloak's hood concealed his face, his figure and presence were unmistakable—he was the expert she had just been trying to recruit.
Yet, it was precisely because she recognized him that her mind went blank.
She had known he was strong, but not this strong.
One strike to kill an expert Sword Master?
What kind of power was that?
Sword Saint?
'No! Impossible!'
As Rhea thought this, it wasn't just her—it was the exact same thought echoing in the hearts of everyone present.
Sinielle had only one Sword Saint, and that was its lord.
As for a foreign Sword Saint?
If such a figure had arrived in a neutral city like this, how could the local powers not have caught even the faintest whisper of it?
Needless to say, this was the reasoning most people believed.
Moreover, the City Lord was known to be an extremely xenophobic man.
However, what he rejected wasn't just outsiders in general—he harbored a particular hostility toward foreign Sword Saints.
Why?
Because this territory had been built entirely by his own hands, the presence of a foreign Sword Saint in this barren, desolate land likely meant they had come with ulterior motives, so their arrival alone would be enough to put the City Lord on high alert.
As a result, the City Lord had long since publicly declared that no Sword Saint was welcome here. If any foreign Sword Saint entered Sinielle without his permission, he would treat them as an enemy.
Apparently, this stemmed from the fact that the small country of his birth had once been destroyed by major powers like Jinas and Reiburg, leaving the City Lord incapable of trusting any other nation.
If it were merely some insignificant nobodies, the City Lord wouldn't even bother with them, but if it was someone like a Sword Saint—someone capable of threatening both him and the very existence of Sinielle—his reaction would always be extreme.
However, this matter was little known in Jinas or Reiburg, as the declaration had been made many years ago, and due to distance, it only circulated among the upper echelons of various countries.
Besides, Sword Saints had no interest in coming to this desolate land, much less in seeing the City Lord's scowl, so most treated the declaration as a joke and eventually disregarded it entirely.
However, the locals of Sinielle were well aware of the City Lord's ways—especially certain factions, who paid particular attention to the rules set by Sinielle's one and only Sword Saint.
Because of this, the people of Sinielle had rarely seen another Sword Saint apart from the City Lord and had subconsciously come to believe that no other Sword Saint would ever come here.
In fact, many years ago, someone who had successfully ascended to the realm of Sword Saint was ultimately forced out by the City Lord and fled to Reiburg, never to return.
Given all that, at the very first thought of Riezel being a Sword Saint, everyone present immediately dismissed the idea.
Even though it sounded complicated, all these thoughts and considerations took place in just two or three seconds.
During that span of two to three seconds, everyone remained frozen in place, momentarily forgetting to move.
Until...
"Well, this thing's mine now." Riezel's voice finally rang out. "Since everyone's fighting over it, I doubt anyone will mind if I join in, right?"
Even though his voice was as calm as if he were greeting an acquaintance, it made the expressions of everyone present twist.
Wouldn't mind?
Of course, they would mind!
Riezel's utterly nonchalant remark finally snapped many of those present out of their daze.
*Swish!*
*Swish!*
*Swish!*
At once, several Sword Masters closest to Riezel darted toward him, reaching for the box in his hand.
However, Riezel merely glanced at them, then sheathed his sword.
"Greater Teleportation."
In the next instant, Riezel vanished from where he stood without a trace.
"What?"
"H-He vanished?"
"Where did he go?!"
Those who had rushed at Riezel halted in place, scanning their surroundings, yet found nothing.
Naturally, the others were the same—their faces shifted drastically as they instinctively looked around, finding no sign of Riezel anywhere.
They did not realize that, by now, Riezel had already returned to the rooftop of the building where he had been earlier.
"Master."
Lizbeth had yet to comprehend what had happened and was utterly shocked that Riezel had vanished without warning and then reappeared with a box in hand.
"Let's go." Riezel calmly smiled at Lizbeth. "We'll head back and study this box."
Right after saying this, Riezel cast a glance at the nearby rooftops where figures were leaping toward them. Ignoring their presence, he took Lizbeth with him, activated teleportation magic, and vanished from sight.
Soon after, figures landed on the rooftop where Riezel and Lizbeth had just been.
"Gone?"
"How the hell did he just vanish?"
"Magic?"
"Magic? He cut down an expert Sword Master with one strike—he's a swordsman."
"Fuck this, we gotta find him!"
"Move out!"
With that, they left in a rush.
Even those who had been fighting on the ground stopped what they were doing and hurried off noisily.
They had to find Riezel.
They had to find the box.
Only the people from the Dragon Horn and the Illusionist could not retreat so easily because they had been targeted.
"I've been dying to taste your blood! Jayden! Kane!"
Demon Swordsman Leo was wreathed in blood-red magical energy, his eyes glowing crimson as he laughed wildly. At some point, he had fixed his gaze on the two leaders of the Dragon Horn and the Illusionist, and now he charged at them, sharp blade in hand.
"Damn lunatic!"
"Motherfucker!"
Jayden and Kane's expressions darkened, but they could not ignore Leo as he charged in to kill them—they had no choice but to meet him head-on.
In an instant, flames roared through the air, and sword light sliced through space, clashing against the Demon Swordsman shrouded in blood-red magical energy, producing thunderous booms.
For the sake of their leaders, the members of the Dragon Horn and the Illusionist could not withdraw either, and instead joined the fight against Leo, supporting Jayden and Kane.
"Big Sis, you okay?"
Clutching his chest, blood at the corner of his mouth, the burly man who had helped Rhea earlier rushed to her side.
"I-I'm fine..."
Rhea had been staring in the direction where Riezel had vanished, and only now did she snap out of it, shaking her head at the burly man.
"Can you still fight, Big Sis? Leo's gone mad again. Captain Jayden is strong, but against that lunatic, it's way too dangerous."
At the burly man's words, Rhea seemed to remember the situation and quickly got to her feet.
"Let's go! We'll help my brother!"
Even as she charged toward the battlefield with the burly man, the image of those two cloaked figures still lingered in her mind.
Perhaps… this might not be a bad thing after all.
===
In a small alley within Sinielle's city district.
*Swish!*
Riezel and Lizbeth suddenly appeared there, then walked out of the alley together and onto the street.
"What is that, Master?"
Lizbeth could not help but ask as she watched Riezel idly toy with a box.
Unfortunately, Riezel shook his head.
"I don't know what it is either."
Riezel's reply left Lizbeth momentarily stunned.
"Though I don't know what it is, I suspect whatever's inside has something to do with us."
"Something to do with us...?" Lizbeth tilted her head, completely puzzled.
Riezel did not explain, only gazing silently at the box in his hand.
As he held it, the throbbing sensation in his heart surged again and again.
He had felt this before—it was the same as when he had touched the animal skin Lizbeth had brought him.
'No doubt, this thing must be connected to the ancient magic civilization... perhaps even to the Hero Clan...' Riezel thought to himself, smiling slightly. 'Interesting... Looks like on my very first day in Sinielle, I've already gained something.'
Riezel then put the box away and led Lizbeth toward an inn.
Tonight, Sinielle remained in chaos, far from quieting down.
===
[A bonus chapter for every 500 Power Stones.]
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