บท 240: Is There Anyone Else?
At this moment, the area outside the Frenzel residence was truly teeming with people—packed so tightly that it was almost impossible to move.
Even ordinary people seemed to have shown up, drawn by the commotion.
As a result, the space around the Frenzel residence was so crowded that it could have easily led to a stampede if there hadn't been a main road left open.
"Quiet!"
"Don't push!"
Ain and Ian shouted loudly to maintain a minimal level of order.
They had been alerted and had brought many knights with them, but this apparently still didn't deter the crowd of swordsmen.
"I want to challenge Riezel Brynhart!"
"I also want to challenge Riezel Brynhart!"
"Let Riezel Brynhart come out!"
Several young and vigorous swordsmen were on the verge of drawing their swords, their faces twisted in fierce determination—clearly would not back down.
It was clear that if Riezel didn't show up today, there would have been a lot of chaos.
Until—
"Someone's coming out!"
Someone in the crowd suddenly shouted, causing the entire noisy scene to fall into silence.
People quickly turned their heads and saw a figure walking toward them from inside the Frenzel residence's gate.
It was none other than Riezel.
"That's Riezel Brynhart!"
Someone instantly recognized Riezel and shouted his name, causing countless eyes to fixate on him like sharp swords.
"Mr. Riezel!"
Ain and Ian both turned and saw Riezel, promptly calling out to him.
At the same time, the surrounding knights bowed and saluted Riezel, their demeanor more respectful than ever before.
"Ah, thank you for your trouble."
Riezel came up to Ain and Ian and thanked them.
""No...""
Upon hearing his words, the two female knights hastily shook their heads.
They were about to speak but were unfortunately interrupted.
"Riezel Brynhart!"
A swordsman seized the opportunity and shouted at Riezel.
"Are you brave enough to accept my challenge?"
At this, the others quickly reacted.
"Me too!"
"I want to challenge you as well!"
"Are you brave enough to accept my challenge?"
"I don't believe you're a Sword Saint. If you really have the capability, then accept my challenge!"
"That's right! Let us see your true strength!"
"Come on!"
One by one, the swordsmen spoke up—some with excitement, some with hostility, some with fighting intent, and others with disdain.
It was clear that although all these swordsmen wanted to challenge Riezel, their motivations varied.
Some wanted to climb the ranks by stepping over him.
Some genuinely doubted his strength.
Some came to challenge a renowned opponent out of admiration.
Some were simply envious, jealous, or self-assured, believing that he was just putting on a show and couldn't possibly be a Sword Saint.
As Riezel observed all the swordsmen who challenged him, he also understood this.
In the next moment, under Ain and Ian's watchful eyes, Riezel stepped forward.
"Want to challenge me, you say?" Riezel asked calmly, his expression one of nonchalance. "Alright, who's up first?"
"..."
His straightforwardness left many people at a loss for words.
For a moment, everyone was rendered speechless.
"...Is it really okay?"
"Is he really going to accept their challenge?"
Ain and Ian exchanged glances and whispered to each other—one furrowing her brows while the other wore a look of worry.
Both had witnessed Riezel's abilities firsthand, not just once but twice.
Once, when the Shadow ambushed them, Riezel personally took down the leading Sword Master.
The other time was during the War Festival when Riezel personally killed Jill Dardis, the Demon Swordsman.
On both occasions, Riezel demonstrated extraordinary abilities, earning Ain and Ian's deep respect. However, it was precisely because they had seen him in action that they couldn't help but be more concerned.
However, despite Riezel's impressive display of swordsmanship and abilities on those occasions, Ain and Ian still felt it wasn't quite at the level of a Sword Saint.
Let alone Albert, Riezel had clearly struggled to defeat Jill in the War Festival.
With such abilities, while Riezel would definitely qualify as a Sword Master, Ain and Ian felt that it just wasn't enough to be considered a Sword Saint.
Even though they had heard about Albert's instant defeat at Riezel's hands, they hadn't seen it with their own eyes, after all. With their preconceived notions, they genuinely worried that there might be something off about this information and that Riezel's status as a Sword Saint might actually be for other reasons.
Because of this, they feared that Riezel would be exposed and defeated here, tarnishing his reputation.
Meanwhile, Riezel, who had already stepped forward, did not notice Ain and Ian's concerns.
Nevertheless, even if he had noticed, he probably wouldn't have cared anyway.
"Who's up first?"
Riezel repeated his question as he observed the swordsmen before him.
Finally, someone stepped forward.
"I'll go!"
A burly man jumped in front of Riezel.
He was armored, carried a greatsword, and had a body taller and more robust than Sorren's.
When such a heavily armored swordsman with a heavy greatsword jumped in front of Riezel, the ground even trembled slightly, drawing attention from many.
"I'm Marco Newgallen!"
Folding his hands across his chest, the burly man introduced himself.
Surprisingly, the name caused a stir among the crowd.
"Marco Newgallen?"
"He's the 'Tyrant', isn't he?"
"I didn't expect him to show up too..."
Everyone on the scene buzzed with excitement.
""It's him?""
Ain and Ian exclaimed while exchanging serious looks.
"What's wrong? Do you know him?" Riezel turned to the two female knights.
Upon hearing the question, Ian, always blunt in her personality, immediately answered.
"He's a swordsman who became famous a long time ago, from the Newgallen territory, and is the son of the local lord."
Ian began to explain in detail.
"Although the Newgallen territory is just a remote rural area and the lord there is an ordinary baron, not very prominent in noble circles, his son, Marco Newgallen, is a Sword Master. He left home in childhood to hone his swordsmanship and aims to become a Sword Saint."
"However, because he often has a tendency to be excessively violent, causing many of his opponents to be severely injured or even die from his blows, many people call him the Tyrant."
Ian's explanation was thorough and made it clear to Riezel what kind of man the burly figure in front of him was.
In contrast, Ain was more concise.
"Mr. Riezel, he's really strong, so be careful..." Ain reminded in a serious tone. "Ian and I probably aren't his match."
Even without her saying this, Riezel could tell that much.
After all, the moment he used the Transparent World, he noticed that the muscles of this burly man were not just for show.
In terms of pure strength alone, he was probably stronger than Albert, which meant he was at least Level 6.
"Riezel Brynhart, right?"
As Riezel learned about Marco's information, Marco spoke up with a wide grin, and his expression was quite vicious.
"I heard you defeated Albert Borley with a single move? Hmph, I don't believe it!" Marco said bluntly. "About four years ago, I lost to him and had my Sword Master Medal taken away. It was only recently that I got the medal back."
In fact, there was a rule for this.
When someone challenged a thousand Sword Masters on their way to becoming a Sword Saint, if the challenger defeated the challenged, they could take the challenged's Sword Master Medal as proof of their victory.
If the defeated Sword Master lost their medal, they couldn't reclaim it for three years, nor could they claim the status of Sword Master during that time.
Clearly, this rule exists to prevent anyone from using underhanded methods to become a Sword Saint, or, more specifically, to avoid situations where matches were manipulated.
Because of this rule, every Sword Master who was challenged must fight with full effort and couldn't give up the battle. Otherwise, they would lose their Sword Master Medal for three years, which was like walking around with a mark of defeat.
For swordsmen, this was undoubtedly a significant disgrace and a blow to their self-esteem.
Marco had obviously gone through this, yet he spoke of it without any reservations.
"It's precisely because I've fought Albert Borley that I know how strong he is. Someone as weak and fragile as you could never defeat him, let alone do it with a single move! What bullshit!"
Marco's words were met with angry glares from Ain and Ian, but his words clearly failed to stir any reaction from Riezel.
"So? Are you here to prove that I'm not as capable as I claim to be?" Riezel asked with a half-smile.
"That's right! I don't believe in that bullshit!" Marco shouted before drawing his greatsword.
*BOOM!*
As the tip of the greatsword slammed into the ground, it caused a deafening explosion, creating a crater.
Many people who watched this scene quietly swallowed their saliva.
"Be careful not to get yourself killed, kid." Marco grinned. "I'm not good at holding back, y'know."
"It's fine..."
Riezel tightened his grip, using the Structure System Magic to create a sword, which he held casually along with its scabbard, standing nonchalantly in front of Marco.
"I'm good at it, so it's fine. No need to hold back."
Seeing Riezel's nonchalance, Marco grew angry.
"YOU ARROGANT BASTARD!"
Marco roared in anger, lifting his greatsword and charging at Riezel like a war chariot.
However, at the same moment, a thunderous roar suddenly echoed through the area.
*BOOM!*
A flash of lightning appeared without warning before everyone's eyes, instantly dominating their vision and becoming the only thing in the world they could see.
Even though the lightning was just a flash, it immediately stirred the wind around, making Riezel's figure appear as though it had passed through space itself.
In a flash of thunder and lightning, Riezel, surrounded by crackling lightning, abruptly arrived behind Marco.
*Click!*
With a clicking sound, the sword that had somehow been unsheathed was now sheathed by Riezel.
*Splurt!*
Still in the middle of his charge, blood suddenly burst forth in front of Marco.
Without realizing what had happened, Marco collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
"..."
Silence.
A deathly silence.
"Is there anyone else?"
Soon, Riezel's voice rang out again, calm and composed.
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