Riezel understood that investigating his past, or more precisely, investigating the past of the original Riezel, was not that difficult for the royal family.
For this reason, Riezel was not surprised by Hendrick's words.
"What's in the past is in the past, and what's now is now." Riezel answered calmly, his expression unchanged. "I no longer see becoming a noble as my life's goal."
"...Is that so?"
Hendrick nodded, appearing understanding, but then continued to persuade.
"However, if you're worried that being a noble might become a constraint for you, you needn't be, since some nobles don't hold any position in the kingdom."
As expected, Yuri's previous guess about Hendrick's approach had become reality.
If Riezel insisted on refusing to become a noble, Hendrick would offer the compromise of an honorary noble, making him nominally affiliated with Jinas but not holding a position within the kingdom.
Among the four types of nobles, only honorary nobles did not have a specific position. Since Hendrick had brought it up, he clearly intended for Riezel to become an honorary noble.
"I've said it before, I have no interest in becoming a noble." Riezel suddenly smiled, speaking in a calm and steady tone. "I'm truly sorry to disappoint Your Majesty."
Hendrick's eyebrows finally furrowed.
At the same time, the others present also looked at Riezel with varying expressions—some scrutinizing, some mocking, and others outright hostile, displaying a range of emotions.
"Won't you reconsider?"
Hendrick asked with a frown, clearly had not given up.
"I understand your thoughts, but you must know that with your current abilities and reputation, if you were to travel across the continent, foreign countries would certainly set their sights on you."
"You know, international conflicts are very complex. If they could recruit a talent like you from this country to weaken our strength while boosting their own, those foreign countries would not hesitate to use extreme measures."
"At that point, the situation you face would be far more dangerous than you imagine."
Hendrick's words could not be considered as mere alarmist rhetoric.
Just as Hendrick wanted to bind Riezel to Jinas with a noble title, foreign countries would definitely want to recruit him as well.
Given Riezel's status as a Tactical-Class Magician alone, he was already valuable enough to be targeted by foreign countries. However, coupled with the additional status of Sword Master, he would undoubtedly attract even more attention.
If that happened, even if Jinas did nothing to Riezel, other countries would.
"You're still young, so there's no need to rush into doing what you want."
Hendrick continued in a persuasive tone.
"Traveling across the continent now would be very dangerous. It would be better to stay in the kingdom, develop slowly, and only venture out when you have enough strength to make foreign countries wary of you."
One should admit that although Hendrick made somewhat desperate efforts to keep Riezel, his advice was fundamentally reasonable.
When one lacked strength, traveling and being targeted by foreign countries could indeed be very risky. Only when one had enough strength to handle any hostility could they travel as they pleased.
Otherwise, given Jinas's power and vast territory, why was there only one Sword Saint of Jinas who could travel freely across the continent as an honorary noble without restrictions?
It was precisely because this person was a Sword Saint that Jinas dared not assign them trivial tasks, and foreign countries also hesitated to act against them for fear of retaliation.
"You're only seventeen, yet you're already a Sword Master. I believe that in a few decades, your name will definitely be among the Sword Saints of the Akasha Continent."
Hendrick continued his persuasion.
"How about this, I promise you that as long as you don't leave the kingdom, you can freely travel within its borders. You won't have any troublesome tasks assigned to you, and you'll be free to go anywhere until you become a Sword Saint. How does that sound?"
With such a promise, Hendrick seemed quite sincere. With his assurance, Riezel would likely enjoy more freedom than ordinary honorary nobles, unburdened by constraints.
Even Yuri thought Hendrick's promise was probably the best outcome they could hope for.
Given this, becoming a noble didn't seem like such a bad idea for Riezel, did it?
Unfortunately, Yuri and Hendrick didn't truly understand Riezel.
From the moment Hendrick decided to tie Riezel to Jinas, it was clear that he would never agree.
After all, Riezel truly valued his freedom above all else.
He was someone who went wherever he wanted and didn't need to seek anyone's permission to do something. Even if he wanted to join a country, it was his choice, not something imposed on him.
Even nominal allegiance wasn't acceptable, as it meant that if Jinas ever faced trouble, he would have to accept the kingdom's orders and fight for it no matter what.
Unfortunately, this was exactly what Riezel didn't want.
If he were to fight for Jinas, it wouldn't be under someone else's orders.
In the first place, he had no sense of belonging to Jinas.
In fact, the only things he felt attached to in Jinas were probably Yuri and the Frenzel family to which she belonged.
Of course, he didn't mind if he were to join a faction, group, or organization. Otherwise, he wouldn't have joined the Loki Familia to gain Falna (Blessing) or the Demon Slayer Corps to gain breathing styles.
However, when a familia like the Loki Familia could give him a sense of belonging, even if he wasn't officially part of their familia, he would help them without anyone needing to tell him.
Of course, when someone like Kagaya or Kyoujurou treated him sincerely, Riezel would even help them fulfill their thousand-year-old wish to kill Muzan, someone he had no grudge against, without expecting any repayment.
Compared to these two examples, how did Jinas measure up?
Apart from Yuri, all Riezel saw in this kingdom was the constant struggle driven by various interests and powers.
Nobles fought among themselves, and the Royal Faction clashed with the Duke Faction.
Even the small group at Spriller Academy, of which the original Riezel was a part, was merely formed based on specific interests and purposes.
Only Yuri consistently treated Riezel with sincerity, seeing him as a true friend rather than as a useful talent or a combatant to be exploited as the royal family and the nobles did.
Hendrick's efforts to persuade Riezel and offer him a noble title were all clearly aimed at binding him to Jinas, even trying to gain his support for the Royal Faction.
Unfortunately, Riezel was truly repulsed and disgusted by this kind of thing.
As a result, in response to Hendrick's promise, Riezel spoke slowly and solemnly to him.
"Until I become a Sword Saint, is that it?"
Riezel's voice slowly filled the throne room.
"In that case, I have no objections."
For a moment, everyone present wore puzzled expressions, not understanding what Riezel meant by having no objections.
Only Hendrick, as if he realizing something unbelievable, suddenly narrowed his eyes.
"Riezel?"
Yuri was just as surprised by Riezel's words, casting a puzzled glance in his direction.
Riezel, however, wasn't planning to explain anything and simply continued to look at Hendrick, his gaze so calm that it plunged the throne room into an indescribable silence.
"Your Majesty?"
"Your Majesty?"
"Your Majesty?"
Seeing Hendrick fall silent, some of the nearby court officials seemed puzzled by his reaction and began to call him out one after another.
Nevertheless, Hendrick ignored them and continued to watch Riezel silently, his eyes flickering as if thousands of thoughts swirled in his mind.
As a result, the entire throne room fell into an eerie silence, causing many to exchange confused looks.
After a long silence, Hendrick finally spoke.
"By the way, I haven't seen you in action yet... I wonder if you could satisfy my curiosity and show me your swordsmanship?"
Such a sudden request left many people stunned, including Yuri.
Only Riezel understood the deeper meaning behind Hendrick's request.
"Your Majesty, how do you intend to see it?" Riezel asked with an indifferent tone.
Instead of responding, Hendrick glanced to the side.
"Albert."
Hendrick suddenly called out a name.
"Here!"
Someone in the throne room immediately responded.
It was a young man standing in the front row of the knight's line.
He wore a knight's attire with a long hem, entirely white, giving off an aura of integrity and honor, looking like the most noble of knights, inspiring immediate trust.
"Albert Borley is here, Your Majesty! Please give your orders!"
With a loud and clear voice, the young man named Albert knelt on one knee before the throne.
Needless to say, his demeanor was impeccable, displaying all the characteristics of a true knight.
"Albert..."
Hendrick spoke with a smile as if he were looking at a loyal subject who had pleased him immensely.
"How do you feel about having a match with Sir Brynhart?"
"Of course... if it is Your Majesty's wish, I am more than willing." Albert replied without hesitation.
Upon hearing him respond decisively, without any hint of hesitation, everyone present was astonished.
"Sir Albert is actually going to take action?"
"Your Majesty, what happened?"
"My goodness…"
Everyone in the throne room could no longer contain their murmurs.
Even Yuri's complexion briefly changed, her eyes showing a mix of seriousness, surprise, and concern.
Riezel silently observed their reactions and then turned his attention to the young knight.
Upon closer inspection, he realized this young knight was obviously far from ordinary.
Observing through the Transparent World, he could see that this young knight's muscles were incredibly solid, his body extremely strong, and he possessed a significant amount of magical energy flowing within him, giving the impression that every part of him was filled with power.
"Sir Brynhart."
Hendrick turned his head back to Riezel's direction.
"What do you think?"
At this question, Riezel suddenly smiled, his expression calm.
"Sounds good."
He had to admit that this boring meeting was becoming interesting.