*BANG!*
In the corner of the courtyard, Brain was slammed hard against a pile of dull practice swords, the impact scattering them in all directions, clattering to the ground in a mess.
*Cough!*
Brain coughed sharply as if all the air in his lungs had been forced out, sounding like he was on the verge of coughing up blood.
Riezel's kick wasn't particularly heavy, and for someone with Brain's build, it shouldn't have been enough to make him spit blood, yet Riezel's kick completely stunned Brain, leaving him in a heap, frozen in place, unable to recover his senses for what felt like an eternity.
"You..."
When Brain finally came back to his senses, he looked at Riezel, disbelief written all over his face.
Of course, Brain wasn't the only one, as everyone else present wore similar expressions of disbelief.
"He... He caught the sword?" Climb's eyes widened in astonishment.
"He caught the sword with his fingers...?" Evileye couldn't believe her eyes.
Everyone stood frozen, their emotions shifting wildly as they stared at Riezel—the looks in their eyes were impossible to read as they still processed what had just happened.
Even Gazef, who had already witnessed Riezel's strength firsthand, having been sent flying easily when Riezel used Sixfold Slash of Light, couldn't help but show a look of disbelief.
It was clear just how terrifying it was for Riezel to stop Brain's strike with just his fingers.
To put it bluntly, the slash Brain had just unleashed was one that even those in the Realm of Heroes would struggle to react to. At the very least, people like Gazef and Gagaran, who were just one step away from reaching that realm, didn't believe they could have easily blocked that slash even with all their effort.
It was not strange.
It was, after all, the ultimate strike from Brain Unglaus, a genius swordsman who had poured every ounce of his strength into that attack—even those within the Realm of Heroes would be left in awe of such an attack.
Sadly, to Riezel, the so-called ultimate strike was barely worth his notice.
"As a return gift, I'll give you a strike of my own."
Riezel's voice rang out softly.
"Don't blink, since this might just be the strike you've been chasing all along."
As Riezel spoke, he moved with deliberate slowness, his hand inching toward the hilt of his sword at his waist.
In the next second, a lethal sense of danger erupted from deep within everyone's hearts, forcing expressions of fear onto their faces, especially Brain, who immediately realized that Riezel was about to draw his sword against him.
"W-Wait!"
With a pale face, Brain tried to speak out, but unfortunately for him, it was already too late.
"Huuu... Haaa..."
A sharp, rhythmic breathing sound echoed clearly in everyone's ears.
It felt as though the very air was trembling.
It was like the heartbeat of the world itself.
*Bzzzzt—*
Suddenly, the crackling sound of lightning came with the sharp, audible breathing, causing streaks of electricity to surge forth, wrapping around Riezel's body.
"Thunder Breathing - First Form..."
As these faint words echoed as if they had emerged from the depths of the earth, all light in the courtyard vanished.
*BOOM!*
It was replaced by a sudden flash of lightning, followed by the rumble of thunder.
A lightning bolt soon streaked across everyone's vision, followed by a slash that etched into everyone's consciousness—fleeting but deliberate, as if slowed for a moment.
When the world regained its colors and the lightning bolt disappeared, everyone realized that Riezel was no longer where he had been standing but had somehow already appeared behind Brain.
*Click!*
Followed by a clicking sound, Riezel sheathed his sword.
"Thunderclap and Flash..."
Still facing away from Brain, Riezel calmly uttered the name of the strike he had just unleashed.
"..."
Silence.
A deathly, oppressive silence.
At this moment, everyone lost their voices, their reactions, and even, it seemed, their very souls.
They stared blankly at the scene before them, unable to move, unable to speak.
In their minds, there remained only the image of that thunderous flash of lightning, that breathtakingly beautiful slash, and nothing else.
Even Brain was no exception.
"Thunderclap and Flash..."
Brain no longer had the strength to turn around and face Riezel, standing in place instead, muttering the name of Riezel's strike under his breath.
However, if one looked carefully, not only was Brain's body trembling, with his hand holding his sword also trembling, but the front of his shirt had also been split open—cleanly sliced without so much as scratching the skin beneath.
Brain naturally knew this wasn't because Riezel couldn't slash him but simply because Riezel had held back, deliberately sparing him, which resulted in such a precise outcome.
In this deathly silence, Riezel's voice rang out once more.
"If you wanna judge the entirety of the human race, you'd at least gotta pull off a strike like the one I just did to qualify."
"Otherwise, as someone who hasn't even fully stepped into the Realm of Heroes, what right do you have to casually evaluate the strength or weakness of the human race?"
"If you haven't witnessed the peak of what humans can achieve, what makes you think it's impossible to reach it?"
"In the end, you're just arrogant—arrogant enough to believe you're already one of the strongest among humans, so when you feel despair, you assume humans as a whole must feel despair too."
"Little do you know, you're just a frog in a well."
Riezel walked out from behind Brain, stepping in front of him.
"Now do you understand how strong humans can truly become when they push themselves?"
Saying this, a faint smile appeared on Riezel's calm face.
"Oh, by the way, the two so-called monsters you saw in the northern forest of E-Rantel back then? One of them was me."
As soon as Brain heard this, he felt as if a thunderclap had struck his heart.
"You...?"
With wide eyes, Brain stared at Riezel, his gaze filled with even deeper disbelief.
"Yeah..."
Riezel nodded calmly before explaining straightforwardly.
"That night, I ran into a vampire in the forest and fought with her, but... I didn't expect you to be there at the time."
"Because of my battle, you ended up in this sorry state, so... I guess I'm partly to blame for what happened to you?"
Even though Riezel said it like this, there wasn't even a trace of guilt on his face.
It was not without reason.
"You shouldn't have been a bandit in the first place, so just think of it as your karma or something."
Riezel shrugged and threw this reasoning casually at Brain.
"Wanting to get stronger isn't wrong, but how you choose to do it matters. You gotta think it through, or else this is the outcome, got it?"
Leaving these words, Riezel turned away, looking at Gazef and ignoring Brain entirely.
"Okay, this is as far as I'll go—the rest is up to you. No problem, right?" Riezel asked calmly.
"Y-Yes!"
Gazef snapped out of his daze and quickly replied, looking a little flustered.
"Actually, this is more than enough! Thank you, Sir Brynhart!"
"Umu, I'll head back to the inn then." Riezel nodded, turning around. "If anything comes up again, just come find me there."
"Understood. Please, be careful on the way." Gazef respectfully bowed his head.
Riezel smiled faintly, giving a slight nod to the others before striding out of the courtyard and leaving Gazef's home.
All that remained was Brain, standing frozen in place, unresponsive for a long time.
It was only after this that the others present seemed to snap out of their daze, instinctively moving closer toward Gazef.
Seeing Riezel's figure vanish, Gazef then approached Brain, who was still standing in place, staring blankly.
Seeing Brain like this, concern crept onto Gazef's face.
"Unglaus, are you alright?" Gazef asked softly.
Hearing this question, the others turned their attention to Brain, their faces mirroring Gazef's worry.
Under their collective gaze, Brain lowered his head, his shoulders beginning to tremble.
At first, everyone thought his spirit had been completely crushed, driving him further into despair, but to their surprise, he suddenly burst into laughter.
"Haha..."
It started quietly but grew louder and louder until it echoed through the courtyard.
"Hahaha... Hahahahaha—!"
His laughter was almost maniacal, but it was filled with an odd sense of joy—pure and unrestrained.
"So it was you... One of the monsters from back then was you!" Brain laughed like a lunatic, thrilled and overjoyed by the revelation.
"L-Lord Unglaus? A-Are you okay?" Climb stuttered nervously, clearly shaken by Brain's bizarre behavior.
On the other hand, Gazef and the others had a faint understanding of why Brain was suddenly laughing so happily.
What was the reason?
Simple.
"A monster like him... is not even from another race, but a human!"
"Humans can actually become that strong!"
"Is that what humans are truly capable of?! Is that the pinnacle of the human race?!"
"He's right! I've really been such a frog in a well!"
Brain laughed and laughed until he couldn't help but wave his arms and stomp his feet in excitement.
"Surely, only someone as strong as him has the right to evaluate all of the human race! Someone like me? I'm nowhere close!"
"It's not that humans can't get that strong—it's simply because I haven't reached that level yet!"
"It just means I haven't worked hard enough!"
Even though Brain was saying things that belittled himself, he didn't look discouraged in the slightest. On the contrary, the more he spoke, the happier and more exhilarated he became.
"My effort hasn't been wasted, has it? If I keep pushing myself, I'll definitely become stronger and stronger... Maybe I could even reach his level someday."
Speaking to himself, Brain's eyes burned with determination, and all traces of the despair and hopelessness he had felt before were completely wiped away.
Seeing Brain looking cheerful, both Gazef and Gagaran finally felt at ease.
"I'm glad you've finally figured it out, Unglaus." Gazef said, being the first to offer his blessing, his face lighting up with a genuine smile.
"Hah! Not bad! You're finally starting to resemble the Brain Unglaus I remember!" Gagaran chimed in with a satisfied expression.
"Stronoff."
Brain snapped out of his excitement, and when he saw how genuinely happy Gazef was for him, his exhilaration cooled, replaced with calmness. Once he had calmed down, he looked at Gazef with gratitude.
"He... that honored one just now... you brought him here for me, didn't you?" Brain asked sincerely. "You went out of your way to help me. I really appreciate it."
"No need, it was no big deal." Gazef shook his head. "A man like you getting broken down would've been such a waste. I just thought I'd give it a shot, that's all."
"Still, you saved me—saved my life, my purpose, my everything..." Brain fixed his gaze on the man he had once dreamed of defeating, speaking earnestly. "It's because of you that I've been able to pick up my sword again. I, Brain Unglaus, will always remember this favor."
Seeing a rare look of solemnity on Brain's face, Gazef gave a relieved smile.
"In that case, let me see your swordsmanship one more time." Gazef said, his expression fierce with a warrior's determination. "I've always considered you a rival, you know. After seeing that slash of yours earlier, I'm dying to face it head-on."
"You mean Wind of the Great Forest?"
Brain asked with raised eyebrows before giving a wry smile at Gazef.
"If it were the old me, hearing you say that would've made me so happy I couldn't sleep for days."
"In truth, that slash was something I created just to beat you... but now, I know the truth—there's always someone better out there, always a human greater than another. Compared to his, my Wind of the Great Forest is just child's play."
Such self-deprecating words left everyone around Brain speechless, unable to come up with even a single rebuttal.
As they thought back to that flash of lightning and that shockingly peerless slash, everyone instinctively agreed with Brain's words.
Indeed, Brain's slash had already been incredibly fast and powerful, but compared to Riezel's, it was in a whole different realm.
"...I get how you feel." Gazef let out a wry smile.
No choice.
"My Sixfold Slash of Light was also effortlessly countered by Sir Brynhart. Back then, I couldn't even make him use the move he just demonstrated..."
Remembering the battle with Riezel at Carne Village, Gazef sighed with regret.
"If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have realized just how skilled he is in swordsmanship."
As soon as everyone heard this, they froze in surprise.
"Wait a sec! You mean... you didn't know about it before?" Gagaran asked, looking shocked. "Huh? Didn't you already know that guy's strong?"
"Yes, I never denied that..." Gazef nodded, hesitating for a moment before continuing. "It's just... I always thought Sir Brynhart's true strength lay in magic, not swordsmanship. It wasn't until today that I realized how completely wrong I was."
Upon hearing this, everyone was speechless once again.
"Are you saying he's actually a magic caster who also excels at swordsmanship?"
Evileye, who had been silent all this time, asked in an astonished tone.
"While I don't know the full extent of Sir Brynhart's abilities, I'm certain he can use 5th-Tier Magic." Gazef nodded with a serious expression. "So yes, he's definitely a skilled magic caster who's already stepped into the Realm of Heroes."
As these words echoed across the courtyard, silence fell once more.
"What an amazing person..." Climb murmured, his voice carrying an undeniable sense of admiration and awe.
Brain felt the same, as, at this moment, his eyes were full of longing.
Gagaran and Evileye exchanged a shocked glance, as though they had a thousand things to say but couldn't put them into words.
With that, the name Riezel Brynhart was now deeply etched into the hearts of everyone present—a name that would be impossible to forget.