"Huh, so it really was..."
Riezel's eyes lit up instead, as though he had finally confirmed something.
However, at that very moment, an angry shout suddenly rang out.
"EVERYONE, STOP THIS AT ONCE!"
A group of people rushed in through the doorway and instantly filled the entire room.
Naturally, the people who poured in from outside were none other than the knights Hendrick had brought with him, their numbers far exceeding those guarding the residence entrance. There were at least dozens of them, and every single one was a Sword Master, creating an extremely shocking sight.
One had to know that even as a Marquis, Yuri only had two Sword Master attendants under her command, Ain and Ian. At most, if Marilyn, her personal maid, was included, there were only three in total.
Yet inside the royal palace, Riezel found that he could casually run into large groups of Sword Masters everywhere. Even within the Royal Knightly Order, this many Sword Masters would already be considered genuine core forces and high-level combat power.
And now, these core forces and high-level combatants could be seen everywhere—some had been sent to guard the entrances, while others followed Hendrick in a grand procession.
It truly gave people the illusion that Sword Masters were worthless.
Of course, that feeling was merely an illusion, since the reason the knights guarding the entrances to Lizbeth and Sorren's residences were all Sword Masters was that the identities of those two individuals were special. One had been placed under house arrest due to Hendrick's condition, while the other concerned the safety of the kingdom's next heir to the throne.
All in all, Sword Masters were necessary to guard them, or Hendrick himself would never have been able to feel at ease.
As for the dozens of Sword Masters currently flooding into the room, Hendrick had likely selected them personally to keep by his side.
After all, anyone below the level of Sword Master could not participate in any incident involving Riezel—that was already a proven fact.
Riezel merely glanced at them before losing interest.
Dozens of Sword Masters would constitute a terrifying force anywhere else.
If they had been placed in Orario within the world of Danmachi, they could have even altered the structure of the city and perhaps influenced the entire Lower World. Yet in Riezel's current eyes, such a force was already somewhat unworthy of attention.
Among them, the only ones who truly caught his interest were Hendrick, who held the Sword of Authority and could wield the power of the entire Light of Heaven, and the man who was silently entering the room beside him while carrying a sword in his arms—Florent Borley.
'Heh, so you've appeared again?'
As that thought crossed his mind, the corners of Riezel's lips unconsciously curled upward ever so slightly.
Unfortunately, no one present could understand the change in his mood at that moment, as the instant Hendrick and the others entered the room, their expressions darkened.
Setting aside the messy, bloodstained room, the moment Hendrick's eyes landed on Sorren—who was lying amid the shattered remains of the bed, being stepped on by Riezel while desperately struggling beneath his foot—a flash of anger immediately surfaced in his eyes.
"Y-Your Majesty!"
Nearby, Luna dropped to her knees in panic and fear.
Lizbeth merely looked at Hendrick with a complicated expression.
Euryale tilted her head, and at some point, her gaze met Florent's, who stood beside Hendrick. One blinked with a confused look on her face, while the other narrowed his eyes slightly, as though a trace of fighting intent had begun to stir within him.
As for Riezel, he was already staring directly at Hendrick.
Seeing the fleeting anger in Hendrick's eyes, Riezel's expression became somewhat playful. Not only did he not move his foot away, but he even applied more force.
"AAAAAAHHH—!!!"
Sorren let out a ferocious growl as he struggled desperately, yet it was completely useless.
Even though he had already unleashed the full strength of an expert Sword Master—a strength capable of casually overturning a giant boulder larger than a person—and had even used spiritual power, he still could not break free from the foot pressing down on him.
Realizing that he remained completely suppressed, Sorren's rage grew even further, to the point where he was nearly losing his sanity.
Naturally, seeing him in such a state only caused the anger within Hendrick to intensify.
"...I need an explanation."
Hendrick desperately restrained his fury.
Seeing that his own son, a prince of the kingdom and one of the strongest candidates for the next king, was currently being stepped on in public was practically an open humiliation of the royal family and a trampling of its dignity.
Truthfully, the fact that Hendrick had not exploded on the spot already counted as giving Riezel considerable face.
But...
"You need an explanation, but where exactly am I supposed to get one?" Riezel said indifferently, as if he hadn't noticed Hendrick suppressing his anger at all. "I wasn't the one who attacked first."
Hendrick naturally believed that.
With his understanding of his own son, how could he not know what kind of reaction Sorren would have upon seeing Riezel?
Sorren had even dared to secretly nurture private troops and secretly use Shadow against the nobles of the Duke Faction.
Knowing that, what was there that he didn't dare to do?
Hence, Hendrick believed that the moment Sorren saw Riezel, he would attack without hesitation, even if he knew full well that Riezel was a Sword Saint and that he himself was no match.
Yet Hendrick's expression remained ugly because he did not believe Riezel was unaware of that.
Under circumstances where the relationship between himself and Sorren was already impossible to reconcile, Riezel had still deliberately approached this place and even barged in on his own initiative.
Hendrick had every reason to suspect that Riezel had done it intentionally.
Intentionally provoking Sorren.
Intentionally goading Sorren into attacking him.
That way, he would have a valid reason to make a move against Sorren.
Nevertheless, even with that in mind, Hendrick ultimately suppressed his anger and spoke to Riezel.
"Release him. No matter what, he is still a prince of this kingdom."
Hendrick's implication was clear—if Riezel continued targeting Sorren, then he would be targeting the royal family and the kingdom itself. If things reached that point, then no matter how wary Hendrick was of Riezel, for the sake of the royal family's honor and dignity, he would have no choice but to go to war with him.
Naturally, Hendrick himself did not want matters to develop to that stage, so this could also be considered as him giving Riezel a way out.
Unfortunately, Riezel still did not release Sorren.
"A prince, huh? How impressive..."
Riezel spoke with undisguised sarcasm, the corner of his mouth curling into a faint, mocking smile.
"Just because he's a prince, he gets to kill people whenever he wants and attack whoever he wants. But when someone finally teaches him a lesson, a big shot like His Majesty the King comes running out to clean up his mess and save his dignity."
"Well then, let me ask Your Majesty this. Can a prince of this kingdom attack a Sword Saint whenever he feels like it and still walk away without any consequences?"
"As long as Your Majesty says yes, I'll let him go immediately."
Riezel's words caused Hendrick's heart to jolt slightly, and he could not help but glance toward Florent beside him.
Sure enough, the Sword Saint of the Borley family had frowned slightly.
With those words, Riezel had practically tied all Sword Saints together and placed them directly opposite the royal family. If Hendrick answered yes, it would inevitably provoke dissatisfaction among all Sword Saints, which was definitely no small matter.
Sword Saints were, after all, the greatest combat power of a nation, especially existences like Florent and Raven, both of whom commanded powerful military forces and possessed tremendous status and authority within Jinas.
If Hendrick truly dared to place the face of a mere royal prince above the Sword Saints and openly flaunt the royal family's power and privilege before them today, then the consequences would not merely amount to offending one or two powerful individuals.
Realizing that, Hendrick immediately suppressed the anger in his heart and took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.
"Sir Brynhart, you exaggerate—that is not what I meant..."
Hendrick's expression eased slightly as he deliberately softened his tone, no longer carrying the same sharpness as before.
"I know that the Third Prince attacking you, a Sword Saint, on his own initiative, is naturally an unforgivable matter."
"Every Sword Saint is an important pillar of this kingdom and a powerful individual whom even the royal family must respect, after all."
"For him to act so boldly, I will naturally punish him appropriately. Please rest assured, Sir Brynhart."
Hearing that, another mocking expression flashed across Riezel's face.
"Since Your Majesty has said so much, then I'll look forward to seeing what kind of punishment you hand down," Riezel said with a faint smile. "I can let him go. However, if he comes charging at me again, then don't blame me for not giving any face to the royal family or the kingdom."
With that said, he very straightforwardly lifted his foot.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHH—!!!"
As soon as Sorren broke free, he immediately sprang to his feet and roared as he lunged toward Riezel.
"STOP!"
Seeing the scene, Hendrick's heart skipped a beat as he shouted in both shock and fury.
*Swish!*
A black shadow instantly flashed behind Sorren and struck with a knifehand.
*BANG!*
With a dull impact, the knifehand struck the back of Sorren's neck, instantly knocking him unconscious and causing his body to collapse limply onto the floor.
"My apologies, Your Highness."
Only then did Rohm reveal himself.
Carrying Sorren in his arms, he flashed back to Hendrick's side.
Clearly, the Shadow Sword Saint had not been absent and had been concealed behind Hendrick the entire time, waiting for an opportunity to act.
Had he not realized the situation was bad and intervened in time, then...
"What a shame..."
As he spoke, the faint smile on Riezel's face never disappeared, making it seem as though he had been waiting all along for Sorren to attack again.
"Hmph."
Perhaps unable to tolerate Riezel's contemptuous attitude toward royal authority, Rohm let out a cold snort.
Hendrick first sighed in relief, then immediately felt his dignity suffer another blow.
"May I ask why Sir Brynhart specifically came here today?"
Hendrick deliberately emphasized the word 'specifically.'
"It's nothing. I just came to visit Prince Sorren..." Riezel said casually. "I mean, I live nearby, after all. Since I heard His Highness was still recovering from his injuries, I figured I should at least come check on him."
"I figured, huh..." Hendrick replied with a fake smile. "How strange. I didn't know Sir Brynhart had suddenly become so close to my son."
"Isn't that a good thing?" Riezel raised a brow and smiled. "If I don't get along with the princes, would Your Majesty rather see me getting along with the eldest son of the Cordelion family?"
Hendrick's expression immediately stiffened.
"Unfortunately, His Highness seems to look down on someone like me because of his noble status," Riezel continued casually. "Well, whatever. We've got plenty of time ahead of us to get to know each other. Wouldn't you agree, Your Majesty?"
Leaving those words behind, Riezel walked out, nonchalantly brushing past Hendrick and the others.
Lizbeth and the others silently followed after him, leaving only Hendrick's group behind.
Hendrick's expression was unsightly, yet he could not say a single word.
All of a sudden, the atmosphere in the room became extraordinarily heavy to the point that it was difficult to breathe.
===
[A bonus chapter for every 300 Power Stones.]
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