"W-Who are you all...?"
Hugh asked the question almost instinctively, his voice betraying the shock and wariness he was trying to suppress.
In response, the young man standing at the front took a calm step forward before speaking in an even, reassuring tone.
"Relax. We’re not your enemies."
At least, not for now.
"Not enemies..."
Hearing those words did not make Hugh relax in the slightest.
On the contrary, he became even more tense.
Although such a reaction was rather shameful for an experienced Sword Master who had fought through countless battles, the moment the young man spoke and everyone else turned their eyes toward him, Hugh vaguely felt an overwhelming pressure bearing down on him.
It truly shocked him.
Before him stood a group of young men and young women who looked much younger than he was and seemed as though they had simply come out for a leisurely trip to the countryside.
Yet each of them was probably stronger than he was.
The golden sword held by the frail-looking girl with an unbelievably curvy figure radiated an astonishingly sharp aura.
The yawning young woman carried a faint scent of blood about her.
As for the older man and woman, one looked fierce while the other appeared refined and intellectual.
Neither of them was clearly an ordinary person.
And then there was the demon-like female Sword Saint, whom Hugh feared the most. As soon as she arrived, she had respectfully stepped back to stand beside the young man, as though serving as his attendant.
Being stared at by such a group made even Hugh incredibly nervous.
Ironically, the young man who appeared to be the leader of everyone present had an extremely weak sense of presence. Hugh could not feel the slightest trace of aura from him. At first glance, he looked like a completely ordinary person, someone who could easily be overlooked if one was not paying attention.
Even so, Hugh did not dare underestimate him.
After all, if he could lead a group like this and even have a female Sword Saint serve him as her master, there was no way he could be an ordinary person.
Perhaps he was a powerful magician?
But if he really was a magician, how could he be wearing so little in such freezing weather without feeling cold?
Was he carrying some magic item that protected him from the cold?
Countless thoughts ran through Hugh’s mind as he tried to calmly analyze the situation, only to find himself growing even more nervous the more he thought about it.
"Let’s introduce ourselves first. I’m Riezel Brynhart. Just call me Riezel."
Seeing how uneasy Hugh looked, the young man, who was none other than Riezel, pressed his lips together slightly before speaking.
Hugh froze for a moment before hurriedly replying.
"I’m Hugh Faulkner, the knight captain of the Beryl family."
"Hm, the Beryl family?" Riezel said, sounding somewhat embarrassed. "Sorry, we’re from another country, so we don’t really know who the Beryl family is. Could you tell us a bit about them?"
Hugh was not surprised by Riezel’s admission.
He had already figured out that Riezel and the others were not from Theresis. Even if he had not recognized Lilith as a foreign Sword Saint earlier, he would have still reached the same conclusion simply because their clothing was noticeably different from what people in Theresis wore. Anyone with good eyesight could tell they were foreigners.
Maybe the only thing he did not know was which country they came from.
While continuing to analyze the situation in his mind, Hugh answered Riezel’s question honestly.
"The Beryl family is one of the count families of Theresis. I serve the Beryl family, and this region is also the Beryl family’s territory. I was ordered to guard the border here."
Thanks to Hugh’s explanation, Riezel finally understood who the man before him was and learned about the situation in Mitte.
As mentioned earlier, Mitte was a border city and the closest city in Theresis to Lukais. It served as a fortress, and its primary responsibility was defending against invasions from foreign nations.
Like the Mavros family of Jinas, the Beryl family ruled the border territory in this region and therefore bore the responsibility of guarding the frontier.
Of course, there was a considerable difference between the two.
The Mavros family was a marquis family, whereas the Beryl family was only a count family.
The strongest defender of Mavros Territory was the Guardian Sword Saint, Raven Mavros. In contrast, the strongest defender of Beryl Territory was the man standing before them, Hugh Faulkner.
Although he was not a direct member of the Beryl family, he was a knight loyal to them. Because the family held high expectations for him, they had sent him to Mitte, where he had become the supreme commander of the city’s military forces.
In Mitte, aside from the mayor, Hugh held the highest status.
At first glance, Mitte’s defenses seemed far inferior to those of Bessare, Jinas’s border city. Its strongest defender was only a Sword Master rather than a Sword Saint, making it seem rather unreliable.
However, the situation could not be judged so simply.
Jinas had to defend against Reiburg, another great power. Naturally, its border required a Sword Saint to guard it.
Theresis, on the other hand, only had to defend against the small kingdom of Lukais. Although Lukais was considered relatively strong among the smaller countries, it was still only a small nation. Naturally, Theresis would not go to the trouble of stationing a Sword Saint on the border because of it.
Even though Lukais ranked among the ten strongest small countries, it possessed only two Sword Saints and not a single Strategic-Class Magician.
What about Theresis?
Although this northern queendom of snow and ice possessed only one Strategic-Class Magician, it had a total of seven Sword Saints, which was one more Sword Saint than Jinas had possessed before Riezel earned the title of Sword Saint.
For that reason, Theresis naturally had no reason to take a nation with only two Sword Saints seriously.
In the past, Lukais had never dared to provoke Theresis. It had practically gone out of its way to avoid offending the only great power in the north, and that situation had lasted for nearly two hundred years.
Because of that, Theresis had no reason to keep a Sword Saint permanently stationed here, nor did it believe that a small nation would risk its own destruction by invading Theresis.
Who could have expected that today, Lukais not only dared to do it, but did so so openly?
As a result, the mere Beryl family and a border city whose greatest combat power was only a Sword Master naturally had no way to guarantee that they could defend the city against a thoroughly prepared enemy.
If Riezel and the others had not happened to arrive at Theresis’s border today, Mitte would undoubtedly have truly fallen. Beryl Territory might also have suffered a full-scale invasion, causing Theresis to lose precious land and allowing a small nation to trample upon its dignity.
"I see. Sounds like you’ve had it pretty rough too."
Riezel offered the battle-hardened knight a few words of comfort, allowing him to relax a little.
Only then did Hugh remember what he should have done from the very beginning.
Taking a deep breath, Hugh bowed deeply to Riezel.
"Thank you very much for your help today. I will report this matter to both my family and the mayor, and they will prepare a generous gift for all of you."
Yes, the most important thing to do now was to express his gratitude.
No matter what, they had saved his life and the entire city of Mitte. Regardless of where they had come from or what their purpose was, he had to thank them.
Needless to say, this was no minor favor.
Although it had only been a battle on the border, without their assistance, Theresis’s border would certainly have been breached today, Mitte would have faced complete destruction, and that person might have been doomed forever, with no hope of ever rising again.
If Theresis’s border had been broken by a small nation of bandits it had always looked down upon, the incident would surely have become a disgrace to the queendom and made it the laughingstock of the entire continent.
That was something Hugh absolutely could not tolerate, so no matter what, he had to offer his sincere thanks.
Furthermore, the young man had a Sword Saint serving as his attendant, along with a group of obviously extraordinary people following him in silence. Judging from their appearance and bearing, their background had to be extraordinary as well. Perhaps even the Beryl family could not afford to offend them.
With that thought, Hugh became even more respectful.
"Please allow me to escort all of you into the city so that I may properly host you."
Riezel considered it for a moment before finally nodding.
"All right. We’ll take you up on your hospitality then."
After all, his original goal had been to enter the city, gather information, and make preparations for the journey. Now that the second most important figure in Mitte was personally hosting them, everything would likely proceed much more smoothly.
As for everyone else, once Riezel had made his decision, none of them objected. They silently followed behind him as Hugh escorted the group into Mitte.
===
Because the city had only just been breached, both the city walls and the city gate had been blown apart. As a result, when Riezel and the others entered Mitte, the first thing that greeted them was a scene of utter devastation.
The buildings closest to the city gate had been caught up in the fighting, with some of them still burning. Corpses were scattered everywhere across the ground, including both the guards of Mitte and the soldiers of Lukais.
Bloodstains could be seen everywhere, and there were even civilians who had been mercilessly murdered. Groups of surviving family members and loved ones wept bitterly beside their bodies, causing Lizbeth to reveal a pained expression while Ivy and Leo frowned deeply.
In addition, countless wounded people lay on the ground, groaning in pain. Since the battle had only just ended, there were far too few people available to care for them. Many of the wounded had not even been carried to the side to receive the most basic treatment.
The sight caused Hugh’s expression to darken.
"Quick! Get people over here to take care of the wounded!"
Hugh shouted at the guards nearby.
At that moment, however, the silent Riezel suddenly spoke.
"I’ll do it instead."
As he spoke, Riezel ignored Hugh, who had frozen in place, and slowly raised a hand.
In an instant, a pure white magic circle spread out beneath Riezel’s feet, expanding across the entire area. Countless white particles of light drifted up from the magic circle before gently descending onto the wounded, and their injuries healed at a speed visible to the naked eye.
The miraculous scene not only caught Ivy and Leo’s attention but also left Hugh staring at Riezel in astonishment.
"Could you be... a Tactical-Class Magician?"
Hugh blurted out.
Although the overwhelming effectiveness of Riezel’s healing magic had already shocked him, what astonished him even more was the sheer range of the spell.
With an area of effect this vast, it could only be Tactical-Class Magic. And anyone capable of casting Tactical-Class Magic was naturally a Tactical-Class Magician.
"Well... you could say that."
Riezel offered no further explanation and answered vaguely.
Yet it was precisely because of that response that Hugh became convinced Riezel was probably more than just a Tactical-Class Magician. At the very least, Hugh had never heard of a Tactical-Class Magician who had a Sword Saint serving as an attendant.
Not even a Strategic-Class Magician could accomplish such a thing, after all.
A Sword Saint represented the highest honor a swordsman could attain, while a Strategic-Class Magician represented the pinnacle of all magicians, making the two generally regarded as equals in status and standing among the continent’s greatest figures.
As far as Hugh knew, only someone like a king—the ruler of an entire nation—would be qualified to have a Sword Saint serve as an attendant.
Hugh silently wondered, and his attitude unconsciously became even more respectful.
If even Hugh reacted that way, then the people around them looked at Riezel as though he were a god descending from heaven.
"Who’s that guy?"
"Man, that magic’s insane."
"Is he from the Beryl family?"
"The Beryl family has a magician that powerful?"
"That healing magic was at least Tactical-Class, right?"
"A Tactical-Class Magician..."
As the soldiers and guards quietly whispered among themselves, those who had been healed repeatedly bowed in gratitude, sincerely thanking Riezel for saving their lives.
Meanwhile, those who had lost their families rushed to Riezel’s side, pleading with him to bring their loved ones back to life.
It was undoubtedly an unreasonable request.
At least, Hugh had never heard of any magician capable of resurrecting the dead, so he immediately ordered his men to escort those people away.
Riezel silently watched the scene unfold without making a move.
He was capable of resurrecting the dead, but he had no intention of doing so.
In this world, resurrection magic was a miracle that only the gods could perform. Even Yuri, after learning about his ability, had repeatedly warned him never to reveal it. Otherwise, he would undoubtedly become the target of countless ambitious individuals throughout the continent.
Even though Riezel was not afraid of such attention, he had no intention of exposing one of his greatest trump cards and inviting unnecessary trouble.
After all, the people here were ultimately strangers with no connection to him. He was naturally willing to lend a hand and save innocent lives whenever it was within his ability, but if helping them came at too great a cost to himself, he had no desire to create unnecessary problems for himself.
Moreover, this was Theresis.
He had only just arrived and had no idea what awaited him, so it was better not to attract too much attention and risk affecting his future plans.
In the end, he was not a saint.
What he had already done was more than enough.
===
Led by Hugh, Riezel’s group arrived at the mayor’s residence in Mitte about half an hour later.
"I’ve already sent someone to inform the mayor. Please come to the reception room."
Hugh continued leading Riezel and the others until they entered the reception room inside the mayor’s residence. Waiting there was a middle-aged woman accompanied by a secretary, as though she had been expecting them for quite some time.
As soon as Riezel and the others entered, the woman immediately rose to her feet.
"Welcome to Mitte, everyone. I am the mayor of Mitte, Leffy Beryl. I look forward to making your acquaintance."