Sigmund's state of mind had indeed become unstable.
He had always rejected the presence of any other Sword Saint, believing that Sinielle was his personal domain, where only he could be the strongest. He could not tolerate the existence of anyone else of the same rank within his territory.
Because of the fall of his homeland, he was unwilling to trust anyone but himself. He especially distrusted great countries such as Jinas and Reiburg, which were constantly embroiled in war.
For ordinary people, Sigmund cared little.
Relying on the strength of a Sword Saint, he was unconcerned with petty criminals or insignificant threats, which was why the underground forces of Sinielle had been able to survive for so long.
However, if someone of the same rank appeared—whether an outsider or a native—he would instinctively reject them. He could never allow such a person to remain in his territory, for they possessed the power to threaten him, to endanger his rule.
For that reason, Sigmund only allowed one Sword Saint to exist within Sinielle—himself.
Even if a native of Sinielle managed to step into the realm of Sword Saints and gained the power to threaten him, Sigmund would expel them without hesitation—driving them out, or even eliminating them.
For example, Bordo.
Even though Sigmund valued him greatly, if Bordo ever displayed the potential to ascend to the realm of Sword Saints, Sigmund would likely turn against him, drive him away, or even remove him altogether.
Such was Sigmund Bayard—a Sword Saint who could not abide any threat.
To put it nicely, he was cautious, and to put it bluntly, he was narrow-minded.
Under such circumstances, the arrival of Riezel—the youngest Sword Saint in history and a Tactical-Class Magician—had already triggered Sigmund's wariness, pushing him into an excessive reaction.
Worse still, Riezel had appeared so suddenly, so forcefully, so domineeringly—he was even prepared to touch upon taboos Sigmund allowed no one else to touch, which clearly crossed his bottom line and made him even more sensitive.
Evidently, that was why Sigmund's reaction was so extreme—his gaze toward Riezel filled with rejection and hostility.
Riezel, unaware of Sigmund's inner thoughts, narrowed his eyes at the excessive response.
"Whatever agreement Jinas has with Sinielle, what does that have to do with me?"
Riezel raised his eyebrows and spoke calmly.
"I may have been born in Jinas, but I'm just a commoner. I hold no title, nor do I have any intention of pledging loyalty to it. City Lord, surely you're clear on that much?"
"Since that's the case, I don't represent Jinas, and Jinas doesn't represent me."
"I'll do whatever I want, so stop trying to use Jinas to pressure me."
Upon hearing this, Sigmund's wariness did not ease—it only grew tighter.
"In that case, why have you come to Sinielle?" Sigmund demanded.
"Does that have anything to do with you?" Riezel asked back with a faint smile.
"Nothing to do with me?" Sigmund's anger twisted into laughter. "I am the Lord of Sinielle. I built this city with my own hands. You come here to stir up trouble and dare to say it has nothing to do with me?"
"True, you are the Lord of Sinielle, the founder of this city. Here, your word is law, and no one dares defy you." Riezel replied mockingly. "But this city never had a rule that required newcomers to explain every reason for entering, did it? Must everyone who comes here report to you, City Lord? If so, why not make it an official rule and announce it to all?"
Sigmund was momentarily speechless.
As a neutral city, Sinielle truly had no such rule.
Even though it had reached partial self-sufficiency, it still relied on imports from neighboring countries for certain resources.
For Sinielle to grow, it had to account for population.
In other words, if Sigmund wanted to attract outsiders to trade or even settle in Sinielle, he could not impose overly strict or exclusionary rules, or he would risk driving people away.
Yet now, Riezel was using this very fact against him.
Of course, Sigmund was not left without words.
"Sinielle is just a small city built in the desert. What could possibly attract a Sword Saint like you?"
Sigmund pressed Riezel, unwilling to relent.
"Not to mention, the moment you arrived, you went after taboos, forbidden items. I have every reason to suspect you intend harm against Sinielle."
"Perhaps in Jinas you were spoiled, free to do as you pleased because no one dared oppose you, but this is not Jinas, but Sinielle—my Sinielle."
"If you ignore the rules here and casually touch the dangerous items I, the City Lord, have forbidden, then what use is there for me to remain City Lord if I let it slide?"
"By disregarding the rules I've set, you are provoking me, making yourself my enemy—and the enemy of Sinielle!"
Sigmund then raised his hand.
*BANG!*
Around him, the knights immediately responded as if receiving a signal, stepping forward in unison, their boots striking the ground with a heavy thud.
"Today, I'll see for myself what makes the so-called genius—renowned across the entire Akasha Continent—so special that you dare disregard me and storm into my City Hall so arrogantly."
Sigmund gripped a sheathed weapon, his gaze toward Riezel icy cold.
"And I'll show you, rookie, that you have no right to provoke a veteran Sword Saint."
With that, Sigmund slowly drew the weapon from its sheath.
"Hm?"
Riezel, about to speak, was immediately distracted by the weapon.
It was a weapon that looked like a sword yet not a sword, like a blade yet not a blade.
It was like a sword, for it had a hilt and blade, but no tip or cutting edge.
It was like a blade, for its end slanted like one, yet still lacked both tip and edge.
What it most resembled, in Riezel's eyes, was a 'ruler'—a weapon the size of a sword, yet shaped like a metal ruler.
Its material seemed special, its whole body glowing with an amber hue—beautiful, almost elegant.
Along its amber blade were inlaid twelve gems of different colors—red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, purple, gold, silver, black, white, and brown—twelve in total, shining vividly even in the pre-dawn darkness.
However, this was not what drew Riezel's greatest attention.
What struck him most was that both the twelve gems and the amber weapon itself flowed with subtle yet overwhelmingly powerful magical energy.
Needless to say, this told Riezel that Sigmund's weapon was no ordinary weapon.
In Riezel's eyes, its threat surprisingly surpassed even Raven's Rebellion.
Among all weapons Riezel knew, only Moslow ranked higher, so its quality was likely above even a Divine-Class Item—comparable to a World Item.
'What weapon is that?'
Riezel could not help but feel curious.
Sigmund, however, paid him no heed.
"Magicians, withdraw! Activate the multiple interference barriers around the City Hall!"
"Regular knights, fall back! You are authorized to use magic shells and magic arrows for support fire!"
"Oasis Knights—surround him!"
Right before Riezel, Sigmund issued a series of commands.
Clearly, Sigmund had no intention of fighting one-on-one, deploying his forces instead and relying on numbers to overwhelm.
""YES, SIR!""
At the commands, the surrounding knights and magicians immediately obeyed.
Even knowing their opponent was a Sword Saint of the same rank as their City Lord, and also a Tactical-Class Magician, their expressions remained calm and resolute—proof that their battlefield discipline was extraordinary.
*Buzz—*
In that instant, the retreating regular knights drew bows and nocked arrows forged of magic-infused metal, aiming at Riezel.
At the same time, the Oasis Knights advanced to encircle Riezel, cutting off every path.
Meanwhile, the magicians within the surrounding buildings activated magic barriers, raising a transparent dome that enveloped the entire City Hall.
Once the barriers rose, the mirrors around Riezel and the light beams behind him flickered violently, as if disrupted by some unknown force, becoming unstable.
Seeing this, Riezel immediately understood—within the multiple interference barriers of the City Hall, magic would not function properly.
Although it could not match Jinas's Light of Heaven—a strategic-class barrier capable of completely nullifying magic—the City Hall's barrier still disrupted most magic spells, weakening their power or even causing them to fail outright.
Needless to say, this was why many great powers did not fear magicians as much as high-ranking swordsmen.
As the saying went—Use magic to defeat magic.
Great powers fortified their bases with protective barriers and traps to neutralize magic, preventing themselves from being assassinated by some unknown spell.
Even the Frenzel family's main residence had such measures, so as the administrative heart of Sinielle, the City Hall naturally could not be without them.
"You regret barging into my territory so recklessly now, don't you?"
Sigmund sneered at the silent Riezel.
"Attack!"
At Sigmund's command, the knights loosed their bowstrings.
*Whoosh!**Whoosh!**Whoosh!**Whoosh!*
Instantly, a storm of arrows filled the sky, curving through the air as they rained down on Riezel.
*Buzz—*
If one looked closely, the arrows crackled with fierce magical energy.
"Heh..."
At the sight of the oncoming storm, Riezel chuckled before reaching for the sword at his waist, gripping it tightly.
===
[A bonus chapter for every 500 Power Stones.]
[Support me and read next chapters early at: patreon.com/VALRRR]