The next day, early morning.
When Riezel and Lizbeth woke up, as expected, the people at Sunset Tavern had finally discovered their identities.
However, by the time the matter was reported to the City Hall, and when a large force of knights from the nearby branch rushed in to storm the place, Riezel and Lizbeth had already left the room.
Wearing cloaks with hoods pulled low, they walked under the sweltering wind while conversing along the street.
"First, let's buy everything we need. Otherwise, once we leave, we may never get the chance to return to this city."
Riezel reminded Lizbeth, and she nodded solemnly.
He had razed the City Hall to the ground and had nearly killed Sigmund, the City Lord himself, so if he ever returned here, peace would definitely never follow him.
For that reason, Riezel had already decided never to set foot in Sinielle again.
Sinielle's ancient ruin was their next destination, where they would enter and explore, searching for clues about the ancient magic civilization, Moslow, and even the Dimensional Magic Cube. If all went well, both Riezel and Lizbeth would have no reason to come back to Sinielle after this journey.
As a result, both Riezel and Lizbeth acted with the resolve that they would never again visit this neutral city. In such a case, they had to stock up on supplies as quickly as possible, since once they left, they might not find any place to replenish.
Even though Riezel could use magic to erase fatigue and survive without food or drink, Lizbeth still needed meals and rest.
Besides, outside Sinielle lay a vast desert with no resources—not even a single drop of water. If they did not seize this chance to buy what they needed in Sinielle, the only oasis in this Neutral Territory, they would certainly be in trouble.
With that, Riezel and Lizbeth wandered through the streets of Sinielle, buying freely from one shop after another.
Of course, this caused Riezel's wallet to shrink rapidly, and before long, it might be emptied entirely.
'After I finish with the ancient ruin, if I still plan to travel, I'll need to find a way to make money.'
Riezel weighed the nearly flat pouch of coins and shook his head.
Money was always a problem on the Akasha Continent since currency was not made of ordinary metals, making it troublesome for him to operate here without finding ways to earn it.
Fortunately, he had already thought of one.
'If it comes down to it, I'll really have to sell monster meat.'
Riezel put away his pouch, glanced at the bustling street, and then noticed Lizbeth already walking toward the next shop ahead.
Suddenly, Riezel stopped in his tracks.
"Master, what's wrong?"
Lizbeth, sensing Riezel stop, halted as well and turned back toward him.
"...Nothing." Riezel shook his head after a moment of silence. "Let's keep going."
Although a little puzzled, Lizbeth did not press Riezel and simply continued forward, while he followed behind, watching her timidly converse with shopkeepers and buy supplies listlessly.
Before he knew it, Riezel found this sight... rather pleasant—at the very least, it was peaceful.
Unfortunately, such peace would not last long.
===
Meanwhile, as Riezel and Lizbeth strolled leisurely, buying resources for their journey, a figure peeked out from the corner behind them.
Upon closer look, it was a woman who had once crossed paths with them.
It was none other than Rhea, the younger sister of the captain of one of Sinielle's mercenary groups, Illusionist.
Rhea, who had once tried to pull Riezel into her side to fight the other underground forces and seize contraband, was now secretly tailing him and Lizbeth—her face brimming with a sense of blessing in disguise.
'Who would've thought, coming out to buy potions for my brother's injuries, I'd run into these two?'
Rhea's heart was filled with joy.
It was sheer coincidence, with no other cause.
While buying potions for her injured brother, she had accidentally spotted Riezel and Lizbeth shopping heavily on the street.
Even though both wore cloaks, she instantly recognized them.
Especially Riezel, she had dreamed of him more than once these past two nights, so she could never mistake that figure.
Of course, the reason Riezel haunted her dreams was because of his performance that night in the Warehouse District. One strike to slay an expert Sword Master, walking away with the box as though nothing stood in his path, treating all those forces and powerhouses present as if they were ants.
Such a display—how could it not leave a deep mark on her mind?
And that impression had only deepened yesterday, because of what happened with the City Hall.
Indeed, Rhea strongly suspected Riezel was involved in the destruction of the City Hall.
It was honestly an easy connection to make.
'After he snatched the box and left the Warehouse District that day, the City Hall suddenly went all out, sending a bunch of Oasis Knights to lock down an inn before a crazy fight broke out, almost burning the whole place to the ground.'
'Not long after, the City Hall itself suddenly went up in flames and got completely wiped out.'
'If someone tries to tell me this had nothing to do with that mysterious swordsman, there's no way I'm buying it.'
Rhea was not the only one—everyone who knew about the battle at the Warehouse District and the sudden siege of that inn connected the dots in the same way.
They believed the City Hall had discovered who stole the box and where he was, which was why they launched such a sudden, large-scale action. And since the City Hall was later burned to the ground, no one believed it was unrelated to the thief.
Because of that, underground forces and many mercenaries had already begun searching for Riezel's trail, moving in secret.
In the end, however, the first to find him was not the spies of any major power, but Rhea, who had only gone out to buy potions.
'Now's a good chance.'
With this thought, Rhea crept after Riezel and Lizbeth, but soon anxiety began to take hold.
Evidently, the others had spotted Riezel as well, trailing him while sending reports back to their factions. If this kept up, those factions would surely converge on him, and things would get messy.
'No. I can't let that happen...' Rhea bit her lip and stepped out of the corner. 'I gotta move now, or I'm gonna lose this chance.'
Taking a deep breath, she walked straight toward Riezel, but just as she came up behind him, ready to call out, his voice suddenly cut through the air.
"I thought you didn't dare to come out."
Riezel spoke without turning, his words clearly meant for her.
Rhea froze, a cold sweat sliding down her forehead.
"S-So... you had already noticed me, sir?" Rhea forced an awkward smile.
"Sir?" Riezel still did not turn around, but his voice carried a mocking tone. "Didn't you use to call me 'kid' and 'buddy'?"
Upon hearing this, Rhea nearly cursed aloud, not expecting that he still actually remembered that.
"...Earlier, I failed to see your true strength." Rhea quickly bowed her head and apologized. "Please forgive me."
However, Riezel's only reply was cold.
"Your eyesight really is poor." Riezel said calmly. "I know exactly why you came, but do you actually think you can force me to hand the thing over? If that's really what you believe, then you're not only blind—you've got no sense at all."
Rhea's face instantly stiffened.
Her expression shifted over and over, her mind racing through countless scenarios—even the thought of attacking this mysterious swordsman from behind.
However, instinct warned her—if she dared, then the next second the one lying in a pool of blood would not be him, but herself.
He had effortlessly cut down an expert Sword Master with a single strike, broken free of multiple Oasis Knights' siege, and even burned the City Hall to the ground, so his strength needed no further proof.
Who else had ever dared storm the City Hall and set it ablaze?
Not even Leo, hailed as the strongest of the underground world, reckless as he was, would dare attempt such a thing.
Yet Riezel had done it—and succeeded, which alone proved his power.
Fortunately, she did not know that even the City Lord himself had once been beaten black and blue by Riezel. Otherwise, she would have turned and fled without a second thought.
"…I wanna make a deal with you on behalf of our mercenary group." Rhea steadied herself, staring at Riezel's back.
"A deal again?" Riezel finally turned, gazing with interest at the familiar mercenary woman. "Let's see what you think you can offer me."
At this, Rhea's spirit lifted.
"Gold coins, magic weapons, potions, pretty much any kinda alchemy stuff." Rhea declared with a grin. "Name your price, and we'll bring it out. And if we don't have it, we'll find a way to get it."
Needless to say, it was practically an open invitation for daylight robbery.
Riezel studied Rhea for a moment before speaking up.
"What is that thing, really?" Riezel finally voiced the question weighing on his mind. "Why is everyone after it?"
"Y-You don't know?" Rhea stared at him in shock.
"I don't." Riezel admitted flatly. "All I know is that since it's contraband, it must be tied to that forbidden ancient ruin, isn't it?"
Rhea was struck speechless as she realized that Riezel had stolen the box without even knowing what it was.
===
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