98 Shadow

The Frenzel Mansion, Top-Floor Office.

At this moment, Riezel had already returned and was sitting before a desk, recounting everything that had happened today to Yuri.

Ain and Ian stood behind him, occasionally adding a word, causing Yuri to stare straight at Riezel in silence.

"...Why are you looking at me like that?" Riezel asked with an awkward tone.

Yuri's intense gaze made him a bit uncomfortable, and yet, she just continued to stare at him, as if trying to see through him.

No choice.

"Don't you want to explain?" Yuri said to him with a tone of uncertainty. "You... defeated a Sword Master effortlessly, really?"

Indeed, Ain and Ian had informed her about how Riezel defeated the burly attacker. Her gaze at him became increasingly uneasy, while Marilyn on the side also stared at him, giving off a feeling as if ready to interrogate him with force.

In response, Riezel appeared nonchalant.

"Hahh... What do you want me to explain?" Riezel sighed before smiling. "Do I have to explain how fabulous I am to you?"

"Fabulous?" Yuri showed a puzzled expression.

"It means very amazing..." Riezel answered, then paused for a second before continuing as if changing the subject. "First of all, you didn't ask, and I can't just simply tell you how amazing I am, can I?"

After all, he wasn't a narcissist or a pretentious guy who liked to brag about himself without reason.

"But isn't this a bit too much?" Yuri grumbled. "Didn't you just start learning swordsmanship? I've never heard that you practiced it before. You're clearly an expert who can easily defeat a Sword Master."

That was the part that surprised her.

She had long investigated Riezel, knowing all about his life's story. Among these stories, nothing was proving that he had practiced swordsmanship. Even in the past, his attitude toward swordsmen was completely no different from how other magicians viewed them.

He had a somewhat disdainful view—magicians were noble beings, while swordsmen were mere laborers who understood nothing but killing.

That was the arrogant mindset held by most magicians.

In the past, Riezel was someone like that, aiming to become a Tactical-Class Magician, even a Strategic-Class Magician, to obtain a noble title from the kingdom, and becoming a noble. He genuinely looked down on swordsmen who could only serve as tools for the kingdom and nobles.

Such Riezel, even during his time at the academy, already showed signs of being ignorant and incompetent, so how could he possibly study swordsmanship?

Yet, all of those facts clashed entirely with the exceptional ability he displayed earlier.

As a result, Yuri was genuinely surprised and amazed to learn that he effortlessly dealt with a swordsman of Sword Master caliber.

Riezel was well aware of this situation.

Considering the original Riezel's behavior, suddenly revealing such exceptional strength would undoubtedly astonish and raise doubts among those who knew him.

However, Riezel had no intention of hiding it from Yuri.

"I only had a little luck..." Riezel said with a faint smile. "I'll tell you more about it when the opportunity arises."

The implicit meaning behind his words was that, in this situation, it wasn't really appropriate to bring up this matter.

It was only natural.

Riezel didn't want to make the Dimensional Magic Cube situation widely known.

Even though Yuri was his lifesaver, when it came to this unbelievable matter, whether Yuri believed it or not was another story.

For that reason, he didn't plan to explain too much.

Yuri seemed to sense the implicit meaning behind his words, and although there was some difficulty accepting it, Riezel's unflinching gaze and focus softened her heart.

"Alright, let's leave this topic for now..." Yuri sighed and redirected the conversation. "If we consider the outcome of this incident alone, it's quite worth celebrating."

Wasn't it?

Despite the ambush, not only was Riezel unharmed, but he also gained sudden and powerful strength, undoubtedly bringing a sense of relief to her. At least now, he had some means of self-defense, avoiding the helpless situation he had been in before.

It was indeed a good thing.

"It's just a pity that they all committed suicide. Trying to find out who instigated them and whether they were from the Heretic Assassin might become challenging." Yuri expressed regret.

"Is there no way to investigate?" Riezel inquired.

"Investigation's definitely needed, but whether we'll get results is hard to say..." Yuri paused briefly before continuing. "From what you've said, they chose suicide without hesitation when they realized their task couldn't be completed. It suggests they're adept at handling such situations, swiftly taking action to conceal their secrets in the face of failure."

In such circumstances, even if they investigated, it was likely they wouldn't find satisfying evidence.

Because they already had a well-established set of responses like a code of conduct, it was certain they had considered what kind of investigation would follow once the one executing the task died and their people's corpse was taken away.

"Based on this point, I believe that even if we ask a court magician to use special magic to trace the memories of the corpses, it probably won't work all that well."

What Yuri said was made sense.

Being able to abandon an expert Sword Master and let him and all those attackers willingly poison themselves to death after the task failed without hesitation, the mastermind behind them surely considered that their corpses would be investigated, and clues would be gathered using magic.

"If I'm not mistaken, those corpses are likely planted with counter-perception magic, mind magic, memory magic, and other means... So, we'll most likely not find any useful clues in our investigation." Yuri added.

Upon hearing her explanation, Riezel furrowed his brow, but he didn't feel disheartened either.

'Can't investigate, then so be it... At least, it's not without gains.' Riezel remarked inwardly.

Through this attack, he understood two things.

One—the enemy had not given up on taking his life.

Two—for now, he could protect himself.

Knowing his power level in this world, he wasn't in a hurry. If even a Sword Master could be easily defeated by him, any attempted attack on him would likely require a Sword Saint or a magician of the same level.

Riezel didn't believe that someone would go to the lengths of sending a SwordSaint to deal with a 'somewhat talented' minor character like himself. It was a matter of price, a question of whether it was worth it. He believed they might hesitate before deciding whether to act against him.

This realization brought Riezel some peace of mind.

"I'll ask the royal palace's court magician or the church's high priest to come and see if they can do something..." Yuri didn't give up. "If there are any leads or information on this matter, I'll inform you."

"Got it." Riezel nodded in agreement.

The two continued discussing some details for a while before he finally left the office.

In the office, only Yuri, Marilyn, Ain, and Ian remained.

Yuri's relaxed attitude toward Riezel instantly vanished as her face quickly became expressionless.

"Speak." Yuri directed her gaze at Ain and Ian. "What have you two found?"

She keenly sensed that Ain and Ian had something to say. Otherwise, they would have walked away after their task was completed rather than staying in the office to discuss more confidential topics with Riezel.

Hearing their master's question, Ain and Ian exchanged glances.

"My Lady..." Ian lowered her voice. "The skills of those people seem somewhat like those from the Shadow."

Upon hearing that, not only Yuri's but even Marilyn's expression changed abruptly.

"Are you sure?" Yuri unconsciously leaned forward.

"I'm not certain, but it really seems like it..." Ain chimed in, unusually talkative. "I've fought with the Sword Master. Even though he wields a seemingly heavy broadsword, his speed, which doesn't match his big body, and his combat style, which minimizes all movements and sounds that come with his actions, resemble the Shadow's favored swordsmanship, the Hazy Strike Sword Style."

As Yuri heard the explanation, her face gradually sank, while her hands placed on the desk tightened bit by bit. A dreadful magical energy emanated slowly from her body, and a cold expression appeared on her face.

"In other words, the people who targeted Riezel weren't the Heretic Assassin, but rather the Shadow Knights working directly for the royal family?" Yuri's words, spoken slowly and deliberately, sent shivers down one's spine.

It was a secret known to only a select few of high status.

Within Jinas, there existed an assassination unit.

Members of this unit were referred to as the Shadow Knight. Only those belonging to the royal family could be aware of their existence and possessed the privilege to mobilize them.

Since Ain and Ian mentioned that the attackers resembled the 'Shadow', it strongly suggested that the one who attacked Riezel was likely the Shadow Knights.

Now, the question was, who could dispatch the Shadow Knights to assassinate Riezel?

The answer was almost self-evident.

The only thing Yuri couldn't comprehend was why someone from the royal family would target Riezel. However, before she could figure out this matter, Marilyn, who had remained silent, suddenly spoke up.

"In the past, Mr. Riezel seemed quite close to the daughter of the Elliott family."

With a simple remark from Marilyn, Yuri understood everything.

Because the Elliott family was a vassal of a certain duke family.

Furthermore, this duke family had been rather unruly in recent years, harboring thoughts deemed unacceptable for the current king and the royal family.

In such a situation, when a promising future great magician like Riezel suddenly made contact with someone who was related to this duke family, it was only natural for some people from the royal family to react strongly.

In other words, Riezel simply had become entangled in political struggles, almost becoming a pawn in political machinations.

"Marilyn, prepare the carriage."

Yuri stood up and spoke with a cold tone and expression.

"I'm going to the royal palace."