Family of Sword Saints

Although the royal palace had banned the use of magic, it wasn't completely impossible to use it there.

One way was to gain the royal family's trust and have them lift the restriction, and another option was to visit specific places, such as designated arenas or training fields.

Since these specific places were set aside for combat or training, they were among the few places within the royal palace where magic restrictions did not apply.

Similarly, Riezel and Yuri were heading toward one of these places.

"Be careful."

Yuri walked beside Riezel, her usual lighthearted demeanor replaced by a rare serious expression as she softly warned him.

"Albert Borley isn't just an ordinary knight."

Yuri's warning wasn't surprising to Riezel. 

"I can tell..."

Riezel responded nonchalantly, gazing ahead.

"Borley, if I remember correctly, he's from that family of Sword Saints you mentioned before, right?"

Previously, on their way back to the royal capital, Yuri had told Riezel that there were six Sword Saints in Jinas. As a result, while he wasn't completely familiar with all the Sword Saints of Jinas, he had a fair understanding.

The first Sword Saint was said to be the oldest among them.

Originally, he was the attendant to the previous king, and when the previous king passed away, he was still just a Sword Master. It wasn't until several years after the current king ascended the throne that he achieved the status of Sword Saint.

Currently, he resided in the royal palace to guard it and rarely made an appearance, even less so in public.

Due to his seniority, he was known as the 'Old Sword Saint'.

The second Sword Saint was someone nurtured by the current king, Hendrick, after he took the throne.

As a result, this Sword Saint was extremely loyal to Hendrick, who, in turn, trusted him greatly. Hendrick had even used him as his double on several occasions, having this Sword Saint impersonate him in dangerous situations.

Since this Sword Saint was also the leader of the royal family's assassination unit, Shadow, he became known as the 'Shadow Sword Saint'.

The third Sword Saint was a marquis.

Originally a wandering swordsman, he had entered the kingdom's sphere of influence over a decade ago. Granted the title of viscount, he continued to earn merits on the battlefield, which led to his promotion to marquis.

He was given a territory bordering a foreign land and stationed there to guard the borders and repel foreign enemies, thus becoming known as the 'Guardian Sword Saint'.

The fourth Sword Saint was the one previously mentioned who had been recruited into the Cordelion family by Sergius Cordelion.

It was said that he was born a slave and had to train hard in swordsmanship to survive, eventually achieving the status of Sword Saint. After being saved by Sergius, he became his subordinate and fought for him.

Due to losing an eye during his time as a slave, he was known as the 'One-Eyed Sword Saint'.

The fifth Sword Saint was the honorary noble previously mentioned. 

He was of noble birth himself, but his family, like the former Frenzel family, had fallen into decline. It was only when he became a Sword Saint that his family regained prominence. 

However, he had little interest in noble affairs and preferred to travel. Due to his erratic appearances and disappearances, which made him seem like a shooting star, he was known as the 'Meteor Sword Saint'.

As for the sixth Sword Saint, he was related to Albert.

In fact, the Borley family, to which he belonged, was a noble family that had existed since the founding of Jinas. More importantly, this family had been knights for generations and held legendary status within the kingdom and even across the continent.

As for the reason it held legendary status? 

It was actually simple. 

Every generation of the Borley family always produced a Sword Saint.

Yes, each generation had a Sword Saint.

From the first generation of the Borley family's ancestors to the present, spanning seven generations, each generation had a Sword Saint.

Because of this, the Borley family was known as a legendary family across the Akasha Continent, nearly everyone knew of them, and they were even referred to as the family of Sword Saints.

Among the six Sword Saints of Jinas, only the Sword Saint from the Borley family had the most outstanding background. After all, the others were either attendants, royal family followers, wandering swordsmen, former slaves, or fallen nobles.

From this, it was clear that the Borley family was the most prestigious.

Riezel recalled this information and understood why Yuri had such a serious expression.

"Is this Albert Borley the eighth generation?" Riezel asked in wonder.

Yuri first nodded, then shook her head.

"Albert is indeed the eighth generation, but he hasn't become a Sword Saint yet. Still, he's considered a more talented swordsman than any of the previous Sword Saints of the Borley family. He's only twenty-seven this year, but he has already successfully challenged and defeated 982 Sword Masters."

As mentioned before, there were generally three ways to become a Sword Saint.

First, one could challenge other Sword Masters after becoming one. If they could consecutively defeat a thousand Sword Masters, they would receive the kingdom's honor, be awarded the Sword Saint Medal, and become a Sword Saint.

Second, one could challenge a Sword Saint of the current generation after becoming a Sword Master. If they could defeat the Sword Saint, they would receive the kingdom's honor, be awarded the Sword Saint Medal, and become a Sword Saint themselves.

Third, one had to be recognized by the public as possessing the ability of a Sword Saint, with approvals and recommendations from other Sword Saints, thereby receiving recognition from the kingdom. In this way, one could become a Sword Saint through official validation.

Albert Borley was undoubtedly taking the first way.

Clearly, the first way was the most challenging path, requiring constant challenges and victories over others, where even one loss was unacceptable.

Moreover, the opponents could not be repeated, nor could they be family members, close subordinates, or even people from one's own territory or hometown—only outsiders.

Needless to say, those who chose the first way to become a Sword Saint often had to travel extensively, constantly challenging powerful figures in foreign lands, which demonstrated just how difficult this way was.

Regardless, every Sword Saint from the Borley family had always chosen the first way, as they believed that only by constantly challenging strong opponents could a swordsman's skills become sharper and more powerful.

With this belief, the descendants of the Borley family always embarked on the path of challenging powerful opponents after receiving the Sword Master Medal.

Many believed this was why the Borley family could consistently produce Sword Saints in every generation. After all, they either died in battle or emerged victorious after defeating countless strong opponents, becoming the highly honored Sword Saints.

Interestingly, this involuntarily inspired countless swordsmen to follow suit, causing many unwilling to settle for mediocrity to forge their paths through bloody battles, honing their strength to eventually become Sword Saints.

Albert was clearly one of these people, and he was close to succeeding.

Having successfully challenged and defeated 982 Sword Masters meant that if he defeated 18 more, he would become the true eighth-generation Sword Saint of the Borley family.

"Many believe that Albert will definitely become a Sword Saint before turning thirty..." Yuri continued with a serious expression. "This is also why he is seen as more talented than any of the Borley family's previous Sword Saints."

One should know that those who became Sword Saints before the age of thirty were extremely rare across the continent. At least, none of the six current Sword Saints of Jinas achieved this before turning thirty.

"Albert is now recognized as the best swordsman just under Sword Saint, widely regarded as the strongest Sword Master in Jinas." Yuri lightly shook her head. "Someone like Jill Dardis wouldn't last more than ten moves against him."

Upon hearing this, Riezel believed it to be true.

In his view, a Sword Saint was roughly equivalent to Level 7, a status held by only a single person in Orario, known as the ultimate weapon, Ottar.

Since Albert was the best swordsman just under Sword Saint, he was not far from the status of Sword Saint himself, possibly at the limit of Level 6 or even Level 7.

In Riezel's eyes, Jill was equivalent to Level 6 but not particularly strong, probably just middle Level 6 or even lower Level 6, not even comparable to Muzan, who had slaughtered thousands.

Someone at lower-middle Level 6 would undoubtedly lose to someone approaching Level 7 within a few moves if they had no trump cards.

Considering this, Albert might be the strongest opponent Riezel would encounter in this main world.

"I believe the king is likely testing you with Albert, assessing your true strength before deciding how to deal with you, so be cautious." Yuri said solemnly, speaking each word carefully.

Riezel calmly nodded as a faint, almost imperceptible smile formed at the corner of his mouth.

'Best swordsman just under Sword Saint, huh?'

In that case, he decided he would give them a surprise.

===

Royal Palace, Arena.

At this moment, everyone arrived at a vast arena, not quite on the scale of Undine's training field used for the War Festival, but still comparable to a football field.

Although the seating was sparse and clearly not intended for large crowds, it featured a single elevated platform capable of accommodating around a hundred spectators.

One by one, nobles, officials, and knights came with Hendrick, bringing him to the high platform and allowing him to take the spacious seat in the center.

Yuri was among them, sitting closest to Hendrick, her eyes fixed intently on the arena below, with a hint of concern showing through.

Riezel and Albert had already entered the arena, standing opposite each other at the center.

"Let's start right away."

Hendrick instructed the official standing nearby.

Nodding, the official acknowledged the command and stepped forward.

"Attention, the match between Sir Riezel Brynhart and Knight Captain Albert Borley shall now begin!

"Draw your swords!"

With the official's declaration, Albert was the first to draw his sword.

Soon after, Riezel's sword appeared as well, but its appearance caused quite a stir among the spectators.