The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

“Illyna only acts like that in front of you,” Aeria said.

“Huh?”

“She only behaves that way around you. You should’ve seen how she was acting recently while you were gone,” Perserque remarked.

When Davey was away from the territory, he’d heard stories of how she dealt with a foreign noble who was causing trouble. Judging by what he heard from Aeria and Perserque, it didn’t seem like a lie.

Davey let his imagination wander briefly and couldn’t help but exclaim.

“Wow, that’s great.”

“What’s so great about it? I just don't want to show this side of me in front of others.”

Whatever the case was, Davey knew there’d be no husband in the world who’d say no to a wife wanting to show him a private side of themselves.

“It doesn’t look particularly useful, but it’s still a one-of-a-kind medal necklace with a unique pattern. At least it’s visually appealing.”

When Illyna glanced at the others for their reactions, Perserque shrugged indifferently.

“It may be one of a kind, but it doesn’t suit my taste.”

“Uh… Same with me…”

“Hm… I think it’s okay…”

The mithril medal awarded to the champion of the Continental Martial Arts Tournament was a symbol of prestige. Davey didn’t care too much for prestige, but he thought it was pretty enough to ignore that. The accompanying gauntlet was a high-value prize, supposedly worth as much as a national treasure. Even so…

“I don’t really need it.”

Personally, this kind of prize didn’t hold much appeal for him. After brief consideration, Davey decided on how to use the flashy gauntlets.

“Let’s give them to the artisans in the Yellowstone Dwarves’ Village for practice.”

If the dwarf who crafted the gauntlet heard this, they might shed tears of blood. But to Davey, it wasn’t even a particularly impressive piece of art.

“Still, the mithril decoration will probably come in handy, as a symbol of the winner—the King of Martial Arts. Do you know about its additional effect?”

“What effect?”

“Buster Call,” Illyna said.

Davey squinted at her.

“And what’s that supposed to mean?”

“You don’t know? Back on Earth’s internet, just saying that had people’s jaws dropping.”

“Wait, so what does it mean?”

“The support from the Emperors of the Three Empires. Just once, if deemed reasonable by the Emperor, it can allow one to use the special authority of the International Federation. This item is only given to someone deemed worthy of such power.” �

“Hm?”

“Apparently, a past winner of the swordsmanship tournament used it to request massive support for the extermination of monsters threatening their territory. Swordmasters from various nations were mobilized, and they truly eradicated every last monster in the area.”

Davey couldn’t shake the feeling that using such a significant reward so casually was a waste.

“I don’t really need something like that.”

“Haha, of course it’s not very useful—by your standards,” Baris said.

He knew he truly didn’t need it.

“Davey, the preparations to return to the Rowane Kingdom are complete. Are you planning to stay any longer?”

“No, I’ll be heading back.”

Baris nodded in response.

“Then I’ll finalize the arrangements…”

“But before that, there’s something I need to take care of. Wait a bit longer, Baris.”

“Huh? There’s something else?”

“It’s nothing major.”

Davey thought back to when he saw the face of the King of Terraria Kingdom, who had been watching him during the tournament.

“I just need to shake off a little bit of dust…”

* * *

The Underground Arena.

It was a place where Maximus once held considerable influence.

“Prince, I heard the news. Heh, heh, heh.”

Maximus shrugged as he faced Ban, the manager of the underground arena, who was openly teasing him.

“I heard you got utterly thrashed.”

“Could you just shut up?”

Maximus shot back as usual, but Ban couldn’t hide his confusion.

“Prince, are you really okay?”

“What do you mean?”

“If you lose again this time…”

“Listen, Ban.”

Maximus smiled quietly. He narrowed his eyes slightly, revealing a glint of determination.

“What do you think will happen if I lose?”

“P-Prince!”

“I’ll set things right, at least from now on.”

Ban sighed deeply and gave up on trying to stop Maximus.

“Prince…”

“Do you remember what you told me a long time ago?”

“Yes… I do.”

“Then let’s get started.”

Ban shed his usual nonchalant demeanor and faced him seriously.

“Are you serious?”

“I am. It’s time to stop dreaming.”

* * *

“Well, look what we have here.”

Maximus laughed cheerfully as his siblings mocked him.

“Indeed, I lost again. I’ve accomplished nothing in the Continental Martial Arts Tournament.”

“Hah! A failure like you can’t achieve anything. It’s in your nature.”

Maximus waited patiently in the royal palace with a faint smile facing his siblings’ mockery.

“And you’re just jealous because you can’t defeat this ‘failure’ in your eyes.”

“W-What did you just say?!”

His unexpected remark left his siblings flustered and shouting, but Maximus said no more.

In the past, no matter how much his siblings despised him, he tried to embrace them as family nonetheless.

But now…

He knew things had to be corrected. He had made his decision.

“His Majesty approaches!!”

As the king entered, the atmosphere went tense and still. His imposing figure, clad in a heavy, fur-lined coat that dragged behind him, carried an air of authority.

“You lost. Again,” the king said.

Maximus quietly bowed his head in response.

“Yes, I have.”

“Pathetic…”

“Yes, I am indeed pathetic.”

“And yet, you dare show up here without shame.”

“I’ve decided to finally correct things, starting now.”

“I like the way you think.” the king said as he reclined against the throne with a slight smirk. “But I hope you haven’t forgotten what I promised would happen—about the consequences you would now face if you lost the tournament again.”

“At least it wasn’t to a rival kingdom.”

“Rowane Kingdom! A backwater nation with not a single proper warrior to its name! Is that your excuse?!”

“The prince of that backwater nation saved the world multiple times.”

Maximus raised his head, meeting the king’s gaze directly. The king gritted his teeth in irritation.

“You spoke of punishment. What will it be? Will you kill me?”

“Maximus!!”

The chamber stirred as the onlookers noticed a change in his demeanor. Maximus, who had never raised objections or defied the king, was looking him in the eye, his gaze unwavering. Nôv(el)B\\jnn

“No, of course you won’t. You can’t kill me. Even if you combined all those useless siblings of mine, they wouldn’t measure up to me.”

The biting remark made his brothers tremble with fury, but the king didn’t even flinch.

“So then, what will you do now that I lost again? You were never able to kill me, so you executed my fiance and my mother.”

“Maximus.”

“Or perhaps that wasn’t enough for you, because you gouged out the eyes of my younger sister, who loved and trusted you unconditionally as her father!”

The king remained unfazed, despite his shouting. He just stared at him coldly.

“Do you wish to die?”

“Then what else could you really do to me? What are you planning to destroy next that I truly hold dear, Your Majesty? Are you going to take your own life?”

The king, who had maintained his icy demeanor, finally showed a reaction. He snatched a sword from a nearby knight, pointing its tip directly at Maximus.

“Silence. A loser like you has no right to make demands or decisions.”

“Your Majesty!!”

“Remember this! The world belongs to the victor! The saint who defeated you claimed everything—honor, victory… everything!”

His shout thundered throughout the chamber. Turning to the gathered nobles, he said the following:

“There’s still someone left for him.”

“...”

“What are you waiting for?! Execute the maid he begged me to save before! And bring me Latiana’s head as well!”

The nobles in the chamber made shocked faces.

“Y-Your Majesty!! That is far too severe! Please reconsider your order!”

“Yes, Your Majesty! Though he was defeated, the prince has achieved accomplishments unmatched by anyone of his age! His loss is regrettable, but considering his opponent was the Saint of the Tionis, the implications change entirely! Please withdraw your command!”

“Please reconsider!!”

The nobles bowed their heads in unison, pleading fervently.

But the king was unmoved.

“Since when have you two factions dared question my commands? What are you waiting for?! Drag them out immediately!”

“Your Majesty!!”

“I am the King of Terraria! I rule this nation!!”

The king shouted in rage with veins bulging in his neck, making it clear to the nobles that there was no way they could convince him. They could only cast pitiful glances as the knights departed to carry out his order.

Yet, it wasn’t long before the knights returned while panting.

“Y-Your Majesty!!”

“What is it now?” the king said while leaning back on the throne with a look of disdain. The knights hesitated and stammered.

“Well, the…”

“They’re not there, are they?”

Hearing his words, every gaze shifted toward Maximus.

“Your Majesty.”

“You… What have you done?”

“What have I done, you ask? I’ve secured asylum for the two lives that would’ve been sacrificed to your tyranny.”

“You insolent…!!!”

The king, trembling with fury, stormed forward and grabbed Maximus by the collar. His half-closed eyes were calm nonetheless, fixed on his father—the King—with unwavering determination.

“Do you wish to die so desperately?”

“Go ahead, kill me. Your Majesty has gone mad. I believed that, perhaps, someday you might come to understand me. But now, I see that faith was meaningless.”

Smack!!

The king struck Maximus across the face.

“You foolish…!!”

“Now what will you do?”

“Track them down! Find them immediately and bring them back! They can’t have left the kingdom yet…”

“They should’ve already arrived at their destination by now.”

“What?”

“Your Majesty, do you know who my friend is?”

Maximus thought of the friend he hadn’t been able to meet ever since the tournament. Their initial encounter had been anonymous, but that didn’t matter. After sharing drinks, they formed a bond and became friends.

“Davey O’Rowane, the Saint of Tionis.”

Sending them to Davey meant that if he granted them asylum, it’d be impossible for the king to retrieve them. The Terraria Kingdom was on par with the Rowane Kingdom in terms of collective national power, but one individual tipped them off the scales.

The king glared at Maximus, trembling with rage, before shouting.

“Take him away and hang him up! Don’t give him food or water until he begs for mercy!”

“Y-Yes, Your Majesty!”

The knights hesitated, but then approached Maximus nonetheless.

“My apologies, Your Highness.”

They bound his arms and began dragging him out of the chamber.

“Prepare the whip! I’ll personally teach this insolent one a lesson!”

His roar echoed through the castle. Maximus, with his arms bound tightly and shirt removed, was brought to the palace courtyard.

“You’re a disgrace!!”

Whip!!

He struck Maximus on his back. With a deafening snap, his body shook—yet he didn’t let out a single cry of pain.

As if the king were enraged by his silent defiance, he continued striking him. But Maximus never screamed—instead, he smiled faintly.

As the whip lashed him, he slowly opened his eyes fully, and looked at the king with his vibrant violet eyes.

“I lost my fiance because I was foolish.”

“…”

“I lost my mother because I was a coward. And my sister Latiana… I let her lose her sight.”

“You dare still…!”

“Do you think I’m an idiot? That I’d have no plan to protect them?”

“I am your father!!”

“Since when, Your Majesty? When have you ever treated me as your son?”

“You insolent brat!!”

Whip!! Whip!!

The king whipped him relentlessly. With both of his hands bound and his body bleeding, he continued to speak.

“Your Majesty, I will fix this cursed royal family. No, I will correct the madness of our bloodline.”

His words teetered on the edge of treason. They were words that Maximus shouldn’t have said, despite being furious.

But—

‘Does it matter anymore?’

“And what will you do about it, Your Majesty? Kill me? Cut off my arms and legs that I need for martial arts? Perhaps tear out my tongue? Your Majesty!! To you, I’m not your son, but…!!”

“…!”

“I’ve always been nothing more than the tool to fulfill your delusional need for perfection!!”

The king trembled with rage, his eyes bloodshot. But then his icy gaze and wide open eyes made the king falter.

“To make me this wretched and still expect the loyalty and love for a father? Isn’t that asking too much?”

“You…!!!”

Unable to control his fury, the king threw the whip to the ground and drew his sword. He charged at Maximus, ready to strike him down.

“Y-Your Majesty?!”

He swung the blade down. He widened his eyes realizing that he shouldn’t have done so, but it was already too late.

Clang!!

But just before it could reach Maximus, a resounding clash rang out. An unseen force had shattered the sword mid-swing.

Silence fell over the courtyard.

The nobles and knights turned their eyes toward the gates of the castle on the opposite side, where a figure calmly stepped through.

“H-

Amidst the whispers, Maximus—bound and bleeding—turned his head to glimpse the figure through his blurred vision. A faint smile spread across his face.

“I thought we weren’t friends.”

The figure ignored his remark and approached the King of Terraria. Stopping before him, they bowed slightly and introduced themselves.

“From the Eastern Continent, I am Davey O’Rowane, First Prince of the Rowane Kingdom and the Saint of the Continent. It’s an honor to meet the Sun of the Terraria Kingdom.”

Beneath his calm smile, a chilling atmosphere spread throughout the courtyard and weighed down on everyone present.

At the same time, Baris and Winley exchanged glances over the documents a dark elf woman had delivered to them.

“Hey. Idiot. What do you think Davey is planning this time?”

Baris ignored her attitude and focused on her words.

“No idea. But if he’s kicked up this much dust…”

After a brief pause, Baris sighed and muttered.

“He’ll probably end up taking something big.”

ChubbyCheeks & FriedNook's Thoughts

Editorb’s Thought

Damn, these subordinates and officials really do be spineless jellies lol. Pick whether you're gonna be mad or not, sitting on the fence isn't gonna help anyone

There's a famous quote by civil-rights leader Frederick Douglass that fits well here.

Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will. Find out just what people will submit to, and you have found the exact amount of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon them; and these will continue until they are resisted with either words or blows, or with both. The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppress.

Now here's an anime girl using her feet to drink coffee to admire as you ponder the meaning of that passage: