The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

“...”

As the young girl lay silent and bloodied on the ground, several men and women around her seethed with fury.

“Those bastards!”

The loudest outcry came from Timmy Lendarogue, a fire mage from a ducal family who was one of her peers at Shakuntala Academy.

“Josiah…”

The sobbing girl beside him was Alyssa Yosefov, his inseparable companion.

“Pfft. How stupid of her, getting caught off guard…”

“Shut up, Selvis,” Timmy snapped.

“…”

All of them were former students of Shakuntala. Although they had since become distinguished mages who had graduated with honors, their bonds from the past remained strong.

Bang!

At that moment, the door slammed open and Davey entered.

Josiah had been found near the northern region of the Boltis Kingdom. She had ventured alone to give a gift to Evangeline, without any guards accompanying her.

Crossing the continent alone was typically reckless for a young woman, yet Josiah was far from ordinary. If she had fully awakened, her very existence would symbolize one of the continent’s most absolute forces—not due to her personal strength, but because of who she was: the leader of the surviving vampires.

She was a moderate vampire who had chosen coexistence over the extremist ideals of her kind, and was awakened by the previous Vampire Lord. While her own abilities were still budding, harming her to this degree was no small feat considering that her innate nature was protecting her.

For her to end up like this, two conditions had to be met: Josiah mustn’t have perceived her attacker as a threat, and the attacker needed holy power strong enough to bypass her instinctual protection.

“Teacher! What the hell is going on here?!” Timmy shouted, grabbing Davey by the collar as soon as he entered.

“Why is she like this? Who did this to her?!”

“Let go, Timmy Lendarogue,” Davey said calmly.

“Hah! Even after all this time, you’re still acting like you’re the only adult here—”

“Shut up and step back.”

He then turned his attention to Josiah.

She had technically died. Fortunately, the innate power of immortality within her had brought her back. The issue was, that was all it had barely managed to do—she was extremely weak at the moment.

[They call themselves judges.]

Sullivan’s words echoed in his mind, and his expression darkened. He’d already dealt with the Inquisition Tribunal once, yet here they were again.

“They never seem to learn,” Davey muttered under his breath before turning back to Timmy.

“Teacher! Josiah’s going to be okay, right? You’re a Saint with incredible healing skills! Please!”

But Davey knew healing wasn’t what Josiah needed most right now.

“Wait… Are you unable to heal her right now because we’re around?” Timmy asked softly.

“…”

“It’s fine. Do it.”

Davey glanced around the room, noting that everyone seemed to know what the two were talking about.

“We’ve known this idiot for years,” Timmy continued, his voice trembling. “We know she’s different from us.”

Davey closed his eyes for a moment before speaking.

“Lord of Geas.”

Chiiing!

He let out a massive wave of mana, drawing gasps from the students. Davey didn’t need an incantation to cast the spell, but he had done so to ensure the students understood the gravity of the situation. 𝔯𝒶𐌽Ο𝖇ÊŚ

“It’s not that I don’t trust you—it’s that this could throw the entire continent into chaos.”

“…”

"There's also a chance my current peaceful life could be shattered."

"Teacher."

"From this moment forward, you are to remain silent about Josiah and everything I do here," Davey said coldly as he looked over at the students.

They nodded without hesitation.

"Understood. We swear our lives on it.”

The students complied as he engraved the Geas spell into her heart. Davey then extended his hand toward Timmy.

"Timmy, your sword. How’s its condition?”

"It's in good shape... Why?"

"Hand it over."

Davey took the sword and imbued it with power. An almost imperceptibly thin energy wrapped the sword; it was something even a Sword Master would struggle to replicate. Without hesitation, he sliced his forearm vertically.

"Ahhh!"

"Are you insane?!"

For an ordinary person, their artery would’ve been severed, leading to catastrophic blood loss and eventual death. However, Davey manipulated his blood pressure, slowing the flow to his forearm. He then let his blood drip steadily into Josiah’s mouth.

Her source of strength was blood imbued with immense power.

In other words, his blood.

The red liquid dribbled down her pale chin. At that moment, the students watched in horror at the sight of the bright red blood.

Swoosh.

The girl, who had been lying motionless, suddenly grabbed his arm and pulled it toward her, sinking her teeth into it. Though she was still unconscious, she had moved purely by instinct.

“She’s… She’s drinking blood…”

“Wait, does this mean she’s actually a…?”

“Yes, that’s exactly what it means.”

Though they’d known that Josiah was different, it seemed none of them had expected her to be a true vampire.

"Your classmate Josiah is one of them," Davey explained evenly. "But not the kind of vampire you’d imagine. She belongs to the moderate faction, seeking coexistence rather than conflict."

"…"

"Are you afraid of her?" Davey asked.

"How about you…” Timmy asked with a hardened face. "You don’t hate her?”

Davey wasn’t fond of vampires in general. Illyna, in particular, had a time in the past when she absolutely despised vampires due to issues involving her biological mother.

However—

“Not Josiah,” he answered calmly.

He looked down at Josiah, still latched onto his arm.

“Alright, that’s enough, kiddo. I can’t tell if she’s actually conscious or just pretending now.”

Frowning, Davey tried to pull his arm away, but she clung on stubbornly, like a newborn nursing for the first time. He sighed and let her take as much as she wanted.

When Josiah finally released his arm and drifted back into sleep, Davey used holy magic to heal the wound.

"Teacher… are you alright? The amount of blood she drained was more than enough to kill an ordinary person…"

"I’m fine."

His body had gone through changes that made blood loss irrelevant. His blood now only impacted his mana circulation, so losing blood was a temporary inconvenience at best.

"You should all return."

"No," Timmy said firmly. "The ones who did this to Josiah… we’re going to make them pay."

"Don’t you all have responsibilities you’re supposed to be fulfilling?”

"...”

"So go back."

"No, we can't. We won’t leave like this."

At his resolute outcry, Davey closed his eyes quietly and thought.

‘That's right. It’s not just about Josiah right now.’

"Take care of your own life."

With those words, Davey left the hospital room.

"Aina."

"Yes?"

"Cross the Eastern Ocean with Fire Chicken and head to the Arrasis Continent. There should be vampires there.”

The Arrasis Continent.

It was significantly smaller than the Tionis Continent, but if one sailed east, they’d encounter the vast landmass.

Surprisingly, the continent was completely uninhabited by humans due to its inhospitable environment. Due to those circumstances, it served as the hideout of the vampires.

"But the Arrasis Continent is so large…"

"That won’t be an issue—they’ll probably come to greet you first. When you get there, extract every piece of information from them. Everything.”

Davey’s expression turned icy as he walked away down the dim hallway.

* * *

"Evangeline. You're here to check the requests again today?"

"Huh? Oh, yes!"

Sporting a bright smile, Evangeline brushed her jet-black hair back and laughed.

It had been two days since she shouted at her father for being so mean when he came to rescue her. Since then, Evangeline couldn’t hide her growing disappointment, as her father hadn't come back for her.

"Miss, why the long face all of a sudden? Did something bad happen?"

"My dad... my dad hasn’t come back."

The mercenary cleared his throat awkwardly and asked, "Come to think of it, you said your dad is the Saint of the Continent?"

"Yes."

He didn’t look convinced. After all, it was astronomically unlikely for the daughter of the strongest figure on the continent to be working as a mercenary in such a place.

"So… you're saying the Saint of the Continent hasn’t come to pick you up?"

"Yes…."

"I see."

"I told him I hated him… And now he won’t come. Do you think he hates me?"

Her gloomy tone prompted the mercenary to glance at his companions for help. By now, Evangeline was a well-known figure in the guild. Despite her occasional cluelessness, she was known for her incredible skill.

"Haha, is that so? Well, he’s the mean one.”

“...”

"Yeah! Prince Davey is really mean! Terrible, even!"

"Right! Making such an adorable young lady cry!"

The mercenaries figured she was mentally unwell; that she was simply delusional. They say a king gets cursed the most in his absence. The mercenaries, united as one, rallied around Evangeline and took great delight in mercilessly mocking Davey O’Rowane.

"Hahaha! Cheer up! I’ll get you an orange drink, missy!"

"O-Okay… thank you."

Sipping on the orange drink, Evangeline let out a soft sigh.

‘I want to apologize when I see Daddy…’

She refused to believe the words of the armored monster. Her dad was still her dad, someone precious to her. Although she had run away to become a hero, she secretly wished her father would come for her and hug her tightly.

"Seriously, what kind of parent leaves such an adorable daughter alone in a place like this?"

"The so-called Saint of the Continent, apparently.”

To console her, the mercenaries joyfully began badmouthing the Saint of the Continent. This made Evangeline even more upset, surging with emotion.

"Don’t insult my da—"

Bang!!

The door suddenly burst open, and someone strode in.

It was a man with jet-black hair, dressed in a refined and formal outfit. He was clearly not from around the area. The mercenaries all fell silent, turning their eyes to the unfamiliar newcomer.

"Who are you? If it’s about a request, you should head to that counter over there…"

"I’m not here for a request.”

Davey replied calmly and began walking toward Evangeline. Just as he was about to speak, he was interrupted.

"Hey, our princess is in a really bad mood right now. If you’ve got something to say, come back later."

"Yeah, unless you want trouble.”

"Yeah! That Davey-whatever-his-name-is really messed up to make our princess this upset."

The burly mercenaries stepped in front of him, blocking his way. Davey, however, merely glanced at them.

"Trouble, you say,” he said in a mocking tone.

"Huh? Get a load of this guy. Does he want to pick a fight—"

Just as one mercenary raised his voice to shout, another one suddenly dashed over, grabbing his arm with trembling hands.

"S-Stop!!"

The trembling man cried out, his voice full of panic.

"What’s wrong with you, man?"

"Stop, you idiot! Are you trying to get yourself killed?!"

"Huh?

Who even is this guy?"

It was pretty natural for them to act this way, since it was rare for noblemen to show up at a mercenary guild.

"He’s… he’s… h-he’s…"

"He’s?"

"The Saint of the Continent…"

The mercenary stammered, his voice shaking. At the same time, Evangeline lifted her head up.

"Ahh…"

Evangeline let out a gasp, her entire body freezing in place.

"The Saint of the Continent?"

"Davey… O’Rowane.”

The room turned silent as his name echoed across their minds.

Everyone recognized the mercenary who had just spoken—he was a veteran who had once fought alongside Prince Davey during a war. The fact that he acknowledged Davey must mean…

"D-Daddy.”

"Evangeline. I’m sorry, but let’s end this runaway act and go back home. I was wrong."

At his words, her eyes began to fill with tears.

"I’m sorry, Evangeline."

She stared at her father for a while. She had promised herself to apologize when she saw him again, to run into his arms and reconcile. But childish impulses rarely made for precise planning.

"I hate you, Daddy!!"

With a loud wail, Evangeline turned and bolted out of the guild. Silence swept the room once again.

"What… She really is his daughter?"

"No way…"

“Wait, so all this time, she hadn’t been lying…?”

"Her saying that her dad is the Saint of the Continent, that he’s Davey O’Rowane…"

“Everything she said was true?”

Realizing the truth, the mercenaries turned pale. They thought about how they’d openly mocked Davey mere moments before.

"I heard everything. So I’m a foolish nobody, huh?” Davey said as he gazed at the door Evangeline had disappeared through. "It’s fine. Even kings get insulted in their absence. Do you really think something like that would upset me?"

Despite his words, his faint, chilly smile said otherwise.

"Hey."

"Hmph?!"

The mercenary who met his crimson eyes froze in place, trembling under the overwhelming aura he emanated.

‘The Hero of Light is stronger than him? What nonsense! This doesn't even feel like facing a human—it’s more like staring down a monster!’

The overwhelming aura of a predator made the mercenaries gulp nervously. It seemed he could obliterate the entire place if he wanted to, and no one would find it surprising.

They wondered if they were all going to die.

“D-Damn it… I knew I shouldn’t have said I’d only get married once the job was done…” one mercenary muttered.

His words seemed to ignite a spark of panic. The rest turned pale as ghosts. As the oppressive aura thickened, the mercenaries darted their eyes around looking for an escape in sheer desperation.

But then, the aura suddenly vanished.

"Ah… This isn’t good," Davey muttered, clutching his head before sitting in a chair.

"Hey. Someone bring me a barley beer. Oh, and you guys who worked with Evangeline—got a minute to spare for a struggling father?"

The man before them was the one known across the continent as the ultimate deterrent. A figure more famous than the Hero of Light, an army of one, and someone even emperors struggled to meet. Yet here he was, casually sitting in a shabby mercenary guild and ordering a beer.

“What are you standing around for? Sit down.”

“Uh…”

“I just want to hear about my daughter. How’s she been while I was away?”

At his words, the mercenaries gulped.

They then came to full realization. The words Evangeline always said—the things they dismissed as nonsense coming from a struggling child—weren’t lies after all. Her claim that her father was the Saint of the Continent wasn’t an exaggeration or a fantasy.

It was the truth.

ChubbyCheeks & FriedNook's Thoughts

Editorb’s Thought

Davey clutches his head here, and there's actually a pretty neat psychological reason behind it. I'm a bald man, and so I enjoy rubbing my big soft head every once in awhile. I enjoy it even more, however, when I'm feeling stressed and overwhelmed. Rubbing one’s head is actually a form of self-soothing, like giving yourself a headpat instead of a parent doing it. Same with sometimes rocking back and forth, resembling the motion of a baby in a cradle. We’re only human, after all, so we do what we can.