The Max Level Hero Has Returned!-Chapter 1271

Even with all the chaos following the intrusion into Heins Territory, the next day came nonetheless.

As Kouna walked through the halls of Heins Castle, still mulling over the events of the previous night, she suddenly noticed Josiah in the distance staring intently at her.

When Kouna turned to look at her in quiet confusion, the one beside Josiah abruptly dropped a blunt remark. “Is it that time of the month?”

“W-What are you talking about?!” she answered in a flustered voice.

Such blatant sexual harassment! Even between women, there were lines you didn’t cross. Yet the pink-haired vampire, known for her blank expression and lack of awareness of such boundaries, didn’t seem to care.

“Your body reeks of blood. I’m sensitive to the smell, and can tell it isn’t from a small cut or scratch.”

The scent of blood that welled up from within.

“In general, there are only two reasons someone smells like this,” Milpieu bluntly said.

Before she could finish, Josiah sighed and kicked Milpieu in the leg.

“It’s either blood from a wound bad enough to be fatal, or...” Josiah trailed off, then glanced at her. “Anyway, Milpieu, try to show some tact.”

“Apologies, my lord,” Milpieu said, bowing her head. “She looked fine on the outside, so I just asked.”

“Still, that’s not something you ask someone.”

“In most cases, I wouldn’t have mentioned it. There’s no benefit in asking.”

“So why now?” Kouna asked sharply.

Milpieu shrugged. “Because the blood scent is too dark, meaning it’s not just poor health. Have you been sick recently?”

Kouna shook her head. “No. My body’s finel, and I haven’t bled.”

“Then this blood smell is...”

“From the handkerchief that the intruder dropped during the attack, maybe? It was stained with blood,” Kouna suggested.

Josiah rubbed her chin as if unconvinced. “Was the blood still wet?”

“No, it was dried.”

“Strange. Dried blood alone doesn’t leave a scent this strong...”

“And it wasn’t even my blood.”

At that, her expression turned complicated. “Strange. Am I imagining things?”

She glanced at Milpieu. “What about you?”

“Same.”

Her dull reply left Josiah with a bitter expression. “Sorry, Kouna. I thought you might be seriously unwell.”

“It’s fine. Can I go now?”

“Ah, yes. Actually, one more thing. Could you take Milpieu to the exact spot where the intruder rampaged? Even better if you can show her the place where you found the handkerchief.”

Kouna hesitated, then nodded. She didn’t have anything urgent to do anyway. “Alright.”

When Milpieu followed Kouna out, Josiah closed her eyes in thought before saying to herself, “Strange. Did I really just imagine it? Why didn’t it feel off at all?”

The scent had been so similar to Kouna’s blood. But at the same time, it didn’t feel quite right. Almost as if something impure was mixed into it.

“Did I miss something...?” She thought it over carefully, then shook her head. “I don’t know...”

She couldn’t come to any conclusion. Still, she couldn’t shake the nagging feeling, like a toothache she couldn’t get rid of.

* * *

It didn’t take Aina long to gather the information Davey asked for. It would’ve taken her a lot longer if she didn’t know where to start from, but that clearly wasn’t the case.

“Is this info solid?” Davey felt his blood turn cold.

Her report was as simple as could be. She’d bought up the local guild records and combined them with the intelligence she’d gathered firsthand.

The targets of investigation were the small kingdoms on the southern edge of the Western Continent. They found that every kingdom where the rumor spread shared a common thread—someone had deliberately planted the story.

Still, the rumor had spread only because it contained more than empty noise. That someone had included surprisingly detailed fabrications, fueling its believability and spread.

Due to the intimidating image Heins Territory had maintained, the kingdoms had tried to suppress chatter until the matter could be verified. However, whoever was spreading the rumor kept popping up in one place after another, repeating the same story.

When Davey pieced together who had been spreading it, he recognized the culprit quickly.

“Did you make an enemy recently?” Aina asked cautiously while he mulled it over.

“Well, let’s just say there are too many people who have reasons to hate me.”

“That may be, but this one was brazen. What could they hope to gain by doing something like this?”

Just as she said, the perpetrator had acted without fear. That fact made Davey uneasy.

“In my experience, someone who pulls a stunt like this usually isn’t linked to the kingdom in question,” he said calmly, closing his eyes. “Maybe they want me to clash with that kingdom.”

The culprit’s magical achievement outstripped what a simple provocateur would normally possess. Even Helisson Ballestia of the Red Tower—the renowned archmage and supposed greatest wizard—seemed inferior compared to this person. The voice had sounded young, and whoever they were had reached an achievement rare for their age.

“There’s only one possible explanation for someone like that to take such drastic measures,” Davey continued. “They’ve clearly reached a point of no return, and have nothing to lose.”

“So leaving them alone would be dangerous?”

“Yeah. They made the first move, so we have to act.”

“If you go there yourself, though, you’ll only provide credibility to the rumor.”

“If we want to kill that bastard, I have to go myself. I can’t send Isildi or someone else and risk an accident.”

“Even so...” Aina worried about the backlash if Davey traveled to another country and executed the perpetrator, with rumors already circulating.

“Think the other way, Aina. Someone’s trying to smear Heins Territory. Everyone knows Perserque and I are close. If word spreads that she faced slander and I went off to tear the liar apart, nobody will think of it as a problem.”

Aina sighed. “Still, it’s another country. If we interfere, people will talk...”

“Aina,” Davey cut her off sharply, letting out a menacing aura. She flinched in response. “Why should I spare the bastard who attacked Perserque?”

“That’s not what I meant...” She bowed her head, startled.

“Get ready. We leave in two minutes.”

“Davey.” At that moment, Perserque fluttered in, keeping her small form as she hurried over.

“You’re going to find him?” she asked.

“Yes,” he answered. “Wait here, I’ll be back soon.”

“I’ll go with you.”

Davey looked at her silently, surprised at the sudden request. She blushed a little and responded, “This involves me, too. I want to see it myself... and we haven’t had a proper date in a long time.”

“Ah, is that so?” Davey suspected she had other motives, such as stopping him from doing something reckless. It was fairly obvious, but he didn’t object. He wouldn’t pass up the chance for a rare date. “Fine. Let’s go together. But if it gets dangerous, I’m sending you back immediately.”

“There’s no one on the continent who’d even be a threat to me.”

“There could be, so don’t get too cocky. Even the strongest can fall when facing overwhelming numbers.”

Perserque possessed powerful magic, but she no longer wielded the full force she had when she was the Demon King, so she wasn’t exactly beyond any danger.

Aina added, “The target won’t be easy to find, though if you want to hunt him down, you’ll be able to. But... what will you do once you find him?”

Davey rose and gave the obvious answer, “No reason to think. If he really is the one who spread the rumors, he’ll have to pay.” 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Unless there was a damned good reason, the outcome wouldn’t change.

At the very least, Davey had no intention of negotiating over anything related to Perserque’s well-being and reputation. “As Confucius said, there was no negotiating with terrorists. “

‘Or was that George W. Bush? Oh well, it doesn’t matter.’

He focused and turned back to them. “I’ll take you both with me. I’ll go ahead and tell the intelligence detachment waiting there to prepare themselves with the local guilds.”

Aina proved to be a rather capable informant, and would be useful on the trip.

* * *

A figure, draped in tattered rags stretching from their head to toe, walked through a dark alleyway. Their clothes were so old and ragged that it was hard to find a single intact spot. The longsword strapped to his waist, however, gave off an ominous yet unmistakably rare glow.

Rustle.

When he stepped onto the quiet street of the red-light district—quiet because it was still daytime—he staggered.

“Kaaa!!”

With his entire face hidden under a one-piece hood, he couldn’t possibly look any more suspicious.Still, that wasn’t anything unusual for the locale.

In the slums, or during the day in the red-light district, it wasn’t uncommon to see others wrapped up just like him. In fact, with his strange poncho-like robe barely reaching his waist, he was exposing more than most locals did.

His body reeled from intense nausea, and he dropped to one knee. Hand clamped over his mouth, he let out a violent, choking cough.

It couldn’t be dismissed as just a cold. Every time he coughed, his hand filled with bright red blood. The blood pouring out showed clearly that his condition wasn’t just bad, instead critical.

Even so, he still gave a strange laugh. “Heh. Hrrrk. Hehehe.”

Anyone who heard what seemed to be a mix of laughter and sobbing would be at a loss for words, overwhelmed by the deep, heavy emotion behind it.

After letting out that eerie sound for a long while, he unsteadily pushed himself back up. His bloodshot eyes burned as he whispered in a cracked voice, “I made it this far. Just a little longer... wait for me.”

His voice trembled with pure hatred, sorrow, and fury. “I’ll rip those bastards who killed you out from the roots.”

Even in his aimless, seething rage, he never lost sight of his purpose. His sharp, focused mind stood in stark contrast to his broken body.

Eyes full of murderous intent, he steadied himself and started walking again.

That was when a group of men stepped out to block his path. “Hey, buddy! That’s a nice little toy you’ve got there. Where’d a bum like you find a sword like that?”

One of them added, “Even the sheath looks expensive as hell.”

Anyone could see how the man barely held himself upright, and yet the sword on his waist looked absurdly valuable. Naturally, in a small kingdom like this where law and order were basically nonexistent, someone like him was an easy target, practically a no-brainer.

As the man stared at the men with calm eyes, one of them flipped out a jackknife and pointed it at him. “Look, pal. Be smart. Hand it over, and scram while you still can. We won’t kill you.”

“Tch. So merciful. I’m getting emotional.” As they snickered and joked with each other, the man spoke in a quiet, cracking voice, “Take me to an information guild.”

The men flinched.

That cracked voice, combined with the single eye exposed through the torn hood, was chilling. The men quickly laughed it off, trying to cover their unease. “Ha. That look could kill a man.”

“Bet he murdered someone and stole that sword.”

Chuckling to themselves, the men closed in. Yet the man didn’t resist.

“Damn... look at the shine on this thing.” One of the men swaggered over and reached for the sword at his waist.

Squelch!

A sickening sound suddenly cut through the air, and warm red liquid sprayed into the sky.

“Huh?” The man who had touched the sword blinked in surprise, though no full words came out of his mouth.

With a chilling sound, the man’s body split diagonally in half.

“Ah... AHHH!!”

It wasn’t every day a person saw someone be silently cleaved in two. Even the battle-hardened among them found themselves retching at the sight of their comrade reduced to grotesque chunks of meat.

“I only need one to guide me,” he said in a cold voice.

He drew his sword and dragged its tip along the ground as he staggered forward. The blade, dark red in color, was clearly of masterful craftsmanship and quality, but he handled it with no care at all.

Squelch!!

Another sickening sound rang out, and in that instant, another man collapsed, his body split diagonally.

“Ah... AHHH!!”

Only then did the thugs surrounding the man realize they hadn’t picked a fight with some random bum, and just had to provoke a monster.

The knives in their hands looked pitiful compared to the sword he held. Even if they had wanted to attack, the killing aura the man radiated crushed any courage they had.

Fear quickly overwhelmed them.

Thud.

Soon enough, another man fell without resistance.

He kept approaching them and quietly said, “You scum have no business laying hands on this sword. The price for wasting my time won’t be cheap.”

Only then did the remaining thugs understand their situation, internally cursing their parents for not birthing them with four legs to run faster with. They instantly scattered in all directions.

Squelch!!

Alas, distance meant nothing once a true warrior had you marked for death.

In the blink of an eye, all but one among them were reduced to chunks of meat. The last man, the gang leader, collapsed to his knees, shaking uncontrollably.

“P-Please! Spare me, sir!” With no way to escape or even fight back, all he could do was beg for his life.

As he shoved his head to the ground and pleaded desperately, the man slowly walked toward him and coldly raised his sword.

“AHHH!!” The thug shut his eyes and screamed in sheer terror. Yet there was no sickening sound, no pain.

When he opened his eyes, he saw the man slowly sheathing the sword.

“S-Sir...?”

“Take me to an information guild.”

The thug’s eyes lit up. He realized what he needed to do to survive. “Y-Yes, sir! I’ll guide you to the fastest and most well-informed guild around here!”

Even though his behavior was pitiful, the man said nothing and simply stared down at him.

In kingdoms where there was basically no law and order, thugs often worked as errand boys for information guilds. The thug begging for his life was one such errand worker.

He fully understood that if he wanted to live, he couldn’t defy the dangerous man staring him down. He led the man quickly down a back route towards the information guild.

Once he passed the disguised entrance of a pub, he went downstairs to a quiet underground area. There, a man was already waiting for them, as if he had known the man was coming. “Welcome. We’ve already been informed of your arrival. Are you here to buy information? Or to sell it?”

The hooded figure spoke up, “I’m here to sell information.”

The chilling tone in his voice made the broker flinch slightly, but he quickly nodded. He reminded himself that in such a line of business, he was bound to encounter all kinds of people.

“We’ll determine the price after hearing what you have to give.”

At that, the man spoke quietly, “Heins Territory.”

The broker fell silent for a moment before responding, “I’m sorry, sir. We don’t buy or sell information related to Heins Territory.”

“The lord of Heins Territory, Davey O’Rowane’s wife Perserque von Rowane, is a demon.”

All the blood abruptly drained from the broker’s face.

There had already been rumors. Yet, hearing it directly from this man made every nerve in his body stand on edge.

The broker fell silent once again and pulled himself together before speaking up, “Sir, we don’t deal in unverified information about Heins Territory. No matter the circumstances, our lives are still precious to us.”

“There’s proof.” His cold, piercing gaze forced the broker to think quickly.

‘If he has proof, it’ll be game-changing. But this kind of information...’

Not only was it risky, but it was the kind of endeavor that could get you killed before you even digested the returns.

Still, turning him down didn’t feel like an option either. The man looked like he’d tear him apart on the spot if he didn’t listen.

“Proof, huh? Alright, let’s hear it.”

The man in rags slowly reached into his robes.

That was when a man in a black uniform silently stepped into the room. “Sir, we have another customer who’s here for information.”

“Are you out of your damned mind?! Can’t you see I’m in the middle of a deal? Get out!”

Even in their line of work, it was rare to see subordinates so clueless. The broker frowned, ready to scold him further.

“Sir... The thing is...” the subordinate said with a conflicted face. What he said next made the broker flinch. “It’s... it’s Prince Davey from Heins Territory, the Saint.”

“...What?”

Hearing that name, both the broker and the ragged man froze on the spot.

Only a few moments passed before the door swung open and someone stepped in with light, casual footsteps.

They both turned to look at him, realizing they couldn’t possibly afford to underestimate him.

“Saint Davey from Heins Territory...” the broker muttered, face pale with terror.

Meanwhile, Davey, who had come to the local branch to dig up information, smiled coldly when he saw the man in rags. “Found you, you bastard.”

Boom!!

There was no need for words. Davey closed the distance in an instant, grabbed the man by the throat, and slammed him against the wall with a thunderous crash.

“What are the chances, huh?” Keeping the man pinned in place, Davey slowly reached out his hand. “Were you the one spreading those filthy rumors about Perserque?”

The killing aura pouring out of him pressed down on the entire room. The broker gasped, clutching his throat with both hands, suffocating from the sheer pressure.

The hooded figure, however, only stared back at Davey.

Sling.

Crash!!

The man, pinned by Davey’s grip, suddenly drew a dark red sword and slashed at him.

Even under overwhelming pressure, he never stopped resisting. Seemingly unhindered by what his body was going through, he drew his blade and aimed another slash at Davey.

That caused Davey’s feet to lift slightly from the ground.

Boom!!

The next instant, the man in rags was sent flying, crashing through the wall of the hidden information guild building.

“Let’s not take it personally. I’m holding myself back from tearing you apart right now.” Davey meant every single word he said—he fully intended to kill him.

However, Davey didn’t know that back in Heins, Yosiah was desperately trying to reach him.

“Come on!! Why isn’t the communication artifact working?! No... No! Teacher! You can’t kill that man!!!” her desperate cry practically echoed across the continent, yet Davey, standing on the opposite end of it, couldn’t hear her.