The Max Level Hero Has Returned!-Novel

Episode 13

Behind King Crianes, who looked at us with a tired expression, were Queen Liness, who were smiling brightly on the outside while hiding what she was up to, and Anisha.

Behind them was the the Marquis of Faytris, the Swordmaster and the Knights of the inner palace, and several other nobles.

“I see the sun of the kingdom.”

“I see the sun of the kingdom.”

“The sun of the kingdom…”

When I spoke quietly with my head down, Barris and Winley promptly followed after me.

“Well, are you confident?”

He seemed indifferent, judging from the simple question he asked. It was as if he wasn’t really interested in the conversation at hand.

“Yes, Your Majesty! I will surely win the prize and elevate the status of the kingdom.”

When asked such a question, Barris answered it as vigorously as he had always done.

I wasn’t sure if the answer itself quite satisfactory. Regardless, King Crianes soon brushed his beard off, nodded, and sighed briefly.

“Be safe.”

After tapping Barris on the shoulder and smiling at him, he immediately turned his head away. Then, his gaze rested upon me.

A look of mixed emotions was visible on his face.

I was pretty good at reading people, but his expression was hard to discern.

He was, after all, a man of dignity. Even old and tired lions never lost their dignity.

“I’m sorry.”

He didn’t say anymore.

I had no intention of being sentimental with him at that moment, so I just looked down.

“Listen! Fourth Prince Barris’s participation in the Continental Sword Contest is the bliss of the kingdom! As of this day, I will release extra funds to celebrate a festival in our territory!”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The nobles all answered at the shout of Crianes.

“Give special amnesty to those who have sinned small!”

There were some odd faces of disapproval with the King’s order since it only happened when there was a big national event, but no one dared disobey his order.

Still, special amnesty was one of the most incomprehensible laws.

“Go on and boost the status of the kingdom!”

At the end of his remark, Barris noded, slowly lifting his head.

“Open the gate!”

Pssssszzzzzz!

When the wizard who was manipulating the mana gate shouted, a vast blue circular structure built behind me began to emit light.

The bizarre wave of power slowly created a whirlpool with a considerable gap. It began to shine as if the light would completely cover the raised podium where the procession to the Duchy of Felicity was standing.

Ssssssshh!

Soon after, the wizard’s incantation came out, causing a huge wave to devour all the processions.

King Crianes’ expressionless face glanced beyond as we disappeared into the light. I closed my eyes, remaining silent, as Queen Liness maintained her own mysterious air.

* * *

The procession to the Duchy of Felicity was small.

Fourth Prince Barris led the way to participate, and Winley and I accompanied him to support him. In addition to that, there were only five butlers, five or six maids, and five knights for escort.

Of course, four of them were the best in swordsmanship.

Considering that every one of them was a strategic-weapon-level talent, they could guarantee our safety.

Their expertise would eventually defeat any hostility.

Perhaps because of that, it was such a tedious journey. There weren’t even any animals on the way, much more mountain thieves.

“Oh… boring.”

Barris, who had lived wildly, seemed unable to endure such uneventfulness.

“You idiot! Boring is the best thing!”

“Do you like this extreme boredom?”

“No, I don’t! But do you want to be attacked by somebody when Davey is here with us, you idiot?”

Barris cringed at Winley’s criticism before he went and looked at me.

I was supposed to go on a horse carriage because I had been sick not that long ago. Barris realized that and put me in the horse-drawn carriage.

Thanks to him, it became more tedious, but I was thankful for his thoughtfulness.

“We should camp here today.” Sir Blcano, the knight who was leading the way, promptly suggested.

It was going to take another day to get to the Duchy of Felicity on horseback. We could’ve been gone through the Mana Gate, but unfortunately, the Duchy of Felicity was one of the smallest countries.

As a result, there was no Mana Gate. To move, we had to travel through one of ours to a nearby state and then walk directly by land.

Fortunately, the territory of the Duchy of Felicity was quite close to the Rown.

The servants and maids taking care of us were experienced for camps, and our knights were scattered to guard the site. Barris then began to ask, throwing branches into the bonfire, “How do you feel, Davey?”

“Right, do you like the gift we’ve got for you? In the past, you said you wanted to go camping like this on an adventure. We thought you wouldn’t like a big group of people with us, so I minimized the size.”

They were smiling at me as if they were waiting for compliments from me, which made me laugh in turn.

“Yes, thank you, you two.”

They could’ve cared less about me because we were only half-related, but their warm-hearted care touched me.

Barris sat down and excitedly talked about how we used to play together when we were little. Meanwhile, Winley was making fun of Barris but seemed just as excited, seeing as she was smiling the whole time.

“Davey?”

However, despite their conversation, my eyes were fixated on the other side of the forest.

“Hey, Davey.”

Winley called out to me, carefully sensing the unusual look on my face.

“Oh… uh…”

“Try some of this.”

“Sure, thanks.”

“What were you looking at so closely?”

“That’s right, Davey. Is there something over there?”

I ignored his question. Upon seeing my movements, the two seemed to feel concerned for me.

“It’s nothing. It’s late, so I’ll go in and rest first. Will you rest in the carriage with me?”

The two shook their heads at my suggestion. “I’m comfortable with tents, sir.”

“Me, too.”

Who would think that they were noble royalty?

Barris was fine, but I was a little worried about Winley for being too wild.

“Hmm. I guess camping just fits your wild nature. I’m a little worried about how you’re going to find a husband, though.”

“Pfft. I’m not going to be married but live with Davey instead. Mind your own business, Barris.”

Winley stuck out her tongue at Barris and hugged my arm. When I went to stroke her head silently, Barris clicked his tongue.

“That’s enough, you punk.”

“Phooey!”

They went to their tent set by servants, both sporting sad expressions. Silence then dawned at the campsite. The conversation had been cut off, after all. The two, who were mainly leading the talks, had already gone to rest.

As I sat silently and looked at the sky, Amy approached me carefully and asked, “Your Majesty, would you like to go in and rest?”

“It’s a beautiful day for a walk.”

“What?”

I then got up without answering her question.

* * *

While everyone was already asleep, I sat on a tree branch nearby the campsite, slowly moving my gaze to the sky from a book.

Although they would’ve been in chaos if anyone noticed that I had disappeared, I replaced myself with Ghost magic that I had saved for a time like this.

The book I had been reading was about the continent’s political situation when I was in a coma and medical practice. I shouldn’t neglect my physical training, but I should take care of my medical expertise as well.

My medical technique proficiency was considered to be quite excellent, and I was still the best student in a master of the Divine Hippocrates’s class.

“It is a beautiful night sky.”

I just talked to myself.

The night sky was lit up by red and blue moons showing off their power.

Cyrus, the moon that illuminated the beginning, and Krias, the moon that illuminated the end.

The moon that brightened the night of the first and the moon that brightened the night of the last had quite a few stories, but most of them proved to be too exaggerated to keep me interested.

Meanwhile, I just thought that the moons looked beautiful.

They filled the night sky along with numerous stars and galaxies that spread out, illuminating the evening brightly, making me wonder if it was really nighttime.

Nothing was the same in the night sky of the Earth or the Corridor. I found myself suddenly wondering if Barris and Winley had brought me here to show such a view to me.

The dark sky I saw here was completely different from the one I saw in the palace, though they were both beautiful.

Ssssss!

All I could hear was the sound of insects and owls. I casually put down the book in my hand and swung a nearby branch in the air lightly.

Whip! Whip!

Each swing tore through the air with a faint sound.

Well, it was still satisfying.

“Now that I’m done watching the night, I should try my evening exercise.”

My eyes were fixed on a single spot without moving. I then saw a movement of a group of men dressed in black.

After all, commanders generally had good night vision.

There were about 20 people, and they had professionally hidden their murderous spirits.

They were assassins with extraordinary abilities, able to safely accomplish their duties despite all the unfavorable conditions.

If I were an ordinary person without any physical strength, the consequences that would follow my ignorance would’ve been a brutal murder.

The whole story was obvious. The only opportunity to take us three children’s lives had finally come.

Queen Liness seemed to have chosen to send murderers to assassinate us rather than leave potential sources of trouble for nothing.

To be honest, I wasn’t happy about the situation where I might look suspicious if I were to show my ability. Hence, I quickly let go of my thoughts without much regret.

I didn’t have to worry about it in the first place.

“They are too slow to make ends meet as assassins.”

The people who could see me running wild in the first place…

“Huh?”

“Ouch.”

[Mountain Pressure]

They didn’t exist.

A slender branch suddenly became an enormous mountain and, in doing so, sliced the highly-trained assassins’ bodies in half.

Dark red blood splashed over the night sky, warming up the atmosphere.