The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

“The smell of blood is too intense.”

This was way too violent.

“Annabelle,” Davey called for the golem as he walked into the cave.

The rocking chair stopped for a moment. Annabelle slowly stood up and waved a hand, dismissing the giant monster that was made of smoke. She then approached Davey with a goblin carcass in her hand.

[Extermination of goblins. Command fulfilled.]

Davey had ordered Annabelle to completely exterminate the goblins that had been living in this cave.

‘Yeah, extermination.’

Annabelle completed her orders quickly and easily, almost to the point of perfection. Although she had done it in an eerie and terrifying way, instilling fear in the enemy during battle was the most effective method to overpower them.

“Good job.”

Davey wondered if Annabelle would be able to feel joy from his praise. Unfortunately, she was an AI with no emotions. All she could show were things in her data; the expressions she made while having a conversation were just pre-programmed information.

Needless to say, Davey could only pray regarding how much influence of the dark magic stone infused with devil mana, which had been used when building Annabelle, would have on her.

—Davey, do you want to try leaving it to me?

“What?”

—It may not be based on a complicated philosophy, but I will teach her control and efficiency.

Davey wondered how Perserque would manage to do that when the only people who could see her were Red Ribbon, Blue Ribbon, and him. However, he still nodded in agreement.

[Stop the war! Right now! Tell me what’s the benefit of fighting like this?! Do you want to deepen the hatred?! Do you feel delight in other kinds dying?! Is there money that you must earn, even if it means killing each other, in this big continent?!]

Just like Perserque had gained insight on Davey, he had also looked into her past. Although, he didn’t know when he had begun to trust Perserque this much.

* * *

Emilia was an important part of this battle.

“Hup!” Emilia trembled in fear and backed away as soon as she saw Davey. She still did not know the truth about the tea that he had forced her to drink. She muttered, “W… What are you going to do now…?”

“Well, we’re almost done here. Now, we’re going to put an end to the battle, which will only end when one side dies, no matter the consequences,” Davey said.

“...”

“Tell me. Where is the Divine Tree’s origin?”

Davey could find the Divine Tree’s sacred land with just the help of Aina or Yuria. However, there were only elves and a huge tree. Davey was only trying to get rid of the Divine Tree, the root and mind of the current generation’s Divine Tree, and not the elves. And that mind did not exist in the sacred land but in a secret location only the Saints and Saintesses of the Divine Tree knew. This was all that he wanted to hear from Emilia.

Emilia clenched her jaw, then asked, “Is… Is it true that I have the power of Charm…inside my body…?”

It was sealed inside Emilia now, but her Charm was so intense that she could not handle it.

“That’s right.”

“The reason the Mother of the Divine Tree sent me to the Pallan Empire…was to use my Charm to lure humans… Cause them to have conflict, and then subdue you to take Lady Yuria to the sacred land…”

“Well, good plan. Even if that failed, humans would no longer cooperate with each other since they would already have hatred for each other. Then, obviously, it would be easier for the World Tree to attack me.”

“No way. Mother disliked humans, but she wanted to avoid unnecessary conflict. That is why she sent me, someone who has a higher rank than a Third Central Official! Also, she said that it would be best for me, who has no particular feelings towards humans, to talk to humans!”

“That\'s the superficial motive.”

“The reason Mother sent me to the Pallan Empire was not to persuade you, who remains unconvinced, but to receive help from the empire, the inhibitor of the continent! That is why I left the forest!” Emilia shouted.

Davey slightly released his devil mana lightly.

‘You know, I know how to use a simple charm as well.’

[5th Circle]

[Dark Magic]

[Charm]

Whoosh…

As Davey’s eyes shone with a faint light, Emilia’s eyes momentarily went hazy before returning to normal. She murmured, “Oh…”

Emilia was flustered by the momentary Charm that was outside her control.

Davey asked, “How is it? Now that you’ve experienced it, it’s crazy, right?”

“What did you…?”

“A similar power of a thousand times stronger is residing in your body. Do you think the World Tree did not know about that? Why do you think she didn\'t send the Saint of the Divine Tree and woke you up to send you instead?”

“No…” Emilia teared up with her hand covering her mouth.

Now that Emilia thought of it, it was quite weird for her to take on this task. The Saint could have handled this without the need to wake her up from her last sleep. What was the reason for waking her up and sending her here, especially when they had to defy a long-held law along the way?

“Sir Yulrgen…said that I was the only one who could do this… Mother also told me that I was the only one who could save the elves…”

“The Divine Tree is crazy.”

“...”

“It’s insane,” Davey stated plainly.

Emilia stared at Davey viciously. She yelled, “Stop it! How dare you insult the Mother of the Divine Tree to the forest’s kind?!”

“You still don’t get it.”

Crash!!

Davey grabbed Emilia by her neck and slammed her into the wall. He asked, “Do you think the World Tree is sane when all she thinks about is sacrificing completely healthy elves in preparation for a future that hasn’t even come yet?”

“...” Emilia stayed silent. She was speechless.

“And is it not crazy for someone to basically commit suicide when they have a life growing inside of them just because it is the Divine Tree’s command?”

“T… That is…”

“Thanks to that, there is rampant hostility among the elves in the sacred land. This was exactly what the Divine Tree wanted. You are the Saintess that the former mind of the Divine Tree had chosen, so do you think Yggdrasil is in her right mind when she was trying to sell you, once the spiritual anchor of the elves, off to the human world as a tribute?”

People were blinded when they became full of rage and hate. The World Tree had gained extreme hatred for other kinds for some reason, and because of that, she had lost the wisdom that she was supposed to have. Perhaps the future that Yggdrasil supposedly saw could be a false future, since she had become so blind.

“Do you think such a biased judgment would come from a sober person? You want me to sit back and watch as a crazy junkie tree threatens the territory that I protect?”

“I was trying to borrow the Pallan Empire’s power so that you and the Divine Tree could find a compromise!”

“The world is not as pretty as you think. Just because you can understand doesn’t mean that other people can, too. I know you think that you’re right, but if everyone else also thought so… Why do you think each individual is called unique?”

Emilia lowered her head, then asked, “What do you want to do?”

“I have to stop this before the war gets bigger.”

“By killing the Mother of the Divine Tree if you have to?”

Now, Davey did not say anything about not being able to kill the Divine Tree.

“Yeah, so tell me where it is. Tell me where the origin of the Divine Tree’s mind is.”

Davey could find the location of the Divine Tree through Yuria or Aina, but even they had no idea just where the origin of the Divine Tree’s mind was. The only person who had information about that was the current Saint of the Divine Tree and Emilia, who was sitting in front of Davey right now.

“Give me time…” Emilia whispered.

Davey left the silent Emilia behind and rose from his seat. He said, “I can’t give you long. Once we are done preparing, they will be too. Now that they know things have gone south, the World Tree will use all dramatic methods to win.”

Now the enemy knew that guerilla warfare was not going to work, they were going to attempt to have a face-off directly.

And just like that, a rumor began spreading around the continent in less than four days. Davey had expected this. Yggdrasil, the World Tree, had declared war and was moving her elf troops.

* * *

“This is ridiculous.”

The Rowane Kingdom was under the most pressure from the declaration of war between the two powers.

“Prince Davey is just too much! How could he do something as big as this without any report to the royal palace?”

“I understand why the elves did not report as we cannot impose human laws on elves, but we must hold His Highness responsible for not letting us know until the conflict got to this point.”

“According to the information the Pallan Empire has sent us, the number of elves that are moving from the western continent is steadily increasing. By this point, we cannot handle the war on our own.

The nobles were constantly talking.

“Your Majesty! Your Majesty must summon His Highness to the palace right away, hear it from His Highness himself, and clarify the urgent situation!”

“That’s right! Too many people will die if this goes on!”

Were they really worried about people dying, or were they just afraid of the elves who had shown their hostility towards the Rowane Kingdom and their army?

Baris was sitting in his seat and keeping his silence. He glanced at his father, the silent King Krianes O’Rowane who was on his throne.

“Your Majesty, it has not been long since the traitors’ rebellion has been dealt with. This land is full of royal subjects who are groaning in pain from the aftermath of that war.”

“And to have a war during our current struggles!”

This was politics. The kind of people who had been rid were bound to reappear once again.

Feeling a headache come on, Baris slowly opened his mouth to explain. “This started because Big Brother has accepted elves from the Moon Forest as his residents. They said that they became residents of the Heins Territory by choice, but the being called the World Tree did not accept that. She seemingly wanted to control the elves in that territory in whatever way she wanted.”

“Ha! You have to see the bigger picture. Your Highness! It is better to cooperate with the World Tree, who is the origin and Mother of the elves, than a mere hundred elves!”

Marquis Peiltris no longer stayed silent in this troublesome situation. He said, “So, what you are saying is we have to summon His Highness, hold him responsible, and then cooperate with the elves.”

“...”

“Is that it?”

The crowd was silent.

Marquis Peiltris asked, “What is it that you want to do? Do you want to make His Highness, who has solidified his position in the kingdom, stumble? Or, do you want to give up this entire kingdom to the elves, a kind we have not even heard of?”

“A… Ahem! Marquis Peiltris! Isn’t that going too far?!”

“Going too far? How? Is this not what you want? Right, Count Lindor? Can you confirm that that is not the situation you were hoping for?”

“...”

During the fight, the slam of a metal staff against the floor resonated across the room.

“Enough.”

It was a short but effective order. King Krianes was no longer determined to be too weak a king to handle state affairs.

“We leave this to Davey.”

“Your Majesty!”

“This is not something we can let go…!”

“Baris, you said the Moon Forest?”

“Yes? Oh… Yes, Your Majesty!”

“Davey does not write to me often; perhaps he still holds a grudge against me. Right, how is the situation from what you have heard?”

“Big Brother mentioned that he has predicted such a situation and has already made ample preparations,” Baris said.

The crowd murmured.

Bang!! Bang!!

King Krianes slammed his large staff a couple times to silence the room. Then, he said, “The elves have lived in the Rowane Kingdom for a long time. As such, it is safe to say that they are the residents of this kingdom. Davey has officially accepted them. However, an outside power is trying to take control of his decision?”

With a stern expression, King Krianes declared, “That cannot happen. Write a message to Davey that the royal palace will surely provide the support he needs to protect our people!”

The crowd could not do anything but back off.

* * *

The Pallan Empire had to be crossed in order for the Divine Tree’s army located in the west of the continent to arrive at the Heins Territory.

There were more kingdoms in the west, both small and big, but they all sided with the elves. They had decided that it was better for them to be friendly and gain new technology by communicating with a new kind instead of Davey, who was effectively interfering with their business. As a result, the only kingdom that stood in the elves’ way was the Pallan Empire.

In such a situation, the Pallan Empire always kept the peace of the continent first and foremost. They wanted to host a final conference. Here, Davey and the commander of the elves finally gathered in a place that the Pallan Empire had set up.

“My name is Commander Yulgren. I was commanded by the Mother of the Divine Tree to have this great role.”

“I am Davey O’Rowane, the First Prince of the Rowane Kingdom and the Seigneur of the Heins Territory,” Davey introduced himself arrogantly.

Yulgren’s eyebrow twitched.

‘Yulgren… He should be the elf who was attacked by Fire Chicken while escorting Emilia to the Pallan Empire.’

“Of course, humans are as rude as ever.”

“I have no respect for the war fanatics who hit and threatened us first.”

Shwing!!

As soon as Yulgren looked angry, the elves standing behind him pulled out their rapiers.