The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

Aboard the carriage heading to the Western Continent, Davey casually looked at the passing scenery and gently caressed Winley’s cheek as she slept on his lap.

Winley had been crying. She had said that she would do anything to follow Davey, because she really wanted to see her sister.

This was going to be a difficult journey, but they had to embark on it now. Otherwise, they would probably not be able to see each other for the rest of their lives.

“That… She looks like someone has hit her on the head or something… Brother, should I get rid of that wild boar for you?” Baris asked as he clicked his tongue at Winley, who was sleeping on Davey’s lap.

“Just leave her be. Who cares, right? She looks cute, anyway. Besides, she hasn’t slept well these past few days.”

“Cute? Brother, this is a very serious and honest question. Do you really think that reckless foal is cute? She’s the devil! The devil, I say!”

Once she was motivated, Winley would study magic day and night without any breaks. With that kind of drive, effort, and Davey’s extended massages, it would not be impossible for her to reach the 5th Circle in her late twenties.

Was that almost unreal? Yulis, the continent’s greatest genius in the mage circle, had only climbed to the realms of the 5th Circle in his late twenties. So, it was actually very possible for Winley to do the same.

“What in the world is she doing? How is she forgetting to eat and sleep to become this exhausted? Look at her, Big Brother! Honestly! And here I am busting my ass in the Royal Palace day and night!”

“Busting my ass? Where did you learn those words?”

Baris immediately turned to look at Rinne, who was sitting on one side of the carriage.

“Come here.”

“Ri… Rinne’s evaluation of this matter is low. Rinne hopes for a peaceful solution to this matter…”

“Three.”

“…Ughhhhhhgk!” Rinne groaned with an ugly expression when Davey pinched her cheek. She was being dragged towards Davey mercilessly.

[I will bring the tea.]

In the middle of this unusual situation, Annabelle, dressed in a maidservant’s uniform, wrote that message on a piece of paper and handed it to Davey. She started to prepare tea on the other side of the carriage at Davey’s signal.

When she was on standby, Annabelle would sit on the rocking chair on her side of the carriage and not move at all. She was just like stone. In truth, Annabelle only looked cold on the outside, and her fighting style was so creepy that even Davey felt goosebumps rising on his skin at the mere thought of it.

“It seems like Yuria has prepared something for you.”

[There is a high probability of arousing disgust physiologically. Annabelle does not recommend consumption.]

“It’s fine. It tastes good.”

Baris shook his head with a terrified expression on his face. He asked, “Brother, how can you like the taste of that strange tea?”

Baris hadn’t been able to hide the horror on his face after hearing just what the tea had been made of. In fact, he had spat the tea on the floor.

“It tastes good.”

Davey had used similar teas to torture the Divine Tree’s Saintess Emilia, but he himself grew fond of the teas over time. The tea tasted good and was quite addictive, if Davey was being honest. That was why he unknowingly savored a cup of the tea by himself.

“This is much better than sucking the body fluids of a Desert Horned Moth.”

“My goodness… You have eaten that weird looking thing?”

It was true that Davey had eaten that to live and survive.

What was the most common method of obtaining drinking water in the desert? For Davey, he had eaten anything and everything just to finish up his training safely. Looking back on that now, Davey realized that Hercules, the strongest in the Hall and the one who had taught him the art of survival, might have been a psychopath.

Davey left that thought behind. Then, he thought that it had been a long time since he had last traveled with Baris and Winley.

“On our way to the Duchy of Felicity, I remember being so worried about you, Big Brother.”

“Of course, that’s only normal.”

“Actually, it was really unfair that I didn’t know you possessed that kind of power back then,” Baris said with a chuckle.

Baris was laughing and conversing with Davey, but he never let go of the pile of documents in his hands. Looking at that, Davey was gratified by Baris’s willingness and determination to learn politics.

Davey was only accompanied by a small number of people on his journey to the Western Continent, so the traveling was quiet and monotonous. They did not even encounter any bandits along the way.

After all, which bastard would think of attacking a carriage that was escorted by a royal knight? A man living on the edge of a knife would not survive if they did not know how to measure and choose their opponents.

“I didn’t know that I would be able to see Big Sister Tanya like this. I wonder how she has been? Ah, Big Brother, do you still remember what Sister Tanya looks like?” Baris asked.

Davey nodded silently. There was no way that he could forget Tanya’s pure smile and short green hair when she had been younger. After all, there were only a few things that he had forgotten.

“Of course.”

Baris said with a bitter smile, “Sister loved shooting arrows with her bow. It was quite unlike her gentle and kind personality.”

“She liked the bow?”

“Yes. That’s why Sister would be able to live comfortably in Hyeon Kingdom, also known as the Nation of Bows…or so I think,” Baris said, confiding about the things he could still remember.

This was information that Davey had also heard from King Krianes.

It was very obvious that Baris missed the sister who was very difficult to contact. In fact, Davey was sure that Winley felt no different from her brother.

***

“Haa…”

“Your Highness, are you feeling unwell?”

“No. It’s nothing.” With a weak smile, the girl sporting bright green hair shook her head.

The girl was different from most of the people here. She had bright green hair when the others mostly had black hair, which was a common characteristic of the people of the Western Continent. So, the girl could not help but feel isolated with her hair color being characteristic for people of the Eastern Continent.

“Your Highness, how can you look so sad when you’re going to hold your wedding soon?”

“Do I look like I’m sad?”

“Yes. The expression on Your Highness’s face… It looks like you’re about to cry.”

The girl nodded quietly, then said, “I see… I will have my wedding soon.”

The girl gathered her beautiful silken clothes, stood up from her seat, and walked away. She said, “Let’s go. I would like to go on a stroll.”

“As you command, Your Highness.”

With the company of only a few maidservants, the girl left the palace and moved to a quiet and small garden.

“Right. There are no letters this time either?”

“I’m sorry… I went to the Department of Correspondence but, just like you expected, there were no replies…” one of the maidservants replied tearfully.

The girl said with a weak smile, “Right. The distance is so great. And now, I’m just someone who is going to marry a foreigner.”

“Not at all. It’s not Your Highness’s fault. That’s… How can the people of Rowane Kingdom be so cold-hearted? How come they haven’t sent you a single letter ever since? Meanwhile, Your Highness keeps on sending letters to the Rowane Kingdom…”

“Do not speak of them like that. I’m sure my father and my mother have their reasons for not contacting me. Perhaps they don’t want to reach out and feel regret…”

“Don’t tell me… They will send someone to attend the wedding, right? They will, surely? Your Highness,” one of the maidservants asked anxiously.

The girl wanted to answer that it was okay, but she could not find the right words at the moment. After all, she also dearly missed her family.

“It would be nice if I could see them just once.”

“Sob… Our poor Highness…”

The girl patted the teary maidservant’s shoulders before looking up at the skies, which was oddly gloomy for some reason.

Considering that a formal wedding was about to take place soon, the atmosphere should have been cheery and happy. But no, the girl was not accompanied by many maidservantservants nor was she living a very flamboyant lifestyle. The two maidservants who stood by her side were one of the few who had chosen to remain by her side, saying that they would follow her for the rest of their lives.

“There’s a chance that I will never be able to see them again… So, it would be nice to see them at least once.”

Upon becoming the king’s wife, it would be extremely difficult for her to see the outside world or even send letters to her family. After all, a woman hardly had any rights in this nation. On top of that, the man whom she would marry already had thirteen wives. Even if he was the king, that was still a bit too much.

Nevertheless, the girl still did not lament her situation. Airing out her grievances would not change her situation. And if a problem arose in this marriage, this country would immediately send a loud protest to her home country. Just the thought of her mother and father having a hard time back home was enough for her to not make a fuss. She never wanted to send more work to the people of her country.

Clack!

The girl, who was silently savoring her cup of tea, immediately covered her wrists when she saw one of the maidservants make a mistake and break a teacup in front of her.

“Kyaaack! I’m… I’m sorry!”

“You idiot! What if Her Highness gets a scratch before her wedding, huh?!”

The girl smiled bitterly at the furious yells of the other maidservants and shook her head. She said, “Enough.”

“I’m… I’m sorry. I deserve to die!”

“It’s fine… It’s fine.”

“Your Highness! You have to scold them harshly at times like this. Every time you try to laugh these kinds of things off, the other wives will keep on messing with you, saying that you’re not important!”

“That’s right! These wenches! Did you forget that the wedding will immediately be canceled if a scratch appears on the body of the person who will become the queen! Do you want me to cut off your wrists?!”

“Hiiik! I’m… I’m sorry! Please grant me mercy, Your Highness!”

The green-haired girl shook her head at the maidservant, who immediately prostrated on the ground. She said, “It’s fine. I did not get hurt.”

“Hoo… Your Highness. I’m the one who gets terrified for you. Still… I’m so glad that you did not get hurt,” said the maidservant with a sigh. As she carefully checked Tanya’s sleeves where the teacup fell on, she added, “Your Highness, cheer up. Please try some of these cookies. We have imported them from the Eastern Continent. Here…”

“I’m alright… I’m just a bit…tired…” the girl mumbled bitterly, tears welling up in her eyes.

For some reason, Tanya felt like it was a day of sadness. During such times, she really wanted to see her twin siblings, who always followed her around like shadows, and her older brother, who always showed a cool and handsome smile while patting her on the head every time he saw her.

Before she left, her older brother had been in a coma from some kind of freak accident. As for her lovely and cute twin siblings, she did not know when they would fall and be played by Queen Lynnesse’s evil schemes. The girl wondered if they were doing well. Did her older brother finally wake up from his coma?

Tanya, who was silently remembering her family, tilted her head at the sudden flash of green hair from afar. Along with that, she could hear voices and footsteps coming from nearby.

“Goodness! What an irrational guy! How dare they enter the Inner Palace’s Garden?!”

“Don’t you know about the rules about having no contact with outsiders during the test?!”

The maidservants widened their eyes in surprise. They hurriedly tried to cover the girl’s vision, but…

The girl sprang up from her seat with wide eyes. She could hear the argument happening outside. She hurriedly squeezed in between the two maidservants who blocked her view, her head sticking out to see the commotion.

“Your… Your Highness?!”

“…” Tanya ignored the flustered cries of her maidservants, silently looking around the area.

It had been a long time, so long that even Tanya thought that their faces in her memory would turn blurry. But just as expected, family was family. She would never be able to forget them.

Pat, pat, pat, pat, pat!!!

Tanya, who seemed to have been possessed by something, easily slipped through the gap between the maidservants. Then, she grabbed the skirt that reached her ankles and ran as fast as she could. And then…

“Ah!” Tanya cried out with eyes wide open in surprise.

She quickly ran towards her twin brother and sister who sported the same green hair as her. The two, as if on instinct, turned to look back at her at the same time. The three made eye contact.

Tanya was the first to say, “Baris… Winley…”

“Sister!”

“Sister!”

At the same time, the twins took a step forward as they looked at Tanya with wide open eyes. Finally realizing the girl’s identity, they went to meet her halfway.

“Baris!!! Winley!!!”

How much did she miss them? Tanya ran as fast as she could, forgetting about her dignity. Not long after, she threw her arms around her twin siblings, crushing them in her hold as she sobbed.

Tanya had felt like today was a very gloomy day, the perfect day to cry. However, that feeling was all gone now.

She was Tanya O’Rowane, who came of age at sixteen years old. She was appointed to become the wife of Hyeon Kingdom’s king, becoming the kingdom’s 14th queen.