The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

[Special Dark Magic]

[Soul Research]

There was magic that could extract memories from a resisting target, but to reach into the deepest parts of the soul, where even the soul itself could not remember, and touch its very core—that was the domain of the Death Lord.

In other words, Davey was now able to use the Death Lord's unique magic with his newly transformed devil mana.

He slowly seeped into the Viscount’s deepest memories. He began hearing the strange song. The melody was mysterious, yet it was also one that lingered in one’s ears. The Viscount made his way back home, softly humming the tune.

Up to that point, there had been no problem with his memory.

But then, something went wrong. As if the maids of the mansion were waiting for him, they sang the same song he hummed. For the next several months, they would always hum the song as they worked—it felt as if it would never stop.

After returning from a government meeting, the Viscount frowned at the strange smell wafting through the mansion, going inside. But there was not a single servant or maid to greet him. Most of the lights were off, and he couldn’t feel the presence of any others. Instinctively sensing something was wrong, he rushed inside almost as if possessed and headed straight to the bedroom where his wife was.

That’s when he saw his wife lying naked on the bed, having bitten her tongue and bled out.

The room was in such a mess that it was difficult to tell how many people had been inside. Her body was covered in wounds both large and small, with shame and pain etched on her face. However, her corpse was still warm, hinting that she had only just died. He couldn’t imagine who would possibly dare break into a nobleman's mansion in the capital to rape and murder his wife, a Viscountess.

He lost his temper over his wife's death and reflexively pulled out his sword and screamed. He went mad, shedding tears of blood and wildly swinging his sword in the air. But remembering his daughter who might still be alive, he barely managed to come to his senses and hurried to her room. As he got closer, the strange, unidentifiable smell grew stronger.

When he reached his daughter's room, he saw the murderers. There were numerous masked men abducting his unconscious daughter, and among them stood a man dressed in white.

"Ah, you're back already?" the man said, his voice oddly distorted, with a mask covering his face.

"Y-You... You bastard!!!" the Viscount screamed, lunging toward him. But the masked men overpowered him and brought him to his knees.

"Don't worry. Your daughter won't die. I told my men to be a bit rough to agitate the Viscountess and rile her up, but your wife, well, she bit her tongue. My deepest condolences.”

“You bastard! You fucking bastard! What have I done to deserve this?! Who the hell are you?” the Viscount shouted, his voice filled with rage and despair.

The man in the mask seemed to smile at his outburst.

"You will know soon. He will be your new master."

With those words, the strange smell in the mansion intensified, accompanied by the singing voice that had been echoing in the mansion. Then a blinding light spread, temporarily blinding the Viscount's. His memory was interrupted there, and then it continued.

Davey saw his memory of approaching Count Gulan’s young boy, asking for a favor in exchange for helping his father’s business. He recalled stabbing Count Gulan’s young boy, who was terrified and begging for his life, with a dagger, then wiping the strange power from the blade with a cloth and fleeing, leaving only the longsword behind.

[Please... spare me... Grrr…]

He could see Count Gulan’s young boy’s face up close, twisted in terror and pain. The Viscount moved as if his instincts were guiding him, his actions seemingly outside his own will. It seemed like he was brainwashed, but the sensation was a bit different.

Davey figured the mastermind behind all this was trying to frame him with the Viscount. The double trap was praise-worthy, but they had overlooked one crucial thing: even though the Viscount had been overwhelmed by their power, his determination and desperation to save his daughter had created a gap in their influence. They also had no idea of the extent of Davey’s abilities.

“Your Highness?”

Marquis Peiltris looked at Davey as he slowly opened his eyes.

"Marquis, how much time has passed?”

“It’s already late at night. I sent someone to the capital myself… But there’s no time now. If you don’t go back immediately…”

“About ten hours…”

After a brief pause, Davey turned around, his expression cold.

“I said that the culprit was among those attending the banquet.”

Marquis Peiltris nodded his head at Davey's words.

“The culprit—let’s get them once and for all.”

Considering the seriousness and severity of the incident, it was fortunate that the nobles were staying for a couple of days since the culprit who had caused this mess was among them.

‘Since they tried to frame me, it’s my time to get back at them,’ Davey thought.

He got rid of the murderousness that filled up his eyes and rolled on the floor to form a magic circle. The Viscount's intense anger and grief he felt made him feel dizzy. He realized once again that the magic he was about to perform was clearly not one to be taken lightly.

Shine!!

A bright light spread out, forming a magic circle.

“Your… Your Highness?! Don't you have a mana restraint on…?”’

“It makes no difference whether I have it on or not.”

Marquis Peiltris shouted in shock as he saw Davey manifesting magic even while wearing the mana restraint, but Davey rolled on the floor again without hesitation.

[Warp]

Flash!!

With a burst of light, Davey and the Marquis returned to the palace in an instant. And of course, the palace was in chaos due to his absence.

"Your Highness!! Where have you been?”

“With the trial already underway, your disappearance caused quite a stir!”

Davey nodded at the shouts of Knight Commander Orpha, then walked forward.

“Lead me inside, Knight Commander.”

“Your Highness?”

“I have my own evidence. Now, I need to prove my innocence.”

He knew there was only one person behind this. And that person was here with him.

“Attention! The defendant, Prince Davey O’Rowane, has returned!”

Davey walked quietly into the courtroom in commotion.

"I apologize for being late. I was busy finding evidence of the true culprit.”

“Your Highness, regardless of the circumstances…”

“I’ve caught a lead, so don’t worry. Judge.”

“Yes? What do you…”

As Davey entered the courtroom, he saw the judges, inquisitors, and several nobles from other countries who had volunteered to help, all seated in the jury box.

“Your Highness, what do you…”

“The one who murdered the young boy was Viscount Betthorpe. I caught him, but he was already dead.”

“Vis-Viscount Betthorpe? Then what’s the evidence…”

Davey stepped up and placed down the gem he retrieved from his coat.

“This contains his memory. Additionally, the true culprit is inside this chamber…”

He paused for a moment, then smiled darkly.

“They had been disguising themselves, which is why I couldn’t immediately find out who was behind all of this.”

His words caused a stir—he had presented something to prove his innocence.

“If I consider the possibility of manipulation, I can’t just accept this as evidence…”

“You’ll see soon enough. But I apologize in advance if I seem rude,” Davey said calmly as his whole body surged with his power. At the same time, a peculiar scent seemed to spread around him, stimulating everyone’s senses.

The principle of the power was simple: it manipulated the senses—hearing, sight, smell—and by affecting their wavelengths, it altered the target's soul and body much like brainwashing.

“You will begin to feel an overwhelming urge to harm yourself. To dig your nails into your own neck, to slash your veins.”

The audience made confused faces. But only one person reacted—Duke Neto La Lili stood up, his eyes wide with alarm.

“Duke Neto La Lili. It seems like you understand what I’m doing,” Davey said, smiling as he saw the Duke glare at him with a stern face.

“...”

“This is exactly what you did to the Viscount. You bastard.”

"..."

The Duke tried to break free, before he could, Davey moved like a flash of light, slamming down on his chest with his foot. He sent him flying, eventually crashing to the floor.

“Gaaa?!”

“Where do you think you're going?”

“How… How do you have this power…?” the Duke said with a rare expression of panic. Davey knew he might not be the end person of this incident, but for now, the fact that he was involved remained unchanged.

“Prince Davey! What in the world is happening?!”

“Did everyone smell it?”

Silence filled the room. It was only natural since no one else could detect the scent—only those Davey wanted could smell it.

‘Just like how I was framed,’ he thought.

"Your Highness, what do you mean…?”

“This power goes beyond simply controlling the senses of vision, hearing, and smell—it’s almost like brainwashing. It’s a unique ability that manipulates deep human impulses. And I’ve actually only manifested this horrifying power on one person, not everyone here.”

The room remained silent as Davey spoke, eyes shifting between him and Duke Neto La Lili.

“But isn’t it funny to react so suddenly and turn pale? Unless he already knew about it…”

"Your Highness, what are you…?”

“This means he knew what this power was from the beginning,” Davey fired back.

“Knowing what this force is only leads to two possible conclusions: either he’s the original owner of this power or someone who has firsthand knowledge of it.”

It was the same as how people who had been shot or had seen others get shot by guns then knew how dangerous guns were. Either way, with this, the Duke had no way out.

“How does it feel? Being overwhelmed by your own power?” Davey asked, his voice full of sarcasm. The people around Davey fell silent, taken aback by his taunt.

“Overwhelmed by my own power…?” the Duke muttered, his face contorting into a grim smile.

“You seem to be misunderstanding something,” he replied. “I was put in a position to investigate that power. Even though it was confidential, I had no choice but to know.”

‘These excuses might make it harder to prove my innocence,’ Davey thought.

“All right, if you say that, I’d be the culprit because now I’ve manifested this power before.” Davey scoffed as he was the only one known to use this power.

"Prince, I didn’t believe you were the culprit... but if you’re the one using that power..." The Duke sighed as if he couldn’t help Davey anymore.

But Davey immediately blocked his way out.

“If you can’t understand what I just said, let me put it in simpler terms.”

Davey pulled out the main-gauche, the weapon believed to have been used in the crime.

“This was the dagger the Viscount had—the weapon that killed the Count’s young boy.”

Everyone directed their attention to the weapon. It was a dagger stained with blood, clearly not having been properly cleaned.

“I looked into where this weapon was made. It’s a barrier dagger from Heins territory.”

It was a dagger infused with specific powers, enabling it to have the ability to create barriers.

“At the scene, there were no traces of any mana other than mine. The scent of blood spread as if it had been deliberately contained. Using a barrier sword to trap the smell isn’t all too difficult, but dispersing mana is beyond the ability of a barrier dagger.”

The Duke glared at Davey.

“What are you getting at?”

“My point is this: the fact that it dissipates mana.”

This may seem like an advantage, but it was absolute proof that he couldn’t control some things while manifesting the power. When it came to special abilities, there were some that were beyond one's conscious control, like certain reflexes of the human body.

Just then, the power of manipulating the senses spread out from Davey’s body, pressing against the Duke. The same power flowed out from the Duke’s body, an instinctive response to protect himself.

“...”

The Duke’s expression hardened.

“It’s probably difficult to contain yourself, isn’t it, Duke? That power will be trying its best to protect you from me.”

“Prince Davey.”

“Alright, I’m going to spread some mana around you. If you really have this power, it will react.”

The mana Davey spread would scatter because the Duke was incapable of preventing his special ability from working. Completed magic couldn’t be destroyed, but scattered mana could be dispersed.

“Besides, if I brought an elementalist to where you’re standing now, having them check the place’s memories, only the area around you would have missing memories. Care to check?”

Davey had no intention of proving the Duke’s guilt with just one piece of evidence. He planned to use everything—from the Lord of Geas to God’s grace—to expose the truth.

The Duke, receiving everyone’s attention, chuckled darkly.

“You sure aren’t easy to take down.”

“I’m glad you’re not putting up any pointless resistance. Don’t even try it, Duke.”

“Stop. If you kill me, you will regret it.”

The Duke sneered at Davey. “Because if I die, the three women you care about will never return to your side again.”

The three women he was referring to were Perserque, Illyna, and Aeria. The Duke pulled out his last resort as a threat in desperation.

“The Viscount’s brainwashing not being perfect is what got me. I guess there’s no point in hiding anything now. Prince Davey, everything you said is correct. But are you willing to risk it? Their safety depends entirely on me.”

He spoke calmly, pointing to Davey’s feet on his chest.

“So, if you want them safe, you should back off while I’m asking nicely.”

“Duke Neto La Lili... What have you done…?” one of the nobles muttered in confusion. In response, he chuckled darkly once again.

“It’s actually not that big of a deal. Everyone has their hobbies, I’m just like everybody too. Mine just happens to involve using special drugs and powers on women. The results are quite... fascinating, especially when a noblewoman loses her chastity and her mind breaks. They’re miles beyond any experiments done on ordinary subjects. That’s why I targeted Princess Illyna and your precious ones.”

Davey’s expression turned cold at his words.

“They were quite easy to fool,” the Duke continued. “I invited them to my place, saying I found a clue to the real culprit. Seeing them come so carelessly without any guards was quite...”

“Not having bodyguards could also mean confidence in one’s own strength,” Davey replied.

“I drugged them with something that master-levels can’t even handle. Which, obviously, made them collapse beautifully. By now, my men probably locked them up and are guarding them.”

As the Duke kept spitting out words as if they were his last, Davey closed and opened his eyes. His behavior was of someone intoxicated by their own power.

“Hey. Psychopath,” Davey called.

The Duke’s eyelids twitched in response.

“Step back. Don’t challenge me, and I’ll let the three people you care about live.”

“I’m assuming they won’t be in normal conditions?”

“Isn’t that still better than dying?”

“Such persistence.”

“It’s hard to find good test subjects like them. Don’t worry. At the minimum, I'll return Princess Perserque unharmed. She’s too beautiful to be wasted as a mere experimental subject.”

His half-hearted smile turned into a twisted grin.

"Duke! What are you talking about?!”

Unlike Davey who remained silent, others in the room, shocked by the Duke’s confession, shouted in disbelief. But Duke Neto La Lili kept his gaze on Davey with a chilling smile.

“So, what are you going to do? I believe you’re now in a position where you have to protect me,” he said with pupils narrowed like a cat.

"A-Arrest him immediately!!” someone shouted.

"But... he’s a noble of the Lyndis Empire... And we have to consider the safety of the princess and the others!” another hesitated.

Then the courtroom doors burst open and Crown Prince Sullivan and Fire Grand Duchess Kathryn entered.

“Forget about him being a noble of the Lyndis Empire. As of now, that bastard is stripped of his rank and sentenced to death for attempting to assassinate Princess Aeria of the Empire, daughter of Emperor Deorte.”

“Grand… Grand Duchess Carabella.”

Her expression was fierce.

“You bastard, how dare you lay hands on our princess?”

“Prince Davey!! Where is my sister Illyna?! I’ll make sure I get you in my hands for putting my sister in danger like this!! Bring her to me now!”

“Prince Sullivan,” Davey called calmly.

Sullivan finally took a look at the surroundings, his eyes wide. Rumors said Illyna and Sullivan had a terrible relationship, but the way he looked just now… was like a brother desperately shouting for his sister's safety.

Davey clapped his hands lightly, putting the others to sleep, and distorted their memories.

“Tsk, tsk. He lives up to the reputation that empires can’t stand still when something happens to their royal sisters,” Davey muttered. "You owe me now.”

Sullivan cleared his throat, acting as if nothing had happened. He then looked around and checked to see if anyone was awake.

“Illyna is... the only princess of the Pallan Empire, a member of the royal family. Of course her life is precious, Prince!”

“No one’s watching now, so drop the act.”

"My little sister!!!"

The knight accompanying Sullivan looked bewildered, and Marquis Peiltris, the Sword Master beside Davey, raised his head and commented.

“This will change the way people see Prince Sullivan...”

“Be quiet, Marquis.”

“Huh…”

Davey ignored his response and turned his attention to Duke Neto La Lili, pinned to the floor. The Duke then taunted him once again.

“Are we going to stay like this? Move me to a safe place, or I’ll destroy those three women so completely they’ll never recover...”

Bam!!

Davey kicked the Duke in the jaw with a dark smile on his face. Blood spilled from his mouth as a couple of his teeth broke.

“That damn bastard... Can we take him back alive?”

"No, not an option,” Davey replied firmly.

“Prince Davey, I’ll give you whatever you want. We must take him.”

"If you try anything reckless, there will be blood. But remember, he’s a noble of the Lyndis Empire so I have priority. Please keep that in mind.”

Grand Duchess Kathryn glared coldly at the Duke. She initially seemed to back down, but she had no intention of doing so. Unlike her, Sullivan fell for Davey’s words.

“What do you want?” he asked.

The smile on Davey’s face disappeared and he pressed his foot harder against the Duke.

“Well, I did catch him. Of course, if you pay the price, I can relinquish my claim.”

Sullivan made a complicated face at his response.

“The Pallan Empire’s finances aren’t in great shape.”

“Who asked for money?”

“All lands in the Pallan Empire belong to the people...”

“I never asked for land.”

“The research we’ve accumulated through blood and sweat...”

“I don’t need research results.”

He gave Davey a wary look at his responses.

“I can’t provide troops for you. We can’t sacrifice our people.”

“No need for soldiers either.”

“Then what do you want?”

“That’s, um…” Davey replied.

There really wasn't much to ask for. But when Davey was about to speak, he heard a crackle.

- Bzzt… Davey. Things are even worse than you imagined... I've subdued them, but you need to come and see this.

He heard Perserque’s voice from the crystal ball.

ChubbyCheeks & FriedNook's Thoughts

Editorb's Thought:

I'm so proud of Davey for finally acquiring the power of 5 Gum.