The Max Level Hero Strikes Back!

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“Then, what if we used swords that are sprinkled with holy water and blessed by the temple’s purification magic?”

“I heard that doesn’t work at all. The temple’s purification magic is being blocked by some sort of special power around the Undead’s body, so it is useless. Also…”

The Undead breathed out death poison, which was the biggest problem. The poison usually infected those who had been bitten and could be easily treated by purification magic. It could turn victims into the Undead, but it only took effect after the host was dead. However…

“Things are different this time. The infected soldiers were still alive and well when they turned into the Undead. This is also the reason why two of our mountain fortresses have turned into the Undead’s land already.”

“How?!”

“Furthermore… The situation this time… I heard that there’s a monster commanding and ordering the Undead around.”

“A monster has taken command?”

“Yes. According to my investigations…the monster refers to itself as the Death Lord. Can you believe it? The Undead can speak!”

Upon hearing that an Undead was capable of speech, everybody in the hall was smart enough to understand what that meant.

Just as silence pervaded the entire hall, the man sitting at the head of the table said quietly, “We have lost my big brother. On that battlefield, my precious younger sibling is fighting against our big brother’s corpse with tears in her eyes. We don’t know when the situation will be resolved, but we don’t have the luxury to stand on the sidelines and just watch.”

“Prince Sullivan, what do you think we should do…?”

“We can’t just lie down and wait for a beating. Fortunately, the Holy Empire and the Mage Towers have given us their word that they will come to our aid. The Holy Empire has promised to send two Saintess candidates and their 6th and 7th Holy Knight Orders.”

“Ho. As expected of Prince Sullivan. I’m quite impressed with your keen insights.”

The man continued to speak calmly but solemnly. “Please always keep in mind that we cannot back down even though things will not be easy. Since these monsters dared to bare their fangs at our great Pallan Empire, then we have to kill every single one of them.”

A gloomy and deadly air started to hover above the Pallan Empire, an empire that was said to be the symbol of prosperity and peace.

69. Participating in the War in their Own Ways.

Initially delighted that Davey would be personally escorting her around the festival, Aeria El Lyndis was now apologizing to Davey profusely with tears in her eyes.

From what Davey had heard, the Lyndis Empire’s emperor had ordered them to drop everything and return back to the empire. In fact, Davey did not really mind that. This situation did not warrant any apology from Aeria at all. However, Aeria was the heartbroken one to have to break the appointment they had.

Days went by after Davey appropriately consoled the crying woman and sent her back. Although there was a slight sense of unrest, the festival still was a great success and ended on a good note.

Davey recalled the Lyndis Empire’s Grand Duchess, Kathryn Carabella. She was a reckless and aggressive woman who did whatever she had the guts to say. It appeared that she had been testing to see if Davey matched the criteria that she had set for the person that Aeria El Lyndis, who she served, was interested in.

Although he found Kathryn’s methods to be impudent, Davey had let it slide. He had made use of that reckless challenge to test out a particular ability against someone with Kathryn’s caliber and talent.

‘We’re going to war with the World Tree, so I have to make sure that nothing will go wrong with my daoist magic.’

The World Tree had plenty of powers and authorities in her hands. If Davey could clash with her using the appropriate power, then he would be able to deal a lot more pain and damage to her with the greatest efficiency from the very beginning.

There would always be many unforeseen circumstances, especially because there was a stark difference between a simulation and an actual battle.

—The World Tree’s power is compatible with all of the attributes. No matter what you say, she has an advantage in that area. On the other hand, daoist magic is a power that exists in another world and is solely for humans’ use. This means that it’s a power excluded from the World Tree’s control.

Mana, holy power, and dark mana… Any power that was given a name by the primordial will would have no effect on the World Tree, which was no stupid entity. She wouldn’t stay still and get beaten when she could just go full power at the very beginning. That was why Davey found it necessary to use daoist magic.

During his spar with Kathryn, Davey found that the efficiency of daoist magic would decrease as time went by. That realization brought him great frustration and irritation.

—So, what’s your solution?

In response to Perserque’s question, Davey reached for an item inside his Pocket Plane. Since he couldn’t grab and pull it out yet, his hand passed through the item as if it was just a hologram. The appearance of this item would definitely have a great impact in this world.

In truth, the item really should not have that much of an impact, since it was just a tool. But since it was related to daoist magic, the item would definitely make its efficiency sky rocket. This was an item that could make Davey grin widely. This item was necessary for Davey to easily chop up the World Tree, who was very much compatible with all of the powers in this world. The problem was…

‘How do I even take this item out?’

There was only one way to retrieve an item that went beyond transcendence and was under the restrictions of God’s will. But Goddess Freyja, who was supposed to help Davey out, had been ignoring his prayers. In other words, she was a very superficial shrew who only sought Davey out if she needed something from him. Because of that, Davey’s head was filled with curses and profanities toward her most of the time. However, that did not stop him from worrying.

In the end, Davey decided to make other preparations, since he could not solve this problem immediately. He also had to strengthen his territory and increase their munitions and weapons as preparation for the war against the World Tree. Even though such preparation would not have much effect on the war, Davey still wanted to do so.

This armed conflict would have bloody consequences. Once the war ended, the sense of hatred would be irreversible and inevitable. So, Davey had to do all that he could to prevent that from happening.

Davey did not want to sacrifice innocent lives for useless ideals and goals. However, this war was unavoidable, so he had to do his best to protect his people as much as he could and subdue the enemies before even further damage could be inflicted on them. Davey did not intend to let a single one of his people shed blood and die in this war.

Increasing his military force, strengthening the defenses, and creating weapons as well as buying and stocking up food were measures being taken to prepare for the worst case scenario. Among those things, food and rations were in scarce supply. The farming that they had done in this territory had not yet paid off.

“Hmm? Amy, didn’t you report before that the merchant group buying rations and food supplies was supposed to arrive today?”

“That…”

Davey, who came to sort out the supplies, frowned when he saw the rations. “This amount is not enough. Contact them and tell them that we will buy everything that they can sell.”

“Actually…the merchant group refuses to do business with us. I tried to make another deal somehow, but…they said that it was an imperial decree given by the Pallan Empire,” Amy said uneasily.

Davey paused. “Refused? What is this nonsense?”

“That…”

Just when Davey was about to urge Amy, who looked like she did not know how to report the matter…

“I will be doing the report on this matter.”

“Aina?”

“Please. Please call me Jack.”

Jack, or Aina, used to hide her existence extremely well. However, she recently started to show up more often. Of course, she was still disguising her true self as a human man.

“Sir Davey, are you aware of the events that have and are still transpiring in the Pallan Empire?”

“I wouldn’t ask if I already know.”

The dark elf Aina Helishana, who was still disguised as a man thanks to the necklace that Davey had given her, looked like she had expected the answer. She said, “I’m sure you know about the huge granaries located on the southern side of the Pallan Empire, right?”

“Of course.”

The Pallan Empire’s huge granaries were known to produce around 20% of the produce that was traded and distributed all over the continent. The empire’s vast fertile lands were dedicated solely to the production of food and had long exported their own crops to many other countries. In fact, the Rowane Kingdom and the Heins Territory were both regular buyers of their exports.

“So, there’s a problem?”

“Yes.”

The news that Aina had relayed was much simpler than what Davey thought. Basically, an invasion had started on the vast lands that produced and exported huge amounts of food. So, the question was which crazy person had left their common sense behind and attacked the Pallan Empire? The answer to that was none other than the Undead, the monsters known as the moving dead.

“Is the nation hailed as the continent’s strongest empire unable to deal with the Undead?”

“They’re not your regular Undead. From what I heard, the Undead are using strategies and tactics. According to reports, the Undead would use their numbers to lure, ambush, and retreat. Just like trained soldiers. Since they are a legion that did not feel pain, exhaustion, or fear, it is difficult for the empire to oppose them.”

“What?”

“Simply put, the enemies are hard to deal with. Unbelievable, right?”

“No. I already know about something similar.”

“What an unlucky fellow.”

“What did you say?”

“Nothing.”

The question here was…were the Undead much more dangerous than the World Tree?

“I’m not sure how much Sir Davey knows, but they are not normal at all. Because of that, the White Bird led by Princess Illyna de Pallan has been dispatched. However, their situation is not very favorable. All they could do is stop the enemies from pushing the defense line even further.”

They were holding down the fort and not losing the fight, but they were also not winning. At first, one would find it unbelievable that the Undead, those mindless monsters, were using tactics and strategies and taking advantage of their numbers. They were even cooperating with each other. However, that wasn’t an impossibility.

“Goodness… I have never heard of any Undead having intelligence.”

Aina also nodded after hearing Winley’s shocked words. If everyone followed common sense, then it was impossible for the Undead to gain sentience and intelligence. However, that wasn’t entirely impossible. If someone forcefully planted orders into their heads, the mindless Undead would become the most faithful and loyal servants. And there was only one existence that could make that possible.

—A high-ranking necromancer.

Necromancers had the power to command and deal with the dead. Their abilities were unusual, which made them different from the masses. Davey felt frustrated at the appearance of such a monster, who seemed like they had been waiting for this moment to awaken.

A war needed soldiers, yes. However, military supplies couldn’t be ignored. If their initial suppression failed, then there was a high chance that the war would spread and turn into a protracted war. That was why it was beneficial to prepare more food reserves than needed. Wasn’t there a saying that said, Better safe than sorry? If the opponent was unusual, then they had no choice but to prepare more thoroughly than expected.

“The Pallan Empire did not say much about this matter?”

“It seems like they have already asked for help from other nations. Rowane Kingdom has decided to send support through vast amounts of weapons and some of their troops. Prince Baris will be the one leading the troops.”

Davey never heard about this plan. It appeared that his damn father was trying to make Baris stronger by presenting him with this trial. Davey had to wonder how deep his father’s affection for the Rowane Kingdom went for him to go that far. Of course, that was King Krianes’ decision alone and it had nothing to do with Davey, who had already gone on a tangent with them.

The only thing that mattered to Davey right now was his preparations for the upcoming war. The preparations that he was making in case of an emergency, was being hampered by these uninvited guests.

“Amy.”

It did not take too long for Davey to make a decision.

Amy, as if she had been waiting for Davey’s call, answered briskly, “What are your orders, Your Highness?”

“I will participate in this war too. If we’re unlucky, our noses will break even if we fall backward…”

Davey was already busy with matters related to the World Tree. What necromancer? Bastards who were trying to occupy the food warehouse that was supposed to supply his territory with food? It did not matter to Davey whether the opponent was a high-ranking necromancer or a Death Master. He was already busy enough, so they should stop getting in his way.

“I must pray for their souls.”

“They’re really unlucky.”

If they did not attack the food warehouses, then they might have had a chance at survival, but now… Davey would cut down anyone or anything that got in his way, even a dragon would have to face his wrath. That was his decision.