The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

Chapter 896

Grade manipulation.

Hearing those words, the atmosphere around Davey turned icy.

"Grade manipulation... Tell me everything in detail.”

Noticing the sudden serious shift in his demeanor, Tadia began trembling. "W-Well... It’s just that..."

"Ah, sorry. I didn’t mean to put pressure on you," Davey said, easing the oppressive energy in the room.

Tsshhh.

The weight in the air instantly dissipated.

"So it’s Professor Chonchi and Professor Viche...”

He’d heard of Professor Chonchi before, but Professor Viche...

‘Ah, I remember now.’

"Viche Broker, the swordsmanship professor?"

Both professors were recent hires from other academies, brought in to fill in for the academy’s lack of faculty. While Davey hadn’t personally trained them, their qualifications had seemed solid enough to merit recruitment.

"Y-Yes," Tadia stammered, her body trembling. "I may come from a common background, but...”

“That’s not what matters. I will never tolerate discrimination based on anyone’s status—whether a war orphan or a commoner—in Heins Academy.”

Tadia sobbed even harder, vindicated in her feelings.

"Waaa! Your Highness!"

The story that Tadia shared afterward was nothing short of outrageous.

Heins Academy prided itself on providing equal education for all students—nobles, royals, and commoners alike. It was a neutral institution, detached from the political intricacies of individual nations, staffed with highly skilled faculty, and flush with generous resources.

Tadia, a commoner with both talent and determination, had found hope during her time in the Academy. She worked harder than anyone, all to surpass the limitations of her birth. In fact, her diligence had caught the attention of many professors—including Baron Gorneo who considered taking her on as a direct apprentice.

However, not everyone viewed her success, and the fact that she received scholarships every year, with a kind and admirable lens.

The nobles and royals from the Rowane Kingdom and neighboring kingdoms—students born into privilege—began to see her as a threat. To them, the very existence of a commoner who could outshine them was an intolerable affront.

Ignoring the academy’s strictly enforced rules of equality, they began harassing Tadia and the other hardworking commoner students. What began as petty bullying gradually escalated, eventually drawing in adults as well.

And it was all due to Professors Chonchi and Viche.

One day, while delivering materials to the library on Baron Gorneo’s behalf, Tadia had accidentally overheard Professors Chonchi and Viche speaking with a group of noble students.

“Here, take this,” one of the professors said.

“Excellent. Are you sure this will work?”

“Of course. Just follow through on what we’ve discussed, and everything will go as planned. Be sure to inform your parents about our... agreement.”

“Absolutely. They’ll reward you handsomely for your work.”

Grade manipulation.

The two professors were manipulating grades for noble students so that they could exploit and leverage the power of their parents. They did so by providing them with the correct answers to upcoming notoriously difficult exams.

When Tadia first heard about this, she was enraged but tried to ignore it. After all, even among fellow classmates, she still knew there were differences among them in terms of class. She believed the manipulation didn’t directly affect her, since she continued to achieve top marks through her own efforts.

But the problem only grew in scope and severity.

The more the professors manipulated grades, the more the capable students were pushed down to make room for those who didn’t deserve their scores. Seeing this, Tadia couldn’t help but feel that her and the other students’ efforts were being denied. She finally confronted the professors, begging them to stop.

Unfortunately, it had only made things worse.

Realizing she had discovered their corruption, the professors began investigating Tadia’s background and loved ones. They used her siblings as leverage, threatening to kill them if she spoke out about their crimes.

Killing a commoner was trivial for a noble—they could easily fabricate whatever justification they wanted, and that would be that.

Their threats didn’t stop there. They forced Tadia to participate in further schemes, going so far as manipulating outcomes in practical exams. For someone like Tadia, who prided herself on her efforts, it was all too devastating.

‘They pushed her to the brink on purpose... to kill her.’

If Myuu hadn’t intervened, Tadia would’ve already become a cold corpse. Professor Chonchi was likely to silence Tadia and anyone else who knew too much.

In the end, Tadia was overwhelmed with despair. Believing her presence at the academy to be like a curse, she tried to escape her misery by taking her own life.

Tadia finished her explanation, tears streaming down her face. Davey reached out and sharply flicked her forehead.

Thock!

"Owwww!!" Tadia yelped, clutching her head.

"Don’t you dare try to take your own life again," Davey scolded. "What kind of person gives up so easily and still expects to accomplish something great?"

"But—!"

"You should’ve..."

Tadia flinched, lowering her head.

"Never mind. I know how hard it can be to stand up.”

“...”

"You’ve been through a lot, and I’m grateful that you trusted me enough to tell me."

"Your Highness..."

"You trust me, right?” Davey asked, his gaze unwavering. "If what you’ve said about those two professors is true—"

The outcome would be obvious.

"I’ll personally punish them for what they’ve done."

* * *

"I’m against acting immediately," Illyna said firmly.

"I agree," Perserque added.

"But... isn’t it cruel to leave the girl the way she is...?” Aeria argued, hoping they would get on the case to solve it right away.

"Aeria," Pererque said gently, "if we act based on one side of the story and it turns out to be wrong, the consequences could be irreversible."

"Are you saying... Tadia might not be...?"

"There are things in this world that can’t be judged by appearances alone," Illyna explained, making Aeria look down with a gloomy expression.

"But if she is telling the truth, it’s just too heartbreaking...”

"Don’t worry, I already have a plan."

“Da... Da...”

Nearby, Blue Ribbon and Red Ribbon whispered to each other as they cradled Evangeline and Darian, both of whom were busy playing with their silver rings.

"Daddy’s mad. Red Ribbon can tell.”

"Uh-huh. He’s really mad this time.”

Despite their whispering, Evangeline and Darian were too absorbed in their rings to notice.

"They wouldn’t have acted without covering their tracks," Davey muttered. "Even if we confront them, they’ll just deny everything."

"Then what’s your plan?" Perserque asked.

"I’ll confirm it myself."

"Yourself?"

"You know the story of the prince and the beggar, right?" Davey said as he spread mana through the air.

[Metamorphosis]

The transformation magic coursed through his body.

"Magic like that could be detected," Illyna pointed out.

"No matter how skilled they are, they won’t notice a thing. Trust me," Davey replied confidently.

"And what is this supposed to accomplish? What are you planning to do while disguised as Tadia?"

"There’s a quarterly exam coming up. I’ll take her place for it."

Of course, he’d still make Tadia take the test separately. Despite what she had suffered, every student had to go through equal processes in their education.

"First up is... the swordsmanship exam, right?"

Flexing his hands, Davey made a satisfied smile, now in Tadia’s form.

"I’ll see the truth with my own eyes."

* * *

"Tadia!"

A group of students approached Davey. Surprisingly, they were a mix of both commoners and nobles.

"Are you okay? We heard you were taken to the hospital!" a young boy asked, voice filled with worry.

"Yeah... I think I’m fine.”

"Thank goodness..."

"Don’t you ever do something like that again, got it?"

A noble boy strode up, grabbing him by the collar.

"Don’t you do anything stupid like trying to commit suicide again. Got it?”

"Uh... Yeah...”

"Something’s off about her today. Is she sick or something?" another student muttered.

"I think I just don’t feel well,” Davey said with an uneasy laugh, turning his head away and letting out a quiet sigh.

‘I should’ve investigated her relationships more thoroughly. That was close.’

"Let’s go. The swordsmanship exam is today," a large noble student said, clapping him on the back and gently pushing him forward.

"Don’t get caught up in anything weird this time. I know better than anyone how exceptional your skills are, so you better not screw this up."

"Sure," Davey replied calmly, walking toward the Swordsmanship Department's building.

When they arrived at the testing grounds, Professor Viche Broker was already there, standing alongside a group of noble students. Despite the academy’s policies on equality, the gear that the nobles wore gleamed far more brightly than that of the commoners.

"Look who decided to show up—the ghost who came back from the dead," someone sneered.

As Davey glanced at the crowd, one of them came close and sized ‘Tadia’ up.

"Did you try to hang yourself because you were scared of failing your exam? If you were really going to do it, you should’ve just stayed dead. What’s the point of coming back?"

"Hey! Koshia!"

"Ah-ha, who gave you permission to call me out like that?” Koshia sneered. "I’m the son of a duke, and you’re just the son of a count from the middle of nowhere, Bashan.”

"..." n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Don’t tell me you actually believe in the rules Prince Davey established. That’s all just him playing politics. The world has a strict hierarchy. Keep that in mind before getting any funny ideas. One word from me, and your family could go down in an instant.”

Bashan gritted his teeth in frustration.

Koshia continued, undeterred.

"Well, good luck trying to succeed with nothing but your pathetic effort to rely on, lower ones,” he said and laughed mockingly.

Just as Bashan was about to yell back, a sharp voice interrupted them.

"What’s going on here?!"

Professor Viche Broker stormed over.

"Fighting in the middle of my exam? Are you all looking to die?"

"My apologies, professor," Koshia said casually, clearly unbothered and insincere.

Professor Viche glanced at Davey, his expression cold.

"Arrogant fools. Each of you gets five points off.”

"Wait a minute, professor! Koshia started it! Why are we being punished?!"

"Are you questioning my judgment? If you don’t like it, feel free to leave Heins Academy. I’ll personally report this to the headmaster, Prince Davey."

Bashan clenched his teeth but said nothing more.

"Let it go. Favoritism isn’t exactly new around here," one of the other noble students whispered to Bashan, his pale face showing fear.

"Enough. The exams will now begin!" Viche declared. "The test consists of three parts: basic swordsmanship stances, sparring with a peer, and a duel with the instructor. Scores will be posted as each round concludes. Any questions?!"

The students shook their heads in unison, cowed by his hardened face and fierce demeanor.

"Good. Let’s begin!"

According to his information, Tadia’s swordsmanship scores had plummeted, even earning a failing grade most recently. The reason given was for having poor form and being flashy.

Gripping the neatly prepared wooden sword, ‘Tadia’ smirked.

"That pathetic professor, just handing out grades based on his whims," Bashan said.

"Be careful. He’ll deduct more points if he hears you,” someone said in response.

"The first student will be Koshia Sharen!" Viche called out.

Koshia stepped forward with a leisurely stride. He performed the basic strikes: vertical slash, horizontal slash, diagonal slash, and their combinations. His movements were clean and precise, but Davey couldn’t help but look at him with a cold face.

"Excellent! Flawless form, smooth execution, and perfect wrist control! Everyone should aspire to match Koshia’s skill. Of course, it’s no surprise given his noble lineage," Viche announced, showering Koshia with praise.

Koshia stepped back into the group with a smirk. His friends welcomed him back with chuckles and cheers.

The test continued, with various students taking their turns until finally, Davey was called out.

"Tadia! Step forward!"

‘Finally.’

Gripping his wooden sword, Davey walked out and locked his gaze onto Viche.

"You arrogant fool," Viche said with a sneer. "Relying solely on talent and refusing to put in the effort, hah. Let’s see what you’ve got."

‘Refusing to put in the effort? From what I investigated, Tadia is well-known for her relentlessness and diligence. She’s known to grind like nobody’s business. That being the case...’

Taking his stance, Davey performed the basic vertical slash.

Whoosh!

The wooden sword cut cleanly through the air, emitting a sharp sound. Koshia mocked him from the sidelines.

"Sloppy!”