The Max Level Hero Has Returned!
chapter-748

The entire situation seemed like it should be accompanied by pigs flying around and hell freezing over.

The beings of Tionis, including Davey, were here from another dimension cleaning up the abnormalities occurring on Earth at the moment. Far from their own home, their living situation alternated between Asgard, the airship they arrived on, and staying in Hyun-Soo’s home.

Deep inside, she was grateful to them for saving tens, hundreds, or even tens of thousands of people who would’ve otherwise died.

Although their first meeting was a bit shaky, she thought that she and Davey would be able to understand each other to some extent. She remembered getting angry at him initially, thinking he was just making things up. She knew he was capable of a lot of things, but to her, it had seemed like he considered himself some kind of god—he needed to know his place.

To her, it seemed like Davey was just creating something similar to her brother, an imitation, to get out of the situation. She couldn’t believe that he was trying to deceive her and sully her brother’s memory.

Still, she couldn't stay angry, interrupted by the moment of hesitation when she thought she might actually see her dead brother. Davey had told her he had reincarnated, but now he was going back on his word. Even though she knew it was a lie, she had no choice but to hope.

If she could meet her brother just once more, the brother she couldn't even be with on his deathbed, and be able to talk to him once more, the charnel house wouldn’t matter.

She didn’t even know what she would say if she saw him again, just clung to the hope of seeing him. In her mind, she knew she shouldn’t hold out hope, but deep down, she pleaded desperately. She could feel herself praying for it to happen.

In response to her decision, Davey prepared a magic circle. After about thirty minutes of preparation, he called her brother out in front of her. When she first saw him, she felt complicated emotions of sadness, joy, and even uneasiness as she didn't know what to do.

She couldn’t even move her body, as if someone had petrified her. However, her eyes that showed her brother’s reflection trembled mercilessly, and she was convinced that Davey hadn’t been lying—her brother was truly here.

Clear tears trickled down her cheeks as she walked toward him, erasing the thought that Davey might have been lying. The being summoned before her, the man she recognized immediately even though several years had passed, felt as familiar as if she had seen him only yesterday. This made her cry even harder.

Even though they fought all the time, he was a precious brother to her. In fact, she had only decided to go to medical school for her brother, because she was unable to be with him at his end due to her exams. The regret that she felt towards this was just so heavy.

Shin Hyun-Soo appeared in front of her with a wicked smile on his face. He poked her forehead like an older brother picking on his younger sister, just as always, and pushed her away.

***

“I wasn’t sure if this was going to work, but I guess he really didn’t reincarnate,” Davey said.

“Kain, let’s go. You go prepare for the ritual and make everyone else leave as well,” the clone made from hair muttered, sitting down. Then the clone, acting like Davey, naturally left the room. It was just Hyun-Ah and Davey left in the room.

“Hyun-Soo… It’s really you, right?”

“Are you drunk or something? What’s wrong with you?”

“Hyun-Soo!!” she shouted loudly and hugged Davey tightly. Seeing her crying and not knowing what to do, Davey felt like crying inside. When he stroked her head with his trembling hand and patted her on the back, she cried even louder as if all the sadness inside her was bursting out.

“Waaa!!! Hyun… Hyun-Soo!!”

She was crying and couldn't even finish what she was trying to say, but it was already more than enough for Davey to know how she felt. She didn't stop crying, as if she was trying to shake off all the sadness she had been feeling, and Davey just quietly hugged her until she calmed down.

"It’s alright. It’s me, your handsome brother.”

“Waaa! Stop saying nonsense! Waaa!”

“It’s good to see you’re doing well.”

She only calmed down once her voice was hoarse from all the crying.

“Sob…Sob…”

Davey just hugged her in silence as she hiccuped and squeezed out more tears. When she tried to blow her nose on his clothes, he pushed her away with a thud.

“Are you trying to drown a soul in tears or something? How dare you try to put your snot on me?”

“Woah… Your annoying demeanor. I guess you really are my brother…” she muttered, still in disbelief. She then couldn’t help but smile.

“Hyun-Soo.”

“Yeah, I’m listening.”

“Hyun-Soo… Are you really Hyun-Soo?”

“Yeah.”

“You’re not going to just disappear, are you? You sure I’m not dreaming right now?”

“Pinch yourself if you’re not sure.”

“Woah… Geez... Wait a second…”

Not knowing how to react, she pinched his cheek here and there.

“Wow… Ghosts are touchable?”

“How would I know? I don’t even understand what’s going on right now.”

“Oh, right. I forgot that you wouldn’t know,” she muttered. She then explained the current situation with eyes full of motivation. She talked about her encounter with a being called Davey O’Rowane, and other things like her uncle and Yeon-Hee’s illness.

But during this whole time, not wanting to make him worry, she didn’t talk about what actually happened to her uncle.

“How’s Uncle doing? Are you two living together?” Davey asked.

“Ah…

That is… Uncle is…”

She avoided answering, instead smiling awkwardly.

“He’s really busy. As you know, the Group is quite big, right? Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of lives are at stake on uncle’s sole decision.”

By the standards of Tionis, he could be considered a reigning king.

“I see…”

“How have you been…?”

“Huh? Uh... hmm… You know, I think I’ve fallen asleep and rested soundly.”

She smiled bitterly at his words.

“Hyun-Soo…. I had wondered if you could move freely now that you’re dead, but I guess that isn’t the case.”

“Are you making fun of a dead person now?”

“I missed you a lot, Hyun-Soo. Yeon-Hee and Uncle both missed you a lot. Didn’t you miss us?”

“Why do you linger so long on someone who’s already dead? Are you stupid?”

“Hmph. Who told you to die like that?” she giggled and ran into his arms despite him pushing her away.

“Hyun-Soo… I’m so happy to see you again. You wouldn’t know how much I regretted it after I sent you off like that.”

“Regret?”

“I regretted taking the test… I wish I had stayed by your side instead. If I hadn't fought with you and ran away because I couldn’t stand to see your face… I would have been with you until the end…”

Hyun-Ah was still regretting not being able to stay by his side during his past life, when he died as Shin Hyun-Soo.

“It’s okay since we’re seeing each other now. How’s Yeon-Hee doing?”

“Oh, right! The person I was talking about earlier, Davey, saved her life. I managed to save her, but I couldn’t save…”

Her voice teared up as she trailed off.

“There, there. Stop crying. Why do you keep squeezing out tears, Ms. Tyrannosaurus.”

"Hyun-Soo, your rude remarks haven't changed even a little bit despite being dead.”

Even as she said this, Davey could see the fear in her eyes, afraid that he might leave again.

“Hyun-Soo, do you have to get going soon?”

“Why?”

“Nothing… I mean, like on TV they usually talk for a moment, say a few random things, and then disappear…”

“I’m pretty sure I told you to not watch too much TV.”

“So you aren’t going to leave?”

“There’s plenty of time to talk.”

She nodded as if satisfied with his answer.

She then muttered quietly, "I’m sorry."

"Hmm?" Davey responded, puzzled.

"I’m sorry… I’m sorry for fighting you like that… I didn't even understand your feelings... If I knew you were going to leave us like that, I wouldn't have treated you like that..."

She shared stories she hadn't told him before, making Davey emotional as well.

"Whatever. It’s not like people always get to choose when they die.”

“Hyun-Soo, aren’t you angry?”

“Why would I be angry?”

She opened her eyes and looked at him, surprised.

“I’m just thankful that you’ve grown to become the adult you are now.”

"W-Why are you saying something like that!? It’s weird!”

“Well I think you’re being even weirder—I almost thought you were drunk or something. You should really stop drinking during the day…”

“Haha…”

Normally, she would’ve gotten angry, but now she just giggled. Davey couldn’t figure out what was so funny.

"Oh, right. Let's get going. I still have a lot to talk about, but you need to see Yeon-Hee too.”

“I can’t leave this place.”

Her eyes widened at his answer.

"Oh right... My brother’s a ghost. Wait a minute, then I’ll bring her here. Can you wait here for a moment?”

“Do you know how long it’ll take?”

“I’ll bring her before you can even say Jack Robinson” she giggled. She then stood up, but Verndandi suddenly intruded.

“What are you doing right now?! Enough with this stupid stuff!”

Hyun-Ah and Davey both turned their heads to her in an instant.

“I hope you know how serious the situation is right now. What in the world are you…”

‘Verdande, don't talk anymore and shut up,’ Davey silently conveyed while releasing a fierce glare, preventing her from making a mistake.

It was a perfectly understandable reaction considering she didn't know the whole story yet. But even so, he couldn't let this reunion—Shin Hyun-Soo meeting his younger sister, which would never happen again—get interrupted.

“Ms. Verdandi?” Hyun-Ah asked, confused.

“Oh… It’s nothing. I think I was mistaken. I came here because I felt something similar to Davey's energy... Uh… I think I was confused by the magic circle he laid out.”

She thought for a moment with a stern expression, but eventually went along with his acting. Afterward, Davey couldn’t help but break out in a cold sweat as he thought of what would have happened had he gotten caught.

“Davey left a while ago. He was talking about some ritual.”

“Ah... Okay. I guess I was mistaken. Then...”

She muttered in a baffled tone and made eye contact with Davey.

- I won't ask what you are doing, but the other side noticed that the ritual is in progress and has begun to move, giving it everything they’ve got. I don't know how they plan on accomplishing it, but they're trying to send a large number of Princesses of the Abyss here from the Abyss. So, you need to stop whatever you're doing and get going soon.

Davey realized the situation was pretty serious. It seemed like he had to go fully defensive, but that wasn’t his style of fighting; he preferred being the one on the offensive, destroying things. He quietly blinked toward Verdandi to signal her before she hurriedly left. Afterward, he pretended not to know her and asked Hyun-Ah, “She’s beautiful. Is she a friend of yours?”

“Oh come on, you just had to ask, didn’t you…”

“You shouldn’t blame me for asking about someone that beautiful after looking at someone who looks like a Tyrannosaurus like you all the time.”

“I heard she’s famous for her incredible beauty—Ms. Verdande is one of the top six beauties on the continent of Tionis.”

“I guess people rank others just the same everywhere.”

But in fact, Davey didn't really like standards like continental beauties or anything like that, he believed instead everyone was unique. Hyun-Ah was trying to go get Yeon-Hee again, but Davey stopped her.

“I don’t have much time. You can just tell me about them.”

At his words, she looked at him as if she was about to cry, but when he showed her his half-blurred hand, she seemed to understand and closed her mouth. It didn’t stay closed for long, however—not wanting to waste any more time, she started talking about what had happened and what she wanted to say one by one.

Although they often made fun of each other and fought, this time Davey listened to her story in silence. She was telling him everything on her mind, to the point where it seemed like she was repeating the same story over and over again. She was sharing stories as if every minute and every second was too precious.

There was nervousness in her voice as she watched his body gradually disintegrate due to the illusion magic he had prepared in advance.

“You have this much to talk about?”

“I… I still have more to talk about… There are so many stories I haven’t been able to tell you. Hyun-Soo… Don’t go. Stay here with me some more. Let’s spend more time living with Yeon-Hee and Uncle.

“You think that's possible?”

At his words, she started crying again.

“Hyun-Soo… Please... Why would it not work? I’ll be a better sister—there are a lot of things I couldn't do for you and a lot of good things we haven’t eaten together. I'll do better. So, how about it?”

Seeing her clinging and pleading made it difficult for Davey to control the emotions rumbling within him. He knew he couldn’t let things continue like this—he had to cut this off at some point.

He knew human greed had no end, hence why he didn’t casually call upon the souls of the dead. The meeting between Illyna and the former crown prince was simply an exception—most people reacted like Hyun-Ah.

Davey then recalled what Verdandi said.

‘Princesses of the Abyss are coming here straight from the Abyss?’

By his current standards, Davey didn't know how many Princesses of the Abyss would be dangerous for him, but a single Princess of the Abyss was no different from a weapon of destruction capable of annihilating an entire world. The potential variables that could arise if they succeeded in their plan were too significant, and time was running out.

The two continued to talk for a while before Davey glanced down at his almost fully-blurred body.

“Hyun-Soo, are you crying?”

“Crying? What’s crying?”

“How about you wipe your tears before saying that?”

Even though she was crying, she spoke to him as if she didn’t want to show her weak side to him.

“Hyun-Soo, promise me you’ll end up somewhere nice. I will pray to Goddess Freyja or whoever every day, so you better come back to this world in a good place and live a healthy life, got it?”

“That’s my line. I'll take care of myself, so now you live your life. And meet a good man.”

Feeling playful, Davey continued, “You… You don’t have a guy you like, do you? How about Yeon-Hee?”

“I don’t know about Yeon-Hee… But these days there actually is someone that I think about every now and then.”

Her words instantly reminded him of the man next to her.

‘Grape? No, Hyun-Ah doesn’t like guys like him. Hydro? Not him either. Then who is it?’ Davey’s conjectures raced through his mind. Unable to come up with an answer, he ended up frowning.

“He’s from another dimension.”

At those words, he felt like his heart sank for a moment.

“I keep thinking about him,” she giggled a bit.

Davey asked cautiously, looking at her shaking her head. “Hey… It’s not him, is it?”

“Who?”

“That person on your mind… it’s not Davey O’Rowane, is it?” he asked calmly.

‘She must be out of her mind. Please tell me it’s not him.’

Strangely enough, the silence only became even more frightening.