The Max Level Hero Has Returned!
chapter-755

The rugged and shabby man had disappeared just as fast as he appeared, but the results of his actions were not at all insignificant.

“Kghhhk?!”

The dark red sword energy that he left behind continued to move as if it were alive. It flew through the air several times cutting and hacking the surrounding area, creating devastating shockwaves and forcing Katshi to collapse in a heap of blood.

Katshi looked at the deep gashes on his body in disbelief. His tough and hard carapace had been helplessly torn apart. It looked as if a knife had carved his body up with flower patterns.

“Kghhk! Damn it, it’s all ruined now!! I was so close!!!” Katshi shouted as he struggled desperately to escape, but his movements halted abruptly.

“Don’t you dare move.”

It was because another voice rang out right behind him. This time, the one that appeared was a young man with black hair and red eyes. The young man turned to look at Perserque, who was lying silently on the ground, and Rinne who was in an overloaded state gasping for air.

“This...!” Katshi redoubled his efforts to run away when he realized who had arrived.

Stab!!!

But the effort was futile. The young man’s bluish-red sword stabbed straight through Katshi. Then, he spun his large body before dragging it back and pinning him on the ground. The moves that the young man displayed were simply ferocious, completely unlike his usual attack style.

Katshi was powerful and durable enough that he could still stand up even after being stabbed by the awakened Sephiroth Rinne with the Spear that Melts the Scale in her hands. Normally, he would have been able to stand back up and retaliate even after being stabbed by Super Ribbon. Unfortunately, this time his body was not completely following his will.

“Urk?! Keheok! Kghhk!”

Katshi’s staggering gigantic body began to burn until he was forced to revert to the form of a little boy. The moment he reverted, he unsteadily vomited a mouthful of blood.

“Davey... O’... Rowane...” He muttered Davey’s name as he scrutinized the young man.

“...”

Davey, on the other hand, remained silent seeing the gasping Rinne and the collapsed Perserque. He looked quite calm and composed, but the unusual aura that was spreading from his body belied his agitation. It was like looking at the calm before a storm.

“Kgghk!” Katshi groaned as he clutched his injured stomach. He quickly staggered backward after realizing the seriousness of the situation.

Slash!!!

But Davey moved faster than him. He swiftly dashed in and severed Katshi’s arm with one swing of Super Ribbon.

“Keuaaaaaaaack!!!” A gruesome scream was ripped off of Katshi’s mouth. Realizing that he couldn’t regenerate his severed arm like usual, he scrambled to get away from Davey.

‘Damn it... The bad things just keep on happening.’

The situation had turned to the worst for him. The appearance of the rugged and unkempt man had created a huge upheaval. His sword, which moved as if it was alive, left a huge gash on Katshi. Katshi had fought countless beings so far, yet even by his standards the man’s sword energy was far too bizarre and deadly.

His original body was still trapped inside Alf Online, and the body that he was using here was nothing but an incarnation created by his powers. He had nothing to fear here, not even death.

But the sword energy that the man had released earlier was completely different from Davey’s bluish-red sword. It gnawed on his very existence endlessly and left him severely injured. If Katshi continued to fight in his current situation, then even he would find it difficult to endure.

Even if Davey continued to silently attack him, Katshi should be able to ignore it—but the young man in front of him was obviously much stronger than before! If Davey managed to combine the rugged man’s sword energy, his bluish-red sword and the power of Hercules, then...

‘If I don’t retrieve the power of the other races, then... perhaps I’ll die here. I have to quickly get away...’

It was easy to suggest, but his body didn’t even move according to his will.

“Where are you running off to, huh?” Davey said, an eerie smile on his face.

When he saw Katshi preoccupied with his own thoughts, Davey did not hesitate to move in and grab him by the throat.

Bang!!!

Then, he slammed his head down on the ground.

“Keuoooock?!” Katshi screamed from the terrible pain that wracked his entire being.

In response to his screams, Davey simply continued to hit him with the same attack.

‘N-No...!’

Katshi’s consciousness started to blur. When he came back to his senses, a fear of death flooded his mind.

‘I endured ten thousand years of being sealed!!! I was able to hold on for that long!’

He did not endure and hold onto his consciousness and spirit for that long just so he could die at the hands of this horne.

It was still fine when Thanatos’ Incarnation began to draw Thanatos’ power, but everything went down the drain when Sephiroth Rinne awakened. Why did variables like these only appear from Freyja’s camp?

Katshi stumbled on his feet as his fear of death and the overwhelming sense of injustice devoured him. If his last resort escape was now blocked, then... all that was left was for him to die. And thanks to all those variables, it would be his real death.

Katshi did not expect to feel the fear of true death here since he didn’t feel it even during his fight with Eclipse.

“If I’m going to die like this here, then...”

Davey stopped attacking and immediately stepped back when he saw the black energy that began to spread out and swirl from Katshi’s entire body.

‘There is no turning back. Once I die, everything under my command will disappear. Even my Creator will suffer for it...’

If that was the case, then he should at least find a way to turn his meaningless death into a suicide bombing, no?

‘If I activate this, then I will definitely die. But...’

It was more than enough.

Shwaaa!!!

Davey, who saw a gap, closed in once more and cut Katshi’s body down. The attack without an ounce of hesitation was truly shocking.

‘Damn it! It’s all this horne’s fault...’

He could have lived without so much as slightly fearing for his life.

Everything was because of that damn horne’s sword energy that moved as if it were alive and viciously cut Katshi’s body.

He felt that what he had managed to do was already enough.

“I lost.”

Katshi accepted his defeat in a short amount of time.

“That’s funny. Do you think this is just some kind of sports event?”

“Everything would have gone perfectly before that damn horne appeared and turned things around, then you arrived. Since things have come to this point, then there’s nothing else I can do,” Katshi said.

His body slowly started to disintegrate. Yes, he was dying.

“Aaaah... My God, my Creator, my Father. Even if the path that you reveal is filled with hardships, I will use whatever force is necessary just so I can walk that path. My... My only wish is to devote my everything to you.”

The slowly disappearing Katshi vomited another mouthful of blood. Then, he grabbed Davey’s collar and looked him straight in the eye as he gloated, “The one that you’re protecting? Thanatos’ Incarnation? She’s done for.”

“Bullshit.”

“You don’t know? But she’s already realized it herself.”

“If you want to say something, then just spit it out.”

“The Absolute Gem... Urk... You will regret using it to block the Abyss. Just you wait—even though the chance is only one in a thousand, no even if it’s one in ten thousand, the moment I recover I’ll make sure to bring you your end.”

Swoosh...

After leaving those words, Katshi’s body completely disintegrated and scattered with the wind. It was quite a vain and useless death for such a powerful being. Despite the potential possibility of a revival, the abysmal likelihood made it so that Davey didn't give it further consideration.

Shortly after Katshi disappeared, Rinne collapsed with four of her six wings broken into pieces. Davey ran quickly to catch her. Then, he shouted, “Why did you do something so stupid, huh?! Why did you abandon your life just so you could follow your orders?!”

“Rinne... knew that... Rinne couldn’t protect... Lady Per... Rinne... rates herself very... low... ly...”

By the end of her words, the geometric pattern that adorned the halo floating on top of her head slowly twisted until it returned back to its original shape. At the same time, the overwhelming holy power that was emanating from her disappeared.

Davey silently held Rinne before approaching Perserque. He said, “Perserque...”

“Why did you come here...” Perserque said, laughter evident in her tone.

Davey also chuckled. “I came here to kill the enemy. Why are you here?”

“Fufu... I also came here to kill the enemy.”

“Even though you’re weak?”

“It’s just that he and I are not compatible, he counters my powers...” Perserque said. As her eyes slowly drifted shut, she murmured, “I’m sorry, Davey... I couldn’t tell you... I have been hiding it all this time...”

“If you know it’s dangerous, then you should have told me first.”

“When... I wake up... I will tell you...”

Davey did not understand the situation yet. He could only sigh in relief knowing that Perserque was safe for the moment.

***

Everyone was rendered mute when they saw the severe injuries that Perserque and Rinne had sustained. Katshi, one of the enemy commanders, lost his body projection and suffered severe—perhaps even fatal—injuries as a result before hiding away.

The terrifying part here was that Katshi had come to catch him off guard. If Davey were just a bit late—no, if that strange phenomenon did not occur—then one of the two girls would have suffered even more serious problems.

“Rinne has... died once.”

Davey looked at the strange rosy and bright girl, who strangely was bouncing on her feet while her chest was split wide open.

“Master Davey, what about Lady Per?”

“She’s consumed a lot of strength, but she didn’t actually sustain any major injuries. Most of them are already healed, and now she’s asleep. As for you, you brat, your injuries are very serious.”

Perserque’s injuries were not that serious. The problem was that Perserque’s life force had just hit an all-time low. Whatever she was experiencing, she had to wake up first before Davey could then make a proper diagnosis. Even so, he was still trying to hide his anxiety.

For now, Verdandi—the one who was closest to the Abyss—was the one keeping a close watch and taking care of her. At that moment, Davey recalled the exhausted Verdandi. It seemed like the matter regarding Urd did not turn out well.

“Master Davey, Rinne has determined that there is no problem with Rinne’s body except for the overload.”

“Stop lying,” Davey said, a frown marring his face as he poked the girl’s forehead. “For the Deus Ex Machina to stop working like that, your body has to either suffer from a ridiculous amount of power and overload or receive damage equivalent to that much power in an instant.”

And...

“In your case, you suffered both.”

The impact that Rinne received from Katshi’s attack had already put a strain on her. Even the forced awakening as a Sephiroth had put yet another strain on her.

“You should understand what I mean, right? What I’m saying here is, if you were just a tiny bit unlucky, you would have already broken down into pieces by now.”

Of course, things weren’t that simple. In the meantime, Rinne just sat on top of an iron shelf and swung her white legs around.

“Rinne declares that Rinne needs to grow further. To be precise, Rinne’s power output...”

“I’m sure all of the data about your past has been erased...”

Davey had seen the three pairs of wings on her back and the unique pattern that floated above her head. Rinne currently looked just like she usually did. But back then, the stupid Rinne looked...

“Just like the Goddess of the Battlefield,” Davey murmured as he pulled out the burnt parts inside Rinne and promptly replaced them.

“Rinne reports that she is the Goddess of Electronics. Rinne thinks this is adorable and cute.”

“Ugh. You brat,” Davey said as he hit Rinne with the handle of the screwdriver in his hand after installing another one of her parts.

All of the extra parts that Davey had added to her body for stabilization were broken—even the core magic stone that was placed there to stabilize her power was broken. In fact, it looked like it was going to disintegrate at any given moment. It was essentially done for.

“Rinne reports that the data wipe happened when the main heart drive stopped running.”

“...”

“Rinne thinks that this is the reason why newfound information has been installed to Rinne’s memory drive.”

It seemed like her transformation into Goddess of the Battlefield, her Sephirothization, was added to her body as an insurance policy to protect her against the threat of death she’d eventually face.

“That power, can you use it again?”

“Possibility is uncertain. But if Master Davey commands it, Rinne judges the use of that power as highly worth it.”

The current power output of the Deus Ex Machina could not withstand her Sephirothization. Rinne could display a ridiculously powerful force upon her transformation to that angel of light. But if the price to use that power was her life, then it was already off the table.

“Rinne.”

“...”

“Prioritize your life.”

“Master Davey, is that an order?”

Davey nodded in response. “That’s right. Of course, I’m not saying that you should betray all of my prior orders.”

“Rinne states Rinne’s failure to comply with the order. Rinne reports that the protection of the owner, Master Davey, precedes the order.”

When Davey heard her stubborn reply, he patted one of her parts in anger.

“Ukyaa! Kyaa!! Kyaack!!!”

Rinne’s body was overtaken with seizures as a result.

“Behave.”

“...”

Rinne returned to her original state when he tapped the same part again. As he focused on the parts in her core, Davey quietly said, “I have never treated or considered you as something that I can just throw away. You are not expendable.”

Rinne looked down at Davey, who was kneeling on one knee and tinkering with her parts, with a fierce gaze. Then, she quietly reached her hand out and placed it on his head.

“What?”

“Master Davey. Rinne’s emotional circuit is heating up. This...”

“...”

“Rinne judges that it is because of shame. Rinne states clearly that shame does not belong with Rinne.”

“Then you better not transform to that next time.”

It did not matter what Rinne was 10,000 years ago—all that mattered to Davey was her safety now.

“Is the ritual done?”

“They’re in the last stages. Kain’s working overtime, so you only need to wait a bit more.”

Davey nodded. The ritual involving the Absolute Gem would take at least three to four days. If it succeeded, then they would be able to effectively seal the path connecting the front side and back side of the coin. Then, all of the wars and the battles—including the battle against Eclipse—would end.

But there was something that still bothered Davey... Katshi had obviously said that he would regret it if he activated the Absolute Gem, sure, but that was not what was currently bothering him.

Davey closed up Rinne’s chest, locked it, and covered her with her clothes again. He then jumped through space to arrive at the location where Katshi, Rinne and Perserque fought.

There were traces left behind in this battlefield, like the ones Perserque left behind. But there was something he saw that he just could not understand.

“These are definitely the traces of the Demonic Sword...”

There was no one else in this world who could wield the Demonic Sword. Wait, no, there was a chance that someone could wield the sword. After all, the Heavenly Destroyer still had descendants left in the Heavenly Central Plains. However, none of them were skilled enough to leave behind such deep marks and clear traces.

In other words, someone appeared shortly before Davey, who was rushing here, and cut down Katshi to save Rinne and Perserque. Even though Davey thought that it was impossible, his heart felt so heavy to the point that it might just explode.

He was still not sure, but these traces could only be left behind by the owner and the creator of the skill. If that was truly the case, then there was only one simple explanation to this.

Heavenly Destroyer Dokgo Jun, who was already dead and whose soul should be in the Hall, had appeared here.

Dokgo Jun was hailed as the Ghastly Sword and was among the people standing at the top in the Hall of Heroes in terms of power alone. In terms of mastery of the sword, he had reached the pinnacle—however, it was in an entirely different direction from Ares’ own mastery. He lost only to the two strongest in the Hall, Hercules and Rho Aias. The fact that he could reach that level was enough for anyone to question whether he was a human or not.

“That’s impossible,” Davey murmured blankly. “That should be impossible...”

However, considering how Goddess Freyja was far too quiet compared to Thanatos and Neltarid who were running amok, then... Perhaps she truly summoned him here...

“I am warning you. If you truly did something to sacrifice the souls of those guys, then that will be the end between us. Do you understand?” Davey growled.

They were beings tied down and trapped within the confines of the Hall. Because they were free from the providence of the world, they could still grow and evolve despite being dead. But if she forced them to descend into the world, even for a little while, then... their souls would probably be in a situation where they’d disappear after one last display of brilliance.

To put it simply, Goddess Freyja had summoned a force close to God into this plane for a short moment of time, in exchange for the extinction of the souls of the people in the Hall of Heroes.

If that was truly the explanation for Dokgo Jun’s appearance here, then that meant that the battle here was very important. Who was it that she wanted to protect? Was it Perserque, or was it Rinne?

Davey knew the answer. Despite the bitter reality, he was still hoping and begging that it was Perserque. But the god that Davey was currently serving had shown little to no mercy toward Perserque.

In any case, if Goddess Freyja truly summoned Dokgo Jun here for a short moment at the expense of each hero’s soul, then this was not something that Davey could afford to take lightly.

“I truly hope that it’s not the case.”

Davey felt his heart thump heavily at the hidden truth slowly revealing itself to him.

Thud!!!

A huge shockwave of enormous amounts of energy spread from a distance. A gigantic pillar of light shot to the sky, boasting a diameter of almost five meters. It seemed like the ritual for the Absolute Gem that Kane was doing was now nearing its end.

Boom!

Verdandi approached Davey and quietly said, “The ritual is now coming to an end.”

“Alright.”

“It’s now time for you to make a choice.”

“What?” Davey asked as he turned to look back at Verdandi.

With a complex expression on her face, she said, “You know that Perserque, Thanatos’ Incarnation, has now used his powers, right?”

Perserque had used the absolute power to look into her target before taking everything from them to use in battle. That power was originally not something that Perserque could use—if she could use it before, then the humans would have never won the battle against the demons 3,000 years ago.

“I read portions of her memories while I was checking her body’s condition. Let me tell you my conclusion.”

“Portions of her memories?”

“She had come across the power by accident. It seemed like she had tried her hardest to hide it.”

“Just get straight to the point.”

“If you cut off the connection between this world and the Abyss using the Absolute Gem, then the Abyss will no longer be able to come here.”

Davey nodded.

“At the same time, she, who has transitioned and completely transformed into Thanatos’ Incarnation, will also disappear from this place.”

“What!?” Davey glared at Verdandi.

“I don’t know whether you were late or not, but while you were out foolishly fighting the Abyss, Katshi had come here and forced her to awaken to survive and protect herself.”

Now that Perserque had completely awakened her powers, she would definitely experience changes. And the biggest change would be... her nature.

The divine nature of the God of Twilight Thanatos was slumbering deep inside Perserque. Now that it had opened its eyes, Perserque would be brought closer and closer to Thanatos’ essence and foundation.

Katshi did not have any intention in the first place of interfering with the ritual. His goal was...

“From the very beginning, his goal was to awaken the being called Perserque.”