The Max Level Hero Has Returned!
chapter-789

“Rinne judges multiple targets to be very unreasonable. Rinne evaluates this lowly.”

Numerous birds encroached upon by Neltarid flew toward Rinne. However, once the geometric pattern floating above her head began to wind up, and in an instant, dozens of flashes of light poured down from her wings.

[Rinne adopts a new punishment cannon. Rinne evaluates this highly!]

Bang!! Bang!!

Even as explosions filled the sky, her body didn’t stop. Her self-evolving heart spurred her recovery and growth. She glided across the sky like a nimble swallow, shooting down countless flying creatures that were chasing her.

These weren't just ordinary flying animals—they were eagles emitting auras, rushing like flashes of light. Also included were swallows flapping their wings to release blades of wind and swarms of insects coming together to create massive energy rays—all aimed to take down the airship Asgard. None of these creatures existed elsewhere on Earth.

“Rinne is an excellent battle golem. Rinne values her interception ability at full operation highly!” she said, putting even more energy into increasing her strength.

The flash of platinum light left her hand and once again scattered in all directions. Not a single living being survived the flash—most of the flying creatures were moving around encroached upon by the power of Destruction, but there were too many of them for Destruction to protect each one of them.

It was then.

Thud!!

A golden pillar rose into the sky from afar, accompanied by a sound so great that even the sky trembled. There were not just one or two pillars; Rinne saw at least dozens of them. Instinctively, Rinne recognized they were created by the power of Destruction. She knew if she left them unchecked, something big would happen to Davey. And she couldn't allow that.

Sling…

As she tried to move again after wielding the Spear that Can Melt the Balance of the World, even more flying creatures than before began to block her way.

The light was brilliant, but it was a pillar of light that gave off a very dark and eerie feeling. Rinne could tell that it was not the power of Goddess Freyja or Neltarid, the side of Tranquility.

“Rinne detects ominous energy. She urges a resolution as soon as possible.”

She folded her wings once before flaring them out. At the same time, pillars of light began to appear in the air, and figures made of pure white light began to appear. They were beings that had appeared once before and were of the same species as her, created by her will.

Elder Brains.

This was a nickname Davey had given them. In fact, Rinne's rank among Sephiroths was something similar to Elder Brain.

“Rinne issues orders with the authority of the Elder Brain.”

Rinne clenched her small fists and gave orders to the Sephiroths, the beings and species she created with her hands. But despite this, the pillars did not disappear. And while Rinne fought in the sky, in a hidden place on the ground, the large red gem along with something hidden within it.

***

Bang!! Bang!

Destruction and Davey continued to clash in silence as the two realized there was no point in conversing any further. However, the battle was turning significantly in Davey's favor.

Unlike the previous taboo power of simply becoming independent and disintegrating the opponent's power, Davey was able to amplify his power or change the opponent's power without much difficulty.

The power of taboo could be regarded as the existence of the Red Void itself, created when Goddess Freyja committed a sin. Just as the Abyss has extraterritorial rules over every world, the Red Void also had similar aspects.

Bang!!

In an instant, Destruction’s sword and Super Ribbon clashed, and Davey, seizing the opportunity, struck him with his fist containing both the power of taboo and the divine power of Neltarid's grace.

The power of taboo was originally independent of all powers, regardless of whether they were friends or foes. Therefore, it would normally be impossible to use Taboo’s Karma and divine power simultaneously.

However, Neltarid was well aware of the power of taboo Davey possessed. Rather than granting him the divine power as if lending it to him, they completely transferred it to him instead.

Since Davey did not have complete control over even the divine power that Goddess Freyja left him, Neltarid's divine power only had a lower output. Fortunately, in terms of compatibility, it showed effects even greater than that of Goddess Freyja’s divine power.

The synergy between divine power and taboo unleashed a power beyond his imagination. Moreover, this place was chaos itself, so he didn’t have to worry about accidental casualties or environmental ramifications.

[Meteor Strike]

Zzzt…!!

The space tore apart as meteorites he summoned fell at high speed from the sky. Lightning struck and shook the earth, causing lava to boil.

Unlike before, he was now using area magic and destruction magic with abandon. Even if the impact was dangerous enough to flip over a city or country, it didn’t matter at all when there was no one here to get injured by it.

As Destruction approached, dodging the rain of meteors, Davey quickly extended his hand and formed a trail of light in his palm. He then cupped his hands slightly to condense a large amount of mana and strengthen the magic.

“Grow. Now.”

Then the Transcedence’s Demise that Davey pulled from thin air emitted light. A simple magic missile became a huge missile, tracking Destruction and relentlessly destroying his defenses.

[Cough!!]

Destruction should’ve been able to avoid multiple spells of magic, but failed. At first they were able to dodge well, but suddenly, they seemed to panic and suffered direct hits. They stumbled and retreated, vomiting something that looked like black slime instead of blood.

Destruction used its jelly-like form to devour hosts and create a body to fight against Davey. The rate at which their power grew was faster than the rate at which they were using their energy, leading to its evident durability and endurance—originally, they should have gone down a long time ago.

There wasn’t a significantly complicated reason why Destruction had slowed down. It was simply due to accumulated fatigue meaning that their body wasn’t acting the way they wanted it to.

Davey figured that Destruction, once a proud god, had never experienced any similar sensation. Neltarid, a demigod who had once liked Freyja, was no longer the same. As a mortal, they felt fatigue that had never been felt as an immortal, which Davey figured was likely astonishing.

Davey knew that a mortal body would be cumbersome and uncomfortable for a being who was once immortal. So many small factors accumulated and had a big impact on them.

He knew things were advantageous for him. As Destruction continued to move without consideration for their stamina, they gave Davey openings and chances to attack, resulting in critical hits.

Ever since the two entered the Red Void, the space itself had been against them, hindering them in every way. But despite this disadvantageous environment, they persevered. More than half of the sand in the hourglass had fallen, yet they were still alive.

“Holy shit. Are they just immortals masquerading in a mortal shell?”

Davey had clearly given them a couple of fatal blows, but still, they didn’t die. He couldn’t figure out why. He also couldn’t take risks as he didn’t know the exact nature of how gods who dropped their levels possessed.

Furthermore, even though they were dragged into the red void, they continued to recover their strength and Davey had no idea how they were still connected to Earth.

So far, they were recovering more power than consuming. Davey assumed this would continue until all of Earth’s humans died—for some reason, they were still connected to Earth and drawing power despite their current location in the Red Void. This meant there was some medium to connect the two, but he couldn’t seem to figure out what that might be.

Clank!

Super Ribbon recoiled across the air and landed on the floor. Despite Davey attacking them to the point where their heart was destroyed, Destruction still managed to counterattack, making Davey lose grip of Super Ribbon. Rather than stopping the assault, he imbued fist energy to his hands and pressured Destruction.

“Hmph?!”

“I mainly use swords, but that doesn’t mean I can’t fight using anything else.”

Crack!!

He kicked Destruction and shattered their leg, breaking their balance. As they collapsed down with a twisted posture, Davey instantly climbed on top of them and called Super ribbon back into his hand as if he was pulling her toward him like a magnet.

Squelsh!

He aimed precisely for their heart with Super Ribbon buffed by the power of taboo.

[You fool! Don’t think you can kill me by aiming for my heart!]

“It seems like you’ve been protecting this spot for a while now, so I’ll take my chances and see if I’m wrong or not afterward!”

At first, Destruction hadn’t protected their heart properly. But after a few close calls in the battle, they noticeably focused more on its protection. Davey drilled Super Ribbon to pierce Destruction's heart, and Destruction regenerated their blackened hand, desperately blocking her.

It would be impossible to deflect Super Ribbon, whose power was amplified several times through taboos and divine powers. He knew such an attack would work on them.

A tense battle continued, with Davey crushing Destruction and stabbing their heart while holding Super Ribbon in a reverse grip, Destruction desperately holding onto the blade with his black claws.

Seeing their bewildered expression, Davey figured his attack this time had hit the mark.

Squelsh!

But then, Destruction, who had been desperately resisting, made a grim smile. Their sword made of black energy suddenly came into their hands as they managed to stab Davey from behind.

It was dangerously close to his spine. It was only centimeters away from snapping his spine in half. Destruction still smiled as they held onto Davey's sword with both hands after their piercing attack.

[Did you think you could kill me? The existence of this place is surprising, but it is still an unstable space. I will be the one to kill you here.]

“You sure do love to yap like a dog!”

Crack!!!

The eerie sound of bones cracking echoed in the space. As Davey pressed down Destruction with more force, they continued to laugh.

[Okay. If you really believe you can kill me, it will be exciting for me to watch you face the truth and feel despair.]

As Destruction spoke, Davey could feel his grip weakening. The tip of Super Ribbon slowly penetrated their heart—he knew he had given them a fatal blow. But Destruction allowed him to attack slowly, as if they were teasing him.

Davey couldn’t figure out how their body worked. Still, he knew that if he didn’t use his divine power and Taboo’s Karma to cancel the energy flowing constantly from the black sword piercing him, he would get engulfed by the energy and die on the spot.

[You can never kill me. Insignificant creature.]

As Davey coldly looked down at Destruction, who was laughing at him, he tightened his grip again and drew out his divine power. He figured the thing he was most lacking in this moment, desperately needing, was strength.

[Strength]

He had already cast self-buff spells, but Davey used a complex chant to add a strength-boosting spell to it as well.

[Hm?!]

Destruction frowned as he noticed Davey getting stronger.

[Strength]

Davey cast the muscle-strengthening spell again. Casting the same spell consecutively increased the difficulty exponentially with each further cast—the efficiency similarly fell repeatedly. But in the end, that didn’t even matter; his skill in parallel chanting, honed through countless sessions of being bullied by Odin with a bamboo sword, wasn’t going anywhere.

[Strength]

[Strength]

[Strength]

Destruction's complexion began to change as his enemy continued to cast strength-boosting magic.

[You… You monster!!]

They frowned and shouted at Davey.

[Even if you do this, you can’t kill me!! Unless the source of my power on Earth disappears, I am immortal!]

Imperfect, yet immortal. Davey realized how much of a selfish bastard they were. Unable to hide his exasperation at their constant yapping, Davey silently frowned.

“Damn it. Even the lower-level gods you created are trying so desperately—how long are you going to just sit and watch?!”

The greatest being.

The being that existed from the very beginning.

The being that was the absolute embodiment of supreme. But in the end, she was a damn goddess who just sat around and did nothing.

‘I know you like putting me to the test and are angry at me, but you need to know there’s a time and place for fun and games—and it’s not now!’ he thought.

Davey compensated for his loss of strength with his strength-enhancing magic and forcefully thrusted his sword. He eventually managed to pierce through their heart.

However, as Destruction said, a large amount of energy was keeping them alive while their body was still connected to Earth. In other words, that huge energy was revitalizing them in place of their heart.

But since Davey couldn’t contact Earth or return there, the fact that he hadn’t found and destroyed the source of their power began to nag at him.

He wondered if this was the reason why Destruction seemed so calm even after being brought here. If Davey wanted to return to Tionis, he couldn’t completely close the door to the Red Void. However, by leaving it open, Destruction continued to draw strength from Earth, making it through this situation.

Furthermore, Davey could feel it through his skin that Destruction was drawing in more than enough power needed to escape from him. He knew that if this continued, hundreds of millions of people could have all their energy siphoned and disappear.

“Your squire, your servant, Davey O’Rowane, beseech thee!”

Davey shouted using harsh words with reverence and sincerity.

“Stop lounging around and get to work, alright?!”

Then, as if it had been waiting for Davey, a large amount of divine power spread out. At the same time, the black sword that he was preventing from spreading any further with the power of taboo suddenly crumbled to dust.

[For he who is permitted in the name of the beginning has drawn the great sword—by believing and waiting, I bestow a miracle to you.]

Davey knew that this was indeed the voice of Goddess Freyja, one that he had not heard in a long time. It was a cold yet warm, fearful yet friendly voice. But he couldn’t figure out what she was going to do.

As he continued to think, Davey slowly applied increasing force on Super Ribbon, holding back the pain that almost seemed like it was going to knock him out any moment.

***

“...”

The bright blonde girl whose eyes had been closed in silence slowly opened them. Until a moment ago, a miracle had stayed by her side. The fight between Davey and the black entity in the red fog was nowhere near her, but she could see it with her eyes.

God's miracles sometimes create truly amazing phenomena.

No person could help him while he was risking his life fighting these enemies. It was only natural; Perserque, who had lost her power, couldn’t step forward. Neither could Aeria, who wasn’t strong enough. This meant their assistance was out of the question.

Before coming here, she had seen Rinne transform into an amazing form and destroy pillars of light. She had wondered what effect they had, but now she felt no need for hesitation. She knew that if they weren't destroyed, Davey wouldn't win.

She looked at the huge heart-like red gem in front of her. The gem, joined together by bizarre pieces of flesh, beat like a living heart.

[In the name of God, I shall punish those who dared to violate the commandments.]

The intangible curtain surrounding the gem immediately began to disappear. At the same time, the girl, Illyna, took a step forward.

“Let’s begin. My ancestor.”

[Since God's grace has reached him, it's time to get to work. It wouldn’t be right for the sponsors to have fun while the youngest member of the Hall is this desperate.]

“What happened to the other heroes?”

[Are you curious?]

Illyna nodded.

[I won’t tell you.]

“...”

The gray figure scratched their head quietly.

[Wasn’t that funny?]

“Not at all.”

[Sigh…]

The will of the rich playboy was conveyed.

“Davey can’t win if we don’t destroy those?”

She smiled with a cold expression and tightened her grip on Caldeiras.

“Then I just have to destroy them!” she shouted passionately as she swung Caldeiras.

Slash!!

A satisfying cutting sound rang out, and soon the red gem gave off a huge pulse.

Thump! Thump!!

The sound echoed in all directions.

“You think I’ll let you die when I haven’t even been able to tell you that I like you or that I love you?”

When she cried, the source of power split in half before completely shattering.

As if a trapped soul was escaping, something bright red began to explode out of the gem, and a large amount of wind howled. But the change did not last long—with one of the demonic forces Destruction relied on broken, the probability of them surviving against Davey was virtually zero.

Shatter!!

Eventually, the broken red gem began to scatter into dust and weathered away. Then a mysterious voice of will clinging onto her said,

[The first God’s Twilight has begun.]