The Max Level Hero Has Returned!-Chapter 1297

“Gaaarrrggghhh!!!” A bloodcurdling scream echoed across the space. However, the sound didn’t last long. An invisible force clashed with it, making it scatter into the void.

Davey had crushed Tronte barehanded.

To Tronte, he was more than horrifying. Even after using its final means to weaken his divinity and block him from using his own, it had made no difference. In fact, his pressure had only grown stronger.

‘So the goddess really did create a monster.’

Tronte slowly crumpled, swallowed by despair. Davey had pressed down on the energy it had released, and that same force had turned against it.

Facing such an overwhelming difference in power, its hatred for the goddess burned even more fiercely. In the end, all of it was the goddess’s fault! She was the one who drove them into suffering.

That hatred only grew, and its body soon began to change. At the same time, a massive storm of black mist started to pour out of it.

Davey reflexively stepped back and stood protectively in front of Abel and Evangeline. He lightly waved one hand through the air, and a massive shockwave exploded outward.

Craaack!!!

“Dad...”

“Just hold on,” Davey reassured them. “I’ll wrap this up lickety-split. When we get back, I’ll bake you some bread.”

“Really?” Evangeline asked with a stiff expression.

Davey turned slightly and gave her a soft smile. “Have you ever seen your dad lie?”

She replied with zero hesitation, “Yes.”

“Huh.”

Craaack!!

Davey forcefully pushed away the waves of black mist with sheer power, then stretched out a hand. Super Ribbon flew up into his grasp as if drawn by gravity.

[It's so dark in here.]

Super Ribbon spoke in his mind, clearly disgusted.

“Parthenon, do you know what kind of change this is?”

[Not at all, I’ve never even heard of something like this. Thanatos must’ve kept it hidden from me.]

Even after going mad, Thanatos had always been a meticulous god.

Once the black mist cleared, Tronte emerged in a completely new form, far larger than before.

Much of its body looked like it was made of liquid, with the solid parts so grotesque that it was impossible to describe exactly what they were.

What was clear, though, was the sheer, overwhelming darkness of the power radiating from him.

[Grrruuu!!!]

It let out a monstrous howl, its sanity completely gone. At the same time, its form began to shift again, expanding and rising like a massive black phoenix.

“What the hell is that?!”

“Yikes. If Fire Chicken were here, its pride would’ve taken a hit.”

That divine beast, Fire Chicken, had serious anger management issues and couldn’t stand anything that looked like it yet radiated more pressure. They were lucky it wasn’t around.

Zzzt!! Zzzt!!!

Dozens of black orbs began to light up from Tronte’s wings as they split apart.

Davey took a step forward, Super Ribbon held up high.

Boom!!

The orbs suddenly burst into beams of light, firing wildly in every direction. It was a terrifying display of destruction.

Wherever the beams hit, space twisted and even opened bizarre wormholes.

“Kyah!!” Evangeline screamed, curling up to shield the unconscious Abel in her arms.

Davey twisted his wrist and swung Super Ribbon upward.

Screeeech!!!

The beams scattering in every direction were all cleanly severed in the middle, triggering massive explosions.

[Graaarrrghhh!!!]

Tronte let out another horrifying scream and began forming black orbs again.

Davey responded by creating a black hole-like mass in one hand, spinning it rapidly.

[Area Destruction]

[Aegias]

Crackkk!!!

Its form distorted in an instant.

There was no doubt that Tronte was powerful, yet it was also far too unstable. This was no more than a desperate last struggle, and that kind of opening could only prove fatal.

Boom!!

Davey shot off the ground and launched himself upward. Tronte flapped its wings to put distance between them, simultaneously unleashing all of its black orbs in his direction.

However, right before they could hit, Davey murmured something.

[Devour]

All of the black beams vanished in an instant, like they had evaporated.

Boom!!

The attack blasted out from around Davey and scattered up into the sky.

Tronte panicked, startled by the fact that its own attack had been stolen and redirected aimlessly.

It spread its wings again, trying to form more black orbs.

“That’s strike three, bud. You’re out.”

Super Ribbon shimmered in his hand. At the same time, an immense number of buff spells enveloped Davey, while debuff spells sank into Tronte.

Weakening the enemy while strengthening yourself was the basics of basics.

[Demonic Spirit Sword 80th Form]

[Dying to Live, Living to Die]

His sword sliced through the air. An enormous blade energy ripped the sky apart and disappeared among the clouds.

Boom! Craaaash!

Only a second or two passed before his slash hit Tronte and pierced straight through.

The clouds above, as if finely shredded, erupted into booms and scattered into pieces.

Davey landed slowly, dragging his body slightly as he turned, flicked his sword, and threw it into the air. He then brought his hands together, quickly gathering mana and forcing it to rotate.

[Transcendent Circle Black Magic]

[Demi Ultima]

Tronte thrashed desperately to escape the spell’s range, but the black magic forged by Death Lord Rho Aias refused to let go of it. The ultimate black magic, capable of erasing light itself, activated and swallowed the monster whole. Even the light reflecting off its body scattered like it was breaking apart on a molecular level.

As Davey watched its form gradually fade away, he let out a short breath. The desperate resistance hadn’t lasted long.

* * *

When Abel disrupted the flow of time that Tronte had altered in order to create a time gap between the inside and outside, the one most visibly shaken was Perserque.

She had explicitly told them not to act, yet Evangeline and Abel had gone out and caused trouble anyway. The two of them had recklessly gone after the enemies, and then lost all contact.

Both children were far too precious to her, and the thought that they might get hurt made it impossible for her to stay calm.

“They’ll be fine. Davey went after them.”

For some reason, the enemy attacks had come to a sudden stop. As Perserque stood overlooking the ruined fortress, clearly shaken, Illyna gently tried to reassure her. “Abel and Evangeline are both smart kids. I’m sure they’re okay.”

“I hope you’re right...”

As Perserque spoke, Illyna found herself thinking about whether she was more worried about Abel or Evangeline. Knowing her, it was probably both. Still, blood ties had a way of pulling out instinctive responses from people.

Illyna couldn’t help but worry that if something were to happen to one of the children, Perserque might then lose control and make a rash mistake.

“Rinne delivers the news that Master Davey is en route. Rinne evaluates the rapid report highly.”

The number of monsters that had attacked this place reached into the hundreds of thousands. It had been an all-out war, but not a single monster remained. That was true for other places as well, but the forces defending this particular location had simply been too overwhelming.

Perserque’s eyes widened at Rinne’s report, and she shouted, “What about the children?!”

“Rinne reports them as safe.”

The tension in Perserque’s clenched fists went away as relief washed over her.

At that moment, a portal opened in the distance, and Davey appeared with Evangeline beside him. He was supporting Abel as he walked forward.

“Abel!! Evangeline!” Perserque burst into tears and ran toward them, pulling both of them into her arms as soon as they got close.

“M-Mom.”

“You’re safe... You’re both safe. That’s all that matters! That’s everything.” Her voice was weak, overflowing with emotion and anxiety.

Evangeline, who was about to say something, gave a faint, bitter smile and hugged Perserque back.

Watching the three, Illyna thought to herself that Perserque really was the most dependable person. Still couldn’t help but think that if Abel had been her own child, she would’ve sought him first before Evangeline.

She could tell herself that Evangeline was just as important, but a child born from one’s own body was something else entirely. It was a chilling thought. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

“At least I’ll be okay.” She felt relieved in that sense since she had no children, which meant she wouldn’t hurt Evangeline. She could remain a mother, a caring family member, without conflict.

Watching Reina had made her realize how stubborn and obsessive she truly was. That was why, for Illyna, the idea of having a child was both tempting and something she would never allow herself. Not until she had grown enough, both mentally and emotionally, to see everyone equally, just like Perserque.

* * *

After entrusting Abel and Evangeline to Perserque, Davey immediately moved to take care of the remaining demons on the battlefield.

The moment the enemies realized their command structure and Tronte had been destroyed, they tried to scatter and flee in every direction. Alas, there was no escaping Davey. Wherever they ran, beings connected to him were already there, blocking their paths.

Those who tried hiding in remote, uninhabited areas were hunted down by unknown knights. Those who fled into densely populated human territories found themselves being tracked down and killed, as if someone had been watching them from the start.

Consumed by vengeance, Davey tore through the demons without a shred of mercy.

As they died, the demons cursed Parthenon, the one who had betrayed them. However, Parthenon had never once hesitated to cooperate.

When Super Ribbon, Davey’s sword, erased the last remaining demon entirely, Parthenon separated from Davey and spoke.

[We kept our promises. There's nothing more between us.]

“Your kin call you a traitor,” Davey added.

[You want to know the truth?]

“The truth?”

[The reason why I, who once stood alongside Tronte and the others, suddenly turned against them.]

Davey didn’t respond.

The war with the demon race was over, and the continent was left stunned by the sheer power Heins had displayed. Word of the heroics of Evangeline, who had decisively driven the final nail into the enemy's coffin and prevented needless sacrifice, spread across the continent.

Abel, however, firmly refused to take any part in the public story.

“Traitor, huh? I do have a theory.” Davey spoke while maintaining the gate that would allow Parthenon to enter the goddess’s realm, “There’s no way your kind’s numbers are limited to just the few dozen I killed.”

The true number could be in the hundreds. Even thousands.

“And another thing,” he continued. “As far as I know, there’s only one being who can create something from nothing.”

Goddess Freyja.

Mere zenoen couldn’t pull something like that off.

“Even when accounting for all those zenoen souls used as sacrifices, the scale of this war was way beyond that.”

[So?]

“When I piece together what you’ve said, one particular thought comes to mind.”

Those like Tronte, who actually fought in the war, used not only the support of willing kin, but also the souls of other zenoen who didn’t agree with their cause.

“They said you betrayed them first. Maybe you didn’t know what was happening on their end.”

A small group, including Tronte, had treated the souls of their own kin as disposable fuel for their plans.

“Well, even if I’m wrong, it doesn’t really matter.”

At his slight grin, Parthenon’s spiritual form trembled.

[Had I known you were this insane, I’d have been more cautious as your enemy.]

“You’re no different. You didn’t kill anyone personally in the Holy Empire, but the number of humans you slaughtered in the Haetan Kingdom isn’t small. The goddess will make you pay for that herself.”

[I’ll accept the punishment. I’m no better than Tronte.]

Parthenon’s soul had already taken on the same traits of demonization as Tronte’s.

[But the other kin who died? They were different. Their souls will be purified by the goddess and reborn as her loyal servants. Even if my own ultimate end is total obliteration, I’ll accept that if it also means I carved that path.]

With that, he slowly moved toward the rift leading to the goddess.

The war with the zenoen, which had shaken the entire continent, finally reached its end after dragging on for quite some time.

The news of the end of the war spread across the lands, and countless people worked to rebuild and wept for what had been lost.

However, not everything was resolved. The sudden alliance and participation of the demons, who had once been enemies, remained a lingering issue.

That, too, was part of the intricate plan Davey had crafted. It was a stepping stone toward formal reconciliation and peaceful coexistence between the demons and humankind.