The Max Level Hero Has Returned!
Chapter 1054

Chapter 1054

“Guooo!!”

A grotesque goat-like evil beast clung to a massive spire and let out a deafening roar. Despite its menacing display, it was instantly knocked back as a giant black dragon that darkened the skies slammed into it with a flying knee kick.

“Kiiieeek!!!”

The goat monster, crushed into the ground, let out another roar in agony as it tried to stand. But it had no ground to fight back. As if waiting for that specific moment, a violent gust of wind swept in and pinned it down before spinning furiously, shredding it into a spray of blood.

The black dragon wasn’t alone.

Another massive monster, whose huge size had made it difficult to damage earlier in the battle, was left howling in pain, gripped and slammed around by a colossal Groundburst Dragon.

Crunch!!!

Apparently not satisfied with just that, the Groundburst Dragon sank its teeth deeper into its veins, then spewed magma-like substance that melted the monster instantly. If anything could be called a one-sided massacre, that carnage sufficed. Some of the knights guarding the base of Alpha Reinforcement could only stare blankly as they watched monsters being wiped out by beings whose power far surpassed that of even dreaded Evil Beast Kings.

“Davey’s summons are... horrifying,” one of them marveled.

“I still can’t believe what I’m seeing. It’s just tearing through everything like it’s nothing!”

“That Groundburst Dragon, isn’t that the one we saw before? Shandra Minea or something?”

“I heard Davey tamed it.”

“That vicious thing? Jeez.”

“Honestly, I never imagined seeing a Spirit King in real life would come so suddenly.”

The elementalist knights looked visibly defeated.

“And there’s still the scariest of them all.”

Everyone turned their gaze in the same direction at those words.

There, a pure white rabbit had burst up through the ground and was slamming a massive lion-type beast into the earth, raining down a flurry of brutal punches. Each blow crushed flesh and twisted the earth itself—but what truly disturbed them was that the white, two-legged muscle-bound rabbit was wearing nothing but bright red underwear, instilling some indescribable feeling in them.

A deafening boom rang out as a gigantic monster, several hundred meters tall, revealed itself. Its sheer size dwarfed even well-known massive creatures like Shandra Minea or Megalodria.

“Gruuu!!”

“Ugh?! That roar! What the heck is with this power?!”

A simple roar carried such oppressive force that it affected even the Master-class warriors.

“What the hell is that? Some kind of wolf?”

“A Hellhound. That’s what it is.”

The monstrous beast had three giant wolf heads and a body packed with muscles ready to burst—it was clearly on a whole different level than anything they’d faced before.

“I’ll handle this one!” One of the veteran knight commanders launched himself forward with a stomp so strong it cracked the ground. He aimed his deadly Aura Blade at one of the beast’s heads.

Clang!!

“What the hell?!”

The razor-sharp Aura Blade was completely blocked. At the same time, the beast caught him with a massive arm swipe.

“Guaaahhh!!”

It felt like every bone in his body was being crushed. When he screamed in agony, the two dragons and two Spirit Kings who had been tearing through the evil beasts turned their attention toward him.

“I got this. I’ll take care of it.”

Then the commander—still contorted in pain—suddenly felt like all sound around him had vanished. Prompted by the unknown silence, he raised his eyes and saw someone flying toward the monster. They led with a tightly clenched fist, slowly descending as if in slow motion. Strangely, it wasn’t moving fast at all despite seeming incomparably massive.

With a thunderous explosion, two of the wolf heads were blown off completely. The monster, struck by the sudden blow, couldn’t even cry out as it powerlessly collapsed. Its grip on the knight commander weakened as it slumped over.

Thud!!

The sudden sonic shockwave left their ears ringing. The knight commander, dazed, looked up at Davey, who had caught him.

“You. What the hell was that power just now?”

The power Davey had just used felt distinctly different from the aura wielded by swordmasters or the mana used by mages.

“It’s a rather rare type of power,” he said. He didn’t elaborate further. Instead, he slowly descended, gently laid the knight commander on the ground, and reached out his hand.

[High Recovery]

Holy power surged, and the knight’s body began to heal rapidly.

“Ghh. I nearly died... Thank you. But, that thing’s still alive?”

“Davey! Behind you!” The knights watching from a distance shouted.

The monster—its third head still intact—rose back up behind Davey just as he was finishing the healing. It raised a massive scythe forged from pure black energy and attempted to cleave Davey in half.

“Still alive, eh?”

“Grrr.”

A grotesque noise followed. The monster that had just been targeting Davey began to melt, its body dissolving slowly and grotesquely.

As the stunned knight commander stared at the surreal sight, he asked, “What did you do?”

“Nothing much. I just cast a curse of bodily decay,” Davey muttered as he brushed his hands together.

‘The Curse of Versha turns out to be more useful than I expected.’

“The beast lair investigation is complete. What about casualties?”

The conclusion and cleanup were so swift that those who had just been risking their lives moments before looked almost deflated.

“Uhhh. None, I don’t think.”

“Good. I’m going to open a beast lair here, so be ready. It’s not a temporary measure—this’ll be the foundation for a permanent seal.”

The knight commanders exchanged confused glances, unsure of what he could possibly mean.

* * *

“Grrr”

Those attuned to the changes of the Monster Queen began to stir. They were once knights of the Last Wisp Order, but for reasons unknown, they had betrayed their comrades and cast Persephone into the beast lair. Their accrued numbers were considerable.

A figure clad in pitch-black armor spoke from within the shadows of a meeting hall, “Many of our kind have fallen.”

“We must prevent the Monster Queen from disappearing. For the greater cause.”

“If things continue this way, the Monster Queen will vanish, and monsters will continue to appear without end.”

Not even a single one of them was a full, complete being. Like Persephone, their souls had shattered, with only their wills left behind, doomed to move like corpses. But they had a mission, ordered to stop the spread of monsters across the continent. After all, someone had to sacrifice themselves and become the Monster Queen, and that Queen then had to be guarded and kept from going astray in order to preserve their eternal Hell. After the Monster Queen Persephone had uncovered the truth and was eventually defeated by traitorous knights, it was those very knights who had accepted the duty of keeping her soul tethered down.

“If this continues, Hell will rise again in this world. Bring him in.”

A man hung limp as he was dragged into the dimly lit chamber.

“Ugh. What the...?”

The man was unceremoniously thrown to the ground. He groaned and slowly opened his eyes, scanning his eerie surroundings.

“Your name.”

Panicked, the man turned his head frantically, shouting as he looked around at the knights, “What? Who are you people?!”

He tried to back away, but his captors kept a firm grip on him.

“I asked you your name.”

“You’ve gotta be kidding! Where am I?! Let me out of here!!”

“Your name, suitable vessel.” A violet glow flickered within the eye slits of one knight’s helm.

Suddenly, the man who had been resisting with all his might began to weaken.

“Your name, suitable vessel!”

“K-Kasato Y-Yoshiki.”

The man was none other than Kasato Yoshiki, the one who had vanished from Davey’s grasp in the rift in Tokyo. Turns out, he had resurfaced in none other than the depths of the beast lair, at the very bottom of Hell itself, similar to the Abyss.

In a hollow voice, Yoshiki muttered to seemingly no one but himself, “Oh new vessel for those whose souls remain, the contract is complete. Through your body, we shall wield our full strength. With the power of the Abyss we have gathered, we promise that we shall purge the heretic.”

Then, the bodies of the remaining knights dissolved like smoke.

Kasato Yoshiki’s horrific screams filled the chamber. “G-Graaahhh!! Aaaahhh!!!”

While he screamed and thrashed, the knights began to seep into his body one by one. It wasn’t long before dozens of them had fused into him, his convulsing body slowly growing still. When he finally raised his head, his eyes glowed with a crazed violet light, no longer human, as a twisted will burned within them.

“For the world. For the greater cause,” he muttered in a hollow manner as he rose to his feet.

The clothes he had been wearing distorted and began to morph, transforming into some form of armor. His body also flared up with violet flames, as though his very flesh was burning.

“The Monster Queen cannot be replaced. She must rule Hell for all eternity.” He began to slowly move, still murmuring, “Those who interfere with the cause shall receive judgment. Persephone is the one and only Monster Queen. There can be no exceptions.”

Though there may have been better ways, the warped will of the knights that now composed Kasato believed frantically that Persephone, and Persephone alone, could be the Monster Queen.

Kasato slashed through the air. A rift opened, and light began to leak through the cracks. They had begun, moving to eliminate anyone who threatened their will and cause.

* * *

At that same moment, the massive gray child who had fled from a terrifying monster sat trembling in fear. As pure as it was ignorant of fear or malice, the child had been born with only the hatred toward Daphne that Persephone had etched into its surface. The resentment had been a defense mechanism that Persephone prepared long before her death, simply meant to protect Daphne. After so much time, that defense had encroached the gray monster child completely.

“M-Mommy...” The gray monster child clung tightly to the corpse of its mother inside the rift.

It was neither in Hell’s central zone nor the rift itself, instead hiding in an isolated space detached from both. All that remained in the monster’s heart after fleeing from Davey was fear.

Just then, the sound of footsteps approached. Startled, the monster turned its head to see two figures tearing through space itself as they entered. Its eyes widened in surprise.

Before it stood Daphne, the incomparable object of its infinite rage.

“Graaahhh!!! Gaaahhh!!!” The monster roared and charged straight at Daphne with terrifying force. It was a monster that could overwhelm S-Class Awakened individuals with sheer presence, made even angrier by her approach.

Boom!!

Daphne grabbed its head and slammed it into the ground with overwhelming strength, bringing the chaos to an abrupt end.

“Davey, this is the monster you’re talking about, right? The only soul that doesn’t belong here? It has to be this one.”

“Yup.”

Recognizing they were talking about it, the gray monster began to tremble even harder.

“I came here to find you. I don’t know what he’s planning to do to change you, but if I have to take you down in order to suppress the beast lair, I’ll do it without hesitation.”

With strength that seemed impossible for her delicate frame, Daphne pinned the monster in place and asked aloud, “So? What now?”

Davey looked up at the sky. “Bless me with a miracle.”

Daphne scowled. “What kind of miracle?”

“Spatial purification. The air in the beast lair is stifling, and it’s messing with my casting.”

Despite her irritation, Daphne kept pinning down the monster and began to unfold her domain.

“Daphne. Are you still mad at me?”

“Do you even need to ask?”

Davey smiled gently. “I told you I had a surprise, didn’t I?”

“So then what is it?”

“You’ll know when you see it.”

As her holy magic spread to purify the space, a different force began to manifest atop it.

It wasn’t quite magic, more like the flowing of divinity than anything.

Whummm.

A rift began to form within the gap Daphne had created.

Both Daphne and the gray monster included, everyone stared in shock as someone stepped through it..

“Huh?”

“Persephone?”

It was none other than Persephone. Though her appearance had changed, the one standing before them was unmistakably Persephone, who’d had her soul twisted and broken.

“H-How?”

“M-Mommy. Mommy!”

The gray monster, still pinned to the ground, reached out a hand toward her.

Persephone, smiling gently, manifested fully into the world. She slowly pulled the gray monster into a warm embrace.

“You’ve been through so much, my child. I’m sorry for placing this burden on you,” she said gently, comforting the small gray creature.

Then Persephone looked over at Daphne and smiled. “It’s been a while since we had a chance to speak like this. I’m really sorry.”

“Persephone, you...”

“I'm truly sorry. I had no choice but to deceive you. Fortunately, thanks to that child Davey, I was given another chance.”

A chance to escape from a hell that was supposed to last for eternity.

As Persephone spoke, her body began to emit light, resonating with the gray monster. It looked as if part of her power was being transferred to the creature.

Daphne, watching in confusion, asked cautiously, “Wasn’t Persephone...?”

“Destroyed?” Davey said with a grin.

“I’m sure you cut her down with your sword.”

“That’s because I didn’t cut Persephone, per se.”

“You son of a...” Daphne made an irritated face, but beneath it, he could tell that she was relieved. Her trembling hands showed just how deeply shaken she had been.

Davey drew Super Ribbon. “I’ll explain everything in detail later, but, for now, just know that Persephone endured against impossible odds for your sake.”

A transformation of the soul, meaning an evolution into something new. Just like Reina had once done, Persephone had forcefully mutated her soul to be reborn as a new entity. However, unlike Reina who fully resurrected as a Celestial, Persephone hadn't achieved a full rebirth. Instead, she had only changed the structure of her soul. As such, even if things all went according to plan, Persephone would still die in the end. Yet that didn’t matter to her. If she could earn the chance to reincarnate, that would be enough.

The first step in saving a twisted soul was purification. It was a process that one could not endure without immense willpower. Even so, Persephone had clung to her faint will and survived it.

Then came the next trial, suffering the unbearable pain of having her soul forcibly twisted and reshaped. It was a process that would’ve broken almost anyone else.But Davey O’Rowane had judged her differently. He believed she had the mental fortitude to endure the process—after all, she had spent thousands of years holding her shattered soul together.

He had been right. She had survived not one, but two phases of horrific agony. The success rate of such a miracle was less than one percent.

“She endured that near-impossible chance just to protect you, Daphne. Her level of obsession... it’s terrifying in a way.” Her unwavering devotion to Daphne was terrifyingly selfless, and Davey couldn't help but express his respect.

With her newly transformed soul Persephone, began the final step: Using the link to pass on the baton of Monster Queen to the gray creature. Though it was the child of the former twisted Monster Queen, the gray monster could fully transform if Persephone withdrew her hatred and imbued it with her will. Sniffling and sobbing as it clung to her, the monster was no longer a problem.

“The ones who’ll try to interfere are definitely coming. Those damned traitors, they’re out of their minds!”

Those consumed by madness, who refused to see beyond their twisted ideology. Davey knew they would come and try to stop the beautiful scene. After all, they were messing around in the beast lair, which was practically their backyard.

They wouldn’t arrive immediately, but while Persephone transferred all her authority as the Monster Queen to the gray creature, someone had to protect her.

“Hah. Hahaha. Hahahahahaha!!” Suddenly, Daphne had burst out laughing. “Davey!!”

“What?”

“Explain everything! Every damn thing!”

Cracking her knuckles with a loud pop, she growled, “I don’t get what’s going on, but her soul... you really pulled off purification, huh?”

“Barely.”

The surrounding space began to distort, with the dimensional boundary between the beast lair, Hell, and middle earth trembling. The space tore open, and from within the tear, an arm began to emerge.

Something was coming.