The Max Level Hero Has Returned!
Chapter 1081

Chapter 1081

“I feel weak. I think I need to step out for a bit,” Perserque suddenly murmured, running off.

Davey, Illyna, and Aeria all instinctively turned their gazes toward Goddess Freyja.

Given her track record, it was only natural for Goddess Freyja to be the first one they suspected. After all, she knew the ropes.

Ignoring whether they suspected her or not, she simply waved tiny baby mittens she pulled out from who-knows-where right in front of Davey.

[Something to celebrate]

“Something to celebrate? Does that situation look normal to you?”

[Why do you think it wouldn’t be?]

Davey blinked blankly at the words she’d typed out on the tablet.

[Not a horne.]

“Even if she’s a demon, this phenomenon doesn’t make any sense, right?”

She simply shook the baby puppet again with a blank expression.

[Girl? Boy?]

“Don’t get yourself into anything you shouldn’t. I’m seriously warning you, don't.”

[I can change it.]

“I know you could, but that’s not what I want.”

Hearing his stern warning, she softly clicked her tongue and looked away.

Demons were known to have faster fetal growth rates compared to humans, but even so that was far too fast.

After postponing the meeting for a bit, Davey followed after Perserque and found her sitting alone in her bedroom, clutching her chest with one hand as she tried to calm herself down.

“Per.”

“Davey!” Her fragile composure completely crumbled the moment he called out to her. Her face was a whirlwind of emotions—shock, surprise, and joy, like someone who had just won the lottery.

“Let me check what's going on. Give me your hand.” When Davey reached out his hand, she hesitantly extended hers, only to quickly pull it back, much to his confusion. “Why?”

“What if...” she murmured with a worried expression, “What if it’s not happening? How am I supposed to react then.?”

“What are you so worried about?” Feeling her pulse with her hand in his, Davey closed his eyes and chuckled, “What, you think if it’s not now, the baby’s not going to happen?”

“That’s not it...”

“Then don’t worry. And another thing.” Davey chuckled again, poked her forehead lightly, and got up from his seat. “Starting today, you're forbidden from doing any work.”

“Davey?!”

“Congratulations! On that note, should I be congratulated too?”

As Davey smiled broadly, her eyes widened. She wasn’t someone who’d miss the meaning behind his words.

“Really?”

“Yeah. I don’t know how everything happened this fast, but somehow it worked out.”

“Haaah.” Hearing his confirmation, she looked dazed for a moment, then covered her mouth with one hand and lowered her head.

“Since it’s come to this, you’re not allowed to join the upcoming subjugation battle.”

“Davey!”

“This is our first baby, exactly what we worked so hard for.”

Perserque gently shook her head as clear tears welled up and slowly fell from her eyes.

“It’s not the first,” she said while smiling beautifully. “She’s our precious, adorable youngest.”

She spoke as if it didn’t matter who the baby was born from or whose bloodline it carried. Hearing that answer from her filled his heart with gratitude.

“Thank you. And congratulations.”

“Congratulations, Davey.”

They congratulated each other warmly, and then Davey turned to Royal Attendant Bernile who had just entered.

“Royal Attendant, increase the number of maids attending to Per.”

“Your Highness? Don’t tell me!”

“It’s exactly what you think.”

“Oh. Ohhh! Congratulations, m’lady!”

Seeing Bernile, who was uncharacteristically excited, Davey felt gratified that Perserque even won over the man’s trust before he noticed. It was no wonder. After every fight Davey had with Perserque, Royal Attendant Bernile’s gaze at him had always felt strangely pointed.

“Royal Attendant.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Take good care of her while I’m gone.”

“Please go without worry, Your Highness.”

* * *

The eastern part of Heins Territory was in utter chaos due to the emergency evacuation of civilians.

Of course, from the perspective of those who had their livelihoods there, the evacuation was far from welcoming. Still, since it was said that the invaders might return and put their lives at stake, no one could really complain. Besides, since the chosen area had a relatively low population density, there hadn’t been much backlash.

“Reporting that preparations are complete, sir. Also, the airship Asgard is currently sweeping the skies on patrol.”

Tiara, the captain of Asgard—the one and only magic airship built in Heins Territory and unique across the entire continent—had started scanning the skies with a fierce look in her eyes.

In the silent city suddenly devoid of people, Davey faced Goddess Freyja and asked, “So, is it really okay to just whip it out like this?”

Goddess Freyja didn’t answer. Instead, she quietly lifted her head to look up at the sky. She soon closed her eyes, and light began to seep out from her entire body. A massive divine wave spread out without form, without sound, and without resistance.

It was just like fishing—rather than tossing out bait and waiting, it was obviously more effective to actively lure the fish before catching it.

Crack. Crackle!

The spiritual entities created by the laws of the current world, as well as the massive rift that bound them together, couldn’t possibly ignore the presence of the avatar of Goddess Freyja they’d been hunting for.

The sky split open, revealing a pitch-black space beyond it.

Davey had heard about the rift that had appeared when casting magic on Perserque before, but what was appearing before him was on a whole different scale.

- It... It appeared! Overhead!!

Tiara belatedly reported through the comms.

“I’m already watching. If anything tries to fly in and take control of the skies, shoot them all down.”

In all honesty, that probably wasn’t going to happen.

The rift, which had no ego but was almost like a massive, living phenomenon, positioned itself right above Goddess Freyja’s head and started pouring out its tremendous energy. Even though it had no consciousness, Davey was certain that it was the same twisted mental energy that had been connected to Callumgus, peeking into him.

It was the unpurified buildup of rage, hatred, and other negative emotions that Goddess Freyja hadn’t been able to cleanse.

“I told you I’d see you soon.”

Naturally, there was no response. However, what did follow was a change.

Huge crimson chains spilled out of the rift, stabbing into the ground all around Davey and Goddess Freyja. A portion of the chains bound her up, pulling her toward the massive rift.

Dragged upward with a blank expression, it was unclear whether she even realized what was happening. She released her divine presence in response, but the rift reacted even more fiercely to absorb her.

Of course, Davey had no intention of letting her get dragged away.

Clink!

Reaching out, Davey grabbed one of the chains stuck into the ground and poured his divinity into it, triggering a change.

Both forces were energies that composed the world itself. However, while Davey’s side remained pure, the rift’s side had been tainted and twisted by unpurified power from the Arbute Kingdom.

“You’re not just gonna drag her off that easily.”

Davey didn’t do anything complicated. He simply poured out divinity like he was casting purification magic with divine power, cleansing the tainted power as it surged.

Simply that was enough to work, and the chains quivered feebly. Davey then used his free hand to slowly draw Red Ribbon from his waist.

The red blade slid out smoothly with a soft ring, leaving a glowing trail behind it. Red Ribbon, brimming with power, was furious—she was enraged that someone had hurt her mother.

“Don’t move.”

After issuing a warning to Goddess Freyja who was suspended midair by the rift, Davey swung Red Ribbon.

Slash!!

The sword energy shot past right next to her face, severing a huge, pure white arm that had been reaching out of the rift.Accompanied by a horrid noise, more massive arms began forcing their way out of the rift in a desperate struggle.

Although the enemies had been compared to white blood cells, human flesh and the laws of the world didn’t operate the same way. Especially not when it came to divine power, a transcendental force not bound by common sense. It could purify or burn away the corrupted mental energy like festering hatred within the twisted rift.

“If this drags on, I’ll win for sure. You believe in me, right?” Davey said toward Goddess Freyja.

She quietly nodded without resisting.

Of course, even without a will, there seemed to be some kind of instinct to the enemy. The arms that burst out of the rift kept aiming at Davey, but they were easily taken down. Each arm’s destruction was caused either by the power of the World-Destabilizing Spear held by Rinne, who was in interception mode, or by Davey himself with Red Ribbon, cutting them apart until they scattered into the air.

They looked slow and harmless on the surface, but that was only from his powerful perspective.

“Master Davey.”

“Don’t let them grab you. If they catch you, you’re finished.”

The force hidden within those slow arms was unbelievably sticky and dark.

A sudden voice pushed its way into his mind, apparently from the enemy.

[You... will fail.]

“You can’t run a business if you’re scared of failure,” Davey snorted back before swinging Red Ribbon again. The crimson arc ignored the flow of time, slicing through one of the massive white arms and shaking the rift itself.

[You cannot move.]

“Right.”

[My fingers will move to stop you.]

‘So it’s not entirely mindless after all.’

“Or maybe, someone’s just pretending to act like it’s conscious and has an ego.”

Either way, it didn’t matter to him.

Of course, it wasn’t like he hadn’t anticipated its thoughts. Even in games, when fighting an immobile boss it was common for minions to appear to defend it. The ones Davey had erased, like Callumgus, and the ones Illyna and Aeria had encountered, were the same.

There was no way to predict exactly how many would show up, but at the very least, Davey was absolutely certain they’d make a move.

[They are coming.]

“Perfect.” That was what Davey had prepared for. “Looks like our side has some payback to deliver too.”

Far in the distance, an enormous arc of blade energy ripped through time and space to shoot into the sky.

Watching the aftermath, Davey said, “The longer this drags on, the better it is for me. If you can’t stop me, you’ll be purified and erased.”

[My fingers...]

“How about a little bet? If those so-called fingers manage to break through the defense I prepared and reach me, you win. If they can’t, I win.”

There was no response, but the bet had already implicitly begun.

* * *

The silver-haired beastfolk girl frowned as she faced the bright blonde girl blocking her way. “Move.”

“If I was just gonna step aside because you said so, why would I even be here?”

“Looks like you’re eager to bleed and suffer again.”

This wasn’t the first time the two had met.

The beastfolk girl cracked her fingers loudly, her sharp claws gleaming as she sneered, “Didn’t two of you gang up on me last time and still couldn’t even leave a scratch? From what I recall, you even ended up with serious injuries.”

In fact, the beastfolk girl indeed had a history of injuring both Illyna and Perserque before. While the wounds weren’t deep enough to be considered critical, it was true they had been caught off guard.

That was why the beastfolk girl, made of a corrupted spiritual entity, was completely at ease. In her retained memories, Illyna wasn’t an opponent worth worrying about. Especially when standing alone without Perserque by her side, Illyna just seemed laughable.

Crack!!!

Flicking her claws once, the beastfolk girl left a massive number of claw marks on the ground all around Illyna.

“That was just a warning. There won’t be one next time. Now move.”

In response to the warning, Illyna smiled and adjusted her grip on Caldeiras. “You seem really desperate.”

That one sentence made the beastfolk girl flinch. She couldn’t tell her that the rift in the sky she was connected to was weakening at a terrifying speed. That once the rift disappeared, they’d vanish with it. There was no way they could allow that to happen.

“Looks like you need a good beating.”

Wiping the smile from her face, Illyna made a cold expression and flicked her fingers.

Clang!!!

An invisible claw attack flew straight at Illyna, colliding with Caldeiras.

“You’re pretty good at blocking for a fluke.”

Her attacks were colorless, scentless, and even formless. They were invisible, and they partially defied the laws of acceleration.

“Bartranakat.”

“Huh?”

“That’s the name I gave myself. Pretty, right?”

“It’s a little creepy,” Davey contradicted.

Then the girl—Bartranakat—grinned widely and lowered her body. “Your opinion doesn’t matter. I like this world enough to give myself a name! That’s why I have no intention of showing mercy to anything trying to kill me.”

With that chilling statement, her hand twitched low to the ground.

Splatter!!!

At the same time, Illyna shook violently, and blood spurted from her shoulder once again.

“Heh!” Seeing her suffer another injury, Bartranakat let out a crazed grin. “If you didn’t want to die, you should’ve at least brought some friends!”

Just as she was about to strike the ground with another invisible attack, the invisible claw attack collided with the blade energy Illyna created, canceling each other out. Then it happened again.

“Huh?”

Once might’ve been a coincidence, but Bartranakat knew twice was no accident.

“When we first met, you said that I could never beat you because of our compatibility. If you ask me, it’s the other way around.”

“What?!” Just as Bartranakat tried to pour out another barrage of attacks, she suddenly realized her field of vision had gotten strangely high. She then realized that none of her limbs, including her fingers and toes, moved according to her will.

Her vision, having been lifted skyward, slowly began to lower again. Eventually, she found herself looking up at Illyna, who stood calmly with Caldeiras in hand.

She made a confused face, contemplating what had just happened to her. Then, her body began to twist like a clump of energy before slowly reverting back to its original form.

“Right. They said you're a spiritual entity, and that you won’t die even if your head gets chopped off,” Illyna muttered bitterly as she watched the transformation.

Bartranakat’s expression grew more and more vicious. “I’m going to tear you apart!”

Boom!!!

Then the wall of a nearby building suddenly exploded, and someone burst out from inside.

“Roguelle?!”

It was a small boy, his body partially distorted like particles. Barely a meter tall, the tiny boy smashed through the wall and locked eyes with Bartranakat.

“Bartra...”

“What are you doing, you idiot?”

The boy’s eyes widened as if he had just remembered something, and without heading toward the center like they were supposed to, he turned and sprinted madly in the opposite direction.

“Damn it, damn it!! This is so messed up!” he shouted as he ran.

Bartranakat could only stare in bewilderment at his sudden behavior. Then, from far off in the distance, a terrifying wave of grotesquely muscular, two-legged white rabbits with tiny bean-sized red eyes came flooding in, stampeding past them.

Rumble, rumble, rumble!!

They had no interest in either Illyna or Bartranakat, instead charging after the boy at breakneck speed, disappearing into the distance. Evangeline followed them overhead with a disgusted expression.

“What? What in the world...” Things hadn’t been like that the last time they came! Still trying to process the chaos, Bartranakat instinctively threw herself to the side as a sharp warning started blaring through her instincts.

Slash!!!

She failed to completely avoid it, and one of her arms was sliced off from her body.

Illyna, holding Caldeiras with one hand, coldly looked down at her after severing the arm without hesitation.

Still, losing an arm didn’t matter much to a spirit form like Bartranakat. She could easily reattach it.

“What?”

However, for some reason, the severed arm didn’t return. Normally, no matter how much her form was slashed or pierced, it’d simply revert to its original shape like sliced water.

Yet, after that angry girl’s strike just then, it wasn’t happening. Even when her head had been cut off earlier, she had regenerated. It was stopped as if the severed space itself had been twisted and locked.

“Huh?!”

As she panicked, Illyna took a step forward, Caldeiras now emitting a strange light. “They said it doesn’t matter if a few things get broken here.”

Bartranakat’s eyes abruptly widened.

“So that means... I don’t have to hold back, right?” Illyna said with a chilling smile.

A strange current of mana began to slowly spread around her.

Bartranakat knew nothing like that had happened before. To her who had developed self-awareness by accepting the shared knowledge of humans and beastfolks, the Illyna standing before her was something she simply couldn’t comprehend.

“W-What are you...”

Illyna didn’t answer. In a panic, Bartranakat fired off another invisible attack. Illyna, with just one hand on her sword, calmly and precisely cut down every last one of the attacks without hesitation.

Although the attacks should have been unavoidable, they had nonetheless been struck down.

“It didn’t make sense to me at first, either. How could there be attacks that ignored physical laws without even being visible? I couldn’t help but think how they should be impossible, completely confused. Magic didn’t work. Aura Blades didn’t work. The only thing I could do was tank the hit.”

The invisible claws Bartranakat had conjured weren’t just powerful in number or scale—they were almost impossible to counter unless by some random fluke.

Yet, not even a full day later, Illyna wasn’t just blocking them, she was counter attacking faster than Bartranakat could react and dealing critical blows to her body.

The bigger problem was that her attacks didn’t just deal damage—they blocked any chance of regeneration. It was as if the energy connection between her severed arm and her body had been completely cut off.

“It only gets blocked sometimes, not completely ignored. I was a fool for not noticing that right away,” Illyna said with a smile.

“T-That’s impossible! How?!”

Even if they could be blocked, it should’ve been impossible to even perceive them in the first place. Bartranakat had no clue how she was managing to spot them.

Illyna then pointed to her own eyes. “I don’t need to see your attacks. Even Davey said your annoying claws were invisible to him.”

They could be felt, but without an upgraded divine eye, they couldn’t be seen. However, Illyna was different. When the attacks flew toward her, she could see the space itself twisting for just a split second.

“T-That’s impossible...”

“Sure, keep telling yourself that.”

“You... you monster!”

“Thanks.”

Anyone training to wield the Continuum-Attacking Blade would naturally be able to see distortions in space and time. When Bartranakat had the advantage of an unknown opponent, she had been dominant. However, once her tactics had been figured out, it was practically impossible for her to defeat Illyna.

Throughout their world, only Sword God Ares and Illyna could truly see through space and time.

She was the very definition of a perfect counter.