The Max Level Hero Has Returned!-Chapter 931

Boom!!!

Davey landed six strikes of the Middle Finger of God on Milia, engulfing her completely in a massive surge of radiant light.

Admittedly, her attempt at avoiding him and causing havoc had been a smart move on her part.

Precisely speaking, she wasn’t dead. She had simply vanished before he could finish her off.

What appeared in her place was something enormous—a being of pure, radiant white light.

"Getting desperate now that all your servants are gone?" Davey muttered. "Even just showing up like this must be taking a massive toll on your power."

Just as it was difficult for Davey to cut them off completely, these beings couldn’t interfere freely with the world he lived in without significant constraints.

Nothing came for free, and for it to manifest in such a form meant it was prepared to risk everything.

Crackle...

The enormous being made entirely of white light—the incarnation of the Zodiac constellation Libra—stared down at Davey.

"So, it was a pretty big deal for you, huh?”

The fact that it had sacrificed part of itself to save Milia made it clear.

The creature stood over twenty meters tall, with massive wings larger than its body, two long arms, and bird-like legs. Its face resembled that of a human wearing a bird mask.

This seemed to be the form of Libra. Davey had imagined such a form while going through the stone tablets Odin had told him to decipher a while back.

The scales of Goddess Freyja.

A constellation that governed fairness and balance.

A being that handled holy power, and one that Davey had once hoped could be an ally.

Instead, it had approached him in the worst possible way—with hostility.

Davey reached out as Libra attempted to escape with Milia. At the same time, it displayed overwhelming holy magic, far beyond the level of anything she had ever displayed.

It wasn’t some borrowed power—it was using its own essence to blend holy power with divine power, leaving no room for underestimating its force.

But he could tell that it wasn’t here to fight—it was simply trying to take Milia and flee. However, Davey knew that if he let them go, she’d inevitably cause further destruction. Consumed by vengeance, it was obvious she wouldn’t hesitate to annihilate even the entire world if it meant harming him.

Letting them get away wasn’t an option.

"You don’t declare a checkmate and then still let your opponent walk away. What a disgrace that’d be,” Davey muttered.

[Dispel]

Crack! Sizzle!

Most of the radiant pillars hurtling toward Davey shattered into fragments and dispersed, though a few beams still managed to reach him. Completely dispelling the attack seemed to be beyond his capabilities, indicating Libra's incredible power.

Davey skillfully evaded the remaining beams and closed the distance. He then combined Red Ribbon and Blue Ribbon, transforming them into a longsword.

Libra, unwilling to let him approach, unleashed a barrage of holy fire balls to stop him.

[Authority of Constellation Cancer]

[Rebound]

Davey activated the ability he had acquired by devouring Cancer. The power reversed impacts, and was originally limited to physical forces. However, after being blended with the authority of his Predatory Assimilation, it could reflect magical forces as well, though he couldn’t use it for quite as long as he could use his own authority.

Perhaps not expecting its holy power to be repelled, his enemy flapped its enormous wings and hastily retreated.

‘Looks like someone doesn’t know the meaning of checkmate.’

[Demonic Spirit Sword 82th Form]

Rustle...

Crunch!!

However, his attack never managed to reach it.

A ball of light appeared out of nowhere, exploding and rapidly expanding before morphing into the shape of a colossal humanoid bull. The creature immediately seized Libra by the neck, then twisted and snapped its neck, leaving no room for resistance.

Ssss...

Libra crumbled into dust on the spot, vanishing without a trace. As Davey watched the radiant bull-like entity that had ended LIbra, he muttered under his breath.

“Taurus.”

After being absent for a while, it seemed Taurus had grown considerably stronger.

It slowly turned its head toward Davey. Despite not being able to read its face due to its lack of facial features, he instinctively lowered his sword.

“...”

It proved to be the right move, as it simply gave him a thumbs-up before dissipating into countless fragments of light.

“What’s with that lunatic?”

The remains of the constellation Libra dimmed and faded away. Although Davey couldn’t pinpoint its location, even a cursory glance at the night sky revealed that the stars of the constellation were losing their brilliance one by one.

Moreover, the power that had belonged to it was scattering across the world. Davey instinctively reached his hand toward the power and activated Predatory Assimilation.

Although Cancer’s ability to sever and deflect was formidable, Libra’s scales were also a unique and potent force.

As Taurus disappeared, only the aftermath of the massive explosion remained. At its epicenter lay Millia. She was disintegrating into particles as her body crumbled.

Libra had failed to take her away, and she was fatally injured. She no longer had the power it had provided her with, either—her mortal body couldn’t withstand the critical wounds.

“O...lder... Brother...”

Millia reached out weakly toward the void with lifeless eyes, her voice fading into silence.

Davey did nothing but watch her. Without the protection of immense power, her vitality gradually dissipated. Soon after, her soul tore to pieces and scattered.

It didn’t take long for her soul to completely vanish, leaving behind nothing but an empty, soulless corpse.

“Is she finally dead?”

Once the situation settled, Hildesnova, the Executor of the Inquisition Tribunal, approached Davey.

“...”

“How many problems were caused because of this one person...?” she muttered with a conflicted expression.

She had the appearance of a young girl, and yet she had wielded an enormous weapon and used it to massacre countless knights and humans.

“What about the remnant forces?”

“Following your orders, we thoroughly pursued and annihilated them all. Keeping them alive wouldn’t have done them any favors since they didn't have anything left to live for.”

This approach felt somewhat different from the notoriously ruthless Inquisition Tribunal of the past.

"Wouldn’t it have been more beneficial for you to capture them alive?"

“Heresy trial is, strictly speaking, punishing sin. It’s not like we enjoy killing people.”

“You’ve changed a lot.”

“It’s thanks to you that we’ve changed so much.”

“Make sure you keep that mindset. Doing anything excessively never ends well.”

Whether it was the Inquisition Tribunal or the lifeless bodies before them, both served as reminders that going too far often led to tragic outcomes.

“Thank you for what you’ve done. We’ll handle the bodies of the heretics.”

“Alright.”

Perhaps all the servants of Libra, including Milia, had already become lifeless corpses. Even so, their future had held little hope as they had simply ended too many lives with their own hands.

At best, their remains might face an official execution, with their heads displayed as a warning.

If one were to ask why execute a corpse, the answer would be no different from the reasoning behind posthumous execution.

“Urgh...”

“You’re injured?”

“My apologies. Their resistance was stronger than expected...”

Hildesnova winced as she glanced at the deep wound on her arm.

“Hold still,” Davey said calmly as he gently rolled up her sleeve.

Her face flushed bright red with embarrassment, but he soon emanated a soft white light from his fingertips, closing the wound. Her expression became one mixed with relief and bitterness.

“High-tier healing magic... There won’t be any lingering aftereffects.”

“Consider yourself lucky. If I had been any later, your nerves would’ve been permanently damaged, and you’d have lost the whole arm.”

“Well, retiring with that kind of honor wouldn’t be the worst...”

“You must’ve lost your mind, haven’t you?”

Hildesnova responded with a wry smile.

‘Wait, if the power of the Zodiac constellation Libra could do this, then how did it summon those monsters? Or... did it even summon them at all?’

* * *

The forces that had borrowed Libra’s power to cause chaos across the continent were finally eradicated.

The entire continent was abuzz with the news, grateful that the masterminds behind the recent upheaval had all been apprehended.

Thanks to Archbishop Alice’s mediation, the tense atmosphere—which had seemed ready to erupt into war at any moment—was kept in check. However, the post-crisis aftermath left countless complex issues to resolve.

The Holy Empire was impacted the most.

At the end of the day, the culprits had used the holy power of Goddess Freyja, an act that inevitably caused the unwavering faith in her to take a toll. So, in order to save face and maintain public trust, the Holy Empire had no choice but to compensate the victims and publicly show efforts to console them.

“Hehe, thank youuu. His Holiness specifically asked me to express his gratitude,” a dazed girl drawled, stretching out her words.

Davey shook his head as he watched Baris leave the central conference hall.

Baris had begun attending international meetings on behalf of King Krianes, signaling that the handover of the throne was already underway.

Though the incident stemmed from grudges against Davey, he had chosen to keep that fact hidden. Revealing it would expose the truth about the constellations, just stirring up even more trouble for him. If the situation spiraled out of control, the consequences would be irreversible, and so he believed keeping quiet was the best course of action.

Perserque, aware of this, expressed her concerns but refrained from pressuring Davey. It was as though they had an implicit agreement.

After the whole mess, Perserque and Illyna took Aeria and Darian on a trip to Earth. Despite being able to visit other worlds too, they chose Earth due to their fascination with its unique civilization.

Davey thought about how nice it’d be to have a convenient gateway to other dimensions, as he was the only one capable of opening dimensional doors. But for the time being, he figured he’d have to endure the inconvenience.

The dimensional key he had used in the past was no longer functional, leaving his authority composed of divinity as the sole means to open dimensional doors.

Since the battle with Libra, there had been no news about the other constellations. To prepare for any future incidents, Davey reluctantly focused on deciphering the ancient tablets, a task he deemed troublesome but now worthwhile. Deep down, he knew that if he had deciphered them earlier, things might have not gotten so messy.

“Ugh... It’s harder than I thought.”

Lowering the transparent glasses perched on his nose, Davey stared at the mountain of papers he’d used to transcribe the texts from the tablets. During the previous few days, he had jotted down on countless sheets, each representing a different interpretation attempt.

He had never imagined deciphering tablets to be so difficult—he figured no one would’ve known.

He had started out with a lighthearted attitude, but it later on sparked his determination. Of course, if sheer determination alone could decipher the tablets, he would’ve already finished days before.

“This is what happens when you use too much of your brain. Damn it, I wonder if Perserque left for Earth because she knew what was coming.”

Frustrated, Davey stood abruptly with his eyes narrowed. Any old excuse to shift focus would suffice at this point.

So far, all he had managed to decipher were the names of the twelve Zodiac signs:

[Aquarius the Water Bearer], [Pisces the Twin Fish], [Aries the Ram], [Taurus the Golden Bull], [Gemini the Twins], [Cancer the Crab], [Leo the Lion], [Virgo the Maiden], [Libra the Scales], [Scorpio the Scorpion], [Sagittarius the Archer], and [Capricorn the Sea Goat].

These were the same as the well-known Zodiacs of Earth. However, there was also a guardian of the stars overseeing all of them:

[The Central Star, Zodiac].

Deciphering just that much had taken several sleepless nights, thanks to the damned complexity of the language. It was somewhat natural for him to struggle, though, as the writing wasn’t crafted for convenience but was imbued with power itself.

The only thing he had figured out was a list of names, which only fueled his frustration. He knew he wasn’t a quitter, but just looking at the text made him feel nauseous.

He was none other than Davey O’Rowane, a disciple who had learned from the damned heroes of the hall. Giving up wasn’t in his vocabulary.

“Your Highness, the Emperor of the Pallan Empire has sent an invitation. The deadline for a response is within a week...”

Clatter!

Davey rose from his seat and grabbed his coat.

“Your Highness?”

“Okay. If he invited me, I should go. Definitely. It’s the right thing to do. I have no choice.”

He definitely wasn’t giving up or running away. Not at all.

* * *

"Honestly, I thought it’d take you a full week to visit. I didn’t expect you to show up so quickly."

"I happened to be free."

Updated from freewёbnoνel.com.

"Free? From what I heard, Your Highness has been busy with research..."

"I’m free, Your Majesty."

"Ah, I see."

Emperor Sullivan gave an awkward response to his firm declaration. Of course he couldn’t admit he’d come here to escape the mind-numbing task of deciphering the ancient tablets.

"Heh... This tea is imported from the renowned Great Empire of Ming in the western territories. I hope it suits your taste."

"It’s similar to green tea. It’s quite nice."

"Green tea?"

"Oh, it’s nothing. But I doubt you called me here just for tea."

"Ah, well, about that... I was just curious about how Illyna’s doing.”

Davey shrugged nonchalantly.

"All three of my wives have abandoned me and run off."

Perserque, in particular, had fled the moment she suspected that Davey might rope her into helping decipher the tablets. At first, he thought she was just taking a casual trip, but it didn’t take long for him to realize the truth.

Deciphering the divine language etched into the ancient tablets was enough to make anyone’s brain feel like it was boiling. It made sense for her to make a run for it.

"Lady Evangeline, do you find the tea to your liking?"

"Yes! The aroma is wonderful. Thank you for serving such excellent tea, Your Majesty," Evangeline said politely, bowing her head gracefully.

Sullivan made a faint smile, apparently satisfied with her response.

"In fact, I have a gift for Lady Evangeline."

‘A gift? For Evangeline?’

As Davey raised an eyebrow, Sullivan nodded. The luxurious doors to the room opened, and the royal attendant entered, carrying a large, ornate box with great care.

"What is this?"

"A gift. Lady Evangeline, would you do us the honor of opening it? I’d appreciate it if you could check it now."

"A gift? Hm..."

Setting her teacup down gently, Evangeline carefully opened the box. Inside was a shimmering longsword.

"Wow...”

Her eyes sparkled with excitement as she gazed at the sword.

"It’s beautiful...”

"I’m glad it pleases you."

"It’s so pretty! Thank you so much!"

While Evangeline made a delighted expression with sparkling eyes, Davey made a rather skeptical face.

"This... You’re not just giving this to her, are you?"

Davey knew there had to be a catch for a ruler of an empire to suddenly summon them and present Evangeline with such a rare and valuable sword. Now, if they were close, he’d understand, but he knew and was very sure that Sullivan also knew that they weren’t that close.

The two were collaborators out of necessity, not close friends who’d exchange gifts and chat over tea for no reason.

And this sword he presented looked extremely valuable.

As Davey looked at Sullivan with a questioning gaze, it was Sullivan who broke the silence.

"Well, you see..."