The Max Level Hero Has Returned!-Chapter 955

Despite the mad dragon’s earlier rampage, the territory remained as peaceful as ever. It wasn’t a false sense of security or lack of awareness, either—it was unwavering trust. The difference between those two was immense.

Observing the sudden peace and quiet, while knowing the abject horror and bedlam of the situation they’d just survived, the blue dragon elder Marin found himself more convinced than ever of Davey’s power and usefulness.

Pride aside, if they were able to utilize this human’s strength, there would be no need to sacrifice Rudel to deal with the fallen ones.

When Sapphire first mentioned him, Marin had scoffed at the idea of a human using dragontongue magic, deeming it as ridiculous.

A human possessing power at the level of a dragon elder was absolute nonsense. No matter how strong a human might be, they could never come close. At least, that was generally considered to be the natural order of things—a fundamental truth of the world. The difference between their species was just that vast.

However—

Karrella, who had absorbed power and grown to a level far beyond that of an elder, had caused unforgettable chaos. Yet, more astounding was the human crushing her effortlessly with a single hand as if it was nothing, then simply consuming her.

Marin had seen the light, realizing that Sapphire hadn’t lied to him. If anything, Sapphire’s boastful praise for Davey had been an understatement.

When he saw the human nonchalantly wield the black dragon mana of Karrella—mana that he had just devoured—everything clicked. He finally understood how he had managed to use dragontongue magic.

That was why Marin willingly decided to invite him to the Dragons' Nest.

Whether he decided to help or not, his strength would become a critical factor. If he ever sided with the fallen ones…

It was unlikely. After all, they sought to reduce the human population, and this human had no reason to align with them.

But if that improbable worst-case scenario came to pass, Marin knew all hell would break loose.

He figured the fallen ones might attempt to extend their hand to the human in order to achieve their goals—he had to get there first and establish a connection with him, as a moderate dragon, before it was too late.

He’d finally sharpened his resolve and made his move.

Thankfully, Davey didn’t refuse Marin’s invitation.

[We will arrive shortly.]

Davey, Evangeline, and Rinne were riding on the back of Sapphire, who was flying them in his true form. Rudel flew alongside them.

“Lady Evangeline. Are you sure this is okay?” he asked cautiously.

“Hm? What do you mean?”

“Heading to the Dragon’s Nest…”

The Dragon’s Nest was the heart of the dragon race, a place where all the stubborn elders gathered. For someone who wasn’t a dragon to set foot there was practically begging for trouble.

“He invited us, didn’t he? It’ll be fun to look around as guests,” Davey replied nonchalantly.

“And then, you’ll end up helping us?” Rudel muttered nervously.

“Nope. Until you use your favor, I won’t interfere in this matter,” Davey stated firmly.

It wasn’t difficult for Rudel to use the favor he had been granted, but he surprisingly didn’t want to get Davey involved in his race’s situation.

Davey knew it was a matter of pride for Rudel. Still, there was something almost petty about how he insisted so much on clinging to the favor he had granted Rudel.

“Why would I bother causing a scene? There’s nothing in it for me.”

“Rinne evaluates Master Davey incapable of lying… convincingly,” Rinne remarked bluntly. He pressed her head down in response.

“Whether it’s the moderates or the radicals, I honestly don’t care. As long as no one messes with this land, it doesn’t matter to me who wins.”

‘Yup, even if the fallen ones win.’

If the moderates won, he could leave them alone. If the fallen ones won, he’d crush them and give them a warning not to step out of line. Different journeys, same destination.

“But,” Davey said, changing the subject, “recruiting talent is still a higher priority for me.”

With that, he lightly patted Rudel on the shoulder.

“You’re a dragon who chose not to break your game for Evangeline’s sake. I respect that kind of conviction, no matter your race.”

Rudel looked away, flustered by the unexpected praise.

“That’s why I gave you a chance—I didn’t want you to die.”

That chance was the single favor Rudel could ask of him.

“Yet, you don’t want an outsider like me meddling in your race’s civil war.”

“Correct.”

“That’s your conviction.”

Rudel widened his eyes slightly at his words.

"Rudelite, how many different races do you think coexist in the Heins Territory?"

He remained silent for a moment before answering cautiously, "I guess there are Dwarves, elves, humans, beastfolk… and a small number of orcs as well."

"Right. And are they all human?"

This 𝓬ontent is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

"Pardon?”

"Do they work for Heins Territory because of a duty among fellow humans?"

Rudel felt his entire body tense at the question.

From the beginning, the reason Davey had granted him the right to request a favor was simple: to give him the choice of entering the man’s circle of trust.

"If you stubbornly choose to reject that idea until the end, I won’t stop your decision or your sacrifice. It’ll be disappointing, but I’ll respect it and move on."

"Your Highness… it seems what you want isn't‘Rudelite the dragon,’ is it?”

"Exactly. Race doesn’t matter to me. What I want is a member of Hein Territory—someone who belongs here, just like everyone else. Specifically, I want Rudelite the wizard, not Rudelite the dragon."

In other words, Rudellite had not yet fully accepted Davey—or Rinne, Evangeline, and the others, for that matter—into his personal circle as equals.

Of course, Davey knew it wasn’t easy letting others in and forming strong emotional bonds.

Becoming part of a single unified community was a challenge faced by all, regardless of race. People’s common sense, upbringing, and experiences all vastly differed.

So, if Rudel chose to use the favor Davey had granted him, it’d signify from that moment onward that he no longer viewed Davey, Rinne, or Evangeline as a common human, an ancient dragon, or a golem. He’d simply view them as fellow residents of Heins Territory.

Relative to other races, dragons were fiercely individualistic. That had led Davey to give extra consideration regarding the potential challenges of bringing a dragon into the community.

"If you keep a distance from others, that’ll eventually come back to bite you. I don’t want to see that happen. The choice is yours—I will await and respect your decision."

‘Even if that choice is rejection.’

"I’m sorry…” Rudel murmured quietly.

The air hummed as they slowly descended, touching down near the base of a massive dormant volcano. Davey’s group stood up to take it all in.

"Wow… What an incredible mountain!"

Clouds were wrapped around the middle of the towering peak, with the mountain itself even larger than Earth’s Mount Everest. Evangeline and Rinne looked around in awe, clearly stunned by the sheer scale of the mountain.

While they marveled, Davey casually glanced around and muttered, "I feel like there’s a familiar scent in the air."

"A familiar scent?"

"It’s probably nothing.”

At that moment, Elder Marin approached.

"I will be your guide from here on. Please, follow me."

"But is it really okay for a human to enter the heart of the dragons’ domain?"

"You needn’t worry about that. I’ll handle any issues that arise.”

Hearing his polite tone left Davey feeling a bit awkward, for some reason.

* * *

There was an unimaginably vast number of monsters roaming the dragons’ mountainous territory. However, even the most savage of them never so much as thought to approach beyond a certain distance, as they instinctively feared the ultimate predators—the supreme beings known as dragons, protectors of Middle Earth and beings of absolute authority.

As Davey observed Rudel, who seemed lost in thought, Rinne quietly approached.

"Master Davey, hostile gazes detected from multiple directions. Rinne requests permission to intercept.”

"Just ignore them. We already knew we wouldn’t be welcome here.”

Coming there wasn’t just about making Rudel a complete member of Heins Territory; it was also for his daughter. Though Evangeline appeared human, she was, at her core, an ancient dragon. She needed to learn about dragon culture and knowledge in order to fully understand her roots.

As they continued, the hostile gazes that had been quietly piercing them suddenly shifted into open animosity when Elder Marin led the group to a massive gate halfway up the volcano.

"Stop," a cold voice commanded.

Mana surged wildly in the air. Davey then felt the presence of two elder dragons and several full-fledged dragons.

His first thought was that the force assembled to confront them seemed surprisingly small. Each of them had cast teleportation magic to form a perimeter and pressured the surroundings with their mana.

A few had unleashed Fear, but unfortunately for them, no one in Davey’s group was weak enough to be affected.

"Elder Marin, have you lost your mind?"

A man with jet-black hair stepped forward with a cold face.

"Elder Opal. Elder Kaiser. Have you both left your posts?"

"We had no choice, since you began behaving so recklessly. You forced all of us to act,” Elder Kaiser added.

"Allowing a human into the Dragon’s Nest? Are you insane?!"

Even basic dragon lairs were off-limits to outsiders, yet Marin had brought a human to the Dragon’s Nest, a sacred ground for dragons. To the other elders, it was unthinkable.

"Can’t you just trust me and let them through?"

"Absolutely not!” Elder Opal roared as he unleashed another overwhelming wave of Fear.

The full-fledged dragons around him began undoing their polymorphs, their vertical pupils narrowing as they reverted to their massive dragon forms.

Within an instant, Davey’s group found themselves surrounded by five towering dragons.

Rinne, her face expressionless, exposed a long cannon on the back of her hand. Meanwhile, Evangeline clutched the divine dragon sword Twilight, still sheathed, against her chest with a tense expression.

"Enough!!" Elder Marin shouted.

"Is this the time for such behavior?! With the fallen ones advancing, and the presence of their monarch confirmed, you’d rather waste time tearing each other apart?"

His sharp rebuke caused the normal full-fledged dragons to falter, but Opal and Kaiser continued to glare at him coldly.

"You are the one who is causing discord, Elder Marin," Opal retorted, raising his hand.

In response, the dragons prepared to unleash their devastating breath attacks.

“Daddy…” Evangeline whispered, her voice filled with worry.

"It’s fine," Davey said calmly, taking a step forward.

But before he could act, someone else intervened.

"Hey, old man! That’s enough!"

It was none other than Rudelite.

Opal widened his eyes slightly at the sudden outburst, and the other dragons also halted their attacks.

"I’ve come to the Nest as promised. But if you continue to insult my liege any further…" Rudel growled darkly, "I swear I’ll cast aside all duties, traditions, and obligations of our race and become a mad dragon.”

“...”

Opal silently glared at him.

“You brat, such insolence…”

“So what? If I’m going to die anyway, might as well make it exciting,” Rudel retorted, completely unfazed by the implicit threat. Thriving on risk and thrill, he didn’t even consider the exchange to be a proper threat.

Opal then shifted his cold gaze to Davey. “You called him your liege, Rudelite. Do you even understand the weight of what you just said?”

“If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have said it. There’s something important that needs to be addressed, and I’ve also uncovered leads regarding a spy among us.”

“...”

“How long are we going to just stand here, glaring at each other?”

Elder Marin raised both hands in a gesture of conciliation. “Let’s calm down, everyone. I will explain everything.”

Kaiser sighed and said, “Elder Opal, I suggest you calm yourself for now.”

It took a while before Opal made another move, stepping forward to stand right in front of Davey. He gradually increased his overwhelming aura.

“Human. No one here welcomes you.”

“Says you,” Davey replied coldly while smirking.

Opal’s pupils split vertically in an instant as a massive claw formed of black flames manifested around his arm. Unfazed, Davey calmly pulled out one of the shamanic rattles from his Pocket Plane.

But before anything more could happen, Elder Marin stepped in front of Davey to block line of sight, while Sapphire and Kaiser grabbed Opal’s arm, forcing him back.

“Enough, Elder! Why are you behaving this way?” Kaiser said sharply.

“We understand your distrust of the human, but this isn’t the time for such behavior! Focus on the greater threat at hand!” Marin added.

Opal reluctantly lowered his arm, finally looking away from Davey.

“Follow me. Let’s hope Elder Marin’s judgment proves to be correct.”