The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

“The pitiable child you wished to sacrifice for... has not yet vanished.”

Those words sent Davey's heart racing like crazy. It meant she still existed somewhere.

“What do you mean by that?”

He was no longer talking to Evanov. It was beyond the avatar of the goddess, who used to casually change his outfit to her taste and give a thumbs-up.

It was the slumbering Primordial God. The same goddess who performed a massive miracle and fell into an indefinite sleep as the price.

It was unbelievable for him to be hearing her voice. Then again, if her avatar had awakened a part of her will, the possibility was certainly there.

Instead of answering his question, she slowly raised Evanov’s hand.

Whoosh!!!!

At the same time, the clouds in the sky ripped open in a circular shape, and an immense light began to pour down. They were inside a rift, making it different from the outside world.

The divine authority of the Primordial God couldn't be compared to any other authority. There was no limit in her capacity to exert her influence. Having created all dimensions, they would move according to her will.

Davey felt like he was losing his mind under the crushing weight of the light. He also began to notice it becoming difficult to breathe.

The authority of sacrifice felt overwhelmingly heavy, as if the authority she had passed on to him and the heroes when she fell asleep had only been a small taste of what she was truly capable of.

His divinity, which was resisting the authority trying to forcibly merge with the divinity within his body—or rather, his inner self—attempted to protect his consciousness.

The divinity of the Primordial God, no matter how weakened it was, stood beyond a level that mere divine nature could dare oppose.

“Ugh. Cough.”

[Contractor! Snap out of—Agh!]

Ellaim cried out in surprise and tried to approach, but the divine authority wouldn't allow any unauthorized entity to get close. She was inevitably flung away, despite being the pinnacle of the elements and possessing truly tremendous power. Even the spirit king couldn't resist it, and bubbles appeared all over her body as she was thrown pitifully away.

Her body, made of water, wasn't regenerating.

[Ah...]

Ellaim, realizing the massive drain it was putting on her power, stared at him with a grim expression.

Enduring under the heavy pressure, a thought suddenly crossed Davey’s mind.

‘If I inherit this authority... will I still be able to exist as who I am?’

The goddess had said that he had proven to possess the weight and qualification of sacrifice. In other words, he was ready to inherit the authority of sacrifice she possessed.

As he was receiving one of the Primordial God's higher authorities, Davey, who had managed to maintain his ego despite acquiring divinity, strongly wondered if he’d lean even further toward becoming a divine being after inheriting it.

Rumble!!!!

Cowering under the influence of the colossal pillar of power that shook the entire area, the living beings nearby, driven by instinctive fear, began a great exodus to escape.

The torrent of massive light pouring down on him continued for about five minutes. Once the prolonged vibration suddenly stopped, even the sound itself vanished.

Then, the light completely seeped into Davey and disappeared.

After that, Evanov, who had been standing in front of him drenched in cold sweat, gasped for breath and sank to the ground. “D-Davey...”

He didn't answer. Or, more precisely speaking, he couldn't answer. He had no energy left. All he could do was lie there, utterly exhausted.

He couldn't hide the expression on his face, surprisingly not of despair. The emotions surging within him were excitement, exhilaration, and joy.

It wasn’t because he had received a unique higher authority the Goddess hadn't passed on until now. Instead, he found joy in what the goddess had said to him just moments before.

The fact that Willow still existed, having avoided being completely wiped out.

The realization hit him like a thunderbolt.

If she still existed, there was still a chance!

He slowly raised up his tingling body.

“Congratulations, Davey,” Evanov told him.

“You knew about this?”

“The goddess visited me before I followed you from Yurgian. She said that since she couldn't directly watch over you, she would instead keep an eye on you through me.”

There was no scenario where the goddess’s avatar would be tied up and unable to come to see him.

However, if she’d said that, he figured there had to be a reason.

Analyzing the current situation, he was able to quickly infer what the avatar had done.

In the sanctuary, where the goddess was fast asleep and untouchable, she had interfered with her own main body. Committing such an act, even the avatar couldn't leave the spot directly.

Considering that even the heroes didn't know about it, the only conclusion he could come to was that the goddess had truly sacrificed herself to some extent.

The weight of the sacrifice felt too heavy. His head throbbed just thinking about the implications of what had happened.

[Contractor, are you okay?]

“Yeah. I’m a bit dizzy, but I don't have any major problems,” he assured Ellaim.

[This is a problem caused by divine authority. It’s not something I can dare interfere with. I'm sorry, but I can't heal you.]

“It's fine. More importantly, something important has come up, so go back first.”

[Well... I pray that whatever you set out to do goes well.]

Ellaim scattered into water droplets and vanished immediately after she finished.

Davey slowly approached the unconscious Perserque.

At that moment.

Swoosh!! Grasp!!

Perserque’s eyes snapped open before she grabbed him by the collar and yanked him to his feet.

Then, with surprisingly fluid movements, she flipped him over.

Thud!!

Despite the dull sound, there was almost no impact.

“Davey!!” she shouted furiously. “How could you not trust me?!”

Perserque pinned him down and shook him more for good measure. She looked like she was about to burst into tears. “Why couldn't you give me a chance for atonement until the very end?”

“Atonement...” he muttered. “If you saw that, you wouldn't have been able to keep your sanity.”

“Davey!”

“Atonement isn't something you do at a dead person's tombstone.”

As he slowly rose, her body slid back and moved toward his thigh. She sat on his thigh, looking straight at him, and he threw the single spark of hope toward her.

“Willow... is still out there.”

She was floored. “What?!”

“There's still a chance,” he told her with a hollow laugh.

Her eyes widened to the size of saucers, and then she asked in a trembling voice, “You mean... there’s still a chance for Willow?”

“It's not certain, but I’ll make it happen.”

Finding that answer to be enough, she immediately wrapped her arms around Davey and buried her head in his chest. Feeling the slightly damp sensation and her trembling body, he silently waited for her to calm down while patting her back.

* * *

Davey had to send Evanov back to his original world before returning to the Saint Sanctuary.

However, before he could even do so, the surrounding scenery began to change.

Starting from the spot where they stood, the world slowly began to transform, as if new colors were being painted over it.

Evanov looked around intently with wide eyes. “A phenomenon that deviates from existing laws of physics... How does one even prove something like this?”

Unlike him, who checked out the surroundings in curiosity, Davey and Perserque realized what kind of space they were in.

They had already arrived at the Saint Sanctuary.

In particular, they had ended up in the space where the avatar of Goddess Freyja resided.

“You had the power to summon us like this the whole time?”

In response to his call, the goddess’s avatar walked slowly toward them in silence.

At the same time, Evanov flinched and prostrated himself on the ground.

[Congratulations. And I’m sorry.]

As the tablet in her hand glowed, Davey nodded.

From the beginning, the authority of sacrifice wasn’t something completely foreign to him.

After all, he had used the Lasting Ember countless times in the past. The Lasting Ember, the greatest sacred artifact, was extremely difficult to obtain again.

It was an artifact that had once saved Illyna’s life as well as his own, and even revived Aeria after Urd killed her.

The authority of sacrifice was the very root of the Lasting Ember’s operation.

“You said Willow hasn’t disappeared yet. Does that mean if she’s just left alone, she’ll disappear?”

In response to his question, the Goddess slowly moved her hand. The remnant crystal of Willow that he was holding began to float up from his own hand.

It then flew toward her palm, and at the same time, red light trails came in from all directions around the crystal. Soon enough, they began to seep into it one by one.

They were the remnants of Willow, all except the ones Davey had personally retrieved.

As the light clusters permeated the crystal, it became even more scarlet, and then, with a bright flash, its form abruptly changed. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

The final form was that of a large, octagonal gem.

Within, he could feel an immense vitality—more than what he’d ever felt from Willow.

[The first act of the authority of sacrifice.]

Davey accepted the remnant crystal she sent back his way.

With a determined expression, he spoke up, “It's not just seeing her again for a moment, and I can actually revive her, right? Since she hasn't been extinguished.”

The method was only possible because she wasn’t an ordinary living being.

The goddess quietly nodded her head.

Davey figured that must’ve been why she had stopped him from going back to the past.

“Davey! Hurry!”

“Just a moment.”

Perserque became quite agitated after hearing that Willow could be saved, but as Davey calmly considered the situation, he couldn’t help but feel that there must be a catch.

“There’s no way there wouldn’t be a price for an authority personally given by you, Goddess.”

He didn't yet know the exact mechanism she’d used to create and offer something like the Lasting Ember.

However, he was sure of one thing.

There was no way there wouldn't be a price for resurrecting Willow, who was on the brink of disappearing forever.

The authority of sacrifice wasn't called the authority of sacrifice for no reason.

The condition for the authority to activate was to manifest the miracle of creation at the cost of a noble sacrifice.

“What do I have to offer in sacrifice?” he asked her.

She looked at him quietly.

[Remember that the concept of sacrifice is not simply an equivalent exchange.]

Following her words, the authority of sacrifice that had permeated into the remnants was repelled.

Clang!!!

It sounded like something shattered. Both Davey’s and Perserque’s eyes widened at the same time.

They instantly understood what the reaction meant. The authority had failed.

Him not being skilled in wielding the authority was one thing, but there was another reason.

“Why... why?” Perserque slumped down with a face full of despair, and Davey stared blankly at the remnants.

It was Willow. She refused to be resurrected. That was the only truth he could ascertain in the current situation.

Before he even thought of the ‘why’, he snapped his head up and asked the avatar, “Why on earth is she refusing resurrection?”

When the goddess didn't answer, Davey continued and asked, “Is it because I have too much to lose by reviving her? Is that why she’s refusing it?”

That would be a possible answer if she loved him, yet conversely, if she resented him, there’d be no reason for her to refuse it. It was especially confusing since she had expressed her will to live before she disappeared.

For her to refuse resurrection now, he figured it must indeed be out of love.

The Goddess shook her head.

[Davey.]

She approached Davey.

[The price of sacrifice required for her resurrection... She already paid for it.]

“What?”

[Her unwavering devotion to you from the moment she awoke was already the sacrifice.]

The price of sacrifice sometimes defied all calculations. It would suffice as the condition for her resurrection.

However.

[She paid with her love for you, and now all that remains within her is a greatly inflated resentment.]

Therefore, even though the conditions were met, Willow, who resented Davey, refused resurrection.

“That makes no sense! Who gave her the right to decide...”

As he muttered in frustration, she slowly approached.

[Then you just need to pay something equivalent in her stead.]

As she moved her head, a woman approached, swaying slightly. She had come to embrace the cruelty of the authority that plunged Davey into despair in the very end.

It was none other than the Minstrel Mute.

“Are you in despair, Davey?”

Hearing that question, he just stared blankly at her. “Why are you here...?”

“Why? I came to save you, of course. I’ll explain it only once, so listen carefully, both of you.” Mute spoke to him and Perserque, “From now on, I’ll use a divine fragment and a special melody to send both of you to the world within Willow’s deep subconscious.”

Evanov slowly walked out, and she continued her explanation. “There, you must cherish that child with more devotion than the sacrifice she made for you. Once the sacrifice and devotion you show are weighed against her sacrifice, only then will the price that child paid be recovered. All the memories you two make there will be paid as the price.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” He found the explanation to be logically flawed, but if there was a possibility, he had to cling onto it. “What’s this divine fragment?”

She simply pointed to Evanov. “Right there, a divine fragment.”

Along with her explanation, Evanov placed his hand on his chest and slowly exposed it, revealing a fragment of pure white light shimmering on his palm.

“Isn't it amazing? They said I’m a divine fragment. I guess I can finally repay your favor, Davey.”

“What are you talking about, Evanov?”

“Don't worry about it. I’ll tell you later,” he said as he waved his hand. “Make sure you achieve what you want, Davey.”

Following those words, Mute began to sing a mysterious melody, and the surrounding air shimmered as if dancing to her tune.

At some point, Davey and Perserque found themselves in what looked like the peaceful Heins Territory. Outwardly, it looked the same as Heins, but they were no doubt already in Willow’s inner world.

Her space was left with only bitterness and resentment toward Davey.

Nevertheless, her sanctuary was the Heins Territory.

He felt someone glaring at him, and when he quickly turned his gaze, he saw who he had been looking for all this time.

It was the pretty girl with black hair streaked with white. She was glaring at the two with hatred.

“How dare you show up here?! Get lost right now!” she screamed violently.

However, the only thought that crossed their minds was that of relief.

'Thank goodness.'