The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

[Let there be light.]

Davey saw nothing but light flooding his vision. He wondered what he was looking at.

[There will be space.]

With another clear proclamation, the world began to transform dramatically. From sensory deprivation, he then began perceiving a vast space.

[Let flow exist.]

He felt no emotions from the words reverberating—only a physical sensation akin to electricity flowing through his body.

[Let there be shadows.]

[Let there be rules.]

He heard a sixth voice after the fifth voice.

But this voice felt far greater, more profound than the others.

[Life.]

Along with an enormous ray of light, he felt hazy. But within it, he felt the existence of something enormous, soft, and warm approaching him. It reached out, caressing his cheek with a gentle touch.

[Let there be. Blessings.]

The voice whispered, and suddenly everything around him changed completely.

Davey awoke abruptly from the dream filled with an overwhelming presence.

“All…” he said with his mouth agape.

“Don’t try to speak. It hasn’t been long since your divinity awakened, so you won’t be able to talk properly yet.”

He heard the figure next to him sigh.

She was none other than the first saintess, Daphne. She was known as the second heaviest drinker in the hall—a formidable woman who could bring down continents with her harsh words. But despite these boorish qualities, she had also saved countless lives as the first saintess.

She looked at Davey intently before reaching out, placing her delicate hand on his forehead. His entire body was instantly overcome by a wave of calmness.

[High Recovery]

She casually used the high-ranking holy magic High Recovery and gazed at him with fierce eyes, though she eventually closed her eyes and sighed.

“I understand what you're worried about. Once you get yourself together, come outside. There’s a lot to discuss.”

With that, she left. It was only then that Davey realized he was in a vast temple. He was in Saintess Daphne’s space within the Hall of Heroes. It was a reflection of her memories from a distant past—identical to the sanctuary of a saintess

A warm breeze blew as beautiful light shone through the stained glass.

Finally rising in such a noble and sacred place made Davey feel like he was about to greet a god. Nearby laid a dress shirt, black pants, and a black coat—clothes that resembled a suit from Earth more than anything from Tionis.

Fwoosh…!

Davey quickly dressed himself with familiarity and stood in front of a mirror. He stared at his reflection—his hair was so long it reached his ankles, and his eyes were red. It looked as if he hadn’t cut his hair in centuries. But strangely enough, he didn’t have a beard.

He wondered if this was how it felt to not age with passing time.

“What’s this?”

Something sparkled in his pupils. The glint grew and he moved closer to the mirror, captivated by it. The sparkle greatly expanded, slowly morphing into blue currents flowing within his red eyes. He frowned at his transformation—it made it seem like his eyes had a piece of the night sky in them.

“My hair’s gotten longer, and there’s something strange in my eyes now too…”

He couldn’t figure out what had happened to the body his mother had given him.

Zzzt!!

Davey pulled out a dagger from his Pocket Plane and slowly began to cut his long hair as he looked at his reflection. As he applied a thin, sharp auror blade, he effortlessly trimmed his hair. As he watched his hair fall, he began to contemplate.

“Should I just cut it all the way short?”

He knew long hair wasn’t practical for battles—it gave the opponent something to grab onto. Of course, hair itself could be used as a weapon or defense with sufficiently advanced mana control, but Davey had no need for such a weapon. Above all, he wasn’t sure if he could maintain and take care of such hair like he used to with his original hair.

“Would… Would you like me to cut it for you?”

Davey turned to see a cute girl approaching with a shy expression, sporting turquoise hair and long, pointed ears.

She was none other than Aeria.

“Aeria? You were caught up in this too?”

Surprisingly enough, there were spirits floating around her.

“Hehe… Yes… Somehow. If you don't mind, I could help cut it,” she offered again.

Davey then sat on a nearby step. “Then I’ll leave it in your hands.”

“Just leave it to me.”

Her hands were deft and delicate. She silently further trimmed his hair back to its usual style.

“Prince Davey, your hair has really improved.”

“It must be because of divinity. What about Per and Ilyna?”

“Oh, some other people took them.”

Hearing this, Davey realized he wasn’t the only person involved.

“All done!” Aeria exclaimed, setting the scissors down with a satisfied smile. Davey saw his hair return to its usual style.

But above all…

“Thank you, Aeria.”

“No, of course! With everything you are doing, I'm happy to help with something like this.”

“Speaking of, don’t call me Prince Davey.”

“Pardon?”

“It makes it feel like there’s a wall between us. Instead…”

“Then… Umm… Just Davey?”

She looked at him, blushing deeply.

“Is it okay if I call you by your name… Davey?”

“Yeah… that’s fine,” Davey replied while smiling.

Her face brightened with a radiant glow, happy at the more intimate form of address she could now use with him.

“Then… Then!!”

Just as she was about to say something more, an intruder barged in, interrupting the moment.

“You just woke up, and the first thing you do is flirting?” the woman said coldly.

Davey turned to see her glaring at him with fierce eyes. Dressed in a saint’s attire, she strode over, grabbed him by the collar, and pulled him up to her eye level, scrutinizing him closely.

She was Daphne, the first saintess. Renowned as the first to receive the stigmata of the Goddess Freyja, she was nearly deified by the Valchas Empire. Even within the Alpha Reinforcement Order, some worshiped Saint Daphne as more divine than the gods themselves.

“It seems like he hasn’t fully awakened yet. Hmm. Apparently, he has more karma than I expected.”

“Daphne, I think Davey still needs more time to get himself together.”

“This guy won’t die that easily, so it’s fine.”

Another figure then entered the scene.

“Ah…”

Davey's eyes widened as he saw her. Aeria, too, looked at her with her blushed face.

The Death Lord, the absolute ruler of death. A hero from the Peslisa Continent, the most elegant woman in the hall, and a figure of unmatched power—except for one.

“Rho Aias…”

“Long time no see. How have you been?” she asked as she covered her faint smile with her large sleeves.

“B-Beautiful…,” Aeria said in a quiet voice.

“Hehe, thank you. You’re quite adorable yourself.”

“Hmph!”

Saint Daphne snorted and turned away while the Death Lord Rho Aias continued to smile gracefully.

‘Oh, I can’t tell who’s the saintess and who’s the Death Lord.’ Davey thought jokingly.

"On the surface, you two are quite the opposite…" Davey mumbled, his thoughts slipping out. Before he could finish, Daphne suddenly charged toward him.

Without any hesitation, she landed a missile dropkick directly on his chest.

Thud!!

Some mysterious power managed to block her initial strike, but Davey still couldn’t withstand her entire attack. He went flying from the sheer force of the blow.

“Ow! You crazy woman!” he yelled.

"You must be pretty fearless to say whatever you please with that mouth of yours!” she replied, approaching him with an eerie smile.

"Come on... Let's calm down..."

"Calm down? Fine... Why don’t you calm down first by taking a hit?!"

Pow! Pow!

Daphne pinned him on the floor and rained punches down on him within an instant. His invisible barrier tried to deflect her blows, but he could still feel the force that seeped through. Her strikes penetrated his defensive magic with ease, and he felt the power even after consuming it with his Predatory Assimilation.

He couldn’t entirely consume her punches with his ability. This made no sense to him, considering he was able to consume Eclipse’s breaths that were far stronger than her punches.

Something just didn’t add up.

"Gah! Wait! Let's talk this out!" Davey shouted.

"Talk it out? Sure. Let’s talk about how much of an ignorant ankle-biting landmine you are! Can you not tell what’s in front of you anymore? Has it been so long since I’ve shown you my power that you’ve forgotten what fear is?" Daphne sneered.

Davey winced at her shouts. Nearby, Aeria gasped and covered her mouth. But Rho Aias, who usually would have played the mediator, didn’t do anything.

Wham! Bam!

Her blows became even more relentless. Davey knew she was a rough person, but he thought she was crossing the line. Just as he was about to explode…

“I bet you’re struggling to block all my attacks with that characteristic of yours.”

His eyes widened as her words sank in. His characteristic could even consume Eclipse's breath. In fact, it didn’t matter how strong the power he was trying to consume was; his characteristic just tried to consume it regardless. But yet, it couldn’t stop a simple punch at the moment.

It didn't make any sense.

In fact, he was blocking her fists with the mixed amalgamation of the writhing power within him and his characteristic Predatory Assimilation.

"Your characteristic is so overpowered that it’s even hard to believe it’s real. You really hit the jackpot.”

"But then if it’s so overpowered... why are your attacks still getting through?" Davey asked.

“Divinity,” she replied, making him pause.

"It’s like the level of god. How much do you know about divinity?”

He answered with what he knew.

"It's the absolute, primordial power used by gods. The foundation of their existences. The key to omnipotence."

"That’s right, but divinity is even more incredible than just that," she continued as she clenched her fists.

"What are you doing? Raise your guard."

Bam!!

She hurled another punch—not as strong, but Davey still felt its weight.

"This time, use everything—defensive magic, your characteristic, all of it.”

Davey layered every defense he had—from the Absolute Barrier to numerous spells—and unleashed Predatory Assimilation as well.

Thud!!

She hurled another punch, but the results were different.

"Huh?"

“How’s the impact?”

"It went… straight through?”

Her punch had made it through the defense he could use against nuclear missiles or even the breath of an ancient dragon if he put his mind to it. He realized his defense hadn’t simply shattered; it was ignored as if it didn’t exist.

‘A piercing attack?’

Whirrr! Zing!!

"Alright then, this time…”

She then wielded an energy far more powerful than before. Unlike the two previous punches, Davey could feel that the force in her hands had the potential to kill him. Then, before Davey could fully manifest his characteristic, the energy suddenly dissipated.

Aeria’s eyes widened in surprise.

Daphne’s last attack had been powerful enough to shock any ordinary person—so strong that it should’ve been impossible to block it without using any defense.

"It's… gone," Davey muttered.

"Your divine power was properly integrated into you when your divinity awakened. You’ve become a higher dimensional being now. No matter how much a lower dimensional being tries to do something to you, it won’t affect you. Well, of course there are still a few exceptions," Daphne explained.

She was basically saying that it would be nearly impossible for a regular attack to hurt him.

“That’s the secret to a god's immortality."

She was saying that gods couldn’t die because, no matter how powerful attacks were, they could never truly reach them.

"That’s what that damned half-assed god you're fighting is using,” she continued.

But Davey found a contradiction in her explanation.

"Daphne, when did you become a god?"

Her eyes twitched at his question.

"God? I'm just mimicking one. Among the heroes in the hall, there aren’t that many that have awakened their divinity like you.”

"And yet, you’ve managed to damage Thanatos several times," Davey pointed out.

"Think of it as just an illusion."

It seemed that what he had considered a solid hit hadn’t actually affected gods at all.

"The only thing that can hurt Thanatos, besides divine power, is Hercules’s power. You know that, right?"

"Yes.”

"Can you use it with your characteristic?"

"No.”

He couldn’t use the power of taboo with his Predatory Assimilation. It wasn’t a structural issue; he simply couldn’t reshape the power of taboo to suit his needs.

Unless he could take Thanatos to the Red Void, Davey considered his Predatory Assimilation to be more stable than the power of taboo. In fact, if he didn’t use his Predatory Assimilation now, it would be the same thing as sealing away a good amount of his power. It had become his foundational strength.

"Then you ought to attack her in a different way, right?” Daphne suggested, turning away. "Follow me. I don't want my temple destroyed—let's move to a safer place."

“What about the other heroes?” Davey asked.

"Other heroes?"

"How many are here?"

She stayed silent for a moment before answering.

"You figure that out yourself.”

"Is there a reason you’re not telling me?”

This was the question he wanted to ask the most.

“What do you want me to say? You half-assed bastard.”

“You told me to live my own life, saying we’d never cross paths again. But here we are. Everyone seems to be sacrificing themselves, like moths drawn to the flame.”

At his harsh wording, Rho Aias didn’t know how to react. But Daphne just looked at him and gave him a response.

“You arrogant bastard, you think anything we do needs your permission? Don’t cross the line, and just accept what's given to you. Stop worrying about the unnecessary.”

Although it was a simple answer, it was enough to leave Davey speechless.

* * *

Davey was at a large park before he knew it. He saw Illyna dangling from a rope, her eyes wide open.

"Davey,” she said while clutching her skirt to keep it from slipping. "Have you been doing this ridiculously intense training for a thousand years?"

Judging by her exasperated expression, it seemed like she had been through the real-deal hardcore training, not the child's play Ares had put her through before.

"Who was it this time?” Davey asked.

"I don’t know, but that cheesy elf… the moment I met them, I was practically drowning in their cheesiness!"

‘Pointy-ears? Cheesy?’

"Apollo…" Davey muttered.

‘This is why I have a prejudice toward elves…’

"Were you caught in a trap?"

"I'm going to kill that bastard.”

He couldn’t help but think that this too… was also some kind of talent: the skill to provoke extreme anger from anyone, even someone you’ve only just met for the first time.

He was called the Bow Lord. In a way, he was the ultimate attention grabber. His relentless teasing was enough to rile up even the angelic Death Lord...

[Yah, yah, gotttt it.]

Just thinking of his snobby, pouty face made Davey feel nauseous.

She looked at Caldeiras—stuck in the ground below the tree she was hanging from—as she spoke to Davey.

“When did you wake up?”

“A little while ago.”

“Are you going through lessons again too?”

“Something like that.”

As he answered, soft footsteps approached from behind. Rho Aias appeared with her rich robes trailing behind her.

“I’m sorry. The lesson might be a bit rough.”

“It’s fine, Rho Aias. When hasn’t it been?”

“Well…”

“I’ll explain. From now on, Rho Aias and I will be using attack magic on you. The range will be limited to this area, and everything will be continuously restored. Your job is to defend against it,” Daphne explained.

“Defend?”

“Yeah. But since you’ve gained divinity, we’ll be attacking with divinity as well. Once you learn to control your divine power, you’ll be able to block it.”

“...”

Davey felt a sense of unease creep over him.

“Don’t worry, we’ll hold back as much as possible.”

“That makes me even more nervous…” Davey muttered.

At his words, Daphne uncrossed her arms and created a large cross in the air. She then lightly tapped the ground, forming a massive barrier of holy power.

“Let’s get started,” Daphne said.

“Yes,” Davey replied.

‘Well, as long as it’s only at the level of a 9th circle or early transcendental magic, I probably won’t die right away.’

Rho Aias raised her hand slowly, palm facing the sky. She then gathered all the surrounding vitality and formed it into an opaque and smooth dark-blue sphere. Her ominous spell swallowed everything, including light.

“Eek!”

The tree Illyna was on rotted and crumbled. She fell with the broken branches, looking completely taken aback.

“D-Davey? That seems pretty dangerous…”

“Oh shit…”

Just as Illyna said, his face had turned pale. The sphere might have fit perfectly into her small hands, but…

[Transcendence Circle Dark Magic]

[Ultima]

But the truth that even weakened, planet-destroying magic was still planet-destroying sent chills down his spine.

“Isn’t this a bit much right from the start?!” Davey shouted.

Daphne cut off his complaint with a bright smile.

“This isn’t because you called me a grandma when you left the hall. And it’s definitely not because you were acting the way your dick was telling you to.”

‘Damn, she really holds grudges!’

Davey frowned and shot a pleading look at Rho Aias, hoping she’d do something about the insane saintess.

“I... I also thought it’d be nice if you thought of me as someone you can rely on,” Rho Aias said with a smile.

Davey realized no one was on his side.

“Screw that jerk.”

Right then, Davey had the distinct feeling they were seriously trying to kill him.

ChubbyCheeks & FriedNook's Thoughts

Orb’s Thought

All the heroes lining up to beat the absolute shit outta ethically train their victim Davey: