The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

Davey exuded a force on a completely different level from that of the ghost Go Jin-Seok, who had merely filled his surroundings with terror. As if confirming he was indeed a high-class Grim Reaper who captured wicked and powerful ghosts, a force poured out from his entire body.

[Ugh?! Cough!]

Even though Hyun-Ah was not as distressed as the suffering ghost, she was rendered barely able to breathe, and her face beccompletely ashen. She was terrified beyond words. She wasn't even sure anymore if this was the sperson she knew because of the intensity in his crimson eyes that invoked terror. With trembling hands, she tried her hardest to compose herself amid the chilling and heavy air. But her attempts were futile against the escalating force.

With so much difficulty, she attempted to call him. However, her lips could barely part and move as she said, "H... H... Hey..."

Woosh!

Suddenly, the suffocating air surrounding them vanished.

[Ugh?!]

Then, as if fleeing from Davey, the freed ghost of Go Jin-Seok, who was still holding onto the urn from the columbarium, disappeared in a blink of an eye.

“...”

Davey redirected his attention to Hyun-Ah and slowly approached her. Having manifested physically, Davey took the chance to reach out his hand and silently pull her into an embrace. She was startled by terror at first, but then she later opened her eyes wide, having felt a sensation that was unfamiliar yet at the stwas also warmly familiar.

"Hyun... Su?"

She slowly lifted her head to look, not realizing what she had just said.

Eventually, Davey lightly waved his hand through the air, and her eyes began to close slowly.

"I will definitely protect you," he vowed. It was all he could offer Hyun-Ah—a promise unfulfilled even over a thousand years.

"Sorry... I’m sorry... Hyun-Ah." These were the words he was unable to say, even after a millennium, but had now spilled out. He then held the unconscious Hyun-Ah in his trembling hands and gently lifted her up before slowly closing his eyes.

Wasn't it said that the enormous axis of fate remains unchanging? So there's no reason for him to back down now, even if saving her would lead to greater problems.

"Neltarid, I'll grant what you wish," Davey declared coldly as he took a step forward.

Right then and there, the space around them began to change rapidly. The Eighth Circle Magic, Warp, was cast even though it was a spell that should not be used on Earth.

"Huh?!" Doctor Han's eyes widened as if they were about to pop in surprise when he saw Davey, who was cloaked in bright light as he appeared out of nowhere with Hyun-Ah in his arms. "Who... Who are you?!"

Davey didn’t offer an answer. Instead, he simply approached the astonished man slowly and handed Hyun-Ah’s unconscious figure over to him as gently as he could.

"Please take care of Hyun-Ah," he said quietly and calmly before turning away.

"Could you be..."

The man seemed to feel a certain dissonance toward Davey that was similar to what he had experienced when Hyun-Ah was possessed. Strictly speaking, such dissonance and possession shouldn't have occurred on Earth, but considering Davey's sudden appearance while being shrouded in light, the phenomenon defied all logic.

“...”

“Please tell me. Who are you?”

Davey didn’t answer. He kept his mouth shut and crossed through the air.

Crack!

The transformation of the Earth began. Despite Kain's warning about manifesting a force greater than any spirit's normal capacity, it was already as unstoppable as an arrow that was shot from the bowstring. As Goddess Freyja's summoning force grew stronger, so did Neltarid's protective force. And Neltarid's influence over Davey grew when he accepted Neltarid’s hand of salvation.

‘I will fulfill what you want.’

As the forbidden power blossomed and pushed the binding forces back, Davey reached out into the void.

Go Jin-Seok's ghost had fled. And while he was not concerned about why the ghost took his urn, Davey was aware that it was not just one entity that orchestrated this chaos.

‘I will show them the consequences before my departure.’

Crack!!

The space opened, and Kain appeared with a bitter expression. He then said, "So, you've done it. You even manifested physically. Well, for someone of your level, it's to be expected. But what will you do now? I did not lie.”

“Shut the fuck up, Kain.”

“You’ll be okay. But what about those people? What about the people you wanted to save? The laws of this world will not leave them be.”

“...”

Kain sighed. “Go back. It might not be too late.”

Davey knew that it was already too late once he used the transcendental power. Nevertheless, it seemed that the situation was not the worst, given the implication of Kain’s words.

“You used your power because you met him. Right?”

“Huh?”

It was obvious.

“Do you think a mere ghost can set a columbarium on fire, harm alive humans, and take the urn and leave?”

“Of course not.”

“There are worse entities that are defying the laws of this world. Because of them, those around you are not being affected for the tbeing.” Kain paused for a second before continuing, “But it’s just for the tbeing.”

“How much tis left?”

“I’m not too sure either, but maybe thirty minutes at most based on this situation.”

“That’s enough.”

Kain frowned in response. “What? What you have to do right now is go back to Tionis. Lord Neltarid favors you. That’s why he saved you. It’s surprising that you were originally from Earth, but I do acknowledge it. And it’s not that hard forto understand why you interfered to save your younger sister.”

Kain got closer and grabbed Davey by the collar. “While Lord Neltarid is protecting you, leave.”

Davey shook his head. “Listen, Kain,” he muttered with a frown before proceeding to grab Kain by the collar. "Tell Neltarid to stop trying to get my favor with half-hearted salvation."

"It's blasphemous, in the eyes of the divine."

"The grand plan your god wishes for, I'll paint it," Davey stated blankly. "But pray... Pray that we can stop Goddess Freyja's hysteria and the interference of this world’s laws within thirty minutes."

Crack!

A sheer force began to erupt from Davey.

[Can you hear me, Priest of Vengeance?]

‘Shut up, I can hear you,’ Davey thought.

[Fulfill the promise and enable salvation.]

"I will fulfill the promise and enable salvation," he declared in response.

‘Don’t we have a good business relationship?’ Davey thought.

With the Taboo’s Karma dissipating and the jewel synchronizing his spirit and body for the last time, a cracking sound was heard as it crumbled to dust, marking the end of its usefulness. Yet, it was enough.

"What are you doing! They want you! Their aim is to summon you! Why they took the bones from the columbarium–-"

“Kain,” Davey said, cutting Kain off shortly and stepping through the rift in space. "Shut it," he muttered coldly. “I will forgive you for bringing Perserque here just this time.”

Kain shuddered.

‘Let’s see after I’m done with this.’

As he was about to leap through the rift, a voice called out to him. "Sir Davey."

"What is it?"

"Kain's mother left this for you."

An item was then thrown at him—a white brooch. It was obviously a significant object, and he knew it as he recalled the first item he ripped off Illyna's clothes.

"Looks good," Davey commented as he activated the brooch. A holy grand sword mixed with white brilliance then materialized in his hand.

[Been a while?]

The child-like voice of Caldeiras echoed in his mind.

[I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but Illyna toldto help you out.]

Ignoring Caldeiras' remark, Davey dragged the grand sword.

[Hey! Don’t draglike that! Ugh!]

"Even with enhancement, your chatter doesn't disappear," he noted.

[What's the plan?]

"Whatever they want. They're calling for me," Davey answered, determined to give them a proper scolding. He strode forward with that sharp determination, letting the events unfold.

Go Jin-Seok had run away from Davey, but Davey was now being called upon by the people who had helped Jin-Seok. As he proceeded toward the source of the calls, he sensed numerous gazes riveted on him as he warped through space.

And the scene that welcomed him was already a tragedy in its entirety.

"Aah... It seems that the patience to wait pays off. To think you would really chere."

Amid the grisly massacre that had beca complete sea of blood, a middle-aged man in a black suit threw away what he was holding and looked at Davey.

They were on a massive bridge where cars had cto a full stop, clogging the place with unmoving traffic. But it was not because the drivers and passengers of the cars had chosen to stop. Rather, it was because the Malicious Spirit had slaughtered them. He was even about to kill a young boy but stopped when Davey arrived, licking the blood on his fingers.

"I've been waiting for you."

"Really?"

"You're quite strong. Worthy of being the second hero chosen by the god who betrayed us,” he said casually before pulling something bluish from a corpse and swallowing it whole.

"I suggest you join us. We'll free you from the shackles that bound you to the god, and we'll also prevent you from ending up with the outcyou fear."

"Do you even know what I'm afraid of?"

"At least, it's not something I don't know." He laughed heartily as he slowly approached. "See here, lad. You have precisely two choices: accept or die.”

Atop the bridge, under the dark night skies where the tragedy unfolded, Davey radiated a pale light. The sword form that best fit Caldeiras was not the sword of the Heavenly Destroyer but the longsword of Ares. And so, in his hands, the sword of Ares formed, its energy bursting like an explosion.

"Do you intend to lift the poisoned cup?"

"What more is there to say?"

"Then we have no choice but to serve the penalty drink."

Whoooosh!!!

The sound of the wind echoed.

Boom!!!!

Both dove in at once, and Davey’s hand that was not holding Caldeiras balled into a fist and collided with the man’s.

Crash!!! Bang!!!

A massive shockwave bent sof the bridge's supports and the huge H-beams, while the cars' windows shattered noisily under the force.

Thirty minutes. For thirty short minutes, Neltarid's blessing would protect Davey. And even if the enemy was stronger than he had imagined, that did not matter.

“...”

The Malicious Spirit’s expression soured, and he jumped back to create distance from Davey. However, before he could move, Davey had already rushed in, pulling Caldeiras as if to slice through the bridge, and swung the weapon upward.

[Longsword]

[Heavenly Single Strike]

Crack!!!!

The massive bridge, spanning hundreds of meters, was cut not horizontally but vertically. But the aftermath did not stop at the bridge. The strike actually transformed into a massive blade energy that seemed to cleave space itself as it shot up hundreds of meters into the sky.

Startled, the man tried to create distance again. He then gave a chilling laugh.

"Remarkable. For a human, you truly are remarkable. But you're naively mistaken about something." The man waved his hand and added, "Did you think I exist alone just to obtain a variable like you?"

With those words, ghost-like figures began to appear around him. One, two, five, eight. Their numbers astonishingly multiplied at a quick rate, seemingly growing exponentially. On top of that, each one displayed alarming strength—men and women, young and old.

There was a saying that there was no business in front of quantity. Having hundreds of formidable forces could make anyone overconfident. But the Malicious Spirit was mistaken about one thing.

Davey himself agreed with the saying. So if the enemy brought hundreds, Davey would bring thousands, or even tens of thousands.

"Now that it's cto this, give up and join us," he said boastfully.

But when he looked up at the sky, he fell silent. Because what he saw above was a scene of tens of thousands of blade swords, which could easily overpower the masses he had summoned, preparing for an onslaught.

Using the last of his jewel to fully synchronize spirit and body...

‘It's a pity, but how strong you are is now a question outside my concerns. That’s it.’

Each one was not merely a Sword Master’s Aura Blade; it seized a higher concept. The white-bladed swords were part of the realm even Sword Masters aspired to reach. And every step contained the essence of a swordsman’s lifelong accumulation and the power to demolish realms. It embodied the pinnacle of potential power when Caldeiras' power and the Sword Lord Ares fully lent their strength to Davey and when the spirit and body were completely integrated, embodying all enlightenment.

[Demonic Sword]

[Longsword]

[Combined Mind Sword]

[Sword Rain]

As the astonished man looked at the sight in the sky, he couldn’t help but exclaim, "What kind of absurd amount of power... How could a human possess such vast power and experience?"

"One thousand years, no, the memories of tens of thousands of years felt could make anything possible. What? You’re not going to run away?”

Davey's mockery made the expression on the man’s face crumple.

Davey’s perfect memory was indeed both a curse and a talent.

"Damn it!!!!"

From the sky began the rainfall of Mind Blades.