The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

Chapter 822. His Determination

“GAA!!”

Thanatos spat out blood. She stared at Davey, her face twisted in shock as blood dripped from her mouth.

“You arrogant creature...”

"Let’s not make this harder than it needs to be. In the end, both you and I were made by the hands of Goddess Freyja herself."

Squelsh!

Davey plunged his sword deeper into her heart. He was able to destroy the destructive side of Neltaird the same way, but he wasn’t sure if Thanatos would die the same way. After all, she hadn’t entirely abandoned her divinity.

Sch, sch...!!

Thanatos grabbed Super Ribbon with her hand covered in scales, glaring at Davey with fury in her eyes.

“You... possess a unique power. A power not meant for a mere creature. I see...”

Her yellow eyes darkened further.

“The power to consume... Not only can you devour power, but also alter the rules to your liking.”

She finally figured out the truth behind his mysterious power. Being able to consume others’ powers alone was already heaven-defying, but what made it more devastating was the way he could adjust everything to suit himself perfectly.

Squelsh!!

As they continued their power struggle, Davey kicked Thanatos back, pulling Super Ribbon out from her abdomen. As she stumbled, he swung his sword down at her diagonally.

[Continuum-Attacking Blade]

[Singular...]

Thud!!

But before he could slash her again, an overwhelming force slammed him crashing into a wall.

“Cough!”

The sharp pain shot through his body, and it was a moment before he could think straight again. He quickly got himself together, trying to muster a defense against the next attack, but...

Roar!!!

A massive dragon’s claw ripped through the space and pinned him down. The tables had turned drastically in a matter of minutes. Without hesitation, she grabbed him and hurled him to the ground.

Whoosh!!

As she drew her power, purple-black wings spread behind her and the space around them began to distort.

Davey had noticed for a while now that she was trying to protect the blobs of flesh around her. He had wondered if it was simply maternal instinct, but that didn’t seem to be the case. It became clear to him that this flesh cave had a deeper purpose for Thanatos.

Suddenly, the area was engulfed by a thick fog. Soon after, a gigantic dragon—one far larger than before—stood before Davey while glaring ominously with its glowing yellow eyes.

Davey noticed she was gathering divinity in her body. He tried to reverse her divinity, but she wasn’t foolish enough to fall for the same trick twice. The power he tried to reflect reverted to its original state, eventually messing with him.

She gazed at Davey, carefully observing everything about him and countering his every move. It was now clear that mere swagger was no longer going to get him anywhere.

“Why are you smiling?” she asked.

“Cough... The space warped... How could I not smile?” Davey responded.

Thanatos frowned at his words. “If you’re that curious, figure it out yourself.”

‘But you’re looking inside of me, aren’t you?’

As Davey laughed, the enormous dragon formed a magic circle in its mouth. The space around them cracked before black tentacles began to spill out from within. Hundreds of tentacles, enough to cover the sky, tore through the space. At their tips were eyes that glinted ominously.

“Not enough... Not enough...!!”

“What’s not enough?” Davey asked.

“The vengeful hatred I’ve nurtured for ten thousand years isn’t pitiful enough to be destroyed by the likes of you.”

Purple energy began to gather in the eyes, each one carrying the power of a 9th Circle spell or higher. If they were simply Eclipse’s magic, Davey could dispel them, but with Thanatos in the mix he knew it wasn’t going to be easy.

Not that it mattered.

Zing... Zap!!

The air cracked, and the purple beams rained down on him all at once. Even with the authority of Predatory Assimilation, the overwhelming force made it nearly impossible to block more than one at a time.

Worse...

“Hrmph?!”

Thud!!

Thanatos focused on Davey's weaknesses when he used Predatory Assimilation.

He had to concentrate intensely when he was consuming such immense power.

[Confusion is setting in.]

She broke his focus with her words, and his Predatory Assimilation instantly faltered. Purple beams then pierced his body. The immense impact left his mind reeling.

Swish!!

But she didn’t stop there. Using her massive tail, she snatched him up, slammed him into the ground several times, and flung him into the air.

As Davey struggled to even consider using Predatory Assimilation, she unleashed her breath attack. The breath, easily dozens of meters in diameter, engulfed him in an instant. Without hesitation, she slammed her massive front feet into the ground, causing the earth to twist and surge from all directions, pressuring Davey as he floated helplessly.

As if the twisting alone wasn't enough, she contorted the ground that she had uprooted in a further attempt to pulverize Davey into nothing. Despite the void-like space where nothing seemed visible, there was solid and dense land within it.

She twisted the earth multiple times, aiming to obliterate Davey, and then unleashed a purple-black piercing flash at him. He was like a voodoo doll getting stabbed repeatedly with needles.

[Steel Doll]

Then the enormous earth that was pressing Davey down enveloped him to create some kind of humanoid prison, trapping him completely.

Her relentless attacks, intended to finish Davey off without giving him a moment to react, carried a power unlike anything he had ever faced before. After enduring the onslaught of fierce blows, Davey hung limply, drained. She curled her tail around his neck, lifting him off the ground to bring him face-to-face with her gaze.

[You insignificant creature. Why do you resist?]

She asked with a condescending tone.

"It's only natural for living things to want to survive. Phew... Isn't it the same for you?" Davey replied, panting.

At his answer, she quietly replied.

[Give up now. Become my follower.]

"Ha, you’re funny,” Davey scoffed.

[Even though you are an Antagonist, I hold you in high regard. The fact that a single creature attained divinity on its own is proof of your worthiness.]"

"So?" Davey asked, with her tail still wrapped around his neck.

[Do you know the truth of the world?]

"Not really... and I'm not interested.”

[Goddess Freyja created me to rule the world in her stead. But she betrayed me and tried to destroy me.]

"Well, I at least know that.”

Regardless of her situation, the fact that she was a victim remained unchanged.

[She betrayed me! Cast me into that Abyss!! Left me to rot!!! Do you think I was the God of the Abyss from the start?! I am the God of Sleep and Dreams, once entrusted with the sleep of the Goddess Freyja herself.]

Her voice rang out, filled with anger and bitterness. Davey just quietly looked at her as she continued her tirade.

[Join me... Antagonist... I’ll never betray you like that vile Goddess Freyja did. Help me... Let us change these outdated rules and create a better world... together.]"

"Hey," Davey interrupted, laughing.

"Save that sleep-talking for when you're dreaming. Isn't that your job anyway, as the God of Sleep and Dreams? But really, what—a better world? You mean a world where you wipe out all the humans you don't like and create beings who do nothing but worship you? Is that what you'd call better?"

‘Promising to never betray me? Your actions now contradict that very idea of yours,’ Davey thought.

[You insolent little creature!]

She then whipped her tail in a rage to crush him.

But her attack never succeeded.

Just before she could strike, a massive mana reaction erupted within her.

[What?!]

"What do you mean, ‘what?’ I only just planted some dark magic inside your body," Davey said casually.

‘And not just any magic—transcendental dark magic.’

Tear, tear!!

With an unidentifiable, strange sound, the enormous dragon let go of Davey and stumbled.

“It doesn’t matter, even if you’re an ancient dragon—if transcendental dark magic explodes inside your body, the damage is going to be pretty significant.”

As she staggered, she quickly cast healing magic to repair the wounds covering her body.

Davey had injected his own magic into her when he had first stabbed Super Ribbon into her heart.

[Grrr...]

Even so, Davey was surprised to see she wasn’t dying. He knew he had planted a pretty strong spell within her. Her eyes turned even more menacing as she charged toward him.

‘Alright, time to test out the newly strengthened kids.’

Thud!!

Davey swung at the charging dragon, landing a precise slash. He manifested the authority of time. She tried to dodge and counter when his strike flew toward her, but the authority of time was too much for her to handle.

Slash!!

He managed to sever one of her wings, causing her to instantly crash to the ground.

Davey didn't let up with his assault. He slashed Super Ribbon once again before rushing at her. Her eyes reflexively flashed as she gathered her magic.

[Absolute Dragontongue]

[Die]

Crack!!

Davey knew he wouldn’t have been able to block the attack if it weren’t for his divinity. Still, he didn’t need to block the attack in order to resolve it. He knew her Dragontongue was a non-physical law attack.

He didn’t simply cut her body with Super Ribbon—he had slashed the space itself. With the power to sever non-physical powers for a certain period of time, her Dragontongue had been effectively sliced into oblivion.

"Alright, get yourself ready.”

She made a shocked face as Davey easily closed the distance like nothing happened and severed her Dragontongue. Twisting her body in desperation, she tried to avoid him, but he dropped in a complex arc and slammed Super Ribbon down on her.

[Continuum-Attacking Blade]

[Singular Power Slash]

Slash!!

The space around them tore apart, and he sliced one of her arms clean off.

GRRR!!!

She reeled backward, having suffered massive injuries.

The tide of battle suddenly shifted once again. It was nothing like the one-sided slaughtering from before.

[Why... Why can't I see it?!]

“What’s so strange about using the authority of the Abyss to block the authority of the Abyss?”

It was natural for her to react with such befuddlement.

After all, the authority of the Abyss she wielded was a reflection of her own mastery. For Davey, who had stolen that very power, it made no sense that he could use it to such a familiar and intricate degree.

But...

"Don’t tell me you...”

"Yeah, I also took your mastery along with your power.”

His Predatory Assimilation didn’t just consume strength. Davey had consumed not only her authority of the Abyss but also her mastery, just as he had been able to absorb experience from the heroes of the hall.

“You really should respect other people’s boundaries. How dare you look into my mind? Ever heard of privacy??”

[Horne!!!]

“Ah, if you’re calling me that then I assume you know why Freyja had given us humans the name Horne.,” Davey remarked.

Humans may be the weakest, but they had the most potential. And that was enough for Davey.

“I don’t know why you want to protect that cavern full of flesh so much, to the point that you dragged me into this space,” Davey said, panting hard as he gathered his strength. “But that means I can go as wild as I want here.”

Davey knew humans should always think of the worst possible option, just in case. And right now, Davey was about to unleash that worst-case scenario of power.

"Endure this madness if you can."

Davey gathered his power of taboo—something he had vowed never to consume—along with his Predatory Assimilation. As the overwhelming madness and hunger consumed him, Davey allowed a part of the madness to break free just before surrendering his will to it.

[Hmph?!]

She staggered, startled by the sheer force of the madness. It was enough to shake even a god.

And then...

“He... Hehe... Hehehe!!!”

Davey let out a dark laugh as the power of taboo unleashed his madness and he kicked her large body away.

His strength was incomparable to before. Because he couldn’t fully control it, and it clouded his ability to distinguish between friend and foe, it was a power he could only unleash in situations like this. Since she had trapped him in this alternate space, Davey had no hesitation in going buckwild.

The downside was that he had no idea if he could return to normal, or even what the repercussions might be on the outside world. On top of that his body, driven by the insatiable hunger, became far more violent than he imagined.

Alarmed by his drastic change in strength, she attempted to roll away from him.

Slash!!

But he slashed Red Ribbon toward her, ignoring time itself and cutting her body deep.

“Where do you think you’re going, huh? Come back here.”

As he allowed the madness to take control of him, the power she had unleashed on him began to dissipate. The power of taboo liberated him from all forces affecting him—even the power of the gods.

The power of taboo was, after all, a twisted corruption of Goddess Freyja’s own abilities.

[Hercules... Hercules!!!]

She screamed as if she was being haunted by some long-buried memory. But Davey moved even faster, tearing through her scales.

"Hehehe... Here? Or here?”

He prepared to unscale her, and she tried to resist, but he pinned her down to the ground with the twin swords Red Ribbon and Blue Ribbon that had flown toward him with telekinetic blade control.

“Your reverse scale... Let me see your reverse scale! I’ll let you go after I see it!” Davey said.

He became furious as he heard what his physical body was saying, his consciousness barely holding on. Yet, he didn’t intervene for his final move.

"It must be here somewhere... hehehehe," he muttered to himself. His body consumed by madness unwillingly unscaled her with a cruel grin across his face.

In order to win, he spared no means.

This was his determination.