The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

Craaack! Thwack! Craaaaack!

Throughout the eerie, heavy sounds, Rinne blankly gazed at the being that was once Davey. Her face displayed no emotion, neither devotion to a god nor animosity.

Zzzzt...

[Manifesting a god.]

For a brief moment, Rinne's vision blackened and then returned.

"Rinne... Error detected..."

With her eyes closed and still wearing a blank expression, Rinne sighed while observing a figure that resembled her, missing only the disk and wings on the back.

Zzzzt.

Suddenly, with a faint noise, Rinne's vision momentarily shook.

"Er... Error... Error..."

Collapsing, Rinne clutched her head with one hand, writhing.

[It's not your fault. Don't blame yourself.]

[Lapis, please take care of Rinne.]

In her eyes appeared a beautiful woman with long black hair and, mischievous yet at times fierce, red eyes. The woman, wearing a playful smile, gently touched Rinne's cheek. Contrary to her serene smile, a massive dark sword pierced her abdomen, indicating her imminent demise. Blood spilled as Rinne, paralyzed with the sword still embedded, could only watch the dying woman.

[It's not your fault.]

Who was this woman, and why did Rinne harbor such a memory? Rinne couldn't comprehend. Yet one thing was certain—the sensation of something trickling down her cheek was undeniably real.

[Ah... Aaah...]

The horrifying memory amidst the noise, the image of the woman she watched die by the sword—why did she view it as horrifying? Clutching her head with confusion, Rinne seemed to be attempting to recollect something just out of her reach.

Craaack!!!

Amidst all this, Davey, or rather Goddess Freyja in Rinne's form, continued her frenzied assault on Descent with the scripture. Each time the scripture struck, his body violently convulsed, as if something inside him were on the verge of bursting out.

* * *

Descent was powerless to resist. Despite having the ability to manipulate planets, Goddess Freyja thwarted him by promptly restoring whatever he destroyed.

-Groooan!!!

With eerie moans, Descent flailed around in the void, looking utterly defeated.

Unlike Rinne's blank gaze, Goddess Freyja, with her chillingly blue eyes, fixed her gaze upon him.

"Heh... Hehe... Hehe..."

Descent let out empty, hollow laughter as if he had lost his mind. By contrast, Goddess Freyja remained stoic.

"What will you do now, mighty god, against your creation? Kehkehkeh."

Semi-delirious, Descent’s eyes could not focus properly. Even the original Death Lord could not reach gods, so how could a half-pint, incomparable even to the previous Death Lord, withstand such a powerful deity?

"You're fortunate, being able to suppress those you favor with such power."

Maintaining her silence, Goddess Freyja reached out slowly.

"Isn't it true? You never acknowledged our prayers, but you've descended now because the human you favor is in danger!"

His outcry was brimming with contempt. He had never imagined their downfall would come about due to the forbidden existence called Yorgan that they had brought into being.

In truth, Descent, who was largely unfamiliar with the entity called Yorgan, considered it of lesser importance compared to a fragment of Death Lord.

"Go on... Kill me. Try it, you mad god!"

As Descent spat venomously, the hand of Goddess Freyja touched his face.

Boom!

Simultaneously, his body, enhanced with the physical strength of the Death Lord, trembled violently, creating a massive storm of clouds centered around him.

A brilliant blue light shot up, as if tearing the sky apart. The heavens ruptured in a circular pattern around the pillar of light. Although time had stopped in their world, the aftereffects of this light touched and influenced the frozen entities.

Rip... Tear!

Sounds of rending echoed throughout.

"Ah... Ahhhh... Ahhhhhhhh!"

Amidst his agonizing screams, Descent’s soul began to depart from his body. The soul, which had managed to resist every blow from the original scripture, ultimately could not endure any longer and was being drawn out.

With one hand, Goddess Freyja effortlessly extracted his soul, displaying no signs of exertion on her face. She proceeded methodically, doing what needed to be done.

As his soul was removed, Descent tried desperately to gather his strength to retaliate. But...

"Ah..."

Relying on the power of the Death Lord's physical form, now that he had lost both that form and the brooch infused with the Death Lord's remnants, he was utterly powerless. Faced with the overwhelming might of his adversary, wielding the devil mana of a human made resistance appear futile.

Ching… Ching… Ching…

Then, from thin air, a beautiful, old-fashioned, and sacred chain interwoven with gold and white began to entwine his soul, while white feathers fluttered around. With his soul now captured, Descent's body plummeted to the ground.

Due to the artifact created from the Death Lord's body and the brooch infused with remnants of the Death Lord, his form was grotesquely twisted. That body alone could function as a formidable weapon.

However, Goddess Freyja had no intention of leaving it as it was. It was as though she were fulfilling a covenant made with a powerful deity.

Swoosh…

Her graceful and gentle fingers reached out toward the body. With one hand, she bound Descent's soul, and with the other, she sent a white orb toward the husk that was once his body.

The small, brilliant lights, reminiscent of fireflies wandering about, looked almost beautiful. However, when they made contact with the flesh, they unmistakably revealed the thorns hidden within their beauty.

The brooch, saturated with the lingering thoughts of Death Lord Rho Aias – known as one of the strongest among the guild – and which he could not destroy himself, began to slowly burn alongside Descent's body, an artifact crafted from her very flesh.

No heat was felt. It was not a process of heating and melting but rather an action where the steps and details of combustion and annihilation were entirely omitted. After ensuring that the flesh was completely incinerated, Goddess Freyja slowly turned her head, bypassing Descent, and approached Rinne, who had knelt down on the ground. Then, without uttering a word, she gazed down at her.

The same face, the same height, the same eyes. But the gaze was different. While Rinne's blank face conveyed emotion, Goddess Freyja's had an inscrutable emptiness.

In a voice that seemed suppressed, Rinne whispered, "Reason... Explanation... Please...".

As Goddess Freyja silently continued to look down upon her, Rinne slowly crawled on her knees toward her, grabbing onto her. "This noise phenomenon inside Rinne's head... Rinne demands an explanation!"

At her outcry, Goddess Freyja slowly extended her hand and placed it on Rinne's head.

Thud...

Simultaneously, Rinne collapsed, slipping into unconsciousness. Those who bore witness to the sacred grace of Goddess Freyja's actions found themselves unable to summon the strength to move, including Emperor Contas, who stood with several knights of the empire, their gazes fixed in stunned silence.

Without uttering a word, Goddess Freyja, seated beside Rinne, gently caressing her cheek, rose to her feet. She conjured blue and red lights in her hand, and they began to spin, akin to two massive stars orbiting a black hole. Eventually, the two lights merged into one and ascended, unexpectedly finding their way to a figure on the side.

"Ah..."

It was Perserque, who had been silently observing from the shadows. In response to Goddess Freyja's enigmatic gaze, Perserque recoiled, but then the light flowed into her. Shortly thereafter…

Slowly, her entire form began to disperse, as if transforming into light.

"Davey!"

Upon witnessing this, Perserque cried out in shock, and understandably so. The current embodiment of Goddess Freyja bore a strong resemblance to Rinne, but technically, she occupied Davey's body. Faced with the imminent disappearance of Davey, her panic was entirely warranted.

Acting on instinct, Perserque dashed toward the fading Goddess Freyja, clutching her and exclaiming, "It's not time yet! I don't think Davey is prepared to be your consort!"

Touched by her desperate plea, Goddess Freyja hesitated momentarily, then dissolved into light, carrying with her the chained soul of Descent. As a result, the frozen flow of time resumed its course. In the place where the radiant form of Goddess Freyja, resembling Rinne, had stood, now stood Davey, his eyes closed.

"Dave...y?"

With a heavy heart, Perserque hesitated, sensing an odd familiarity with the situation. When Goddess Freyja absorbed the blue and red lights into herself, the emotions that emanated from her seemed to be a mix of jealousy and rage.

It wasn't difficult to fathom why the Goddess harbored resentment toward her. After all, she was the creation that had defied and distorted the fate woven by Goddess Freyja. Who could look favorably upon such defiance?

Fearing that Goddess Freyja might leave, taking Davey's soul with her, Perserque had cried out, clutching the deity. Her actions weren't driven by logic but rather by a deep-seated fear. After all, Davey had defied Goddess Freyja numerous times.

Davey couldn't vanish. Not now. They had just started to open up. Perserque herself had only just begun to seek her happiness, and without truly knowing her place in the world, she had accepted his marriage proposal. If he vanished, she wouldn't be able to bear the pain.

Seeing Davey with his eyes shut, unmoving, Perserque rushed over and leaned into him. Resting her head on his chest, she whispered in exhaustion, "Davey..."

She felt a rough yet warm touch as Davey, with his eyes still closed, wrapped his arms tightly around her. Soon after, in a teasing voice, she heard, "Damn deity. Curse her, I'm never pledging to another god."

Those were the first words he uttered. Davey, who had been gazing at Perserque, slowly relaxed his grip and teasingly muttered as he took a step back, "Thanks, I was almost taken away."

It appeared that Perserque's anxious feelings had proven to be well-founded. Without intending to, her intuition as a woman had seemingly saved Davey from being swept away.

In this somewhat amusing situation, Davey approached Emperor Contas, who had been standing rigidly.

"Prince Davey..."

"About what you witnessed today..." Davey interrupted with a broad smile, making a quieting gesture, "Please keep it to yourself. Don't share it with anyone."

A deity had descended, personally subduing and taking away an entity that had violated divine taboos. While it sounded straightforward, in reality, it was nothing short of a momentous event. Once details related to deities became known, they were bound to lead to complications.