The Max Level Hero Has Returned!-Novel

Chapter 386: The Missing Princess

The fact that Davey was brought to the brink of death just by trying to subdue and suppress Megalodria was something he had to reflect upon. There were times when he was caught off guard because he had grown too complacent during the fight. This was due to his familiarity with Megalodria.

The fight itself should not be prolonged any longer. They fought openly, like true and honorable men, without resorting to trickery. Megalodria was originally a mythical beast known for his overwhelming power in fights. However, he was currently in a half-paralyzed state, affecting both his rationality and body.

With several other factors affecting the situation, Davey was left with only one choice—to engage Megalodria in a direct fight rather than a war of attrition. If this battle turned into a war of attrition, Megalodria would have enough time to rapidly recover, putting him at a significant disadvantage. If that happened, Davey's first shot would be rendered useless.

Not long after, the light that had wrapped around Megalodria's body transformed into chains that slowly dragged him into the gigantic card. Since Megalodria had almost lost half of his rationality, he was successfully dragged inside without being able to struggle properly.

Swoosh…

Then, the gigantic card transformed back into light, returning to its original size, and flew straight toward Davey's hands. Several slashes appeared on Davey's hands the moment the card landed in his grip, as if they had been inflicted by a blade. However, Davey did not release the card; instead, he held onto it tightly.

Swoosh…

After a while, the card, which had been trembling fiercely, gradually came to a halt. Even the invisible blades that had cut his hands vanished, as if Megalodria had finally ceased resisting.

“Phew… It’s quite hard to catch one, huh?”

Locking Megalodria in the card was a perfect solution for the current situation. However, it wasn't enough. Megalodria was notoriously challenging to form a contract with. Even if Davey managed to confine him in the card, it didn't guarantee an easy process of raising and signing a contract.

"Dragon King, hold on for a moment. I will release you soon," Davey whispered to the card, roughly wiping away the red blood dripping from his forehead.

Then, he flung the card onto the ground and stomped on it a few times. "Argh! You damn lizard bastard! If you're caught, then stay put. Are you still acting rebellious?!"

Despite not wanting to vent his anger on Megalodria, the subtle sense of rebellion emanating from the card was hard to ignore, compelling Davey to react.

Realizing his response was too intense, Davey picked up the card and brushed off the dust. He briefly observed the gigantic figure of the giant now depicted on the card before carefully plucking three or four strands of his hair.

"Hmph!"

With that, he released his qi, creating four clones in a single motion. While they might not possess significant combat power, they were more than capable of assisting in the search for the individual who bestowed power upon Collosus Griam from the Abyss.

The notion that someone had surpassed Megalodria and compelled him to serve Collosus Griam was utterly absurd. Were they suggesting that someone had traversed dimensions just to capture the mythical beast? It seemed preposterous, didn't it?

However, Collosus Griam had managed to survive the devastating White Nova, reducing the island and its surrounding seas to dust. Clearly, his survival couldn't be attributed solely to his own abilities.

Davey was certain that it was the power of the Abyss, a repugnant force he was all too familiar with. That damned Abyss, right? He was already aware that a rift connected this world to the Abyss. However, he didn't anticipate the extent to which beings crossed over.

Due to the Abyss's power, capable of warping the rules and providence of this world, Davey had no choice but to transform Hercules' power, the Taboo's Karma, into sword energy and send it toward Collosus. Fortunately, it proved effective.

When Davey visited the ancient ruins in Hyeon Kingdom, he initially believed there wasn't much benefit in encountering and battling his teacher's clone, Hercules. But now, it seemed his assessment had been completely mistaken.

Baaaang!!!

"Keuaaaaaaaaack!!!" A terrified shriek echoed in the distance, followed by a resounding explosion.

‘So, you were here!’?These were the words Davey longed to utter as he pushed through his limping leg, gradually making his way toward the source of the sound.

***

Collosus Griam collapsed onto the ground, his body trembling. Despite his unwavering faith in the shield that protected him, he appeared greatly flustered, as if he hadn't anticipated this turn of events.

As Davey arrived at the scene, his clones, which had encircled Collosus and relentlessly attacked him with all their might, silently dissipated into the air.

‘Goodness, my precious hair.’

Naturally, Davey made sure to burn the strands of his hair that were fluttering about.

‘May you be reborn as two strands in your next life, enriching my head with fullness and my hair with abundance.’

Having experienced the curse of hair loss a few times in the Hall, Davey never wished to endure such a horrendous affliction ever again in his life.

"Collosus Griam," Davey called out, causing the man to gaze at him with a blank expression. "We have much to discuss, don't we?"

Collosus trembled at the question, shouting at Davey, "Why the hell are you doing this to me?! What have I done to you, you bastard?!"

"How should I put it? You commanded them to lay hands on the Demon Lord. Do I need to elaborate further?"

The man clenched his teeth in response to Davey's direct and straightforward words. "As I suspected! There truly is a demon by your side!"

"And so?"

"..."

"Are you going to pretend to be a righteous and virtuous believer now?" Davey asked calmly as he once again struck the shield protecting him. "Do you believe you have the authority to pass judgment on others when you have slaughtered countless innocent humans with your false revelations?"

"As long as you stand beside the demons and defend them, your words are nothing but meaningless noise!"

"The deity that the demons worship is none other than Goddess Freyja, you despicable bastard."

Bang!!!

“Urk!!!” Collosus shrieked, feeling frightened when Davey punched the shield that covered him once again.

Bang!!! Bang! Bang!!!

The once sturdy shield began to crack under the relentless assault of Davey's punches, its form gradually distorting. Each time Davey's fist connected with the shield, Collosus would shut his eyes and let out a scream, desperately attempting to scramble away. However, he couldn't escape far due to the protective barrier that surrounded him.

Bang…!

Davey relentlessly pounded on the shield until his hands were covered in blood. Eventually, he was compelled to cease his assault, causing the frightened leader of the inquisition to look up at him. Ignoring Collosus' gaze, Davey stared at the gray shield, then down at his bloodied hands.

"Ha... Hahaha... Hahahahahahaha! You think you can shatter this protective shield, huh? This is a reinforced shield, you damn bastard!"

Silently, Davey listened to Collosus' outburst, unmoved by his threats. "..."

"My master will come and save me soon! Once the princess arrives, you'll be in deep trouble, you bastard!"

After hearing Collosus' cries, Davey immediately abandoned the idea of relying solely on his own powers to break the shield. As he had anticipated, it would only be possible to shatter this force that twisted and distorted the rules and providence of their world by utilizing Hercules' Taboo's Karma.

Swoosh…

The screaming and laughing Collosus abruptly flinched upon seeing black energy lightly swirling around Davey's fists.

"Well, there's still one shot left."

Bang!

The destructive force of the blow was just as potent as before, but the effect was unmistakable. Particularly, Hercules' power proved to be fatal against both gods and the Abyss. The protective shield, which had withstood Davey's relentless assaults, finally shattered.

As for Collosus? All he could do was scream and desperately try to scramble away from Davey after losing the protective shield he had taken such pride in.

Davey seized him by the collar and continued calmly, "The judges of the inquisition have a fondness for fire, don't they?"

"S-Spare me!"

"I'm going to ask you a few questions now. Don't pretend you don't know. You have commanded Megalodria and pushed him into a corner, so you must possess valuable information, right?" Davey said with composure as he pushed the trembling leader of the inquisition against a rock.

Then, he drew upon his surging inner qi.

[Samadhi Fire]

[Dark Magic Curse’s Stigma]

[Combining Qi]

[Fire of Interrogation]

‘Didn’t you guys like playing with fire? Am I wrong?’

"Kghkk... Keuaaaaaaaaaaaaack!!!" Collosus screamed in desperation, his eyes bulging with agony coursing through his entire body.

The flames Davey wielded inflicted the sensation of being burned, yet they did not actually consume or scorch anything.

"Who granted you this power? You better reveal everything you know about that individual," Davey demanded.

"I-I'll... I'll speak! I'll tell you everything!"

"You weren't planning on speaking? It appears that the leader of the Heresy Inquisition is quite reluctant to share information, huh?"

Crackle, crackle, crackle!!!

"Keuaaaaaaaaaaack!!!" Collosus shrieked, his body convulsing and saliva dripping onto the ground. When Davey's eyes, now purple in color, locked with his, he realized that Collosus was teetering on the edge of madness. But did he think Davey would allow him to descend into madness? The growing flames abruptly extinguished.

"Heuk... Ha... Ha... Ha..."

"Now, let's hear it," Davey urged.

"I-I'll... I'll tell you. I'll tell you... H-her... Her name is..."

"You still refuse to speak? Alright, then let's let you burn a little more."

"Keuaaaaaaaaaack!!!"

Another desperate cry pierced the air as black flames once again engulfed Collosus' body.

"I'll tell you!!! I told you I'll tell you everything!!!"

"Ah, this guy... Why are you so stubborn? Do you have to be this obstinate? Fine. Consider me impressed. I'll ensure you burn thoroughly, don't worry!"

At this point, Collosus finally realized that Davey had no intention of listening to him at all.

"It's not just one or two people you've burned to death, is it? From a necromancer's perspective, when you burn that many souls and they coalesce, you won't be able to sleep at night."

Collosus' face turned ashen at Davey's words.

"That's why... let's keep you burning for half a day."

Crackle!!!

"Kghhk... Kghhkkkkk!!!"

Collosus was subjected to torture on the desolate shores of the now-ruined island, masquerading as an interrogation. The torment only ceased when the sky darkened and the tide crept up to their feet.

The leader of the inquisition stared blankly at Davey, murmuring incoherent words. Davey gazed at Collosus, then swiftly took out Red Ribbon and severed his neck, closing his eyes momentarily. There was a restraint placed upon Collosus' body.

Davey wasn't foolish; he no longer conducted himself as he had in the past. Wasn't there a saying that went, "If you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you"? It sounded dreadful, didn't it? It was as if one had to become a monster to deal with another monster. Such was the twisted logic that governed this realm.

‘But… you know what? It’s also possible to look at it from the other way around.’

If the Abyss stared at him, he would stare right back. Just as the Abyss intruded upon this realm and recognized him, he encroached upon them and devoured them in his own way.

The Abyss was not bound by the rules of this world, but that didn't mean they were entirely immune to its influence. They simply operated by their own set of rules. In other words, once Davey deciphered the rules of the Abyss, dealing with them would become much easier.

While it was impossible to release Collosus Griam from the restraints placed upon him, Davey could still buy enough time and delay his death, forcing his awakening to extract all the information stored within his mind.

"She came to find her own kin..."

It wasn't enough for that entity to overpower and subdue the three Kings of Mythical Beasts; she even brought them to another dimension because she was lacking something.

Her name was [Urd]. Urd's purpose was rather straightforward. She came here to search for her younger sister, Princess Verdandi. However, even after gaining control of the Lux Continent, she still failed to locate her sister. Consequently, she set her sights on the Tionis Continent, encroaching upon this world.

“Verdandi… Was it Verdandi?” Davey muttered, frowning at the very familiar name as he pondered over Urd’s matters.

‘Hold on, wait…’

Davey turned the name over in his mind until he finally realized where he had heard it before. He wondered why the name felt so familiar and then recalled that Aeria El Lyndis and Illyna de Pallan had mentioned it.

"She's definitely... one of the six beauties of the continent," Davey murmured.

The name Verdandi carried a significant degree of recognition. However, the reason for her popularity was not overly complex. Unlike the other beauties who hailed from noble and royal lineages among the Six Beauties of the Continent, Verdandi's existence remained rather obscure. Information about her was scarce, contributing to her enigmatic aura.