The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

Chapter 877

Illyna likely learned what excessive teasing could lead to.

‘You shouldn’t have acted too playful without thinking.’

It seemed she was still completely unaware of just how much her actions could get him going. While she was clearly being toyed with by Perserque, Davey didn’t mind—it worked in his favor, after all.

By the end, Illyna had collapsed, utterly exhausted. He decided to postpone the rewards from the remaining two for a little while. While having fun was good and all, he knew he couldn’t keep delaying what he originally had planned.

Davey knew that if this endeavor succeeded, it wouldn’t just be a small good deed—it could lead to another major leap for Heins Territory.

“How about doing it like this here? Your design is great, but the materials are way too expensive,” Aeonitia suggested.

“Sure, if you’re okay with watching someone’s brain melt on the spot.”

“Ugh...” she collapsed.

“Then, what about changing it to something like this—”

“Are you trying to give someone permanent brain damage?”

“Ugh...”

This time, Tiara shrunk back.

Tiara, the captain of the airship Asgard; and Aeonitia had both barged in, their curiosity piqued by the fact that Davey had been spending days holed up in the workshop. But within moments, they found themselves outmatched by the complexity of his plans.

Surgically adding anything to the human body was inherently dangerous. Initially, he had considered metamorphosis, like he’d done for Perserque. But since the recipient didn’t have any mana, he wasn’t sure if she’d be able to survive it.

That was why, even though his calculations were already complete, he double- and triple-checked them to ensure nothing was overlooked.

“It’s finally done. Perfect.”

“What? But we still don’t have the main material for constructing the...”

“I’ve already thought of something.”

“What is it?”

In response, he placed the blueprint and calculations for the artificial eye down on the table before standing up.

“The core of a Black Slime.”

The two looked at each other in confusion before turning back to him with widened eyes.

“You’re not thinking...?!”

“That’s it! I can't believe I forgot about that! Wait—no. How is that a solution?!” Aeonitia asked.

“A Black Slime’s core?!” Tiara exclaimed.

It seemed the two were finally catching on.

“Yeah, a Black Slime core,” he said, nodding.

“But Black Slimes are incredibly rare. They’re not something you can just buy, and their toxins are completely incompatible with the human body. Are they not?” Aeonitia protested.

“She’s right, Davey.”

“I know a spot where a lot of them live, and I even know people with the expertise to process their toxins.”

Black Slimes were gelatinous monsters that thrived in places with devilish aura. While rare in Tionis, they were sometimes found in graveyards or old battlefields.

Even with money, obtaining one was no easy task. They were like the leaves of moon flowers that the Heins Territory sold. They were also tricky to grow, but not impossible to obtain.

Fortunately, Davey happened to know of a place where he could obtain Black Slime cores easily.

The commonly held belief that they thrived in areas with devilish aura wasn’t entirely accurate. Their primary sustenance was actually demonic force—the energy of demons.

Davey left the workshop and headed to the bustling town center. He purchased several magical tools from a merchant stall and prepared to leave.

Normally, one would’ve left their maids or attendants to take care of tasks like this, but the people of the territory didn’t find it unusual for him to personally shop for materials.

“Your Highness! Please come by again soon!”

“Take it easy, will you? If you fall down, who’ll take care of your mother? Is McBird making you do all this work? Should I have a word with him?”

“I’m aware, Your Highness. But Mr. McBird is super nice, so you don’t need to worry!”

“Oh, really? Funny, since McBird mentioned recently that he was thinking of setting you up with his son.”

“Whaaaat?! Your Highness, noooo!” said an older man.

“Careful on your way back, Your Highness!”

The girl laughed while the older man showed up all flustered. Davey waved the two goodbye and continued on his way. He was planning to use an open space to jump dimensions, but just as he was about to leave, someone dashed out of a nearby alley and ran straight into him.

“Oof! Ow...”

“And you are...?”

“M-My apologies, Your Highness!”

The startled girl scrambled to her feet, bowing repeatedly in apology.

“Ah, you’re... Tadia, right?”

“Y-Yes, Your Highness! T-Tadia! How do you...?” she stammered, clearly shocked that he recognized her.

She had no idea that he never forgot faces.

“You’re a student from the academy, aren’t you? As the dean, how could I not recognize one of my students ?”

Normally, it’d be impossible to remember every student—there were far too many. The fact that he recognized her was amazing and touching to Tadia. Her eyes gleamed with awe.

But Davey noticed a flicker of hesitation and concern pass through her expression.

“What’s got you running around in such a rush? You could hurt yourself like that.”

“I-It’s nothing! Just something urgent I have to deal with!”

“Is that so?”

“Yes! My apologies, Your Highness, but I have to go!”

“All right. Be careful.”

If she didn’t want to say anything, he wasn’t going to force her. Her face had a sense of subtle urgency, but he still chose not to press the matter, letting her go.

“Well, it’s probably nothing important,” he muttered as he continued on his way.

* * *

As Davey passed through the Tartaros underground mountain range and entered the Demon Realm, he furrowed his brows at the sight of bizarre white figures scattered around the Demon King’s Castle. Nôv(el)B\\jnn

“What the hell are those?”

Standing between two and three meters tall, with bulging muscles that looked ready to pop, the figures turned out to be none other than the dreaded rabbits.

“Kyuuu! Kyuuu!”

Horrifying, grotesque rabbits had taken over the place. Standing upright, these crazy rabbits were endlessly bulking up. He felt it unfortunate that he recognized them.

“So, you’ve settled in nicely, haven’t you?”

[Oh my, Davey~, what brings you here?]

“Call my name like that one more time, I’ll peel off your skin myself and turn you into taxidermy.”

[Oh, such harsh words.]

Hearing the deep voice calling his name in such a weird way sent a shiver down his spine. Davey couldn’t help but wonder why this Killer Rabbit, one of the ancient beasts who had once terrorized the demons, had decided to stay here.

“So, what are you doing here?”

[Didn’t I tell you? I decided to follow you. They say you’re the Demon King, the ruler of these demons. I’ve been keeping watch here while training in the meantime.]

The true form of Killer Rabbit was a mystery; he figured every single one of these grotesque rabbits could be considered part of its existence.

‘I should avoid this place if I can. My eyes are screaming for bleach just looking at them.’

“Well, isn’t this just...” he muttered sarcastically.

[Oh, looks like a demon’s coming?]

Perhaps sensing the mana he deliberately let out, a demon woman with a delicate but tense expression leaped down from the castle.

“Demon King!”

“Has everything been peaceful?”

“It always is, as long as you’re not here,” Arita said.

“Harsh. Anyway, that’s not what I came for. Do you have any Black Slime cores stored in the castle?”

“Black Slime cores? Now just so happens to be their spawning season, so we’ve actually got a few in storage.”

“Hand them all over.”

Her expression twisted at his bold demand.

“What?”

“I told you to give them all to me.”

“You’re a complete bandit, aren’t you?!”

“Are you refusing? Do you know how many ancient beasts I took down to save you demons?”

As he gathered his authority and glared at her coldly, she flinched.

“Geez! Fine! You can have them! Hey, you lot, go to the storage area and bring back all the Black Slime cores!”

At her order, the demon guards exchanged glances before nodding and heading off. A short while later, they returned with a pouch full of Black Slime cores.

“What are you even going to use these for?”

“For a good cause. I’ll stop by from time to time for more, so keep some stocked.”

“Unbelievable... You’re a tyrant, you know that?!” Arita grumbled.

He ignored her remark and just flicked her forehead, causing her to stumble back.

“You damned thief!”

“Hey, hey, I’m not taking them for free. I didn’t bring anything this time, but I’ll bring food and medicine next time I come.”

“F-Food? Medicine?”

“Yeah. Isn’t the Demon Realm suffering from a food shortage right now?”

“How do you know about that?”

He’d never neglected his duties as Demon King, making sure to keep tabs on the Demon Realm to a degree.

As he turned to leave, she hurriedly grabbed him.

“Hey!! Demon King!!”

“What now?” he said in an exasperated tone as he glanced back.

“Could you... do something about those crazy muscle rabbits?”

Following her gaze, he saw rabbits screaming and bulking up in one corner of the castle, using its structures as makeshift gym equipment.

The castle itself was beautiful, but the sight of the rabbits turned it into a flashbang.

Of course, that was none of his business.

“Why? They look great.”

“Look me in the eyes and say that, you bastard!!”

“Whatever; they’ll stick around for now and protect you.”

“Ugh...”

“Anyway, I’m leaving.”

“Fine, but don’t forget your promise to bring food and medicine next time!” she said while huffing.

“Yeah, yeah.”

She didn’t bother to chase him down.

* * *

Princess Latiana fumbled for the cup in front of her before carefully lifting it.

"Try it. It’s delicious," said the elf with a soft smile.

She was none other than Yuria Helishana.

"Wow... The aroma is amazing. What is this?"

"This is a new blend of black tea I’ve created. It’s incredibly popular in the Heins Territory," she replied, her smile radiant.

The rich fragrance and deep flavor of the tea left Latiana in awe as she delicately sipped from her cup. She tried to appear graceful, she made a few clumsy gestures in her inexperience.

"What is this made from?" she asked, summoning her courage.

Yuria, still smiling, replied smoothly, "It’s crafted from a rare grain that grows in the forest, then combined with my special secret recipe."

"Oh... That’s incredible! I’ve never tasted anything like this before!"

"Of course not. You’ve probably never had tea made with the saliva of a spirit tree before.”

Latiana froze, her expression stiffening. Slowly, she turned her head toward the voice.

"Oh, Gracious Savior. When did you arrive?" Yuriana asked.

"Just now," Davey replied nonchalantly. "I came to pick her up. By the way, is this tea truly popular in Heins Territory?”

"Of course.”

"And did you tell them what’s in it? The people of Heins Territory have a right to know."

Yuria simply smiled at his question.

"They have the right to know, but the main ingredient is a trade secret."

"One of these days, I’ll audit you and dig up every little secret you’ve got."

"Keke, I look forward to it.”

He knew there was no point in arguing with her, as she always had a smile on her face regardless of what he said.

"Did you see Myuu?"

"I ran into her outside," Davey replied.

"Please visit her more often. She’s always singing about how much she misses you."

"I will.”

Though Yuria was the one raising the half-elf Myuu, it was ironic that she was far more attached to Davey than to her. He thought she might be jealous, but she didn’t seem to mind in the slightest.

Turning back to Latiana, Yuria spoke.

"Princess."

"Yes?"

"I hope you like the gift you receive when you wake up."

"What do you mea—"

Clink! Thud!!

Before she could finish her sentence, Latiana dropped her cup and fell to the floor unconscious.

"I infused the blessing of spirits as well. It will help minimize the aftereffects of her surgery."

"Got it," Davey replied.

Yuria just smiled back.

* * *

The endless darkness was a familiar sight for her.

Ever since her vision had been cruelly taken from her, light had become an unreachable and unseeable thing for her.

Despite all of her struggle through the pain, nothing changed.

She didn’t understand why she had to endure such suffering.

In a way, it was all her brother’s fault.

She had indeed blamed him when she was younger, cursing his name in her despair. Growing up accustomed to light, the complete absence of it had plunged her into a deep depression, accompanied by relentless pain that rolled in without warning every now and then.

So for a while, whenever Maximos visited her, she had screamed and cried, lashing out in anger. Yet, even while facing her resistance, Maximos would only apologize—over and over again.

He was the one she had loved most.

Amidst the suffocating pressures within the royal family, he had been the only person who made her smile.

In the end, despite losing her sight, she came to realize she could never truly hate him.

Instead, she turned to the heavens for salvation.

She prayed to let her see one more time in her life, to be graced by light again—even if it meant she could only see for a fleeting instant.

Though she knew it was an impossible miracle, she prayed every night nonetheless. She felt like she was sinking into an ocean abyss. The fear of unknown depths continued to swallow her.[1]

Amidst the silence, she heard something violently shifting around. Then, she felt it—someone grasping her arm with unrelenting strength, pulling her up from the depths.

“Phaw!!”

She jolted awake, gasping as if she had been rescued from drowning.

And then—

"Huh...?"

Before her stood a small girl with cerulean hair, her expression as calm as it was emotionless. The girl had white wings sprouting from her back, a glowing halo floating above her head and shimmering faintly.

An angel. A messenger of the divine.

A guide for the dead.

"I’m...”

She instinctively understood that this being was a servant of the gods, and that she was now dead.

“Rinne detects abnormalities in the subject's mental state.”

But before she could fully process her death, the words Rinne said shattered her thoughts.

“Rinne determines her to be stupid.”

Even though she only moved her lips, she had a peculiar talent for driving people into the depths of despair with her biting remarks.

1. Fun fact, this is called Thalassophobia—the persistent and intense fear of the lower reaches of deep bodies of water, such as the ocean, seas, or lakes. ☜