The Max Level Hero Has Returned!

Chapter 853. Afterwords (2)

Late in the evening, King Krianes entered his bedroom, exhausted from dealing with government affairs. He picked up a silver cup and filled it with strong liquor.

The pain in his body was getting worse.

Davey had used some kind of power to ease his condition, but his body was already too worn out.

“Your Majesty, you need to rest.”

“I’ll get some sleep soon enough.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“It’s alright. You can go, Vesperus.”

“Yes...” Chief Steward Vesperus responded before leaving the room.

Once he was alone, Krianes found himself lost in thought. But then, he sensed someone approaching.

“Didn’t I tell you to leave?”

“Your Majesty, it’s Davey O’Rowane.”

His eyes widened upon hearing that name. He quickly turned his head in surprise.

“C-Come in.”

He tried to hide his slight embarrassment at the unexpected visit.

Soon, the door opened and Davey stepped in, standing silently before him. King Krianes wondered why he had shown up so suddenly out of nowhere—he did notice that Davey was in an unusually good mood, though.

“It’s been a while.”

“Your Majesty, how have you been?”

“The same as always.”

King Krianes silently poured wine into Davey’s empty glass, and he accepted it without a word.

“I heard you stopped drinking.”

“I went through some things.”

“I see.”

After Davey sipped some wine in silence, Krianes spoke again.

“So, how is married life treating you these days?”

“I’m happy,” Davey replied.

“I’m glad to hear that.”

Krianes stood up and reached for a small box on the table. He handed it to Davey.

“These are cookies sent from the Duchy of Felicity. Have some.”

Despite his calm demeanor, King Krianes felt nervous.

“Of course,” Davey replied.

His eyes widened slightly in surprise.

His first son Davey usually kept his distance, as he didn’t like Krianes. As a result, their relationship was more of a king and subject than that of a father and son.

Yet here he was, coming to see him in the middle of the night, accepting a drink and even the smallest of offerings.

Krianes couldn’t help but wonder what he was going through.

“What brings you here?” he asked, curious.

Davey couldn’t help but smile—it was a smile that seemed uncontainable. It had been a long time since Krianes had seen him smile like that.

‘The last time was back when Lennie was still alive.’

His smile made Krianes remember when Davey was very young, when he used to follow him around.

“It seems like something wonderful happened, so much so that you’re smiling in front of me like this,” King Krianes noted.

“...”

At his words, the smile on his face faded, but the corners of his mouth still twitched. Then Davey spoke.

“Aeria gave birth to a son.”

King Krianes went silent for a moment.

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

“Anything else?”

“No.”

The atmosphere between them felt awkward. After a brief pause, King Krianes refilled his glass.

“Congratulations. And... I’m sorry.”

“Thank you.”

With that, Davey finished the drink, bowed his head, and disappeared just as quickly as he had come.

Krianes couldn’t believe that Davey had come all the way here in the middle of the night just to tell him that news. In a way, he was astonished that Davey, who had smiled like an overly joyful child, solely came to share the news of his son’s birth.

Of course, the news of a grandson was good news for him as well, but since Krianes knew Davey normally kept his emotions in check, it was amusing to see that having a son was so impactful on him to the point that he felt the need to share the news out of the blue.

“Pfft...”

King Krianes covered his mouth with one hand, trembling slightly.

“Ha...”

He couldn’t help his mouth from twitching.

“Ha... Hahahahahaha!”

He tried to contain it, but it burst out uncontrollably.

Chief Steward Vesperus came rushing in, startled by his sudden outburst. But Krianes just kept on laughing for a while.

“Your Majesty! Is everything alright...?”

“It’s... It’s nothing, Chief Steward.”

“Your Majesty...”

“The pressure of fatherhood is like no other,” he murmured softly, still chuckling as he calmed down. Slowly, he opened his eyes and looked at Vesperus.

“Chief Steward.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Prepare the carriage.”

“Where will you be going, Your Majesty?”

“I’m going to Heins Territory.”

Vesperus’s eyes widened at the announcement. King Krianes had avoided visiting the Heins Territory on several occasions.

“Shouldn’t I pay a visit, since my grandson’s been born?”

“Your Majesty...”

Vesperus couldn’t figure out where this sudden change of heart had come from. He couldn’t quite figure out if he should be worried or not, seeing King Krianes more refreshed than he had been in years.

“You’ve grown up well... I’m sorry, and I’m so grateful,” the king muttered quietly.

Chief Steward Vesperus read the air and spoke cautiously. “Your Majesty, perhaps... Now is the time to tell Prince Davey the truth.”

“What truth do you mean?”

“That...”

“Will anything change if I tell him the truth like some kind of excuse?”

“...”

“The opportunity is already gone. This is the responsibility of a poor father who gave his son a hard life.”

With that, the Chief Steward held his tongue, understanding that no more could be said.

* * *

Hyun-Ah, often referred to as the princess of the Sacred Group, finally felt some relief after an incredibly busy season of work.

“Uncle has finally come out of his coma...”

It was nothing short of a miracle. Her uncle, the real chairman of Sacred Group and a precious someone whom she thought would never wake up, had finally regained consciousness. Thanks to this, those who were scheming to take over the group had quieted down, giving Hyun-Ah and the company some much-needed breathing room.

“Hyun-Ah,” Yeon-Hee called.

“Hm?”

“Are you busy?”

“No, not anymore. The work is finally finished,” she replied, glancing up from her documents. Yeon-Hee smiled gently as she stood by, watching her work.

“Sorry for making you do all my work.”

“What are you talking about? Yeon-Hee, you should get some rest. The strong me will handle stuff like this. Plus, Ji-Ah and Yu-Na are helping me out.”

Oxygen Yun Ji-Ah and Maga Han Yu-Na—once just typical Alf Online players—had since become Awakened individuals. Now, they were helping with the ongoing monster threat and supporting other Awakened individuals through the project run by the Sacred Group.

Earth had gone through a near-apocalyptic catastrophe, but now, it wasn’t just back to normal—it was thriving in terms of the monster-related business.

Despite initial hope that the monsters would completely disappear for good, they just kept reappearing. Although the game Alf Online had vanished, and no new Awakened individuals appeared for a while, things had since changed. New natural Awakened individuals began to emerge, whom the Sacred Group called the second-generation Awakened.

Though they weren’t as powerful as the first-generation Awakened at the start, Sacred Group supported them so that they became stronger and were able to fight against monsters.

The world had gone through turbulence and changes, yet there was a strange peace to it. And thanks to the success of this new business venture, Hyun-Ah’s net worth had risen dramatically.

“Do you want to eat something? Should I make you some ramyeon?” Yeon-Hee offered.

“It’s okay. You’re already busy looking after uncle, so make sure you rest,” Hyun-Ah said.

“Alright.”

“Yeon-Hee,” Hyun-Ah called out quietly.

“Hm?”

She stared at Yeon-Hee for a moment, but eventually shook her head.

Davey was gone. She knew the chances of him returning was low, so bringing him up now would only reopen old wounds.

“Nevermind,” Hyun-Ah said.

“Alright, then. Have you met anyone lately? I remember you dating some handsome guy,” she teased.

“That person isn’t around anymore.”

Yeon-Hee sensed from her calm tone that she had said something wrong, and quickly made an apologetic face. “Oops, sorry. But don’t worry. Half the world is men, right?”

Hyun-Ah sighed as her older sister giggled.

“Don’t worry about me. You should focus on yourself. How long are you going to keep looking after me? It’s time for you to live your own life.”

“I like how things are right now,” Yeon-Hee responded.

Leaving her sister to her work, Hyun-Ah walked out with heavy steps.

“Miss, your ride is ready for you,” the driver offered.

“No, it’s okay. I want to walk today.”

She felt lethargic, with a mix of bitterness and exhaustion.

“But miss...”

“It’s alright.”

She waved the driver off, opting to walk toward the office building. But as she strolled along the quiet street, a foul smell caught her attention. She frowned.

Unfortunately, she found herself in the wrong place at the wrong time.

She stopped in her tracks and took out a small device from her pocket, activating it.

Cold sweat trickled down her face. "Seriously... not again," she muttered.

Every now and then, monsters appeared in human-populated areas. It seemed like this was one of those times.

Crack... Crunch!!

Hyun-Ah realized what she was dealing with—a high-level monster known as a war troll, a creature capable of tearing a regular human to shreds in seconds. She tried to get away carefully, but just as she was about to escape, she saw someone walking toward the monster.

“That crazy idiot!” she gasped.

Even for an Awakened, taking on a war troll bare-handed was reckless. She activated the device in her hand and quickly made her way through an alley it preparation to intervene.

But then, something astonishing happened.

The huge war troll was lying on the ground, clutching its crotch and groaning in pain.

“I don’t want to smell blood today. Got it?” a playful voice said.

Hyun-Ah froze. The voice was strangely familiar.

“Consider yourself lucky. You won’t die... just yet,” the figure said, snapping his fingers as he planted a ball of light on its body.

Snap!!

In an instant, the troll’s body was engulfed in light before vanishing.

“Be thankful for those last ten seconds,” the figure said, turning to walk away.

Hyun-Ah couldn’t believe there was someone this powerful—she knew war trolls weren’t ordinary monsters any normal warrior could deal with.

The moment she tried to call out to the figure, he removed his hood and slowly turned around.

“Hyun... Soo...?”

“Hyun-Ah, it’s been a while,”

It was Davey O’Rowane—Shin Hyun-Soo in his past life—her older brother, who had supposedly died a long time ago.

“How... How are you here?” she stammered.

“How? I opened the door and came in.”

‘That’s not what I’m asking...’

Hyun-Ah struggled to hide her emotions. She furrowed her brows as she approached him. As she got closer, she saw something in his arms.

“What’s...?”

“My son.”

“Huh?”

“He’s my son.”

Hyun-Ah stared at him in confusion as he gleefully approached. “Your... son?”

“Yes. That’s why I came.”

“What do you mean...?”

“I came to brag about my son,” Davey said with a playful grin.

The Saint of Tionis, the monster-like man who once shook the entire continent and single-handedly shifted the balance of power, had returned after all this time to brag about his son.

Hyun-Ah couldn’t hold back anymore. Frustrated and overwhelmed, she stormed toward him, but as soon as she caught sight of the tiny, adorable baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, her irritation melted away.

“Aww! He’s so cute!! My nephew! Call me Auntie! Come on, say Auntie!” she squealed.

“What are you doing? You’ll scare him!”

“Why? I just want to see my nephew’s face!”

“You know we’re not blood-related anymore, right?”

“I don’t care! I want to see my nephew! What do you have to say about it?”

They bickered for a bit before finally calming down. Hyun-Ah couldn’t take her eyes off of the little one who couldn't even open his eyes yet. After a while of adoration, she looked at Davey.

“Did you know uncle’s awake?”

“Is he? Great! I'll show off my son to him too!”

Hyun-Ah couldn’t help but smile. She noticed that Davey had changed. He seemed more laid back, free of worries, and also willing to meet Uncle again. Seeing him like this made her feel emotional.

“I should meet up with Yeon-Hee too. I want to tell them about Moony!” Davey said.

“Moony?”

“It’s his nickname. Well, that’s actually why I came.”

Hyun-Ah tilted her head, confused.

“Per told me to come here and get a name for him. She said that if I try naming him myself, he’ll probably resent me forever...”

Hyun-Ah figured it was probably a consequence of his eternally terrible naming sense.

“Oh, and could you find me a house? Don’t worry about the money, pick a crazy big house. Wait, nevermind. Just find a big piece of land. I’ll build a new one.”

Her eyes twitched at his request. “What?”

“I’m planning to visit more often. Illyna is really interested in this world’s civilization.”