The Max Level Hero Has Returned!-Chapter 1317

Evangeline was always in high spirits.

For someone who befriended viewers before making friends in real life, she only had a handful of people she could truly relax and play with. Even though her streams were a source of interest, they demanded a certain degree of restraint from her the entire time.

Darian and Abel were still young, and Super Ribbon was often with Davey or studying at school, so Evangeline was actually left quite bored.

Children her own age were too young, and meeting teenagers felt a bit awkward. Fortunately, Moderation was one of her best friends.

Perhaps that was why she eventually found herself focusing more on simply having fun at the park even though she had originally come to follow Davey.

That kind of notion coming from her would’ve made Moderation Park Seung-Hyun cough to death if he heard it.

The incident happened in an instant. The smell of gunpowder suddenly permeated the air, followed by the unique, acrid scent that came when gunpowder ignited.

That level of explosion was no mere surprise event or attraction. Instinctively turning toward the source of the smell, she saw the defensive magic installed in the area manifest like a barrier, completely blocking the explosion.

Well, there was no need to be surprised. Her father Davey had embedded numerous magic stones in the park to prevent people from getting hurt. It’d be difficult for most physical explosions to cause even a speck of harm.

Thanks to those preventative measures, the explosion ultimately fizzled out, then the person presumed to have caused it resorted to an extreme measure in desperation. They suddenly appeared and ran toward her with a knife in their hand.

She figured the person only chose her because she was the closest one, rather than specifically targeting her for her identity.

Seeing the danger, Moderation threw himself to protect her.

She recognized that there was no absolute need for him to do that and throw himself into danger. Gratitude and anger flared up in her simultaneously. She didn’t like that an ordinary being like him had recklessly stepped forward.

However, Moderation, still grappling with the attacker, quickly gave her a signal to run away. She understood it to be a sign for her to run away before others noticed her.

However, in that situation, her personality wouldn't let her hide before danger.

Thanks to the sudden commotion, Davey noticed Park Seung-Hyun.

She saw him walk toward Moderation with a worried face.

‘He’ll find out that we’ve been tailing him...’

“Whatever, screw it. What does that matter?” She, who had been momentarily hidden in the crowd, confidently approached her father, oblivious to the internal struggles Moderation was going through. “Dad.”

“Hmm? Eva, what are you doing here?”

“I came to hang out. With him,” she said, gesturing to Moderation.

Davey looked at her silently. Then, he smiled warmly and stroked her head. “I see. Are you hurt anywhere?”

“There isn’t really anything that could hurt me.”

Conventional wisdom told that parents worried even when they knew their child was in no danger of being hurt.

Davey couldn’t help but feel a bit sad at her comment. “For just hanging out, you two are in pretty similar getups.”

Once Davey casually brought that up, Moderation’s face began to darken.

Evangeline chuckled, instead.

‘A date with him? Ah, that's right.’

It felt like their purpose had changed at some point, but it didn’t really matter.

“I just came to hang out. Don't get any strange ideas.”

Davey nodded in agreement. It was only then that Moderation made a relieved face.

“If you say so, then that's what it is. I trust you.”

Seeing the operation had gone smoothly, Moderation deliberately erased his earlier thoughts.

* * *

A terrorist attack had occurred within the Republic of Korea!

Terrorist activities were not entirely unheard of, however. As Korea had passed through a turbulent period, its image as a safe country had faded considerably.

Moreover, unlike in the past, Korea held significant standing due to its trade with the Church of Neltarid and Tionis. It naturally experienced both a virtuous and a vicious cycle simultaneously.

Furthermore, there were a few factors making the country more vulnerable or prone to such attacks.

“It seems there was some conflict due to religious issues. After all, the Church of Neltarid had a deep connection with a company that originated in Korea.”

“So you think it was a terrorist group?”

Hyun-Ah sighed as she explained, “We’ve reached out and consulted our contacts to check the usual suspects and organizations. However, they are saying that this wasn't their doing this time. They claim this was the lone act of a religious extremist, but I don't think it's worth believing.”

In essence, the emergence of the Church of Neltarid, where a divine being actually showed its existence, had caused a collapse in existing religions on Earth. That had inevitably led many people to harbor resentment.

The problem was that those people felt the risk was too great for them to initiate a full-scale war with Tionis. Instead, they attempted to sever that connection by threatening Korea, which served as a bridge between the two worlds.

“And that's why they chose Alfland? They shouldn't have done such a thing when they know it belongs to me,” Davey commented, finding their motive absurd.

Evangeline nibbled on a strawberry, eavesdropping on their conversation, then sent a message on Durian Talk.

Evangeline: Moderation. Moderation.

Evangeline: Moderation, answer me. Are you okay?

She contacted Moderation, who had returned home after explaining the situation to the police.

A reply came back shortly after.

Moderation: Why do I end up being involved in these spectacular incidents whenever I’m with you?

Evangeline: Seriously? How should I know? I guess you just have bad luck.

Moderation: Whatever. I’m pretty tired, so I'm going to take a few days off to rest.

Given he had been unexpectedly caught up in a terrorist incident and even underwent questioning, she knew letting him rest was the right thing to do.

Thanks to her own intervention, the situation was resolved without major issues, but she still felt sorry for involving him.

Evangeline: I'll buy you food next time.

Moderation: No thanks. I'm not going to take money from a kid. Tell me if you're hungry later, and I'll buy you some tteokbokki.

Evangeline: Ah, I know how to make tteokbokki!

Moderation: What you make isn't tteokbokki, it's a biochemical weapon. I heard you're even on the blacklist of the Gourmet Research Society.

“This dude, for real?” She was annoyed, but he was her favorite banter partner. Finding their bickering fun, she decided to head to the lair and continue her stream.

Just then, she spotted someone moving swiftly under a streetlamp.

She would’ve ignored it usually, but she couldn't this time. After all, there was only one person in the world that had such beautiful blue and red hair.

‘Where is she going?’

Evangeline knew Super Ribbon wasn’t someone who would wander around alone at such times.

Her black slime appeared from somewhere and sluggishly crawled onto her shoulder, seemingly suspicious as well. It stared intently at Evangeline.

“Shadie, where’s my sis going?”

Of course, the adorably slim Shadie, lacking any mouth to speak with, didn’t answer.

From what Evangeline could tell, it seemed like Super Ribbon wasn’t on just some ordinary errand. She had a feeling that the girl was heading somewhere without even telling their dad.

‘What’s she up to?’

Evangeline cautiously trailed her, suppressing her mana and minimizing her footsteps as much as possible so as not to be discovered.

Tap. Tap.

After walking quietly for a long time, Super Ribbon suddenly looked up at the sky on a quiet, empty road, then lowered her head.

And then.

“Whoa!” Evangeline instinctively rushed forward as Super Ribbon suddenly unleashed a killing aura and began to put on a mask. “Super Ribbon!!”

Swoosh!!

Evangeline, who hugged Super Ribbon from behind, couldn’t contain her surprise. She couldn’t believe what she had just witnessed.

She had seen Super Ribbon become angry, and she had seen her wear a mask. However, she couldn’t remember if she’d ever displayed such a dense killing aura before.

Evangeline trembled from the tremendous killing aura she’d felt in that brief moment. Unable to control her shaking hands, she looked up at Super Ribbon with a face mixed with fear.

She flinched at the sight of the eerie red and blue glow visible through the eye slits of the mask.

“Super Ribbon... is that you?”

She didn’t know why she had assumed otherwise, but the figure before her felt completely different from the gentle presence her lovely sister Super Ribbon usually gave off.

Evangeline was scared, but she couldn't just run away.

Super Ribbon’s aura felt so chilling, as if she could utterly destroy anyone who crossed her path.

Evangeline asked again, unable to figure out why she was acting this way, “What's wrong? You're scaring me...”

As she carefully looked up at Super Ribbon, with tears welling up in her eyes, Super Ribbon looked down at Evangeline silently, then staggered. At the same time, the mask also vanished.

Evangeline remembered that the trigger for her mask's manifestation was rage. If so, it meant that she had felt enough anger coming from somewhere inside, but Evangeline couldn’t guess what would make her so angry.

Super Ribbon spoke up, “I'm sorry. Were you scared?”

“A-are you really okay?”

Super Ribbon gave a sweet smile. Yet, the smile was odd.

“Umm. Sis?”

“Yes, I’m fine. There's no problem. It’s just... I felt a little upset because someone interrupted my time with Father.”

‘Wait. Unleashing such rage and killing aura just because she felt down?’

Evangeline slowly let go of her and took a step back. “Sis...”

“Yes?”

She solemnly questioned, “Who are you?”

“What?” Super Ribbon’s head tilted in apparent confusion.

Outwardly and inwardly, she was clearly Super Ribbon.

However, whether it came from Evangeline’s intuition or instincts as an ancient dragon, or just being a family member, one thought had kept running through her mind since the encounter started.

She was certain. “You're not Super Ribbon.”

“What are you talking about, Eva? It's me, your big sister Super Ribbon.” The bright smile and warm feeling were certainly hers.

Yet, strangely enough, Evangeline’s instincts kept shouting that she wasn’t herself.

“Don't lie! You're not Super Ribbon.” Face full of fear, she instinctively drew the divine dragon sword Twilight. It was a primal defense.

Outwardly, she was definitely Super Ribbon. No one was imitating her. However, the Super Ribbon before her was concealing a killing aura far more terrifying than when she first wore the mask.

“I see... You’ve been different ever since then. I'm asking you one last time, who are you?!”

Super Ribbon slightly stuck out her tongue and licked her lips. That seductive smile was also different from the Super Ribbon that Evangeline knew.

The figure turned silent for a moment, then slowly lifted her head and quietly gazed at Evangeline.

In that moment, Evangeline instinctively felt danger and hurriedly raised her sword to defend herself.

Slash!! Clang!!

Super Ribbon had approached her before she could react properly. Her small, white hand lightly touched Evangeline’s abdomen.

That movement was too skillful, unlike Super Ribbon's usual movements that relied solely on brute force.

It was like...

'Dad...'

Evangeline felt like she was watching her dad’s movements.

“Ah. Ahaha. Seems like I’m finally getting used to this body,” the figure chuckled eerily yet happily.

She slowly walked over to Evangeline, who had been knocked to the ground.

“Who are you... you...” Evangeline struggled to speak again.

The defensive magic she had just manifested was instantly shattered upon contact with Super Ribbon.

Evangeline wasn’t completely unaware of Super Ribbon’s authority, though she questioned whether it was truly powerful enough to destroy her magic so quickly without any resistance.

The Super Ribbon standing before her was a different being from the one she knew.

That is, if Super Ribbon until now only had otherworldly hardware, the Super Ribbon before her in that moment also had software that matched her specifications.

Moreover, there was one more problem.

“Eva,” Super Ribbon called affectionately, then bent her knees and crouched down. She raised her index finger to her lips, signaling for silence. “My good little sister. Forget everything you saw today. Got it?”

“What are you talking about? What are you trying to do?!”

“Shh. Don't worry. Would I ever hurt you? I just...” She was silent for a moment, then showed a chilling smile. In the night wind, her beautifully fluttering hair seemed to have inverted its colors.

“They interrupted a good time between father and daughter. I was thinking of getting a little revenge on them. What do you think?” she asked with a bright smile.

‘What should I do?!’

Evangeline slowly stood up, looking at her with a hint of fear. “No! Absolutely not. I don't know who you are, but you need to return Super Ribbon to normal.”

“Oh come on, I already told you I'm Super Ribbon...”

“You're not! Don't lie! You fake!” Evangeline screamed hysterically.

Super Ribbon's smile instantly dropped. “Fucking hell. This is why I didn't want to come out...”

Her voice in that brief moment sounded utterly forlorn.

Evangeline was shocked. “Huh?”

“Forget everything you saw here. Understood?”

“Says who?!”

“Not you, at least.”

With that, something black poured out from her fingertip and momentarily engulfed Evangeline. Then, it vanished.

That formless, colorless power felt familiar. It was a power that devoured everything in its path, terrifying even just to look at.

Even when she tried to analyze it, her mind went blank, as if her memories were being actively rewritten.

In the midst of the confusion, Evangeline finally collapsed, falling into a sleep-like state.

The one who carefully caught the falling Evangeline was none other than Super Ribbon.

“My dear little sister, you're going to forget everything about today.”

Super Ribbon, who had committed the bizarre act of eating a portion of Evangeline's memory with Predatory Assimilation—something which even Davey couldn’t fully control and accomplish—carried her on her back.

She hesitated for a moment, then turned back toward the way she came. “We'll save it for next time...”

* * *

When the unconscious Evangeline opened her eyes again, she was lying in her bed.

“Why am I sleeping here?”

“Are you awake? Super Ribbon brought you back. You must’ve played so hard that you fell asleep on a bench. You're not sick, are you?”

“Uh... Mom?”

“Hurry up! It’s time to get up, wash up, and eat.”

While she had no memory of the previous day, one memory remained in the corner of her mind. She remembered how Super Ribbon had cursed in a voice filled with despair.

The context was gone, so she wondered what that memory was, but the worry did not last long.

She simply thought she’d had a dream.