The Max Level Hero Has Returned!-Chapter 1171

The Max Level Hero Has Returned!-Chapter 1171

Chapter 1171
The sitting President of South Korea was—as always—being crushed by an endless stream of state affairs.
The workload, unimaginable to him before he took office, left him with constant headaches. Problems cropped up from too many unexpected directions, forcing him to make split-second decisions with far-reaching ramifications. Whenever those choices turned out to be wrong, the backlash was on a level far beyond any praise he ever received when they were right.
Still, people had begun to say things were finally looking up. Thanks to the new material acquired from Tionis through the Sacred Group, South Korea was enjoying a substantial trade surplus.
The biggest problems with nuclear power plants had always been meltdowns and waste disposal. However, if those two issues could truly be resolved, then the energy produced by nuclear power could become nearly limitless.
“Mr. President, we've received a that the operation rate at the Uljin Nuclear Plant is very stable.”
“
Phew.
That’s a relief! Nothing went wrong, after all.”
“Indeed, sir. Even though a consistent supply of the new material is still needed for continued waste treatment, nothing in the past has ever neutralized radioactive waste so perfectly.”
Naturally, other countries were eager to build friendly ties with South Korea in order to gain access to such critical resources. Among them, Japan seemed to have grown especially close to succeeding in negotiations.
Originally dominated by far-right political parties, Japan had always operated a significant number of nuclear plants. With the Fukushima disaster still fresh in public memory, they were more concerned than anyone about radiation neutralization.
Their stance was clear, believing that maintaining good relations brought greater benefits than being hostile and seeing no reason to pick fights. The same logic applied to other countries as well.
With foreign diplomacy seemingly on the right track, the president had more time to focus on domestic affairs. Thanks to that, public sentiment had grown surprisingly favorable as well. Some extreme supporters had even gone so far as to say it wouldn’t be a bad idea to allow him another term.
However, that would be difficult to pull off in reality. The president himself wasn’t keen on the idea of serving another term, as well.
“Still, I swear I’m never going to serve another term as president. I can’t even remember the last time I had a peaceful vacation or a proper meal with my family,” he muttered bitterly.
“Mr. President, your term still has a few years left in it.”
“I know, I know. Anyway... any other s? Any news about that terror incident I asked you to look into?”
“Unfortunately, sir, it’s proving very difficult to identify the culprit behind the attack.”
“Damn it. Everything was going well, and now we’re going off the rails all over again.
Tsk.
”
The president then suddenly picked up on a faint scent. “
Hm?
What’s this smell? Did someone bring in fresh flowers or something?
“No, sir. Nothing’s changed, but I can see why you ask. This scent... it’s the first time I’ve smelled anything like it myself.”
Right then, the chief secretary who had been delivering s suddenly collapsed. The president quickly tried to rise from his seat, but he too slumped down.
They had clearly been hit with some sort of sleeping powder, strong enough to knock a person unconscious almost instantly.
Despite the absurdity of the entire Blue House being incapacitated without resistance, the building remained eerily silent. In the midst of that silence, a woman walked in, her stilettos clicking against the floor as she walked slowly and deliberately.
“Be thankful, human. If you had gotten in my way, I might’ve had to kill you.”
With no one to stop her, she walked in without a fight and soon found the man lying unconscious in the presidential office.
Chandra stared silently at him, her expression unreadable. She slowly closed her eyes, then opened them again.
- No. No, don’t avert your gaze. You mustn’t. Chandra, this is everything prepared for you. You can’t turn away now.
The words the man once said echoed in her head. Her vision began to blur, superimposing the image of the president with Leon.
She ground her teeth in frustration, and a strange glint flickered in her eyes.
She had come to check whether he really was the reincarnation of Leon. If he was, she knew that somewhere deep within his soul, a trace of the soul contract—still unbroken—should remain.
Even though he had supposedly broken the contract, nothing significant had changed for her yet. She then wondered if it had been a false contract after all.
‘Right, how would a contract form under such scammy conditions?’
With that thought, she reached within her own soul and unraveled the thread of the contract that still lingered there. The thread slowly extended outward and reached the body of the South Korean President.
If he truly was Leon’s reincarnation, then the soul thread would fully reconnect and begin resonating with her.
She almost hoped it wouldn’t. Perhaps, deep down, she actually wanted the man to not be his reincarnation. Not because she didn’t want to kill a human, but because she couldn’t bear the idea of such a wretched fate continuing between them.
Zzzing.
“
Hmph?!
”
However, reality told her otherwise.
“
Ha... Hahahahaha.
”
With one hand covering her face, she staggered. She let out a hollow laugh, one laced with sorrow, emptiness, and rage. She started laughing like someone who had lost her mind, and from beneath her hand, crystal clear tears streamed down her cheek.
“In the end, even death couldn’t sever this cursed fate between us...” she murmured bitterly, then slowly lowered her hand.
Face full of fury, she reached out toward the fallen President Cho. Light gathered above her palm.
She didn’t have the power to erase his soul completely. Yet if he truly was Leon—the Leon bound to her by a soul contract—then she could interfere with that soul’s existence. Just as he had once done to her, she too was bound by the same fate.
Once she fired the destructive light, there’d be no going back. She would thus become an outright enemy to humanity, and Davey would come to kill her for breaking their contract.
However, she had no regrets. Her current existence had never been a life she wanted to hold onto.
Just as she was about to unleash the light in her palm, a sudden barrage of magical bullets and explosions struck her.
The presidential office was instantly thrown into chaos. As Chandra scrambled to locate the president through the thick smoke, several figures quickly rushed in and retrieved the unconscious president and chief secretary.
“We are now engaging the terrorist! Requesting backup! There’s a high concentration of unknown powder in the air! We suspect it to be a substance that makes individuals unconscious upon inhalation. Gas masks are mandatory!”
Had Chandra approached with more caution, there wouldn’t have been such a dramatic response. Instead, she had been blinded by rage and revenge, forcing her way in recklessly.
That recklessness created an opening—one that the unaffected presidential security agents couldn’t miss.
“Hand him over. I have no intention of killing you all,” Chandra warned coldly as the group approached her.
However, none of them responded. They simply drew their weapons.
They clearly had no intention of negotiating, each of them manifesting their own powers. Chandra could tell they were the humans who possessed special powers, also known as Awakened individuals.
She silently studied them, quickly counting how many were nearby.
“Give yourself up. If you surrender now, I promise not to use excessive force,” one of them shouted as they stepped forward.
“My target is just that man, human. If you don’t want to get hurt, just hand him over.”
“
Hmph!!
”
Her answer came in the form of an attack. A young man rushed at her with his sword, aiming directly for her vitals.
Chandra casually stepped back and clapped her hands.
A formless shockwave burst out and wrapped around the young man, flinging him away.
“
Guh!
”
“Scatter!”
Boom!!
Shockwaves exploded in all directions like dandelion seeds scattering in the wind, striking the rest of the team.
“Fine. If you won’t hand him over, I’ll take him by force,” she said in a chilling voice as she clapped her hands again.
The bracelet on her arm began to pulse violently as a torrent of energy far more powerful than before erupted from her.
“What the hell...? What is this?!”
The agents in the presidential security unit could barely contain their shock.
With just a single clap of her hands, the entire scenery around them had transformed. It was like they had been thrown into another world, far too vivid to be an illusion.
A world covered in blooming flowers stretched before them, with shimmering lights shaped like butterflies darting through the air. It was a world that felt far removed from Earth.
“You’d better take a good look at why they call me the Butterfly Empress.”
“Attack!!! If we take her down, we can get out of this freakish space!” one of them shouted urgently.
The young man who had been flung away earlier returned, circling her at a dizzying speed as he searched for an opening. Once he believed he’d found it, he reappeared behind Chandra and struck with his sword even faster than before.
Boom!!
However, the attack still didn’t land. A massive chameleon-shaped creature with enormous butterfly wings had unfurled its pink tongue and snatched the sword from his hands.
Shocked by the incomprehensible strength, the young man tried to retreat, yet the creature’s tail lashed out and struck him hard, sending him flying.
“Damn it!!”
Realizing their enemy wasn’t just a simple intruder, the agents began pouring every ounce of their strength into countering her attacks and trying to subdue her.
Alas, their efforts never reached her.
Clap!!
Boom!!
Clap!!
Boom!!
Each time she clapped her hands, invisible shockwaves rippled outward. The illusions of giant chameleons and butterflies, along with the paralyzing and sleeping powders she scattered periodically, took them down like they were helpless children.
Even so, Chandra never once launched a lethal attack.
Unaware of her considerate restraint, and assuming her combat abilities were limited to what they had seen, the agents kept charging in recklessly, growing bolder with every failed attempt.
“Just give him to me!! I don’t intend to kill anyone else!” Chandria finally snapped and shouted furiously, but the security agents refused to listen.
“Stall her! She’s not that strong, so we can hold out long enough until reinforcements arrive from outside.”
“
Haaaah.
Humans really are unbearably arrogant,” she muttered to herself.
Snap!!
The moment she snapped her fingers, the agents realized just how wrong they’d been.
“W-What the hell is that?!”
The agents couldn’t tell whether she was human or not. On the contrary, she didn’t tear the humans apart with cruelty. They’d thus mistakenly believed she wasn’t all that dangerous, and that she could be easily subdued.
However, their misjudgment had only pushed Chandra to the brink of madness and anger.
Hundreds of pure-white spheres of light filled the sky. Behind her, an enormous sunflower bloomed into existence. When she casually waved her fingers, the ground split open and massive plant stalks erupted from beneath, reshaping the entire battlefield.
“Fine. If you really want to die, I’ll grant your wish.”
Ziiiing!!
“Take cover!!!”
It took less than five seconds for her to take down the security agents.
* * *
There were no instant deaths, but the damage Chandra caused was fatal enough to leave them completely incapacitated. If left unattended for too long, their lives would be in serious danger.
She slowly walked forward, reaching her hand out toward the unconscious president.
“N-No... You can’t... You can’t kill him...” A middle-aged man, barely conscious, reached out desperately with trembling fingers.
She ignored him entirely, her face cold and expressionless.
“For what reason are you trying to kill him? What did he ever do to you?!” he cried.
Chandria stared at him with a hardened face and asked quietly, “Did you humans have a reason... when you slaughtered all of us?”
“What...?”
“No. Forget it. It wasn’t even something you personally did. Demanding answers from you is meaningless.”
“What are you talking about? If you kill him, you’ll never be able to keep the life you have right now!”
“I don’t care. After I kill him, I’m already going to die anyway,” she said with an unwavering resolve, far firmer than expected.
“Don’t do it!!!” the man shouted in desperation.
However, at that moment, she shot a brilliant white beam from her hand and shredded the president to pieces.
Until that moment, Chandra had avoided killing anyone, no matter the situation. Yet in that moment, she had finally taken a life.
The middle-aged man could only watch as the body burst apart into glowing fragments and scattered in the air.
“No... No, no, no!! If he dies right now, this country is—!!” He screamed in agony, but the man he called out to would never come back.
“You damned monster bitch!!”
“Sure, go ahead and say whatever you want. I have no regrets anymore.” She then reached toward the shredded body, ready to pull the soul free and force it under her will. “What...?”
However, for some reason, the soul didn’t emerge. The soul contract that had clearly been linked just moments before had vanished, as if it had never existed.
‘What’s going on...?’
Her face twisted in confusion, unable to comprehend what had happened.
There were only two possible explanations in a case like this. He either never had a soul to begin with, or he was never bound by a soul contract.
The former was impossible, of course. That left only the latter, which she couldn’t understand.
“Why... Why can’t I see anything...?” She shook her head in disbelief.
By all rights, she should’ve been able to interfere with his soul through the contract. Yet nothing happened, as if it had all been a dream.
‘This can’t be possible...’
She had confirmed Leon’s soul with her own eyes! There was no way it could happen like that.
Clap!
Just as she tried to take a step back, unable to process what was unfolding, a sudden sound of applause startled her.
She snapped her head toward the sound and saw the same person who had supported her all that time. Her follower, the elf named Finn, stood in front of her with the black crow mask on.
“Finn... What is this?”
“This scene isn’t strange at all. In fact, this is exactly how it was meant to go.”
His voice was light with amusement, and Chandra scowled. “Explain. Right now!! What the hell is going on?!”
He said nothing at first, silently reaching up and removing his mask. Beneath it was an aged elven face.
“Explain yourself. Why is the soul contract suddenly gone?!”
“It didn’t vanish, Empress.”
His face began to twist. It slowly transformed into one she could never forget.
A human face—the most horrifying one for her.
“After all, it was never there to begin with.”
Chandra collapsed onto the floor. “No... No, you’re lying. Finn...”
“Do I still look like Finn to you, Chandra?” he questioned with a smirk.
“Leon...”
“
Ahahahaha!
Chandra, you’re still so precious. You always walk the same road, every time.”
She covered her mouth as nausea surged from the wave of memories crashing over her. “
Urgh... Guh!!
”
“Just like that time you slaughtered the innocent, all because of a lie... Nothing has changed. And every time you do it, I fall in love with you all over again.”
Her eyes trembled as she looked up at him. “Why... Why are you doing this to me?”
It meant the man she had just killed had nothing to do with them.
“Why, you ask?” With a beaming smile, the old man answered, “Because I love you. You’re most beautiful when you’ve lost your mind.”
“N-No... No!!” She shook her head violently. There were still things she didn’t understand, but his words had already shaken her to the very core. “No! I... I’m not—!”
“It’s already too late, Chandra.” He approached her as she trembled and shivered uncontrollably.
He whispered, “I love you.”
His words crawled over her skin like insects, tears pouring down her face.
The man was already dead. There was no bringing him back.
Her mind went numb as the realization hit her. She had torn apart and killed someone who had nothing to do with them.
She hated humans, yet in that moment, she had become no different than the ones who had wronged her.
Just as her sanity began to crack, Leon Val Archid whispered again, “Don’t worry, Chandra. You can still become even more beautiful. I’ll be there to witness it all.”
“I’ll kill you, Leon!!” Enraged, she swung her hand. A blast of blackened light, no longer the usual white, pierced straight through his body.
The beam struck his head, rushing down to his heart. It extended to every vital point of his body, and he should’ve died instantly.
Yet there he stood in front of her, unfazed. “There’s no way I’d die, Chandra.”
“
A-Aaaaargh!!
”
He slowly reached out a hand. He gently lifted her chin, bringing his face close like he was about to kiss her.
“Public indecency is still a crime, you know,” a voice suddenly sliced through the air. “Mr. President, is it a crime to do that in the Blue House?”
“Hard to say... I’ve never seen a case quite like this.”
The unexpected had happened.
“You...?” Chandra muttered in disbelief.
They were currently in her imaginary space, the area where she had put her illusions together. Even so, he walked through it as if it were his own backyard.
He strolled toward her without a care and asked, “You haven’t forgotten our contract, have you?”
“What...?”
“You said you wanted revenge, and I said I’d help.”
“How is this possible...?” She couldn't understand how things changed so abruptly.
“What do you mean? I used you as bait to fish out that bastard, who admittedly was too damned good at hiding.”
As Davey said that, his smile vanished. He then turned to Leon. “You did a damn good job running.”
“
Fufufu.
You damned variable. I didn’t expect you to show up... But it doesn’t matter. My objective is complete. Next time—”
“There will be no next time.” Davey smiled faintly.
“
Heh.
You’re going to kill me? Sorry, but this figure before you is no different from a hologram.”
Davey nodded at the response. He then clenched his fist and pulled it back. Expressionless, he punched into the empty space. “Come out, you son of a—”
Crack!!
The empty space shattered, and the alternate space was exposed.
“They say only a madman can recognize another madman.”
“What?!” Leon’s body began to distort and flicker. He was visibly shaken.
“That’s how I knew that a psycho like you had to show up here, nearby personally. And really, if not now, when else would I get the chance to drag your ass out?”
Davey, the unpredictable variable, had completely surpassed his expectations.
“
Oh,
right. There’s another variable you didn’t account for. Any guess as to what it is?”
Another Leon was suddenly flung out from the collapsing alternate space and crashed to the ground.
“No way... How the hell did you get here?!”
The one still standing screamed, terror in his voice, as he looked beyond the alternative space.
From the alternate space, a man with a massive spear slung over his shoulder stepped through calmly, his face emotionless. He walked past the chaos and looked down at the kneeling Chandra.
“I know this might be the worst time to say it.”
His expression twisted before he continued, “But I’ve come as an ally of the greatest Empire of Paladia, Guardian of the Saplings.”

.
!
Chapter 1171