Chapter 582: Don’t worry. I’m here

Chapter 582: Don’t worry. I’m here



Joseph hung up the call with Foreskin and fell into silence.

He didn't know what he could do, but since he'd been pushed into this situation, he had to try something, right?

According to Foreskin, there were currently two types of people who had interacted with Apollo.

The first type included people like Maxen, Nova Voidwalker, and Shadow Two, who embraced the role of ordinary people and let themselves go. By sheer coincidence, they encountered Apollo.

The second type was... the City Defense Department.

With Shadow Two around, Apollo inevitably had to deal with the City Defense Department. After some thought, Joseph decided to try his luck with the City Defense Department later. But before that, he took a moment to reflect on what he wanted to do.

Live like an ordinary person...

Joseph's old dream was to become a barbecue chef.

He rummaged through his wallet, only to remember that he had given all his money to Shadow Two.

With no money, Joseph relied on his resourcefulness.

He found a suitable bamboo stick, fished a line out of the river, and fashioned a simple fishing rod to catch some food.

The gentle breeze rippled across the water as Joseph dozed off, convinced he'd go home empty-handed today.

Suddenly-

"Ah-ha!"

"Got one!"

The bamboo rod in Joseph's hands bent into a terrifying arc. Clearly, he'd hooked something big!

He pulled with all his might but couldn't reel it in. Instead, the bamboo rod let out a sharp crack.

Snap!

The rod broke.

Joseph: ...

Just as he was about to find another bamboo stick, a horse emerged from the river.

A horse? In the river?

Was that even possible?

The horse had Joseph's fishing hook caught in its mouth, with the broken bamboo rod dangling from the other end of the line.

Man and horse stared at each other in silence.

Joseph sighed, abandoning his fishing plans, and decided to have a serious conversation with the horse.

"So, you've been like this ever since you turned into a horse?"

The horse-Maxen-nodded.

Joseph gave him a sympathetic look. "Is there a way to undo it?"

Maxen nodded again.

"What's the method?"

Maxen raised a front hoof and shrugged his shoulders.

Clearly, he didn't know either.

Under normal circumstances, Maxen should have reverted back to his human form by now.

But Florida was within the range of Apollo's talent, and Maxen, being one of the most powerful individuals, was heavily restricted within this range.

Leaving Florida might be a solution.

However, once outside, returning to Florida would be nearly impossible.

Foreskin had already tested this: anyone above the level of a Nine-Star Lord who left Florida couldn't come back.

Ordinary people, on the other hand, were unaffected.

Joseph's gaze toward Maxen was filled with pity.

"So, you're stuck like this?"

Maxen shook his head and finally spoke.

"Sometimes I go out for a ride."

Joseph: ...

"You can talk?!"

"Of course! I could talk when I was one year old!"

Maxen found it odd that Joseph assumed he couldn't speak.

A ride?

Joseph's confusion deepened. What kind of ride?

In this day and age, people might drive sports cars for fun, but riding a horse? That was rare.

Maxen, however, acted mysterious and said cryptically, "It's about time."

Just as Joseph was about to ask more questions, his vision blurred. Something flashed before

his eyes, and Maxen disappeared.

All that remained was the shadow of a horse on the ground.

Joseph began questioning his sanity.

What kind of bizarre events have I been encountering lately?!

"If I stay here and guard Maxen's shadow, will he come back?"

"I'm not asking you to slash randomly. You've learned [Illusory Reality], right?"

Mike knew Ares well.

Every skill Ares created, he taught to Maxen.

Maxen nodded. "I've learned it."

He hesitated, then asked curiously,

"But that skill isn't very useful unless..."

Strictly speaking, [Illusory Reality] only induced dreamlike hallucinations in enemies.

It had no other practical applications unless paired with [Dream Come True] to form a talent

fusion skill.

Maxen gasped, his eyes filled with pity as he looked at Mike.

"You didn't... meet my Big Godfather, did you?"

Mike rolled his eyes.

"Can you stop with the nonsense?"

"Hurry up!"

Mike's expression darkened as he glanced at the sword prison around him.

Something felt off.

The sword prison was composed of over 100,000 strands of sword energy, each a strike from

Ares.

If Mike could truly break free, his power would rival that of a peak Supreme Being.

But even if this was a test from Ares, there had to be limits.

The current difficulty far exceeded Mike's capabilities. Something was definitely wrong.

Mike had to figure out a solution on his own.

He needed to re-enter the dream and meet the child he'd seen before.

That child had dismantled the sword prison far faster than Mike could.

If Mike could copy the answers, he'd succeed.

To do that, he needed external help.

That help was Maxen.

Mike had specifically asked the white horse to bring Maxen here.

"Alright, I'm really going to attack you!"

After Mike confirmed multiple times, Maxen took a deep breath, focused, and activated his

talent. Chains of laws appeared around him as he swung his flail.

Following Mike's instructions, he unleashed a powerful strike that tore through the sword

prison, bouncing chaotically within its confines.

Boom-

Mike was sent flying, slamming into the walls of the sword prison.

To deliver [Illusory Reality], Maxen had to go all out.

And going all out meant activating his talent.

The strike forced Mike to trigger [Fate's Reversal].

"Fuck!"

Before Mike could finish cursing, his vision went black, and he passed out.

Maxen wasn't sure if Thor had entered the dream due to [Illusory Reality] or simply because

he'd been knocked unconscious.

But what happened next left Maxen utterly stunned.

Countless strands of demon energy surged from the Supreme Abyssal, infiltrating the sword

prison.

The sword energy clashed with the demon energy, shredding and fusing simultaneously.

For nearly a century, these energies had coexisted. Though the Supreme Demon God was in slumber, it hadn't been idle.

Clearly, the sword energy hadn't inflicted as much damage as expected. The fusion of sword and demon energy didn't escalate further. Instead, Thor lay quietly amidst the demon energy, appearing peaceful.

Maxen couldn't make sense of it, but he was deeply shaken. "Thor... what are you doing?" Then a terrifying thought struck him.

"Holy fuck, Thor doesn't even know what he's doing, does he?!"

Maxen realized the situation might have spiraled out of control. Humanity's current Supreme Being, Apollo, was unpredictable. Its potential Supreme Being, Thor, was trapped in a quagmire.

What had once been a promising situation now seemed perilous.

Maxen hesitated, wondering if he should risk everything and dismantle the sword prison

entirely.

"Why panic?"

A swordsman appeared beside Maxen.

Looking at the scene before him, Ares smiled.

"Don't worry. I'm here."