Just call me Thor

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.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

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?"

Joseph was certain of one thing:

Florida was getting stranger by the day.

Meanwhile, Maxen was as free as the wind.

A white horse led the way, with Maxen galloping behind it.

He ran as fast as he could, gasping for breath, shouting,

"Ares' talent, slow down!"

Contrary to Joseph's assumptions, Maxen wasn't running around Florida.

He was following the white horse through the river of time.

He had no idea where the white horse was taking him.

Not that it mattered-Maxen didn't have much of a choice.

The white horse had appeared out of nowhere, offered no explanation, and simply dragged

him along.

When Maxen couldn't run anymore, the white horse would kick him back to Florida.

Once he'd rested enough, it would drag him out for another run.

But Maxen wasn't entirely without gains.

His talent and strength were already top-tier among his peers, unmatched in his generation.

Unfortunately, Maxen had the misfortune of awakening his talent during Ares' era.

The white horse before him was the SSS-level talent that had chosen Ares first.

After nine awakenings, the white horse wasn't particularly strong in combat.

Like all SSS-level talents, its true power lay in its auxiliary functions.

With the white horse, Ares could comprehend new skills at will during battle...

Maxen didn't know how long he'd been running.

This time, he lasted longer than ever before.

Finally, the white horse stopped.

Maxen's front legs buckled, and he collapsed to the ground.

"Yo."

A familiar voice greeted him.

"Are you tired? Planning to sleep here?"

Inside the sword prison, surrounded by over 100,000 strands of sword energy, Mike still had

the leisure to crack jokes.

"Maxen, long time no see."

Maxen reluctantly stood up, looked at the sword prison, and asked,

"Did my Second Godfather put you here?"

To his surprise, Mike shook his head.

"I still haven't figured out what this sword prison is all about."

Maxen frowned, puzzled.

If not Ares, then who?

Thor didn't know?

Maxen thought hard and came to a reliable conclusion:

Thor must've been slashed into stupidity.

"Since you're here, help me out."

Mike's fingertips crackled with lightning as he sketched a 3D diagram-a miniature version of

the sword prison, intricate and lifelike.

"Follow the instructions on this diagram. Strike from this angle..."

Mike outlined a sequence and method for Maxen to attack.

Maxen asked, "Why am I attacking?"

"What else?"

Mike pointed at himself and said seriously,

"Slash me."

Slash Thor?

Maxen was tempted but wary of potential traps.

Then he thought, I'm broke anyway. What's there to lose?

Once he accepted his poverty, Maxen felt invincible.

In the river of time, Maxen gradually regained his human form as Apollo's influence

diminished.

He hefted his flail, looked at Mike, and asked,

"Are you serious?"

"Yes."

Mike nodded and explained,

"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."