The Invincible Full-Moon System

It was a risky move, Rex knew that.

Hurting the protected people of the holy land can't be a good thing.

Such a horrific act was surely not a bright idea, even when time was of the essence, and it involved their safety. Even back in his empire, if anyone were to do this, he would be forced to punish the person so that the public would be satiated.

Naturally, he expected the same thing.

Even if the empire wouldn't want to punish him for what he did, they would say that they would to the people when in truth there wasn't any punishment. But Empress Morgana only told him to apologize to the people, which was too light a punishment.

Especially when those people are looking at me like that.

Rex glanced towards the city gate and found a small crowd of people glaring at him there.

All of them certainly demanded punishment, which was the reason Empress Morgana came to him.

"Your Majesty, will it not be more assuring if you punish me harshly in front of the people?" Rex asked, willing to be punished so as not to make Empress Morgana's reputation worse. "I don't mind being hurt if it's necessary."

"I told them I'd punish you back in the capital city, privately. Now, you only need to apologize."

"I understand, and I will."

Empress Morgana nodded and turned away, intending to leave and attend to the nobles.

But Rex stopped her.

"Your Majesty, aren't you curious about what you asked of me?" He asked curiously.

Knowing that someone was actively trying to sabotage her from behind, she must want to know about the identity of the traitor. Perhaps knowing who it was would give her insights into who the real person behind this was.

Frankly, Rex expected her to want to know.

It would be a perfect chance to build up her expectations and make himself look good.

But Empress Morgana didn't seem to be interested.

She looked over her shoulder and pressed her index finger against her lips, "I'll wait for the full report at the time and place that we made. Just make sure to be diligent in dealing with the situation. Can you do that for me?"

"Of course, as long as our deal stands." Rex nodded firmly.

Even though his voice was level, he was elated inside at the prospect of getting the Phoenix Feather.

I was afraid I couldn't deliver when I assured her, but now, it's becoming a reality. I can deliver. Rex's eyes hardened with conviction as he watched Empress Morgana's back go further away. I can save her. I can succeed in saving her.

Upon thinking that, Rex reached for his face, summoning the Mask of the Banished Eclipse.

He touched it with his fingers, feeling its profound but light power.

System, in this form, can I still enter the Banished Realm?

<The Banished Realm could be accessed from any realm as long as the user has ties with the Banished Dark Moon Lunirich Goddess. However, the connection between the user and Nivellen is weak from being in a new body not bearing a King Mark and the worsening condition.>

<In order to enter the Banished Realm, the user will need the help of an item from the Shop.>

As long as it's possible.

Rex nodded his head as he was planning to visit Nivellen the moment he got his hands on the Phoenix Feather. A single second is precious—so he wasn't going to play around once he got the item he needed and completed the quest.

Just then, he paused for a moment, expression turning grim.

System, how long until she… disappears?

<Time Limit: 12 Days.>

What…? How is it 12 days?

<Due to the fluctuation that's happening within the realm, the time limit could change.>

<Additionally, the time could also decrease if Nivellen used her powers for anything other than holding back the corruption from Chaos.>

Hearing this, Rex gritted his teeth and clenched his fists.

No matter. I can get the Phoenix Feather by the end of this day or tomorrow at most.

Since Empress Morgana asked—what he wanted in return first, it was clear that she was weighing her options before accepting his help. It made Rex more confident that she was going to fulfil her part of the deal since she accepted their deal.

All Rex needed to do was fend off Haxel.

Upon turning to look at the city gate, Rex noticed Haxel was standing on the bridge.

He appeared to be looking in Rex's direction.

But upon closer inspection, his gaze wasn't fixed on Rex at all.

He was looking at the departing Empress Morgana.

And oddly enough, the expression he was wearing right now wasn't that of bloodlust, hatred, or greed.

It was tender, and there was a tinge of longing in his gaze.

Noticing Rex was looking at him, Haxel's expression turned neutral again as he turned away to leave.

"What was that…?" Rex raised a brow, finding this odd, but he attributed it to the fact that Haxel could act well, so that must be his masked, death gaze. He turned to the other side, searching for someone, for Ethan. "I should give a warning to Davina."

Rex approached Ethan, standing beside him with his arms folded.

"Oh, Sir Rex! Perfect timing," Ethan exclaimed, pointing at a small crowd of soldiers who immediately turned towards Rex when he heard his name being called. "Those men wanted to say something to you, something about the promise you made to them."

As soon as Ethan said that, the soldiers immediately went towards Rex.

Despite being eager, their strict training regime made them line up in front of Rex in a tidy manner.

"Sir Rex, I lost a hand! Surely, I'm the best performing soldier among all of us!"

"Shut your wide hole. Losing a hand? I almost got stabbed through my heart! I'm the best!"

"Of course not, it's me. I killed many voidal monsters with their hands."

Rex raised his eyebrows, watching them argue—while trying to show off their wounds to him.

"Didn't I say I'm going to announce the winner after the mission is over?" He asked, shutting the whole banter in an instant. Then, he turned to look at a man with a chubby face, "You there, big face, what is your instruction right now?"

"B-Big face…?" The soldier smiled acutely. "To clean up the mess, Sir!"

"Then why the fuck are you guys talking to me?" Rex cursed with a stern voice. "None of you would be winning by wasting your time like this. Matter of fact, those who were cleaning the mess right now are more favorable than you, lots."

Instead of scoring points, these eight soldiers lost points instead.

All of them looked down dejectedly.

"You," Rex pointed at the tall soldier to the left. "Do you think losing a hand is a good feat? It's not. In fact, you're only telling me that you're that unskilled to lose your hand to the voidal monsters. It tells me you lacked training."

Then, Rex turned to the soldier beside the tall soldier.

Unlike the others, this particular soldier has a big tear on his breastplate.

"And you, you got stabbed and almost died, but instead of humbling you, it made you more arrogant? What kind of soldier are you? How about you shut up? Less complaining and more working. If not, I'll stab you myself."

Instead of impressing him, the soldiers made Rex fume instead.

Rex gave each one of them a piece of his mind, shutting them all up and taming their greediness.

It was rather comical to see battle-hardened soldiers standing there with their heads down like a row of scolded children. Once Rex was done, he flicked his hand sharply, dismissing them. "Now piss off and get back to work! If I catch you slacking while the others are breaking their backs, I'll whip you like a horse. Do you understand?!"

"Sir, yes, Sir!" All of them shouted in unison and saluted.

Earlier, they approached Rex with hope, but now, they left the conversation in despair instead.

"Fuck, who thought it was a good idea to boast our accomplishments?"

"You did, moron!"

"Hey, but you guys followed me too, so don't put all the blame on me."

"I'm going to put dirt into your mouth if you keep fucking talking."

"Hmm, dirt from the holy land. I wonder if it tastes good…"

All the other soldiers slapped their foreheads in disbelief at how much of an idiot big face was.

On the other hand, Ethan chuckled.

"You've got a knack for this, Sir Rex," He remarked, watching the soldiers retreat with his hands planted firmly on his hips. "At the very least, it shows their morale is still intact. We've lost some men, yes, but not enough to drag the rest into despair."

"Hmm, we got out of that situation easily." Rex nodded in approval.

But then again, it wasn't purely luck.

Most of the soldiers were still influenced by the boost from the System—making them partially kin to Rex, so their physiques are more enhanced than normal. Not to mention, though all the soldiers hadn't realized it yet, they also have slight regeneration.

It was the reason why the casualties only reached about five dozen from their legion, while the rest were casualties from Haxel's legion.

"Oh, right, do you need me for something?" Ethan asked.

"Hmm?" Rex raised a brow. "What do you mean?"

"You came here to talk to me, right?"

Upon hearing this, Rex's eyes widened slightly as he remembered what he came here to do.

But as he opened his mouth to speak, he paused.

On second thought, I don't think sending Ethan to the nobles is a good idea.

Rex wanted someone to report to Princess Davina and the nobles that the traitor would be making a big move next, which might jeopardize the entire mission. He couldn't go there himself lest Haxel saw him, and decided to abort the next strike.

If that were the case, Rex would have a problem with the nobles for giving them a false alarm.

Naturally, he thought of sending Ethan.

But if he sent Ethan, there's a big chance that the other nobles weren't going to believe him, even with Princess Davina's help. Empress Morgana didn't seem to want to be involved, so she would most likely stay quiet and focus on the mission. I can't send Ethan.

Rex glanced over his shoulder and fixated his eyes on another person.

Another woman—April.

She's also a noble, and her words would be more trustworthy. But I can't send her there.

Even though it was already too late to act like he didn't know her, since Haxel was already aware of the existence of their relationship, there was still another problem to be worried about. Rex recalled the words that Princess Davina said to him earlier.

She wanted April gone.

If he handled it himself, he could let April leave for good and try to forget him.

But if he doesn't, then Princess Davina would be involved.

And in that situation, there's no saying how she'll handle April.

A Duke's Household is still superior to a Marquess' Household. I shouldn't implicate her.

Rex knew that he shouldn't take the chance, as April would get hurt—and it would be his fault. At this point, he needs to be firm and set his boundary between them. He needs to tell April strongly that being together would not work.

Not under these circumstances.

However, he couldn't possibly risk Nivellen's life for April's safety by sending Ethan.

Damn it. I guess I have no choice.

A few minutes later.

Ethan approached April, who was still tending to Rick while watching the legions clean up the bubble.

Seeing him approaching, April tilted her head in confusion.

She didn't know Ethan, and she failed to imagine what there was to talk about between them.

"Sir Rick," Ethan greeted, then turned to April. "Princess April."

"Do you need something from me?"

"No, it's not me. Sir Rex needs you to do something, princess. Are you willing?"

Hearing this, April was taken aback for a second, turning to look at Rex, who was still commanding the soldiers, pretending not to know this conversation was happening. April nodded, "I'm willing. What does he need me to do?'