The Invincible Full-Moon System Chapter 1773: Almost Going Bad
Previously on The Invincible Full-Moon System...
It was a declaration.
At least, that was Alana’s first impression.
Rex held the status of a Scion, a legitimate title reserved exclusively for those who had endured profound and shattering trauma. Such suffering birthed a drive powerful enough to push a person toward invincibility, and she chose to trust his words.
If he claimed to have faced death more frequently than Spirits—beings with lifespans stretching across millennia—Alana would not doubt him. After all, how else could he have gained recognition and ascended to the rank of Scion if not for such experiences?
Yet, at this particular moment, her intuition suggested the exact opposite.
Somehow, Rex could find a way to survive this.
However, survival was not his primary motivation right now.
His actions were fueled more by pure spite.
"You’re... you are grieving," Alana murmured softly.
Despite Rex showing no outward signs of vulnerability—his posture and movements remaining steady—she sensed his mourning. He was commanding her to depart so he could plunge himself into an even more dire situation, a struggle intended to distract his mind from the encroaching darkness.
Because she had been positioned outside the trial arena, Alana hadn’t witnessed the entire battle.
The aftermath, however, was vividly clear to her.
Now that Empress Morgana had interfered and cast him out here, he had essentially failed to achieve his objective.
That failure was the source of his current grief.
Growl—!
The sounds of approaching Voidal Monsters echoed, their positions barely two or three hundred meters away.
The area would be completely encircled very shortly.
"Just leave," Rex said, repeating himself.
His shoulders trembled as he lifted his hands, bracing for the confrontation with the Voidal Monster horde.
Using the System, Rex began scanning the nearby Voidal Monsters.
...
<Long-limbed Void Ghouls>
Race: Voidal Knight
Power: Immortal Spirit 4 (Second Circle)
Soul Artifact: Shadow Claws - B-grade (Attack)
...
Status windows flickered into existence one after another, indicating that the majority of these creatures were Voidal Knights at the Immortal Spirit rank. Compared to Rex’s peak, they were mere fodder, yet in his current state, they posed a significantly greater threat than usual.
He was like a bison being hunted by a pack of wolves.
Under normal circumstances, a healthy bison would be impossible for wolves to bring down.
But a wounded and drained animal faced a completely different reality.
Swish—!
A Long-limbed Void Ghoul lunged from the darkness, its massive frame the size of a rhinoceros. It possessed elongated limbs compared to the standard Ghouls found in the Mortal Realm, along with tiny, pale white eyes, a gaping maw, and an exceptionally long tail.
Its claws struck Rex’s side before he could move to defend himself.
The blow failed to break his skin.
Even in his weakened state, the creature’s attack lacked the power to penetrate his hide.
Nevertheless, the sheer force of the impact made Rex grind his teeth in agony.
"Raaargh—!"
Rex shoved his hand into the chest of the Long-limbed Voidal Ghoul, forcing a whimper from the beast.
Searing, purplish blood coated his arm.
He didn't pause for the creature to react.
Gripping its upper and lower jaws, he forced them apart with raw strength, ripping the monster in half.
<Killed a Voidal Knight: Obtained 11,000 Gold!>
The effort of killing just one caused Rex to falter; his balance wavered as his body swayed.
He was forced to pull in air through heavy, desperate gasps.
More shapes emerged from the gloom.
A pincer movement began as one leaped from the front while another attacked from the rear.
Slash!
Both monsters were carved in two before they could reach their target.
"Stop being so stubborn and accept my help," Alana declared, moving to stand at Rex’s side while wielding a great sword forged from pure sunlight. "You need someone to remind you to stay alive. Feeding your grief through combat will only hasten your end."
"I don't care..." Rex muttered, shoving Alana away.
She staggered back several steps, but the exertion of the push caused Rex to drop to his knees.
Straightening herself, Alana looked down at him.
Though he hadn't admitted his true feelings, she could feel the radiating aura of his suffering. He was consumed by rage, yet his profound exhaustion made it impossible for him to weaponize that anger.
Growl—!
Additional Long-limbed Void Ghouls rushed forward to attack.
Alana intercepted them with her great sword, hacking them into pieces, though the effort clearly taxed her remaining stamina.
It was obvious she was reaching her limit.
After finishing off the pouncing beasts, she slammed her blade into the earth, using it as a support to keep herself upright. Her breathing was ragged as she turned a tired, heavy-eyed look toward Rex.
'I can't pull him out of this by myself,' she realized. 'I need him to cooperate if I'm going to save him.'
Like Rex, she was battered and injured beyond measure.
The arrival of the Voidal Monster horde had robbed her of the time needed to properly heal her wounds.
"There is no one else here, Sir Rex," Alana panted, resting her chin on the hilt of her sword while watching him. "Vent your frustrations all you want. I know you need to. Since I am a stranger, there is no need to maintain your pride in front of me. Do whatever you must. Just help me keep you alive."
Being honest with a stranger was far simpler than being vulnerable with an acquaintance.
This was a truth Alana knew well, having vented to strangers in the past.
As the High Priestess of the Sun Ecclesia, she had very few people she could speak with candidly.
A stranger served as the perfect confidant.
"I entered this realm to obtain what was necessary to protect others. Nivellen, specifically, was the reason I came," Rex whispered, his fingers digging into the dirt with such force they sank into the soil. "But now, I have failed."
Rex was uncertain of his exact location.
However, returning to the Tomb of Heroes would surely take more than a single day.
That was assuming Empress Morgana hadn't already seized the Phoenix Feather and the Maw of Oblivion.
By the time he could return, it would be too late.
Nivellen would be gone.
As if to deliver a final blow, a system notification flashed before his eyes.
<Notice: the Countess of the Banished Dark Moon is vanishing!>
<She will die in eight minutes.>
<It’s advised to quickly gather the materials and use the cure on her!>
Alana continued to shield Rex from the monsters, moving in a defensive circle to keep him protected behind her.
She would buy him the time he needed to release his burden.
"I failed to realize that the laws governing these realms differ, and that Kaiser is not restricted here," Rex continued, his body growing numb from the combination of physical pain and mental torment. "Breaking my promise to her is devastating enough—and I also failed to save April. I have no idea where she is. She is likely dead, and that will be my fault for involving her in this."
"Time and time again!" Rex shouted in frustration. "Someone is always standing in my way!"
"So what if I became a Scion? What if I'm closer to being invincible? Who gives a damn about any of that?!"
"The only reason I wanted power was to protect."
A drop of sweat fell from his chin, hitting the dirt.
Rex stared at the ground with trembling eyes.
He then looked up at Alana, who stood panting before him.
"Look at these hands," Rex said, holding up his blood-stained palms as if they represented the sum of his existence. "I have soaked them in blood and would do so again to safeguard what belongs to me. All I wanted was to keep those I care about away from the slaughter. But no one listened."
Alana gazed at his hands.
Suddenly, perhaps due to her exhausted mind, her vision was dyed red.
It felt as though the world had dissolved, transporting her to a silent, infinite plane where a shallow ocean of blood reached the horizon. It wasn't water, but a still, crimson tide barely ankle-deep, filled with bones and submerged corpses.
Rex was kneeling at the center of it all.
A massive, bloated Blood Moon hung above, bathing the landscape in a scarlet glow.
The light was so intense it turned Rex into a mere silhouette—a shadow cut from the darkness. Only his hands remained distinct, dripping with blood so vibrant it looked like liquid rubies falling into the red pool below.
"Every brutal, heartless, or twisted action I take... is meant as a warning. To make my enemies understand. To protect..." Rex’s voice grew cold and hard, emphasizing his final words. "... what is mine. To warn them to target me instead of those around me. Yet my enemies still chose to strike at them."
A visible red mist of murderous intent began to pour from him.
The pressure was suffocating, sending a chill down Alana’s spine.
"And here I am," Rex said as his fangs grew long and predatory. His frame shook, not with fear, but with a rage so intense it caused the air around him to vibrate. "They attacked what was mine. I failed to defend it. They have taken my very reason for living."
"There is only one path left for me now," Rex said, slowly standing up.
Alana swallowed hard, instinctively.
Even though they were allies, she couldn't help but recoil a step.
Every instinct she possessed was screaming that she was in danger.
'Oh no...' Alana gritted her teeth, realizing Rex was slipping into madness. 'This is going to be a disaster!'
<Notice: the Countess of the Banished Dark Moon is vanishing!>
<She will die in five minutes.>
"I will burn this empire to the ground for what it took from me. With this new power, I will wash this realm in blood," Rex vowed in a trembling voice. "Everyone will understand the agony of losing... what they love."
Alana moved closer, hoping to snap Rex out of his spiral, knowing this wasn't his true self.
She had to stop this train of thought before another 'Mirza' tragedy occurred—one that the realm might not survive a second time.
Suddenly, she jerked her head toward the horizon.
She felt a massive surge of energy several miles away.
A towering vortex of fire erupted in the distance. The flames burned with an impossible, brilliant clarity, radiating a strangely comforting heat. The fire spiraled upward, forming a pillar that pierced the gloom of the Black Rift.
The high, sharp cry of a great bird accompanied the flames.
Then, the fire shifted, taking the shape of a massive, glowing bird with expansive wings.
Rex also sensed the energy burst and watched the flaming display.
"A Phoenix Feather?" Alana asked, her head tilted in bewilderment.
"Amanir?!" Rex’s eyes went wide with shock at the sight. "Amanir actually got it?!"
He had assumed his line of sight was simply blocked, but he had been mistaken.
Instead of trying to unlock the chests on the spot, Amanir had taken them away.
This dramatic display of the flaming bird was clearly a signal to Rex that the Phoenix Feather was secured.
Rex had already resigned himself to failing Nivellen and leaving her to die in sorrow. Hope had returned at the very last second. It was a particularly poignant moment, given that he had previously rejected Nivellen’s divinity by promising she would still have a need for it.
He had been too ashamed to even consider returning to the Banished Realm.
But Amanir had appeared at the final moment to offer him a second chance.
He gave Rex the hope that his promise to Nivellen could still be kept.
"You useless bastard," Rex muttered, though a grin spread across his face. "You’re finally good for something."