The Invincible Full-Moon System

Chapter 1633: Show it to me

Rex was under the impression that Princess Davina was someone who held the sword of justice.

She was someone beloved by the people, and acted accordingly.

From what he knew, the Arcalen House wasn’t an important house nor its bubble.

Even if it was within her territory of authority, there was no need for her to take up the task herself, as her rank was far beyond the mundane task. Most nobles would probably dismiss the bubble’s destruction as the work of the Voidal Monsters.

And nobles who were remotely caring and good would only send someone to investigate the cause.

The Spirit Realm was like a man caught in the coils of a man-eating serpent, which was the Black Rift.

A bubble’s death was nothing unusual in this world; its death was no cause for shock.

It was merely another grim tally in an endless list.

Only when the true cure for the world was found, one that was capable of banishing the Black Rift and everything within it, would the dying cease, and the realm be free to heal, to reclaim its former splendor, returning to the beautiful realm it once was.

Until the day came, the deaths of hundreds, even thousands, would remain a grim and ordinary reality.

So, news like the Arcalen House was no shock for Princess Davina.

But she came personally, and even decided to tackle the problem herself.

It was benevolent of her.

Rex considered her cold and arrogant, but benevolent in a way, ignoring the fact that he was the one she was searching for. So—it came as a surprise when she confessed that she was the one who used the rogue Special Voidal Monster to cause destruction to innocent people.

Does she have a superiority complex above her perfectionism and narcissism?

In the silence, Prince Davina glanced at him.

She noticed the clear judgmental look he was wearing as he stared at her.

“What’s with the look?”

“You told me that you wanted to see the real me. Now, I’m starting to wonder if I also should see—the real you.”

“What do you even mean?”

Princess Davina fully pivoted her body to face her again, one eyebrow raised questioningly.

Rex, on the other hand, stared at her in disbelief—his face was asking whether she was being serious.

It should’ve been obvious.

“What’s so confusing about what I said? You basically confessed to me—you orchestrated the death of an entire bubble. Is that not bad to you? Besides, how do you even manage that? What kind of Echo are you hiding?”

“Does that trouble you, fiancé? That I’m not a good person?”

A half-smile tugged on Princess Davina’s lips as she waited for Rex to answer.

Inside, she was quite curious how knowing that impacted Rex’s view of her.

“Yes, very much so. That only means I need to keep my guard up around you. Who knows? I could be at gunpoint one day. Anyone in your position would not be a good person. Thinking otherwise would only mean pure idealism. But still, this is quite cruel on your part.”

“Gunpoint? What does that mean?”

“Err… I mean chopping block. Yes, chopping block.”

Princess Davina narrowed her eyes and then turned towards the people of Xintarin Bubble.

Most of them were still scrambling to recover from the invasion.

“First of all, I wouldn’t do this on any bubble.” She finally said, crossing her arms again. “The Xintarin Bubble is a known bubble of criminals. All criminals around the empire take refuge here. They would be pardoned of their crimes and live freely, but they can’t step out again.”

“Hmm, I heard that this is a criminal city.” Rex nodded in realization.

He vaguely remembered the knight from earlier saying something about this.

“What you heard is correct—it’s hardly a secret.” Princess Davina’s gaze swept over to the people, cold and cutting, the kind of look that could make even the most rebellious criminals avert their eyes. “This place is crawling with lowlifes. So, I thought—why not? Most of them have committed heinous crimes for them to live in this bubble anyway, knowing that outside, they would probably be executed.”

“Secondly, I didn’t use any Echo. I just dragged the serpent here and freed it once it set its eyes on the bubble. Nothing complex,” She shrugged, treating what she did as nothing more than a simple wave. “It’s my province, the Starfall Province. You’ll understand better… once you’ve grown stronger.”

Rex’s eyes flashed when he heard this.

He wasn’t expecting to learn something from talking with Princess Davina.

Province… Must be the power of the higher ranks. But Starfall Province? I know she was nicknamed by many as the Graceful Starfall, so her power… her Echo should involve the stars. Will the Echo be converted to a province in a later rank? I’ll ask the System after the mission.

“I am, as some might say, a dangerous woman indeed,” She remarked, her mismatched eyes shimmering with a perilous light as they swept across those before her. “Beyond the borders of this empire, I’m not the woman you think you know. I can be… cruel. And these criminals are no people in my eyes.”

“At least that much I can tell,” Rex chuckled, crossing his arms tightly. “You couldn’t fool me.”

Her spotless, clean reputation might impress some, revering her as someone elegant and good.

But it only told Rex that she was extremely capable and dangerous.

No matter how good someone was, there’s bound to be a stain, no matter how little in their reputation.

A perfect reputation is not realistic, so Princess Davina must’ve been good at hiding her tracks.

Hearing this, Princess Davina shot him a sharp glance.

“If you knew that much, then why haven’t you gotten rid of her already?” She suddenly asked.

Her tone, which was calm and steady earlier, dropped to a chilling cold.

As if she flipped a switch in her.

Rex’s brows knitted together, confused as to who she was referring to, before April emerged in his mind.

She was certainly talking about April.

“Didn’t I tell you already…?”

Swoosh!

A sudden pulse of power slammed into Rex like a vicious tornado—as Princess Davina’s Soul Artifact unfurled, releasing a torrent of life energy so dense it crushed in from every direction. Even with all his strength, he was still nowhere near Princess Davina’s level of power.

Rex used his own life energy to protect himself from the rush, but he couldn’t.

Every time it coated his skin, it was blown away by the pressure.

“Is this necessary? Calm down!”

“I told you to get rid of her or else I’m going to get involved.”

Swoosh!

Another pulse expanded, pressuring Rex further, threatening to buckle his legs.

Rex gritted his teeth, fretting over what to say to calm her down.

“I did get rid of her, but she’s persistent. She came without telling me. Just let her be, and she’s going to leave voluntarily.” He said, shielding his face with his arms. “If you give her a reaction, that would only motivate her to do more.”

Swish!

As soon as he said that, the pressure vanished in an instant.

It came and went like a whistling wind.

“What about you?” Princess Davina asked, her voice returning to its normal, elegant pitch.

She talked as if she hadn’t threatened to crush Rex a few seconds earlier.

Rex cleared his throat and straightened his back again.

“What about me?”

“All of the Special Voidal Knights are about your level of strength. Even with your experience killing one, I heard you struggled back then. I can hardly imagine how you went from barely defeating—that Singing Lady… to cutting down three voidal monsters of equal power, one after the other.”

Hearing this, Rex’s mind skipped a beat.

Considering how efficiently he was handling the problem, it would surely raise suspicion.

Princess Davina was sharp, and she didn’t miss that at all.

Compared to the aura he has right now, his Werewolf form was much stronger.

Defeating all three Special Voidal Knights consecutively in his Werewolf form is plausible—Princess Davina wouldn’t doubt that if she knew. But in his Human form? It was highly doubtful, as his aura was barely stronger than the Special Voidal Knights.

Of course, he could’ve given her an excuse.

Since he already had an air of mystery around him, someone who came out of nowhere and managed to win the Nameless Dragon Arena, he could say that he was still hiding his true strength, and Princess Davina wouldn’t doubt it.

Or at least it was likely that she would buy it.

But the problem wasn’t that.

I don’t know whether she really was oblivious, or she already knew but wanted me to tell the truth.

Rex was disoriented earlier.

His failure to reach the serpent in time stirred his emotions so much that he basically blacked out.

Knowing the price, he couldn’t afford to fail in saving the Xintarin Bubble.

And because of that, it was hard to tell when he reverted back to his original, human form.

Rex woke up in his human form, but he didn’t know exactly when he transformed back to normal.

It could be the moment he was disoriented, or it could be after the Special Voidal Knight was dead.

So naturally, he couldn’t tell if Princess Davina saw his other form or not.

A bead of cold sweat ran down the side of his face as he deliberated which option he would choose.

Either he could confess right now and risk being exposed—as the one responsible for the Arcalen House’s destruction, or feign ignorance and risk being confronted about his other form. Both paths have their own risks, and Rex had to make a decision fast.

Shit, what should I say?

Blinking, he decided to scan Princess Davina with the System.

He only wanted to know her status.

…

<Davina Innayah Castillon>

Status: Expectant.

…

Damn it. Expectant? That’s not helping at all!

Rex’s mind was a trainwreck of thoughts as expectant can mean both.

She could be expectant of how he did that or expectant whether he would lie or not.

“Are we still keeping secrets now?” Princess Davina raised an eyebrow at his hesitation. “Aren’t we supposed to be partners until we get what we both want? Don’t be disappointing me now, Lord Rex, I thought we already passed this.”

“Secrets?” Rex scoffed. “I’m silent because you should already know the answer.”

Upon hearing this, Princess Davina’s eyes narrowed.

Under her gaze, Rex tried to remain cool, even though his heart was pounding inside.

Come on. Please. Just take the bait and be done with this!

Seconds stretched to an eternity as Rex waited for Princess Davina to respond.

He couldn’t stand the silence and was about to say something again, but she beat him to it.

“Right… I should’ve known you were far from as simple as you appear.” She gave a delicate shrug, her gaze locking with his once more. “You’re concealing your true strength, aren’t you? There is simply no other way you could’ve faced the White Mask and survived if not for that.”

Rex could feel a surge of relief coursing through his veins as soon as she said that.

He was out of the troubling situation.

It could’ve been a problem, but fortunately, she bought it.

Not wanting Princess Davina to guide their conversation, Rex quickly changed the topic.

“How are you here? Aren’t you supposed to be with the other nobles handling the White Ma—”

“Show it to me.”

“Hmm?”

Rex’s entire body froze in time when his sentence was cut short.

He stared at Princess Davina in shock.

“What’s so hard to understand? Show it to me. How strong you are.” She swept her hair back in a fluid, deliberate motion, taking several measured steps away to give Rex some room. “We’re partners, and it is only proper that I know the true measure of the one who stands at my side. So… show me. Don’t worry about these criminals, I’ll ensure they remain unharmed, no matter how fierce your display.”

Almost instantly, Rex swallowed hard.

I’m fucked.