CHAPTER 1714: IT MUST’VE BEEN VERY HARD

"I’ve returned..."

Rex finally returned to this realm.

It hadn’t been—that long, but due to his trip to the Spirit Realm, what seemed to be something fleeting was far longer than that for him. For others, the time he was gone was mere days—but for him, painful years passed.

He’d be lying if he said he doesn’t feel an immense amount of relief right now.

Despite everything, he felt foreign in the Spirit Realm and quite missed the Mortal Realm.

Fortunately, his time to return was nearing.

Nothing changed about the realm.

Just like the last time he was here—the Banished Realm was silent, depressing, and completely void of anything that could stir anything inside the heart of a living being. Anyone who stayed for too long would go into the path of insanity without a doubt.

And yet, there was a lonely entity trapped in this place.

Rex stared at the figure in the distance.

An entity of darkness lay sprawled across the shallow water, its form spreading like liquid shadow.

It was as if the night itself were melting into the earth.

Across the darkness of the realm, only the spot where she sprawled on was illuminated by the muted moon above, as if she were the only thing worth noticing inside this realm. She looked lonely, weak, and sad at the same time.

She’s still alive, aware, but she didn’t even notice someone had entered the Banished Realm.

That Rex had entered the Banished Realm.

"Nivellen..." Rex whispered the name softly with the weight of his emotions.

He approached with steady yet firm steps across the shallow water, but his steps produced not a single sound. It was only when he stepped into the moonlight that the realm regained its resemblance to the other normal realms—the biting chill returned, the sound of her weak breathing reached his ears, and the muted realm bloomed once more with color.

Even as he stood inches away, Nivellen didn’t sense him.

Death was nearing, and it seemed like the first few things it took were her senses.

Rex knelt down to one knee and touched her shoulder.

Feeling the touch, Nivellen lifted up her gaze and reached her trembling hand toward Rex’s face.

"Rex..." She muttered with a smile.

Unlike the last time they met—when she still retained some of her godly power, Nivellen’s features had now grown heartbreakingly human as though divinity was stripped away from her. The brilliance that once hid her behind a veil of night was fading, and for the first time, Rex could truly see her face.

Her skin was translucent and akin to black crystal, but he could still make out her face.

And it was shaking and breaking beneath the weight of mortality.

But what Rex noticed the most were the purplish cracks—along her face, the corruption of Chaos that was centered around her eyes.

She had gone blind.

"How do you know it’s me?" Rex held her trembling hand and guided it to his darkening face.

Feeling his face, Nivellen’s weak smile stretched wider.

"Even if I am blind, I can still—see you. Have you come to see me off?" She embraced Rex’s face and then fell to his side, only to realize that Rex was missing an arm. Her eyes widened, "What happened to you? Who hurt you? I can still heal your arm. Come here."

Nivellen pushed herself up from the ground.

She was unbearably weak.

It was a miracle that she could even move her body.

Her every breath was shallow, and her body trembled on the edge of collapse, but she kept trying.

Even in her current state, as life was slipping away from her grasp, she didn’t think about how to survive or get over this ordeal. Nivellen’s fading gaze was fixed on him, filled not with fear, but with worry as if he were the only person she cared about.

Such selflessness struck something deep within Rex.

It stirred a warmth he thought had long turned to ash.

A warmth far greater than he was ready to admit.

But watching Nivellen struggle to get up to help him made what he had gone through worth it.

"No, you don’t need to heal my arm. And I didn’t come here to see you off," Rex supported her gently—as his lips curled into a smile. "I came here to tell you to hold on a bit longer. Just a little bit more—and I can get the cure and free you from Chaos’ corruption."

Nivellen stopped.

She paused for a second as she seemed to have heard it wrong.

However, even with her senses dulled and distorted by the creeping corruption, she was certain of what she had heard. And yet, doubt still lingered in her heart—an uncertainty she couldn’t shake. If Rex knew what thoughts stirred within her, he wouldn’t blame her.

After all, someone who was barely a demigod creating a cure for a Goddess is impossible.

Back then, when she offered Rex her essence so that he could live on and protect the ones he cared about, she already accepted that her death was imminent. If she wanted to live, she would’ve let Rex be corrupted by Chaos instead of protecting him.

Since she chose to protect him, she also accepted the risk.

Rex had drawn her so much to the point that she was willing to do anything for him.

His willpower and obsessive desire to protect others enticed her and made her gravitate towards him.

And from the moment she understood that, she was also ready to die for him.

If death were the only fate that awaited her for protecting Rex, then she would embrace it.

But now, another path—one that was far better and brighter—was opened.

Rex claimed that he could save her.

It sounded like a dream.

Perhaps hallucination was one of the side effects of being corrupted by Chaos.

But despite how impossible it sounds, for some odd reason, Nivellen was compelled to believe him.

She had thought Rex had made a mistake by refusing her offer, and now, it seemed to be the right move.

"Creating a cure that could wash the corruption of Chaos from a Goddess... I know how delusional that sounded, and I understand if you don’t believe that’s possible, especially with my current level," Rex said, already expecting Nivellen’s reaction far before this day came. He held her hand tightly, almost as if he wanted to convince her. "But I’ll show you. As long as you hold on a bit longer—I will prove it to you."

Nivellen’s blind eyes stared ahead to where Rex’s eyes should be.

And she realized Rex misunderstood her.

Instead of doubt or confusion, she smiled warmly and then lowered her head.

She rubbed Rex’s hand as if he were something precious.

"In that case, you must’ve gone through a lot..." She said, catching Rex off guard. "It must have been very hard for you ever since your last time being here."

Rex pursed his lips, caught off guard by what she said. "It’s... It’s certainly not easy."

Just remembering what he needed to go through to get the last requirement to complete the sudden quest and heal Nivellen alone made him shiver. He even felt surreal that he managed to pull it off—but he did, and that’s all that matters.

He also had grown and learn a lot from visiting the Spirit Realm.

And he has no regrets.

"You’ve been doing your best," Nivellen patted his hand gently. "I, too, will do my best to stay alive."

"I’d like that..."

Rex and Nivellen stayed in silence, surrounded by the hollowness of the Banished Realm.

Staying inside such a realm should’ve been depressing.

But right now, both felt at ease—savoring the moment as the two acknowledged each other.

Rex, in particular, used this moment to take in the ease as he neared the end of this hard situation.

For quite some time, he has been restless, but his mind was peaceful now.

...

Back in the House of Castillon’s Estate, Rex opened his eyes.

Now that he had assured that Nivellen would not give up trying to hold on, all that was left was for him to fetch the Phoenix Feather and begin concocting the cure. But he was too weak to pay the empress a visit, and he had a feeling Princess Davina wouldn’t let him.

After all, she wanted them to go somewhere today.

Even so, visiting the empress is top-priority. Should I escape? No, I should talk with her.

Rex wore a black silken robe to cover his wounded body and headed outside.

As soon as he stepped outside, he found Syla was standing guard—right in front of the door, and she bowed slightly when her gaze met his. "Lord Rex, I’m happy to see that you’ve regained color on your face," She greeted politely. "It was worrying to see your state when you returned."

"Hmm, I am feeling better." Rex nodded and looked around. "Where is Princess Davina? I need to talk to her. Is she in her room?"

"Yes, my Lord—the princess in her room," Syla answered, and she quickly stopped Rex when he was about to head there. "She’s still preparing herself for you, my Lord, and she doesn’t want to be disturbed. You can’t go meet her now."

"It’s urgent," Rex wanted to walk again, but stopped again.

"She sent me here to help you in case you need something," Syla added. "You can tell me, my Lord."

Rex rubbed his forehead, but he decided not to make this difficult.

"I wanted to go meet with the empress first before we go anywhere. Go and tell her that."

"Is this about your deal with the empress?"

"How did you know that?"

Upon saying that, Rex was about to head back inside, but stopped at what Syla said.

Nobody should know about that deal, and yet, Syla knew.

Naturally, Rex’s eyes narrowed in suspicion.

Almost immediately, Syla bowed and explained herself, "The princess told me that you might want to know about that, and has instructed me to tell you that she had already met with the empress on your behalf. There’s no need to meet with the empress again."

Rex’s eyes slightly widen in surprise.

He didn’t expect this, but he was grateful that Princess Davina did this.

Being trapped by the Immortal Slugs for a day made him late to the appointment, so this is good.

"In that case," Rex pivoted towards her. "Where are the items I requested?"

In exchange for giving his service in the important mission, Rex has asked for three things in return.

First is obviously the Phoenix Feather, the second is the Maw of Oblivion, and the third is an audience with the Spirit Emperor. He would be completing the sudden quest, fulfilling Elder Tilrith’s request, and also aiming to upgrade Devo and Amanir’s affinities.

To do the last one, he would need a Spirit Adjudicator, and the Spirit Emperor can fill that role.

Of course, the first two requests were easy to complete.

As for the last one, Rex would only be given an audience with the Spirit Emperor.

It was up to him whether the Spirit Emperor was willing to help or not.

"Bring the items to me now."

"We still don’t have the items you requested, my Lord."

"What?"

Rex’s eyes snapped open as the question came out sharper than he intended.

It even scares Syla.

"I made it clear to the empress that I wanted the items delivered as soon as the mission was complete—so how come we still don’t have them? What did Her Majesty say? Is she planning to back out of the deal and leave me hanging?"

"N-No, of course not! It takes time to get the items you requested."

"How long?"

"No more than a few days, Her Majesty said."

Rex gritted his teeth as this wasn’t what he was expecting.

He wanted the items to be handed over instantly upon the mission’s completion, but it seemed Empress Mogana didn’t trust him enough to make the arrangements early. Even so, he could not force the matter.

"Fine," Rex sighed. "Send an envoy to stay in the royal bubble. Take the items when they are ready and bring them to me."

"I will make the arrangements, my Lord," Syla nodded in understanding.