CHAPTER 1715: JUST OVERTHINKING

"Oh, and hand this over to a soldier named Laksa from my legion during the mission," Rex handed Syla a box that was made of high-quality material. "I promised the person who contributed the most would be rewarded, so make sure this gets to his hand."

"I will see to it personally," Syla accepted the box and nodded.

She was surprised to see Rex taking things out of thin air—when he’s not wearing anything, but she didn’t question him.

"Also, Ethan... He was my second-in-command. Do you know his condition?"

"Ethan...? I’m afraid I don’t know who he is, my Lord."

"Find out about him. If he’s not a knight, then he must be a squire."

Rex waved his hand, dismissing Syla as he returned back into his room.

Since he promised the soldiers rewards for contributing greatly, he wasn’t going to forget about them—as he even added an extra inside the box. As for Ethan, Rex was wondering whether he survived or not, since if he did, he’s a prime candidate to be turned into a pack member.

He wanted to respect Ethan’s will to die a good death, but he hesitated in the last second.

It was the reason he threw Ethan out of the Desolate Zone.

And now, with the second part of the Race Evolution Quest opened, he felt like he had done the right thing.

Selfish? Maybe, but at least now Ethan will have a chance to become a real knight.

Heck, I can even make him a knight under the Clarentium Empire, but I reckoned he didn’t want that.

Rex sat down and leaned back on the sofa, staring at the ceiling, contemplating.

He was a nobody in this realm before his engagement with Princess Davina and the mission.

If he were put in Empress Morgana’s shoes, he might also do the same thing as her.

Preparing such troublesome and expensive demands for someone who might not even perform sounded like a hassle, and it’s not worth the trouble. In hindsight, it was understandable for Empress Morgana to ask a few days before she could deliver his demands.

But for some reason, he felt restless.

"Is it because I gave the good news to Nivellen before I got my hands on the materials?"

"I came to encourage her to keep fighting, but was that a mistake?"

"Am I too hasty? No... Empress Morgana has no reason to back out. I have no qualms with her."

Rex placed his arm over his face, sighing deeply.

Just thinking about the matter was giving him a headache, and he was aware that he was probably tired and was overthinking this. Even so, his gut feeling is his companion through the border between life and death.

He will not feel peace until he convinces himself that he was overthinking.

For him, it was always worth it to check whether his gut feeling was right or not.

"Yes, I have to check."

Rex sat up again and opened the Shop interface, scrolling through the items.

He was searching for an item that would be perfect to use at this very moment, to quench his doubts.

I still can’t get the inconsistent expiry time limit, which must mean something is happening in this realm. Mom said there was a catastrophe coming, and with the Chaos Phantoms appearing back home, there’s a high possibility this might have something to do with the Fourthborn.

Recalling his encounter with the Fourthborn, Rex’s brows dipped into a frown.

A hard one, as there might be a connection here.

I don’t know anything much about the Executors, but that Fourthborn must have the ability to control people. Mind Element like Lauren? Or maybe it’s a stronger element, a Corruption element? Either way, I have to check Empress Morgana.

One thing that Rex feared was that Empress Morgana was mind-controlled.

Even though it doesn’t seem to be the case, as he already scanned her and saw nothing wrong with her status, he needs to be sure. The Fourthborn must be inside the Chaos Realm, which is the reason the Chaos Phantoms are appearing.

And since Chaos could even corrupt Nivellen, there’s no wrong to play it safe.

Rex was still uneducated about the Chaos Realm, but there might be power in there that can remain dormant and undetected by the System. No—Rex believed that there was such a power as that massive monster, the one who took Edward, was in there, and it’s incredibly powerful.

If there was even a chance that kind of power exists, Rex has to take it as an absolute certainty.

But he wasn’t fazed by this possibility.

In fact, he was happy that he could think of this possibility, as at least he was now aware of its danger.

Besides, this was nothing new to Rex.

A situation where a single misstep could mean certain death might terrify most people, but for Rex, this was only another mundane threat that he experienced almost every day. Rex was worried, yes—but his mind remained unshaken, as steadfast as stone and as clear as the purest water.

Rex’s eyes finally caught something after scrolling through the items for ten minutes straight.

...

Lv. 1 All-Seeing Orb of Intent

Rank: Legendary (Tenth-rank)

Description: Forged from the preserved fragment of an Eleventh-rank Order Beast’s eye—the mystical Sleeping Oracle Fox—this orb hums with latent foresight. Once attuned, the All-Seeing Orb of Intent allows its bearer to perceive not words or actions, but the real purpose. Its gaze could see through deceit, hesitation, and true motives.

Side Effect: Slightly elevated emotions for one day.

Cost: 10 million gold.

...

Reading the description, Rex nodded as this was the perfect item for him to use.

It would help him confirm whether Empress Morgana has nothing but good intentions towards him or not. He was sure that with this, he would feel a little bit more at ease. "Instead of buying the Lv. 1, I’d buy the Lv. 2 one."

For precaution, Rex purchased the Lv. 2 All-Seeing Orb of Intent, other than the Lv. 1.

Difference being the two was in everything.

Other than producing better accuracy in the results, the Lv. 2 All-Seeing Orb would also go unnoticed, pierce through any mind protection that the target might use, and even erase all traces of it once it was finished with the target.

Moreover, it could also check if the person was mind-controlled or not.

Rex was concerned, but he didn’t want Empress Morgana to know that he did this.

It would only sour their relationships.

Does the user want to purchase Lv. 2 All-Seeing Orb of Intent for 30 million gold?

"Yes."

Once he purchased the item, Rex immediately summoned it.

Before him appeared a head-sized eye that floated in the air like a severed omen—a broken white eye, large as a man’s head. Cracks veined its surface, glowing faintly, and within the pale iris, bluish clouds swirled as if they were hiding the secret of the world.

At its core churned a hurricane, spiraling endlessly and slowly, like seeing the earth from space.

Even though it hovered with eerie grace, there was no life within it.

Only a hollow stillness of a tool ready to be used.

Rex extended his hand towards it, and the All-Seeing Eye of Intent looked at it.

It shot a faint strand of energy into Rex’s hand to connect with him.

No pain could be felt. In fact, it doesn’t feel like anything.

Rex then saw a pillar of energy climb from the hurricane, extending slowly until it connected with his hand. And when it did, he felt a connection towards the eye, which was a sign that he could now pick a target for it to probe.

Naturally, Empress Morgana’s face came to mind.

All he needed to do was think the target, and the All-Seeing Eye of Intent would do the rest.

Rex leaned back on the sofa as the hurricane, within the eye’s surface, began to spread, waiting for the results while his senses stretched outward beyond his room, ensuring no one intruded upon his room in the middle of this.

Soon enough, Princess Davina would finish her preparations, so he needed to stay alert.

Based on the extended description, the surface of the eye would change depending on the results.

Golden and radiant will mean good intentions.

Pink and flowery would mean intimate intent.

Gray would mean insignificant intent.

Blue would mean mildly bad intentions.

And lastly, red would mean major bad intentions.

Rex was hoping that Empress Morgana would be anything but red—he wouldn’t even mind if she had mild bad intentions, as that doesn’t necessarily mean she wanted to take him out. Just anything will do as long as it’s not red.

A minute later, Rex watched as the hurricane began to flicker and showed color.

He could feel the temperature rising inside the room.

Not to a scorching degree, but a warm degree that was pleasant, like the radiance from the sun.

And then, Rex’s lips curled into a smile as the eye began to turn golden and radiant.

Good intentions.

"Hah... I was worried for nothing. Seems like exhaustion got the better of me," Rex stood up and headed into his room to change into the clothes prepared for his departure with Princess Davina. "I know I needed to check, but I feel a little bad for her."

Rex shook his head.

He has no reason to suspect Empress Morgana, but he did anyway, so he felt a little bit bad.

Oblivious to him as he closed the door to his bedroom, the All-Seeing Eye’s surface crackled.

Its golden glow flickered once, then vanished completely—as if someone had snuffed out the light.

Now, the All-Seeing Eye was inactive again, back to how it once was before it was used.

Moments later.

Even after changing clothes, Princess Davina was still nowhere to be seen.

And since she also didn’t want to be disturbed for some reason, Rex decided to soak in the garden’s air while he waited. Nobody was around other than the servants, so it was quite peaceful for him to clear his mind and relax.

Just then, his eyes opened.

Someone was approaching from behind, and from the scent, he already knew who it was.

Hmm... This is new. Did she wear perfume?

Rex turned around but stopped in shock when his gaze met Princess Davina’s.

Unlike what he expected, the woman before him was not the same Princess Davina she knew; he refused to believe it. Right now, the dangerous air from here has been replaced by an air of absolute tenderness, like a blooming flower.

Her gown clung to her like a second skin.

Every curve that was honed from hundreds of years of training was accentuated by shimmering royal emerald fabric that caught the sunlight with every breath she took. Intricate gold patterns trailed along the bodice and down her long legs, blooming like vines.

Over it, she wore a cascading white mantle with layered ruffles.

Its silken fabric matched the gown perfectly and flowed behind her like moonlight in motion.

Her hair was tied high to expose her neck, elegant yet fierce, split evenly between deep obsidian black and emerald. And then—her eyes. Rex didn’t know what she did, but their colors seemed more vibrant than normal.

Not because of her life energy, but naturally brighter.

One blazed with a piercing emerald glow, while the other shimmered gold.

For a moment, Rex forgot to breathe—he was not expecting Princess Davina with this kind of look, to have a feminine side to her, as she was most of the time draped in armor. She barely looked like the same person anymore, carrying herself like a true noble more than normal.

Rex blinked his eyes and cleared his throat.

He paused for a few seconds, contemplating what they were doing again.

Princess Davina asked him to come with her somewhere, and he was expecting to deal with matters that needed them both to be present. But from the looks of her attire—and the face she was wearing, calm but unmistakably hiding anticipation, it doesn’t seem to be a formal business.

What’s she planning now?