Chapter 1209: Rex Before Power
"So which one is it? Are you interested in me or do you have something to say?"
Currently, Liliya was climbing a hill with the man with claw scars on the right side of his face, Frank. Both of them crossed paths along their search—and decided to hike this hill, together as there were disruptions in energy around this hill.
None of the other hills they hiked and searched were like this, so they were being careful.
Both of them have powers that are not suited for this place.
One is a Black Hand with mark powers, while the other is a Mind Elementalist—so they opted to hike the hill manually as there were no other choices for them. As the two climbed, holding the minuscule ledge, Liliya noticed Frank stealing glances at her.
He seemed to have something to say to her but hesitated.
Due to that, she decided to confront him.
Embarrassed for being caught glancing at her, Frank averted his gaze away.
"I heard that you knew the Emperor, even before he became who he is—so I was wondering, what was he like in the past?" Frank suddenly said. "I also heard that the Emperor turned the ones he was close with into Werewolves, the Empress, Her Highness Adhara, all were turned into Werewolves because they were close, is that true?"
Upon hearing this, Liliya smiled and shook her head.
As it turns out, like many others in the city, Frank was curious about the Emperor.
Moreover from his tone, he also seemed to want to become a member of the Silverstar Pack.
"Only that? Why are you even hesitating to ask me that?" Liliya replied in amusement.
She didn't know Frank, but seeing the scar on his face, she thought that he was a stern man.
But it seemed he was not that stern for him to be hesitating to ask about this.
Frank was irked when he saw Liliya was laughing at him.
"It's about the Emperor, of course, I need to be careful in mentioning His Majesty" He replied.
Chuckling at his response—Liliya then recalled back to a time, not too long ago when he first saw Rex. She initially thought that Rex was a shady person, like he was hiding something but he was good in general.
Naturally, her suspicion was also proven to be true as Rex turned out to be a Werewolf.
Other than that, Liliya also thought of him as being aware and caring.
She remembered the time when Rex tried to comfort her when she was uncomfortable.
Knowing that she had no experience in going out like a normal person, he helped her adjust.
"If I had to say, he has always been strong and powerful from the past," Liliya eventually said. "Not that he is already as strong as now from the start, but his presence made me feel safe. I know that everything will be fine with him around,"
"I also researched his background, and found that he was a part of the military from a tender age, but I couldn't find which department he was assigned to. I asked around and found that he spent most of his time in the Noob Box, and the people there paled at the mention of him"
Upon the tragedy at Ratmawati City where Rex went berserk, Liliya was hit differently.
She was shocked that Rex was a Werewolf all this time.
Even then, she could tell from talking to him that he genuinely hated the Supernaturals.
Due to that, Liliya came to the conclusion that she wanted to learn more about him, and that is how she reached the Noob Box. "Hmm...? Noob Box? Isn't that a place in sector 3 that was purposed to train—inexperienced military personnel? It is not shocking for them to be fearful of their superior"
"No, he's only a private even though he has been serving the military for years," Liliya said.
Frank became even more confused, "Private...? How is His Majesty still a private?"
Surpassing the private rank would only need months for even the most regular person.
It was weird for someone like Rex to stay at private rank.
Just as he said that, Liliya's expression was also stained with a deep frown.
"Like you, I was also confused, until I directly asked his former superior, " She muttered.
...
"Command Sergeant Fury...?"
Liliya tapped a man who was sitting on the bar with a few empty drinks in front of him.
Upon feeling her hand—the man in military uniform looked over his shoulder—and raised his brows when he saw Liliya, "Who are you? If you're sent here by Lieutenant Beard, go tell him to fuck off,"
"N- No..." Liliya smiled wryly. "I'm not sent here by Lieutenant Beard,"
Sitting beside Command Sergeant Fury, Lilya introduced herself and also told him about her intention of coming here. Considering that Command Sergeant Fury was tipsy, Liliya thought that this was the best time to ask questions.
He would be more honest, and she would not waste this opportunity.
Realizing that she was not sent here by anyone, Command Sergeant Fury utterly changed.
He became friendlier than before.
"I went around the Noob Box, and asked about Rex, but the staff there seemed to pale at the mention of his name. Is there any particular reason for that?" Liliya asked, trying to see if she could gain a clear answer this time.
Upon hearing this, Command Sergeant Fury slammed his hand and laughed out loud.
Before answering, he took a big suck of his cigar and blew it.
"Of course, they are still traumatized—I am sure his buddies from his time would also feel the same way—as those staff when you asked them about that lunatic Rex," Command Sergeant Fury said, and continued his laughter.
Curious, Liliya decided to probe further, but she couldn't really gain anything more.
Command Sergeant Fury was already drunk, and he couldn't focus.
His answers were all over the place.
Suppressing her frustrations, Liliya also drank a shot before she placed it on the bar with the Command Sergeant, clapping at the sight, "Anyway—I drank a shot just like you said, so now you have to fulfill your part of the deal"
"Of course, of course! Ask me, I know everything about Rex!" Command Sergeant Fury said.
Massaging her throbbing forehead, Liliya then asked, "Why is Rex still a private?"
"Private...?" Command Sergeant Fury muttered before his eyes widened, realizing what Liliya was asking. "Oh, that! It's because of Rex—and his delusions. He beat up all the squad in the Noob Box, including the staff and superiors with his bare hands—from thinking that we were all Werewolves that were trying to kill his mother,"
"Four people died trying to stop him—and only when I, his direct superior arrived did he snap out of his delusion," Command Sergeant Fury said, tapping his chest in pride. "Of course that stupid lieutenant wanted to punish Rex by executing him but I told that foolish lieutenant that Rex was the perfect candidate for the USR, he could be an asset!"
"Only a monster could kill monsters, and I was right! HAHAH!" He laughed again.
Liliya, on the other hand, was completely stunned.
However, before she could even grasp the information, Command Sergeant Fury took out his phone and tapped on it a couple of times. He then leaned to Liliya—and showed her a couple of photos from his library.
"Look, I even have pictures of the night Rex scared the entire department," He said excitedly.
Upon hearing this, Liliya looked at the photos before she gasped.
She saw a lot of beaten military personnel who lost a couple of teeth or even worse.
However, her attention was fixed on the last photo.
In that photo was a haunting scene under the moonlit night.
A field stretched out, littered with tents in the background—while military men in white shirts lay sprawled on the ground, writhing in utter pain. From a glance, there should be around 20, or more military men in the photo, and they all suffered serious injuries.
Stains of blood decorated the earth, the blood of these wounded military men.
However, at the center of this bloody mess stood a man, his sleeveless white shirt drenched in crimson. His hands were coated in blood, still dripping fresh—a testament to the carnage, he had done.
Liliya trails the man's form from the feet to above before she is met with a glare.
In that photo taken from the side, Rex was glancing over to the camera.
His eyes were clouded with unrestrained fury, burning with an intensity that transcended the very reality itself. A pair of eyes that depicted a savage illusion. In those eyes—she could see the world was a battlefield, a dark place, consumed by the chaos of his inner demons.
Showing the photos, Command Sergeant Fury tapped the screen with his index finger.
He did it a couple of times to show his point.
"See? This is why he remains a private," He said raspingly. "That lunatic even howled at the others as if he was mocking us who he saw as Werewolves that night, can you ev-"
...
"What did His Majesty's former superior say?"
Liliya snapped out of her trance and realized that Frank was waiting for her answer, but she decided to not elaborate as that would not be a good look for Rex, "His former superior said that he disobeyed direct order during a mission and was punished, that's why,"
Upon hearing this, Frank nodded his head as if it somewhat made sense.
Rex is a man of principle, so Frank could see him disobeying orders.
But before Liliya could continue, the two eventually reached the top of the hill.
Just like the other hills, the top of this hill was somewhat flat.
Frank and Liliya could stand up properly.
Had it been sunny, without any fog—they would have been able to scan, the entire hill with a glance, however with the thick fog, they needed to walk around the top to know for sure that there was nothing up on this hill.
As expected, the disturbance of energy on the top was more intense than below.
Upon circling the hill, the two didn't find anything. Read latest chapters at m_v-l'e|-NovelBin.net
"Is there anything over there?" Liliya asked, shouting a little to reach Frank.
Frank who was walking towards the opposite then replied, "No—I don't think so!" He replied. "Hey, wait! I think I found something!" Suddenly, he changed his answer when he saw a dark silhouette in front of him. "Never mind, it's only a rock!"
Even though he was ready to react, it turned out to be a rock.
Liliya sighed lightly when she heard this, "I guess we still have to continue searching,"
However, as she said that—Frank's expression was drained from all colors when he saw that he was shadowed by something—and the shadow, was getting taller and taller. Lifting up his gaze, his pupils dilated seeing that a creature was climbing the rock.
Meeting a pair of gleaming red eyes, his heart began to pound hard.
On the other hand, the creature spreads four of its wings to the side as an intimidation.
Kreee!!
"Ah, shit... Liliya! I found the fucking mutated eagle!" Frank shouted at the top of his lungs.
But before he could do anything, the ground exploded underneath him.
Kaboom!
Flames erupted on the peak of the hill, illuminating the entire summit through the thick fog.
Frank was propelled backward—able to protect himself in the nick of time with a barrier, but still plummeted from a devastating height. In a desperate move, Liliya caught him—and both glided through the air and landed on a narrow ledge on the hillside.
Relieved, the two looked up and felt their heart skipped a beat.
Surprisingly—the mutated eagle that turned out to have a fire affinity, was now fixing its full attention on the two and charged a fire breath in its mouth. Responding to its power, the air around it crackled with heat.
As it turns out the mutated eagle's flame was the source of the disturbance in energy.
It was so powerful that its presence emitted a disturbance like this.
Just as the fiery assault was about to discharge, blasting Liliya and Frank, both saw a trail of a massive shadow streaked through the mist, striking the mutated eagle with immense force—sending it thrown back, its roar of frustration echoing through the place.
Upon seeing this, Liliya and Frank exchanged a look.
"Did someone throw a rock at it...?" Liliya muttered, completely stunned.