This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist

Rita's movements were even better than those of the elite squads. Every time an attack from the distant enemies exploded near the ranged group, she seemed to anticipate it. With a subtle sidestep or a small backward movement, she avoided the attack with ease. And despite her evasions, she continued to shoot arrows, each one hitting its mark.

Zoey never once saw her miss a shot during the entire time she observed her.

All of this was the result of Rita's meticulous planning. After the game invasion, she had quickly leveraged her *Wheel of Fate* talent to gain resources. She never slacked off, taking fighting lessons, later joining the Special Affairs Bureau training camp, and consistently selling items from the rooftop instance. Rita maximized every bit of her resources and abilities.

Her offensive skills might not have been numerous, but Zoey was certain—she couldn't defeat Rita in her current state.

Rita claimed her dragon was acquired by luck, but Zoey believed it was the result of Rita's relentless efforts.

There were even online rumors that Rita's dragon must have been gifted to her by a man. Ridiculous! If any man managed to get a dragon, 99.99% of them would probably marry the dragon on the spot. No way would they give it to a woman! The remaining 0.01% would likely be husbands bound by some contract.

Zoey knew she could have taken a similar path. She could have done even better. But her stubborn pride, unwilling to bend, had left her stagnant for too long.

Her *Hope's Anthem* was worthless if it couldn't be converted into a resource that made her stronger. It was as cheap as her self-respect.

She had been wrong. She admitted it. But everything could still change. She wouldn't fall behind anyone.

---

Rita was unaware that she had become an important catalyst for Zoey's change.

It was still early—around 7 p.m.—and Rita planned to rest a bit before heading to Lania Kaia to discuss matters with Apache regarding the Moon Fox tribe.

Nivalis initially wanted to tag along but retreated when she heard Rita was going to visit the undead alchemist. The young dragon didn't dare roam Lania Kaia alone; despite being level 14, she was still very much a child. And Lania Kaia was a dangerous place for a young dragon to wander.

After transforming into her goblin form and using *Phantom Cloak* for invisibility, Rita crawled under her bed, and with a flash of light, the invisible goblin emerged from behind a tombstone. She immediately used *Phantom Shift* to teleport and started running towards the Undercity, her little goblin legs moving swiftly.

She even used her *Chávez Watch* ability, *I'm in a Hurry*, to speed up her travel.

Since she had been warned against turning into an animal lately, time was precious.

When she barged into the alchemy shop, Apache was sitting in the corner, reading a book. Find adventures at empire

Rita greeted the little undead assistant before sitting across from Apache, asking about the customs and taboos of the Moon Fox tribe.

Apache, clearly prepared, handed her a small booklet.

Rita opened it and found that it was handwritten in the undead language. The handwriting was unmistakably Apache's, and there was even a table of contents:

1. Unknown Etiquettes and Customs of the Moon Fox Tribe

2. Things You Must Never Do in Front of the Moon Foxes

3. What the Moon Foxes' Tails Really Represent

4. Hidden Doors and Shady Shops in Moon Lake City

5. What to Do When You Meet Moon Fox Royalty

6. How Important Are Ears to the Moon Fox Tribe?

7. The Nine Moon Emperors' Names and Preferences

8. The Only Moon Emperor Who Studies Alchemy and Potions

9. The Pros and Cons of the Three Major Libraries: Moon Lake City, Moon Desert City, and Moon Forest City

10. The Nine Moon Emperors and the Seventy-two Clans

For a moment, Rita felt like she was reading something from a tabloid.

After Rita stored the booklet, Apache began a 50-minute alchemy lesson. Once the lesson ended, Rita left behind the cigarettes and wine she had brought as gifts and hurried to leave the city.

On her way out, she noticed that there were far fewer animals in the streets. The once common sight of cats, dogs, and even lambs was nowhere to be seen.

Shocked, she wondered if all those animals had been her fellow Blue Planet inhabitants! She recalled the time she had turned into a cat and had smacked a dog that tried to pat her head with its paw. Could that dog have been a person from her world?

It made sense—the dog's expression back then had been so vivid: a mixture of shock, disbelief, and a look that screamed, "Did I just get smacked by a cat?"

Well… why hadn't they said something back then?

But oh well, she already hit them.

That night, Rita didn't rush to bed. The next day would be the eleventh day since her last post, meaning she could once again sell the dragon instance's location. Over the past days, the replies to her post had continued to grow. Despite her setting a minimum level requirement to comment, there were still tens of thousands of replies.

She was even starting to worry about how she would find Zoey's people in the sea of comments.

At midnight, Rita opened the forum thread again.

She scrolled through the replies, skipping over any familiar Lopez or White family names.

Then, a familiar name caught her eye.

**Meow.Q:** "Hello, would you be willing to negotiate? I'd like to buy out your information. My sister is Shadow.Q. You can find her photo on the Special Affairs Bureau's official website."

Rita paused, unsure who was behind this message.

She quickly ruled out the Special Affairs Bureau. But she wasn't about to ask Shadow.Q directly—too suspicious. That woman would sniff it out in no time.

**Anonymous:** "What, is your sister on the national most-wanted list?"

**Meow.Q:** "…"

Meow.Q turned to Shadow.Q, "Sis!"

Shadow.Q rubbed her temples, clearly exasperated. "Just offer a price."

**Meow.Q:** "You can enjoy one *Hope's Anthem* boost every ten days until our team successfully contracts the dragon."

**Anonymous:** "What's the chance of success?"

**Meow.Q:** "13%."

*Hope's Anthem* had a 15% chance, but based on that alone, Rita couldn't confirm whether this was Zoey's *Hope's Anthem* or not. If Meow.Q was indeed someone Zoey had sent through Shadow.Q, they wouldn't be foolish enough to give the exact probability.

**Anonymous:** "Alright, we'll test it tomorrow at noon, but no more than five people can be present. Write the location on a slip of paper and send it via a donation. If it's legit, we can trade every ten days."

Rita decided to observe from a distance. If it wasn't Zoey, she would just ghost them.

As for the other offers in the thread, none could beat this one. Most were offering gold or equipment, or occasionally real-world assets like houses or cars. But based on what Rita knew about Zoey, if Zoey was determined to secure the dragon, she wouldn't be stingy. She would offer something irresistible.