This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist

If Rita had taken the Legion Token to the open market, the already-established powerful factions would have spared no expense to buy it. Forget just one A-rank skill—three A-rank skills and a hefty sum of gold wouldn't have been out of the question.

And this wasn't just any Legion Token—it was the first Legion Token in all of Blue Star! Its value was immeasurable.

Much like how the twelve alien races of Lania Kaia subtly competed, the nations of Blue Star were also locked in a quiet rivalry.

With her strength, Rita could have easily protected the token from any underhanded schemes. She hadn't relied on any resources or training from the Special Affairs Bureau (SAB), so she wasn't obligated to assist them. Selling the token to them at her asking price was practically a gift.

Rita, however, decided not to sugarcoat her reasoning. "I'm giving you a deal this time because of the token's importance. But next time, we'll stick to business."

Shadow.Q chuckled and slid something across the table. "No need to wait for next time—this is a gift from the SAB to thank you for thinking of us first."

It was a dark blue, high-collared sweater with reinforced chest armor.

[Warm and Cozy] (Legendary)

Attribute Bonuses: Agility +41 | Intelligence +18

Magical Properties: +27% Critical Rate | +5% Casting Speed

Legendary Skill – No Pilling: When activated, skill casting speed increases by 25% for 5 minutes. Consumes 50 mana per minute. Cooldown: 10 minutes.

Equip Requirements: Level ≥ 9 | Agility > 30

A dual-stat legendary-grade piece of gear! Its legendary skill wasn't a gimmick either—it was highly practical.

It was far superior to her current [Made Any Money Today?] gear, which also required her to modify its information. [Warm and Cozy] needed no such tweaks.

Rita, who had recently reached Level 9, accepted the SAB's reward without hesitation. The equipment was clearly tailored for her—both the requirements and attributes suited her perfectly.

It was gestures like this that kept her willing to work with the SAB.

She quickly changed into her new equipment in the room's partitioned area.

Now, her upper body was outfitted with the blue sweater, shoulder armor, and bracers, while her lower body featured cropped leather pants and short boots. The look was a bit odd but still within acceptable bounds. At least it was far better than pairing fur shorts with loafers.

Glancing at Shadow.Q, Rita confirmed that her attire was, in fact, vastly superior.

Shadow.Q, catching her look, smiled and called a colleague over. They opened a teleportation gate with impeccable efficiency, sending Rita home immediately.

The moment Rita stepped through her front door, the system announcement rang out.

[Ding—Congratulations to Blue Star player Avery for using the Legion Token to establish a legion. The Legion Leaderboard is now open!]

At the same time, all players' game interfaces updated as the padlock icon on the [Legion Leaderboard] shattered, and the gray lettering was engulfed in vibrant flames.

The leaderboard displayed a single legion—the only one in existence at that moment:

| Legion | Leader | Nation | Members | Rating |

|--|||-||

| Eclipse Vanguard | Avery | US | 1817 | 0.1 |

Players watched in stunned silence as the member count climbed at an astonishing speed: 2,000… 3,000… 6,000… 10,000…

Before long, it surpassed 100,000 and continued to soar. The rating also inched upward, from 0.1 to 0.15, then 0.28…

Everyone held their breath, waiting.

The US and regional channels remained eerily quiet, but the world channel exploded with messages in countless languages.

230,000… 360,000… 780,000… 990,000…

1,000,000!

2,000,000… 3,000,000… 5,000,000!

The final member count settled at 5,671,204, with a rating of 8.23.

It wasn't until this moment that players seemed to remember how to breathe. Everyone now understood that Eclipse Vanguard was officially the US's Special Affairs Bureau.

As the dust settled, the clock ticked past midnight, ushering in October 2nd.

The timing was both ceremonious and poetic—no wonder the SAB had been so eager they blocked her flight.

Rita opened the leaderboard and noticed something peculiar. Previously, players with gold dragon icons in the top-right corner of their avatars had manually added them. Now, their frames were adorned with a system-provided golden dragon, complete with fluttering whiskers—a subtle but prestigious upgrade.
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In her previous life, the SAB had acquired the Legion Token too late. Not only had The Lopez Family beaten them to it, but several other factions had as well. By the time Eclipse Vanguard was established, its reputation was far inferior to these private groups.

Under pressure from certain factions, public dissatisfaction with the SAB grew. Many felt the SAB should disqualify players with Divine Gifts below F-grade from dungeon queues, prioritizing stronger players for leveling instead.

Even within the SAB, many members defected to other legions. Unlike private factions, where the strongest players enjoyed special privileges, the SAB demanded equal contributions for equal rewards.

Another notable change was the legion's name. In her past life, the SAB's legion wasn't called Eclipse Vanguard—it was called Civil Servants Wanted.

Rita had always believed that the uninspiring name played a significant role in their struggle to recruit top players. It reeked of an outdated attempt to appeal to the younger generation, evoking pity more than admiration. After the game invasion, it was like calling your faction Hand Over Your Loot—an absolute turnoff.

A legion name should be striking yet enigmatic. It didn't need to mean anything but should inspire curiosity or respect.

Another change was the legion leader. In her past life, it wasn't Avery.

The name Avery felt familiar, but Rita couldn't quite place it. Perhaps he was a member of The Wilson Family.

Shrugging off the thought, Rita closed the game interface. Whatever the differences, this outcome was far better than before.

As she took a few steps, her phone buzzed. She ignored it, but a moment later, Nivalis, perched on her shoulder, began reading aloud word by word:

"Public service announcement: Thank you, Lady Rita, for your significant contribution to the Special Affairs Bureau in establishing the legion. The Special Affairs Bureau will forever be your ally! Salute! [Special Affairs Bureau]"

Rita: "..."

Whether this was an attempt to advertise the SAB or a genuine gesture of gratitude, the message left Rita in a surprisingly good mood.

The word contribution was irritating only when it went unacknowledged and unappreciated. But if every effort received recognition… Maybe next time.

With one more opportunity denied to Rick, Rita retreated to her home to continue studying [Melting Time]. The herbal processing and potion brewing methods were as tedious as ever. Soon, she found herself unsatisfied with Hecipah's notes. She had too many ideas and needed Hecipah to verify them, meaning another trip to Lania Kaia was in order.

Half an hour later, an invisible dragon and a jellyfish-shaped blob hovered outside Yaslan City's gates, inspecting the wanted posters plastered there.

There were hundreds of them, featuring individuals from all sorts of races—and even alien beasts.

What startled Rita was recognizing a few of the names and faces.

A blood elf and undead named Idon'tcare, a moon fox named Addison, and a goblin named Kabbibika…

Every single one was her alias.