This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist

——"Is the side effect really that serious?"

——"Pine Bloom is just really unlucky."

Lidian's reminder made Rita furrow her brows.

According to Lidian, B80234615 was even stronger than the mechanical race Pine Bloom had brought out—though there was still a possibility that each mechanical race had its own strengths.

If Pine Bloom's bad luck was enough for Lidian to start lamenting, the impact of B80234615 might not be small either. This gave Rita another glimpse into this game's complex nature.

The strongest enemy she had encountered so far was the Winter Sea Frenzied Shark, but from her perspective, the Winter Sea Frenzied Shark had several opportunities to kill her. After stealing the Winter Sea Frenzied Shark's divine blessing, didn't the shark have any time-related skills?

Or did it have them but just happen to be unlucky, with its time skill being on cooldown at that moment?

When Rita met the Winter Sea Frenzied Shark at the diamonds miner area, although it was in a safe zone where attacks were prohibited, how could the shark just stand by when someone had stolen its divine blessing? Did it really endure until Rita left the safe zone?

Even if it could hold back, could a strong being like that really do nothing against her?

Recalling a few more game sessions, like in Little Painter, after Rita translated the rules for the players, the strong players left and only a 2nd-tier warrior remained waiting to kill her.

In Kart Racing, there were a few combat zones where players stronger than her attacked, but not to an exaggerated degree. Players like Maple Syrup and Mistblade never targeted her.

Not only did they not attack her, but they also didn't target other low-tier players. Instead, they focused on playing the game seriously. Marmang-Crab, on the other hand, only attacked players with comparable strength.

Did these strong players think killing low-tier players wasn't worth it? Or was there a penalty for doing so?

In cases where the power difference was too great, the gods must have imposed several restrictions to stop strong players from dominating the game. It couldn't just be that there were more game rules to consider.

Otherwise, after each battlezone game began, the strongest players would simply team up to clear the map, leaving no room for low-tier players to play.

Fairness and fun...

At first, Rita was grateful for these rules when entering the World Battlefield.

But after receiving her own game cheat, she started getting tired of the term "fairness."

Suddenly, Nivalis stood up, looking serious: "Wait! Wait! I have a question!"

Rita and Lidian turned toward Nivalis, who was unusually solemn.

Lidian adopted the role of an elder, speaking gently: "What's your question? Speak."

Since Lidian had genuinely invited her to ask, Nivalis did so: "You said you left the next day, but how did you know all this so clearly? Were you still keeping an eye on her?"

Lidian: "..."

Rita suddenly looked off into the distance.

The next moment, she saw Lidian lift her dragon tail and send Nivalis flying—high and far, as if playing golf with her.

Once Nivalis was out of sight, Rita casually turned back and continued: "So, can the pet contract I bought in Lania Kaia bind the mechanical race?"

Lidian: "Pet contract? You could ask Holy Cup. She's an astrologer. Contracts and souls are her specialty."

After receiving the answer she wanted, Rita asked a few more questions related to the World Battlefield, and Lidian answered them all truthfully.

But every game Lidian mentioned, Rita had never heard of.

It seemed that the safe zones didn't just transform into special commercial areas but could also change into arenas… Some games even forced players to team up.

There didn't seem to be any discernible pattern. The games didn't have much in common.

Nevertheless, Rita took note of everything Lidian said.

The one thing that frustrated Rita, though, was that nearly every five sentences Lidian spoke involved Pine Bloom.

Perhaps Rita's calmness had given Lidian courage, as she gradually stopped hesitating when talking about Pine Bloom. Her tone became lighter, and soon she was speaking freely, as if she couldn't stop.

This gave Rita the chance to gather more information about Pine Bloom.

If Nivalis described Pine Bloom as a cold-hearted woman who deceived the rich and beautiful Lidian, then in Lidian's words, Pine Bloom was a remarkably charismatic figure.

She was a goal-driven, outstanding military strategist, tactician, and leader.

She was also the most ambitious among the three great warlords.

Her conquest of Four Seasons City, the best of all main cities, showed that she only wanted the best. In her eyes, only the best was worthy of her.

Lidian summarized: "All the owlbears adore her. She has the most loyal friends, the most passionate lovers, and the warmest family.

"Do you know Maple Syrup, the owlbear emperor from Lania Kaia? She and Pine Bloom are complete opposites.

"Maple Syrup gives her most sincere love only to her three daughters, but Pine Bloom…"

"Her love is like moonlight, evenly spread over all living beings. We offer ourselves in hopes of gaining her favor."

Rita felt like she had unwittingly stumbled into a Pine Bloom fan club…

Lidian sighed: "The next thing I'm going to tell you is part of the reward for the dragon blood, and also a thank-you for taking care of Nivalis."

Rita straightened her posture involuntarily: "What is it?"

Lidian: "This is information I don't want you to share with the other dragons. It's her secret."

Rita: "I won't tell anyone."

Lidian: "I used to think she was emotionally rich and could lavish her love, but later I realized she knows how to create a false sense of love. If one day you start to feel attracted to her—which is easy to do—be careful."

"She has a hidden divine blessing passive skill called [Die-hard]."

"Once any living being develops affection or love for her, that affection or love becomes nearly impossible to fade. On the other hand, hatred and disgust are easily forgotten."

Rita: "..."

If she had this talent back when she was a celebrity, wouldn't she have been the top star already?

But for safety's sake, Rita asked: "Are you sure this talent skill isn't something you've just imagined?"

Lidian: "..."

"Okay, I get it! I get it!" Seeing Lidian's tail raise high, Rita immediately slid onto the ground in a kneeling position, saying, "Actually, if you tell Holy Cup and the others about this skill, they might understand you better. That's when it would really seem like you had no choice and that you were just caught up in it. You'd be forgiven."

Lidian shook her head, giving Rita a look that screamed "You don't understand anything." She said: "No, you don't get it. My situation has nothing to do with this skill."

Rita: ...

She really needed to take a look at Lidian's brain soon.

She would donate 500 gold coins, but anything more than that was unnecessary. She was afraid it wouldn't get fixed anyway.