This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist

Shadow.Q replied, "Just controlling the stage."

The host didn't waste any time with unnecessary talk, only reminding everyone to be quiet before introducing Zoey to the stage.

Not many people knew Zoey's identity. Apart from the 100-person dragon-slaying team, only a few high-ranking officials knew the truth.

99% of the audience had exchanged contribution points for the opportunity to attend this event. Special Affairs Bureau had even set it up so that, if the *Hope Song* failed due to the number of people exceeding the skill's limit, the contribution points would be refunded.

Though Zoey knew it would be hard to keep her abilities hidden for long, she wasn't eager to have so many people see her face just yet. It was too risky. She didn't trust that all Special Affairs Bureau members were good people—Lopez family had already bribed several with money and equipment.

So, when she appeared on stage, she wore a mask provided by the Special Affairs Bureau and draped herself in a cloak that obscured her figure and even her height.

Rita, sitting in the audience, thought to herself: *It's you! The Masked Singer!!*

Zoey clearly wanted to get things over with quickly. She grabbed the microphone and began singing without delay, finishing the performance and then immediately turning to leave.

In fact, the original *Hope Song* was more of a recitation, praising Holy Light with a poem. But Zoey found that too awkward, so she eventually modified it into a wordless chant. The effects remained the same.

Good thing she changed it. Zoey couldn't even imagine performing a poem recital in front of a crowd of ten thousand... The thought was too painful.

As Zoey exited the stage, Rita was still sitting on her chair, amused. She even recorded the whole thing on her phone. She was definitely going to send this to Rick: *Hey, check out your Masked Singer wife!*

Nivalis, perched on Rita's shoulder and engrossed in her game, suddenly exclaimed, "Huh?"

Rita asked, "What's wrong?"

Nivalis replied, "I just got an extra attribute point."

Rita chuckled, "Nice, that's a bonus!"

Nearby, Shadow.Q added, "I got one too, thanks! I'm going to help with tracking the skill effects now. I'll swing by your place tomorrow morning to pick you up and take you and Nivalis to check out the dungeons we need help clearing."

Rita nodded, "Sounds good."

She had a lot of free time recently. Apache had postponed classes, and both Zoey and Rick were currently on their reckless journeys. She had just collected some interest from Sanchez, so things were pretty calm.

Now, it was time to give Rick a little nudge—he'd better hurry up and visit Samuel and Scarlett!

---

Rick was already in the middle of asking Zoey for some time off.

After the concert... no, after the transaction with Special Affairs Bureau wrapped up, Rick immediately requested leave from Zoey, telling her he was going to find his parents. He'd actually been using Lopez family connections to investigate the whereabouts of Samuel and Scarlett ever since Rita first mentioned it.

When it came to Samuel and Scarlett, Rita was torn. She hated them, yet worried that if she took action herself, she'd be haunted by nightmares for the rest of her life.

It wasn't about the fear of being discovered—Rita was confident she could pull it off without anyone ever finding out. It was about crossing a line within herself. In the end, she couldn't bear the thought of facing the moral dilemma and guilt. Many children from her culture felt burdened by the weight of filial duty.

So, Rita chose to borrow Rick's hand to take revenge:

*You go and kill Mom and Dad for me, and then later I'll kill you to avenge them. That way, I get revenge, and I'll feel better about it. Plus, Mom and Dad's ghosts will never forgive you—it's a win-win-win situation.*

But Rick? He was different.

Rita thought, *They're my parents; I can't do it myself.*

Enjoy new adventures from empire

Rick thought, *They're my parents; I have to do it myself!*

The *Masked Singer* concert ended at 7 PM, and Rick's flight was at 10 PM.

After the event, Rita "accidentally" found out Rick was going to find their parents and escorted him all the way to the airport. Both of them were fully disguised, hiding their faces.

Rita stood outside the boarding gate, watching Rick walk away.

Rick felt warm inside, turning back to look at her every few steps. He thought, *As long as I have Rita, that's all I need. No other siblings should come and steal the family's resources!*

Just as Rita was about to leave, Nivalis, who had been invisible on her shoulder the whole time, suddenly said, "Huh?"

Rita asked, "What now?"

Nivalis grinned, "Heh... I can't tell you."

Rita: *Mystery dragon, get off my shoulder!*

---n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

The next day, Shadow.Q arrived at Rita's house at 8 AM sharp.

From outside, she could hear the clanging and banging of things crashing inside.

Still, Shadow.Q wasn't worried about Rita's safety. Given what she observed of Nivalis and Rita's relationship, if there was any real danger, Nivalis would definitely protect her. So, she just gave Rita a call.

Soon enough, Rita emerged from the house in workout clothes, wiping sweat from her face as she opened the door for Shadow.Q.

Shadow.Q asked, "So you're really done with the training camp? Won't you miss those machines? I heard you love playing with the launcher."

Rita pointed at the fading traces of frost on her body. "I don't need it. Nivalis can help me train, and it's even more effective."

No more wearing weighted gear—now she could focus purely on dodging and training Nivalis at the same time.

They could only practice indoors though, to avoid being seen.

To be fair, this setup was working out pretty well. The furniture acted as obstacles, and Nivalis was forced to use only quick-cast skills.

At least Nivalis wouldn't shout, "Aurora Shield!" and then start slowly charging it up for six seconds like before.

Because last time, after she'd finally charged it up and looked around for her target, she turned her head to see Rita calmly standing behind the counter, sipping coffee. Rita even took a few seconds to stir in some sugar when it didn't dissolve.

In that moment, Nivalis's heart sank.

It wasn't until Rita noticed Nivalis's glowing mouth that she realized the mistake. She quickly set her coffee down and called out, *"Bring it on! I'm ready! You're such a worthy opponent with such a terrifying skill!"*

Nivalis: *...What.*

Honestly, Rita wasn't doing it on purpose—she had just been thirsty.

All in all, it was a pretty awkward moment.

Now, Rita was planning to hang up some colored cards around the house to spice up their training. Red cards would represent her, and blue cards would represent Nivalis. The cards would act as treasures they had to protect, while also trying to break the other's treasures—all without damaging any furniture. Any damage meant point deductions.

Turn the training into a game, and Nivalis might even beg to train with her.

As Shadow.Q stepped inside, Nivalis flew out from the first-floor bathroom, freshly cleaned and looking neat. She now bathed faster than Rita washed a cup, and no longer fussed about returning to her full size.

Her fan account on social media now had hundreds of thousands of followers, with comments gushing over her cuteness from all over the world.

Rita had caught Nivalis laughing while reading those comments more than once.

Before leaving the dungeon: *Big is powerful!!*

After leaving the dungeon: *Small me is so cute~~*