This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist-Chapter 1226 Divine Game: Divine Instruction 40

When Maple Syrup returned from the clock arena to the spectator stands, her wings were fully restored. She stood alone in a corner, spear in hand, radiating a clear aura: keep your distance. No one dared approach.

If she had asked those questions earlier, she obviously knew the weight of her actions—their rightness or wrongness. But Maple Syrup would never admit she was wrong.

Because admitting wrong would require change. And in the chaos of war, the bear cookies had already protected countless young oak owls. Some had even ended up in other races’ hands, quickly put to use.

How could you undo that?

Even if Mud Bears asked Rita now whether she wanted all the bear cookies returned to Autumn Deer, Rita would probably remain silent.

Each cookie could shield a youngling from harm—whether from outsiders or their own kind.

Perhaps in a fully peaceful Starsea, Maple Syrup might be willing. But not now, while so many foreign races lived in BS-controlled worlds. She refused.

A new match appeared on the clock arena—a player Rita didn’t know. She and Mistblade flew to Maple Syrup, surrounding her.

Maple Syrup’s lips curled faintly in a cold smirk.

"What? Come to scold me?" she asked.

Her tone wasn’t sharp. Anyone familiar with her knew this was Maple Syrup’s way. She didn’t care about others’ notions of right or wrong, nor did she judge.

Her logic was simple. Even back in High Tower, Rita had noticed: if BS Rita couldn’t devote time and effort to defend the weak or the victims, Maple Syrup wouldn’t waste words with hypocrisy.

Rita shook her head and skipped the moral questions. She went straight to the point she cared about most.

"After the Autumn Deer were made into cookies... are they still alive? Are they conscious? Can they be restored?"

She had a general idea before, but nothing compared to asking the creator directly.

Maple Syrup frowned but finally gave Rita a look. To her surprise, she saw a trace of tension and anticipation in Rita’s eyes. Mistblade’s expression mirrored it.

"They’re conscious. They can perceive everything—but cannot be restored," Maple Syrup replied.

Thinking of Rita’s recent attempts during the Bell Tolls, of her efforts to shelter foreign races in various worlds, Maple Syrup lowered her crossed arms and fixed her gaze on Rita.

She added, "They guard the younglings because I programmed it that way. They can act freely in cookie form, but their magical energy is extremely limited. Being bound to the younglings is like energy conservation—they store power until the younglings are threatened, then they can unleash it."

Rita’s eyes lit up. She even grabbed Maple Syrup’s wrist, as if afraid she’d run off.

"But," she pressed, "without establishing an Invasion Sequence in Lania Kaia with Dummy or Black Spring, you still brought over more than ten million Autumn Deer into Lania Kaia!"

Maple Syrup’s tone remained casual.

"...What are you trying to do?"

Nearby players who had been eavesdropping perked up.

Rita didn’t beat around the bush. She said plainly, "Make cookies. Try taking those four-star worlds—or players in Invasion Sequence worlds without world skills who want to survive—turn them into cookies and bring them into higher-tier worlds with world skills!"

She didn’t explain the logic behind the plan in too much detail. But everyone present—leaders of various worlds—understood.

Without Invasion Sequences, moving large populations between worlds is normally impossible. It’s a limitation and a protection. But the bear cookies bypassed that restriction.

Could this method bypass the population limits of each world?

Every world has a cap on how many beings it can hold. But there’s no limit on items. Players produce countless items and gear every day—there’s never been a cap.

Extrapolate further: if you could consolidate the surviving populations of over six hundred worlds into just a few, in cookie form, the leaders of worlds with world skills could be concentrated, enjoying layered protection. And if those emptied worlds were shattered, Uncharted Star Sea could even produce new world skills...

There were still countless uncertainties.

The sharpest question: at this point, who would willingly sacrifice their world and turn their population into cookies?

Would an excessive number of cookies affect world skill efficacy?

Yet this was just like Rita’s previous attempts to shrink worlds and bring them into others for the Bell Tolls. Like her last gamble in Isolated Isle before facing the demon—no plan is guaranteed. You try, prepare multiple options, and hope for the best. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Rita did not make decisions for Maple Syrup. She did not use moral pressure or the presence of other players to force her hand. She rarely imposed her will on others, even for measures that could save billions.

This was not Maple Syrup’s duty, nor Rita’s responsibility. Rita only wanted to be at peace with her own conscience.

She released Maple Syrup’s wrist.

"We need to have a proper talk after this game," she said earnestly.

Maple Syrup’s expression remained calm. She didn’t say yes, nor no.

But Rita and Mistblade knew: it was an agreement to talk.

The fight on the arena continued, yet the conversation spread quickly.

Information about the bear cookies accumulated. As Rita had suspected, they weren’t limited to Lania Kaia.

Some were made in Dummy and not taken away in time, later flowing with Autumn Deer into Black Spring. Some came from Lania Kaia invading BS. Others were sold via the trade post by Wind Scythe.

To Rita’s surprise, the bear cookies were even more popular than she had imagined.

Items that could automatically protect younglings weren’t rare—but the bear cookies were special. They were another living being.

Many races, out of curiosity or research, sought to acquire one whenever they heard of them or saw their description.

Rita quietly asked Dawn Cicada and Kessa, "Have you heard of the bear cookies too?"

Kessa nodded.

"They’re common in Lania Kaia and BS, maybe. But outside, a single bear cookie is more expensive than a live Autumn Deer."

Rita: "......"

That description was downright hellish.