This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist-Chapter 301: [A Prank] & [A Lie]

Nivalis said, "This scale fell off during a fight between Wind Shear and Emperor Umbrella. They’re archenemies and have been battling each other for over two thousand years without ever settling the score. Do you know what makes this dragon scale so beautiful? It’s because it’s exactly half Wind Shear and half Emperor Umbrella. If we take this scale back to Dragon Island and ask them in front of everyone who wants to buy this beautiful dragon scale…"

Rita immediately understood.

She teleported to Nivalis, lifted the little dragon high in the air, and continued, "We’re gonna make a fortune!!!"

Nivalis raised both claws. "A fortune!!!"

Rita shouted, "You’re a genius! A true genius!"

Nivalis raised her claws again. "A genius!!!"

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After a brief celebration, Rita and Nivalis returned to synthesizing equipment. Unfortunately, aside from the [A Pretty Dragon Scale], every other attempt ended in failure.

The incredible luck she’d had on her first [Renovation], creating the perfect Curio-level [Soul Catcher] and the [Thief Never Empty-Handed] magazine, now felt like nothing more than a beginner’s freebie.

Still, the experiment was a success. Just as she’d hoped, her Luck remained at 10 even after using [Renovation], while another [+1] appeared in the recovery queue.

This confirmed that [Renovation] prioritized using the Luck displayed in parentheses. From now on, she wouldn’t need to tiptoe around while using [Renovation]. Keeping Rick alive had been worth it after all. Truly, there’s no such thing as useless trash in the world!

Thinking of [Soul Catcher]’s ability to skip one game per month, Rita held it tightly and selected a dare.

The runes on the bone hand glowed, and tiny firefly-like letters appeared before her: "Please change your race." (Skippable.)

Huh? Rita immediately used [Away from Home, Identity is Self-Assigned] to transform into a Minotaur.

But the bone hand stayed firmly attached to her.

It didn’t work. Just like how her disguises could block divination but not prevent her from sensing others’ divinations, she hadn’t truly changed her race—deep down, she was still herself.

She tried to exploit a game bug, only for the game to exploit her in return.

As Rita considered skipping the game, a sudden idea struck her. Taking out the dragon blood she’d collected during her contract duel with Nivalis, she drank a [Melting Time] potion to reset [Away from Home, Identity is Self-Assigned]. This time, when she activated the skill, she used a drop of Nivalis’ blood.

Immediately, her body began to transform. Pale blue scales appeared on her skin, her hands turned into dragon claws, wings unfurled from her back, and a shimmering gemstone crowned her dragon head.

Nivalis was stunned. "If you’re Nivalis, then who am I?"

The moment Rita transformed into a dragon, the bone hand loosened its grip. It worked!

And beneath [Soul Catcher]’s item description, a new skill appeared:

[A Prank] (1/1): After targeting someone with this skill, they will transform into the race of the first drop of alien blood they touch. The effect lasts for 30 natural days.

What a great skill! She decided to save it for the right moment. Overjoyed, she flew a few laps around the room in her dragon form.

She returned to [Soul Catcher] to start another game.

This time, it was a truth question.

"Would you let the being most important to you right now know all your secrets?"

No.

But she didn’t answer. Instead, she decided to test whether skipping this question would affect the content of the next dare game.

Rita used her once-per-30-days chance to skip the game.

Now, beneath [A Prank], a new skill appeared:

[A Lie] (1/1): Use this skill to make one of your lies become reality. Effect lasts for 7 natural days.

Rita carefully put the bone hand away. [Soul Catcher] had become her new favorite item, constantly surprising her like a magical cat bed.

Meanwhile, Nivalis had quietly crept behind her and was now trying to bite her dragon wings.

Rita asked, "What are you doing?"

Her voice came out as a dragon’s roar, startling even herself. What an amazing skill!

She turned to Nivalis and said, "From now on, you’ll be called ’Turquoise.’"

Nivalis: "…" Childish.

After reverting to her human form, Rita scooped up the misbehaving Nivalis and asked, "Mahjong or stirring up trouble on Dragon Island?"

Nivalis pulled out a pair of sunglasses from her pocket and put them on. "Of course, Dragon Island. I’m going to show the dragons there what it means when the Dragon King returns!"

Rita: "…You… Do you realize how tacky you sound?"

Nivalis raised a claw, wagging a single dragon finger. In a low, solemn voice, she said, "Don’t worry. With me, you’ll never lose out. The dragon scale was found by both of us, but you synthesized it. So, seventy-thirty split in your favor."

Rita’s gaze sharpened. She declared firmly, "Understood, Dragon King."

She’d known from the moment she first met Nivalis that this dragon was no ordinary creature. She was a Dragon King!

And Rita needed money. She had to prepare several backup plans for extracting Moon Sand before entering the tower. Whether it required skills or items, she needed a solution that would settle the clock issue in one go.

According to Eclipse Vanguard, if Moon Sand couldn’t be extracted, they’d proceed with a second plan to either clear the Moon Sand inside the tower or relocate it with skills.

No way! That’s like drinking my blood or eating my flesh!

Eager with dreams of fortune, the duo skipped sleep and immediately set off for Lania Kaia. Upon arriving in Yaslan City, Rita even used Lania Kaia’s "Wind Scythe Fast Delivery" service to send a letter to Lucia, requesting a few days’ leave. She also sent a letter to Hecipah, explaining that her evaluation would need to be postponed.

By the time [Moment of Reversal]’s cooldown ended, Rita crafted another skill crystal for it. This was a skill she wouldn’t dare sell, keeping it for her own use. She planned to stop crafting it after November 30th to ensure it wouldn’t be on cooldown when she entered the tower. If it took 300 years to cool down, that’d be a massive loss.

Previously, it had taken Nivalis over 30 hours to fly from Ton Ton Mountain to Dragon Island—33 hours nonstop or 37 with breaks. But since leveling up from 14 to 16, she’d gained 60 attribute points, with 1% increases across her four primary stats. Her advanced stats like resistance, willpower, accuracy, and crit rate had also improved slightly. The most noticeable change was her increased flight speed.

Only two levels and such significant growth? No wonder dragons are so powerful!

Seeing Nivalis’ strength made Rita green with envy. It was no surprise that the Twelve Sacred Clans had united to force the dragons to descend to Blue Star. And even then, they’d only sent Nivalis, a hatchling. Although Nivalis claimed she’d orchestrated this opportunity herself, it was clear to everyone that this was the dragon race’s calculated response.

In under 33 hours, the pair reached Dragon Island. But this time, there were no big dragons to greet them.

Rita sighed, "The cherished little one… is this it?"

"…"

"The Dragon King… is this it???"

"…"

Nivalis thought she might never grow up. At this rate, she wouldn’t even survive to adulthood—she’d die of frustration thanks to Rita.