This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist

Cat's Ideal reappeared above the deep sea in the blink of an eye. The coastline from earlier was already long gone.

Rita had summoned Cat's Ideal to test the [Cat's Ideal] skill. While waiting for Sanchez, she'd already taken the ship on a quick trip to Marmang. Her pets and even her shadow had traveled with her using Cat's Ideal. But Rita didn't believe a skill named after a Divine Relic existed just to serve as transportation.

After all, [Wrathful Moon] could turn moonlight into ultimate techniques. No way [Cat's Ideal] was just a glorified boat.

She pulled the helm upward. With the splash of rushing seawater, Cat's Ideal rose from the waves and took flight.

She pushed the helm down. Instantly, the ship dove beneath the surface. A transparent bubble formed around the hull, wrapping every passenger in a protective shield.

Impressive, sure. But flying and diving—those weren't irreplaceable functions. She suspected there had to be something more.

Rita infused mana into the helm—and suddenly, she could sense everything within a 500-mile radius under the sea.

The movement of sea creatures, the layout of coral and reefs, the locations of dungeon gateways shimmering like veils on the ocean floor…

And not just sight. When she focused her attention, she could hear areas of interest too.

But could she apply skills to the ship itself?

Nothing. None of her own abilities or item-based powers had any effect on the vessel.

The helm twitched slightly, and she heard a soft meow echo in her mind.

—"Find the Vice-Captains. You'll be surprised."

So there was more to this.

Still, now wasn't the time.

The only reliable way she knew to travel between worlds was through the Arena. She had offerings Jameson had gathered for her, but regular and efficient use of the Arena still depended on working with large-scale organizations like Eclipse Vanguard.

Dungeon selection, handling Arena maintenance after she left for another world—these were logistical hurdles.

Above deck, it had started to drizzle. That was Sanchez's doing—leftover rain from her duel with Nivalis.

Sanchez had gone quiet again after the fight, clearly reeling from the fact that she couldn't even break through Nivalis's defenses.

On the flip side, Nivalis couldn't dodge every one of Sanchez's attacks, even after shrinking her size to half. Her evasion rate capped at 50%.

Nivalis glanced nervously at Rita. Even if Sanchez was using her weather-based talents to their full extent, with Nivalis's Agility sitting comfortably above 800, this shouldn't have been happening.

Rita pulled two rabbit hairs from her bag and waved them at Nivalis. Flight Combat and Evasion classes.

Sanchez trailed behind, totally shameless. When she saw what kind of lessons they were, her expression turned serious.

"Do you need another pet?" she asked.

Before Rita could respond, Nivalis shouted, "No!!"

Sanchez watched Nivalis storm off with regret and envy, then turned back to Rita, clearly calculating what kind of offer might work.

Rita leaned her back against the helm and met her gaze. "You already figured out it was me who attacked you in the villa back then, didn't you?"

No sugarcoating. She laid it out directly.

When she signed that contract with The White Family, she'd asked Jameson to keep her identity a secret. But some truths couldn't be hidden behind a fake name.

Even if Jameson said nothing, Ariana was smart enough to connect the dots.

And Sanchez… She wasn't the brightest strategist, but when it came to battle instincts and natural talent? Unmatched.

During her match with Nivalis just now, even without piercing her defense, Sanchez had managed a 70% hit rate just using the rain.

And if Sanchez saw the shadow inside the ship playing on the console—that was another clue. The same skill Rita had used years ago when she ambushed the villa. The split shadows weren't identical, but close enough.

Plus, they'd fought each other many times in the tower.

It was possible Sanchez had pieced it together even before Liang Pozhou.

And honestly, The White Family's monthly profit split didn't leave much room for secrecy. She used to cover her tracks more carefully, but as her power grew, she stopped sweating the small stuff.

The moment those profit records hit The White Family's ledgers, the truth was all but confirmed.

Maybe she'd gotten arrogant. Once she'd sworn she wouldn't expose that identity until her enemies were dead and gone. But power had changed her focus—she looked upward now, not back.

Sanchez's eyes didn't waver. No anger. No resentment. Just the spark of battle-lust and open admiration from someone who'd once been flicked across a room by a single finger.

She spun the blade on her wrist, meeting Rita's gaze. "Yeah, I figured it out. My mom even called a family meeting. She said maybe you saw the future. I said maybe you transmigrated into the novel and I'm the original protagonist, destined to become the ruler of BS. She told me to get out of her study."

Rita: …

Sanchez added, "She also said Eclipse Vanguard probably had the same kind of meeting."

Rita muttered, "Does your mom know you tell people everything?"

Sanchez flicked her wet bangs back with her claw, grinning proudly. "My mom told me to be myself."

Rita: …

Yeah, no. She wasn't about to get sucked into a conversation about Ariana.

Trying to redirect the topic, she asked, "You're not mad?"

Sanchez furrowed her brow, a flicker of frustration and helplessness in her eyes. "I was mad. But what am I gonna do? I can't beat you."

Rita couldn't help but chuckle. In that moment, she realized she was far less free-spirited than Sanchez. Rita had plotted revenge, made deals with Jameson, navigated layers of strategy just to find closure.

But for Sanchez, everything boiled down to one rule: Might makes right.

Winners decided truth. Losers didn't even have the right to hate.

Then, in a quieter voice, Sanchez said, "As long as you can lift the curse on The White Family… even if you take an arm or a leg from me, I'm fine with it."

Her tone was calm. The words were sharp, but not bitter.

This wasn't the vengeful, explosive Sanchez from Rita's past life. This version had no malice in her eyes—only clarity and light.

She truly didn't hate Rita.

Rita could feel it, unmistakably.

Sanchez's deal with Rick had left her humiliated and furious. She'd sacrificed her dignity for her family.

But her deal with Rita had cost her only physical wounds. Rita hadn't broken her spine or her pride. And to Sanchez, pain and loss were just part of life. The only thing she hated was having to kneel to someone beneath her.

To her, anyone beneath her was an insect. And she had to share that insect with two other people.

That constant humiliation chipped away at her sanity, moment by moment.

In another life, Sanchez might've snapped under that pressure long ago.

After a long silence, Rita finally sighed. "Let's leave it in the past."

Sanchez let out a huge breath of relief. "My mom was right! She said if I said that exact thing, you'd let it go."

Rita: …