This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist

Chapter 302 [Absolute Clarity] (SS-Rank)

After greeting Holy CupNorth YearSnow Pile at her lair, Nivalis flew Rita to the usual battleground of Wind Shear and Emperor Umbrella.

Wind Shear was a black divine dragon, and Emperor Umbrella a white yinglong. Rita had seen them fighting when she first visited Dragon Island. Both dragons were level 177, even higher than Holy CupNorth Year.

When Rita and Nivalis arrived, the two dragons had just finished a clash and were now locked in a standoff.

Nivalis took a deep breath, held up the black-and-white scale, and shouted, "Emperor Umbrella, Wind Shear~ Make peace, for my sake!"

The two massive dragons slowly turned their heads, peering down at the tiny Rita and Nivalis.

Nivalis felt her legs go weak and silently questioned the scriptwriter: "Will this really work? Are we even going to leave Dragon Island alive?"

Rita: "What, are they going to kill you?"

Nivalis: "That's not what you said earlier! You said you were a pro at acting!"

Rita: "Huh?"

Nivalis: ...

Before they could continue bickering, both dragons shrank their forms to match Rita and Nivalis in size and appeared before them.@@@@

The dragon scale held a faint but unique balance of opposing rules. While Rita and Nivalis couldn't discern it, Emperor Umbrella and Wind Shear noticed immediately.

Though they had been fighting for centuries, there was no true blood feud between them—just the natural opposition of their Divine Gifts. Every time they saw each other, it was like meeting their nemesis, igniting an uncontrollable urge to fight. Yet this scale, a perfect blend of their essence, seemed to neutralize their clashing auras.

Emperor Umbrella spoke first. "Sell it to me."

Wind Shear countered instantly. "5,000 gold."

Emperor Umbrella: "10,000 gold."

Wind Shear: "15,000 gold!"

Emperor Umbrella: "30,000 gold."

Wind Shear: "..."

After some thought, Emperor Umbrella raised the stakes. "60,000 gold plus a fusion skill, [Moment of Decision]. Once you've synchronized your minds, you can fuse for combat. There are two modes: one where you lead, and one where the human leads. It's a relic from Lidian's era. You may look like a pair of scoundrels now, but you'll find it quite useful."

Rita's heart sank. Great, I've officially become a human pillar.

In the end, Nivalis chose Emperor Umbrella's offer. While [Thunderstorm from All Sides] was impressive, she was more interested in playing around with fusion mechanics. And Emperor Umbrella offered more money.

[Moment of Decision] was a skill book that required both Rita and Nivalis to hold its edges simultaneously to learn. They did so on the spot.

After receiving the scale, Emperor Umbrella turned to Wind Shear. "Want to rent it? 10,000 gold a month."

Wind Shear: "...Isn't this extortion?"

Emperor Umbrella held up the scale. "Wind Shear, today marks your defeat—"

Wind Shear roared, "Fine! I'll rent it!"

Brutal. Simply brutal.

Despite the cost being trivial for dragons, Wind Shear realized too late how much he'd overpaid.

Nivalis quipped, "Brother, you panicked."

Rita quickly covered Nivalis' mouth and smiled humbly at Wind Shear. "Senior, would you sell [Thunderstorm from All Sides] for 20,000 gold?"

Nivalis' eyes lit up. Pulling Rita's hand away, she exclaimed, "Yeah, Brother Wind Shear! Sell it! You'll at least recoup something!"

The result? Rita and Nivalis were chased off Dragon Island by an enraged Wind Shear, leaving without even saying goodbye to Holy CupNorth Year.

Not that it mattered. The two elder dragons had merely extended their heads from their lairs to watch the drama unfold. Holy Cup was sipping on a gray coconut as the chaos ensued.

Nivalis wiped away the tears—blown out by Wind Shear's wind skills. So this is the pain of growing up in a dragon's world!

Once off the island, Rita and Nivalis split the money. Rita took her 42,000 gold and started planning what skills to buy next, while Nivalis contemplated renting out an entire toy store.

It was then that Rita finally opened her private message notifications, which had been beeping non-stop.

[Shadow.Q]: Congratulations, Rita, on ranking first in four leaderboards.