This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist

Chapter 376 The Game of Gods: Painting Contest 7

Rita's firm stance caught the 8th-tier Graveyard Race alien off guard, and he backed off without pressing further.

To her surprise, Rita felt no fear or panic deep down. Instead, there was a strange sense of exhilaration—backed into a corner, with no room for pretense, she faced danger with nothing but her true self. It wasn't as terrifying as she thought.

What was this? Perhaps it was the mindset of a true stronghold.

As the last part of the throne's decorations turned blue, the red light pillar shifted to blue.

A golden star appeared before Rita's eyes, alongside two empty outlines of stars.

Stepping into a corner, she watched as the aliens approached to set up their defenses and write down their rules.

Nivalis asked her internally, "What if one of them kills you after getting their answer?"

The next round of the game had begun. Once again, Rita's head displayed a blue triangle. The good news: this time, she wasn't the Flagbearer. Meanwhile, the aliens in the room had each been assigned to new teams.@@@@

Rita stayed put and responded mentally, "They won't. For my life alone, it's not worth offending so many others."

Even here, where everyone was ultimately an enemy, no one would risk provoking so many others simultaneously.

Frenzied Shark was the first to step forward. Without a word, thorny vines rose around the corner, enclosing the area. He began writing his rule on the ground. Once Rita understood one of them, she immediately translated it for him.

One by one, the aliens approached to write their rules, with higher-tier players taking priority.

Rita kept her word, translating only one rule per person. Even when one alien pressed a blade to her throat and shattered the [Death Counterattack] shield, she remained unmoved, instead scrutinizing the alien's divine talent.

It was SS-tier—nothing flashy, but undeniably powerful.

She briefly regretted not bringing her Sharpshooter Talent. If she had, she could've used [Moment of Reversal] to exchange it for an SS-tier ability.

As the alien died, his pet vanished as well.

Several notifications rang in Rita's mind:

Ding—Congratulations, BSRita, on killing Black Spring—Caleb. The player Caleb has traded three S-rank skills for a resurrection. You will randomly receive one of his S-rank skills as a reward. Ding—You have gained 5.3% of the opponent's current level XP. Ding—Reward drawn: You have acquired the S-rank skill [Air Slash]. New Player Tip: Skills obtained from other players via hunting can be used unconditionally within the World Battleground.

Despite hearing the announcements, Rita had no time to revel in her rewards. The moment Caleb died, she used [Temporary Reset] to shift all her Strength stats into Intelligence, rapidly regenerating her mana.

Next, she dealt with the body. Her bullet and Nivalis's icy lance had struck Caleb's heart, leaving wounds that were sealed by frost.

But she heard the sounds of approaching aliens.

"Nivalis, loot the body. I'll handle the rest!"

Nivalis immediately jumped onto the corpse, only to find it had turned into a phantom. Undeterred, she searched the ground for any dropped items.

Rita, meanwhile, pulled off her coat to cover the bloodstains, but it fell uselessly to the ground. With the footsteps drawing closer, she had no choice but to unroll a blank canvas and aim it at the corpse.

Beep—You have violated a game rule. A divine punishment will be randomly assigned. Divine punishment determined: You have lost 5 points of Agility.

Rita froze, but then the canvas captured Caleb's image perfectly. Though bloodstained, it worked.

Without waiting to see what Nivalis had found, Rita stashed the canvas, grabbed her coat in one hand, and Nivalis in the other. Using her restored mana and an ultimate skill, she vanished with [Phantom Shift] just as two aliens burst into the room.

Hiding in a nearby hut, Rita and Nivalis were still trembling from adrenaline.

Rita whispered, "So? Did you find anything?"

Nivalis held up a tiny red toy airplane, barely the size of a fingertip. "Just this."