This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist

Chapter 61: Tension Unresolved but Not Fully Broken

As for whether there was a truth-telling **Divine Gift**, there certainly was. Samuel's second skill could detect lies, for instance. However, Rita trusted that the authorities had ways to counteract such measures; after all, she wasn't being given two percent of the profits for nothing.

Feeling content, Rita closed her eyes.

—"Why do you think she's been gone so long?"

—"She must be hunting food for us."

—"Meow, this food is so delicious!"

—"Such good food must be hard to get. Maybe we should bring her a gift next time."

—"What should we bring? Mice? She's such a great cook, she probably wouldn't eat mice."

—"I don't know either. I just feel like I should give her something."

—"Same here, meow~ I feel the same~"

—"How strange~"

Rita smiled, her heart lightened. It seemed the cats in her yard might indeed mutate.

After relaxing for half a day, Rita went on a search for cockroaches to use as surveillance, but after searching the entire villa, she couldn't find any. Eventually, she went to a pet market, bought two small spiders, and killed them to use the rarely utilized skill **[Only the Dead Will Listen]** to control them, placing them as her new surveillance tools in the safe room.

The next day, Rick picked her up and brought her to the Lopez family estate. Oddly, he hadn't brought Scarlett or Samuel along. At the Lopez mansion, not only was Zoey present, but also Mateo, Theodore, and a few of Zoey's cousins.

Rita kept a polite smile. Even though she already knew these cousins were notorious influencers who had been involved in scandals, she didn't lose her composure.

"And they made me sign a contract with the official government seal, recognized by the game itself."

"I can't afford to break the contract. The penalties are too severe; it would be like killing me."

Her tone was calm but serious.

Throughout the conversation, the butler standing behind Zoey hadn't poured Rita a drink, indicating that she wasn't lying. This realization finally cooled Zoey's anger, though she still couldn't fully let go of her frustration. "You should have come to us first."

This wasn't how you treated a partner in a business deal. Rita highly doubted that if Zoey failed in a negotiation with another partner, she would turn around and blame them for not reaching out sooner.

Rita remained silent. She wasn't going to grovel for the Lopez family. She wasn't about to tolerate this level of disrespect either. Sitting here explaining herself was already testing her patience.

Sensing the tension, Mateo raised his glass to break the ice. "Sorry, Zoey didn't mean it that way. We just regret that we didn't establish this partnership with you first. We see you as part of the Lopez family."

*Oh, so now I'm family, huh?* Rita thought, maintaining a friendly smile she had perfected in her entertainment industry days. "Maybe so, but I think I'm better off as a part of the nation. Even though they take a cut, they've promised to protect me. Plus, if I die, they'll use a cause-and-effect **Divine Gift** to hunt down my killer and avenge me."

A heavy silence fell over the room.

The three Lopez siblings felt slighted by Rita's blunt refusal, but more than that, they were shocked by the terms of her contract. It meant they couldn't resort to extreme measures if they couldn't get what they wanted from her. Not only that, but it confirmed how significant her **Divine Gift** was if the authorities were offering this level of protection.

They regretted not pulling Rita into the family sooner.

Rick, however, felt nothing but satisfaction. The Lopez family had never cared for the Wilson family, but now he envied Rita. Her **Divine Gift** might be B-ranked with no combat utility, but it was valuable, and she had leverage.

Rita's assertiveness made the Lopez family rethink their approach. They were beginning to realize that she wasn't someone who would give up her principles to cling to their power, nor would she cower in fear of them. More importantly, she now had the backing of the government.

The younger generation of the Lopez family, though arrogant, weren't stupid. They were quick to adjust their attitudes when they sensed Rita's stance.

Even Zoey, despite her frustration, concealed her anger. For now, they had no choice but to be civil. With only one **Wheel of Fate** in existence, they needed to tread carefully until they fully understood why this skill was so important.