[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-this-life-i-will-be-the-protagonist":3,"chapter-this-life-i-will-be-the-protagonist-this-life-i-will-be-the-protagonist-chapter-1289":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1533100,1991,"Chapter 1289: Divine Game: Graveyard of Bones 11","this-life-i-will-be-the-protagonist-chapter-1289",1289,"\u003Cp>A mistake?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Byme’s expression went blank for a moment. She shook her head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I can’t think of any.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So that was it. That gap. That blind spot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita looked at her and said calmly,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I can’t think of one either. Not something she would need to correct through you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nivalis, who had been quietly listening the whole time, suddenly spoke up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Actually, you and Byme have the same problem.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita turned to her, curious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What problem?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You both assume Deceitful Bloom can’t be wrong.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nivalis went straight to the point.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And you never even considered that invading Tingo might have been her mistake.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She didn’t stop there. She laid it out piece by piece.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"When we first got here, the Vineborne were already planning to invade Tingo while she was away. They even had reasons and advantages ready.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why didn’t you consider that Deceitful Bloom was the one who refused the invasion?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That Byme and the others wanted to move fast, so they planned to act while she was gone?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She paused, then continued.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Something must have happened right before they left. Maybe like what happened to you, they tried contacting her and got shut down. Or something else entirely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And Byme herself said it. Deceitful Bloom made it clear. No invasions unless she was present. No final descent without her.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nivalis had listened to everything. She had also heard what happened in the final war. That Deceitful Bloom was the last remaining Vineborne.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t hard to connect the dots.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"In Byme’s memory, she already gave us both sides,\" Nivalis concluded. \"Deceitful Bloom had a reason to stop the invasion. Byme had a reason to push it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Honestly, everything points to Deceitful Bloom being the problem.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was obvious. Almost too obvious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita had thought of it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And dismissed it immediately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She said quietly,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s not that I think she can’t be wrong.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She paused.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I just think... she wouldn’t be wrong.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nivalis froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...Do you hear yourself right now?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Byme’s gaze locked onto Rita.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So you think it was me. That I was the one who stopped the invasion?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And whatever the reason was, it mattered enough that she couldn’t let it go.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Byme lowered her eyes slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why do you think that?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita gestured.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Move the timeline forward. To the moment her soul fire lights up.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Byme complied without hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time shifted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita stepped forward and stood directly in front of Deceitful Bloom. She studied the outline of the soul fire at her forehead in silence for a while.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then she spoke again, but instead of answering, she asked a question.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Does she really visit you often?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She tilted her head slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No... has she ever come to see you at all?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The black quicksand began to drift through the air, coiling like a massive serpent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Byme’s voice remained steady.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What’s your point?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You keep creating the impression that she visits you frequently,\" Rita said. \"You repeat it again and again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You say she never gives you answers. You say the old ones come and talk about the past but not the present.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But your wording is always vague.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She paused, then continued.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The biggest problem is how you described hearing about me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Because you always make Deceitful Bloom angry.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That’s not how she would describe me. Not our relationship.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita stopped there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She kept staring at the soul fire, studying its outline.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then suddenly, she laughed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soft, but sharp. Like she had just solved it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Adventure Lamb. So that’s what it is.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She turned back to Byme, ignoring the coldness in her expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That phrasing. Making her angry. That’s how an observer would describe it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That’s how those gods who enjoy watching would put it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If it were me, I’d call it resistance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If it were her... she’d call it taming.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita shrugged slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Every time I push back, she just finds it more interesting. Honestly, I think that’s a retired person’s personality disorder.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She waved it off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But that’s subjective.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then her tone sharpened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You know what the real evidence is?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Byme clasped her hands behind her back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The massive quicksand serpent had already coiled around Rita and Nivalis.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She nodded slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Go on.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Her Flower Island.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita met her gaze directly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She’s cultivated tens of thousands of flowers there. Flower Crown Murder. Heartless Temptation. March Winter Sleep. Flower of Deceit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Freedom. resilience. sorrow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She appreciates every kind of beauty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She plants every Vineborne she acknowledges.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita’s voice dropped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But there are two that don’t exist there.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She stepped closer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Variational Quicksand. And Song of Avian Cause.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She repeated it, slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They’re not there.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because she doesn’t want to see you.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The air turned heavy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Killing intent thickened until it almost felt solid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The massive serpent lowered its head. Its gemstone eyes fixed on Rita at point-blank range.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Byme no longer looked gentle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She looked like the one who had stood atop a wind whale, forcing quicksand down its blowhole.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cold. Violent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Strands of black sand drifted across her face, dimming her features.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita didn’t move.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She simply looked at her and said quietly,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Can’t find the answer?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She took a step closer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Or don’t dare to?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nivalis stood on her shoulder, already prepared. If a fight broke out, she would sync her stats instantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita circled around Byme, unhurried. The serpent followed her every step.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m close,\" she said. \"Just one piece left.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She glanced sideways.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Want to figure it out with me?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Or we stop here. I stay quiet. When time’s up, I leave.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Byme let out a soft laugh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You don’t want the burial location of Cat’s Ideal’s creator anymore?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita answered honestly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m worried you’ll give me a Quiet Mountain god and set me up.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You can detect lies.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You control everything here,\" Rita said flatly. \"If I mess up, I pay for it. I’m not risking that.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even leaving this place carried risk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If the method was wrong, the worst case was being stuck for another twenty four hours.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was manageable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was different.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Byme could simply change the environment and trap her completely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A quiet sigh echoed across the clock arena.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And you still chose to expose it?\" Byme asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rita met her eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Because I’m curious too.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her voice was calm, but steady.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What kind of thing happened back then...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That made her unable to forgive you...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And still bury you with her own hands.\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1072,"2026-06-06T06:15:32.213Z",1,"novelbin.me","4aef657a505359b6d49a164f243e8cbc49d7bacc242099823fe3657eaaa80c4d","this-life-i-will-be-the-protagonist-chapter-1290","this-life-i-will-be-the-protagonist-chapter-1288",1404,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthis-life-i-will-be-the-protagonist-cover.jpg"]