In the end, Rita managed to coax the dragon back by buying Nivalis a limited-edition figurine.
Nivalis stayed in the study with Rita—Rita focused on her studies while Nivalis played video gas.
anwhile, the Wilson Family villa nearby remained unoccupied. Samuel and Scarlett still hadn't returned. Whether they were still in City B or had gone elsewhere was unknown. Rita, however, believed Samuel probably didn't dare return, suspecting the child's disappearance had been Rick's doing.
Not that Samuel was alone in his suspicions. Even without evidence, Rita herself strongly suspected Rick.
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She figured he must have struck so sort of shady deal with Black Jade to pull off such an underhanded move.
What she couldn't figure out was the price Rick had paid.
Given Black Jade's animosity toward her, Rita found it hard to believe Black Jade would help Rick without expecting sothing in return.
On the way back to City S, Rita had even asked Nivalis if she knew anything about the skill "Law of the Jungle", but Nivalis, being more of a dragon-kindergartener than a tactician, knew absolutely nothing.
Still, the matter weighed heavily on Rita's mind.
Aside from the bloodline bond, the fact that Mistblade could sll the scent of dragon on her made her deeply uneasy. She only had nine bottles of "I Really Don't Have Ti to Shower" left, and she had to ration them carefully.
Every few days, Rita would take a break from her studies to clear a dungeon, treating it as a form of relaxation. The rest of her ti was spent researching alchemy. The herbal processing thods in "lting Ti" were extraordinarily tedious and complicated—so steps were more difficult than brewing an actual potion. No wonder the finished product was of master-grade quality.
By accident, she even concocted a low-grade potion that could sterilize small animals. She made a hundred bottles and stored them with Nivalis, instructing her to use them on all the cats in the backyard.
To focus on potion-making, Rita temporarily suspended all her orders, devoting herself with the sa intensity she had once shown preparing for college entrance exams. She didn't realize it was already the 30th until Zoey sent her a ssage.
---
Zoey:
Sis, coming to listen to "Hymn of Hope" tomorrow?
Rick's situation hasn't affected my promise. I still rember how you helped .
---
Rita was genuinely surprised. Zoey was inviting her to a concert?
After Black Jade had contracted Rick on the 15th or 16th, Rita hadn't been able to attend as Han Shi anymore, nor did she have the standing to join the 300 concerts again. She'd been debating sneaking into one, only for Zoey to reach out first.
And it was clear Zoey was inviting her at the first opportunity. On the surface, the 1st concert had triggered an attribute-point increase for Rita, and Zoey had obviously kept track of the 30-day cooldown period, timing her invitation perfectly.
---
Rita:
I'll be there.
Don't worry about Rick—it's not your fault.
---
Rita wasn't worried about Rick being upset with her attending Zoey's concert.
Seriously, she'd lost two attribute points just to stand up for Rick! With Shadow.Q's quick wit, word of her actions had surely spread. If Rick had even a shred of decency, he wouldn't dare complain.
When Zoey sent over the location, Rita saw it was in the grasslands—a place she'd been planning to visit anyway.
---
Zoey:
I've sent you the tour schedule on WeChat. Co whenever it's convenient for you.
---
Rita opened WeChat and was stunned. Zoey's concert locations were scattered across the country. It really was a full-blown tour.
She imdiately contacted Shadow.Q for help.
---
Rita:
Sis, are you going to Zoey's concert tomorrow night? She invited . Do you have a ride? Mind taking along?
I'll cover the fare with one use of "Feeling Blessed", but we'll need to stagger our schedules—I need to save my skill stones. I'll use the skill on you the day after tomorrow.
Shadow.Q:
Sure. Will you and Nivalis be ho at 4 p.m. tomorrow? I'll co pick you up.
Rita:
We'll be there.
Shadow.Q:
I'm surprised your relationship with Zoey hasn't been affected. She still invited you?
Rita:
Yep. Haven't you heard the saying?
Shadow.Q:
???
Rita:
"Won should stay out of n's affairs."
Shadow.Q:
...That's harsh!
---
The next day, Rita didn't bother studying. She visited the Wilson Family villa in the morning and spent the afternoon training with Nivalis on mobile casting and dodging.
To motivate Nivalis, Rita placed 100 gold coins in the middle of the living room. For every piece of furniture Nivalis destroyed, a coin would be deducted. The remainder after three hours would be hers.
In the first hour, Nivalis didn't use a single skill—she simply dodged everything. The little ice dragon was annoyingly clever.
Rita had to adjust the rules. She added 200 more gold coins, stating that if Nivalis landed more than five hits on her, the 200 coins would be hers.
Nivalis, clutching her short little arms, listened intently and asked seriously, "Are you going to add any more rules?"
Rita: "...No."
Nivalis: "Promise? No tricks?"
Rita: "Yes, I promise. No tricks."
For the next two hours, Nivalis still didn't cast a single spell—not even a spark.
Rita was exasperated. "...That's 200 gold coins!"
Perched on the chandelier, Nivalis replied, "100 coins isn't bad either. A guaranteed minimum is good enough for . Being cautious pays off. Don't go back on your word—you promised no more rule changes."
Rita: …
She'd underestimated the little dragon.
Kids these days were hard to teach good habits, but when it ca to picking up bad ones, they were lightning-fast.
Still, Rita didn't mind spending money on Nivalis. Seeing how happy she was after getting the coins, Rita even shared half the proceeds from selling dragon manure with her. Nivalis happily accepted.
At 4 p.m., Shadow.Q arrived outside Rita's house on ti. She took Rita to a barbecue restaurant, where a colleague capable of opening portals was already waiting. Shadow.Q had clearly arranged everything in advance, so the player wasn't surprised to see Rita.
Once the group was ready, they stepped through the portal and arrived on the grasslands, where they were greeted by a dense crowd.
Zoey's tour was in full swing. Her entertainnt career was flourishing—better than Rita's had been even before she'd retired.
After listening to the "Hymn of Hope", Rita didn't follow Shadow.Q and the others back. She told them she wanted to stay and buy so local specialties, promising to return on her own.
In truth, she had her eyes on a valuable item nearby—sothing she had planned to claim soon.
It wasn't the male or female lead's, but Rick's brother's opportunity.
---
Han Shi: This refers to the persona Rita used to disguise herself when interacting with Zoey in the past. It's her alias.
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