This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist

Rita immediately noticed Aaron, wearing an eye patch. The exposed eye was a striking blue, beautiful enough to make anyone want to dig it out. She quickly used **Insight**.

**[Magic Eye] (A-Rank)**: The magical eye of Biteri, which accompanied him on countless seafaring adventures.

- **Skill 1: Time Rewind** – Allows the user to "see" the target's experiences from the last 6 hours. Consumes 20% mana per use, with a 24-hour cooldown.

- **Skill 2: Mind Reading** – Direct eye contact allows the user to read the target's thoughts. Consumes 10 mana per second while in use.

- **Note**: Must be installed in an eye socket to function.

Upon reading the description, Rita's heart skipped a beat, a cold sweat breaking out. She quickly realized, however, that she had the **Chávez** ability, which should shield her from such invasive skills. Plus, Aaron wasn't even a player yet. He had no mana to use the eye's abilities, and she could bet that Aaron was only able to see through the eye due to some healing spell cast by a player.

But that magic eye... Rita had to get her hands on it. Even if she couldn't use it herself, she needed to seize it.

While Rita was using **Insight** on Aaron's magic eye, Aaron was looking at her too. In that moment, an idea struck him: a brilliant plan that would allow him to stay close to Rick without raising Zoey's suspicions. He would use Rita as his shield…

During dinner, Aaron began to lavish attention on Rita.

He wasn't alone; several others were also intrigued by Rita. After all, her striking appearance and elegant demeanor were hard to ignore. But Aaron acted the fastest. Just as he poured Rita a drink, she gave him a thoughtful look, as if contemplating something.

Aaron, trying to suppress his excitement, smiled shyly, feeling both pleased and nervous.

Why wait for a threat to become real before acting? Why not eliminate it early? Then Rita spoke, "I think I've seen you before. Weren't you involved with **Blue Cheng**?"

Her words landed like a bombshell, plunging the table into silence.

**Blue Cheng**, a popular actor, was known for his steady presence in Hollywood, a hardworking star with a loyal following. Even Samuel and Scarlett had watched his dramas.

Aaron was stunned for a few seconds before reacting with anger. "How dare you say that? What a baseless accusation!"

Rita, as if realizing her mistake, quickly apologized. "Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to offend. It's my fault, I didn't mean anything by it."

She even slapped herself lightly on the mouth in mock punishment, her face showing exaggerated regret. Then she pulled out a **fine-grade belt** and handed it to Aaron. "Here, please take this as my apology. I really didn't mean it."

Her repeated apologies were relentless, though she never clarified that her initial statement was false. All that was missing was a shout of support for LGBTQ rights.

Aaron didn't say a word as the fine-grade equipment was shoved into his hands. He wasn't even a player, so he couldn't use the belt, but he barely registered that fact. His thoughts were consumed with Rick. He feared that if Rick found out he was gay, he'd distance himself. Aaron's gaze constantly flickered toward Rick, monitoring his reaction.

To his relief, Rick's expression showed only mild surprise, no disgust. Aaron let out a small sigh of relief.

In truth, Rick wasn't paying attention. His mind was elsewhere, still preoccupied with his missing attribute points and the A-rank magic eye temporarily lodged in Aaron's eye socket.

Rick's calm demeanor didn't diminish Aaron's growing disgust toward Rita. He also decided to abandon his plan to use her as a shield. She knew too much. The truth was, Aaron had indeed been involved with Blue Cheng, but very few people knew about it.

He cursed himself for forgetting that Rita had once been part of the entertainment industry. While the public might not know about his relationship with Blue Cheng, gossip traveled quickly in those circles, and perhaps Rita had heard a rumor and mistakenly believed it.

It wasn't really his fault. In his past life, Rita was still struggling in the entertainment world, and Rick had always introduced her by mentioning her breakthrough role. Aaron had even probed carefully back then to make sure she didn't know about him and Blue Cheng before he decided to use her as a front.

But this time around, Rita had left the industry early. Aaron hadn't given a minor celebrity much thought, only vaguely recognizing her before deciding to make her his shield.

The truth about his past was something Rita had uncovered in their previous life. Blue Cheng was the last member to join the male protagonist's inner circle, and it was through him that Rita first realized Aaron was gay.

Honestly, the author of this "son-in-law novel" seemed determined to throw in every trendy, sensational element they could think of… without considering whether the audience for such stories would accept a gay man secretly pining for the male lead.

The awkward moment was soon brushed over by Rick's easy banter. No one else seemed particularly upset with Rita. After all, she was a player, and Aaron wasn't. Plus, she had offered a sincere apology in the form of a belt that was clearly a fine-grade item, glowing faintly green. It was a generous gesture.

Whether it was gear or potions, everyone knew they would eventually lose value as time passed. But for now, they were in high demand among players, and such items were incredibly scarce. Many were willing to pay but couldn't find them anywhere.

Even Aaron couldn't hold a grudge for long. Although he found Rita annoying, he let his anger fade, chalking up her comment to impulsiveness.

After dinner, Rita excused herself. Before leaving, she generously gave each of them a bottle of **basic healing potion**, earning her even more goodwill as she left the Wilson household.

She was beginning to understand Samuel and Rick's tactics. Offering small, insignificant tokens that didn't cost her much, but created a favorable impression—it was a clever strategy.

Before driving off, Rita discreetly placed a small, **"Dead Man's Spy"** spider near Rick's car and then left in her own vehicle.

That magic eye? She was going to get it tonight.

Rita had a nagging feeling that Rick had somehow used this magic eye in his past life. If he didn't use it himself, he must have given it to one of his brothers or wives. But why had she never seen it?

Surely he hadn't hidden it… somewhere unspeakable?

Forget it. First, she needed to get her hands on the eye. Then she could figure it out.

The spider had already climbed into Rick's car, hiding in the back seat. Under its surveillance, Rita saw that Aaron and the others were leaving the Wilson estate.

Though they were all close friends, by evening they each returned to their respective homes. Rick drove them one by one. First, he dropped off the others, until only **Julian** and Aaron were left. Julian had been living with Rick since moving to Los Angeles and had become too lazy to find his own place. Aaron, meanwhile, didn't want to return to the **Jones** family's estate anytime soon.

He feared that if he went back, someone else from the family might take his other eye. At least at Rick's place, Julian could protect him.

That was the kind of deep, touching friendship these protagonists shared. Aaron trusted the people he had only known for a few months, but not the Jones family, who had risked offending others to seek justice for him.