Chapter 21: Acting Until Your Heart Breaks
Rita had a big performance coming up in a few days. But before that, she needed to take care of some loose ends. First, she went to the hospital to have a tooth extracted, making room to install the **Magician's Fake Tooth**. The moment the fake tooth touched her numbed gum, it settled in perfectly.
The second thing on her list was dealing with the secret room in the Wilson family's study. She hadn't expected Samuel to be so useless—he still hadn't noticed anything was wrong! If she revealed that she was a player in the second beta test, even a pig would know who moved the valuables out of the house.
On June 8th, Rita had no choice but to make another trip to Vancouver. Using photos of the antiques and jewelry she had sold before, she had some high-quality fakes made, along with 300 pounds of fake gold bars. With the help of her game backpack and *Phantom Shift*, she transported everything back to Samuel's study.
There weren't any major expenses coming up for the family, and in her previous life, when she returned from her escape, the old couple was still busy moving those treasures. Although Rick constantly asked her for money in her past life, that was because he had become a beta tester and needed large sums of money. But this time around, he was just an ordinary 9cm warrior—what money could he possibly need?
After a round trip, everything was back in place by the 10th.
That day, Rita gathered Samuel, Scarlett, and Rick at Rick's hotel. She even considered inviting Zoey, but with one ear missing, Zoey wasn't in the mood to deal with her. Fine, it didn't matter if the heroine wasn't there. If she couldn't gain the heroine's trust, she could at least create a rift in the relationship between the male and female leads.
Rick sat on the edge of the bed, his eyes downcast, wearing an expression that said, "Even though I'm in a bad mood, I'll cooperate with whatever my sister wants."
Once everyone was settled, Rita made sure the hotel room door was securely closed before rejoining them. Lowering her voice mysteriously, she said, "I think I've found a way to heal Rick."
In an instant, the two people who had been maintaining a veneer of patience but were secretly growing impatient, along with the one who was openly frustrated, all widened their eyes and looked at her.
Rita explained that a few days ago, while waiting for someone, she had downloaded a game to pass the time. She played it for just two hours before the game and her phone vanished. The most important part was that the items and skills she acquired in the game had come with her into the real world! To prove it, she searched for the game in front of them, but nothing came up.
Both Samuel and Rick, even Scarlett, held their breaths, trying to process what they were hearing. Scarlett had a bad temper and was often impulsive, but she knew Rita well enough to know that she wouldn't joke about something so serious.
Lowering her voice even further, Rita pulled out a small, tattered gray pouch from her pocket—the 4-slot pouch she had acquired from the previous owner of the **Wheel of Fate**. In front of everyone, she extracted three lunchboxes, each far larger than the pouch itself. Then she pulled out a small glass vial, about the size of a pinky finger, filled with a liquid that resembled a red gemstone. Handing the vial to Rick, she said, "This is a healing potion from the game. Quick, drink it and see if it works!"
Rick's hands trembled as he took the vial, his eyes filled with a complex mix of disbelief, gratitude, and jealousy as he looked at Rita.
Rita urged, "Try it quickly!"
Scarlett was even more anxious, repeatedly urging Rick to drink it. Samuel clenched his fists, looking like he wanted to force the potion down Rick's throat.
Rick tilted his head back and drank the potion... and then... nothing happened. His expression darkened as he stared at his pants. He was still a 9cm big boy.
How tragic. She had never seen a male lead in a web novel with a length that was a single digit.
9cm—might as well round it down to zero!
At that moment, Rick was almost grateful that he was an actor, as he forced a smile and tried to console himself. "Even if this didn't work, at least we know that such miraculous things exist. I managed to get in this time, so maybe next time, you can too!"
Before anyone could respond, Rita continued, "I was going to invite Zoey today as well, to see if she could investigate this. With the Lopez family's influence, they must know more than us ordinary people."
After calming himself, Rick asked, "What skill did you get?"
"It's not exactly a skill," Rita explained. "It's a talent I drew. It can make people either lucky or unlucky by altering their luck. I can only use it once a day." She smiled. "Want to try? I can set your luck to 10, which is the highest."
Rita had already decided to disguise her **Divine Gift** as the **Wheel of Fate** from now on. This ability was too useful—it could modify someone's luck, and she could choose whether or not to let them know. It was the ultimate tool for causing trouble, hiding the bad and showing the good—perfect for mischief.
Rick was conflicted. This talent sounded useful but wasn't overwhelmingly powerful, something that would create a vast gulf between people. However, he couldn't help but feel a pang of regret that it wasn't a healing ability. But his complex emotions quickly passed, and the jealousy faded, leaving only genuine gratitude. He was truly touched that Rita would share such a significant secret with them.
Even though Rita had always kept something for herself, never giving them all her money, this moment began to dissolve those past grievances. Rick decided that he wouldn't let Zoey pressure her anymore—he'd find another way to make Zoey feel insecure.
Samuel's feelings were also mixed. Why hadn't his son encountered such a fortuitous event? But then his heart warmed. He knew the son he had raised. If Rick had stumbled upon such luck, he might have shared a sip of the benefits, but he would never have revealed everything.
Scarlett felt the same. She regretted that it wasn't her son who had the fortune, but she was also deeply touched, her heart warming at Rita's foolishness in telling her family everything.
Rita opened the lunchboxes and invited everyone to eat while they chatted. Then, with a slightly embarrassed smile, she put the pouch away, indicating that she wasn't going to share more.
This time, unlike before, Rita's reluctance didn't bother them. In the past, even though Rita often gave the family money, Samuel and Rick thought it was never enough, given the family's wealth. Her reluctance to share more had made them feel she was ungrateful and holding back. But now, after she shared such a significant secret, they didn't see her as withholding—just frugal, as usual.
Rita couldn't read minds, so she couldn't tell what these two cunning old foxes were thinking, but she continued with her plan, always on guard. In her past life, both Samuel and Scarlett had only become players after the official game invasion, and their talents were mediocre. She was determined that if either of them hit the talent lottery this time, she would eliminate them immediately.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone