This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist-Chapter 1286: Divine Game: Graveyard of Bones 8

After a brief pause, Byme asked, "Since when did Cicada take the surname BS?"

Rita let out a cold laugh.

"I knew it. Vineborne love lying. You said I was someone she rarely mentioned, and yet you know about BSCicada."

Byme cleared her throat, completely unapologetic.

"I said rarely, not only." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Rita didn’t bother arguing further. She got straight to the point.

"So this painting has a problem. It’s probably the key to how she tampered with and controlled your memories. Want to try destroying it?"

Byme didn’t refuse.

Compared to finding the truth, destroying a fake painting in her memory meant nothing.

Black quicksand began to flow through the air, spreading over the canvas in Deceitful Bloom’s hands.

At that exact moment, Deceitful Bloom suddenly stopped.

She lifted her gaze and looked straight at Rita.

It was a precise look. One that cut through the barrier of memory and landed directly on the outsider standing inside it.

But it lasted only a moment.

She lowered her head and continued painting.

Byme’s eyes widened slightly.

Then the scene shifted.

They left the classroom and returned to Midsummer.

Rita frowned.

"What just happened? Did something go wrong, or did you change your mind?"

Byme explained, "Deceitful Bloom left a trace of her soul fire in that moment. If I destroy the painting, it will erase everything tied to Divine Instruction.

"Not just the training. Also the time we spent together outside class. And the final matches."

Rita and Nivalis stared at her in silence for a few seconds.

Under their gaze, Byme turned her head away, clearly uncomfortable.

Nivalis sighed.

"It’s just a fragment of memory. You weren’t even in the same class. Losing it wouldn’t cost you much. Compared to that, finding the truth matters more."

Byme pressed her lips together and said nothing.

Rita spoke flatly.

"She knew you wouldn’t let go."

Byme turned toward the view outside the castle.

"Which memory do you want to see next?"

Another direct solution was blocked.

Rita didn’t waste time dwelling on it.

"Then show me your matches. Just the parts where Deceitful Bloom uses her divine talent."

The scene shifted again.

They were back in the clock arena.

Rita, Byme, and Nivalis stood on a broken platform at the edge of the battlefield.

It seemed that once the bell phase began, the structure of each era’s games didn’t differ much.

On the field, Deceitful Bloom was fighting a Mountain Isle player.

Rita hadn’t seen that race in Midsummer before. This match probably had nothing to do with racial execution rules.

But one thing was clear.

Deceitful Bloom did not like losing.

The soul fire at her brow was already lit.

Just a faint glow. Less than ten percent.

According to Lightchaser, that was still a stage where her divine talent could be changed.

According to Byme, this was already her third version.

Technically, this wasn’t Rita’s first time seeing her fight.

But it was the first time seeing her go all out.

The flower bow drew again and again. Arrows streaked across the battlefield.

At least half the arena had been overtaken by massive Deceitful Vines, growing into towering trees.

The battlefield looked like half a forest of flowers and half a clock.

Rita watched for a while, then frowned slightly.

It was hard to follow.

Deceitful Bloom’s abilities were too subtle. Without understanding her style and toolkit, it was nearly impossible to extract useful information quickly.

More importantly, her divine talent wasn’t developed yet.

Each activation lasted only a few seconds.

Too short to analyze.

All Rita could see was her opponent suddenly freezing, as if stunned, then getting cut down instantly.

She turned to Byme.

"She doesn’t reveal her divine talent, but you’ve watched her matches. You must have figured out something about her abilities, right?"

That was why Rita and others like Lightchaser, Mistblade, and Maple Syrup could openly discuss their talents.

Compared to a word tied to soul fire, the actual ability mattered more.

If people could already see how it worked in battle, the name itself wasn’t that important.

Byme sighed.

"It’s hard to describe. Her abilities change constantly. Her imagination has no limits. Her creativity is unmatched. No one can tell what she’s thinking."

Rita said flatly,

"You’re worse than BSCicada."

Byme blinked. "What do you mean?"

"When I first met BSCicada, she was obsessed with Deceitful Bloom.

"Well... there was a misunderstanding, so her obsession got a bit twisted. But still, she was basically a Deceitful Bloom toxic stan.

"To her, Deceitful Bloom is the absolute truth."

"That sounds like a smart kid," Byme said seriously. "And?"

"That kind of behavior makes people cautious," Rita said. Then she muttered to herself, "I really let my guard down..." before continuing, "But you... you sound rational, yet you’re constantly selling her without even realizing it."

"Selling?"

"...I mean all those ridiculous compliments you keep giving her."

Rita asked Byme to adjust the timeline again.

They watched several more of Deceitful Bloom’s matches.

Every opponent was strong.

But whenever she went all out, the fights ended cleanly and decisively.

Rita let out a breath.

"No wonder she’s ranked first in Starsea. Deceitful Bloom is just like me."

Byme: ...............

Nivalis silently moved from Rita’s right shoulder to her left, keeping her distance from Byme. She had a feeling things were about to get dangerous.

Byme took a few deep breaths before speaking.

"Talk properly. Say something like that again and I’ll throw you out of my grave."

It was the first time this gentle Vineborne spoke with real agitation.

She was clearly annoyed.

Rita held back a laugh and nodded quickly.

"Alright, alright. I’ll stop."

Byme said seriously,

"No Vineborne can be compared to Deceitful Bloom."

Rita didn’t argue.

For people who valued someone deeply, no one else could compare.

She turned to Nivalis.

"Go on. I’m not wasting effort arguing."

Nivalis immediately shouted,

"What’s so great about her? Even her successor took my Rita’s surname BS!"

Byme: ...

Her expression darkened.

Rita quickly stepped in.

"Let’s stop watching Deceitful Bloom."

"She still has one more match. The final one. You’re not watching it? Or do you think even that was tampered with?"

"I’m not sure. Let’s leave that aside for now. I want to see your match. The one where you used your divine talent."

"My matches aren’t as impressive as hers."

Even so, Byme didn’t refuse.

The scene shifted again.

The players on the field changed.

Midsummer Byme.

Tingo Roar.