Everyone in Eclipse Vanguard's upper echelons knew one thing: Benjamin and Rita were extremely close blood relatives. However, since Rita had moved away from B-City with her parents at a young age and spent her days independently after the game invasion, she probably had no idea that she had an aunt.

What she also didn't know was that back when Benjamin had competed for the position of Eclipse Vanguard's Commander, the presence of Rita and Nivalis had played a subtle yet pivotal role. It was like a feather landing on one side of the scales, tipping the balance. Rita, unknowingly, became the deciding weight that secured Benjamin's victory.

Shadow.Q lowered her head, avoiding Benjamin's penetrating gaze.

Outside the glass chamber, the arguments among Eclipse Vanguard's executives grew increasingly heated.

"We need Moon Sand, Nivalis, and her resurrection skill. All of it!" "Need, my ass! Are you weak, or is she stupid enough to give it to you?" "We're Eclipse Vanguard. Everything we do, we do for the people!" "For the people, sure. By the way, where did your daughter's full set of purple gear come from? Oh wait, you took it from one of your subordinates! Oops, did I say that out loud?" "Landon, are you insane? I'm not saying to take it from her! I mean paying for it, trading for it! And admit it—haven't we already helped her a ton of times before?" "And hasn't she paid us back? What, you think that protection was free?" "Wake up, people. You ever notice she doesn't sell her core resources? There's a huge market for dragon blood out there, and she's never sold a single drop." "Still, she's been friendly to us. The potions, the military tokens—she's not some selfish lone wolf." "Friendly? Are you blind? That's her stringing us along. Those military tokens? Three of them dropped just last month—they're practically worthless now. And those potions? She's holding onto the advanced ones! Face it, we've never been on the same side." "Oh, now you say that? Funny, you weren't complaining when she handed over those tokens. Change your face so fast it's like peeling back layers of an onion. Hell, peel far enough, and maybe we'll find a new face underneath—two-faced, aren't you?" "Landon! I'm being objective here! Stop making it personal." "What if we go public with this? Use public pressure to force her hand. She can't fight everyone." "Are you insane? What if we push her too hard, and she defects to the Oak Owls like Zoey did?" "But... she's always been close to us. If we approach her sincerely, she might agree." "Yeah, and that's why she's so dangerous. Strong, unpredictable, ambitious, and independent. Not to mention, she's developing faster than anyone else!" "Look, this is our chance! Just claim she's been turned by the Oak Owls. Say her race and allegiance have changed!" "But what about all that Moon Sand? Do you know how many people we could recruit with it? We can't just let this go. We could use this opportunity to secure the dragon too!" "And what happens when we antagonize the dragons? You're going to be the one to take responsibility, right? You think the dragon will recognize you as its master?" "She's not valuable because of Moon Sand or Nivalis. She's valuable because she is the spark that can change Blue Star's trajectory. Everything she has, she earned herself. She's the spark. You? You're just a fart."

The loudest voice belonged to Landon, who had essentially transformed into a flame-throwing troll. He charged at anyone suggesting underhanded tactics against Rita, spraying verbal fire with every sentence.

Finally, Benjamin raised her hand, and silence fell instantly.

Benjamin pressed her palm against the glass, and her voice echoed outside the chamber. At the same time, her words appeared as text on the glass for everyone to read:

"Don't pursue Moon Sand further. Tell her this: Eclipse Vanguard will always be her ally. We do not betray our friends. If she ever decides to sell Moon Sand, we hope she will choose us first. "If she won't sell her resurrection skill as a skill stone, take a step back and negotiate for potion recipes instead. She won't refuse us four times in a row. When she asks what kind of potions we want, tell her to recommend some. We'll pay top dollar."

When she finished, Benjamin pulled her hand away and turned to the gathered executives:

"It's too late. She's already grown strong. Anyone capable of hiding and enduring for so long is prepared to strike when they finally emerge.

"She doesn't need Eclipse Vanguard anymore."

Her words served as both an explanation and a warning.

Benjamin's foresight proved correct. When Shadow.Q followed up with Rita about selling resurrection skills and received a refusal, she then asked about buying potion recipes.

Rita's expression visibly changed. The eagerness and mischief in her eyes quickly faded, replaced by restraint.

Selling potion recipes wasn't as easy to reject.

Rita sighed, running a hand through her hair. If Eclipse Vanguard had shown even the slightest aggression—bared its teeth, so to speak—she could've used the opportunity to showcase her strength, sending a clear warning not to covet her belongings. But instead, Eclipse Vanguard had stepped back, showing only friendliness and sincerity.

Rita wasn't one to create trouble where there wasn't any.

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After all, she had already turned them down three times that morning: once for the underwater expedition, once for selling Moon Sand, and finally for the resurrection skill. The last rejection wasn't even intentional—she couldn't sell that skill even if she wanted to.

She sighed again. "What kind of potion recipes do you want? What effects and what level?"

Hearing her weary tone, Shadow.Q looked up, catching a rare flicker of amusement in Benjamin's usually stoic eyes.

Benjamin's niece was far more interesting than her father.

Shadow.Q suppressed a smile and replied, "What do you recommend?"

Rita quickly went over her repertoire. Eighty percent of her recipes were publicly available in Lania Kaia, while fifteen percent were unique creations from Lucia and Apache—recipes she had no right to sell. The remaining five percent consisted of her self-created recipes from the High Tower, but there weren't many worth mentioning.

Finally, she decided, "Seventeen combinations of Oakfruit. They include antidotes, sleeping agents, explosives, poison clouds, friend-or-foe detection, countering Pigeon Souls, and even mind paralysis. The materials aren't expensive—thirty percent of them can be sourced from any dungeon with Oak Owls."

These were among the best battle-tested combinations she had developed using her [New Monthly Additions] talent over nearly seven years in the High Tower. While some recipes leaned toward entertainment, these seventeen were highly practical for the battlefield.

Benjamin gave a small nod. Shadow.Q immediately responded, "Deal. How much?"

Rita listed off the materials she needed for [Spring Not Late] and [Gold-Class Assassin]. "Ten sets of these, plus thirty weather-predicting skill stones. That'll cover it."

The materials she requested were pricey, costing no less than 700 gold per set, though Eclipse Vanguard could save some money by crafting them in-house.

As an afterthought, Rita added, "And the dungeon instance above my house. Sixty weather stones total, including the recipe deal."

Selling the dungeon above her house sent a clear message: Rita no longer needed Eclipse Vanguard.

Shadow.Q glanced at Benjamin, who gave a slight nod.

The deal was finalized. By 12 p.m., Shadow.Q had delivered everything.

Rita messaged her privately.

[Rita]: Safe yet, Sweaty Emperor?

[Shadow.Q]: Safe, Pinebloom.

[Rita]: Eclipse Vanguard didn't cut you into pieces, right?

[Shadow.Q]: Too late. My brain's already pickled in a jar, talking to you from there.

[Rita]: …Makes sense. No wonder you were awake at 8 a.m.

[Shadow.Q]: Damn! That's where I slipped up?!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com