This Life, I Will Be the Protagonist

**[Ginseng Essence]** is a product that falls somewhere between alchemy and cooking. A small vial of this essence not only instantly restores 80 health points but also regenerates 1 health point per second for 10 minutes. While that may not seem like much, the effect is incredibly valuable in-game—essentially a life-saving potion.

With 80 health points restored instantly and a total of 680 health restored over time, **Ginseng Essence** easily surpasses any beginner-level healing potion or food made with Blue Star ingredients. Find exclusive stories on empire

While Rita didn't plan on competing against the government for profits, there was no rule against going head-to-head with Rick.

In her previous life, Rick and Zoey had randomly gone on a "vacation" to J Province at the end of March—strange timing, given that the game had just invaded the real world. During their trip, they happened upon a business owner sobbing in the street.

Unable to sell his ginseng stockpile, the owner was desperate, and Rick swooped in to buy 20,000 pounds of dried ginseng slices at a ridiculously low price.

**Ginseng Essence** had a market price over double that of standard healing potions, selling for 5 silver coins per vial. Yet its production cost was just half a bottle of beginner-level healing potion and 100 grams of ginseng, which was practically free at the time. Compared to a one-use healing potion, **Ginseng Essence** was far more efficient, making it highly sought after.

In the previous life, Rick and the Lopez family had access to plenty of healing potions from early game testing, which allowed Rick to turn a massive profit. The cost of one potion in Rick's hands was multiplied fourfold or more, bringing him and the Lopez family huge profits. Not only did they amass vast amounts of capital, but they also gained a loyal following of solo players.

It wasn't until two weeks later that the Special Affairs Bureau managed to reverse-engineer the **Ginseng Essence** formula. By then, Rick had already bought up nearly all the ginseng on the market, raking in massive profits.

One ton of ginseng could produce 50,000 vials of **Ginseng Essence**, requiring 25,000 bottles of beginner-level healing potions. Even if Rick bought the potions directly from Lania Kaiya Star, the cost would only be 250 gold coins. However, selling 50,000 vials at 5 silver coins apiece would yield 2,500 gold coins in revenue.

After accounting for costs, Rick stood to make a profit of at least 2,250 gold coins.

Rita had 25,000 gold coins in her wallet right now. If just one ton of ginseng could yield a 2,250 gold coin profit, why wouldn't she get in on the action?

Not only did she want in on the business, but she also aimed to outdo Rick by buying up as much ginseng on the market as possible.

This time, she wouldn't involve the Special Affairs Bureau in the deal. Not every venture had to include them—she didn't owe them anything, after all.

During her half-month stay in JL, Rita had used her **Disguise** ability every day to meet with various business owners, conducting all transactions in gold to avoid leaving a trail. She had even tested the ginseng herself and confirmed that the potency of the **Ginseng Essence** did vary depending on the ginseng's age.

Ginseng older than 30 years was especially potent, instantly restoring 120 health points and continuing to regenerate 1% of max health per second for 15 minutes. It was the perfect match for her **Thief God** talent.

Although the top-tier ginseng was expensive and scarce, she bought as much as she could because her **God of the Culinary Arts** talent would triple the effect. Naturally, she reserved the best ginseng for herself.

For profit-making purposes, she settled on mid-grade ginseng—stuff that sold for around 400 yuan per pound before the game invasion. Rita was buying in bulk, and with no current demand for health supplements, she managed to trade one pound of gold for a thousand pounds of ginseng.

Over the past two weeks, she had acquired 70,000 pounds of ordinary ginseng and 15 pounds of top-tier, 30-year-old ginseng. If she turned all of the ordinary ginseng into **Ginseng Essence**, even accounting for a 1% auction fee, she stood to earn a tidy profit of around 15,600 gold coins.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

In the process, she had experimented with dozens of expensive herbs, even bringing samples to Apache. However, nothing new came of it, and Rita resolved that if Rick managed to invent anything new, she'd chop off both his hands.

All of this ginseng was neatly packed into large crates and stored in her game inventory. She wasn't planning to make all the beginner-level healing potions herself. Even though she could brew one in just a minute, making over 30,000 of them would take forever.

Instead, she planned to spend the next couple of weeks at home crafting **Ginseng Essence** and start selling it next month when players had more disposable income.

As she was mulling over her next steps—wondering whether to inquire about the situation between the White and Lopez families—the doorbell rang. Shadow.Q had arrived, accompanied by Asher.

Shadow.Q not only brought the skill crystal catalog but was also there to sign a formal contract and discuss how to construct a direct portal, ensuring that players wouldn't disrupt Rita's home life. The Special Affairs Bureau was an expert at these sorts of logistics.

After fixing the two of them drinks, the trio headed upstairs, sipping as they went. Shadow.Q surveyed the glowing dungeon portal hidden behind the wooden frame and immediately started planning where to build the portal entrance. She pointed to the plant-covered shelves and asked, "How about here? We could place the door behind these shelves. Would that work?"

Rita had simple requirements: "Just make sure nothing spills downstairs." Then, she added, "Oh, and leave this half untouched. I'm going to put a food cabinet here with some meals I've made."

Asher frowned and interrupted, "That's inappropriate! We can't accept anything from the public."

Shadow.Q shot him a strange look.

Rita's expression was even more peculiar. She wondered if Asher had deliberately sabotaged her pitch. How could she finish her sentence now? She suppressed her frustration but couldn't resist saying, "Well, if anyone wants to eat, they can pay for it…"

After two seconds of silence, Asher nodded approvingly, "That's acceptable."

Shadow.Q bit her lip, turning away to avoid laughing.

Rita gestured toward another corner. "I'll also be setting up some tables and chairs over there. Free of charge. I'll provide what I can, but my only rule is that no one goes downstairs or uses any skills to spy on my privacy."

After verifying that the dungeon was indeed a Level 3 instance, Shadow.Q handed Rita a skill crystal as part of their agreement. "Here, you can use this to block off the second floor and below. All players who rent out their dungeons to the Bureau get this as a perk. You'll get one for free every month."

**[Water Curtain]:** Encircles a designated area with a water barrier, rendering it immune to prying eyes. Anyone who enters without permission will be marked, and their location will be shown on the user's map for the next 24 hours. Activation consumes 10% mana, and the barrier lasts for 30 days.

Rita remained outwardly calm as she read the item description, but inside, she was on high alert. She hadn't seen anything like this at the Lopez house in her previous life, but with everything that had been stolen from them this time around—Zoey even having an ear cut off—it wouldn't be surprising if they were preparing similar defenses.

She'd have to tread carefully from now on, especially around the Lopez and White families.