Fifteen minutes flew by, and Mia was already pulling Ryanâs hand as they left the rooftop.
Ryan was still dazed as they descended. The last fifteen minutes had bombarded him with too much information, and his brain was still trying to process it all.
Having been kissed on the face already, holding hands now seemed trivial by comparison.
Miaâs words had completely scrambled his thoughts. He had thought Alice was no different from those gangsters and had prepared himself to treat her merely as a target for his mission.
But before he could harden his heart, he was told they were nothing alike.
If Miss Alice had only gotten involved with gang activities this year, there was still a chance she hadnât been too corrupted.
Miss Alice hadnât buried anyone? Ryanâs thoughts involuntarily drifted back to the villaâs backyard landscaping. Could it be that there were no bodies buried there?
Miss Alice had been living a normal life up until now, and logically, she would want to return to a normal civilian life. Nobody naturally takes pleasure in bloody affairs.
Miss Alice wanted to return to her normal life, but the gang surely wouldnât agree. As the heir, she couldnât just walk away.
So, was that why Mr. Carlson had said Alice would face a lot of resistance?
But that wouldnât justify the gang sending assassins after her, would it? The idea of âif I canât have it, no one canâ was just twisted.
Ryan felt a headache coming on. Mia was like a little siren, every move laced with temptation.
She had laid out the situation, yet deliberately left things vague, forcing Ryan to guess.
Ryan could try to find out more, but that would mean falling right into Miaâs trap.
Though he hadnât fully figured it out, his resistance to Alice had softened a bit. Miss Alice might truly be special, and it wouldnât hurt to see how things unfolded.
As the gang members slowly took their seats, Ryan and Mia returned to the conference room.
Ryan despised these people and didnât dare interact with them too much. His performance had been too conspicuous earlier, and now many had their eyes on him.
But with Mia by his side, Ryan felt somewhat safe, though it was somewhat absurd that he was being protected by a teenage girl.
Just as he stepped into the conference room, Ryan felt a piercing gaze on him.
Apart from Alice, there were few who could glare with such intensity.
Aliceâs gaze swept over Ryan, and upon seeing him unharmed, she relaxed slightly. If Ryan hadnât returned soon, she would have gone looking for him herself.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Then her eyes landed on Mia next to him, and her expression hardened again.
Feeling that intense stare, Ryan felt a sting in his hand, almost ready to drop Miaâs hand.
But Mia, smiling brightly, tightened her grip on his hand and fearlessly met Aliceâs gaze, even waving at her.
â¦
Aliceâs look could kill, and Ryan felt the temperature in the room drop. It seemed Aliceâs gaze shifted from Mia to him, demanding an explanation.
Alice had been somewhat sad, but now a nameless rage seemed to ignite just from seeing Ryan and Miaâs clasped hands, like a ticking time bomb.
Ryan smiled helplessly, trying to pull his hand away, but Mia held on tight.
Feeling his struggle, Mia got angry and simply hugged Ryanâs right arm, pressing herself against him.
â¦
[Alice Darkening level+2, currently 7/100]
No need for explanations now,Miss Alice seemed to have formed her own opinions.
The meeting was about to start, and Mia and Aliceâs battle was put on hold, leaving Ryan uncomfortably caught in the middle.
Mia reluctantly said goodbye to Ryan, who didnât dare respond. He felt that if he said one more word, Aliceâs reaction would be more than just adding 2 points to her Darkening level.
Head down, Ryan returned to Aliceâs side, her gaze cutting into him all the way.
If looks could kill, Ryanâs suicidal mission would have been accomplished by now.
âMiss Aliceâ¦â
Back in his familiar spot behind Alice, Ryan timidly called out to her.
If it had been before, Alice might have responded, even with just a grunt, but now she just snorted coldly.
Not even bothering to speak, are we back to square one?
Even so, his favorability didnât seem to be dropping. It seemed impossible for Alice to truly dislike him.
Ryan thought Alice was angry with him, so he kept his head down and stayed quiet, not wanting to fuel her anger further.
Indeed, Alice was furious, but her anger was directed more towards Mia.
Mia had always been a special presence, the child of Aliceâs father with another woman.
Unlike Alice, who had only recently gotten involved with the gangâs activities, Mia hadnât been well-protected and had grown up within the gang.
Thus, she knew even more about the gangâs inner workings than Alice did and held some sway within it.
Had Mia sensed the tension and decisively acted to pull Ryan away?
No, that couldnât happen.
Alice knew what Mia wanted. She could have the gang leader position if she liked,Alice was willing to give it to her.
But if Mia tried to take Ryan away, that would truly cross Aliceâs line.
A nameless jealousy burned within her. Why couldnât Ryan see that Mia was no good, especially when they were holding hands so intimately?
The more Alice thought about it, the angrier she got. Suddenly, she turned and glared at Ryan, startling him.
âYou, stay away from her, got it?â
Alice spoke with fury, and it was the first time Ryan had seen her truly angry.
He nodded obediently. He hadnât planned on going over to Mia anyway. Mia couldnât help him with his mission, and siding with her held no value for him.
But if getting killed over this could be an option, Ryan thought he might just try it.
Seeing Ryanâs compliant attitude, Aliceâs anger slowly subsided, and she remembered the unpleasantness between them earlier, feeling a bit awkward.
She had planned to have a proper talk with Ryan when he returned, but now she had inexplicably lashed out at him. She felt terrible about it.
But Ryan seemed not to care about these fluctuations. He sighed softly, watching Aliceâs mood swing.
Continuing the meeting like this would definitely leave them vulnerable to othersâ manipulation. Being a gang leader really wasnât easy.
Glancing at Aliceâs attributes, her mood level had somewhat improved after calming down.
It was said to be better, but it was still hovering dangerously around twenty points.
Ryan looked around the room. People were still settling into their seats, discussing in pairs or small groups, with no one paying attention to them for the moment.
âMiss Alice, itâs okay, just focus on the meeting.â
âLetâs talk about everything else after itâs over. Iâll be standing right behind you, I wonât go anywhere.â
Alice had her own difficulties, wasnât she deserving of sympathy sitting here?
But for now, Ryanâs feelings towards her were just thatâsympathy. Until Alice made her intentions clear, he would remain cautious.
For now, this was a decent state to be in.
Alice listened to Ryanâs words, hearing the comforting tone in his voice.
Even though he understood nothing, was he still trying to comfort her? Did he really care that much about her feelings?
Alice remembered what Hannah had whispered to her before leaving: to stay proactive and not let Ryan cloud her judgment. It seemed Hannah had seen things more clearly.
âOkay⦠Iâll talk to you properly after we get back.â
Alice took a deep breath, looking at Ryan, and then, remembering Miaâs actions, she grabbed Ryanâs hand and squeezed it tightly.
But when Ryan pulled his hand away, he found a band-aid mysteriously placed in his palm.
As everyone settled, Dante nodded towards Alice, slightly surprised to still see Ryan standing by her side.
With nods from both Alice and Dante, the meeting resumed.
People continued to speak, and Alice wasnât particularly attentive,her thoughts lingered on Ryan standing behind her.
Unlike before, Ryan didnât react with anger to the shocking statements being made, nor did he take it out on Alice.
Just as Alice was about to relax, that annoying voice echoed again in the meeting room.
Ryan also looked up, frowning at the person who stood upâit was Lorenzo, the troublemaker from before.
He didnât beat around the bush but stood up and directly pointed at Alice.
âThereâs not much to say about routine matters,everyoneâs time is precious.â
âMy purpose here today is clearâto discuss the crimes of Alice!â
At this declaration, the room was shocked.