Chapter 174: Heh⦠sitting is fine
Ryan coughed violently twice, nearly choking on the systemâs alert tone.
Somethingâs not right here, is it?
Ryan had definitely sensed Hannahâs hostility, so when she leaned in to whisper in Aliceâs ear, he couldnât help but feel a bit pleased, thinking that this little tattle might lower Aliceâs favorability towards him.
But instead of dropping, it went up! Whatâs going on?
After Hannah finished talking, she shot Ryan a fierce glare and flipped him off with her remaining right hand.
See! She was definitely bad-mouthing me, right?
Ryan turned his gaze to Alice, who looked like a kettle about to boil, her cheeks flushed red, and you could almost see the steam rising from her heated face.
Somethingâs offâ¦
Their eyes met, and Alice quickly looked away.
âWe should get to the hospital, donât delay.â
Alice patted Hannah on the shoulder, looking genuinely concerned.
Of course, aside from sneaking peeks at Ryanâs reactions, she did a pretty good job pretending.
Hannah felt bitter inside. She really wanted to bad-mouth Ryan, maybe even pin him down and give him a beating.
But what good would that do? Miss Alice was already charmed by Ryan. Even if Ryan were killed, Miss Alice would just be unhappy.
For Miss Aliceâs happiness, she had to grudgingly accept Ryan.
Still, she had to clear some things up with Miss Alice. With her naive heart, Miss Alice could easily be deceived by that jerk Ryan.
âMiss Alice, you must remember what Iâm about to say.â
Hannah grabbed Miss Aliceâs arm, speaking earnestly, word by word.
Faced with such seriousness from Hannah, Alice felt her shyness intensify.
She couldnât even understand her own feelings, and Hannahâs sudden talk only confused her more.
âItâs not like thatâ¦â
Alice denied in a fluster, which only confirmed Hannahâs suspicions more.
Miss Alice was definitely smitten, the kind without looking back.
All Hannah could hope for was that Miss Alice would be more cautious and not too passiveâ¦
âWhat did you and Hannah talk about?â Alice pressed Ryan as soon as they got in the car, her hands gripping his shoulders tighter than his own could.
âUh, nothing much, she just asked me some questions.â Ryan was still confused. Miss Aliceâs favorability had increased instead of decreasedâHannah couldnât have been praising him.
But thatâs impossible, she hates me, right?
âThose questions, did you answer truthfully or not?â Aliceâs eyes shimmered, feeling unlike herself but unable to control it.
She was too curious about what this mysterious guy really thought.
âIt was the truthâ¦â Pinned down by Alice, Ryan realized he couldnât resist her despite his size.
Everything he had said was true, even his wish to be âkilledâ by Alice, so he just numbly nodded.
âOkay, Iâll remember that.â
âBut if I ever find out youâve lied, I swear you wonât get off easy.â Aliceâs gaze held a fervor Ryan couldnât understand, like a thirsty traveler in the desert spotting an oasis.
Could being caught lying really get him âkilledâ?
But somehow, that seemed like a good thing.
[System: Alice Darkening level +2, currently 3/100]
[System: Alice Mood Level +30, currently 75/100 (Excited)]
The systemâs timing almost made Ryan spit blood. Even now, with both Mood Level and Darkening level increasing, what on earth was Alice thinking?
Back when Ryan first saw the world, it was all black and white to himâeither you liked something or you didnât, there was no in-between of liking and disliking simultaneously.
But the longer he stayed around Alice, the more confused he became.
First, there was that ridiculously high initial favorability, and then, no matter what he did, it seemed to only increase his favorability.
Aliceâs mood level also fluctuated with his actions, and she seemed to really care about him.
But isnât this just like a dating sim?
No, no, this canât go on.
After getting Ryanâs response, Alice seemed in a good mood and pointed at her shoulder.
âGive me a massage, Iâm really tired.â
Saying so, Alice turned around, preparing to lie down.
Ryan still remembered the feeling of the last time he gave her a massage,it was indeed quite nice.
But this wasnât their villa, and although the back seat of the car was spacious, it was still a tight fit to lie down.
Ryan hesitated, his hand instinctively reaching towards Aliceâs shoulder, but he quickly pulled it back.
The favorability was just too high, having already broken through the sixty-point mark.
He had originally planned to help Alice and then betray her at the last moment, but now Ryan was starting to doubt whether, with such high favorability, even a betrayal would be forgiven.
No, this couldnât continue,he had to lower the favorability.
Ryan gritted his teeth and refused the young girlâs command, mustering all his courage to speak.
âNo!â As soon as he said it, Alice, who was about to lie down, froze. She slowly turned her head to look at Ryan, disbelief in her eyes.
Did he just defy her command?
He had just promised not to lie, and now was he breaking that promise?
Ryan was stared down by those daunting eyes, and he couldnât help but swallow hard. It was the same situation as the first time he told Alice he wanted to leave the villa.
Forcing himself to overcome the fear, Ryan was prepared to stand his ground, determined to lower the favorability somehow.
But the favorability didnât decrease, and the systemâs alert tone almost drove him to despair.
[System: Alice Darkening level +2, currently 5/100]
Damn it! Why wonât the favorability drop? Why does only the Darkening level increase without the favorability decreasing?
Ryan, frustrated, opened the favorability panel. The sixty points of favorability were still there, showing no signs of changing.
Ryan was on the verge of tears, and being stared down by Alice just deflated him completely.
âWhat did you just sayââ Aliceâs voice drew out.
Ryan glared at his hands, watching as one slowly reached towards him.
Her nails gently grazed the surface of his skin, tracing a path up his chest to finally rest on Ryanâs neck.
Aliceâs expression was terrifyingly cold, and a hint of red seemed to flash in her eyes, adding a sinister allureâ¦
Ryan remembered the threat Alice had just made, and now he understood the phrase âyou wonât get off easyâ on a much deeper level.
It seemed she wouldnât let him die easily but would do something far worse than death.
This damn favorabilityâ¦
âWhat did you just say no to?â Aliceâs nails lightly traced his neck, resting on his carotid artery, motionless as if a cat had caught a mouse and wasnât in a hurry to eat, preferring to play with it first.
Hannah was right,she couldnât be passive, or sheâd lose control of everything.
âI said no to⦠no need to lie down, sitting is fineâ¦â
âHeh⦠sitting is fine.â