Chapter 159: Current favorability

Chapter 159: Current favorability

Chapter 159: Current favorability

Ryan’s status here is a bit odd—not exactly a prisoner, but he definitely can’t leave just yet.

It seems Alice has instructed the maids and bodyguards not to be too strict with him.

Ryan isn’t stuck in the dungeon all day,if the bodyguards were watching him non-stop, he wouldn’t be able to sneak into Alice’s bed.

During the day, he’s pretty free to roam around the villa, except for Alice’s room on the second floor.

At night, though, he’s locked up in the dungeon to sleep, and the door doesn’t open until 8 AM.

After bringing him here, Alice doesn’t really keep tabs on him, but he has to show up for breakfast and dinner, or he won’t get to eat.

After breakfast, Alice usually heads out, and until she returns in the evening, Ryan can do whatever he wants.

The maids and bodyguards take good care of him, fulfilling most of his needs.

But trying to chat up the maids and bodyguards to figure out a way to leave the villa is totally pointless.

Besides, there’s no real need to leave,to complete his mission, he needs to stay.

He’s got food, company, and gets to dine with a pretty girl—life here isn’t too bad.

It feels less like he’s been kidnapped and more like he’s being kept.

Ryan checks himself out in the mirror. He’s got to admit, he’s not bad-looking—his tousled golden blonde hair still shiny even without grooming, thanks to his good genes.

He’s heard of those stories where rich older women fancy young men, but Alice is actually a few years younger than him.

Ryan’s twenty-three, just out of college, while Alice can’t be more than nineteen, her youthful face too evident.

Yesterday, Ryan had made a plan to help Alice out of a tight spot and then betray her at the crucial moment. She’d definitely lose it and probably end him.

On one hand, he’d actually be helping Alice, easing the guilt of deceiving her.

On the other, if Alice ends up killing him, she probably won’t remember him anymore, and that would be the end of that.

It’s a perfect plan, but executing it is proving to be a challenge.

The premise is that Ryan really has to help Alice.

If he just walks up to her and says he wants to help, she definitely won’t believe him.

And if he fails even once, Alice will become wary, and his chances will be slim.

So, he has to quietly watch and wait for the right moment to step in.

Since the maids and bodyguards ignore him, he’ll try to get information directly from Alice.

Such a girl seemed destined to be cherished and protected.

Of course, if you really thought that, you might as well be half in the grave.

Just the day before yesterday, Ryan had seen Alice return to the villa covered in blood, with a bodyguard dragging a large bag behind her into the backyard, never to be seen again.

Now, the mere sight of the garden made Ryan queasy, wondering what kind of “surprise” might be buried beneath.

Feeling Ryan’s intense gaze, Alice frowned slightly and looked up at him with a puzzled expression, as if asking why he was staring.

Ryan just smiled, not responding, but his gaze remained fixed on her.

After about five minutes of his intense scrutiny, Alice began to feel uncomfortable.

The memories of last night flooded back, bringing with them a wave of embarrassment and anger as she glared at Ryan.

“Why are you staring at me like that?”

Her voice was cold, cutting through the air like a bell in winter, as she put down her milk and waited for his response.

Ryan felt a pang of regret,her voice would be lovely if she could just laugh.

“Because you’re very beautiful, and I couldn’t help myself.”

Ryan scrambled for the right words, knowing from experience that girls usually disliked slick talkers.

If he could make Alice dislike him quickly, he could happily meet his end.

Of course, if Alice fell for it, that would work too. He could get closer to her, help her out of her predicament, and then betray her.

However, his compliment seemed to have no effect. Alice barely gave him another glance before returning to her newspaper.

Ryan scratched his head, unsure if his words had any impact.

“I’m telling the truth, Miss. You might doubt everything about me, but not my taste.”

Ryan persisted, knowing that effort often pays off.

And since it was Alice he was complimenting, it didn’t feel out of place,she was worthy of such praise.

With nothing else to do, Ryan decided to treat this as an unofficial part of his plan.

Alice continued to read her paper, never once looking up at Ryan. After praising her a bit more and finding it pointless, he started eating his own breakfast.

The first attempt seemed to end in failure,Ryan couldn’t even spark an interest in the young lady. He slurped his noodles while reflecting on what went wrong.

[Ding~ Alice’s favorability +1, current favorability 51/100.]