Though paralyzed, still radiantly charming!

Chapter 161: Are you blind?

It all started unintentionally when Ryan just wanted to help Alice stabilize her attributes, but ended up getting a side quest.

[Side Quest: Give Alice a Massage]

[Reward: Truth Serum +1 (Effective for 30 minutes, can only be used on the opposite sex), Skill Point +1]

Ryan couldn’t help but smirk when he saw the skill point,he remembered his “Blind Massage Techniques” skill. Since he never seemed to draw anything good, he figured he might as well ignore it.

However, the truth serum from the quest rewards piqued his interest. It could be useful on Alice.

After all, he still had no clue what Alice’s dangerous situation really was. Using the item to get some information seemed like a good idea.

Ryan wasn’t sure if his decision was the right one.

But when he saw Alice curled up on the couch like a doll, her attributes teetering on the edge of collapse, he stopped overthinking it.

Even without the quest, he would have done it—helping Alice was like helping himself.

But when his hands touched Alice’s neck, his body involuntarily shivered.

Her skin was as delicate as he imagined, but compared to his hands, it felt ice cold.

“Just like her personality…”

“What are you doing?”

Alice had felt Ryan’s presence behind her while she lay on the couch, muttering to himself, but she was too exhausted to care.

After her father’s death, she was thrust into the role of mob boss, a position many contested. The internal strife within the gang was escalating.

She didn’t want to deal with these issues,after all, they were her predecessor’s problems, not hers.

But she had no choice,she was the designated successor. If she didn’t show some backbone, her “pretty little head” might literally be moving to a new home the next day.

And now, with the old timers getting more audacious, Alice was nearly at her breaking point.

Ryan’s hands reaching her neck brought back some not-so-pleasant memories.

Alice slowly turned her head, her eyes cold as ice in a winter well, devoid of warmth, yet with a hint of cruelty and confusion hidden deep within.

Was the warmth she just felt about to shatter again?

Her gaze was piercing, as if trying to see right through Ryan.

Turns out, she was just being overly sensitive.

“Uh… I was just giving you a massage?” Ryan stammered, caught by her intense stare, feeling like he’d been caught doing something terribly wrong.

But he hadn’t planned anything sinister,he just wanted to help Alice ease her shoulders.

He used to be good at massages, making all the fatigue vanish with just a touch.

Especially now that he had activated the “Blind Massage Techniques” skill, massaging her shoulders should be no problem.

“A massage? Aren’t you afraid of me at all?”

Alice voiced the question that had been bothering her. Ever since she brought Ryan here, he’d been fiddling with all sorts of odd things, seemingly just to annoy her.

But this also meant one thing: he didn’t see her as just another mobster.

“Huh? Are you supposed to be scary?”

Ryan seriously looked Alice over, but couldn’t see anything particularly menacing about the girl. If anything, he should be scared of the environment, not her.

He didn’t think Alice was all that bad,maybe she had her own difficulties.

Alice frowned, turned around, and looked at Ryan intently, trying to detect any deceit in his eyes—that was the reality she knew.

But just like when they first met, his eyes were clear, albeit with a hint of panic.

It seemed he really had no ulterior motives…

Was she being paranoid?

Alice stared at Ryan for a while longer. Despite being a whole head shorter than Ryan at just 5’3″, her presence felt as towering as if she were 7 feet tall.

Ryan felt a bit uneasy under Alice’s intense gaze but refused to show weakness. After all, he was 23 years old and wasn’t about to let a young girl intimidate him.

Faced with Ryan’s defiant stare, Alice sighed and softened, a rare concession for someone who never backed down. She realized Ryan was different, but apologizing was out of the question. Instead, she turned, adjusted her position, and lay down on the couch, giving Ryan a look that said, “Just get on with it.”

“Just get on with it?”

Faced with her unguarded back, Ryan was momentarily taken aback, feeling almost obligated to live up to Alice’s trust.

Her cheeks, not yet hidden by the pillow, were slightly flushed, suggesting that this posture was quite embarrassing for her.

For Ryan, who had never really experienced romance before his untimely demise, this was even more unsettling.

“Uh, just a shoulder massage then…”

Alice lay flat on the couch, waiting for Ryan to make a move, but he hesitated, his eyes scanning her body, unsure where to start.

His mind flashed back to a previous night’s raid, when he had snuck under the covers with the young mob boss. She had been just as vulnerable then, though dressed much more lightly.

Alice was wearing a beige turtleneck sweater and stylish black trousers. She seemed to favor black and white, unlike the typical clothing choices of other 19-year-olds Ryan had seen.

Perhaps this attire suited her status, but it felt somewhat forced, like rushing her growth.

Shouldn’t she be in school at her age?

Ryan moved behind Alice, his hands hovering over her back, feeling awkward about where to place them.

Alice was in great shape, likely from regular exercise. Though petite, her figure was well-proportioned, and Ryan found his gaze drawn to her slightly raised hips.

If he accidentally touched…

“Beast, she’s only nineteen.”

Ryan muttered to himself, shaking his head to clear the inappropriate thoughts.

It wasn’t really his fault,Alice’s physical allure was just too strong.

Alice glanced up at Ryan, who still hadn’t started. Her expression was clearly impatient, urging him to get on with it.

Biting the bullet, Ryan took a deep breath and gently reached for her back.

As he mentally activated the “Blind Massage Techniques,” ready to begin, he was suddenly informed that the skill couldn’t be activated.

[Blind Massage Techniques, a skill for the blind. Are you blind?]

After being mocked by the system, Ryan’s face turned white with frustration, but the logic was irrefutable, and he found himself unable to argue.

“Hold on, wait a minute.”

Ryan abruptly stopped and dashed away from the couch, leaving a disgruntled Alice behind. She had mentally prepared herself for this, after all.

Moments later, Ryan returned with a black cloth that had been used to blindfold him when he was brought in. He had just asked the bodyguard for it.

Under Alice’s puzzled gaze, Ryan wrapped the cloth around his head, completely covering his eyes.

Alice watched him, stunned. Was he really going to blindfold himself to avoid taking advantage of her?

But why had he climbed into her bed before?

Had he noticed she was upset that day?

Before Ryan even started the massage, Alice felt a bit dizzy, her mind swirling with thoughts as she closed her eyes in anticipation of his touch.

[Ding~ Alice’s affection +1, current affection 52/100]

Ryan, now blindfolded and able to activate his skill, was slightly confused by the notification sound but focused on the task at hand.