Though paralyzed, still radiantly charming!

Chapter 336: A phone call from the future

Ryan gasped for air, his chest heaving as he suddenly opened his eyes, taking in the dimly lit room around him.

This was the room next to Alice’s.

“What the hell? Wasn’t I killed by Bella?” Ryan touched his stomach, feeling the smooth skin.

“The wound’s gone. Does that mean you don’t actually die after being killed?”

“No, wait—Alice!”

Panic surged through him as he scrambled out of bed and rushed to Alice’s door.

“There’s no guard at the door! Damn it!”

Ryan quickly pushed the door open.

Moonlight spilled across Alice’s face. Her breathing was steady, and she was clearly fast asleep.

“Thank God, she’s okay.”

Ryan let out a sigh of relief, calming his nerves. He carefully backed out of the room, gently closing the door behind him.

Ding—Ding—

The sound of a phone ringing broke the silence. It was coming from Ryan’s room.

He hurried back and checked the caller ID.

It was Alice?!

Her voice came through, serious and urgent: “You’re going to die at 2 a.m.”

But she was right next door, sound asleep in her bed…

Ryan turned his head, looking back toward Alice’s room, where he could still hear her soft, even breathing.

Her eyes were closed, and she was clearly in a deep sleep.

Her phone was quietly charging on the nightstand.

But the voice on the phone—it was unmistakably Alice’s.

Even the caller ID showed it was her number.

“Ryan?”

Her voice sounded emotional, almost shocked, with a hint of a sob.

Ryan instinctively responded, “Yeah?”

Immediately, he heard Alice’s breathing quicken on the other end of the line.

“Ryan, what time is it over there?”

Ryan glanced again at the sleeping Alice, confirming she was still there.

Despite the overwhelming confusion, he answered honestly, “It’s ten o’clock.”

Alice let out a noticeable sigh of relief. “There’s still time. Ryan, I know you’re probably freaking out right now, but you need to listen to me carefully.”

“The time here is one week ahead. I just got back from your funeral. You’re going to die at 2 a.m.—that’s in four hours. The cause of death is…”

Her voice trailed off for a moment.

This was insane.

Ryan started to think it was some kind of prank call.

Maybe someone had recorded Alice’s voice and used AI to fake this whole thing.

But when Ryan picked up Alice’s phone, a chill ran down his spine.

Her phone screen showed: In Call.

And the person she was talking to… was Ryan.

This was really a call from the future.

Ryan quickly pulled himself together.

“Your cause of death will be a fall from a great height.”

“The police concluded that you accidentally knocked over a chef’s knife while falling. Since you were lying on the ground, the knife pierced your abdomen, which caused your death. But I don’t believe it was an accident.”

“The me from right now is probably asleep, right? Ryan, you need to wake me up immediately and keep me awake. I vaguely remember hearing you and Nella arguing, and then… everything went quiet.”

“I suspect Nella killed you. This time, Ryan, you have to protect yourself.”

Ryan’s mind was spinning. The flood of information was too much to process all at once.

He wanted to ask Alice more questions, but the call abruptly ended.

He glanced at his phone and saw a line of text:

Call count: 5

The call had lasted exactly one minute.

Did this number mean he could only talk to the future Alice five times?

“Wait, have I gone back to before Bella killed me? But the timing doesn’t match up.”

“And why did Bella want to kill me?” Ryan was confused.

He and Bella had grown up together in the orphanage. Even though they hadn’t seen each other in four years, Bella still had feelings for him.

But Ryan decided to focus on the immediate issue: waking Alice up.

“Alice, wake up!”

For some reason, Alice was in an unusually deep sleep. No matter how much Ryan shook her, she wouldn’t wake up.

This wasn’t normal.

As the leader of a crime syndicate, Alice had mild anxiety and was a notoriously light sleeper. The slightest noise would usually wake her.

Then Ryan remembered: earlier that evening, Alice had drunk a lot of seafood soup, but no one else had touched it.

Could Bella have put something in the soup?

A sinking feeling hit Ryan.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

A second later, Nella’s voice came from the other side.

“Ryan, are you awake? Can I come in and talk for a bit?”

Her voice sounded off—muffled, like she was speaking through something.

At that moment, a flash of lightning lit up the window, and heavy raindrops began to pound against the glass.

Ryan gripped his phone tightly, holding his breath, not daring to make a sound.

But then he realized something: the door wasn’t locked.

Ryan took a deep breath and quietly stepped onto the floor, barefoot.

He moved as silently as possible toward the door.

But to his shock, Nella’s hearing was incredibly sharp.

“I heard that, Ryan. You’re awake, aren’t you?” Ryan bit his lip, trembling.

Nella continued, “I heard your footsteps. What’s going on? Why aren’t you answering?”

Ryan forced himself to stay calm. He reached for the door to lock it, only to discover that the door couldn’t be locked from the inside.

“I’m worried about you, Ryan. Can I come in?” Nella’s voice was laced with concern.

Remembering how he had been killed before, Ryan’s breathing quickened.

He realized that if he didn’t respond soon, Nella would definitely come in.

Ryan steadied his breath and said, “Nella, I just woke up. I went to the bathroom. I’m really tired tonight. Can we talk tomorrow?”

There was a long silence from the other side of the door.

Finally, Nella said, “Okay.”

Ryan let out a sigh of relief.

But just then, his phone rang again.

The caller ID showed it was Nella.

Ryan frowned but answered the call.

“Ryan? Is that really you?” Nella’s voice sounded surprised, almost disbelieving.

“Yeah, it’s me.”

Ryan had no idea what she meant by that.

But in the next moment, he heard her break down into sobs on the other end of the line.

“I’ve been calling your number like a madwoman for days. Everyone told me I was crazy, but I just wanted to hear your voice one more time…”

A chilling thought crept into Ryan’s mind.

And Nella’s next words confirmed his suspicion.

“Ryan, you probably won’t believe what I’m about to say, but I have to tell you: in four hours, you’re going to die.”

“The time here is one week ahead. I just came back from your funeral.”

“You fell from the third floor of the villa and died from a head injury. The police ruled it an accident, but I don’t believe it. Before that, Alice came to see my grandfather, and I overheard their conversation.”

“The construction site incident wasn’t just an accident. There were fake invoices, tax evasion, and all kinds of shady dealings. Alice wants to pin the blame for the accident on you. I’m sure she’s planning to kill you and make it look like you were trying to escape responsibility, so she can swoop in and save the day.”

“Ryan, that night, I wanted to tell you all of this, but you didn’t give me the chance.”

“Maybe this call is a second chance, a gift from God. Ryan, leave the room right now and come find me. I’ll protect you.” Nella’s voice was urgent.

The call cut off abruptly.

Ryan’s phone screen showed the call had lasted exactly one minute.

Remaining calls: 4

Ryan’s hand shook as he held the phone.

“Was Nella trying to talk to me earlier to warn me about Alice’s plan?”

Ryan turned around and froze.

Alice was standing in the doorway, staring at him with wide, unblinking eyes.