Echo was completely thrown off by Ryan’s sudden question. She glanced at him, seeing the coldness in his eyes and the subtle anger radiating from him. Confused, she asked, “What do you mean? I helped you out, didn’t I? No reward? Fine. But why are you being so mean?”
Bill, standing behind Ryan, rolled his eyes dramatically, while Cobra, who had been frowning, couldn’t help but shake his head. He stood across from Echo and silently mouthed something to her.
Adolph, noticing how Bill and Cobra-who normally only listened to Ryan and disregarded everyone else-were acting like this with Echo, chuckled from his seat.
Catching what Cobra had mouthed, Echo broke into a cold sweat.
Ryan’s eyes grew even colder, and his grip on her hand tightened.
Echo quickly switched to a pitiful expression, holding her hand to Ryan and saying, “That old woman was too quick. Boss, I got hurt because of you!”
If Cobra hadn’t mouthed the truth, she wouldn’t have realized that Ryan was actually asking about her injury. The fact that Ryan could even care about her surprised Echo more than she could express.
Ryan looked at her with icy eyes, his gaze hardening. Suddenly, he tightened his grip on her hand and gave it a sharp twist. Echo yelped in pain.
“An old woman, and you couldn’t handle her? And you managed to get yourself hurt? Some skills you’ve got,” Ryan growled, his barely-contained anger now bursting out. His grip on Echo’s hand became even stronger, and his face was full of fury.
Echo hadn’t expected Ryan to care about her injury, so Cobra’s clue had shocked her. But now, seeing Ryan this angry, she wasn’t surprised anymore. If Ryan had comforted or held her to make her feel better, she’d have thought the world had turned upside down. This reaction, though? This was exactly the Ryan she knew. She almost felt relieved.
“I didn’t see it coming. I didn’t know she’d stomp down like that,” Echo muttered, gritting her teeth.
Somehow, her pain tolerance had improved. Despite Ryan’s grip, it didn’t hurt as much as it used to-maybe she was just numb to it now.
Ryan’s face darkened even more. He glared at her and said coldly, “Didn’t see it coming? You’re telling me you didn’t see it coming? What are your ears and eyes even for?”
“I… I…” Echo stammered, seeing the deadly look on his face.
She couldn’t come up with anything to say. She had no idea what exactly Ryan was upset about, so staying quiet seemed like the best option.
Seeing Echo’s pitiful expression, Ryan’s rage only grew. He yanked her closer, seething with anger, and snarled, “Take her to Dark Prison.”
Ryan flung Echo toward Bill, who quickly stuck out his foot to stop her from falling.
Echo was stunned. Hearing Ryan says he was sending her to Adolph’s prison camp over something so small, she didn’t care if he was angry anymore. She cried out, “No! I’ll die if I go there!”
“Die? You know what death is, huh? Keep messing up like this, and even if you don’t go to Dark Prison, you’ll be dead anyway. Take her away. Tomorrow, send her over. If she’s gonna die, she’s not taking my reputation down with her,” Ryan growled, cutting her off without giving her a chance to argue.
Echo’s face changed, and she was about to argue, but Bill grabbed the back of her shirt and pulled her away before she could resist.
Adolph noticed this and gave a slight smile. So that’s why Echo wanted to see Dark Prison-Ryan must’ve threatened her with it before. No wonder she was so upset.
“After all these years, you’ve built a bit of a reputation for yourself, but have you learned nothing about reading the room? What are you doing arguing with the Boss at a time like this?” Bill quickly dragged Echo outside, pushed her into a quiet spot, and then let go, looking at her with exasperation.
Echo raised her eyebrows and snapped, “I’m not arguing! I didn’t do anything wrong, so why am I being sent to Dark Prison? What gives him the right?”
Bill shot her an annoyed look. “What do you know? Do you realize how dangerous things can be in this line of work? Today, you were lucky to have Mr. Adolph with you, so the others didn’t dare do anything to you. But what if, next time, you’re alone-without the Boss or anyone else to watch your back? What do you think could happen if you ‘didn’t see it coming’? What if those people who bumped into you today were your enemies and wanted to kill you? Would you still be standing here now? That stomp you took-what if it had been a knife or a gun instead? What do you think the outcome would’ve been? ‘Didn’t see it coming’-those words can’t exist in our world. In this line of work, we survive by being cautious. We’re careful with everything, and even then, it’s still not enough. You need to keep your eyes and ears wide open at all times, and even then, you need to be more careful. One slip-up, one moment of not paying attention, and we’d be dead a hundred times over by now. You can’t afford to be so careless.”
Echo stood there, stunned by Bill’s words. She hadn’t considered things that way before. Her life hadn’t required this level of constant vigilance.
Seeing her shocked expression, Bill sighed and said, “The Boss chewed you out today and got so angry because he cares. Do you think he’d lose his temper like this with just anyone? Do you think he’d get this worked up for someone else? I thought you were smart. How can you be so clueless? He’s doing this for your own good!”
Echo had been full of anger, but now she bit her lip, calming down as Bill’s words sank in. She didn’t say anything.
Bill shook his head and added, “The Boss isn’t good at caring for people. He doesn’t know how to show it. But he’ll never treat his own people badly. I figured after all this time with him, you’d have figured that out.”
Echo rubbed her forehead and said quietly, “Even if I was wrong, Boss can’t just throw me into Dark Prison. That’s practically a death sentence.”
Bill raised an eyebrow and smiled. “He was just angry. He knows exactly what you’re capable of, and this is more of a warning than anything. He wants you to pay attention from now on, to always stay alert. But sending you to Dark Prison doesn’t mean he wants you dead. That place toughens people up. If you make it through, ‘didn’t see it coming’ will never be a problem for you again. Even if you cross the wrong people, or someone comes after you because of your connection to the Boss, they’ll think twice about whether they’ve got the skills to take you down. This is for your own good. Your skills and your life are yours to protect. The Boss and the rest of us can cover for you, but it’s always better if you can protect yourself.”
Echo blinked at that and glanced over at the brightly lit hall where Ryan was frowning and talking to Adolph.
After a moment, she raised an eyebrow and smiled, “Protection? It seems like ever since I met Mr. Ryan, it’s been me looking out for him.”