"If he didn't take over the company, my dad was going to train me. But I'm just not cut out for that kind of work. Three years! I was stuck at the company for three whole years and accomplished absolutely nothing. So, I ran away.
Right then, Stardust happened to be hiring, so I applied, and that's how I became your assistant."
She got genuinely angry just talking about it. She'd been put through the wringer for three years, and in the end, her brother got to live care-free for another three years. No, three and a half. That guy is still out there messing around even now!
'Nope, I have to shake down my brother for some more money. Otherwise, I'll be too pissed to sleep tonight.'
Riley Perry: ... 'So it's still a case of "either be an assistant or go inherit the family business"?'
She sent out a message: Bro, hurry up and send me money. You're making me so mad! And it's the kind of mad that a small amount of money won't fix!
Rhona's phone buzzed almost immediately: Didn't I just transfer you money the day before yesterday? Spent it all already?
Rhona sent back an unreasonable reply: It's none of your business if I spent it or not. I'm telling you to send me money to make me feel better!
The other end went silent, and then Rhona received a bank transfer notification.
She deliberately waved her phone in front of Riley Perry's face. "Ria, look! My brother sent me money. I'll transfer it all to you. It should be enough for the medicine, right?"
Riley Perry had excellent eyesight and saw the contents of the screen crystal clear. 'So all you have to do to get money from your brother is say you're angry?' Riley Perry was deeply envious.
'Could I please have a stack of amazing older brothers like that?'
'If every brother transferred money to her twice, she'd be a billionaire in minutes!'
Riley Perry looked at Rhona. "You have a lot of money?"
Rhona nodded vigorously. "My family's company is pretty profitable. I get a lot in dividends every year, but I don't really have anything to spend it on, so I've saved up a ton."
Riley Perry was so exasperated. She reached out and pushed Rhona's face away. "I said I'm not taking your money, and I meant it."
'Ah, jealousy is twisting my features. What a sin, what a sin.'
Rhona seemed to understand something and looked annoyed. She really hadn't meant to show off her wealth. Wasn't she just trying to make sure Ria didn't get the short end of the stick?
'Still, Ria is a really good person. She actually gave her something and wouldn't even take money for it.'
She immediately stood up, poured a glass of water, opened the medicine bottle, took out a pill, and swallowed it.
'Later, I'll go to the gym and work out. Even if the medicine Ria gave me doesn't work, I'm going to lose this weight!'
Riley Perry, unaware of what was going through Rhona's mind, headed to the acting studio when it was time for her class.
Meanwhile, a certain someone staring at his phone flew into a rage when he realized it was already noon and he hadn't even received a "good morning" text.
"Henry Hayes, finish up things here this afternoon. We're going back to Dragonspire tonight."
Henry Hayes wiped the sweat from his brow. "Yes, President. I'll book the tickets right away."
'Oh my god, we're finally going back. I'm so done waiting on this sexually frustrated president every day.'
...
After dinner, Riley Perry sat at her desk and opened her computer. With her current level of fame, it was too difficult to make money, so she had no choice but to return to her old trade.
She logged into a certain hacker website with her old account. The moment she came online, message alerts began to chime incessantly. She opened her inbox and saw they were all from the top few people on the leaderboard.
She clicked open one of the chat windows and typed just two words: I'm back.
What followed was a demonstration of a hacker's terrifying speed. Message alerts chimed rapidly, one after another. A smile on her face, Riley Perry read them carefully, one by one.
Jack of Spades: LE, you finally decided to come back, huh?
Jack of Spades: LE, where have you been for the past three years?
Jack of Spades: LE, do you remember what you promised me back then? You said we could meet in person, but then you disappeared for three years. It's time to make good on that promise, right?
Jack of Spades: ye and the others are all waiting for you too.
Riley Perry thought to herself that they really hadn't forgotten her. ye and Spider had already sent her a long string of messages.
LE: Not yet. I'm busy making some extra money.
Jack of Spades: You're short on cash?
He didn't get it. How could LE, who was still number one on the hacker leaderboard, be short on cash?
But then again, it made sense. After LE became famous from that legendary offensive and defensive battle against the world's number one hacker four years ago, she had never appeared online again. It was actually possible that she was—short on cash!
LE: I'm not chatting anymore. I'm going to check the mission board. I'll contact you when I have time.
There were many jobs on the Hacker Alliance's mission board, but not all of them were suitable for Riley Perry. She wouldn't touch anything illegal, like contract killings, and after scrolling for a while, she finally found a suitable one.
Restore a segment of a hallway's surveillance footage.
The job had been posted for a while, and the price had been raised three times. The reward had gone from the original 1 million to 5 million. It seemed the footage had been deleted very thoroughly!
Riley Perry loved a challenge. 'This is the one!'
She worked until eleven before finally finishing the job. After seeing the text message confirming the payment had been received, Riley Perry immediately washed up and went to bed.
She had just laid down when she heard her bedroom door open again. Someone entered her room, and soon a man's slightly cool body was pressing against hers.
Riley Perry kicked out again, but this time he was prepared. He caught her fair-skinned foot in one hand, then pulled her to the edge of the bed and pressed his whole body down on top of her.
The woman let out a cry of alarm and began to struggle fiercely. "Let go! Let go of me!"
"You dare kick me again? You're asking for it!"
Hearing his voice, Riley Perry stopped struggling. Cole Sinclair thought she had given in and lowered his head to kiss her, only to be met with a cold, wet sensation.
He touched her face with his hand, and in the next second, he switched on the bedside lamp. Sure enough, Riley Perry was crying silently.
Cole Sinclair felt his heart clench. His voice was hoarse as he asked, "What's wrong?"
Riley Perry's eyelashes trembled, but she didn't speak.
Cole Sinclair instinctively loosened his hold on her. "Why aren't you talking? Did I hurt you?"
Riley Perry shook her head. "I... I thought you hated me."
Cole Sinclair: ... "What gave you that idea?"
"I... I sent you messages, and you didn't reply to a single one. If that's not because you hate me, then what is it?"
Cole Sinclair: ... 'I had originally planned to keep my distance from her, to stay away for at least half a month. But just because I wasn't getting her messages, I came rushing back after only a few days. And now, she's crying to me over this very thing!'
President Sinclair, who had no idea how to comfort someone, finally managed a stiff, "Stop crying."
Riley Perry said pitifully, "Then tell me, will you dare to ignore my messages again?"
Cole Sinclair: "..."
He sighed. 'How could there be such a high-maintenance woman in this world? Are other men's canaries all like this?'
'I really have to hand it to Julian Fuller, being able to juggle several women at once and never get tired of it. This one is more than enough for me.'
"I'll definitely reply next time." He really didn't want to see her cry again.
Riley Perry immediately looked up. In her beautiful, tear-filled eyes, there wasn't the slightest trace of sadness—only triumph.
Cole Sinclair: ... 'So she was just pretending to cry? But still, she looks beautiful even when she cries.'