Mocha's Second Call

To the sound of Demiurge seeing him off, Ryan arrived at Mocha's front door and knocked.

His extraordinary hearing let him clearly catch the footsteps coming from inside. With a click, the door opened, and Rose, looking far older than she had ten years ago, warmly welcomed him inside, just as she had back then.

"You're still as beautiful as ever!"

After greeting Rose cheek to cheek, Ryan sweetly praised her.

"You little rascal still know exactly what to say." Rose spoke happily, then glanced into the house and quietly reminded him, "Your uncle isn't in a very good mood today. Don't argue with an old man like him."

"Don't worry." Ryan patted her arm and gave her a reassuring smile before walking into the living room.

The atmosphere in the living room was somewhat stifling.

Mocha, whose baldness had grown even worse, sat solemnly on the sofa without saying a word. Across from him sat Annie, obediently behaving like a well-behaved girl.

Ryan's thoughts turned slightly as he walked over with a smile and asked, "Why is the atmosphere so serious? Annie, did you make Uncle Mocha angry?"

Annie shot Ryan a fierce glare at his words.

She had been training under the teacher she had only recently taken on. If it hadn't been because of Ryan, how could she have been summoned back by a single phone call?

And now he was actually saying she was the one who had made Uncle Mocha angry. The nerve of him.

Completely ignoring the gaze behind him, Ryan walked to the coffee table, poured a glass of water, and handed it to Mocha with a somewhat ingratiating expression.

"Uncle Mocha, tell me, who dared to make you angry? I'll have someone deal with him right away!"

"Don't they know you're my most respected elder? Giving you a hard time is the same as disrespecting me!"

"Come on, have some water first and calm down!"

Ryan shoved the glass into Mocha's hand and patted his back, fawning over him.

Mocha was so exasperated by Ryan's series of actions that he laughed. He pointed at him for a long moment without speaking. In the end, he drained the water Ryan had handed him in one gulp, snorted coldly, and headed toward the study.

"You two, come here."

Though his tone was somewhat stiff, Ryan and Annie both let out long sighs of relief when they heard it.

"You really have a way with people. I never knew you could pull something like that before!"

Annie rose and came to Ryan's side, speaking softly.

"I just never had a reason to use it before. Remember to cooperate later, got it?"

Ryan's expression remained unchanged as he replied in the same low voice.

"Don't worry."

Annie nodded, a resolute expression appearing on her delicate face.

The most important thing now was to fool the old man.

Before Ryan had arrived, Mocha had actually wanted to confine her to the house and make her stay home during this period, forbidding her from going out!

That would not have been a problem before she encountered her fortunate opportunity, but now that she had come across such an immense chance and had the possibility of stepping into the realm of myths, how could she possibly settle down?

Besides, this was also her hope of helping Ryan in the future.

All these years, Ryan had always been the one giving to her. Though there was no need to distinguish such things between them, she wanted to help him too. For that reason, she had even earned multiple degrees in college before!

And now, she had another choice—a better one!

Looking up at Ryan's handsome figure, Annie's lips curled into a heart-stirring smile.

"What are you two whispering about over there? Why aren't you coming in yet?"

Mocha, who had entered the study, turned back and saw them. His face immediately darkened as he barked at them.

"No, we're coming, we're coming!"

Ryan smiled awkwardly, grabbed Annie by the arm, and quickly led her into the study. As they entered, he even considerately closed the study door behind them.

Bang...

The study instantly fell silent.

Feeling the slightly awkward atmosphere, Ryan rubbed his nose. Just as he was about to speak, Mocha opened his mouth.

"What happened at this morning's meeting? I heard you completely fell out with all the shareholders? And that you said you'd rather throw the company's profits into the water just to hear the splash than give them even a single cent?"

"Uh, who did you hear that from?" Ryan asked, rubbing his nose.

"Ashe. And don't go giving that young lady trouble. She told me for your own good!" Mocha glared at him.

"Ahem, I know. I won't trouble her!" Ryan coughed dryly.

"Vixen!" Annie muttered quietly beside him.

Ryan heard her and glanced at her, but ignored her. After thinking for a moment, he said solemnly, "Something like that did happen, but I have my own reasons. Besides, the money I've made from the company's dividends over the years is enough for Annie and me to live on in the future, so I don't really care..."

"Idiot!"

Mocha slammed the table, interrupting him as anger surged up instantly.

"Have you learned nothing all these years? Do you think I'm worried about money? I'm worried about your life!"

"After all these years, do you still not understand what capital is? If you dare make them lose money, they'll dare take your life!"

"You're throwing away profits of at least tens of billions of dollars a year just like that. If you want to die, don't drag Annie down with you!"

His roar shook the entire study. Seeing Mocha's face flushed red with anger, Ryan suddenly felt guilty.

He had his own confidence, but Mocha didn't know that. Even now, he was still worrying for him.

Perhaps he should reveal a little something?

Even that bastard Tony knew he could use magic. Letting Mocha know wouldn't hurt, and it would save him from continuing to worry...

Seeing Ryan remain silent and not knowing what he was thinking, Mocha sighed and softened his tone. "I know you're holding back your frustration, and I'm frustrated too. But you really can't do something like this. Investigate it slowly. Sooner or later, you'll find out which force was behind it. When that time comes, there will be plenty of ways to settle the score with them!"

"For now, you need to endure!" Mocha said seriously as he walked over to Ryan.

When he learned two days ago that Annie had nearly been kidnapped, wasn't he furious?

He was furious! If he had known who they were, he would have wanted to strap on a bomb and perish with them!

He and Rose had no children. Ryan and Annie, whom they had watched grow up, were no different from their own children.

But after Ryan lost his composure, he had to remain calm.

Annie, listening from the side, pressed her lips together.

The root cause of all this was still weakness. If she could become as powerful as her new teacher, none of this would be a problem.

I need to train even harder from now on... Annie silently made up her mind.

"Annie, don't go out recently. Wait until Ryan has resolved this matter first."

Mocha turned to look at Annie seriously. The situation was so dangerous that it was better for her to stay home obediently. Besides, the little girl really had a big heart. She had just been kidnapped two days ago, yet she could still go out wandering around as if nothing had happened. He was truly speechless.