Middle Child Syndrome - Chapter 317

Chapter 317: Ch 317: Don’t take it too far
Rika had not expected to be found easily. But a while later, the day passed, and there was no news about anyone looking for her.

She had tried asking around to see if anyone knew anything about her, but the mystery of her situation only deepened. Even if someone knew about Rika, people pretended she did not exist for half the time.

The other half did everything they could to interfere with her routine and not allow her to head outside.

Even when Zhu Li took Rika’s phone from her, as soon as he noticed her trying to sneak away and make a call outside the building, it only fueled her determination to escape.

It was frustrating to be without a phone, but the bigger problem was her tracker system.

Rika’s phone was a tracker, and so did her body. But she doubted that either of those were intact any longer.

“Did you have a nice sleep, Rika? Don’t give me that look! I would instead send you back as well. But my uncle is stubborn and will not change his decision to send you back so quickly. You just need to hang in there for now.”

Zhu Li sounded sympathetic, but that was all he was offering Rika. There was no way he would dare go against his uncle.

Rika understood that, and she also understood family loyalties. She would have done the same thing if she were in Zhu Li’s position, so she did not blame him.

It was…just a little frustrating for her to be unable to do anything in her position.

Not being able to head out was one problem. But as a new member, Rika faced an even bigger problem: bullying.

Gangs such as these had strict hierarchies based on strength. So far, Rika has not shown anything worth considering to these people.

She was left alone most of the time and was not considered worthy of being given someone’s time.

But the longer Rika came across the local gang members, the more awkward she felt.

She could tell that most of these people did not like her simply because she was someone their boss recruited himself.

Rika understood people’s questions about her worth as well.

Even Rika would have questioned her qualifications if she was someone else. She was short, weak-looking, and also a beta. There was nothing advantageous about her.

Luckily for everyone else who looked down on Rika, she had Zhu Li on her side, stopping Rika from going on a rampage! This was the only thing protecting everyone from being bitten by Rika.

If not for Zhu Li, Rika would have ended up hurting someone by now.

“I don’t like the way these punks are looking at me. Are you sure I cannot punch them? A single one won’t matter. I promise I will be gentle with them all and not cause any lasting damage to their bodies.”

Rika asked in a gentle voice.

Her eyes betrayed how angry and annoyed she was at what was happening.

Seeing Rika have that destructive look in her eyes made Zhu Li flinch. He did not expect the younger female to be this vicious.

At the same time, he realized that Rika could cause massive damage even with her petite frame. He had seen her punch the wall training bag to express her frustration.

“How about we do something else to relieve you of your stress? Punching people is not a hobby I want to encourage you to practice.”

Zhu Li tried to be a diplomat and stop Rika from being injured (or injuring someone – not that his uncle would care)

But Rika’s deadpan expression told him she was considering injuring *him* to get her point across for now.

“Hey, brat! What do we have here? Another brat! You all sure like to multiply whenever you want to, huh? And this time, the brat is female! And a beta as well! This should be fun! I’ve not had a fresh meeting for some time now.”

One of the rough-looking alphas looked at Rika with a happy expression.

So far, Rika has realized a few things about this place and how it operates.

First, she realized that Zhu Li was likely undercover, and not many people knew how he was.

For most people, he was just a guy who existed alongside them in this small community. He was also seen as a loner and private person who disliked hanging out with others.

So, to see him have a companion was rare.

It also interested the casual people in Rika, and they tried to coax her into responding.

These people had already pranked Rika thrice; it had only been two hours since she woke up.

She knew it was not Zhu Li’s fault, but Rika was now losing her temper.

“Brat! Fight me! Before you think I am harassing you, let me assure you that betas are not my style! I want to fight you as a good senior and tell you all the areas you can improve.”

The younger alpha looked full of himself as he boasted about his power and how he could ‘teach’ Rika all she needed to know.

He was too bashful and talked too much for someone claiming not to be interested in Rika.

Rika’s eyes twitched, and she quickly stood up to walk toward the alpha. She would teach him a lesson he would not forget anytime soon.

Before Rika could even stand up, Zhu Li grabbed her hand.

Zhu Li looked frustrated, but he quickly gave Rika a begging look.

“Don’t cause any trouble, and don’t permanently damage him! Please! You don’t know how hard human resources are to get by! We don’t want to lose what little we have now.”

Zhu Li complained, but he doubted that Rika cared. Her eyes told Zhu Li that this was his problem, not Rika’s.

He could only sigh and pray that Rika did not cause too much harm to him and the others. Otherwise, his uncle would have a lot to say to him.