The Patriarch looked at Victoria's unconscious body that was floating in space. Obviously, Victoria didn't stand a chance against the Patriarch.
Seeing Nathan tending to her and Lisk and Kosmo looking at him warily, he sighed in his heart.
When he told Victoria what he did, he didn't do it to piss her off. He meant it. He had absolutely no obligation to help them in such situations, though calling them chess pieces was an exaggeration on his part.
He told them this to make one thing clear. They couldn't rely on him to help them anytime they ran into a situation they couldn't handle. There'd be times when he wouldn't be there to help them out, so they'd need to use their brains to get out of certain situations. If they couldn't do that much, then there was no point in him investing in them.
