Chapter 109

Chapter 109:

Despite her petite frame, her strength was undeniable.

“You’ve got your whole life ahead of you. Why on earth would you try to throw it away?” Fernanda pressed, her tone crisp with disbelief. “Do you have any idea how fiercely I’ve struggled to cling to mine? And yet, you seem so eager to discard yours.”

Fernanda recalled that he was merely a teenager.

Under the silvery glow of the moonlight, his drenched hair veiled his eyes, leaving only the sharp contour of his jawline visible.

She soon discovered that he resided in the enigmatic, secluded villa nearby.

His revelation about his residence was intentional.

He expected her to react with fear and make a hasty retreat.

However, he had sorely underestimated her.

Upon hearing his residence, Fernanda’s reaction was not one of fear but of pure curiosity. Her eyes sparkled brilliantly, outshining the moon above.

“Really? You live there?” Her voice swelled with palpable excitement.

“May I come to see your home?”

Thus, Fernanda became the first visitor to step foot into the villa. The boy, baffled by his own decision to let her in, felt as if he were swept up in a whirlwind of folly.

Inside, the villa was stark and unadorned, with only a handful of basic furnishings.

No prisoners lurked there, no madwoman roamed, and no specters haunted its halls. It was remarkably mundane. A twinge of disappointment washed over Fernanda.

She couldn’t put her finger on the exact cause of her disillusionment. Perhaps it was the absence of the opulent retreat she had envisioned, or the lack of eerie allure that the village tales had promised.

To sum up, the place was utterly ordinary.

However, her visit was not without its revelations. She encountered someone remarkable—a man in his thirties, who exuded sophistication and kindness.

The boy she had rescued introduced the man accompanying him as his teacher, Mr. Bernard.

Mr. Bernard was unlike anyone Fernanda had ever met; his intellect seemed boundless, his knowledge vast. To her, he was nothing short of a genius.

Curious and eager, Fernanda bombarded Mr. Bernard with questions about the intricacies of urban life, the shifting phases of the moon, and the profound mysteries of life and death. She inquired about the disparities between the rich and the poor. However, she refrained from asking why the boy had attempted to take his own life.

Somehow, she understood that even if she posed the question, the truth might remain elusive.

From that moment, Mr. Bernard took on the role of her mentor. Fernanda became a frequent visitor at the villa, absorbing a diverse array of skills and knowledge.

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