Chapter 1799
chapter1799
The air outside the restaurant buzzed with the sounds of a lively crowd, tourists milling about in every direction.
Vivian took a steadying breath, closing her eyes before reopening them. Trusting her instincts, she moved forward, weaving through several narrow alleys. Before long, she found herself at the edge of Dewhurst.
A heavy, lingering aura of negative energy hung in the air near an ancient tree.
The tree stood tall, its age likely spanning four or five centuries. A sudden realization hit her. "Isn't this the same tree I saw earlier at the inn? The young man was near it."
The surroundings felt eerily familiar, mirroring the scene she had encountered earlier at the inn. Snow, which had already begun to fall, was now coming down in thick, heavy flakes.
Vivian could sense the negative presence within the illusion before her.
Recognizing the source, she moved toward it. As she drew closer, a biting cold swept over her, snowflakes landing gently on her skin and hair.
The sensation of the snow was startlingly real, far more tangible than the illusion conjured by the negative item. Just as she began to feel uneasy, her gaze landed on Manfred.
He lay next to the tree, staring at it as though in a trance, seemingly unconscious.
Vivian hurried to his side. Now that she was closer, she couldn't help but notice how striking his features were, even more so up close than from a distance.
She had encountered many beautiful people in her life—Skylar, Joe, Janine, Steven, Charles, Harvey, Mona, and Thelma-all possessing remarkable looks.
But none of them carried the same air of stubbornness and detachment that Manfred did. There was something almost fragile about him, a delicate vulnerability that contrasted with his hardened exterior.
He was painfully thin, his complexion pale.
"Wake up! You're outside in the snow. You can't sleep here, or you'll catch a cold," Vivian called out to him.
But he didn't respond.
Despite the surreal nature of her surroundings, Vivian could still feel
his breath-he was alive, butiteet
seemed as though he was it.
Without thinking, she reached out to touch his forehead.
The heat that radiated from him startled her. Just as she was about to speak again, her hand was
abruptly seized. Manfred's eyes
snapped open.
His gaze was sharp, full of wariness and coldness, tinged with a hint of hostility-
like the eyes of a wolf, fierce and unyielding.
"Who are you? Why are you here?" Manfred's voice was low and edged with suspicion. But as he studied her, he noticed something odd. She was dressed in strange, unfamiliar clothing.
And when she looked at him, there was none of the disdain or mockery he expected from the Atkinson family.
His grip on her hand loosened slightly, but the wariness in his eyes didn't fade.
"I'm a tourist. You should go home, take some medicine, and rest," Vivian suggested gently.
"Go home? Who are you really? What is your purpose here? Who sent you?" Manfred frowned.
Vivian was momentarily stunned.