Chapter 254: Nine Years Old Already?
From her perspective, Paige’s anxiety for Mr. Gustin was no less intense than Jaden’s.
“What exactly is the Medicine Curse Sect’s treatment method?” Jaden asked, puzzled.
“Mental illnesses are still one of the world’s greatest challenges. In medicine, the approach is mainly suppression, using drugs to forcibly stabilize the patient’s mental state. The Medicine Curse Sect uses a similar approach, but if successful, it’s even more potent, directly suppressing all of the patient’s unstable mental states.”
Dr. Clinton, who had looked over Paige’s notebook, explained, then added in a low voice, “But I hope there aren’t any negative side effects.”
“Negative side effects?” Jaden was stunned.
“Memory disarray. I saw in Miss Paige’s notebook that she treated someone, and while that person’s mental state normalized, all memories related to learning were lost, turning them into an illiterate who couldn’t even recognize a single character,” Dr. Clinton said.
Jaden frowned. “Are you saying the boss might become illiterate?”Content is property of NôvelDrama.Org.
That scenario… He wasn’t sure he wanted to imagine it.
“Not necessarily; each person is different,” Dr. Clinton replied. “Besides, even if he becomes illiterate, it’s still better than his current state.”
“…”
Jaden understood his point and didn’t press further. As long as his mental state was stable, even if he became illiterate, he would still be their boss!
…
The curtains were drawn aside, allowing sunlight to pour in and cast the shape of the window onto the floor. A man lay quietly on the large bed, his brows smooth and unwrinkled, his thin lips slightly pursed, his expression extremely peaceful.
Paige sat on the carpet beside the bed, holding one of his hands with one of hers while resting her head with the other, lightly dozing off.
By the bedside, a bowl of herbal medicine still had some left, its bitter scent lingering in the air.
Suddenly, a sharp pain struck Paige’s chest, and she opened her eyes to find her hand being gripped tightly by someone. She immediately turned her gaze to see Enrico lying there, his eyes open, staring fixedly at the crystal chandelier above him. The bloodshot look in his eyes was gone, replaced by those familiar deep gray pupils.
“…”
Paige stared at him, hearing the loud thumping of her heart.
He had finally truly awakened.
“Sis-” he suddenly called out in a weak, despairing voice.
The next second, Enrico sat up abruptly in bed, his movements urgent. He yanked the covers off, his gaze sweeping over Paige. His entire body froze, hastily shaking off her hand, and his dark eyes were filled with wariness. He shrank back, his instinctive reaction almost childlike.
Then, as if recalling something, his expression darkened. He suddenly lunged forward and grabbed her by the throat, his voice harsh, “Where’s my sister? Where did you take her body?”
“…”
Paige was stunned, starting to doubt whether her method had truly worked.
Before she could respond, Enrico suddenly let go, his expression changing again. He looked at his own hands in horror, then down at his legs resting on the bed.
“Are you alright?” Paige asked, trying to gauge his current condition, but at least he was speaking clearly, unlike before.
Enrico sat there, then suddenly lifted his gaze to scan the room, his eyes locking onto the full-length mirror in the corner.
He jumped out of bed and ran to the mirror.
Seeing his reflection, his expression turned to one of shock, as if he had seen a ghost, staring incredulously at the person in the mirror.
The next moment.
“Bang.” He smashed the full-length mirror to the ground, the glass shattering into pieces.
…
Rafael received the news around noon. After tidying up, he took three different cars before arriving alone at the new Rose Estate.
In the bedroom of the mansion, Enrico sat leaning against the headboard, covered with a blanket, but his legs were curled up in a clearly defensive posture.
His sharply defined, excessively handsome face was devoid of any expression. His deep eyes coldly watched the people at the bedside.
But the coldness in his eyes wasn’t the deep, high, and mighty kind; it carried a hint of forced composure.
Rafael, Jaden, and Dr. Clinton stood there, their expressions complicated as they looked at him, as if observing a rare animal in a zoo.
“So… nine years old already?” Rafael broke the silence, disbelief written all over his face.
While at the presidential palace, he had suddenly received a call from Jaden, saying Enrico had awakened, but his memory had gaps-he couldn’t recall anything after the age of nine.
In other words, this 28-year-old man had mentally reverted to… a nine-year-old.
It was quite unexpected.
“…”
Jaden stood there, unsure of what to say, just staring fixedly at Enrico like this.
Nine years old wasn’t so bad, he thought. At least, he could still read and write-he wasn’t entirely illiterate.
“To be precise, he’s lost all memories after his sister’s death,” Paige said, walking in from outside.
His memory was stuck at that bloody snowstorm.
In the morning, when Enrico had awakened, he even thought all the servants at Rose Estate had been killed and mistook her for a newly hired maid from The Gustin family’s villa, sent to torment him.
Upon hearing this, everyone turned to look at her. Enrico leaned back against the headboard, his gaze sweeping over her before quickly withdrawing, his facial muscles tightly clenched.
“Do you remember them?” Paige asked, glancing at Enrico on the bed. Her gaze was gentle as she introduced him, “This is Jaden, and this is Rafael.”
Enrico lifted his gaze to look at Rafael and Jaden.
The two immediately tensed up, their eyes wide with anticipation.
“Enrico, we’ve been friends since childhood. You should remember me, right?” Rafael, recalling he wasn’t nearsighted as a child, quickly removed his gold-rimmed glasses.
“Boss, I’m Jaden,” Jaden barely dared to breathe.
Paige stood there, watching Enrico. He looked at them for a long time, so long that everyone grew silent with disappointment, and then Enrico suddenly nodded.
Rafael was thrilled, “I knew it…”
“Ugly,” Enrico added, expressionless.
“…”
The rest of Rafael’s words stuck in his throat.
A few seconds later, he quietly looked at Paige, “You rushed the treatment.”
What’s with this nine-year-old’s mouth? It’s even less charming than the past three years!
But Paige didn’t mind. She focused on Enrico, observing his subtle expressions.
Even with only the memories of a nine-year-old, he was still very clever. Despite the unfamiliar environment, except for the mansion resembling the old Rose Estate, and the unfamiliar people like her and everyone else, he only showed a brief moment of panic before quickly calming down.
Since the morning, he had silently guarded against her and everyone else, even the place itself, and had secretly broken a vase, hiding the shards under his pillow as a precaution.
Now, having recognized Rafael and Jaden’s features, he realized his situation wasn’t as dire as it seemed, and the tension in his brow slightly eased.
As long as he was willing to let his guard down, that was good enough.
Paige knew some things couldn’t be rushed, so she glanced at Dr. Clinton and Angie, signaling them to leave the room and give Enrico, Rafael, and Jaden some space.