The basement, which had originally been a simple storage space, had now been transformed into an underground area even larger than the villa itself.
Within this vast underground space, there were numerous rooms, supplies, facilities, weapons, machine tools, and several security passageways leading directly to external safe houses.
This had been the most labor-intensive part of the entire project. Over the past few weeks, Donald had devoted most of his time to converting the basement and constructing the security tunnels.
Fortunately, Luca had provided enough funds. Otherwise, following the usual procedures, it would have taken far longer just to get the necessary approvals from the relevant departments, not to mention the time required for actual construction.
It was also thanks to Luca’s affiliation with Morning Star that the process was fast-tracked and received green lights at every step.
“This house looks really ugly,” Sini remarked bluntly as she stared at the villa in front of her. “You spent so much money, and you couldn’t make it look a little more stylish?”
Donald scratched his head. “What’s the point of making it pretty? Pretty doesn’t put food on the table.”
Luca nodded in agreement, clearly seeing things the same way.
Sini, who followed a more idealistic approach to aesthetics, found herself speechless. For these two pragmatists, form had little value compared to function.
The three of them entered the villa and looked around. The interior was grand and luxurious. Crystal chandeliers cast warm light over the clean, patterned floors. The furniture was made of intricately carved rosewood, there were antique wall lamps, and abstract oil paintings from a bygone era added an extra layer of classic charm. The villa had five floors, each room was equipped with home appliances and furniture. Despite the unusual exterior, the interior looked no different from an ordinary luxury villa. This made Sini’s complaints a bit quieter.
After the tour, Luca made his way to the basement on his own. The entrance to the basement was hidden behind an abstract painting in the living room. It was a mechanical door that required pulling a curtain cord while simultaneously turning the adjacent light fixture. Once activated, the stone door behind the painting would open, revealing a set of stairs and tunnels leading down.
What intrigued Luca was how thick the stone door was. It was several meters thick. According to Donald, the concrete used for this door was tough enough to withstand the blast of a small guided missile. It was specifically designed to be bombproof, similar to a military bunker. Although the basement itself wasn’t as extreme, it was still sturdy enough to withstand a direct missile strike.
Luca took two rounds through the basement and was thoroughly satisfied. Even if the monsters discovered this underground hideout, it would take them a year or more to break in. By that time, the people inside would likely have already escaped Celephais through the secret passage.
All the household items had already been moved in and arranged in their rooms. Aside from Luca, both Donald and Sini were sentimental types, so most of their belongings had been kept. Despite Luca giving them a lot of money, their frugality remained unchanged.
Once the moving was taken care of, Luca returned to his room.
He changed into fresh clothes, opened the gaming pod, and lay down inside.
The system scanned his identity and entered the game.
[Ding! Game link successful!]
[Welcome, player “Luca,” to Eternal World!]
…
Meanwhile, at Susie’s house.
“Ugh…” A girl’s sobs filled the room.
She was crying her heart out.
Outside the room, Zoey and Darabont exchanged puzzled looks, not sure what was going on.
“What’s wrong with her?” Darabont scratched his head, completely confused about why his daughter was having such an emotional breakdown.
Zoey, who knew her daughter well, remained calm and said, “She’s probably heartbroken.”
“Heartbroken?” Darabont blinked in surprise. “When did she get a boyfriend?”
Zoey thought for a moment and replied, “I think it was when she was about six or maybe five.”
Darabont finally understood, eyes widening in realization. “You mean Luca?”
“Who else but that little rascal?” Zoey sighed. “He’s the only one who could make our precious daughter cry like this.”
“It might just be a fight,” she added. She approached the door and called out gently, “Sweetheart, don’t cry. When Luca comes back, I’ll make sure he comes over and apologizes to you.”
Darabont also chimed in, trying to comfort her. “Yeah, honey, it’s just a breakup. If he can’t marry you, that’s his loss.”
“And technically, you guys weren’t even really together, so there’s no reason to be sad over him.”
The crying inside the room paused for a moment.
“WAHH!!” Then Susie cried even harder.
The thought that she had spent over ten years not defining her relationship, only for that jerk to get snatched up by another woman in a matter of days.
It made her heart ache unbearably.
Zoey couldn’t help but shoot a disapproving look at Darabont. “How do you comfort someone like that? Can’t you say something nice?”
Darabont furrowed his brows and said, “The problem is, it’s the truth. They’ve known each other for so many years with no progress at all, maybe there’s really no future there. If there had been, they would’ve already secretly gotten together by now. Besides, now that Luca’s moved, it’s probably for the best that things are cut off.”
The crying in the room stopped again.
Zoey, frustrated, almost wanted to hit him. She snapped, “How did I ever marry such an idiot like you?”
Darabont was about to argue back when the door to Susie’s room suddenly creaked open.
“He… when did he move?” Susie sniffled, her eyes red and swollen from crying.
Zoey’s heart ached seeing her daughter like this. She quickly pulled Susie into her arms and said, “He moved today. Luca made a lot of money, bought a villa in the suburbs, and they’ve been preparing for this for a while. You’ve been busy playing games these past few days, so I didn’t get a chance to tell you.”
Hearing this, Susie’s face suddenly turned pale. She pressed her lips together and asked, “So, will they come back?”
Zoey opened her mouth but couldn’t bring herself to say anything too hurtful.
She comforted her, saying, “Of course they will, they’re still in Celephais. It’s not that far from here.”
In reality, even if they lived in the same city, with decades of history between the families, the relationship would inevitably grow distant.
The moment Sini told her that Luca had made millions in the game, Zoey knew this day would come sooner or later. She just didn’t expect it to come so quickly.
Darabont also felt sorry for his daughter.
He sighed and said, “Sweetheart, Luca’s family isn’t the same as it used to be. I think it’s better if you keep your distance from him.”
“Not the same?” Susie looked at him with confusion, not understanding why he was saying this.
Darabont chose his words carefully and spoke in a softer tone, “Do you remember the criminals we encountered, and the officer with the knife…?”
Susie nodded. The incident had left quite an impact on her, and she definitely remembered it, especially Luca’s heroic figure stepping up at that moment. He had looked so cool…
Darabont lit a cigarette, his expression heavy. “I went back to the police station a few days ago to investigate the matter, but I couldn’t find anything in the files. The Chief, Coarmy, personally warned me.”
He paused, looking down, the weight of the situation sinking in. “He told me those people were from a special department, with the highest level of clearance, and that we shouldn’t even ask about them.”
“After that, I was put on administrative leave.”
He sighed deeply.
“Administrative leave? More like they want me to keep my mouth shut!” Darabont gave a bitter laugh.
“Although I don’t know exactly what those people’s supernatural powers are, it’s clear from Luca that they belong to the same group.”
“Getting too involved with him will only put you in danger. Do you understand what I mean?”
“Your father is right,” Zoey said, gently stroking Susie’s hair, her eyes filled with helplessness.
Even though Darabont hadn’t told her about this, the events surrounding Luca’s behavior and the man who could attack with vines had also made a deep impact on her. But she had kept these thoughts bottled up inside, unwilling and too afraid to speak them out loud.
Now that the issue was laid out so plainly, what lay before them was no longer just a simple matter of feelings. Instead, it was something much more real, even life-threatening.
Susie stood frozen, listening. It was only at that moment that she suddenly realized that, despite being so close to each other, there was a vast, insurmountable gulf between her and Luca.
And this distance was far greater than she had ever imagined…
The sun outside the window gradually began to set.
The colorful pinwheel on the windowsill turned slightly in the breeze.
Susie had no idea when she had returned to her room.
She stared absentmindedly at the pinwheel. The seemingly empty air in front of her suddenly seemed to have transformed into an invisible barrier, a transparent wall she could not cross.
A wall that pulled her further and further away from that figure, until it disappeared completely into the darkness, never to be seen again.
She had always thought of herself as one of the people who knew Luca the best. But today, she realized that all along, it had only been her own self-deceiving fantasy.
In this moment, Susie felt a heavy, suffocating pain in her chest. The stark contrast between reality and her ideal had torn at her soul, making her feel as though she couldn’t breathe.
“That bastard… it’s over!” She held the windowsill with one hand, clutching her chest with the other. Her face was pale as she stood up, clutching the pinwheel in her hand, tears dripping onto it.
Looking at the spinning pinwheel, Susie felt an overwhelming sadness. Why were other people’s school romances sweet and happy, while hers had ended before it even began?
Just thinking about it made her feel so miserable, so lonely. Her heart hurt with a deep ache.
“What’s over?” At that moment, a familiar voice suddenly sounded in her ear. freēwēbnovel.com
Frozen in place, her tear-filled eyes widened in shock. She looked up and, through her blurred vision, she thought she saw an incredibly familiar boy standing outside the window.
The setting sun bathed him in a golden halo.
It was Luca. That face—she would recognize it even if it were reduced to ashes.
But how was Luca flying?
This had to be a hallucination. She was just too heartbroken. It was all his fault—bastard!
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Her mind was in turmoil.
Suddenly, Susie felt a warm pair of hands gently touch her face, wiping away her tears.
She blinked, her eyes widening in disbelief.
“You… you… you can actually fly?” She pointed at Luca outside the window, stunned, her mouth falling open in shock.
“Why are you so surprised?” Luca said leisurely, his voice calm. “I’m an eighteen-year-old boy in the prime of my youth. Isn’t it normal for me to be able to fly?”