Love this comment.
Bernard definitley has some weird stuff going on and I wouldn't be suprised if he was lying/hiding things from the MC.
About the Wraith fever thing I remember it being spread by the big rats under the tavern, so maybe Bernard could've gotten it from interacting with one of the bar patrons? (Personally prefer your idea though)
I remember posting a while back about Bernards odd gauntlet and the strange gem in it but I'm still waiting on an update that can help explain that.
The gauntlet and the gem seem so out of place on a seeming normal freindly merchant in a remote village...
About the lake village do you mean Mythshore? The one filled with zombies?
It would make sense that whoever caused that fled through the hidden passage and ended up in Bareshade, I remember one of the tall buildings having a note on the top floor from whoever caused that but I'll playthrough again and see what I can find.
I personally still have no trust in The Nameless but he could just have been vauge with his word choice, technically werewolves are shapeshifters so he could just be using that to gain our trust.