The Demon's Bride

Chapter 12: The Distance, Elise Arrived At Warine Land-II

By the time they arrived at the gate to Warine, Elise's health finally improved and her face had gotten back the lively color that it lost for years. Gluing her face to the carriage's window, her eyes saw the road of the green fields, slowly turn into pebblestone path. Ian who had slowly gotten used to the little girl's expression now regarded her as amusement, like watching an unending theater that Alex used to bring him in Hurthend.

"It's time for your medicine, puppy." He pulled out a flask from his pocket again. Elise glanced at him pursed her lips but still walked next to his seat from across the seat. Dejectedly, she shut her eyes tightly and opened her mouth.

Ian chuckled as he gave the medicine to her mouth. Elise bravely took it all in a gulp and as she expected she couldn't get used to the bitter taste as another glaze of tears form on her eyes but it quickly disappeared when she saw a candy on Ian's other hand. Ian teasingly unwrapped the outer parchment of the candy with a twirl on both sides and glanced at the girl who had opened her mouth in haste.

"Do you know that you're the first person to ever have the opportunity to do this?" He chuckled at the girl who cluelessly nodded in his words. As she ate the candy and rolled all over her mouth to clink it with her small teeth, Elise saw Ian looking away to the mirror before opening the window to talk at something she wasn't able to see.

"...They've arrived?" Ian continued to fade into his conversation and noticed Elise watching him in utter bewilderment. He smiled to finish his talking to the unseen being who was currently floating mid-air before leaving the carriage's window again. Turning his eyes, he met Elise's blue eyes and queried. "You can't see who am I talking to?" He brushed his hand to tell the unseen creature to leave.

Elise shook her head and saw Ian glancing down at her bracelet. "It's must be because of this." He reached out his hand and pulled it off gently from her hand. "Now, you should be able to see them." Ian opened the window across her.

At that insignificant moment, Elise's eyes seemed as though it was finally opened. Like a closed door that had been tightly locked with various padlocks, the wind blew over her hair, and overwhelming feeling rushed to her heart, making what had become numb in her heart to come back to live.

Blinking twice, she focused her sight to the blinding light that slowly disappeared and small humans beings with colorful hair and eyes, feathery wings in different colors, small horns attached on their head, pointy ears, and legs like that of a chicken appeared before her eyes.

It was a being other than ghosts that she often saw in the past. Looking with fascination, she looked back and asked Ian. "What are they?"

"Those?" Ian brutely reached out his hand and took the specimen to show it off closer. "This is faeries, they are called to be Sulix by their kind, a perfect pair for sorcerers who borrows their power for magic."

Elise was about to show her intrigued understanding when she heard Sulix screaming on top of her lungs while wailing around so Ian would let her go. "Insolent! Hands off you lout!"

"Oh my, what a fool-mouthed faerie we have here, don't you agree?" Ian's red eyes narrowed down, initiating that he could pluck off her feathery wings if she dared to speak anymore foul word in front of the girl.

"Tch!" The Sulix clicked her tongue, almost spitting to him in anger but break her glarings away from Ian to the girl beside him. "That girl!" She swatted Ian's hand with much force and flew over to Elise and glanced around all over her face. "Oh my! Isn't this girl is the sweet child?!"

Elise stared at the Sulix who was as large as her face in a great trance, she couldn't remember her childhood memory that clear, but she had never seen anything other than ghosts and evil spirits taking form such as shadows or animals with red blazing eyes. She had never seen anything such as faeries and unlike what she imagined, they could speak the human language very well.

The Sulix brought forward its hand to Elise but Ian swiftly took her wings and pushed her aside. "Excuse me little being. This girl is mine. You do know that I really don't like anyone to touch my belongings, don't you? So please mind your hands." He spoke with a faint smile yet his eyes weren't smiling in the least.

"You!" The Sulix glared with its green eyes but was quick to throw away by Ian before shutting the window with a loud thud. The Sulix's small hand powerfully knocked on the window and raged. "Damn you!"

"You're welcome. It was also a pleasure to meet you." Ian brushed off the Sulix's curses and turned his head back to Elise. "So which do you want to see again? The Sulix are everywhere and you could see them from time to time, but they aren't the best thing to see. Do you want to see anything else?" He looked across her shoulder and saw nothing but three other Sulixs and leaned back to his seat. "There isn't much to see yet, you could see the other later. When we arrive."

Elise's eyes lit up as she nodded in a warm little smile. Another thing she learned after watching Ian for a week was that he is a man of his words. If he promised something, he will not take it back and she couldn't wait to see any more beings that her blue pair of eyes could see.