The Demon’s Bride

Days without her family felt heavy but she didn't want to burden anyone in the house and kept a smile. Aryl who has been beside her knew just how hard it was for her to cope with her loss and could only stay next to her as the girl cried to her sleep. That morning, Elise arrived at the cemetery where her family was buried.

Besides the cemetery, white snowy Jasmine flowers draped down being the fence to circle the wide cemetery. The view was beautiful and Elise felt happy for her family to rest in a place that wasn't as eerie as the other cemetery she had seen before. Although perhaps in the night the view of the cemetery wouldn't look that much different with horror, in the morning it could serve as a mesmerizing view for them who now is sleeping in a deep slumber.

Elise stood in front of the gravestones with her family's name carved in the stone. The Lord of Warine was a kind man, even though she wasn't his slave and a stranger to him now, he prepared the best gravestones for her family. She knelt down and brushed her hand on the gravestones, she had thought that after all the days she spent her days crying today she wouldn't be able to she tears. But now the translucent drop streamed down from the rim of her eyes.

Cynthia looked at the scene and kneaded her hand to fist to the point her knuckles whitened from the firm pressure. Her eyes held a deep malignity, seeing Elise's in her dolor state, she ground her teeth to calm down her heart but it was to no avail. She turned her head to Ian and spoke hesitantly, "Lord Ian, can I excuse myself?" She asked and received a permission nod from Ian. Without any other words, she quickly left the cemetery, walking with powerful steps that brought her out.

"Accompany her, Austin." Ian passed his order to Austin in his human form.

"Yes, milord." He stepped his feet faster, walking behind to follow his close coworker.

Ian didn't say much, his face held an indefinable expression. Leaning on the tree not too far from where Elise was, he gave a space where she could weep for her family again and remained silent. The breeze blew softly to his face, blowing his black hair to show his scarlet eyes. It wasn't a new thing to see mythical creatures to have a mesmerizing charm but even more than other mythical beings, he had a far distinctive beauty. With his composed complexion, no one could guess what kind of thought passing through his head. He stood there unmovingly with his black coat and watched the girl finally standing up a little staggering as she did that. He strolled to her, extending his hand in worry. He had seen humans for more than a hundred or perhaps almost a thousand years and yet she was too fragile than any of human he ever saw before. So fragile to the point he worried the wind could blow her to dust.

She whispered a thank for his help and felt a little dizzy from the lack of proper rest or liquid. Rubbing her swollen red eyes, she forced an unruffled smile. "I apologize for wasting your time, Lord Ian."

"That isn't something for you to apologize, have you finished saying your farewell to your family?" He spoke with his usual voice yet tenderness could fetch faintly if someone close to him such as he aide heard.

Elise exhaled a soft sigh, she could feel tears forming like a glass on her eyes and held it back. She had promised not to cry anymore for the sake of not worrying her family in heaven. "Yes, once again thank you very much for your hospitality at your house. I will be going to find work and a place to live in."

"A place to live?" The words slipped out of Ian's lips hurriedly and he pulled his words again. "Do you have any particular work in your mind now?" From her words, it didn't seem that she has a place to live or job in mind,

"That's-" Elise fiddled with her fingers, seeing her response, Ian quirked a very faint grin. She continued, "I have entered the test to become work in the Church. For now, I plan to search for a temporary job with a place to live."

From her explanation, she needed a place in the mid-time to wait for something. Being a nun wouldn't need that as they will directly live and study in the Church. That being said, he remembered Alex to have said something about the Church opening a test for the humans in Runalia. So Ian concluded this work she mentioned lays to one thing, "Work in the Church? Do you mean as a Churchwoman?"

"Yes," Elise confirmed. What she found it wasn't hard to look directly at Ian's beautiful scarlet eyes that were deeper than what she remembered when she was still a child, but seeing his face brought her a feeling of jittery. It was a kind of face that was too dazzling that one couldn't look directly especially to the young lady.

Ian hummed with a somewhat beguiled tone and came up with an idea. "In that case, I have a perfect work that would fall under your categories and with very fine payment. It could also give you some studies of your future work." Ian offered. "However, the distance to Runalia would be a little far."

A fine payment that Ian referred must be a very adequate one coming from his mouth. The job has a place for her to live in and knowledge for her future work, it was more than what she needed. With such a fine work description for her, she couldn't possibly reject the offer. She mulled a little over the long distance Ian mentioned as she wouldn't be able to visit her family's grave often and paused a long time to weigh her choices before coming up with a decision. "No, that's a very good work offer. Please inform me of that job."

"Come with me then." Ian turned his body and walk for Elise to follow. "Where are we going?" She inclined her head and asked but still followed his suit even before his answer. This wasn't because of her being a very naive person who would follow people. Elise's childhood behavior of not asking much and not going too deeply into the information. She still had the same trust that she placed in him as her childhood. Thus believing that he wouldn't harm her.

He turned his face, having the face of a vague grin painting his lips. "Your job would be in Warine, to be exact my White Mansion." 

"Huh?" She continued her steps when suddenly she felt goosebumps popping from her forearm and sped up to Ian's side in fear. Noticing her running clumsily to come at a stop on his left side, he turned his head lifting his brows very slightly. At first, he thought she followed him closely due to not wanting to lose him in sight before arriving at the carriage but on close inspection at her paled expression, he rethought again. "What is it?" He followed what she had just seen and replied again, "Did you see a ghost again?"

Elise turned her eyes to shut it as tightly as she could and pursed her lips as she nodded. She had live in peace without seeing ghosts again but now without the protection of the bracelet, her eyes opened again. To see the ones that she wasn't able to see for nine years.

It would be fine if the ghost didn't bother her or have a humanly form with only a deadly face, but the one who she had just seen was too gruesome! Its face was deformed, making her unable to see which the gender the ghost belong to. Blood sipping out from the face, the eyeballs lost in one place, and the other one look utterly lost, teeth rotten and bluish-face. From the sight, the ghost perhaps died after being beaten by a very heavy blunt object or had something like a heavy brick or pillar fell to the face.

It was too much for her! She hadn't noticed the ghost before because she was crying but when she stood up, the ghost brushed its hand on her, making her to jolt out and ran toward Ian. Even as a child she hadn't seen such a miserable ghost with a fearsome face. Feeling cold running to her blood she ran away and before she knew it, she heard a trembling grunt from the ghost, seemingly trying to come to her.

"No! Don't come!" Elise exclaimed in her heart and unknowingly jumped toward Ian's hand. Giving his hand a tight grip, she muttered in a whisper, "Don't come! You look so pitiful but I'm scared! I promise I'll pray in your grave properly so don't come!" She was scared out of her wits seeing the disfigured ghosts coming to her with not a good intention.