The Taming of a Beast

Chapter 4

Evelina let out the breath she had been holding in as she closed the door to the bedroom. She hadn't realized his eyes had been so piercingly blue. During her childhood in the magic tower, she had seen many beautiful and handsome mages. With a sharp jawline and an elegant nose, Adrian was definitely hold a candle to those mages.

But none of the mages had had the unique hair color Adrian had, nor the icy blue eyes he possessed. She hadn't even realized that was his eye color since he had been asleep for the past few days.

Fortunately, the man, Adrian, hadn't seemed hostile, though he held his guard up against her. Evelina didn't fault him. She would be doing the same if she was in his position. In fact, he reminded her of a large white-silvery wolf, relaxed but ready to pounce at any moment. If Adrian knew that she could soak up the mana he produced, then it was quite possible that he would view her as an enemy to destroy.

But she was simultaneously curious about that strange ability of his, as well as the dark essence mingling within his body. What kind of battles had this man fought?

For now, Evelina laid rest to her curiosity. Morena had taught her to treat every patient well, regardless of their background and history. She would just have to be careful not to sap his mana by accident.

When she returned to the bedroom, Adrian had finished the porridge. She held out his mended shirt to him as he was still bare chested aside from the numerous bandages wrapped around his torso.

"I patched this as best as I could. I don't have any other clothing that could fit you, but maybe I'll be able to get you some new clothing at the village outside the Forest."

"Thank you."

"No need to thank me. Let's check on your wounds. I'll try to be gentle, as this might sting a little."

Evelina took out the new medicinal paste she had made that morning and unwrapped his bandages. The smallest of the scratches had almost completely healed. The deeper gashes no longer had the greenish tinge that had made her worried, though it would take a few more days to heal completely. This man must have had a strong constitution, as he was healing faster than the average human.

"May I?" Adrian questioned. He held out his hand.

She looked up. "Oh, you want to put the medicine by yourself?"

Evelina figured that he might have been uncomfortable with a stranger so physically close to him.

Instead, Adrian shook his head and ignored the medicinal paste Evelina was holding out for him to take. Instead, Adrian gently clasped her hand that was holding out the medicine. She could feel the calluses on his hand from years of practicing the sword, but he held her hand with the gentleness and warmth of holding a delicate flower.

"You...really aren't affected," he murmured as he scrutinized her hand. "There's no ice forming."

"Um, yes."

Evelina blinked. Adrian seemed to be marveling over the fact that her skin showed no signs of frostbite. A sadness came over her heart. She could imagine that he hadn't had physical contact in a long time. Though she herself had a tough past, she at least had people around her like her brother and Morena who would hug her and brush away her tears.

"You. What are you?" Adrian's fingers laced together with hers.

Evelina panicked silently inside. What was she supposed to say? She was just a witch who doubled as a healer for the small villages outside the Forest of Illusions. And unlike her father who had been the magic tower lord, she hadn't inherited his powerful earth magic.