His beast form? No, she did not know. Nobody changes into their beast forms while living in society. They were an advanced race after all.
To maintain a decorum and sense of decency, beast forms were not disclosed. This saved a lot of trouble. Especially, when there were lower ranks and higher ranks.
A high-ranked bear had the potential to defeat a lower-ranked tiger. This was a known fact. But, a higher-ranked tiger could beat a lower-ranked bear to avenge its clansmen. This could result in a war among the beasts. And their internal fights would weaken the society as a whole.
So, to maintain unity and to let every person live with their head held high, it was strictly prohibited to share anybody's beast spirit. Only immediate family members could be privy to this.
In the army, people had to transform into their beast forms to train, and tamers had to train with them. Everybody knew everyone's beast form in army, but in society, they had to keep their lips tied.
Even if people knew, they could not gossip about it. Otherwise, they would be fined with extreme physical labor.
The only hierarchy that worked in their beast clan was of aptitudes. The A-ranked beast or tamer was at the head of the chain, irrespective of their beast forms. Even if they were hummingbirds, they had to be respected.
People were only allowed to share their aptitudes and nothing else.
That is why, Arella knew Adrian was ranked A, but had no idea about his beast form.
"No, right? Let me show you!" Adrian's cheery voice enveloped Arella. A hint of excitement floated in his voice. And then, in the next second, he transformed into his majestic beast form.
Arella was surprised to her core. Her pupils dilated as she took in her husband's beast form. She could not believe her own eyes!
An Ice Dragon!
A life-sized ice dragon standing in front of her! The blue eyes bore into her black ones. It calmly looked at her as if scrutinizing her.
An Ice dragon! Arella still had not recovered from her astonishment. A dragon! Adrian was actually a dragon! Dragon is considered the mightiest of all the beasts. The proud son of heaven. Only a few had the power to tame it. Adrian was actually a dragon!
Arella was screaming inside when all of a sudden, a cold sensation touched her. The object of her astonishment was crouching next to her with its nose looming near her face.
It lightly touched her cheeks and then backed away two steps. Still looking at her, it bowed its head in front of her. Then, after a minute, it raised its head and came near her.
Standing within her reach, it once again bowed its head. Its gaze fixed on her hands.
Arella, as if hypnotized by his glaze, moved her hand and kept it on its snout, caressing it slowly.
The coldness surrounding the majestic being melted into water. The amiable touch warmed it from the insides. Its eyes closed with satisfaction, enjoying her touch and lingering warmth.
Meanwhile, Arella could not help but look at it more closely. There was no dominant aura like she had thought. It felt as if the dragon had taken away all its claws and ruthlessness, exposing just a soft belly!
Though it felt cold, there was no chill. It even felt very relaxing to be surrounded by it. Its gigantic wings, half unfurled, looked strong. Every scale on its body gleamed, reflecting the setting sun.
It had two small horns on its head, which added to its charm. The tail, though sharp and heavy, waved from side to side, as if greeting her. Its skin looked coarse and rough, but in reality was very smooth.
Her hand automatically glided away from its snout and started touching its neck and soft belly. When it felt the lingering touch, it opened its eyes and looked at the girl in front.
With such proximity, Arella found its eyes mesmerizing. It was a shade darker than Adrian's. If Adrian's eyes were dreamy sky, then the eyes of his beast were like the mysterious night. There was a glint of gold at the edges of its eyes.
She noticed a peculiar detail about their eyes. His was blue with a hint of golden while hers was golden with a halo of blue. It appeared as if both had a part of each other embedded in their selves. Staring deeply into its eyes, she found herself being swayed momentarily.
In its eyes, only her figure reflected. Its eyes were full of her. Arella felt giddy. For a moment, she thought that, it was their little world and nobody could ever intervene. She felt a myriad of emotions coursing through her veins.
Happiness, excitement, satisfaction, and peace filled her simultaneously. A strange thought crossed her mind. This beast felt familiar to her, as if she had seen it before, touched it before.
Her core shuddered against her chest. She thought that it should always have been like this. The strong beast, standing royally in front of her, should belong to her. Nobody was allowed to take them apart. They belonged to each other.
She felt a chaotic sensation bubbling through her. It was intense. Before she could tell what exactly it was, darkness filled her vision, and she fainted.
Seeing that the little girl had lost consciousness down, the dragon did not feel alarmed, as if it was expected. Instead, it too, sat on the grass, near her. It made her face lay on his belly and then, covered her with one of its wings. It tightly wrapped the wings around her like a blanket, and thus shielded her from the wind and cold.
Seeing that she was comfortable and fully covered, the dragon too, closed its eyes in satisfaction and entered a sweet slumber.
When Adrian opened his eyes, he found himself lying in the grassland. It was already dark. When he tried to move, he felt a light weight on his arm. Looking down, he saw his wife sleeping soundly.
She held his waist, and her face was buried in his chest. One of his hands lay under her small head, while the other was on her back, keeping her firmly close to his body.
All this was very beautiful and would have filled his heart with sweetness, had he not been naked! Because of his nakedness, he only felt flustered! If Arella had opened her eyes now, she would have noted a blush creeping up Adrian's face.
In his haste to let his beast meet her, he had forgotten to take extra clothes with him! It should all be blamed on his restless beast! The restlessness of his beast had disappered by now. He felt no movement from it. It should have been satisfied by now.
Shifting his focus away from the satisfied beast and the sweetly sleeping girl, he looked around. A sigh left his mouth. Fortunately, they lived alone.
Otherwise, if anybody had found them like this, it could have become embarrassingly awkward. Adrian swiftly distanced himself from the girl sleeping deeply. He stood up and glanced at the surroundings to once again make sure that there was nobody around.
He then bent down and picked up the girl. She was too light. Just as a feather. He walked slowly, and prayed that she wouldn't wake up in the mid-way. Thankfully, she did not wake up. He went to their bedroom and gently put her on the bed. He then covered her with the sheets and slowly made his way to the bathroom.
He grabbed his spare clothes and wore them in a hurry. When he came out, his wife was still sleeping. A satisfied sigh escaped his mouth. But then, he faced another dilemma.
They hadn't had their dinner yet!
Should he wake her up, or should he let her sleep? What if she woke up in the middle of the night from hunger?
To wake her up or not, the Major General, who hadn't hesitated in the face of death, was immersed in a tussle over such a mundane issue.