The next morning, Arella found herself alone on the bed. She touched the other side of the bed, and it was cold. Adrian was up for a long time by now.
She jumped from the bed and went to the window. Through it, she saw a sturdy man working out.
Adrian's body was the epitome of perfection. Last night, she loved how tightly his body trapped her. It would be heaven to be pressed by that body.
Ahh!! Reigning back her derailed trails of thoughts, she quickly went to have a shower.
Once she came out, she went to the kitchen.
Adrian came back at this time.
"Good Morning! You go take a bath, and I will prepare the breakfast." Arella was back to her cheery self.
"Morning!" He reciprocated the greetings and went to take a bath.
When he came down, the table was set.
Both enjoyed their breakfast and then left for the military hospital.
The airship was at their door. The pilot looked much better today.
They reached the military healing center within a few minutes. Everything was prepared in advance. When Arella stepped in, a person in uniform was already waiting for her.
They scanned her body, took a few blood samples, and then declared that she was fine. No signs of weakness or overdrawn energy were found.
To not alarm the clan, they were only told that the Madam wanted a routine checkup. Some of them thought that she might be pregnant and came for a checkup. But all their fantasies were shattered when they found nothing.
She was in good health, and no alarming signs could be detected.
Both Adrian and Arella sighed in relief.
Then, they headed back to their home. Adrian closely followed Arella as she boarded the airship.
"You are not going to work?" Arella was confused. Why was he sticking to her? Shouldn't he go to his office to resume duties? Or was he going to drop her off and then leave again?
"No, I have taken a leave for a week." He responded calmly.
A week! That was too long! Not that she was complaining!
"Oh. Okay." She responded meekly.
Soon they reached their home. Having nothing better to do, she showed him all the changes that she had made. He approved of each and every one.
Then, she was reminded of the cards.
She ran back to her room and took out two safely hidden cards. She wanted to give them back to him.
"Do you want more coins?" He didn't know what she meant by passing the cards to him. Could she want more? If so, he would happily transfer more coins to her account.
"No, no. It is too much. You take them back." She quietly whispered.
"But it's under your name." He didn't know what she intended.
"But the amount is too much! I am afraid I won't be able to keep it safe." She felt a little embarrassed.
"Don't worry. The cards cannot be used by anybody else. They have your retina scan as a password." He understood a little and assured her.
"Huh? My retina scan?" She was more perplexed now.
Hmm, the first time you logged in, your retina was registered as the owner of the cards. Now, nobody else can use it." He was certain of it.
"Not even you?" She didn't know what to think of it. At first, she thought that she could give the cards back to him on grounds of security, but now, what should she do? She was scared out of her wits for having so many coins in her account!
"Hmm, not even me. So, wife, if I need coins in the future, I hope you won't disagree." He playfully teased her.
"Sure, sure!" Arella absent mindedly agreed. In her mind, she accepted that she would have to keep the cards to herself. No problem, she would safely tuck the cards away, and when he wanted, she could hand him over the cards. Mentally, she willingly agreed to keep the cards for safekeeping and had no intention of using them at all.
She went back, and then, once again safely securing the cards, she hid them inside her dressing table.
Afterward, Adrian went to the study room, and Arella started checking out the highlights of the clan on Beastnet.
There were certain games available on Beastnet, but she didn't feel like playing. The cook came and prepared the lunch.
Soon, it was time to have lunch. Both ate and then went to the grassland to bask in the sun.
Sitting here, she was reminded of Lucinda's information regarding the barrier.
"Do you know who built this barrier?" She asked curiously.
"No. It was built when my father was a baby. I don't know much about it." He was calm when speaking of matters regarding his family.
"Oh! Lucinda told me that we should not invite anybody from the forest." She had already shared the cat clan incident with him last night. And today, she shared the details of the spiritual barrier with him.
He listened to her peacefully.
It was still bright. Neither of them wanted to go back inside.
After sharing the basics of the spiritual barrier, a comfortable silence descended upon them. Both wanted to speak, but at the same time, didn't know what to say. It appeared as if there were thousands of things to be said and as if nothing was worth sharing. It was complex. Both itched to say something. And after a little deliberation, Arella's soft whisper reached his ears.
"Can I meet your beast? Last time it was a little dark. I couldn't see your beast form properly." Arella quietly spoke her mind. Maybe his presence was too comforting, giving her the courage to speak her mind out without feeling guilty or greedy. She wanted to see its majestic form in the broad daylight.
He was more than pleased to hear her suggestion. Though his beast was calm for a very long time, it should be rewarded every now and then. Without a second thought, he switched back to his beast form.
In the blink of an eye, a majestic and enchanting beast stood in front of her.
It was just like she had remembered. And now, in the sunlight, its wings looked, as if they were shimmering.
The beast kept staring at her with its icy blue eyes, and then, after a while, it walked toward her.
Then, it lowered its head in front of her. Just like last time. A smile bloomed on her face. She extended her hand and caressed its face. A gentle gleam appeared in its icy eyes. Looks like it enjoyed her touch very much.
She thought that this would be it. But, in the next moment, the beast extended its gigantic wings and lay flat in front of her!
She was confused, but the beast kept looking at her. It didn't move, its posture remained the same, and its eyes kept staring at her unblinkingly. Arella didn't know, but she felt as if, it was urging her to sit on it.
Following her instincts, she moved forward. Stepping on the wings, she reached near its back. It silently urged her to climb on, and so she did. Once seated firmly, the ice dragon stood up.
The sudden change made Arella grip its neck tighter. And then, before, she could understand the situation, the dragon flared its wings and took off.
Arella was terrified! Her pupils widened, and her legs started shaking. She strapped herself to the dragon. Her arms were tightly holding onto the dragon's neck.
It was her first time in the air! She should have been afraid, but strangely she wasn't. She instead felt at ease. She looked down and saw the greenery. Everything looked beautiful. Her home was nothing bigger than a dot from here.
Once regaining a little strength, she loosened her hold around his neck and straightened a little. Taking everything in, she felt a sense of familiarity bubbling inside her.
The air was pure, and the land looked so small. Whatever problem that bugged her was nothing bigger than an ant. She felt free. She felt as if she belonged to the wind.
On the ground, a pair of silent eyes followed the girl's first flight.
The dragon had skillfully covered her entire countenance but her hair. Her hair was being kissed by the wind. And from a distance, the red tresses looked akin to a burning flame.