The Devil's Cursed Witch

Swish!

However, even though she desired death, even though she lost the will to stay alive, destiny wasn't something she could control.

Ember wasn't fated to die.

Thud!

She let out a startled scream when her body collided against another, the impact causing her aching body to erupt in pain and her breath to be knocked out of her lungs. A strong man with a large pair of ashy grey wings caught her midair before she could hit the crowns of the tall trees under the cliff.

The abrupt stop made her dizzy, and she felt like her entire body had lost strength. She moaned in pain as her head spun like everything was light and airy. With her body feeling weak, her eyes refused to open.

Still, she was sensible enough to understand her situation.

'I…was saved?'

She could feel that she was being embraced by two strong arms, surrounding her firmly against a warm muscular chest. Her face was resting against her saviour's shoulder and the smell of the forest on his body, the heat of his skin, made her feel more lightheaded.

'Please…I hope it's not him,' was all she could think even in her dizzy state.

It took her a few moments to open her eyes, and she was first greeted by the sight of large and majestic wings flapping slowly and rhythmically in the air, making them stay stable in one place midair. She could feel the movement of the muscles of the shoulder with each flap those wings made. She could not believe her eyes.

'Gaia used to say that angels have wings. Did I die and go to heaven? Am I seeing an angel now?'

Her gaze slowly moved around and found herself above a familiar forest, only she was seeing it from a different angle. She realized she was not dead.

Dismay filled her veins. She was saved when she didn't want to be saved.

'Why can't you let me die peacefully?' she could not help but ask as she lifted her gaze to see the man's appearance. Her intuition already told her it was not that red-eyed man because that man could fly without using wings, but she was still relieved when she confirmed that unfamiliar handsome face.

'It's not him…'

Rather than a pair of terrifying red eyes, her saviour was a man with sharp ashy grey eyes.

Flying effortlessly above the trees, the unfamiliar winged man was not completely clothed, and she was pressed against his muscular chest that was inked with strange white tribal tattoos.

She moved her head back slowly, only to see that the pair of wings attached to his back were of a similar shade to his eyes. She found herself flustered by the amusement in his gaze as he stared back at her from behind the short hair strands falling over his forehead.

His thin lips carried a wild charm as he let out a lopsided smile, and for some reason, Ember felt herself getting a sense of safety from his presence. His handsome face only inches apart from hers, but she did not shy away from the closeness. Though his sharp appearance looked aggressive, she didn't feel afraid of him, unlike the instinctive fear she had for Draven.

However, while Ember looked up at him in astonishment, he peered down at her with disbelief.

'Her eyes are more beautiful up close…' he could not help but think. 'How is that possible? How can a mere human have eyes like these?'

Only when she struggled in his hold, as if asking him to let her go, did he snap out of his daze. They had been hovering above the forest for who knows how long.

"Little female," he said, "if you wish to die, this is certainly not a good place for that."

The rich, deep voice of the unfamiliar winged man made her stop struggling, and in response, he even held her firmer against his chest, making sure she was comfortable in his arms.

She didn't know what to say or do while being held high up in the air. Her whole life, only Gaia had carried her this for a length of time, and that was only when she was a little girl who needed a lullaby to sleep.

How long had this man been carrying her? Why wouldn't he let go? What was the meaning of keeping her up in the air? Why wouldn't he just put her down on the ground and leave?

Morpheus was observing her in amusement. From her panicked expression, he could guess what was going on in her mind. Though he knew she was confused and embarrassed, he pretended to be unaware as he wished to stay like this for a little while longer.

'For a little female who was determined to take her life, she sure acts adorably feisty.'

She heard him continue speaking, "Do you know? If you fall from here, you won't die easily."

She stopped squirming in his arms, frustrated that her effort to free herself from him was useless, and merely looked back at him.

"Do you know which people the forest under the cliff belongs to?"

His rich, deep voice spoke once more, as if narrating in leisure.

Seeing her lack of response, he continued. "This part of the forest is under the Valley Elves. They are the elf clan well-known for their love of breeding animals, and within the Forest of the Elves, this place is teeming with them, from small harmless animals to large predators. So imagine, if you fall down, you will survive because the trees will break your fall, but their branches will stab your body everywhere. You will feel immense pain, and you might break a bone or two, but you won't die as that softened impact is not enough to kill you.

"When you finally reach the ground, you will remain lying half dead and in pain, waiting for your death to come to you…but, it still won't come. Before you die, you will find small wild animals coming to feed on your body. They will nibble on your skin, eat you in small bites, and after receiving that kind of torture, you might still survive unless a predator like a wild cat comes for you. While you watch your body be eaten, each passing second you will regret why you chose this way of dying."

Ember imagined all this happening to her and shivered in fright. Though she wanted to die, she didn't want to suffer that way. She was still a young naive girl, and now she heard him, she felt somehow relieved of his timely arrival. Though, of course, she wouldn't tell him that.

"So," he drawled, "if you still want to die then I will fly higher and let you go."

She felt him loosening his grip around her, but she instinctively held him close, circling her arms around his neck and clinging on to him for her dear life.

Morpheus smirked playfully, finding her reaction adorable. He tried to loosen his hold once more, but she almost buried herself in his arms with her eyes shut. If he were human, he would have choked from the way she clung on to him.