The Devil's Betrothed novel Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Boots

The moment Oriana spied the first rays of sunlight seeping through the cracks of her boarded up window, she shot out of bed with dark circles around her eyes. She could not wait to start her day.

Though the lack of sleep made her body heavy as a rock, it was better than suffering from that suffocating nightmare.

'If only there is no such thing as sleep...'

She began putting on clothes—a pure black long-sleeved undershirt secured at the waist with the belt, followed by a loose-fitting jacket and a pair of baggy trousers and sturdy hunting boots. Afterwards, she pulled her long reddish brown hair into a tight bun, before wrapping a black cloth around her head, leaving only her unadorned face uncovered.

The young woman Oriana disappeared, replaced by the herb-collecting lad known as Orian.

When she stepped out of her room, she found her grandfather already awake and preparing their morning meal.

"Good morning, Grandpa," Oriana greeted the old man, who was carrying a woven basket in his hand.

"Good morning, Ori," the old man replied with a crinkly smile. Seeing those shadows under her eyes, he scolded her, "Why are you up early? You should have slept a little longer. Weren't you tired yesterday?"

"I slept well, Grandpa, and now I'm bursting with energy." She noticed the basket. "Are you going to get vegetables?"

When he nodded, she took the basket from him. "Let me get them then."

There was a small plot of land in the backyard of the cabin where they could grow vegetables.

The old man could only helplessly shake his head as he headed out to light the firewood in the extended kitchen in the front yard..

It was an ordinary morning for Oriana and her grandfather. After eating, Oriana would have the old man drink his medications, and they would either do some basic chores like mending clothes, cutting firewood or tending to their vegetable garden, or talk about herbs and medicines.

Oriana became interested in the study of plants due to the old man's condition. Before his health deteriorated, the old man was a mercenary, and he taught Oriana everything he knew about wild herbs. Though she did learn how to differentiate herbs from her grandfather, most of her knowledge was learned from books available in the market as well as from personal experience.

She soon got her grandfather to rest while she busied herself checking which herbs were missing in stock for the old man's medicine. She made a list to buy for when she returns to the city later.

"Orian, are you in?" a small, somewhat shy voice called out from outside. A brown-haired girl around the age of eleven or twelve was peeking at her from the doorway, looking at her with admiration. She was a bashful girl with heavyset features, no doubt her build would grow similar to her mother once she reached adulthood.

Oriana looked at the timid girl with a smile. "Come inside. What brings you here, Rina?"

The girl obediently entered and stood in front of the table where Oriana was arranging herbs.

"Mother asked me to call you to our house," the girl replied.

"Anything important?" Oriana asked while immersed in her work.

"Not sure," the girl replied.

Oriana stopped what she was doing and wiped her hands clean before leaving her house to go to the wooden cabin opposite to hers. The cabin where Aunt Gwen and her family of four lived was twice as large as her own home. There were also two chickens running around in their front yard.

"Aunt Gwen? Rina says you called?"

Just as Oriana entered the warm home, a familiar scent filled her senses.

The woman approached the dining table and gestured for Oriana to come close. "Have a taste, Orian. My husband brought back apples from town last night so I made some of them into sweet apple pie. Eat it while it's still warm."

"Thank you, Aunt Gwen!"

Oriana happily accepted the offer and started to eat the delicacy with relish. Rina sat opposite to her, staring at Oriana's face.

Under such intense scrutiny, Oriana touched her own face. "Is there dirt on my face?"

"No," the girl answered as she turned away, yet her eyes kept on glancing at Oriana.

'Orian is so handsome and polite, while the other boys in the village are ugly and dirty and mean.' Rina sighed inwardly. 'When Father chooses my husband in the future, I will surely ask him to marry me off to Orian's family. It would be nice to have Orian as my husband.'

Oriana would have laughed had she known what the young girl was thinking.

Just then, a person entered the wooden cabin.

It was a tanned young man about eighteen years of age, with a pair of deep-set brown eyes and messy tangled hair that touched his broad shoulders. He was a muscular guy, and the open area of the dirty white short tunic he was wearing showed the lines of his strong chest. A longbow and a quiver of arrows were slung over his shoulder, the most favored weapon of a hunter.

"Luke, you are back early!" Aunt Gwen said as she looked at her son who handed over a bag of fruits to her. "Where is your father? Is he back as well? You must be tired, come eat."