The Ancient Magus' Bride

Fifteen-year-old Chise Hatori has spent much of her life unwanted—abandoned early on and mocked for the strange way she seems to draw the uncanny to her. With nowhere left to belong, she allows herself to be sold at an auction for five million pounds, resigned to whatever buyer will take her in. On the journey that follows, hushed voices among robed onlookers remark on the rarity of what’s been purchased: a Sleigh Beggy.

Her buyer is a tall, masked gentleman who soon reveals himself as Elias Ainsworth, a magus. After a tense first meeting and a display of teleportation magic, Chise awakens at Elias’ cottage in the English countryside, where fairies and other unsettlingly beautiful beings linger at the edges of everyday life. There, Chise’s new role begins—taken in as Elias’ apprentice and named as his prospective bride.