When I caught sight of the person who walked in, I'm pretty sure my brain short-circuited for a second or two.
Standing in the doorway was a breathtakingly beautiful woman. She looked like she had stepped straight out of a dream.
Her midnight black hair flowed down her shoulders, reaching all the way to her lower back. Her face was so perfectly sculpted it looked like it had been crafted by the gods themselves. A cute button nose, full red lips, and piercing blue eyes. But what really stood out were her ears—long and pointed.
She was an elf.
She wore a lab coat over scrubs, yet somehow still managed to look like she belonged on the cover of a fantasy magazine. Her figure was flawless, her presence magnetic.
When my brain finally resumed functioning, the first thing that flew out of my mouth made me instantly regret being conscious.
"Am I in heaven? Because I think I am."
She blinked, clearly confused. Then suddenly, she looked panicked. Trying to recover from my blunder, I quickly added,
"Only an angel could look this beautiful."
As soon as I said those words, my face started heating up like a furnace. I probably looked like a ripe tomato by now. Her surprised expression told me I'd definitely caught her off guard.
Did I inherit some of Xavier's personality through his DNA? That would explain a lot.
I scrambled to apologize. "I'm sorry if I offended you. That was... uncalled for."
She stared at me, clearly amused. Then she smiled.
"No, it's okay. I'm used to it. But you've definitely got a mouth on you, young man. I might have to hide all the girls from you. I'm afraid of what you might do to them."
Her playful tone was a relief.
Looking at myself again, I remembered how young I looked now. That probably helped her not take my words too seriously. Thank God for that.
"I didn't mean it like that. It was just... a compliment."
"I know, I know," she said with a chuckle. "But it's good to see you doing well. You've been in a coma since you were brought here. About three weeks ago. You were found during an expedition by a squad of elf soldiers in an untamed forest filled with dangerous magical creatures. You were brought in under direct orders from the general."
She paused, then added with a smile, "And I almost forgot. What's your name? You can call me Doctor or Ashlyn if you prefer."
"Alec. Alec Drake Phenex."
I hesitated, then added, "I'm not exactly sure how I ended up in that forest... but I think I might have a clue."
She nodded and pulled out a clipboard from under her arm, jotting something down.
I glanced at her again. "Doctor Ashlyn… if you're a doctor, what are you doing here? I thought nurses usually handle this kind of stuff."
She arched an eyebrow, clearly impressed. "You're clever, aren't you? You're right. Normally the nurses would handle it. But I was ordered by the general to personally oversee your care. Seems like you've caught their attention."
The way she said "ordered" made it sound like she wasn't happy about it. Or about who gave the order.
"You think so?" I asked.
"Oh, I'm sure of it. They probably think you have something to do with what happened in that forest."
She tucked the clipboard back under her arm. "Now, I'm going to scan you. You should close your eyes. The light might hurt them."
I obeyed, eyes shut. I wanted to ask what the scan actually did, but I figured I'd find out soon enough.
Suddenly, I felt something rush through me. From my head down to my toes. It was like being completely exposed, like someone could see everything about me just by looking.
When she finished, I felt her gently place a hand on my arm.
"Everything looks normal," she said reassuringly.
"What was that?" I asked.
"A spell. We health workers use it to scan the body for any internal or magical issues. Kind of like your old world's MRIs or X-rays, but way more advanced."
"That's... actually really awesome."
I remembered something from earlier and leaned forward slightly. "There's something you mentioned earlier that I didn't quite get. What exactly are magical creatures?"
Even though Ace and Xavier had explained them a bit, and I'd read a few descriptions in old books, I wanted to hear it from someone who lived in this world.
Ashlyn looked surprised. "You don't know what magical creatures are?"
"Nope." I gave a small shrug.
"Well," she said, amused again, "magical creatures are basically animals or beasts that have been exposed to mana over long periods of time. As a result, they evolve. Gaining new abilities, heightened strength, and sometimes intelligence."
She paused, folding her arms.
"But the ones here on Earth aren't nearly as strong as the ones from other dimensions. Especially the Planta dimension. Even an Elven child could handle the magical creatures found on Earth with ease."