The Ancient Magus' Bride

Fifteen-year-old Chise Hatori has spent nearly all of her short life without a shred of love, shaped instead by neglect and abuse. Denied any warmth from family, she has weathered more than her fair share of troubles and misfortunes. Just when it seems her circumstances cannot possibly sink any lower, she is put up for sale at a slave auction. But her fate takes a dramatic turn when a cloaked figure—one whose head is a beast's skull and who wields strange powers—buys her. He is a sorcerer of tremendous power, a kindly magus who grants Chise her freedom, only to follow it with a bold declaration: she is to become his apprentice—and his bride. From that moment on, Chise's life will never be the same. The Ancient Magus' Bride was nominated for the 8th Manga Taisho Award.