Elias Ainsworth

Elias Ainsworth is one of the main protagonists of The Ancient Magus' Bride anime and manga.

Elias is a Mage who is a being made of both fae and human elements, though his origins are a mystery. He is the purchaser, magic teacher, and husband of Chise Hatori.

Appearance
In his most common form, Elias is a bipedal humanoid with the skull of a wolf and the horns of a goat in place of a head, with glowing red beams of light in the empty sockets of his eyes. Chise Hatori mentions that his eyes change depending on his emotions. He is much taller than the typical human, with the average person only reaching his chest. His neck is the only part that shows skin, of which is a dark purple in color. He wears a three-piece suit: a black robe with sleeves embroidered with white threads, paired with a black vest (blue in the manga) and white undershirt. He also sports a blue stone bolo necktie tucked just beneath his collar (it was gifted to him by the one who gave him his name). His horns are adorned with a string of gold that hangs to his neck and connects to a red cloth. When outside, he will often pull the red cloth behind his head over his face. However, with magic he is able to change his appearance to that of a human of his choice, usually with two tufts of hair that spiral into a horn-like shape. His true form takes on an appearance akin to that of a beast. He's taller, though thinner, taking on a collar of black feathers. He gains a tail and claws. A tattered black cloak appears to drape against his back, though it seems to be a part of his body. Thin thorns twist in every direction, an additional pair of horns curve toward his face, and a series of rib bones curl around his chest to form an extra ribcage.

Personality
Even though Elias is polite and kind, he is noted to be immensely reclusive because of his inability to relate to humans and rarely interacts with others as a result. He is extremely fascinated by humans and their emotions, which he attributes to being unable to experience them himself. To this end, he has adopted the mannerisms of a classic "gentleman" and closely studies people, though is usually unable to imitate their examples. Though withdrawn, he has a tendency to be aloof and has an unfriendly streak with certain people. He says he does not lie but keeps his intentions shrouded by leaving out information and goes through the effort of keeping his past hidden. But despite a few instances of malice, he has a number of child-like tendencies, including throwing tantrums. Despite this, he is very willing to amend his wrongdoings, and while his exact actions are in explicit he regularly does deeds for the church as recompense.

Initially, Elias is underdeveloped emotionally. He understands emotions through one-sided observations as if only knowing them by definition and never experiencing them himself. He describes his emotions in a physical sense, like the twisting in his chest, and the cold of Chise Hatoris' absence. Despite his usual calm and stoicism, endangerment to Chise's well-being is enough to send him into a rage and seems to be the only thing capable of such.

His inexperience with his emotions later drive some of his actions, such as holding Chise against her will and attempting to use Stella as a sacrifice, despite knowing it would make Chise sad after he unknowingly developed romantic feelings towards her.

Magic
Elias Ainsworth is a magician whose skills specialize in shadow and magic that has a destructive leaning. He can hide in the shadows of other beings such as Chise, and can also produce thorns, earning him the names "Child of Thorn" (or just Thorn) and "Pilum Murialis". He's also capable of removing memories.

He is also able to shapeshift and usually takes the appearances of people he has known.

Spells
"Nettles in the shadows, a wheel of hollies. Ten-folds and twenty-folds, weaves the spider's thread of the nest to the branch" - Elias uses this incantation to teleport him and a recently purchased Chise directly to his home in England. Thereafter, he seems to use different variations or only parts of the chant to do other magic. Such as his spell for drying chise after she is dropped in the lake in the nest of dragons.

Trivia

 * The name Elias means "Yahweh is God".
 * Elias' surname Ainsworth means "enclosure".
 * Because of his horns, Elias can only sleep sitting up or laying on his chest.
 * Elias is popularly theorized by fans to be a Wendigo (also spelled Windigo), a formerly human malevolent spirit who has engaged in cannibalism. The creature originates from Native American folklore.
 * In Official Guidebook: Merkmal, Elias' height is 200cm (6'7").
 * Elias wears black leather Classic Oxford Shoes, a common English shoe worn by many businessmen. Oxford is also close to the undisclosed location where Elias lives (it is likely to be within the Cotswolds).
 * The tea he serves Simon is an iced variant of Elderberry tea, a tea brewed using the dried berries of the Elder. Elderberries are toxic until dried or cooked; the tea is ideal during the winter as it staves off colds. Elderberries are collected during September and October in England.
 * Elias' first name is pronounced like the Scandinavian "Elias" by Kore Yamazake as well as most of the characters in the show. Furthermore, Elias was named shortly after Russia, Norway, and Sweden were mentioned, so his story likely begins in that area. (His name could also be English and mispronounced, due to the poor transcription of "Elias" in Japanese).