Miraric

23| Farewell of Resrei.

Edric was back to overthinking.

It'd been four days and there was still no sign of Kael anywhere.

While Edric spent his days thinking this was all just a big failure and fate was never with him and was playing just another one of her jokes, like she had been doing so since the day he was born, his teacher, Jeril, was throwing a feast.

They were all outside, sitting under the stars and the moon who were also in the mood of fervour and enthusiasm as they gave out their best of luminescence and shines. Edric sat in the middle of Eris and Jeril, his hands placed on the wooden table as he noticed Jeril shifting in his seat, about to stand. The light atmosphere around them was blanketed by people's quiet conversations, chuckles and laughs, the crickets adding in their own words and sounds while the trees also decided to join in, using the leaves as their voices and howling.

Jeril finally decided to stand up and cleared his throat, bringing some of the guests' attention as they all faced him. Edric noticed that most of the guests here were their neighbours, Jeril's students — old and new ones, some of Jeril's relatives and more of his friends that Edric never saw. They were all now here, dining with him like he was Jeril's true born son. Jeril cleared his throat again, this time bringing everyone's attention, as they all now waited for him to speak, all the candles around them brightening his face.

"I know what you all must be thinking: since when did old Jeril start to throw feasts? At his very own yard at that," Jeril laughed while light chuckles erupted through the whole yard.

"I took in Resrei when he was a boy and that was the best decision of my life," he said, smiling brightly, the wrinkles around the corner of his eyes more vivid. "Some of you all told me to discard him, told me I can't feed another stomach when I already have two stomachs to fill when there was just a war. I never once thought of taking your advice. Not even once," he gave a firm bob of his head. "I'm not saying all this to show how merciful I am, or to show big of a heart I have for taking in an orphaned boy and giving him a home,"

"I may have taken him in my home, but he is the one who made my home feel like a home, and I couldn't be more grateful to the gods for that," Jeril was no longer smiling, he had his lips pursed firmly, as he swallowed. "I'm telling you all this because I'm proud of him. Because he's my son,"

"The gods didn't tie us by blood, but he's a part of this family and he will always be," Edric was watching Jeril the whole time he was speaking, his heart tugging every time Jeril spoke of him like his own son, swallowing as he saw Jeril looking down at him and giving him a soft smile. "This feast is for Resrei's departure, for his farewell, for he is going to work by the king directly soon,"

"To Resrei!" Jeril brought his glass of ale higher, pushing it further into the air as everyone applauded and cheered Edric's false name.

"To Resrei!" They all said in unison, clinking their glasses with one another as they drank in one go. Jeril, Eris and Edric brought their glasses together and clinked them together, both Jeril and Eris giving Edric big grins while he wondered how he'd never felt so special in his entire life, how his own family had never done something like this for him.

"To Resrei," Jeril said again, this time quietly, this time only looking at Edric and smiling at him. "My one and only son."

You'll never see me as your son once you know the truth about me. Edric smiled back at him. "Thank you. You and Eris are the reason I know what a family means," he remembered the times he'd spent with his own family — the dinners that he used to have with them — his brothers mostly calling him names, avoiding him, his parents asking them about the progression of their renèi Possessions while Edric would sit among them, feeling unwanted and outcast. He remembered how he was never once asked about his days and health, how there were never any feasts held for him, how he was just the spare prince, the Naught.