Lothar, Traetos Province, Southern Avestria

Later that evening, everyone settled on the chairs arranged around the table, placed in the center of their homestead. The table was wooden and it was circular in shape. It had three concave legs that supported the platform. Mythra sat on a chair placed between the two adjoining supports of the table so that he could comfortably rest his feet on the supports.

Granny was in the pantry, along with two of her disciples who used to join them for every dinner. Both of them were women at their middle ages and wore the same white robes as granny Roshai did. They were learning under her mentorship.

Aerytha was trying to sit on the chair but as always, it was taller for her. Mythra lifted her by her waist and placed her gently on the seat. She wasn't too heavy for him as she was hardly five Mesha. The chair being tall, Aerytha swayed her legs in mid-air below the tabletop.

Her chin rested on the table as her hands groped the receptacle of water to quench her thirst. She drank the water to her fullest. The room was lit by the sconce placed at the corners and it felt cozy and warm by the hearth in the central hall.

"Where is he?" asked Mythra, looking at Aerytha. Aerytha shrugged.

"Herios is in his room. He was reading something before" she replied and diverted her attention towards the other side of the table as the two disciples of granny Roshai adored her. She was so young that her tongue slurred on heavy words and sharp letters.

Herios Neraepherus* was one of three orphans that were under granny Roshai's care. The house of Neraepherus was one of the eight elder tribes of the entire continent. He was high born and his lineage had an ancient origin. The Roshai had found him in a basket that came floating with the river water.

She never knew who his parents were and there was a talisman that came along with him, similar to Mythra's but with the exception that Herios had descended from one of the eight elder tribes, namely the Neraepherus bloodline.

These were the three orphans who were being raised by the Roshai --- Mythra Auctisila, Aerytha Nelarii, and Herios Neraepherus. He was almost the same age as Mythra but around two Seron older.

"Aerytha dear, would you go and call Herios for dinner?" asked granny Roshai. Aerytha tried to get off from her seat but Mythra signaled her to halt.

"I will get him" he replied. He got off from his chair and walked towards Herios's room.

After walking through a small corridor and climbing up the creaky staircase, Mythra found himself standing at the door of the room which was left ajar. He peeped inside to see Herios, reading a book with his back turned against the doorway. Herios was also an orphan and although he wasn't a Caligor like Mythra, he was still rejected by the society for living with a Caligor.

It was collateral damage of Mythra's unfortunate birth that had dawned upon Herios. But unlike Mythra, Herios did not yearn for society to accept him. He knew what he was and he didn't require people's assurance for his potential. He was usually calm and stoic, unlike Mythra, who was notorious for being maladroit and boorish.

Herios mostly kept to himself by reading granny's notes and helping her with her tasks, if required. Herios was a child prodigy by birth. He had learned the science of making herbal potions on his own, simply by studying the Roshai's books and observing her work in the infirmary. He never bothered to make friends because he was fond of his own company and his being. On the contrary, he was rather turning into a misanthrope in response to society's hatred towards them.

Herios believed that knowledge is the only thing that can make life purposeful and it was quite a brilliant philosophy to be followed by a child at his age. Mythra, on the other hand, was a gregarious and amiable person. He believed that love and humanity were equally important for making life purposeful.

Mythra was not at all an ardent reader but he was more of an explorer who wandered in the woods, skinned his knees, got reprimanded and bullied by common folks, and loved to be in nature. Both of them were completely diverse personalities but there was one common thing between them and it was Aerytha.

Herios cared for Aerytha as much as Mythra did. Since Herios was the clever one, Mythra often followed on his thoughts and trusted his actions. Herios was the only one who could understand Mythra's pain but he never quite offered to comfort Mythra nor did he ever feel empathetic towards him. They were brothers, not by blood but by the bond.

"Herios...Granny's calling you for dinner" said Mythra, knocking on the door. Herios closed his book and kept it aside. His hair extended till his shoulders in flowing locks. As he looked back over his shoulder, his dark black eyes glanced at Mythra. He had a pale skin tone and a slender physique.

His attire was similar to what Mythra was wearing --- a fine gossamer fabric with sleeves extending till his forearms and his half pants extending till his knee and wrapped around the groin area. He stood up and walked towards Mythra, to go for dinner, but as he came closer, he stared at Mythra's injury over the forehead.

"Trouble with the boys again?" asked Herios nonchalantly. Herios was the only one who knew, that Mythra was frequently bullied by the village boys. Mythra nodded hesitatingly.

"Where the hell is that smell coming from?" Herios asked as he covered his nose.

"Well I accidentally fell on a heap of dung, so it's probably stuck to my clothes," he said and removed the upper garment and threw it away. He grabbed another one lying on the bed at the corner of the room and dressed it on himself. Mythra and Herios shared the same room.

"Why do you even care to play with them?" asked Herios, agitated. He always thought that it was naive of Mythra to try and play with those boys.

"Because you don't play with me and you just sit here, reading your stupid books!" exclaimed Mythra. Herios sighed.

"I would play with you if you won't cheat," replied Herios. Mythra snorted.

"Besides, you have never won against me in anything," he added with a grin on his face, as he flicked a finger over Mythra's wound and walked down the staircase. Mythra flinched.

"Yeah, Yeah. We will see. One day I am going to defeat you!" replied Mythra.

"But you already have defeated me...don't you remember that dream?" taunted Herios, turning back towards Mythra while climbing down the staircase, still smirking. Mythra snorted at Herios's sarcasm.

"Does granny know?" asked Herios. Mythra nodded sideways implying that granny Roshai was not aware of the fact about the injury.

"Very well then," Herios replied. Mythra followed him down the staircase and into the passageway until they arrived at the table. The two disciples of the Roshai waived at Herios while Herios just smiled back at them. Herios could be terse, at times, with people who weren't close to him.

All of them finally settled on the chairs and waited for granny Roshai to serve the dinner. One of the disciples assisted the Roshai in bringing the vessels. Herios sat across Mythra while Aerytha sat between her two elder brothers.

"Look! What Mythra brought me today!" she said in her adorable, sweet voice. Herios gently cuddled his fingers over Aerytha's cheek. Then he glanced at the flower which Mythra had brought for her.

"Where did you find a Laventa?" he asked Mythra.

"I don't know. I just found it attractive, so I plucked it," replied Mythra and shrugged. Herios sighed at Mythra's ignorance about things.

"What?... I don't need to know the name of the flower, to see its beauty." snorted Mythra as he played with his fork. Herios nodded in agreement.

Granny carried a huge clay platter while her disciple carried two other vessels. Mythra could smell the spicy aroma emerging from the platter as the vapors of the food spread around the room.

The Roshai placed the platter over the table and removed the covering to reveal the hot and roasted Vorys, along with spices from her garden. Roshai was able to cultivate spices in her backyard and Mythra craved eating those spices. He remembered the eatery, before in the day, from where he was banished by the villagers.

But this was his homestead and nobody could stop him from eating the spicy food in his home. When Mythra advanced his hand to pull a large chunk of Vorys in his plate, granny Roshai smacked his hand.

"Have you forgotten your manners, Mythra?" she said to him, raising her eyebrows. Mythra retracted his hand and let out a sigh. It was a tradition of the Avestriāns, following the sect of Senotahn, to sing the prayer of gratitude and pay respects to mother Systara for the food.

All of them clasped their hands together, their fingers entangled and their eyes closed. They recited a prayer, collectively, in primitive Isharian. Aerytha struggled with the hard pronunciations but she tried, nevertheless.

Vinākyndā vylā kitā nā myśa śherośā ki

Sehajedenā hitā nemā ga tepenkān chi

Jevana kertā shaeshā narrii jo ikśi neki

Udirā berini konā nā myśa systarani

"Now you may proceed," said the Roshai. Without any delay, Mythra pulled out a huge chunk of Vorys from the platter and dropped it on his plate. He lifted one of the Vorys which was roasted and crisp. It was flavored with spices of salty and somewhat sour flavor. Since Roshai was a priest, she was not allowed to consume meat as per the testament. Ergo, all of them always ate vegetables and fruits for their everyday meals.

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Footnotes:

• Neraepherus is one of the Elder tribes of the Continent

• Seron means a month comprising of 40 Deven (day)

• Laventa is a species of plant having bio-luminescence

• 'Isharian' is the language that is spoken in Avestria. It has various dialects from different provinces but primitive Isharian is the origin.