THE LAST KEEPER

Chapter 353: 353: BROTHER

Sagiri sat on the high seat watching the celebrations. He was the man of the hour anyway. Ever since the marriage proposal, every high-ranking man had come to him to introduce their daughter. He had seen more women than he had in his lifetime on a single day.

The cunning foxes!

All he had to nod before the next one was thrown at him. Fathers could not wait to get a piece of the N’folu blood, could they?

As evening hit, it was finally time for the feast, and the streets were filled with food. Sagiri finally stood, and Zifara and Koru followed after him.

”Where is Azir?” Sagiri finally asked.

”I let him handle the festivities. He is swamped trying to make your day good...”

”Big brother!!” At the moment, Azir came running, before he stopped himself and tried to walk slowly, but the slow running walk was even more undignifying than the run. He looked neat even so dressed in ceremonial attire.

”I am so hungry. Come, I’ll show you what I make for you personally,” Azir said as soon as he reached Sagiri and began dragging him away. Sagri had long given up on scolding the boy. He could now understand why even Zifara had stopped scolding the boy and let him go wild.

They entered one of the tallest buildings in the outer city and climbed floor after floor until they were at he op. Even the act of climbing the stairs was painful for Sagiri, but he gritted his teeth and let himself be dragged away. The moment they reached the top floor, Sagiri finally understood why the boy was late. He must have kept this place a secret because only Wibo stood by dressed in a server and warrior uniform. They must have worked for days to make the place look how it did. It was decorated with all sorts of flowers, and on the balcony, meat was burning away, giving a delicious scent.

”This is the surprise I made for big brother. I know you have been sick, so I made this. I searched the entire south for all this food. It is good for restoring health.” Azir said, scratching the back of his head as if he was shy now that he had put in all this work.

Sagiri looked at the scene, and he could not help but smile slightly. In fact, the festival today might have been a welcome for him, but what Azir had prepared was more genuine, and it felt more welcoming for him and warm.

”Azir, you must have worked hard,” Sagiri said after a while, and the boy turned to him, smiling from ear to ear.

”It is nothing. I just thought you would love peace and a place to watch the city without being disturbed. At night you will see the festival...”

”Thank you, Azir, you are indeed a worthy young brother of mine,” Sagiri said, and the place fell into deep silence. The gesture had indeed warmed his heart and reminded him more of Rusha and Bakuru. They always took care of him and noticed things that made him uncomfortable without him having to ask. Back then, he had wanted a younger brother, but Rusha could not have a child of her own, so Sagiri could only fantasize about having a younger sibling. He was the only one who grew up as an only child. Having many children after all is a sign of wealth.

Now looking at Azir and how the boy always wen lengths for him even though he was stronger. Way stronger than him made him feel warm. He almost had him killed to get him sleeping herbs, and now he had missed almost half the festival just to prepare a feast for him. If Sagiri could have had a brother, then Azir filled all his fantasies of a brother and a sibling he had.

He was still lost in thought, oblivious to the weight of the words he had just said, when he heard a sniffle beside him.

”You called me brother.” Azir sniffled, wiping away tears before he threw himself at Sagiri and wrapped him in a crushing hug.

”You have gone and done it.” Zifara sighed deeply from behind sagiri.

”So Lordly behaviour,” Sagiri said, but he did not move to pry the boy away. After enduring the festivities torture, he needed an embrace too. Besides, the boy had outdone himself, and he could let him act unlike a city lord for a few seconds. He patted the boy’s head a few times, letting him weep for a bit. There was no time he had seen the boy when he had not ended up in tears.

”Azir, aren’t you going to show your brother to a seat and give him the food you prepared?” Zifara said after a while.

Azir finally managed to pull himself together and showed Sagiri to his seat on the balcony, where three other seats were. The four main sat around the already well-done meat. Azir got into serving Sagiri immediately.

Sagiri had not had any appetite for food for a while. Not that hunger could keep him now. Well, he could go two weeks without food. He had realized since he started his pain seclusion. Now, however, looking at Azir’s expectant eyes, he forced himself to take the plate of the tender piece of meat.

The meat did not taste like mud to Sagiri’s surprise, and he checked and swallowed. Even Koru had expected him to throw it right out since it was not soup, which was all he had been taking for a month.

”Delicious. What meat is this?” Sagiri asked.

”I asked the prince of tides to get me the toothless fish,” Azir said with pride.

”Hasn’t the fish gone extinct?” Koru asked.

”Well, mostly, but I can be found deep and deep in the sea. It is hard to catch and The Prince of Tides two years back, so he is keeping them himself. He has six now, and they all cost a leg and a city. He says he will put them back in the sea. They have healing qualities, and he is not selling them for food. But then I told him I would put in a good word for him to big brother, and he agreed.” Azir said proudly.

”Here I thought you were doing it for the love of your brother. You are actually selling him in exchange for a fish,” Koru said, and laughter erupted from the men at the table.

”I will be sure to thank the prince of tides myself. Pass me more.” Sagiri said, and Azir was beside himself trying to feed Sagiri to death.

The four ate, and even Wibo joined at Sagiri’s request. I was peaceful, and he could see the city from above as he ate away. It had been a while since he enjoyed food, and even the herbal medicinal soup Azir prepared made him feel rejuvenated.

Perhaps it was not that bad to have a brother.