Herald of Steel

contemporary romance

On a mild mid afternoon, under the sight of the setting sun, Alexander personally sacrificed the bathed and scented bulls and cows under the altar of goddess Gaia's status, staining the white marbled floors red with blood.

While a group of priests right next to him chanted various religious phrases, glorifying Alexander and his deed and pleading Gaia to favor Her son even more.

Many in the crowd too joined in the prayer, the resultant voice reverberating across the whole city, making the entire atmosphere buzz with religious zeal.

This act of sacrificing animals, in addition to appeasing the gods, also had considerable political significance.

For the act of slaughter could definitely be viewed as a metaphor for Alexander 'killing' Tibias.

After all, Tibias's sacred animal was a magical bull possessing some characteristics of a cow.

And now two such beasts lay dead at the goddess's feet.

For those smart enough in the crowd, the symbolism was unmistakable.

'Tibias is dead!'

And many Tibians' hearts bled upon understanding it.

It was with the conclusion of the sacrifice that the triumph was finally declared over and the crowd made to disperse, as slowly and surely, the jam packed streets began to empty themselves, with many eager to return to their houses to partake in their own private feasts, as the celebrations were far from over.

And amongst such people were the father and son duo of Jamiz and Niloy too, as well as the youngest brother.

And this time, they had the additional company of four tall, slightly tanned men, all dressed in their blue armor, making it very easy to tell where they had been.

All four of them had been called up during Alexander's levy and were returning home after almost two whole years.

An event that naturally pleased the old wine merchant greatly as evidenced by the wide smile hanging on his face.

They had spotted each other around the midpoint of the parade and the hearty laugh that Jamiz had given on seeing the brothers step in front of him was something that needed to be heard to be believed.

Even the man himself did not know he could laugh like that.

"Brats! You are alive. Good! Good! You did not disappoint your old man! I knew you would be back" The man greeted the four by repeatedly slapping their shoulders with a ruddy face while constantly nodding his head.

Wars were deadly affairs, and he honestly did not think all four would return, and return fully unscathed at that.

For the old man, this was truly a blessing.

While their eldest brother Niloy was a bit more restrained in his celebration, choosing to stay in the back for now to let the parent and child have their moment.

"It's good that all of you are back alive. Mother has been worried sick! And Layla cried herself to sleep for an entire month when you guys left."

And it was only after Jamiz finished his greeting that he chimed in with this pleased voice.

While the youngest of them, quickly latched onto his four elder brothers and asked about their experiences, wanting to hear various war stories.

"Big Brother! Tell me everything you have seen! Did you really fight those huge beasts! Can those weapons really shoot fireballs? Did the pasha really fight a dragon? What did you guys eat? Where did you sleep? Where…."

The boy's curiosity seemed boundless, and it took a soft scoff from his father to finally rein in the excited boy's curiosity.

"Hahaha," While his brothers chuckled at the display of innocence.

For the next few while, the group chatted and enjoyed among themselves, while occasionally serving drinks to all the thirsty customers, although there was already precious little left after the seven had their fill.

And so it was like that evening finally neared and it was at last time to return home.

"So that's what happened! Wow! Those beasts were truly formidable!" And as the four brothers retold their war stories on the way back, it caused their youngest brother to shout in shock and incredulation, his eyes shining with excitement by the end of it.

So much so that once he finished hearing it, the boy clenched his fists and shouted, "When I grow up, I too want to join the army! Seeing all new lands, fighting all kinds of beasts, and bringing look and glory to the lord… it sounds so cool!"

"Hah hah hah." The boy's dreams got a hearty chuckle from the rest of his family.

"By the way, which way are we going? Isn't our house that way?" And then the topic suddenly switched to this, as asked by one of the returning brothers while pointing in the opposite direction.

"Ahhhh, I forgot that you guys do not know." It was their eldest brother Niloy was quick to speak up in response, elucidating in a low, placid tone,

"We moved house about six months ago! We now live in one of those apartment blocks the Pasha built. It's quite nice!"

"Apartment blocks? Like those that in the slums?" The answer however seemed to confuse the four.

This was because although the type of buildings Alexander created did exist, there was no exact equivalent.

Most of the existing ones were normally shoddily built where only the poor lived.

Thus it was a bit confusing for them that their family, which was relatively quite well to do, would choose to move into one of them.

"Why did you move? Is business not going well? Do you need help?" Hence one of the returning brothers quickly asked with added alarm.

"Yes. Do not hesitate to ask if that's the case. We got quite a bit of loot this time. We can help!"

And another stepped forward like so, revealing their deep pockets.

"Bah! Brats, what are you talking about? Are you insulting your old man?" This trace of concern however was quickly stepped on by an irritated Jazim, who felt insulted even at the idea that his sons would think he needed help.

"No, No. Business is great! Business is booming. Thanks to you guys conquering Thesalie, our business has skyrocketed. It is so much that we can hardly keep up with demand."

While it was their eldest sibling who gave any real answer, reassuring the concerned party by saying so with a large grinning face, and then simply adding,

"It's… It will be easier to explain when we get there. You can see the apartment blocks for yourself."

It was close to evening, with the sun having already set that the group was finally able to make it to their apartment block and the four brothers would have to concede, they were very impressed by everything they saw up until coming here.

"They are so tall!"

"And wide too! Nothing like those in the slums."

"They are all painted!"

"They look so sturdy too. And beautiful! Are too windows made of iron!"

"There are wells next to every one of them!"

"How many people does each hold!"

"And so wide streets!"

"So many streets!"

"How many people does each hold!"

As they passed through many similar apartments and their layout, the dimensions of the blocks and their road layout, which had roads on all four sides as opposed to the traditional two or even one road was an eye opener for these returning legionarries.

They never imagined houses could be so spacious.

Or that they could be so beautifully painted, as all the exterior was a shining white, painting such by using a layer of crushed limestone.

While the windows were made of cast iron with intricate, waving patterns, done so because it was actually found to be cheaper than using wooden windows.

Such as Zanzan's domestic iron production capacity.

While the last and perhaps biggest amenity of the building was that it had its own dedicated well that was fed either directly by the underground water or through artificial water reservoirs connected to aqueducts.

The brothers had missed a lot of these when they passed through here during the triumph since they were too busy singing and dancing and catching up.

But now that they finally got the space to view and appreciate it, it did not take long for these men to marvel at these constructions.

And they quickly understood why their eldest brother did not bother explaining why they moved but rather opted to just show them.

Words would have been hard to express the immaculate atmosphere and cleanliness of the place.

"Brother. Father! You are back!" As the group of seven stood in front of their 'new' home, suddenly from near the building's wells, this sharp, feminine cry was elicited, followed by quick footsteps.

And as the group turned, they were instantly greeted by a pair of grinning girls in their early teens.

Slim and slender, the two were carrying large, heavy water buckets while wearing very beautiful and vibrant clothes, a thick tunic, and long skirt, their quality being much too good to be a regular outfit.

Meaning they had worn it specifically for the celebrations today.

"Layla! Nayla! You have grown so much!" And in response to their greeting, the returning brothers rushed to greet their sisters, hugging and embracing them tightly, before proceeding to exchange many pleasantries with them.

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