Chapter 23

Adrelo leaned against the windowsill, letting the calming night breeze wash over him. The emotions from his song still lingered, a bittersweet melancholy wrapped in quiet solace.

*sniff* *sniff*

Suddenly, faint, dramatic sniffling broke the silence.

Frowning, Adrelo got up and opened the door, only to find Milo standing there, tears streaming down his face, sniffling like a man mourning the end of the world.

Eyes wide and glistening with tears, sniffling like a tragic hero from a melodrama.

“M-Milo? What are you doing here?” Adrelo asked, half-concerned, half-annoyed.

“What in the—why are you crying?”

Milo sniffled loudly, wiping his eyes with exaggerated flair.

“Adrelo… your voice. That voice! I’ve been struck by a celestial bolt of beauty!”

He wiped his nose with his sleeve, adding,

“I thought I’d accidentally died and gone to the heavens! That melody! It felt as if the angels were serenading me from the heavens, but it was you!”

“...You’re kidding, right?”

“Do I look like I’m kidding?!” Milo spread his arms wide like an impassioned poet.

“You, my dear friend, have been hiding an angelic talent from us mere mortals! What have we done to deserve this betrayal?”

Adrelo stared blankly, unsure whether to laugh or shut the door.

“What… are you talking about?”

Milo suddenly lunged forward, grabbing Adrelo by the shoulders. His voice, rich and almost otherworldly, burst out,

“You’ve been hiding this from me all this time?! That voice—it’s a crime to keep something so divine locked away! Sing for me again, please!”

“Get off me, you lunatic!” Adrelo hissed, struggling to push Milo away, but the latter clung to him like a leech.

Adrelo groaned, trying to pry Milo off him.

“You’ve officially lost your mind. Have you been eavesdropping?!”

Milo sniffed dramatically.

“I wasn’t eavesdropping—I was enchanted! I was merely…walking the hall and stumbled upon divinity itself!”

He dropped to his knees, clutching his chest.

“Oh, my fragile heart… how shall it recover?”

Adrelo rolled his eyes.

“Get up. You look ridiculous.”

Milo dramatically flopped against Adrelo, still clutching him as though his life depended on it.

“Oh, Adrelo, why didn’t you tell me you had such a gift? That song… it moved me to tears!”

Adrelo groaned, running a hand through his hair.

“For the love of—Milo, it was just a song! Go to bed before you embarrass yourself further.”

But Milo was not to be dissuaded. He lunged forward, clutching Adrelo by the shoulders with surprising force.

“No! You don’t understand! That song—those notes! It was like honey drizzled over the stars, Adrelo! HONEY AND STARS!”

Adrelo sighed in exasperation, prying Milo off him.

“First of all, lower your voice. Second, it was just a song. I wasn’t trying to impress anyone.”

“But you did!” Milo exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air.

“You should enter a contest, battle Elias for the title of the Lyceum’s greatest voice! Your ethereal tones against his hummingbird charm, it’ll be legendary!”

Adrelo rolled his eyes, pushing Milo toward the hallway.

“Go to bed, Milo. You’re delirious.”

But Milo shot to his feet with sudden energy.

“Delirious? You dare call me delirious when you’ve been hiding this voice?!” He gasped theatrically.

“You’re a diamond in the rough, Adrelo—a phoenix in the ashes! You must enter a competition! No—a duel!”

“A duel?” Adrelo raised an eyebrow.

“Yes, a duel!” Milo clapped his hands excitedly.

“You and Elias. The Voice of the Lyceum versus the Hummingbird King! Imagine the crowds, the applause, the—”

“Imagine me slamming this door in your face,”

Adrelo muttered, reaching for the door handle.

Before he could close it, Milo grabbed the doorframe and hung on like his life depended on it.

“No, wait! You can’t hide this! You’re like a… a… secret treasure!”

“A secret treasure that’s going to bed now,” Adrelo said dryly.

Before Milo could protest further, the door across the hall swung open with a loud thud. Gareth stood in the doorway, hair messy, eyes dark with irritation.

“What in the name of the gods is going on here?!”

Milo spun around dramatically, pointing at Adrelo like an overzealous lawyer.

“Gareth! You won’t believe this—Adrelo just sang the most beautiful song I’ve ever heard! It was like the moonlight itself came to life!”

Gareth raised a skeptical eyebrow, crossing his arms.

“Adrelo? Singing? Are you drunk? You’ve got to be joking.”

He smirked, clearly not buying it.

“The punk can barely talk without sounding bored. How could he possibly sing?”

Adrelo glared at him.

“Thanks for the vote of confidence.”

“I swear it’s true!” Milo insisted, throwing his hands in the air.

“His voice is like the first rays of dawn after a thousand years of darkness!”

Adrelo groaned.

“Milo, stop making it weird.”

Milo puffed up indignantly.

“You weren’t there! You didn’t hear it! But seriously, it was like a symphony wrapped in starlight!”

Gareth crossed his arms, eyeing Adrelo with suspicion.

“You? Sing? I’ve known you for years, and I’ve never heard a single note. Are you sure it wasn’t just a cat dying outside?”

Milo gasped, scandalized.

“How dare you! I was moved to tears, Gareth! TEARS!”

“I’m going back to bed now. You two can continue your weird midnight drama without me.”

But Milo wasn’t done.

“No, wait! Gareth! He has to sing again! You have to hear it!”

He turned to Adrelo, his eyes wide and pleading.

“Just one note! One tiny, ethereal note!”

Adrelo glared at him. “Not happening.”

Milo dramatically flopped against the doorframe.

“You’re wasting your gift, Adrelo! The world needs to hear you!”

Gareth snorted.

“The world needs sleep. Milo, go to bed. Adrelo, stop enabling him.”

“I’m not enabling him!” Adrelo protested.

Milo ignored them both, clasping his hands together like a knight swearing an oath.

“I swear on my honor as a student of the Lyceum, I will make the world recognize your talent!”

Gareth pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Milo, it’s past midnight. Stop being dramatic and let us all sleep.”

He glanced at Adrelo.

“As for you—if you really do have some hidden talent, keep it hidden. The last thing we need is you singing people to sleep when they’re trying to work.”

Adrelo sighed, closing the door on both of them.

“Goodnight, Milo. Goodnight, Gareth.”

Milo’s muffled voice could still be heard through the door.

“But Adrelo! You’re a star! A staaaaaar!”

Adrelo shook his head, leaning back against the door.

“Why am I surrounded by lunatics?” he muttered to himself, though a small smile tugged at the corners of his lips.