The Zodiac Empire

Chapter 18 - The Prince of Blood (Part 1)

Silver arrived at the Mayor's office in City Hall just hours after completing his quest. He knocked on the door and heard the mayor call back 'Come in!' so he made his way inside. Roosevelt's office was a relatively medium-sized room with brown, wooden walls, which paintings of old mayors hung from. A sofa was pressed against the back wall, under the window which had its blinds pulled up, allowing for a pleasant view of the city. If there was one thing Silver disliked about his friend's peaceful little office, it was the stench; it always reeked of bleach in here. Roosevelt was known for being a clean freak, after all. Not a single speck of dust could be spotted. In the front of the office was a maroon executive desk, where the mayor sat, staring intently at his laptop screen. "Greetings, my friend!" Silver greeted cheerfully as he took his shoes off.

Roosevelt said nothing, tapping his fingers against the desk and still staring at his screen.

"Roosevelt?"

"Silver, look at this." Roosevelt turned his laptop around and rested his chin on his fist as Silver approached to take a look.

"Are you serious..." what Silver read instantly set his ire to boil. It was a news article with a headline title that read "Silver Hirifa, the Prince of Blood?" along with a picture of the thief's corpse laying in a pool of blood. The prince inhaled as he scanned over the article. Summarized, the article was portraying him as a cold-blooded murderer, while portraying the thief as an innocent man. Some of the interviewed citizens even described Robin as the most generous man they had ever met. "How dare they speak of their prince in such a manner...!" Silver spat in disgust. Just a few hours after he completes his quest, and already people were writing foul things about him like this? But he was even more disgusted by the way they praised the scumbag criminal. Just how blind could they be? Aggressively, Silver turned the laptop back to Roosevelt and stormed out of the office.

Unable to contain his anger, Silver slammed his fist against the hallway wall. "Dammit...dam-" he grumbled but then broke into a fit of coughing that sent a seering pain through his lungs. There was nothing the prince hated in this world more than a scumbag. Now he himself was being viewed as scum? For what? Doing his job as a knightly prince, protecting the innocent from scumbags like that thief?

"Silver," Roosevelt's voice spoke. Silver looked over his shoulder to see the mayor shutting his office door. "What is the meaning of this?"

Seeing the stern expression on Roosevelt's face, Silver's fury only increased. The mayor was his friend, was he not? He should know that the media was only manipulating the truth! Silver bit his lip, resisting the urge to lash out at the mayor. He needed to calm down. Roosevelt was just confused, as this was the absolute last way anyone would have ever depicted Silver before. "Roosevelt, my dear friend, I apologize, but I need to rest right now." He said. If he were to sleep, Benevolence would visit him and grant him his reward. If he told anyone his story now, they'd think he was high. But if Benevolence stayed true to its word, he'd be able to show everyone the power he gained and they would have no reason to doubt him. Silver turned on his heels to leave, only to drop to his knees as he broke into another harsh coughing fit, the pain causing his eyes to water a little.

"My prince, are you alright?" Roosevelt asked, aiding Silver back up to his feet as his coughs died out.

"Yes, I'm fine, thank you." Seeing his friends concern for him, Silver relaxed his shoulders.

"You remembered to take your medicine, correct?"

"As always." Silver lied. He hated taking that stuff. Yes, it eased his pain, but it also made him feel weak and drowsy. If the choice was enduring a little pain, or being too feeble to get much done, the choice was easy for him. He had far too much to live for to be lying in bed all day.