Novels by Cicero

90. At the centre of the throne room sat Prince Henry. "They're here, Your Highness." A guard announced. Henry nodded, posing further with his chest out. "Let them in." The doors opener and well dressed, calm, and very observant looking people walked in. Their eyes didn't miss anything. A man with a beard walked to stand in front of the king. "Prince Henry." He greeted with a small bow. "We appreciate your audience." Henry gave a thin smile. "You're welcome. My father would have preferred to meet you himself, but as you've likely heard..." "The king's condition, yes." The man finished for Henry. "We have heard." "How is he?" A woman asked. "Recovering. He is stable." Henry said stiffly. That was not a lie, but it wasn't the full truth either. The king hadn't woken up since, but it would be stupid to reveal that to anyone, especially outsiders. The visitors exchanged looks, but none of them pushed any further. "That is good to hear.” The older man said sm

89. Adrian got out of his room and took a look around. To his relief, people weren't exactly pointing at him or saying irritating things as much. That didn't mean anything had gotten better, technically, it just meant people were talking somewhere else. Which was still okay. He hadn't been giving them a reaction so they should go somewhere else. He adjusted his sleeve slightly as he walked, having taken to wearing longer sleeves now. The marks and their glow were barely visible under the clothes unless one looked closely. The healers had said it was "stabilising" for what he was working with. "What's my status now?" [SYSTEM STATUS: STABLE.] Adrian nodded. He walked a bit and turned a corner when he slammed straight into someone. "Watch it!" He said calmly, holding her up before taking a respectful step back. The woman he bumped into barely moved. She just looked at him, then slowly rolled her eyes. "Maybe you should watch where you're going, blind bar." She replied

88. "Adrian, look at this!" Princess Sue said, holding something that looked like an envelope. Adrian raised a brow as he let her into his chambers. "What's the matter?" "Zalaria is gone!" She exclaimed. "Just like that, it's so..." "She left?" Adrian frowned. "How? Why? We haven't even worked out the details of all that has been happening!" Princess Sue stood near his window with her arms folded, looking more annoyed than surprised. "She didn't inform anyone properly. Nobody among my servants knew when she left, and she didn't even care to tell me either." "That's not suspicious at all, very normal behaviour." Adrian said sarcastically. "She's an alchemist!" Princess Sue defended her. "And so?" "She's never normal. Alchemists are very strange people." Adrian nodded. "Fair point." There was a pause and Princess Sue waved the envelope in her hand in Adrian's face. "She did leave something behind, though." Adrian raised a brow. "What did sh

87. In the courtyard, soldiers stood in neat lines while nobles gathered for the event. There were a lot of emotions in the air but the most prevalent were relief, and pride. “At least the prince acted quickly." "Yes, if not for him, we might have all died." "He contained it, didn't he? That’s what the pamphlets said.” "That's what I heard too." “But I also hear it was that knight, what changed?” “He’s no longer a knight, and old news circulate all the time.” The commoners and some nobles continue to speak, and in front of them all stood Prince Henry. He looked like the tall, proud version of him again, like nothing had ever touched him. Henry held his chin high as a nobleman bowed deeply before him. "Your highness, your bravery saved this kingdom, we are all grateful." Henry nodded. "Yes, it was necessary and extremely risky. I almost died.” "We are grateful, truly." Someone else said. "Of course you are.” Henry said. “Your prince risked his life to

86. The court couldn’t even argue after that, not openly, at least for no one wanted to challenge the king to his face. The guard beside him spoke. "You're free to move within the palace grounds.” The man said stiffly. "But you will report for checkups at the end of every day until your health is in pristine condition, and you will be watched at all times." Adrian raised a brow. “So... I'm a prisoner with better stuff?" "You are a protected asset. That’s how your kind is treated regardless.” “My kind?” Adrian said, not liking how the words sounded. A few days had passed and the palace felt different now. People still gave him strange looks whenever he passed by them, but Adrian had long learned how to ignore background noise. "Is that him?" "That's the one the king spared..." They spoke about him loke hr didn’t deserve any kind of trial, like he was an enemy. Adrian rolled his eyes as he walked slowly down the hallway. His body still hurt, but he was walki

Outside the palace, the city shook heavily one last time, and it was the greatest one yet. The glowing symbols that ran through the streets began to fade one by one like dying stars. People in the streets held on to various things around them, clutching their chests. "What just happened?" "Is it over?" “We’re going to die!” Inside the ruined underground chamber, it was worse as a section of the ceiling had caved in completely, killing some people who had gone under. “What do we do now, sir?” One of the guards asked their leader. The leader looked at the giant mass of stone, dirt, and rubble, frowning. It wasn’t safe for him in there, but suddenly, he saw a movement. “Wait.” He said to them. A hand pushed out through the rubble, shaking. It punched out debris and a head appeared, coughing. “Fuck!” It was Adrian. His body felt like it had been dragged through fire and crushed at the same time. [SYSTEM STATUS: CRITICAL!] [ENERGY LEVEL: 3%] “I’m still alive..