Chapter 2

(Old) Part-Time job

One-Eyed Prince... was a title given to me by the nobles and other royals. I was born with a human eye on my right. I was thought to be a hybrid... the lowest of the lowest. Hybrids are unable to use noble or royal arts and were punishable by death. My mother was assumed to have an affair with a human and my father was devastated upon seeing my right eye. But in the end, my parents decided to keep me.

They gave me an eye patch and I am to wear it at all times no matter what. As a child, I was unaware of the consequences. And so I removed it in front of one noble kid I was playing with. I thought that he would not mind it and that he would understand. But...I was wrong. Rumours spread like wildfire that the prince of Westalis was a hybrid. This put shame and even more burden on my father.

After about a week, I was summoned to a stage similar to an opera. The audience was nobles and royals from all kingdoms. My father and mother stood right beside me as one of the kings from another kingdom questioned them. I never understood their questions but my parents looked uneasy. I was unaware of what was happening but later on, I learned, that it was called a Quoros. A Quoros occurs when a royal family violates a taboo in the vampire world and is brought to questioning.

Most Quorus end with a death sentence as nobles and royals simply seek violence. It was also a good way to get rid of the royal family in power. My parents kept stating to everyone that I was of pure blood. I remember my mom holding my hands with her sweaty hands. Every time I look at her, she would always shift her expression to a gentle smile. After a while, a butler with a knife came up to the stage. I held out my hands and the butler cut my right hand. My blood began to drip on the stage and everyone's gaze felt like nails. I remember my father telling me to say the following words "Liagnus Materliya Aken Royal Arts" I remember my blood gathering in my hands like a droplet of water. It was the first time I used Royal Arts.

Ever since then, I was accepted by mostly everyone. But our family's reputation was forever tainted. It was never known why I had a human eye. I was never interested in learning how or why. I simply accepted it as a part of me. But if I were to guess, it had something to do with our genetics passed down through generations. Perhaps one of my ancestors had a child with a human unbeknownst to the vampire world. We will never know.

Holy Sh*t...

Am I going to make it?

No... I have to make it... Or else my budget for the week wouldn't last...

My alarm didn't go off... Great! If I wanted to starve. Despite royal vampires not needing blood to survive, we still need nutrients. Blood, human blood in particular, simply has tons of nutrients which is why most vampires don't need to eat human food. Plus, human food tastes bland and takes a while to get used to.

My part-time job takes place from 1 am to 5 am every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. It's a newspaper job which means that I need to find a different job. Why? That's because the owner is horrible and old generations are dying. Most stuff could be searched online and the newspaper business will go away soon. Plus, despite being a vampire, the night isn't for me as I lack sleep. School starts at 8 am and ends at 3 pm. This gives me a bit of time to do homework and sleep. The only good side to my part-time job is that it pays well and I don't have to use royal arts to hide my eye. I could simply wear an eyepatch and say I'm cosplaying as everyone is still dozy. It works every time.

What the hell...

"Stop right there man... Money. Give me your Money! And your bike too!" A random hooded guy demanded as he held out his pocket knife in front of me.

He has tattoos all over his hands and face. He also has a piercing in his nose and he looked like a typical extortionist. I didn't have time to deal with him so I needed to make it quick. I was also needing some blood so he would be a perfect victim. Although I already know his blood would taste like garbage as he looked somewhere around his early 30s.

"Hey uh. Do you think that someone will care if you were to suddenly pass away?" I said as I get off my bike. I needed to make sure.

"Huh?"

He looked at me confused. I guess anyone would be confused if their victim suddenly asked a question instead of being scared to death.

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"Thought so... And last question. Do you think someone would see us in this alleyway?"

"Just hurry up and give me your mo..."

In a flash, I was behind him. His pocket knife fell to the ground as I broke his right arm. He stumbled to the ground and was about to scream in pain. But before he got the chance to wake up other humans, I gagged him using the dirty cloth that was in his right pocket. I was on top of him locking him in place. He squirms and wiggles like a caterpillar and bits of tears come from his eyes. I couldn't help but smile a little.

For the first time in a long time, I showed him my fangs but kept my eyepatch on in case someone comes. I covered his eyes with my right hand and whispered "This won't take long."

I quickly searched for veins in his neck and began feeding. It's bitter. I gulped his blood like there was no tomorrow. I made sure to lick any blood that came off. It's been a while since I last drank human blood, and it wasn't as special as I imagined it to be. I was also drinking out of necessity and not for pleasure.

It didn't take a while for him to stop squirming and wiggling. I made sure to drink every bit of his blood so his sacrifice wasn't for nothing. After I was done, I uncover and looked at his lifeless eyes. I closed his eyes and made him sit in the alleyway to make it seem like he was just a homeless guy sleeping. I quickly wiped off my mouth for any traces of blood and did a quick prayer. I didn't know if he was Christian so I hoped that he was.

"Thank you for your blood. I'll make sure that your blood wouldn't go to waste." I said to the dead body.

Hm?

I looked up at the top of a light pole as I sensed someone was watching. And I was right. She stood straight at the top of the light pole with her bright crimson eyes. She gazed at me for a brief moment before disappearing into the air.

Did she see me? She definitely did... But she has to be a vampire right? Or else she would've attacked me if she was a hunter. Yeah, but vampires also attack each other... Aaaahhh, I messed up. I should've fed myself someplace more hidden... What time is it even?... Oh, crap it's already 1:47 am.

I immediately got back on my bike and sped up. If I was an hour late for work then I won't be paid. That was the deal I made with the owner. My job is to deliver newspapers to houses that paid for a newspaper subscription before 5 am. The routes given to me usually take me 3-4 hours to finish depending on how many houses I have. I don't have a consistent route as I'm only a part-timer. But if I was full-time then I'll have my own route which is much nicer as it would become a routine.

I just hope that Baldy doesn't give me a long route.

I arrived in front of the drop-off area where the newspaper carriers pick up their newspapers. I was out of breath but that's to be expected. There was a bundle of newspapers waiting to be picked up on the floor. I looked around to see if the owner was around. If he saw me late, then I'll have another hearing about our deal and stuff.

It's 1:57 am, great! I'm on time...kinda.

I slowly walked toward the newspaper bundle that was on the floor. I continued to remain as quiet as possible. But before I even got to touch the newspapers, the owner came out of nowhere and leaned in front of the main office's door with his hands crossed. Baldy. He wore a blue shirt with his fat stomach slightly showing. He wore army shorts and a pair of slippers.

"Your a bit late today, Nathan," the owner said as his chubby cheeks slightly bounced.

"I overslept a little today, I'm sorry Mister. It won't happen again." I politely said.

I was hoping that he was in a good mood and let it slide. But I was dead wrong.

"That's what you said last time... Damn...look at the time, it's already 2:00 am. I guess this means that I won't have to pay you..."

Huh? This bastard was stalling time.

"Mister, I'm in a bit of a tight spot so uh....could you make an exception just for today?"

"Exception? Ha! Can you even count how many times I made an exception for you? I even increased your pay because of your good speech to me. Which you don't even follow anymore. There's also no reason for me to hire you anymore..."

Oh crap... I think I'm about to lose my job.

"You know what Nathan, my patients for you was on a thin line. But today, I've had it... I'm firing you. Go find another job more suitable for you kid."

"Could I at least have my salary for Monday and Wednesday's work? I need that for...survival."

"Yeah sure, Here ya go kid."

I took the money and rode my bike back to my apartment. Damn, what a night. I thought. I was already thinking of quitting anyways, so it all worked out in the end. At least I won't have to wake up at midnight just for the job. I also won't have to deal with the Baldy anymore. The money I got was enough for me to survive for 6-7 days give or take. It meant that I'll be eating a piece of bread for breakfast and a cup of noodles for dinner. Or else I won't have electricity and water at my place. For my lunch... I won't have enough to last me for the week. Of course, it'll be a different story if I were to drink blood instead.

I need a job... Tomorrow I'll look for one I guess.

As I continued my way home, I tried to think of jobs that would probably suit me. Working at a fast food wouldn't sound too bad. Or maybe working at a supermarket would work fine. The only reason I chose the newspaper job was that it pays well when I only have work for 3 days a week. But it's gone so I should move on like what I had always done.

After a long and exhausting night, I finally reached heaven. I stumbled upon a few pieces of trash laying on my floor and went straight to my bedroom. I quickly changed into my pyjamas and hit the hay. I still needed to wash the dishes and clean up a little for when Mary and Carl arrive but that was a problem for later.

...Oh yeah... I forgot to ask what time they'll be arriving...Oh well... I just...hope its...not...early...

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