Awakening Domination System: But I'm a Slave?-Chapter 276: Still Missing! [2]

The lecture ended. Alaric gathered his materials and left, his mind still turning over the same useless questions.

He headed to the dining hall.

Not because he was particularly hungry, but because sitting alone somewhere with food gave him an excuse to think without looking conspicuous.

He claimed a table in a quieter corner of the Silver Crown section, away from the main clusters of conversation. Grabbed food mechanically, didn't really register what. Just fuel.

Sat down. Ate and thought.

Elena vanished. Henry vanished. Thomas vanished. Oliver vanished. All clean exits, no traces, nothing to follow. Four weeks of looking and I've found exactly nothing.

He tore a piece of bread, chewed and swallowed.

They're still watching. Have to be. But from where? How? Who else is involved that I haven't identified yet?

Another bite.

What's the endgame? What am I missing?

"Eating alone?"

The voice broke through his thoughts like cold water.

Alaric looked up to see Verelia approaching, tray in hand. She sat down at the table beside him without waiting for permission.

"Yeah," he said, returning his attention to his food.

"Feeling lonely?" There was something almost teasing in her flat tone. Almost.

He blinked at her, then shook his head. "Why would I be?"

"Your best friend just dropped out. I've seen you brooding." She picked up her fork with precise movements. "It's fairly obvious."

"He wasn't my best friend," Alaric said flatly. "And I wasn't brooding."

Verelia actually snorted, a tiny, unladylike sound that was gone almost before it registered. "I've watched you for the past month. You can't lie to me about this."

"Why are you here?" Alaric asked, deflecting.

"Why can't I be?" She met his eyes with that cold blue stare. "You're my fiancé. It's natural for me to be with you. People expect it."

He didn't buy that for a second and kept eating. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Verelia was quiet for a moment. Then, quieter. "Maybe I'm also paying back what you did. Taking me to the gardens after my loss. Listening when I needed it."

Alaric paused mid-bite. Looked at her.

She was staring at her plate, not meeting his eyes, which was unusual for her.

He nodded slowly and returned to eating.

"I'm just paying what I owed," Verelia said quickly, her tone sharpening back to normal. "Now we're even."

"Fair."

They fell into silence, just eating. It wasn't uncomfortable, exactly. Just two people existing in the same space without needing to fill it with meaningless conversation.

Then Verelia shifted slightly closer. Her voice dropped lower.

"Were you... were you really telling the truth?"

Alaric blinked, turned to look at her. "About what?"

"That you reincarnated. That you were a king." Her blue eyes searched his face, analytical, trying to detect deception.

Ah. So that's what this is about.

Alaric considered lying. Deflecting. Claiming it had been metaphorical.

Then decided against it. "Yeah."

Verelia's expression didn't change, but something flickered in her eyes. "What kingdom?"

"One that doesn't exist here."

"How did you die?"

"Violently. Next question."

"How long ago?"

"Time works differently between lives. I don't know exactly."

"Do you remember everything?"

"Most things. Some details are... fuzzy. Emotional memories are clearest. Facts and events, mostly intact."

Verelia processed this, her mind clearly working through implications. "Can you prove it?"

"How would I prove remembering a past life? Show you things that don't exist anymore?" Alaric's tone was dry. "You either believe me or you don't."

She studied him for a long moment. "The way you strategize. The way you manipulate social dynamics. That's not normal for a first-year. Not even for Silver Crown."

"No. It's not."

"Because you've done this before. Ruled. Governed. Played these games at the highest level."

"Yes."

Verelia was quiet again, but Alaric could practically see her thoughts organizing, filing information, building a framework to understand what this meant.

Then something flickered in her eyes, something sharp, calculating, almost... excited. Then it vanished, buried beneath her usual icy composure.

"So, can you..." Her tone shifted slightly, there was a new quality to it. Respect, maybe. Or recognition of something she'd been searching for.

"Tell me about your past life? What were you like as a king?"

"No."

She blinked. "Why not?"

"Because that person is dead. That life is over. And dwelling on it doesn't help me survive this one." Alaric met her gaze steadily. "I'm not that king anymore. I'm just someone who remembers being him."

Disappointment flickered across Verelia's face. But she didn't push.

"That must be... difficult. Remembering power you no longer have."

"It has its moments."

"Do you want it back? The power. The throne."

Alaric was quiet for a moment, considering the question honestly. "I want control over my own fate. Whether that's through a throne or something else doesn't matter as much as you'd think."

Verelia nodded slowly, absorbing that. "And the engagement? To me? Does that factor into your plans for control?"

"It did. Then circumstances changed." He took another bite of food. "Now it's just a complication I'm managing."

"How flattering."

"You asked for honesty. I'm giving it to you."

"Fair." She mirrored his earlier response, and there might have been the ghost of amusement in her tone.

They continued eating. The silence was more comfortable now, like something had shifted between them. Not friendship, exactly. But understanding.

"Alaric," Verelia said after a while.

"Mm?"

"Thank you. For telling me the truth. Even if you won't elaborate."

"You would have figured it out eventually anyway. You're too smart not to."

"Also fair." She finished her meal and stood. "I should go. I have research to complete."

"Of course you do."

She paused before leaving. "If you ever want to talk about... any of this. I'm available."

"Why?"

"Because reincarnated kings who remember their past make excellent strategic allies. And I've always valued competence over sentimentality." She met his eyes. "Besides. You listened when I needed it. Reciprocity matters."

"Practical as always."

"Obviously."

She walked away, her posture perfect, every movement controlled.

Alaric watched her go, then returned to his food.

So now Verelia knows. Interesting.

He wasn't sure if that would prove useful or problematic.

Probably both.