Chapter 17

“Hungry, are we?” I sarcastically said as I placed my tray next to Henry’s on the table. It was Friday, and it was lunchtime. It was the only time our lunch schedules overlapped, and we were supposed to eat together like a normal couple. We agreed to wait for the other if one of us was late, but the king was already eating.

With the Otxoas yet again. All of whom were ignoring my presence at the table.

I felt insulted.

It’s only been a week since I arrived at Aldervolf University. Approximately 16 days since I migrated to the Greater Volfenheim Empire, and I was already starting to question my life choices. My frustration was increasing by the second, and I was disappointed with Henry for a variety of reasons.

For one, Henry agreed with the dorm mother’s decision not to assign me another room or replace Jet as my roommate. Out of desperation, I tried everything I could to persuade him: I cried, kicked and screamed, I even tried to seduce him, but my efforts were all in vain. Tired of all the drama and antics, the monarch had withdrawn from meeting with me whenever he realized I would only complain about my living conditions. He ignored my texts and phone calls, completely neglecting me for days.

This, of course, did not sit well with me. Henry’s defiance to cater to my whims irritated me to no end. I refused to return to my dorm, even if it meant habitually arriving late for my morning classes. I couldn't return to the Lyall Palace as well because it was farther. I was aware that it was influencing how other people perceived me as well as how poorly I performed academically, but it was a matter of pride for me.

Two, my father checked my credit card billing statement and discovered I was staying in a hotel; he had already inquired as to why I wasn’t living in the palace like a proper aristocrat, but I couldn’t tell him about my plight. Rozen Maiden knows what my father would do if he found out. He already questioned why I sent Becca home. He might throw a fit and demand an audience with the Empress and the King, asking why his daughter was being treated like a commoner, a problem I could not afford. It would sour the already strained relationship between our houses. Worse, King Saul would order me to return home, thwarting my plans.

No, I wasn’t going to tell him the real reason. I just needed a better plan to persuade Henry.

Three, the worst of all, the thing that made my week feel like absolute hell... was the lack of plant-based food options in the cafeteria. It wasn’t this difficult during my brief stay in the palace; a five-star royal chef prepared my meals, and they always adhered to my strict diet. At the university, the only vegetable option was a sad-looking cabbage salad, and the taste was atrocious. The vinaigrette was acidic and cheap; the greens were limp and rubbery. I wasn’t even sure if they made it with cooking equipment that had never come into contact with any animal products. If I hadn’t been so hungry at the time they first served it to me, I would have thrown it out. It’s a good thing a fellow plant-based eater nudged me in the right direction. They introduced me to a restaurant that caters specifically to people like us. It was close to my hotel and the university, and I’ve been eating and ordering there ever since.

“Sorry,” Henry said sheepishly to me. “We’ve been practicing with the Blade and Buckler Team all morning. I was famished.”

“Aww,” I swallowed my displeasure and brushed the fringe from my boyfriend’s eyes, doing my best to appear affectionate. “It’s fine. There will always be another time. Like next Friday.”

The king studied my face for any signs of deception before smiling and digging back into his meal. I was convinced the monarch was not lying when he said he was hungry because of the way he scarfed down his food.

“Henry, slow down. You’ll get indigestion,” I reminded him. When I looked down at his plate to see what he was eating, I gaped in disgust. “Oh my gods, Henry, why are you eating a rotting corpse?”

Everyone around us stopped eating, and it was as if the entire cafeteria stood still. Students, faculty, and the lunch ladies were looking at us, making Henry and I uncomfortable. I mentally blamed Henry for my outburst. I’d never seen him eat meat before. Although I knew he wasn’t plant-based like I was, it shocked me to see the slab of meat he was eating. It was brown on the outside but still bright red on the inside. As per the plates beside him, he already ate quite a bit.

I wanted to vomit.

“W-what are you talking about, Selina?” Henry asked, equally horrified. When he looked down at his plate, all he saw was a juicy steak, with potatoes and gravy on the side.

“You’re eating meat.” I took a deep breath. “You never eat meat.”

“I do, just not in front of you.”

I looked over at the Otxoa siblings, expecting to see them eating animal carcasses as well, but was surprised and relieved to see that they were eating sandwiches. Jasper was on his phone while eating a huge helping of tomato pasta, smirking at himself.

I wanted to wipe the smile off his face for some reason. The young wolf seemed to be laughing at me, not at some stupid thing he was looking at his phone.

“Well, I’m in front of you now. Here.” I turned back to my boyfriend instead and pushed the plate of steak away from him. I sat my bowl of salad in its stead.

“But that’s your food,” Henry tried to protest.

“It’s okay.” I had already lost my appetite.

I took the plate of meat and put it in the trash.

I despised meat, and the stench of death it gave off turned my stomach. The thought of animals dying because of human greed made me shudder in horror. I considered people who ate them to be the worst people on Terran, hated them to the core. I believed those people were as abhorrent as the Occults, if not more, preying on things weaker than them. Henry, of course, was the sole exception to this hatred.

But just like Becca said, now that I'm here, everything was going to change. I just need supporters.

A lot of them.

I returned to the table as if nothing happened.

"So, Jade..." I began. "When will the student body elections be held?"

"Uhm," Jade glanced at Henry before turning to me. "The month after next."

"Thanks." I smiled at her sweetly. "Then I only have two months to prepare."

"You're running?" Henry asked, wiping his mouth with a napkin. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Yes, I'm running for president." There was a collective gasp at our table, Jasper even chocked on his noodles. "I know I just got here, but I have a lot of ideas and projects I wanted to share."

I'll start with that awful cafeteria menu. And then I'd come after the pests.

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