The Spider Queen

(Hydra Star System- Planet Eleron)

(Forest Lord Kingdom Park)

"Oh, hey Plume… how was your vacation?" Sophie casually spoke to the Servie boy who was flying by her side.

"I just spent it trying to train them…" Plume sighed heavily as he pointed to the mass of furry creatures walking behind him.

Plume was unique in the combat beast cultivation class since he did not own a singular pet because he was training to become a beast tide controller.

The dozens of tiny fur balls each no bigger than the size of a marble following his body were known as Xephyres.

They were a species of combat beasts capable of merging together and combining to form different shapes.

Obviously, their fighting skills were nothing to boast about, but their versatility made them quite useful in most situations.

"That's sounds good… I've been trying to get this lazy bum to practice more with me but he's always so 'tired'," Sophie replied with a small smile as she reached into her pocket for a treat.

"Hey Moon! Catch!"

The hybrid girl tossed the small treat in the air and Moon immediately leapt from her shoulders and rushed for the snack.

He opened his jaw wide to reveal dozens of razor-sharp teeth that gleamed fiercely under the sunlight.

With a loud chomp, the frostwing bat swallowed the treat whole and then returned to his master's shoulder with a proud look on his furry face.

"Okay… that was kind of terrifying…" Plume hesitantly spoke as he slowly drifted away from out of Moon's reach.

Since he was a member of the Servie race, Moon was actually much bigger than him and one bite would be all it took to end his entire existence.

Sophie continued to make small talk with Plume as they walked further into the large park.

They were not particularly close friends or anything, but she usually talked to him in class.

Actually, there were a lot of people like that in university. Not exactly friends but Sophie had no problem making casual conversation with them.

As the daughter of a duke, she needed to learn and practise how to form connections and good relationships with other people.

Massively tall trees appeared on both sides of the pathway and the ground beneath their feet was covered with soft green grass.

The beautiful scenic sights of nature were everywhere to be found and Sophie found it oddly peaceful to strode through the park.

Today was the first day of lessons.

The campus was now buzzing with activity since most of the students had returned to planet Eleron for the start of the semester.

Sophie had spent the last two weeks before the semester had begun working on her poison cultivation techniques with Professor Macabre.

While it would be an exaggeration to say that she had mastered them… Sophie felt very optimistic about the future.

She was making steady progress and if all went well, she should have some new tricks up her sleeve for the inter university competition.

Eventually the pair arrived at a large clearing in the forest where several students were already lying down on the grass with their combat pets by their sides.

Big and small.

Cute and scary looking.

Terrestrial and flying.

Sophie saw a wide variety of animals and even some plants who were capable of using their roots to move about.

She said goodbye to Plume and then walked towards a noble girl elegantly leaning against a nearby tree with an enormous dog only a few feet away.

The noble girl wore an expensive black dress and a pair of combat boots that went surprisingly well with her outfit.

Of course, most people's attention would not be on her appearance but rather on the huge twelve feet tall hell hound with three heads.

The creature had dark black fur and the three heads would occasionally spew out flames whenever they exhaled.

"Luna! It's been so long!" Sophie walked up to her friend and enthusiastically gave her a big hug.

"Sophie… it really has been some time," Luna did not seem bothered by Sophie's lack of manners as her lips gently curved upwards.

"How had Blackie been?" Sophie asked as she broke away from the hug and walked over to the massive dog without a hint of fear in her expression.

"Oh, he's been good. I managed to teach him some new fire techniques over the summer," Luna proudly spoke as she watched Sophie pet her dog's middle head.

The hybrid girl spread her love out evenly and touched each head on the snout before turning away from the animal.

She always had a soft spot for dogs.

The two girls began to chat about their vacation and the current political situation in the Federation.

Luna's family much like House Peterlor were remaining the neutral in the fight for succession but were currently leaning towards the crown prince.

That was not to say that they were throwing their weight behind him but rather that they were preparing for his eventual victory.

"But how can your dad be sure? I mean the fight is between thousands of candidates… who knows what could happen…" Sophie pointed out in a calm tone.

"I mean obviously we can't be one hundred percent certain, but the crown prince has the cultivation strength and the connections to be a great leader," Luna replied with a small yawn.

"I haven't seen him in person but apparently he's incredibly handsome and knows how to charm people."

"My dad saw him in a noble gathering, and he said that all eyes in the banquet hall were on him… he has the presence of an emperor."

"Well, he can't be worse than the last one, right?" Sophie jokingly said as her eyes glanced at Moon who was now playfully taunting the twelve feet tall hellhound.

"The late Emperor Sisrelis actually wasn't that bad at first… in the early years of his rule he stopped two civil wars and reformed part of the noble system," Luna thoughtfully spoke.

Sophie was honestly a bit surprised to hear this since she had only known the late Emperor as a lustful old fool.

Well maybe she shouldn't have been surprised…

The problem was that as seen in history many times before. Power had a nasty habit of corrupting those who wielded it.

Sophie and Luna continued to talk for a few more minutes until a loud rustling noise came from the far corner of the clearing.

Several thick green vines slithered on the ground almost like snakes towards a tree that looked no different from the others present in the forest.

Its bark opened up to reveal a beautiful humanoid alien dressed in a skirt made of green leaves.

Her skin was ashen grey with small bumpy scales that run up her arms and a slender tail almost like a whip that jutted out of her lower back.

Her most notable features were on her face.

She had three eyes that were dark orange in colour with pink pupils and a lack of a visible nose.

"Welcome back class…" Professor Ward spoke with a slight accent.

"I must first congratulate you all for successfully entering your second year at Zrudread University and becoming or staying a member of the elite class."

"I see a couple new faces here so I would once again like to congratulate you for reaching this level."

"Please continue to work hard and you will see results."