The Spider Queen

(Hydra Star System- Planet Eleron)

(City Outskirts- Little Rose's Café)

Sophie hummed as soft tune as she walked through the city and ignored the stares that were directed at her appearance.

Unlike the disgusted or frightened stares that she usually experienced on planet Gaia, the looks that she got from the passerby on planet Eleron were more akin to admiration.

It was a bit similar to how celebrities were treated during the ancient Earth era according to Sui Meng's memories.

It was a different feeling but not a bad one.

The hybrid girl checked her wrist communicator and saw one unopened message from Astrid in her inbox.

Astrid: [Just reached… where are you?]

Sophie: [Thirty seconds away. Going to enter the café now]

She powered off her wrist communicator and took a glance at the store that was at the opposite side of the street.

Little Rose's Café was a hidden spot tucked away in the outskirts of the city that surrounded the main campus of Zrudread University.

Its owner was a complete mystery but the food that was served was utterly delicious.

Sophie had only been here once before with Cleo on one of their dates, but she could not forget the sweet gooey taste of the chocolate chip cookies.

The entrance of the café was bright pink with white lines running along the sides of the café. Small brightly coloured flowers were growing on the door that was wide open.

Sophie walked inside the entrance and was greeted by what could only be described as a candy paradise or wonderland.

The floors were milky white, the ceiling was a dark chocolate brown colour, and the tables and chairs mimicked the appearance of candy.

"Sophie!" a loud voice interrupted Sophie's quiet observation.

A huge furry body slammed into the hybrid girl with immense force. Sophie almost took a step back but used her bladed appendages to stabilise herself.

"Astrid!" Sophie cheerfully replied as she wrapped her arms around her best friend and gave her a tight hug.

"Come! Come! I saved us a spot by the window," Astrid excitedly spoke as her tail wagged furiously from side to side.

The Mendolesa girl was wearing a simple brown cloak with numerous magic symbols etched into the fabric that were glowing a faint blue colour.

There was a silent pressure radiating off her body and Sophie to her surprise discovered that her danger sense was faintly active.

Astrid had gotten quite stronger over the summer vacation…

Sophie lips gently curved upwards as Astrid's paw wrapped around her palm as she led her to a seat in the corner of the café.

The café was completely empty which was nice since it meant that the two girls had the entire space to themselves.

"I've missed you. It always feels good to meet up in person," Sophie remarked casually as she sat down on the chair.

The silky cushion on the bottom of the chair was really soft and Sophie could feel the chair expand slightly to accommodate her unusual physique.

The chairs were made out of memory foam which meant that anyone could sit down and not feel the slightest bit of discomfort.

"Same… it's been such a long vacation without you all… do you have any idea what Archmage Hollystorm has put me through?" Astrid's voice lowered to a whisper as she nervously glanced around.

"Astrid… he's not going to hear you…" Sophie's giggled slightly as she saw the paranoid look on her friend's face.

The mendolesa girl nodded at her friend's words and truthfully felt a bit silly. It was just that all the training with the archmage had left a large shadow on her heart.

Astrid opened her mouth and explained to Sophie the terrible time that she had experienced this summer,

"Alright… alright… basically he locked me up in that damn magical tower of his and then sent me off to pocket dimensions to fight off all sorts of strange and messed up creatures."

"Then… if that wasn't enough apparently one of the mages in Mer University said that his protégé was stronger than me so Archmage Hollystorm took it personally."

"I've had to spend the last two weeks learning how to fight other mages because in the words of my teacher… 'You can lose to anyone except that bastard'"

Sophie covered her mouth and tried her best not to laugh as Astrid continued to tell tales about her trials and tribulations over the summer.

It sounded as though she had been through a lot.

Sophie would occasionally interject with a story of her own since her summer had also been nothing but eventful.

From the monster that had hatched on the vacation planet to the assassination plot that targeted Cleo on planet Gaia…

Actually, thinking about it… ever since she gone to university… Did she ever have just a peaceful experience for a long length of time?

Maybe the time between her return from the Unovan Syndicate and the end of the second semester of first year but she had to spend most of that time studying or in therapy.

Man… she needed an actual vacation.

The two girls continued to talk and soon a pleasant atmosphere filled the strange café.

There was no hint of awkwardness between the two friends, and it was like as if they had never spent a few months apart.

"Should we get something to eat?" Sophie suggested as she reached for the menu that was lying down on the table.

"Sure, but how do you order?" Astrid asked curiously as she looked around the room and saw no waiters or employees to take their requests.

"Just point to whatever item on the menu that you want to try and say the word 'order'," Sophie replied casually as she opened the menu and looked at the different options.

Little Rose's Café was primarily a dessert restaurant which meant that there was a variety of ice creams, sweet treats and other appetizing morsels that made Sophie's mouth fill with saliva.

"Is there anything that you recommend?" Astrid asked as she used her paws to flick through the menu.

"Hmm… maybe go with the cake variety slices… it's basically a plate filled with six different types of cake slices," Sophie suggested thoughtfully.

"Wow that sounds great!" Astrid replied as her lips gently curved upwards. The Mendolesa girl pointed at the item on the menu and then said the word 'order'.

There was a brief moment of silence and then the door to the back of the café swung open and a humanoid figure walked out holding plate with six cake slices.

The figure was vaguely human except their skin was a dark green colour. It possessed three arms and one black eye that sat in the middle of its forehead.

The creature placed the plate on the table and then gave a short bow before returning through the door that had just opened.

"Err…" Astrid looked at Sophie with confusion evident on her wolf-like face.

"Yeah… I also have no idea what race are the workers who help out here, but they are super polite and friendly," Sophie replied with a gentle smile.