The Spider Queen

(Hydra Star System- Planet Eleron)

(Western District- St. Lisa's Beach)

The sun was shining brightly in the sky and a cool breeze was flowing from a northeastern direction.

Students could be seen walking in groups along the beach or playing in the water without a care in the world.

St. Lisa's Beach was a popular destination to just unwind and relax after a hard day of classes and it was only a few hours away from the main campus.

"Ahh… it feels good to relax," Cleo softly whispered as she stretched out her arms lazily.

"Here's your drink," Qiana laughed as she passed over a glass full of a deep purplish liquid that slightly bubbled.

Cleo thanked her friend and then brought the glass to her lip.

The liquid inside the glass tasted almost like honey except it fizzled and popped like a carbonated drink.

"So… why are you wearing that?" Qiana teased as she stared at Cleo's outfit.

The princess was wearing a long skirt that covered her entire body as well as her arms.

It wasn't exactly the kind of outfit that one would usually wear when going to the beach.

Even Qiana was wearing a black one-piece bathing suit that showed off her slender but muscular legs.

Cleo rolled her eyes since she knew that her friend had probably guessed the reason why she was forced to cover up.

"Sophie… got a bit excited last night…" Cleo spoke tiredly as she tilted her neck and briefly pulled on the side of her collar.

Deep purplish hickeys could be seen along her neck before the princess adjusted her clothes so that her bare skin could no longer be seen.

"Didn't you tell me last time that you were going to talk to Sophie about taking things a little bit easier?" Qiana questioned with a confused expression.

"Don't mention it. I swear every time I want to bring it up… you know what… let's just move on," Cleo stammered slightly as a faint red blush spread across her cheeks.

Qiana smiled when she saw the embarrassed expression on her friend's face.

She picked up a rock near her feet and tossed it into the ocean.

It landed with a dull plop and Qiana could see some kind of tiny organism emerge from the seafloor to investigate the sudden disturbance.

The pair continued to walk along the beach and only stopped occasionally to admire the waves as they crashed against the shore.

"How do you feel about the battle ranking exam? I heard that mages from Mer University will be maintaining a temporal reversal formation," Cleo gossiped as she dipped her toes in the water.

"Hmm… I think a lot of my classmates in the assassination major are now pretty excited about the exam," Qiana thoughtfully replied.

"Most of them have only been trained in killing techniques that aren't exactly appropriate for a university spar."

"But there is still a difference between killing in some isolated location and killing someone in front of thousands of spectators."

"Still… I wouldn't be surprised if the top fifty spots were mostly taken by the assassination students," Cleo stated confidently.

Qiana frowned as a certain thought flashed across her mind. The plain girl adjusted her thick glasses before replying to Cleo's statement,

"I don't know… I heard that the combat beast kids are going to be allowed to bring their pets so they might have an advantage."

"Although if you defeat the master…"

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(Archmage Hollystorm's Mage Tower)

Sophie let out a heavy sigh as she stared at the seemingly broken wooden shack in the middle of nowhere.

They were going to be late!

The four friends had planned to visit the beach today, but Archmage Hollystorm had summoned Astrid for some last-minute training.

Sophie had decided to stay behind and wait for her while Qiana and Cleo went on ahead to get them a good spot.

The hybrid girl found a nearby boulder and sat down. She powered on her communicator and sent a quick message to her girlfriend.

Sophie: [Hey babe! I might be a few hours late so feel free to eat or grab yourself some drinks if you get hungry]

Sophie: [Love you…]

She powered off her communicator and leaned back against the boulder. The archmage's tower was surrounded by a dense forest with tall trees that blocked out the sunlight from above.

As a result, the forest floor was quite dark, and the temperatures were also low.

Fortunately, Sophie's golden eyes could easily penetrate the darkness, so she did not have any issues seeing the tiny furry creatures scurrying around.

Well… that's what the surroundings looked like today…

According to Astrid, her mentor would occasionally change the area around his tower depending on his whim.

Once it was a murky swamp, then a harsh snowfield, and there was even a time when it was surrounded by an endless desert.

Archmage Hollystorm was truly an eccentric character but that wasn't surprising considering that most mages were to put it nicely…

A bit weird.

"Well… staying in a tower all day and pouring over some dusty tomes would drive me mad," Sophie muttered quietly.

"Do you really think so?" a voice softly asked.

"Yeah… its no wonder that Astrid always wants to escape. Even on the day before the battle ranking exam… she has to…" Sophie's voice trailed off as she realised something.

Wait a minute…

Sophie quickly turned around and saw a handsome elderly Servie staring at her with an expression of mock anger on his face.

His translucent wings flapped gently up and down and blue runes were floating above his tiny fairy-like body.

"Archmage Hollystorm… I didn't see you there!" Sophie exclaimed in shock as she hurriedly adjusted her tone.

"I hope you can forgive me for my rude statements…"

"I'm just waiting outside for Astrid but don't worry I'm not going to rush her… she can take as much time as she wants!"

Archmage Hollystorm snapped his fingers and the space behind him rippled.

Without even chanting a spell, the mana around his body surged and automatically created a rift pathway between time and space.

Astrid dropped out of the portal with a surprised expression on her face. She was still holding several heavy tomes with titles such as…

'Eisteren Theory on the Quantum Magnetic Flux of Runic Cycles,' 'Blood Magic and the Third Law of Caster Conversation' and 'How To Properly Incant.'

"Alright my lazy apprentice… I was originally planning to have you study for a few more hours but… I'm feeling a bit generous," Archmage Hollystorm spoke casually.

"Enjoy your day at the beach but don't forget that I expect you to return here immediately after the battle ranking exam."

The powerful Servie mage snapped his fingers once more and he vanished along with the books that were in Astrid's hands.

"Sophie! Did you manage to persuade him to let me go?!" Astrid excitedly spoke.

"Err…."

Sophie could only make a bewildered expression since she had no idea what had just happened.