The Spider Queen

(Alpha Star System- Planet Gaia)

(Peterlor Estate- Private Study Room)

Duke Peterlor hummed softly as he sat behind his desk and shifted through the different reports that had piled up.

The mining colonies in the Hydra Star System were predicting a lower output of materials this year due to several strikes and unexpected shipping issues.

Planet Allurena was going to be sold at action by House Markues and the starting price was roughly one billion Enas.

For a high noble family that amount of money was merely a drop in a bucket. Duke Peterlor tapped away at his communicator and sent out a few messages to his subordinates.

Being the head of a noble family was a lot less exciting than what people usually assumed.

Most of your days would involve managing the different properties and territories that your family owned.

Engaging in politics with other noble houses and trying to maintain a neutral or positive relationship with the royal family.

It was honestly quite exhausting.

Duke Peterlor leaned against his chair and reached for the steaming cup of tea that was on his desk. He raised the cup to his lips and enjoyed the bittersweet taste of the tea.

It was a quiet and peaceful morning.

Duke Peterlor took a small break from his work and looked around his study absentmindedly.

Rows upon rows of bookshelves filled the room, expensive paintings hung on the walls and a crackling fireplace was located in the corner.

He glanced down at his desk and saw the photo of his daughter that he always kept close at hand.

It was a picture of Sophie smiling at the camera just before she had left for Zrudread University.

The sparkle in her eyes and the cheerful grin on her face brought a warm feeling to the duke's heart as he stared at his daughter.

She was very cute. In fact, that was a bit of an issue…

Rokan used to worry about his little girl since she had inherited her beautiful looks from her mother and would attract all sorts of people.

But the person who she ended up dating was… a decent choice.

Duke Peterlor would never say it out loud, but he was grateful that it was obvious that princess Cleo loved his daughter fiercely.

Sophie deserved someone who loved her just as much as she loved them back. It didn't really matter the gender of the person that she picked.

The duke got up from his chair and decided to take a walk around the estate in order to clear his mind.

He walked towards the door and left his private study.

The mansion was unusually quiet today since the only workers were the androids moving around and cleaning the furniture.

Butler Gerald was taking the day off to visit his family while Sophie and Cleo were still in N'rean City and would return later in the evening.

The duke wandered through the estate and eventually arrived at an unremarkable door that was at the end of a long corridor.

He placed his hand on the scanner next to the door and a green light flashed twice. A holographic screen popped up and the duke typed out a password.

Ding!

The metalloid doors swung open, and the duke entered his secret room. The ground was covered by a thick layer of dust since Rokan did not allow the cleaning androids to enter this place.

Inside the room was a luxurious bedroom that had clearly seen much better days. The bedsheets were torn, the curtains were ripped, and the pillows were deflated.

One could see old bloodstains splattered across the floor along with some weapons that were already beginning to rust.

Duke Peterlor slowly moved towards the bed and touched the corner of one of the bedsheets with an unreadable expression on his face.

This was the only room in the Peterlor Estate that he had not renovated or changed. It belonged to the former patriarch of House Peterlor.

His father.

The man who had once almost destroyed his entire lineage and legacy.

House Peterlor could trace their ancestors all the way back to the early years of the Earth Federation.

Of course, in those chaotic days they were little more than minor nobles.

However, they were given their own private territory which was an entire moon called Luna-137 that orbited around the planet Jupiter.

Eventually over the centuries House Peterlor rose in prominence until they became upper rank nobles.

But this endless growth in political influence would not last forever…

Rokan's father was nothing more than a drunken fool who preferred to spend his days whoring and gambling away the wealth of his house.

Despite being married and with two potential heirs to House Peterlor, he would eventually die under mysterious circumstances in a pleasure bar at the young age of thirty-five.

And that was when all hell broke loose.

The former patriarch had written up a will that legitimised every one of his outside children much to the shock and horror of his wife who didn't know.

One of those bastards was a poor street urchin named Rokan…

Duke Peterlor let out a heavy sigh as he touched the bloodstained sheets. He was not present at the time but had heard that one of his siblings was killed here.

And he kept this bedroom preserved as a reminder.

He never wanted to forget those dark days when assassins lurked in the shadows and the other noble families watched the spectacle with sadistic glee.

He was unlike the other heads of dukedoms who had grown up in wealth and luxury.

Rokan still remembered the days when he was on his knees begging on the street for a loaf of bread.

His clothes would be torn, his face would be covered in dirt and the outline of his ribs could clearly be seen against his chest.

Growing up in poverty, he would have traded anything to become one of the nobles who walked around with enough food to eat.

And… he got his wish.

The duke moved away from the bed and walked out of the room without looking back. He returned to the well-lit corridor with his mood slightly lower than before.

Duke Peterlor walked for around ten minutes before he arrived at the lush garden that was planted outside the mansion.

He sat down on a nearby bench and quietly observed the flowers as they swayed back and forth.

Sophie had planted some of those plants before she had left for university and now, they were in full bloom.

Colourful shades of red and purple filled the garden bed and made the world bright and vivid.

Duke Peterlor smiled softly as he leaned back against the bench and felt a gust of wind brush against his grizzled face.

Perhaps it was time to stop dwelling on the past.