The Spider Queen

(Alpha Star System- Planet Gaia)

(N'rean City)

Sophie furrowed her brows as she walked outside the museum and felt the warm rays of sunlight brush against her face.

The rest of the museum tour had been a blur as the only thing on her mind were the two incidents that occurred in the cafeteria.

Her danger sense had flared up twice when Cleo's siblings approached their table and both times, she felt a threat coming from the direction of their pockets.

Especially that prince...

Sophie did feel a bit doubtful at first, but her instincts had saved her more times than she could count.

There must have been something inside their pockets...

"Are you feeling, okay?" Cleo's gentle voice cut through Sophie's train of thought.

"Yeah... sorry... I just can't help but replay what happened in the cafeteria in my mind," Sophie truthfully admitted.

"Those guys really were douchebags," Rachel chimed in with a lighthearted grin.

"No... well they were but... my danger sense flared up when they came close to us but then it suddenly disappeared," Sophie frowned as she told the girls what happened.

"Hmm... well in that case we can only be careful and avoid them if we see them in the future," Cleo said thoughtfully.

The princess hummed softly as she stretched out her hand and grabbed Sophie's fingers. She squeezed her girlfriend's palm and felt her warmth transmit to her hand.

Cleo was not as concerned as Sophie about the encounter because her siblings trying to kill each other was just part of being a member of the royal family.

Especially now that there was a power vacuum.

Emperor Sisrelis' death was the perfect opportunity to eliminate competition and increase one's power.

But Cleo had no interest in such matters, so she was surprised that two of her siblings purposefully sought her out.

Cleo was not arrogant enough to believe that she had a genuine chance of taking the throne for herself, so she didn't understand why she was so popular.

Actually, she did have an inkling...

Most likely her siblings wanted a connection to Duke Peterlor and she was the only link between the powerful noble and his faction.

"So where do you all want to go to now?" Cleo suddenly asked to break the quiet mood.

"I'm down to check out the street stalls, grab a bite to eat and then we can head back to my place in a few hours," Sophie suggested as she played with Cleo's fingers.

"Sounds good!" Rachel enthusiastically replied.

The saintess happily moved her head from side to side to check out all the cute humans that were walking around the city.

Planet Gaia had a population that was majority human, so Rachel was enjoying herself immensely.

Ohh... maybe she should try that nose next time... wait... that hair...

The saintess looked at the different facial features of the humans in the crowd and made a mental note to herself.

Her avatar was still new so she didn't plan to replace it just yet but the next time she changed form it would be interesting to give herself some additional features.

The three girls wandered through the city where tall metalloid buildings extended upwards towards the heavens.

Hovercars and mechanical hoverbikes floated gently in the air and zipped quickly between the spaces between the buildings.

One could see cleaning androids sweeping the city regularly and sucking the dust into special compartments located in their bodies.

Holographic screens would occasionally be projected in the air that displayed ads for the latest shows on the virtual net or products.

There was even an ad for a new boy band that had been created by a well-known entertainment company.

Sophie still marvelled at how advanced technology was in this era.

Maybe it was a side effect of possessing Sui Meng's memories, but everything felt very impressive despite the fact that she had grown up with this technology already existing.

The hybrid girl checked her communicator and tapped out a series of commands. A virtual map appeared on the screen with directions to the tent city that was located to the north.

The famous tent city was a collection of street stalls in the middle of a beautiful park.

One could only set up a stall if they possessed a special licence and the authorities cracked down hard on anyone who illegally set up a shop.

It was said that you could purchase anything in the tent city but obviously that was an exaggeration.

Most likely you could only purchase some nice souvenirs that were more expensive than they should be.

Sophie frowned as her body moved automatically. She pulled Cleo to the side just as an ordinary man wearing a business suit almost slammed into her girlfriend's shoulder.

"Sorry I wasn't looking where I was going!" the man apologised profusely as he genuinely looked upset.

"It's okay... just watch where you are going next time..." Sophie politely replied but her free hand was drifting towards her pocket where a dagger was hidden.

Again... she sensed danger again...

The man took one step closer but the cold gaze in Sophie's eyes let him know that his presence wasn't necessary.

"Is there anything that I can do to compensate?" the man pleaded desperately with sincerity overflowing from his eyes.

"Dude... it's not that serious... you didn't even bump into her," Rachel casually chimed in as she crossed her arms.

The man opened her mouth to offer some form of compensation, but Sophie politely declined him and then walked away with Cleo firmly in her embrace.

They turned the corner and the strange man disappeared from their sight.

"Man... I didn't know people were that friendly," Rachel said with a small smile.

"I think.... I think that we should call it a day and turn back," Sophie softly whispered as she glanced back and tried to find the man in the crowd.

But he was already gone...

"Did your instincts flare up again?" Cleo softly whispered with concern evident in her voice.

"Yeah. There was something in that man's palm when he was about to crash into you but then just like before... it disappeared," Sophie admitted in frustration.

She didn't understand what was happening. It made no sense that whatever was dangerous inside the strange man's palm could suddenly disappear into thin air.

"Do you want me to use my ability?" Rachel asked softly as she rubbed her eyes.

The saintess closed her eyes for a brief moment and muttered a quick word of prayer.

When she reopened her eyes, her pupils were completely golden, and one could see a faint black cross in the middle of her eyeballs.

The gaze of truth.

Archangel Raziel was the keeper of secrets and using his powers meant that nothing could escape her eyes.

Rachel had the ability to see the inner good and evil of those around her. This ability was her trump card.

It may not be as strong as some of the other abilities given to the saints and saintesses of the Nephilim Church, but it was certainly unique.