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Chapter 223: Natural Born Queen

The Spider Queen

(Alpha Star System- Planet Gaia)

(Peterlor Mansion- Sophie's Bedroom)

Now this was a bit of a surprise.

Sophie did not expect to get a message from her former best friend.

There was no great animosity between them now, but a small part of Sophie would never be able to fully forgive Leona for her betrayal.

But maybe this unexpected message was for the best.

She did not need to become close friends with Leona but as their fathers were part of the same noble faction….

It would be important that they at least maintained a decent relationship.

Sophie paused for a moment to think of what to say before sending a short message back.

Having a face-to-face conversation would allow Sophie to at least have a decent understanding of what exactly was Leona's attitude towards herself.

And what did she want….

Sophie Peterlor: [Let me get my VR helmet and I will meet you on the virtual net]

Leona Braveheart: [Okay… yeah… that's no problem]

Sophie closed her communicator and jumped off her bed to head towards her large cupboard in the corner of the room.

"Where did I put this damn thing," Sophie scowled as she took out the various items, she had bought during her first couple of weeks at Zrudread University.

She hadn't even realised the sheer number of knickknacks, souvenirs and books that were in there.

One could enter a virtual reality realm with the aid of a VR helmet, but Sophie had not used hers in a long time.

She had just been too busy to spend time on VR games and it was easier to message her friends over the communicator rather than through virtual reality.

"There we go!" Sophie exclaimed in relief as she finally pulled out a sleek metallic helmet with a crescent moon logo on its back.

It was the latest Hellion Model X-903 headgear by the Lucia Corporation who specialised in high quality gaming pods and VR helmets.

This model boasted an impressive ninety eight percent synchronisation with the user's brain waves and could send electric signals to the nervous system to mimic the five senses.

Naturally, the price for one of these high-quality VR helmets was not low but money did not have any particular meaning to a wealthy noble family.

Duke Peterlor could probably buy a majority stake in the company without his finances being even the slightest bit affected.

Sophie returned to her bed and placed the VR helmet slowly over her head until her entire face was covered.

A stinging sensation was felt as the nerve cords connected to the sides of her temples, but this feeling quickly disappeared.

Sophie could feel her consciousness slipping away and a great darkness was creeping up the corners of her vision.

She blinked her eyes and found herself transported to an opulent fancy restaurant with expensive paintings lining the walls, a platinum floor and numerous android waiters patiently waiting for her to sit down.

This was the default waiting room that Sophie had designed for meetings with acquaintances or those she was not close with.

The VR helmet could connect to her communicator, so Sophie send over the serial room number and password to Leona.

Sophie had not modified her appearance so her image in the virtual world was identical to that in the real world.

The only change she had made while waiting for Leona to arrive was to replace the nightdress she was currently wearing with an elegant black evening gown that swayed gently as she moved.

[Attention: A Guest Is Entering Room A-193829]

[Do you permit entry?]

[Yes] [No]

Floating green text hovered in the air just above Sophie's head. She casually reached for the 'yes' option and pressed it lightly.

A beam of light shone in the center of the restaurant with a dazzling glow. Sophie closed her eyes reflexively and when she opened them once more….

She found herself face to face with Leona Braveheart.

It truly was strange.

Instead of being reminded of the years of harsh words and the betrayal that cut her to her very core….

Sophie could not help but remember the little girl who would come over every weekend to watch flowers with her.

It was a simpler time.

There were no whispers from the other noble children nor the dirty looks from their parents.

It was just two girls who loved each other very much without knowing the harshness of society.

Those days would never return but Sophie was not sad.

There were simple too many blessings in her life.

She had an awesome sexy girlfriend with an equally attractive personality.

And the new friends she had made since the entrance exam never felt ashamed for having a close relationship with a hybrid.

At that moment, Sophie was able to put a small weight down in her heart.

Her eyes when viewing Leona no longer had a trace of resentment but rather were calm.

"Shall we take a seat?" Sophie asked politely as she saw Leona fidgeting nervously without saying a word.

"Ye… yes!" Leona stammered and hurriedly approached the chair opposite Sophie.

"She looks so different," Leona could not help but mutter quietly to herself as she stared at the hybrid girl sitting across from her.

Sophie had truly matured into a stunning young woman who would be the center of attention no matter where she went.

Her curvaceous body and intimidating height of seven feet was a combination that even made Leona's heart race.

The pointed ears, four blade-like appendages and golden eyes did not detract from her beauty but rather served to enhance it with an exotic air.

But it was more than just her appearance.

Sophie sat there on the chair with an aura of calmness and dignity that made one feel unworthy to even be in her presence.

She was a natural born queen.

Just as Leona was observing Sophie, she was also being watched in turn.

Sophie nodded silently as she saw the lean muscular frame that hinted that her former friend had not been slacking off training since qualifying for Atlas University.

Leona was wearing a simple red dress that contrasted nicely with her dark chocolate skin and curly purple hair that cascaded down her shoulders.

Sophie waved her right hand at one of the android waiters who brought over two cups of tea.

The robotic man placed the white cups in front of both girls and then carefully poured a greenish-brown mixture from a pitcher.

Sophie nodded once the cups were full and the robot retreated back into the background.

Naturally, sensations such as taste could be mimicked in the virtual reality realm but there would always be something slightly off.

Sophie hooked her pinky finger over the handle of the white cup and delicately brought the cup to her lips to take a small sip.

She waited patiently for Leona to bring up the topic of the meeting, but it soon became clear that she was too anxious to speak.

The atmosphere was getting a bit uncomfortable, so Sophie decided to bring out an icebreaker to cut the tension,

"So, how has university been?"

Leona stumbled a bit but managed to get a decent reply out,

"I… I took the sword cultivator major and the past month has been pretty uneventful. Most of the students were hosting parties but I have been training non-stop."

"I haven't made many friends but there is this one girl named Violet who has been keeping me company during practice."

"What noble house is she from?" Sophie asked curiously.

Judging from her past behaviour, Leona's newfound friend was probably some high noble heiress.

"No….no… she's a commoner," Leona quietly spoke.

Sophie raised an eyebrow and gazed at Leona with an unknown emotion in her heart.

Did she hear that right?

Maybe Leona had changed.

It wasn't enough for Sophie to forgive her, but she could tell that Leona was making an effort to become better.

"How about you?" Leona thought that the mood seemed strange after her admission, so she tried to toss back the question.

"Oh, it's been fairly uneventful," Sophie leaned back on her chair and took another sip of tea.

"I double majored in combat pet and poison cultivation, so the workload has been pretty intense."

"My girlfriend and I barely have time for ourselves."

She wasn't going to go into all the details about the events on Planet Calypso, so Sophie just gave a vague summary of her experiences over the last few weeks.

"Girlfriend?" Leona picked up a strange point in Sophie's story and curiously asked a question.

"Yeah, I'm dating one of the royal princesses," Sophie narrowed her eyes and spoke with a clear tone.

She would never try to hide the fact that the one she loved was a woman.

Sophie was gay?

Leona froze in shock as she tried to process this startling new information.

Homosexuality was not an inherently shocking matter as several species in the universe had unions with those of the same gender.

Even in the time of Ancient Earth, it had been legal to wed those of the same gender in some cultures and civilisations.

It wasn't even a problem if noble heirs liked those of the same gender as there were several advances in genetic research.

Now it was possible for those of the same sex to produce offsprings through the combination of DNA from both parents.

It was just that Leona had no idea….

Leona tried to recall her memories of Sophie in high school or childhood but could not recall her former friend ever expressing in interest in girls.

Subconsciously the knowledge that Sophie liked girls was causing strange thoughts to enter Leona's heart.

The side profile of a certain girl flashed across her mind….