Somehow the Spider King ended up not just in the Great Bazaar but in its hidden part, a bonus part of sorts, a market within a market built right under the former. Here the fennec were peddling their extra secret wares to the most VIP of their customers.

From the get-go, one particular stall caught Spider King’s attention. The table was loaded with rods crafted entirely out of ScorpionGlass end etched in runes of Spider Chirp. The items were glowing ever so slightly, giving away their enchanted nature. The rods came in all sorts of shapes and sizes, the shortest at the size of his pinky and the biggest at the size of his hand, some had meticulous patterns carved into them, others had gems slotted at their base. Each was a piece of art.

“This is interesting…” He takes the shimmering glass rod in his hands, this one shaped to resemble the form of the Worm of Oberon.

The fennec merchant perks his ears up, giving the King a brilliantly foxy smile.

“Spider King, you have a keen eye for treasures. Yes-Yes!” He flutters his ears excitedly.

“Treasures?”

“Yes-Yes. These items are extremely popular. The one in your hand is part of a collectable set. The Devourer Series!”

The fennec merchant points at two other rods, one in the shape of a kingly forest snake and the other in the shape of a colossal flying whale.

“What a scary set! The rods are also brimming with… magic?”

“True! Very true! Full of magic! Neither of the three is fit for a newbie collector. Too much power!” The merchant shakes his head.

“Hmm…”

He looks at the smaller items, more mundane rods. They all are fancy glass cylinders, some are shaped in one abstractly artistic form or the other, twisting and coiling; others resemble unknown parts of some monsters, giving that ferocious vibe about them. But in the end, it’s all enchanted glass – a novelty of the WyrmCity.

“By the way, all these items are called Rods of Delight. They are extremely popular! Very much so!”

“Yes… I can see their appeal. It would take a master to craft something like this. Not to mention all the enchanting. But what exactly do they do?”

“My-my… you see…” the fennec leans closer to whisper. “If you chant a forbidden keyword all will become clear.”

“…”

“Hehe~. That’s right. That’s right! Hehe~.”

“I’m not getting it? What is the keyword?”

“Well… If I said it… it would trigger all the rods. The stall would be destroyed, no-no! I’ll write it down for you.” The fennec scribbles something down.

He takes the note to read it. “Skidaddle-Ska…”

“What are you doing? Don’t say it!”

“Sorry! I’ve got carried away.”

“Spider King, no! King or no King, the forbidden word shouldn’t be said in public. No-no!” The fennec scolds with a pointed finger.

“Got it!”

“But say, Spider King. Are you looking to delight yourself or someone special? As you can see, I have all types of rods.

“I’m thinking of buying this glass souvenir for my wife, the Lamia Queen. But indeed there are so many, which one should I pick?

“The husband knows his wife best, so I can’t give you recommendations. Just pick the one that seems like it. Or the one that feels right in your hand. Hehe~!” The merchant grins in a foxy smile.

“Hmm…”

He looks at the various designs, one more brilliant than the other. He hesitantly hovers his hand above the rods, each emitting a different magical signature, some more powerful than others.

“I just can’t decide. Should I go with the most powerful one?”

“I must warn you. The most powerful of delights are for experienced users only. But perhaps… Since this is the Spider King’s wife… she craves for power, no?

“Right… but she’s not that good at handling power. I’d rather not gift her something too dangerous.”

“Then how about this? This delight is rather popular.” The fennec points at the rod fashioned in the likeness of a certain wyrmling. “Great Desert Wyrmling, The Only and True Pharaoh of the Scorching Desert!”

“Ergh… I’d rather not! Do you have anything more spidery?”

“That’s a very popular request. Yes-Yes. But since the spiders are genderless…”

“Huh?”

“Oh! There is a rumour of this Lord G Bling, yes-yes? Maybe Your Majesty could send this spider to our workshop? It would boost our sales significantly!”

“Lord G Bling? Well, he is in charge of commerce, and I’m sure that for a cut of your profits, the Rods of Delight could become the next big thing within the entire Monster Realm. I’ll mention you to him.”

“Wonderful! As thanks, how about I show something truly special, a legendary delight, one of a kind?” The fennec reaches under the table, to retrieve a golden box. “The raw power might be lacking but it has a plethora of features!”

The Spider King looks inside the box. It’s a glass rod alright, and rather plain at that, but unlike the others, it’s jam-packed with the runes of the SpiderChirp. Moreover, Inside the crystalline glass, there’s a bead of brimming vortex spinning in brilliant purple; and he feels something familiar dwelling deep inside that vortex.

And despite the numerous enchantments, its power feels rather tame. Something not too powerful or nasty.

“You mentioned features?”

“Yes-Yes! Boost, Enlarge, Knot, DragonRidge…” The fennec lists the enchantments.

“That’s plenty! I like the simplicity of its design, and the carved runes add a lot of charm to it.” He nods happily.

“Then it’s a deal! May your wife be delighted to no end!”

The payment is made in spirit stones. Just like before, much of the bazaar is run on a type of barter system.

After purchasing some other exotic peculiarities, the Spider King finally leaves the Hidden Bazaar.

True to the words of Fennec, he was forced to admit that the WyrmCity was a prosperous place. The stalls were filled with the foodstuffs of the Spider Kingdom and its vassals, anything from succulent Tomgrape to delicious CaveMushrooms. Other goods like DrowScrolls and KoboldPottery were also sold here, as well as a great degree of potions brewed by the Crimson Alchemist.

The local produce was no exception. There was no lack of forbidden perfumes and creams, fiery brews of PalmJuice, shimmering trinkets of ScorpionGlass, and a wet market of desert monster bits, parts, and other materials.

The ever opportunistic Fennec fleeced the Spider King of all he had, and feeling content at that feet, they finally permitted him to leave their Great Bazaar.

“Right… The pyramid.” He steps towards the half-built wonder, only to be… “Not again!”

He finds himself once more surrounded, this time by the ScorpionMen. They are tall fellows, their amour all sandy chitin, and their choice of arms is a glaive. They look at him in a gaze only a scorpion is capable of – cold and calm but ferocious and intense at the same time. Just what do they want?

“Sorry, I’m out of spirit stones!”

“Spider King, my pleasure!” the biggest of the scorpions salutes with his pincer. “Your presence is desired at the WyrmPalace. This way, please.” The scorpion clacks its mandibles, a hint of nervousness is clear.

“A late reception, no? But okay, I’ll come with you.”

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“Forgive us, Spider King!” The scorpion gives a low bow. “We weren’t expecting you so soon. Now come, the Sphinx Queen awaits.”

“Sphinx Queen?” He expected someone else, someone more noodly and elongated.

“The wife of the Great Pharaoh.” The scorpion clarifies.

“Ah… Yes! I’m curious about her too.”

“Come, this way.”

The WyrmCity held many wonders and distractions, but he was shielded from it all by these pleasant soldiers. The scorpions escorted him to the palace, not once breaking their tight formation.

There he is, in the great hall of WyrmPalace. The place didn’t change much, except for a frightening number of dark spots left by something hastily moved and disappeared, so in retrospect, the hall looked rather empty. Past the numerous columns, at the end of the hall, there still was a gold-gilded throne however. Above the throne, on the wall, there was a set of shadowy spots, a discolouration left by hastily removing something that had been there for a long time. If one read the shadows they would make out a phrase of “God Emperor Almighty”, alas the real letters making the text were no longer there.

Right that instant, ever industrious Fennec unfurled a rolled parchment, completely hiding the pseudo lettering on the wall. The parchment was actually a flag, a flag of the Spider Kingdom. An improvement hastily made, but still an improvement.

But enough of that. The real centrepiece of attention was the lady perched atop the throne. The Sphinx Queen.

She was a sight to behold, part monster and part human. Her lower half was that of a ferocious lioness, her coat golden and her claws razor sharp. Her top half was a black-haired beauty of a woman, her skin tanned and her figure full of bursting charms. On her back she sported a mighty set of eagle wings. Her limbs, human and lion, were all decorated with golden jewellery and gems, sparkling in the desert sun and droving ever more attention.

To keep herself away from boredom she was reading a book. Actually, there was a great stack of books by her side. It seems the Sphinxes liked to read.

The scorpion men broke their formation, running to form a tunnelling reception of chitin and glaives leading all the way toward the throne.

The Sphinx lifts her head away from her book. “Spider King, I presume?” She coos in a melodic voice. “Come closer so I can see you better.”

Interested in this winged lioness just as much as she was interested in him, he does just so, but not before casting a sneaky Inspect.

Monster Race: Mythical

Variant: Sphinx Queen

Magic Affinity: None

☀️ 👸 ☀️

🤔 🦁 🤔

🏜️🦅 🏜️

HP:2000

MP:500

STA:1000

Active Perks

[DesertMirage], [SolarSmite], [SandstormVeil], [RiddleMeThis]

Passive Perks

[RiddleCraft], [DecipherTruth], [LionViatlity], [EagleFlight],

[GreaterWisdom], [PerfectMemory], [WyrmlingEmpress]

[Beauty +1]

Resistances

[Fire Resistance: Medium], [Earth Resistance: Medium],

[Wind Resistance: Medium], [Ligh Resistance: Lesser]

[Dark Weakness: Greater]

Yeah… that adds up.

“[Inspect]…” The Sphinx Queen mumbles, hiding her lips behind the book. “O_O,” her eyes go big, unable to hide her disbelief at the plethora of titles and perks she sees.

“Haha. I guess no further introductions are necessary.”

“… ahem… oh my.” She tugs at her golden collar, her cheeks blushing. “If my dearest mewling of a husband is your familiar. Then what that makes me?”

“A wife of a familiar! Ha! Did I get the riddle right?”

“I wasn’t riddling… never mind. My dearest mewling is preoccupied, so in his stead, I’m here to entertain you.”

“With riddles, right?”

“Huh? No. Unless… you want to?” Still blushing, she gives a mysterious smile.

“Why not? Riddle me this Sphinx: I’m patient but deadly, I wait but don’t sleep. When you see me, it's too late — your fate is mine to keep. What am I?” He jumps to riddle the Sphinx. “Aha! The tables are turned! I bet you didn’t expect this! I am the Riddler now!” He pays back her mischievous smile with his own.

“Erm… actually my dearest also did... never mind. I know the answer! It’s the Spider King!”

“… Arm, no. The answer is a hunting spider, but I guess you're half right.”

“Hmm… only half right. That’s no good. Riddle me another one then.”

“The more you fight me, the stronger I hold. The more you struggle, the tighter my fold. What am I?”

“It’s the Spider King for sure!”

“No! And why? The correct answer is a web!”

“It could also be quicksand by the way.” She drops it with a slight giggle.

“Wait… you’re right. In that case, I’ll give you another one. Just think carefully this time alright? I take life without breath, I ensnare without hands, I feed without chasing, and I kill without a sound. What am I?”

“Spider King! It’s the Spider King! I’ve finally got it!”

“It was either a spider or a web but either way…” He sighs. “I give up… Just what sort of a monster do you think I am? I don’t do those things! Well, not like that!”

“Well, according to this book,” she casually whips out a leather-bound tome. “You are…” She doesn’t get to finish.

“[SpinWeb]!” The book lands in his hands. “I was curious about them. Erm… ‘Tangled in His Web’ by CrimsonBling. Huh? CrimsonBling?

“Oh! You know of them? What is your favourite title? Mine is ‘Silk, Seduction, and Six-Legged Shenanigans’. Wait, no! I’m just halfway through it but it must be ‘Royal Webbing: How to Trap a Kingdom (and Maybe a Lover)’, it's just so spicy!”

“… the titles are highly sus. What are these books about exactly?” He casually opens a random page. “O_O,” caught off guard his eyes go big; the book has spicy pictures.

“Why don’t I tell you about my favourite scene? I have it memorized~!”

Using her perfect memory she begins quoting the passage:

“She never saw the web until it was too late. One moment, she strode confidently through the moonlit forest, and the next—silken strands kissed her skin, tightening with a practiced, deliberate grace.

A shadow loomed above. Four golden eyes drank in her struggle, his voice a husky purr.

"Careful now," the Spider King murmured, descending slowly, silk gliding through his fingers like a lover’s touch. "Struggle too much, and you’ll only get yourself more... entangled."

The threads tightened as she shivered.

Caught. Claimed. At his mercy!

Just… Just as he planned.

The Spider King slipped in his…”

“Stop! You can stop now! Just who writes this slander about me?!”

“CrimsonBling? Since their description of you is near-perfect I assumed you knew of them?”

“Near perfect?! And these pictures are just… Argh! I better find who they are and have a proper talking to!”

“Well, either way… this is fiction. .. .. .. Please don’t bend the book. Hey! Stop trying to rip it in half!”

“You have it memorized, don’t you? So what’s the problem!?”

“No! Seriously! Don’t rip it!”

The Sphinx Queen wrangles the book back and carefully stores it in a safe place.

Feeling that there is no point in pursuing the matter further, the Spider King changes the topic.

“I’m curious. Just how did you and my wyrmling meet each other? And how come you’re his wife all of a sudden?”

“I knew you would ask~.” She gives him a sunny smile. “Let’s go there and I tell you all about it.”

“There? Hey, where are you dragging me?”

The sphinx smiles mischievously, activating her RiddleMeThis.

“I am something all seek but few ever find,

A space of your own, where none can mind.

I thrive in silence, away from prying eyes,

A treasure of solitude, in which truth lies.

What am I? Where am I?”

Spelling out her riddle, the Sphinx drags the slightly perplexed King to who knows where.