32 Chapter 32: Reward
"Yes!" They simultaneously replied
Their request or order was for me to take them around the city for sightseeing and to one of the best restaurants in atlas.
And as asked, we did, we went to the nicest looking restaurant we could see and went sightseeing
"You look disappointed, were you expecting something more…" Said Serena with a smug look
"Not really," I replied
"Well, since we weren't able to beat you. We agreed that we'll hold back our original requests until we can." Said, Ariel
"Alright? Anyways, We've gone sightseeing and to the restaurant, meaning there's still one more thing left." I said as I stretched out my hands to each of them
"We've already done everything though?" Said Ariel as she grabbed on to it
"He's probably planning something again, let's just go along with it." Said Serena as she also held on
"Haha… Levite, Furtim." I said as they held my hand
The moment I cast Levite, the 3 of us, began slowly ascend into the air.
"Eh?! Wh Wait!" Said Serena while startled
"J-John!" Said, Ariel
"Relax… Make sure you don't let go of my hands" I said as we continued to ascend to the air
"W-What do you mean relax! We'r-"
The breathtaking scenery which could only be seen by us as we floated above the kingdom left Serena who was complaining speechless. Ariel's eyes sparkled as she also stared at this stunning scene.
"Beautiful isn't it? We can see the whole kingdom from here, with the sun setting in the background it really is astonis.h.i.+ng." I said
My words didn't even reach the two girls who were captivated and only focused on what they were looking at
I should teach them how to fly so we can see scenes like these more often.
"Man, today felt like it was a date." I unintentionally said out loud
"Dte?" Said, Ariel
"What's a date?" Asked Serena
"Uhh…"
"Go on?" Said, Ariel
"A date is… When a guy and a girl go out and have fun…"
"Ah, I had a lot of fun today… It was a nice date." Said, Ariel
"Me too, We should go on a date again." Said, Serena
"Y-Yes…"
I feel guilty. I didn't say that it's something between lovers, but that's fine. They probably don't think of it as that way either. Besides I'm not even sure of how I feel towards them.
Ariel is a cute and quiet girl who's able to socialise when she tries. Serena is a more open girl who speaks whatever's on her mind.
Still, I wonder if I'll end up falling for one of them… Maybe I already have. I don't know since I've never had the chance to fall in love in my previous life.
"John?" Said, Ariel
"Why do you keep staring at us without saying anything?" Asked Serena
"Ah, sorry, I was distracted. Anyways, we still have a few hours left, why don't we fly around?"
"E-Eh?! I-I don't think I'm ready-"
"Velox," I said as I interrupted Serena
The instant I said that we were propelled higher and higher until we reached the clouds. The two girls clung on to me in fear and I could feel them trembling through their warmth.
"Don't worry, I won't let you two fall, Open your eyes, this scene looks a lot nicer than the kingdom's one," I said
The two girls eyes sparkled as once they opened them. They could see the clouds and the sky as we felt the smooth, calming breeze of the wind. They remained speechless as we soared around in the skies.
The fear which was in their face had completely disappeared and they were no longer trembling. They looked as if they were enjoying it. The closer I'd look, the more I'd notice just how beautiful these two girls were.
"It looks nice, doesn't it?" I asked
"Yes..." They quietly muttered as they nodded
We continued to fly around for another 5 minutes before we headed back down.
"Well, let's go get something to eat," I said after we landed
"Um... John." Said, Ariel
"Yeah?" I asked
"I enjoyed the date, thank you." Said Ariel with a bright smile on her face
...
"Yeah, It also enjoyed it, you should bring us on another date soon. Once a month, no week!" Said Serena who also had a
...
"John, what's wrong? Do you have a fever? Your face is bright red..." Said Ariel as she placed her hand on my head
"I-I'm fine! I'm glad you enjoyed it!" I said as I faced the other direction to hide my expression
Huh? Why am I getting so fl.u.s.tered...
"Oh? John, could you be getting fl.u.s.tered? Well, you are a boy after all. Spending a day accompanying 2 beautiful girls." Said Serena as she teased me
"I'm not..." I muttered
"Wait, you actually are? That's unexpected, and here I thought that you didn't swing this way..." Said, Serena
"Why would you think that!?" I asked
"I was joking, besides, you're awfully pa.s.sive today. Normally, we would've started arguing by now." Said, Serena
"It's your reward, and I want you to enjoy today, so I'm holding back..."
It's really hard though.
"Hmm..." She said as she stared at me
"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked
"Nothing..." She said
"Huh? Hey Ariel, what did she mean by that?" I asked as I turned to her
"I don't know either..." Said Ariel with a teasing tone as she looked away from me
"Not you too..." I muttered
I had a lot of fun today... However, I wish they wouldn't tease me as much
------------------------------------------
The next morning we went straight to the smithy.
"Um excuse me, Is Frank here?" I asked as I walked in
"That voice, If it isn't john. How have you been?" Asked Frank as he left the backroom
"Frank, I've been good, what about you?" I asked
"Haha, the business has been going well. I take it you're here for your staff and gloves?" He said
"Yes, is it ready?" I asked
"Of course, who do you think you're talking to." He replied as he pulled out 2 boxes from the backroom
He opened the boxes and inside was a wooden staff with a green crystal ball as the core. And two leather gloves with Green round magic stones in the middle.
"Why don't you two try it out?" Said, Frank
I grabbed the gloves and put them on, while Ariel grabbed the staff.
"This!" I unintentionally let out
"That's right. It works just like a staff, you can feel the amount of power you have available increasing right? To be honest, the stones you had contained a lot of power in them, so you should be able to notice." He said
"Yeah... It feels amazing. I feel like I can cast Magnum Ignis with it." I Said
I Can't wait to test these out.
"mag-? What's that? Anyways, unlike most magic stones which break, this stone has been refined so when it runs out of magic energy, you can just recharge it by adding your magic power or wait for it to recharge on its own. The stone has a lot of magic power but it's not unlimited, don't needlessly waste it." Said, Frank
"Yes, I won't. Ariel, how does it feel?" I Asked
"It feels like I'm flowing with power... I should be able to use Ventus Tormentum and Ignis a lot more times now." Said Ariel with an excited Expression
"I'm glad you like it. I must say, You forgot to give me your hand measurements so I was worried that I'd get the wrong size. Luckily, My guess was right." Said, Frank
"Ah, that's right, sorry. But to be fair, You also forgot to ask." I said
"Haha, that's right. But take good care of those gloves. It was quite hard to write the runes on it." Said, Frank
"Where are the runes? I Can't see them." I asked
"They can't be seen by the naked eye, they're drawn in a spell ink which allows for magic to be easily conducted. That is how a magician can conduct magic through his wooden staff." Said, Serena
"You're quite knowledgeable aren't you?" Asked Frank
"I was taught by my master after all." She said
"Hey Serena, I've been wondering. This master of yours, how strong is he?" I asked
"Very Strong. 20% of the people in the world can use magic, a portion of those become mages, but only a select few within the thousands can match masters level. At least that's what he said."
Thousands... Isn't that a lot? I wonder where I would rank
"Thousands... I wonder where I would rank?" I asked
"Probably in the thousands as well, but it'll be uncommon to meet a magician stronger than you. They're spread out, We've met a few but you might not have realised. Oliver, for example, He's stronger than you." Said, Serena
"Is that so..." I muttered
"Yeah, I noticed when we were conquering the dungeon. He was easily taking out the 9th and 8th-floor monsters while providing back up to Rose. He's also quick with his chants..." Serena continued
"I see..."
"What's wrong? Just because you're weaker now doesn't mean you'll always be weaker. In my opinion, you have more potential, and in a fight, you'd most likely win. You can use chantless magic and you're physically strong." Said, Serena
"Ah, don't worry I'm fine. I was just getting excited thinking how much stronger I could get."
"So that's what it was? Don't worry, when it comes to magic, There are mages that can beat you in the blink of an eye. They are rare but they exist, so make sure you don't aggro them." Said Serena with a smile on her face
"You kids sure are reckless. Anyways Here's your refined stone, I didn't compress it since you still haven't decided what you want to do with it." Said Frank as he pulled out another box and handed it to Serena
After confirming it, Serena said "Thank you." as she handed it to me to put it in the toolbox
"Don't sweat it. It's my job after all."
"We received everything as requested. Here's the payment" I said as I pulled out 10 gold coins from the magic toolbox and handed them to him.
Nonetheless for all of this, we were able to save up quite a lot. I guess it's because we were able to get the most expensive factor, which was a good magic stone.
"Thank you for your patronage. Make sure you guys come back again." Said Frank as we left
"Yeah," I replied
"We've gone through training and received better equipment. Let's see how well we'll do in the dungeon." I said as we headed to it
"Yeah. This time, the three of us will easily beat that spider." Said, Ariel
"d.a.m.n right." Added Serena
And so, we began our round 2