Chapter 19: Chapter 20: Atlas

It's been 2 days since the boat trip has started, the port is no longer in view and we are starting to see outlines of the kingdom of Atlas. At this pace, we should be arriving soon.

"Hey, John, John! Look!" Said Ariel as she pointed to the sea.

I looked at the direction that her finger pointed and saw something which seemed to be a dolphin unicorn.

"Nothing you can show me can surprise me at this point world..."

"What?" Asked Ariel

"Nothing, that looks awesome! What is that?" I asked

"That's a Dolicorn, they're kind to humans and there are many records of them saving humans. They're also super adorable" Replied Serena

"Adorable...?" I muttered as I stared at the weird mutated unicorn dolphin creature

Ever since we arrived on the boat. All we've been doing is eating, sleep and sightsee. To be honest, it felt like a vacation more than a trip.

"John! Let's go over there, we can see even more Dolicorns" Said Ariel as she grabbed on to my hand and pulled me towards the other end of the ship.

There are quite a few adventurers in this ship. The amount was split evenly between the 3 Ships so there's not an abundance. Either way, they all seem to be minding their business. or chatting with their party members.

"John, can you see them!" She said as she pointed at the pack of dolicorns.

"Yeah, they look great..."

They look like they think of us as food...

"Hey Ariel, look. Atlas is even more visible" I said as I pointed north.

Ariel looked at the giant kingdom and her eyes began to sparkle. She had been so distracted by the passive sea monsters that she didn't notice that we were already close to the kingdom.

"It's pretty..." Ariel said.

"That's right! I heard that this is one of the strongest kingdoms, you see those 4 towers around it. Apparently, those are dungeons." Said John

"Woah..." Ariel muttered, amazed as she looked at it

Wow... now that I'm looking at it closer, this kingdom looks quite advanced compared to the other kingdoms I've seen. It looks advanced but not that much. The kingdoms so far looked like they were from medieval times. This one looks like it's a few years ahead but still medieval.

The towers which surrounded it, also known as dungeons were a sight to see. They looked completely submerged in water and underground, while the entrance is still slightly above sea level.

The tower appeared to be connected to something which looked like ports, and there were adventurers there. I strengthened my vision and used deprehendre to find out.

As I was lost in thought. The boat let out a loud horn to signal the city to open the gates and the captain shouted out his order.

"WE ARE APPROACHING ATLAS, I REPEAT, WE ARE APPROACHING ATLAS!" he shouted.

Ariel who was getting excited grabbed on to my hand. While Serena who was trying not to show it but was also excited.

"Serena, it's your first time coming here right?" I asked.

"That's right." She replied.

"Then you must be pretty excited huh..." I said

"Yes, I am, is there a problem?" She replied.

"Not at all." I said as I looked forward

"We've arrived at atlas. Pack your belongings and exit the ship." Said one of the employees.

"Well, you heard the man. Let's go." I said to Ariel and Serena.

We had already packed our things so all we had to do was exit the ship.

As we got off I let out a sigh of relief as I muttered. "Now... What are we going to do?".

"Alright guys, we're finding an inn, leaving our things in there and explore the city! Today is rest! Tomorrow we're exploring our first dungeon!".

"Hey Serena, anything specific you'd like to do? You wanted to come to atlas after all." I asked.

"N-Not really. I just wanted to come exploring." She replied.

"I see... You can be really cute when you're quiet." I said with a smile on my face.

"Wha-! What are you talking about! And the reason I'm always agitated is because of you! I'm a quiet person." She replied.

"Sure... Sure..." I replied.

Nature huh... she's an elf, and despite all of the people I've seen, she's the first elf I've ever met. Are they rare?

"What's that reply supposed to mean?" She asked

"Nothing at all," I replied

----------------------------------------------------

As planned we found an inn to stay at. The price for the rooms was slightly more expensive than the ones at the port, making it 10 silver per day for a room of 3 and an extra 5 silver for all 3 meals of 3.

I have around 75 gold left, I have to make sure I don't spend it needlessly.

that being said, after we left our clothes at the inn, we all decided to start exploring the kingdom. Like halfaust, there was only 1 kingdom and no other neighbouring cities as we are literally in the middle of the sea.

One would expect it to be a weak kingdom as it's not surrounded by any other kingdoms like halfaust and it's by itself in the middle of the sea but it's surprisingly economically strong. That is probably because the kingdom uses the treasures from the dungeons to increase their funds.

And with those funds, they import food from other neighbouring countries and their port. Meaning, without these dungeons here. The kingdom would cease to exist. So I might head to the last floor but just not conquer them. If I can that is.

"John, are you listening?" Asked Ariel

"Yes!" I replied

"Oh yeah? Then what did I say?" Asked Ariel

"..."

"See, you weren't listening." Said Ariel with a pouting expression

"Oh and by the way, Serena, alongside the 1 gold coin you owe me from the fees, you also owe me another gold coin from the fees of the inn to the welcoming party and the seafood we ate. The daily interest is 10% so you after 10 days the amount which you owe me will be doubled." I said

"John... but you never said anything about interest or paying you back." Said Serena as tears began to form in her eyes

"John..." Said Ariel as she looked at me with a saddened expression

"I was joking! Joking!" I said

And just like that, we continued to have fun while exploring the kingdom. It was really big and there was no such thing as a commoner or noble area but there was a palace which most likely contained the king.

Unlike halfaust, we didn't encounter anyone itching to ambush or kidnap kids.

Like I promised, I got them each anything they wanted. Serena, she insisted that she didn't want anything. Probably because of me constantly teasing her. Maybe I should stop... It's just so fun.

Ariel also didn't want anything as Serena didn't get anything.

We're on our way to our inn and the sun is starting to set. We'll probably rest for the rest of the day so now should be a good time.

"Ariel, Serena," I said.

The two turned around and asked "Yes?".

"Well for starters, I wanted to ask if you enjoyed today.".

"Yes! It was really fun, I got to see so many things that I couldn't see in the other kingdom, and I got to spend more time with my friends." Said, Ariel.

"W-Well, I guess I enjoyed it too if we get rid of the times we argued." Said, Serena.

"Haha, I'm glad you both enjoyed it. Since I had promised I'd get you two something so..." I said as I pulled out two small fancy looking boxes from my pocket and handed it to them.

"What's this?" They asked.

"Open it," I said.

For ariel, I had noticed that she looked interested in a particular set of earrings. With a gem which appeared to be a sapphire on it. Whereas for Serena I got her a bracelet which had a gem which appeared to be a ruby on the middle, Something I noticed Serena looked interested in as well.

The two continued to stare at what I got them without saying anything.

"Uhm... Did you not like it? I asked

When I asked, they both shook their head before turning around.

Uh... is that a bad sign? Did I get the wrong thing?

As I thought that, they nodded at each other, then simultaneously turned around and with a bright smile on their face they said: "Thank you".

Phew... For a second I thought they hated it.

"Then, let me help you put it on, right now. I'm curious to see how you too look with it." I said

"Eh? It's fine, we can put it on ourselves." They replied

"No, It's easier with help." I insisted

Seeing as to how I would keep persisting until they allowed me, they gave up. I opened the box and put the bracelet on Serena and the earings on Ariel. While I was putting it on, they desperately tried to cover their face, I wasn't sure why.

"And... Done!" I said as I finished putting it on them

"H-How do we look..?" asked Serena with her face still covered.

"You both look beautiful, obviously?" I boldly declared

Hearing my words, the two's face turned bright red before they hid it by turning around

Do they really dislike looking at me that much...?

"W-Well, let's head back to the i-inn..." Said, Ariel

"I-I agree..." Said, Serena

"Yeah! I can't wait to go dungeon Exploring tomorrow!" I declared

The two girls remained quiet For the rest of the journey back to the inn and without paying much attention to it, I focused on the excitement I was feeling as I imagined going dungeon exploring.