199 1st Layer of magic seal released.

"..." 

John slowly and quietly opened his eyes before looking around. He had expected himself to be in some sort of palace guest chamber and yet contrary to his expectations, he was inside of an inn. 

As he thought about it, he caught something on the corner of his eyes, hiding next to the bed. 

"What're you doing?" John asked as he leaned over and looked down 

It was Ariel, she had an embarrassed look on her face and gave him a small nervous smile once they made eye contact 

"H-Hey..." 

"Are you okay...?" John asked 

"Eh? Ah, Yes! How are you feeling?" Ariel asked before suddenly getting up 

[How I'm feeling...] 

"I'm having trouble controlling my magic power right now..." John muttered as he put his hand to his chin 

[Why...? Does it have something to do with that voice I heard? Removing 1st layer magic seal... Also, wasn't that Zestari? It sounded like her, but she sounded weak...] 

"Is it because you went overboard with your magic power yesterday?" Ariel asked 

"I think it's something else, but let's just go with that. More importantly, why were you crouched down next to the bed?" John asked 

Not even a second after he did, Ariel hastily replied without looking him in the eyes 

"I dropped a coin." 

"..." 

"..." 

John quietly stared at her with a look of doubt while Ariel quietly and nervously stared at the wall 

"How long was I out for?" John asked 

"A few days." Ariel replied 

"And the situation?" John asked 

Hearing this, Ariel put on a serious face before replying 

"It's not major, but the Royal knights are interested and in the lookout for you, judging from what Master Sylvia said. As an S-Rank adventurer, you should be able to avoid them and you don't really belong to the city, so everything should be fine." Said Ariel with a smile 

"I see..." 

[If I fake being an S-Rank adventurer, they'll leave me alone. Also they won't be able to kidnap me like the King of Halfaust did. I doubt anyone would, aside from an S-rank Adventurer himself] 

"And..." 

"And?" John asked 

"When you started falling a bright blue light came from you and pierced the skies... What sort of light was it? And why is the amount of magic which I can feel from you even less than before...?" Ariel asked 

"A blue light...? I'm not sure, I can't realy remember. I closed my eyes and woke up here. And wasn't the amount of magic you could feel before nothing?" John asked 

"Yes, I couldn't feel anything before, but now... It feels like there's something there now, only, it's like it's missing something, like it's less than before..." 

[My magic capacity dropped? Is it because I ended up using all that magic power? Or is it because of the sacred treasure?] 

"Eh? Wait, you need to rest." Said Ariel as she tried to stop him from going out 

"Hm, Where's Master Sylvia and Serena?" John asked as he looked around 

His dimensional Ring was still on him, but his daggers were gone. Ariel probably took them off so he could sleep peacefully, but he needed something different right now. 

"Hm... I think they're eating downstairs" Said Ariel 

"Have you eaten yet?" John asked 

Hearing this, Ariel slowly shook her head before saying 

"I was going to eat after. One of us had to be on the lookout for you." Said Ariel 

[Lookout? What does she mean?] 

"Lookout?" John asked 

Once she realised what she said, she quickly covered her mouth with her hands before saying 

"Nophthinmg" Translation: Nothing 

"..." 

",,,�� 

Once again, John quietly stared at her, and now she quietly stared at the window 

"Have their been any kidnap attempts on me?" John asked 

"D-Don't worry! M-Master Sylvia dealt with it..." Said Ariel, with a worried look on her face 

"Hm... Perhaps I should evacuate the civilians and destroy this city..." John muttered with his hand on his chin 

"EH?! N-N-" 

Serena was interrupted by John who let out a small laugh as he said 

"I'm joking." 

Hearing this, Serena forced a smile before saying 

"Heh..." 

*** 

"Are you sure you're feeling better? You were asleep for 4 days, 4!" Said Ariel unpleased of the idea of him going out 

"Don't worry, we'll wear masks and our identity will be hidden." 

"That's not the problem!" 

John had ow fully equipped his armour and clothes and daggers which had been lying around under the bed. What he needed right now was to go prepare for an event which would be happening tomorrow. 

"You said 4 days... We wasted 1 day in the dungeon meaning we only have 1 more day till the 30th... And that's when the ball starts..." Said John 

"Are you talking about the invite from the duke the ball...? You're still going?" Ariel asked surprised 

"Of course, I am." Said John 

"W-Why? Things aren't like you think right now... The dungeon collapsing has become a hot topic amongst the people... If anyone finds you... You'll probably receive a lot of gratitude and happiness due to having stopped it from collapsing onto the city, but at the same time..." 

"I know, there will be people mad at me for taking their source of income which was already hard to take advantage of." Said John 

"So you know!" 

John made his way towards the door and she followed behind letting out a sigh while doing so 

"I know, but we have to attend that ball, there's something I must do." Said John with a smile 

Ariel didn't know what that smile meant but it looked like there was a bit of evil behind it. 

"What're you planning?" She asked 

"Nothing much, I'd just like to have a little talk and see what it's like for nobles." 

Ariel could tell that John was planning something, but decided to give up as he was showing no signs of stopping. But suddenly, he did. As he grasped the door handle he stopped and had a serious look on his face. 

Ariel took this as some sort of threat was approaching, so she pulled out her staff and began gathering air. When all of the sudden, John said 

"I forgot to brush my teeth..."