Saito opened his eyes to the image of a girl looking down at him. Her hazel eyes, unnatural pink hair, and flawless white skin contrasted beautifully with the clear blue sky behind her. She looked to be around the same age as him, but she wore some sort of strange uniform: a black cloak over a white blouse and grey pleated skirt. Is she some sort of foreigner? Saito thought to himself.
She knelt down and inspected Saito, looking astonishedly at him. He had messy thick black hair and was wearing a blue jacket over grey trousers. Realizing he was lying on the ground, he lifted his head up to look around. Surrounding the two of them was a large group of people. Almost all of them were the same age and wearing the same uniform as the girl, with the men wearing grey trousers.
Beyond the group of people was a large grassy field with an even larger stone castle surrounding it. Where am I? Is this some sort of dream? He then recalled the girl’s question. "Who am I?… I'm Saito." He sat up and shook the weariness out of his head.
"Where are you from, commoner?" she demanded.
Saito’s mind wandered back to just five minutes ago, when he was still in the bustling city of Tokyo. How did I get here? Was that glowing orb some sort of portal? “Me? I’m–”
"Louise would summon a commoner." A girl with long blonde curls sarcastically commented, followed by the crowd bursting into laughter.
What do they mean by ‘commoner’? Saito pondered.
"I just made a small mistake!" the girl examining Saito retorted in a refined voice.
"That's not a mistake. That's just typical Louise." the blonde haughtily laughed back at her.
Her name must be Louise, Saito realized as he looked at the frustrated pink-haired girl. But where is this? It's way too big to be a movie set. Maybe a theme park? But I've never seen a place like this in Japan. And why was I sleeping here?
"Professor Colbert!" Louise shouted. "Please let me redo the summoning."
Saito followed Louise's eyes into the crowd where a tall middle-aged man stood. His forehead held deep wrinkles and his brown hair surrounded a large bald spot on top of his head. He was wearing a large black robe and carrying a stick in his hand that was even taller than he was. His serious eyes stared keenly at Saito. Is this man crazy? He looks like a wizard. Maybe this is a cosplay group? That would explain the pink hair. But they don't act like one…
“Absolutely not,” the wizard dismissed with a wave of his hand. He began walking up to Saito and Louise.
Suddenly Saito was gripped with fear. What if this is some sort of cult? They could've used that glowing thing as a trap! Maybe it knocked me out and they dragged me out here. He decided to remain quiet and watch for his best opportunity to escape.
"But why not?" Louise was standing beside Saito still pleading with the professor as he approached.
Saito watched the distraught Louise. It's a shame that such a cute girl would get caught up in this weird cult.
The professor stopped short of the two of them. "It's strictly forbidden. The Springtime Summoning is a sacred tradition at the academy," he explained. "Now that you're a second-year, you must complete the ritual. There is no redoing it."
"But I've never heard of a commoner being a familiar!" Louise objected, with the crowd laughing again.
A familiar? What's that? Saito wondered.
"This is the tradition, Lady Vallière," the man said plainly. "He may be a commoner, but you summoned him. That makes him your familiar. Now complete the ritual." The crowd giggled to themselves.
"With him?!" Louise's face went pale.
"Yes," he replied coldly. "And hurry up. The next class will begin shortly. You've already taken long enough with the constant mistakes." The crowd nodded in agreement while some began heckling her to continue.
Louise looked troubled as she slowly knelt down over Saito.
What's she going to do to me? His eyes grew wide with concern.
"Hey." She stared hard at Saito.
"Yes?"
"You should count yourself lucky. Normally you'd never get this from a noble."
Noble? Saito was confused again.
Louise closed her eyes and began waving a wand above her head. "My name is Louise Françoise Le Blanc de La Vallière. Pentagram of the Five Elemental Powers; bless this humble being and make him my familiar." She lowered the wand and touched it to Saito's forehead. Then she slowly moved her face closer to Saito's.
Saito, in a panic, started moving his face away. Wha- What is she doing?!
"Just stay still." she voiced with irritation.
"Wait a second! What are you doing to me?!" He continued to resist.
"I said stay still!" Grabbing the back of his neck, she pulled him in and their lips locked together.
He stared wide-eyed at her closed eyes. What kind of contract is this?! Despite the shock, he couldn't help but enjoy the touch of her soft lips.
Louise removed her lips and stood up. "It's done." Her cheeks were red and she avoided looking at him.
Is she embarrassed? Saito tried to understand her actions. "What was that about?!" he exclaimed, but everyone seemed to ignore him.
"You managed to succeed with the contract on the first try. Good job." Professor Colbert said happily.
"That's because he's only a commoner." Said the girl with blonde-curls. "If it were an actual familiar, she'd easily fail." Some of the people around her laughed.
"Professor!" Louise looked at Colbert. "Montmorency the Flood is insulting me again."
"The Flood?! It's Montmorency the Fragrant, thank you!" She yelled back.
"The Flood better suits a bedwetter." Louise retorted. The crowd burst out laughing and Montmorency's face went red.
"Watch it!" Professor Colbert spoke up. "Nobles ought to show each other proper respect."
Saito's body started heating up rapidly. "Ahh! It burns!"
"It'll be over soon." Louise responded without a hint of care. "Your familiar runes are being inscribed."
"Stop it!" Saito screamed. "What are you doing to me?!"
"That's no way to speak to nobles." Louise glared at him.
The burning sensation quickly faded, and the professor knelt beside Saito. Taking Saito’s left hand, he examined strange glowing letters that appeared. "Hmm… These runes are unusual."
"Who are you people?!" Saito lost it, retracting his hand from the strange man.
The professor stood up and walked away, addressing the crowd. "Alright. Let's go back to class now, everyone." After whispering to himself and waving his giant stick around, he lifted into the air. Everyone except Louise followed suit and began floating away with him.
Saito stared agasp. Are they… flying?! He looked around for wires or a crane, but failed to find anything to explain the situation.
As they began floating past, several of them made snide remarks towards Louise.
"Louise, You'd better walk back."
"You can't even manage levitation."
"A commoner is the perfect familiar for you."
Soon they were gone, leaving Saito and Louise alone. She turned to him and demanded, "Who are you?"
"Who are you?!" Saito quickly stood and yelled, "Where is this place?! And why can they fly?! What did you do to me?!"
"What backwoods did you come from?" She stared blankly at him.
"Backwoods? This is the backwoods! Tokyo is nothing like this."
"Tokyo? Where’s that?"
"Japan."
"Never heard of it."
"As if! But why are they flying? Didn't you see that?" Saito pointed in the direction that the group left in.
"What's wrong with mages flying?" Louise cocked her head to the side in confusion.
"Mages?!" Saito grabbed Louise's shoulders. "Where the Hell am I?!"
"This is Tristain!" she cried, failing to pull away from his grip. "We're at the Academy of Magic."
"Academy of Magic?"
"Yes! And I'm Louise de La Vallière: your master from now on. Remember that!"
Saito's fire suddenly drained out of him and he dropped his head to his chest. "Uh, Louise…"
"Don't call me by name."
"Did you really summon me here?"
"I already told you that. You're not very bright, are you?" She sighed, lamenting to herself. "I was hoping for a griffin or a dragon, or something else cool. At least an eagle or an owl would have sufficed. But I ended up with you instead."
"Griffin? Dragon? Do those things actually exist?" He pulled his head back up to look at her.
"Well, you've probably never seen them before, but yes."
Saito felt a chill run down his spine. "Those people… They're really mages, aren't they?"
"Of course!" She declared. "Now let go of me! You shouldn't even be touching me."
He lowered his arms from her shoulders and dropped to his knees in front of her. This must be some sort of nightmare.
"Louise…"
"Stop calling me by name."
"Hit me."
"Excuse me?"
"Please, hit me in the head as hard as you can."
"Why?"
"I don't like this dream. I just want to wake up and go on my computer."
"Computer?" Louise grew more confused.
"No, it's nothing. Just let me escape this dream already."
She balled her hands and thought for a few seconds. "You really want me to hit you?"
"Yes, please."
Her fists began to tremble as she seemed to think to herself. After a while, she spoke softly as if talking to herself. "How could a daughter of the Vallière family, a proud and esteemed noble family, end up having a mere commoner as a familiar?"
"How should I know?" Saito replied without a care.
"And just who decided that the contract had to be sealed with a kiss?!" Her face twisted in disgust.
"Can you just get this over with? I hate nightmares."
"That's my line!" Louise's fist flew into his head with all of her strength. Saito's vision went black as his body toppled to the ground.
"Is that true?" Louise asked in disbelief as she nibbled on bread from tonight's dinner.
Saito stood in the center of Louise's bedroom. In front of him was Louise sitting on her bed. To his right was the door that led to the hallway, while to his left was a window showing the night sky and two bright moons: one large and blue, the other small and red. Behind him was Louise's desk and a large wardrobe. Every bit of furniture in the room looked like a valuable antique.
"Does it matter?" His head still ached from Louise's punch. I never should've walked through that thing… He walked over to the window and stared out. Mom must be worried sick about me.
Below was the field where he first awoke. Beyond that were four identical towers like the one they were currently in. The five towers were connected by stone walls to form a pentagon. In the center of that pentagon, taking up most of his view, was a large tower that stood high into the air, double the height of the rest. Radiating out of the central tower were stone walkways that connected to all of the smaller towers except for the one they were in, separating the grassy field around the tower into four courtyards. A large white stone road came through the gate in the wall to their right and cut through the field to connect to the main door of the central tower.
In the far distance were impressive mountains and a vast evergreen forest. This certainly isn't Japan. This place might be amazing if I came here on vacation, Saito thought to himself. But I just want to go home. The lamp on Louise's desk flickered, illuminating the room just enough to see. They don't even have electricity here. I feel like I'm stuck in the olden days.
"I don't believe it," Louise said quietly.
"Neither do I," Saito sighed.
"What do you mean by another world?"
"Like a world other than this one. One without magicians and only one moon."
"So you're all commoners?"
"Who are you calling a commoner?" Saito glared at her.
"Well, you're not a mage, right? So that makes you a commoner."
"Why would it matter whether I'm a mage or not?"
"Sheesh. You really know nothing about this world."
"I told you, I'm not from this world," Saito insisted.
Louise rested her chin on her hands and her elbows dug into her legs. She seemed to look troubled. "Show me proof."
Saito thought for a second, then he went over to his backpack and pulled something out.
"What's that?" Louise wondered.
"A computer." Saito sat on the floor and Louise knelt behind him. As he opened it, a black reflective screen mirrored their image.
"Is it some sort of mirror?"
"No," Saito laughed. He pressed the power button and the computer whirred to life, lighting up the screen.
"Wah! What's that?" Louise yelped in surprise.
"That's the screen."
"It's pretty…” Louise leaned in closer and Saito caught a pleasant whiff of her fragrance. “What element does it use? Wind? Water?"
"It's not magic. It's science."
Louise stared blankly at him. "What kind of element is this 'science'? Is it different from the four elemental powers?"
"Ugh! I told you, it's not magic." Saito complained.
Louise shrugged and sat back on the bed. "I don't understand it."
"There's nothing to understand!" Saito stood back up and faced her. "Why can't you just believe me?"
"Fine. I'll believe you."
"Really?"
Louise crossed her arms, looking annoyed. "Only because otherwise you'd keep going on about it."
"Well, it doesn't matter. Just send me back, please."
"I told you, that's impossible."
"But why?"
Louise hesitated for a moment before answering. "Because there's no spell that can connect to your world."
"Nonsense! Then how did I end up here?"
"I don't know!"
"Obviously there is such a spell if I'm here!"
"Summon Servant is used to summon creatures from Halkeginia, but usually it's just animals or magical beasts that are summoned…" Louise began to think to herself.
"Well, use it again. Maybe it'll send me back."
"That wouldn't work. Summon Servant only summons creatures. It can't send them back where they came."
"Just try it."
"Impossible. I can't even cast it now."
"What? Why?"
"Because Summon Servant wouldn't work unless…" she trailed off.
"Yes?" Saito started to get excited.
"…Unless you die."
The excitement immediately drained out of him and his face became pale.
"Would you like to die?"
"Err… Not really." Saito hung his head in defeat. The runes on his left hand caught his attention and he brought it closer to his face for a better look.
"Are you wondering what that is?" Louise questioned him.
"Yeah…"
"They're runes that mark you as my familiar." She stood up in front of him and crossed her arms. Saito found himself taken aback by her beauty. She was almost an entire head shorter than him with a slender frame and small breasts. Her eyes were like that of a curious cat, with her eyebrows tracing a subtle line over them.
Saito sagged his shoulders and relented. "Alright. I guess I really am your familiar. For now, at least."
"Come again?" She glared at him.
"What? Do you have a problem with that?"
"Clearly you never learned how to speak to a noble. It should be, 'Is there something you wish to address, master?' No familiar of mine should be so rude!" She wagged her finger at him with an annoying gesture.
"But what does a familiar even do?" he questioned.
"Well, a familiar is usually able to grant its master the ability to see and hear through it, but that doesn't seem to work with you." Louise brought her finger to her lips and thought to herself.
"It's not like that matters," Saito commented.
"It also retrieves items for its master, like spell components."
"Components?"
"Like sulfur or moss. Items that are used to cast certain spells," she explained. "But you wouldn't even know what they are, would you?"
"Nope."
Louise continued with a frustrated glare. "And most importantly, a familiar guards and protects its master from any and all enemies. But that might also be a bit problematic for you…"
"Because I'm human?"
"A powerful beast could always defeat its enemies, but I doubt you could even beat a raven."
"Shut up." Saito grew annoyed.
"That's why you'll only be responsible for things that I'm fairly sure you can do: laundry, cleaning, and other tasks."
"Just wait and see,” he grumbled. “I'll find a way back home."
"Sure, sure. I'll be happy when you do. Then I'll be able to summon a worthwhile familiar." Louise yawned. "All this talk has made me sleepy."
"Where do I sleep then?" Saito looked around, but Louise just pointed to the floor below him. He frowned at her callousness. "I'm not some sort of animal, you know."
"There's only one bed," she said indifferently as she threw a blanket over to him from her bed. Then she began to undress.
"Wha- What are you doing?"
"Changing so I can sleep." She dropped her skirt around her feet, causing Saito to blush.
"Well, do it somewhere else!" He covered his eyes with his hand.
"Why?" Louise sounded confused.
"Because it's awkward to change in front of a guy."
"Guy? Who? You’re only a familiar."
Saito hung his head as he made the realization. She really does think of me as some sort of animal. He laid down on the ground and threw the blanket over his head. Forget being this girl's familiar!
"And don't forget to wash these tomorrow," she said as she threw several items over to Saito.
Saito uncovered his head from the blanket and looked in front of him. Sitting before his face were several articles of clothing she had worn that day. His face began to flush when he noticed her white panties sitting on top. "Your underwear too?! No way!" He glared up at her as she pulled a silken nightgown over her body. In the dim light of the lamp, he could barely make out the outline of her petite figure under the gown.
"Who do you think will take care of you? Who's the one that will give you food? And whose room will you sleep in?" Louise glared back at him. "You're my familiar. Laundry is naturally part of your job. All of it."
Saito relented and pulled the blanket back over his head. I just want to go home. I want my own room back. Will I ever be able to go back? I miss mom. Is she worried about where I am right now? He quickly grew homesick, and tears began to wet his eyes. What should I do? I have no relatives here. Louise is the only one I have right now. No one else will believe I'm from another world, let alone help me get back to it.
Saito wiped his cheeks. Crying won't achieve anything. It's not like I've been stranded on a desert island. There might be a chance. Maybe Louise will help me. She's a bit arrogant, but at least she said she would feed me and take care of me. I'll just have to act as her familiar while I look for a way home. With a plan in place, he finally felt relaxed enough to sleep.
Louise snapped her fingers and the glow of the lamp quickly died out. Darkness descended upon the room.
Even the lamp is magical, Saito thought, surprised. I guess there is no need for electricity here.
The light from the moons shone through the window as he drifted off to sleep.
The light of the morning sun shone through the window.
Saito woke to a familiar sight. So it really wasn’t a dream…” He looked around at the room and saw Louise asleep in her bed, snoring gently. She seemed much cuter to him when she wasn’t yelling.
He took a deep breath and put on his best smile before flinging Louise’s blanket off of her. “It’s morning, my lady!”
“Wha- what?” She yawned. “Wait, who are you?!” She yelled with a slurred voice.
“Saito…”
“Oh, right. The familiar.” She rubbed her eyes and yawned once more. “Clothes.” She ordered as she stood up and began to undress.
Saito placed her clothes beside her and turned away from her.
“Underwear,” she demanded.
“Can’t you get that yourself?”
“They’re in the bottom drawer of the wardrobe.”
He relented and opened the drawer, grabbing a random pair of panties and quickly throwing them over to Louise. She caught the pair and put them on.
“Clothes.” She mumbled again.
“I just gave them to you.”
“Dress me.”
Saito turned around to object but was too shocked to say anything when he saw Louise sitting on the bed completely naked aside from the panties he had thrown.
“Maybe you don’t know,” she remarked, “but a noble will never dress themselves when they have a servant to do it for them.”
“Can’t you do that yourself?”
“Right then. No breakfast for you.”
Saito rolled his eyes and picked up her blouse.
After he finished dressing her, the two of them left the room. The hallway had three doors lining each side opposite of each other for a total of six rooms. At one end of the hallway were two arches standing opposite of each other, with the left path leading upstairs and the right leading downstairs. Louise’s room was the center room on the right side of the hallway.
As they left, the door to their left on the opposite side opened and a girl with bright red hair and a bronze skin complexion walked out. Her blouse had the top two buttons unbuttoned, showing off her impressive cleavage. She was very attractive with a flirtatious smile and stood slightly taller than Saito.
When she saw Louise, she grinned wide. “Good morning, Louise.”
Louise returned her grin with a frown. “Good morning, Kirche.”
“Is this your familiar?” Kirche pointed at Saito. “So it really is a human. That’s amazing!” She laughed.
Sorry for being human, Saito resented.
“Shut up.” Louise replied coldly.
“I summoned a familiar yesterday too. Flame!” Kirche called into her room. Slithering out came a large red lizard with a flame at the tip of its tail, followed by a wave of heat.
“What the Hell is that thing?” Saito exclaimed, stepping back.
“Oh? Don’t tell me this is your first time seeing a salamander.” Kirche smirked.
“You summoned a salamander?!” Louise was stunned.
“That’s right!” Kirche gave a smug look. “Look at the tail. A flame this large and hot means there’s no doubt it came from the Fire Dragon Mountains. Collectors can’t even put a price on it!”
“Well, put a chain on it or something,” Saito retorted. “That thing looks dangerous.”
“Don’t worry. As long as I don’t order it to, it won’t attack anyone. Aren’t you quite the coward,” she laughed.
“Don’t you feel hot being near it?” he asked.
“Of course not. It’s actually quite cool to me. It matches with my affinity perfectly,” she smirked.
“Your affinity is fire, right?” Louise looked at her.
“That’s right,” she replied. “After all, I’m Kirche the Ardent, known for my smoldering passion. Everywhere I go, boys fall for me. Unlike you, Louise the Zero.”
“I don’t have the time to go around flirting with everyone I see, like you,” Louise huffed.
Kirche smirked and looked at Saito. “And what’s your name?”
“Saito.”
“Saito?” she looked perplexed. “What a strange name. Well then, I’ll be off now!” She quickly left with her familiar.
“Ugh!” Louise yelled. “That girl gets on my nerves! She thinks she’s so much better just because she summoned a salamander from the Fire Dragon Mountains.”
“Calm down.” Saito sighed. “It’s just a summoning.
“No it’s not! You can determine a mage’s true power just by looking at their familiar. That idiot somehow got a salamander, yet I ended up with you!”
“Jeez,” he lamented, “sorry for being human. But you’re human too, you know.”
“There’s no comparing mages and commoners!” she flared up.
“Yeah, yeah. By the way, why’d she call you ‘Louise the Zero’?
“That’s not important.” she looked away.
“Maybe it’s your breast size?” he laughed.
Louise’s hand flew at his face, but he ducked out of the way. “Come back here!” she demanded.
“Don’t hit me!” he yelled as he ran away.
Inside the central tower on the ground floor was a grandiose dining hall. Inside were three long tables that extended from end to end of the room. On the left side sat students with brown cloaks. In the middle were students with black cloaks like Louise, and on the right were students with purple cloaks.
Surrounding the entire room was an upper floor balcony where all the teachers appeared to eat, pleasantly chatting amongst themselves. Everything was elaborately decorated. The tables were lined with candles, flowers, and baskets of fruit. The countless chandeliers above the tables, mixed with the morning sunlight shining through the three giant windows on the back wall, illuminated the entire room clearly. Saito’s jaw dropped at the sight of such grandeur.
“Normally, a commoner like you would never set foot inside the Alviss Dining Hall,” Louise explained. “Be grateful.”
“Alviss?”
“They’re the name for the little statues everywhere.”
Saito looked around and noticed the statues of little people lining all of the walls. “They don’t come alive at night, do they?” he joked.
“Oh. So you know about them?” Louise approached an empty seat at the table.
“Wait. They do?!” Saito was taken aback.
“Well, they dance at least. But enough of this. Pull my chair out already,” she crossed her arms and glared at him. “You’re not being a very competent familiar.”
Ladies first, he reasoned and pulled her chair out for her as she thanklessly took a seat. Then he grabbed another chair and pulled it next to her. “This is amazing!” He hungrily stared at the feast in front of him. A huge roasted chicken, baked trout, wine, and pie all beckoned for his stomach. He looked over to Louise who was giving him a nasty glare.
“What?” he asked.
“Only nobles may sit at the table.” Louise pointed to the floor below her, where a bowl of thin soup and hard bread sat. “Normally, familiars have to wait outside. You’re only here because I specially requested it.”
Saito felt his spirit suddenly shatter as he understood her demand. He lowered himself to the floor dejectedly. The hall grew quiet as one of the teachers began to address the room. Instead of listening, Saito began to question his earlier plan of serving Louise.
Suddenly, the hall erupted in a chorus of voices as everyone, including Louise, chanted. “Great Founder Brimir, and our lady the Queen, we thank you for this humble meal that you have graciously provided us this morning.”
Just how is that a ‘humble meal’? Saito sighed as he looked back at his actual humble meal. Even a pet gets fed better than this.
The bottom floor of each of the five small circular towers were split in half between the foyer and the classroom. The foyer consisted of a large common room lined with tables and chairs for the students to spend their time together. In the foyer were also the stairs to the students’ bedrooms above. The classroom was accessed from a door in the foyer. The teacher’s desk and blackboard sat against the flat wall beside the door, and the student desks were arranged in a semicircle surrounding the teacher’s desk. There were five rows of five desks each, and every desk had two chairs. Every row of desks were raised slightly above the one in front of it by a staired platform.
When Louise and Saito entered the classroom, they were greeted with stares and giggling from most of the students. Kirche was also in the classroom, surrounded by a group of male admirers. Everyone’s newly-summoned familiar was there, making for a crowded room.
“What’s the freaky eye monster?” Saito asked Louise.
“A bugbear,” she responded indifferently.
“And the octopus thing?”
“A skua.” Louise reached her desk and sat down. Saito took the seat beside her, causing her to glare at him.
“What now?” he huffed.
“That seat’s for a mage. Familiars sit on the floor.”
“I’m not sitting there,” he crossed his arms on the desk and laid his head on them, staring forward. Louise glared at him but didn’t say anything.
The door opened to the sight of a large, plump woman in a purple robe and a matching tall pointed hat. She looked middle-aged with shallow wrinkles and thick brown hair hidden under her hat.
The woman gazed around the classroom, seemingly inspecting everyone. “Well, it seems the Springtime Summoning was a great success,” she exclaimed happily. “I always enjoy seeing all the new familiars each spring. For those who don’t know me, I’m Professor Chevreuse and my runic name is the Red Clay”
Her eyes drew their attention to Saito. “And who are you, mister?”
Everyone looked towards Saito, but Louise answered for him. “He’s my familiar, professor.”
“Oh, my!” she was taken aback. “What an… interesting familiar you have, Lady Vallière.” Chuckling could be heard around the class.
A grating boy’s voice spoke from behind Saito, “You shouldn’t grab commoners off the street just because you can’t summon anything, Louise the Zero.” The students broke out into laughter.
Louise stood and faced the boy behind them. “That’s not true! I did everything properly and he was what appeared!” Saito watched as she addressed a pudgy boy with short blonde hair.
“Don’t lie!” he retorted. “We all know you can’t do magic.” The other students chuckled.
“Professor Chevreuse!” Louise turned to the professor below. “Malicorne the Sick insulted me!”
“The Sick?!” the boy spoke up. “I’m Malicorne the Windward. I’m not sick!”
“Your hoarse voice sounds like you are.” Louise crossed her arms and turned her head away from him.
“Lady Vallière! Lord Grandprè!” Chevreuse yelled. “Stop this senseless argument at once. Calling each other the Zero or the Sick is unacceptable conduct of nobles.”
“But professor!” Malicorne objected. “For Louise, it’s the truth!” Several giggles could be heard circulating around the class.
Chevreuse glared around the classroom and waved her wand around. The giggling students suddenly found their mouths filled with lumps of clay. “You’ll stay like that until the end of class.” The laughter ceased and everyone took a seat. “Now then, let us begin today’s lesson.”
She waved her wand once more and several pebbles appeared on the desk in front of her. “This year, I will be teaching you all the magic of the Earth element. Lord Grandprè, do you remember the four elemental powers?”
“Y-Yes, professor. They are Fire, Water, Earth, and Air,” the pudgy boy answered.
“Correct.” she replied. “And combined with the lost element of Void, they make up the five elements of the pentagram you all wear.” She referred to the brooch fastening the front of everyone’s cloaks. It was a bronze circle featuring the outline of a pentagram on it.
“Of all five elements,” she continued, “I believe Earth is one of the most important, and not just because it’s my affinity,” she laughed to herself. “Without it, we wouldn’t be able to produce or process metals. Building and farm work would suddenly become much more difficult. Therefore, Earth magic is deeply related to everyone’s life, whether you personally use it or not.”
Ah. Saito thought to himself. So magic is like the equivalent of science in this world.
“Now,” Chevreuse began, “as everyone might remember, Transmutation is the basic magic of Earth. I’m sure several of you already learned this in your first year, but let’s review it once more. Afterall, the basics build foundations!” she happily chimed.
Chevreuse turned her attention to the pebbles in front of her and began whispering while waving her wand around. They started glowing with a bright light before dimming into lumps of shiny metal.
“Is that gold?!” Kirche shouted in shock, jumping up from her seat.
“No. It’s merely brass.” Chevreuse shook her head. “Only square-class mages can transmute to gold. I’m just a triangle mage.”
“Oh.” Kirche quickly returned to her chair with a disappointed look upon her face.
“Louise?” Saito piped up.
“What?” she snapped impatiently at him. “We’re in the middle of a lesson.”
“But what does she mean about squares and triangles?”
Louise groaned but answered. “It’s the number of elements that can be added to a spell. It determines the level of a mage’s abilities.”
“How?”
“So if you use an Earth spell and add Fire to it, the power of the spell increases.”
“Oh.”
“Those who can stack two elements are line mages. Three makes a triangle mage, and four makes a square mage. Dot mages can’t combine any elements. Professor Chevreuse just used Earth-Earth-Fire, so she’s a triangle mage.”
“Huh. What happens when you add the same element to itself?”
“It reinforces the element to make it stronger.”
“Oh. So the professor is a fairly powerful mage?”
“Yes.”
Saito thought to himself for a minute before speaking, “How many can you add, Louise?”
“Lady Vallière,” Chevreuse called to her, “please refrain from private chatter during lessons.”
“I’m sorry…” Louise replied sheepishly.
“Perhaps you should demonstrate for the class then. Come down and transmute the pebbles into any metal of your choice.” However, Louise stayed seated, looking troubled. “Lady Vallière, is something the matter?”
Saito poked her in the arm. “Hey. Come on. She’s talking to you.” But Louise continued to look worried.
“Um, Professor?” Kirche spoke up.
Chevreuse turned her attention to the red-head. “Yes?”
“I don’t think you should let her do that…”
“And why not?”
“It’s dangerous,” she said plainly. Several students in the class nodded their heads in agreement.
“Nonsense,” the professor replied. “It’s just a harmless transmutation. Now, Lady Vallière, please come up to the front.”
Louise stood up. Her worried face shifted into a determined expression. She began descending the steps towards the front.
“Louise, don’t!” Kirche cried out to her, but Louise ignored her.
Chevreuse stood beside Louise and smiled. “Okay, Lady Vallière, just visualize the metal you wish to transmute to.”
Giving a slight nod, Louise began waving her wand and whispering to herself. As the morning sun covered Louise from one of the windows, Saito was momentarily enamored by her beauty again. Her pink hair sparkled in the sunlight and her hazel eyes shone like jewels. If only she didn’t have such a nasty personality, I might actually enjoy being stuck here, he lamented.
Saito noticed the rest of the students start to take cover behind their desks. Oh, right. Didn’t Kirche say something about danger?
Closing her eyes, Louise finished whispering and gave a flick of her wand.
The entire desk exploded in front of them, sending splinters of wood flying. A loud bang resonated through the room followed by screams. Saito saw Chevreuse fly into the blackboard and slump to the floor. Louise likewise flew back and landed on her bottom, coughing furiously.
The classroom erupted into pandemonium as familiars went every direction. Someone cried out about his familiar being eaten by another’s familiar. Saito stared at Louise in disbelief. Her clothes were ripped and she was bleeding slightly.
“I told you not to do it!” Kirche yelled down at her.
“Jeez, Louise!” Malicorne joined in. “Save us the trouble and quit school already!”
Several of the students checked on Chevreuse. “She’s knocked out,” one of the boys yelled.
“Let’s get her to the clinic!” another boy ordered. They levitated the professor and rushed her out of the room.
Louise slowly stood up and pulled out a handkerchief to clean up the blood. “I guess I messed it up again…” she said in a weak voice.
“No kidding!” one of the students yelled. “Your success rate is zero!”
