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Zero no Tsukaima:Volume3 Chapter10

2008-04-20T04:34:19Z

128.61.59.72:

===Chapter Ten: The Void ===

News of the declaration of war had reached the Tristain Academy of Magic the following day. Contact had been delayed due to the chaos in the palace.

Louise, along with Saito, were waiting at the entrance of the Academy of Magic for a carriage from the palace. The carriage was to take them to Germania. However, only a breathless messenger arrived at the academy that hazy morning.

The messenger asked them where Osman’s room was, and dashed away quickly after receiving the answer. The unusual scene caused Louise and Saito to look at each other. Sensing something had happened in the palace, the two of them rushed after the messenger.

Osman was occupied with the preparations for the wedding ceremony. He would be leaving the academy for a week and so he was organizing various documents and packing his luggage.

A loud knock came at the door.

“Who is it?”

The messenger from the palace burst into the room before Osman had finished talking.

“Reporting from the palace! Albion has declared war on Tristain! The princess’s wedding has been postponed until further notice! Soldiers are currently heading towards La Rochelle! For safety reasons an order was issued stating that all students and staff are to be confined to the castle!”

Osman’s face grew pale.

“A declaration of war? There’s going to be a battle?”

“Yes! Enemy forces have set up camp in the fields of Tarbes and are glaring at our forces nearby La Rochelle.”

“The Albion forces must be very strong.”

The messenger replied sorrowfully.

“The enemy forces are a dozen in number led by a huge warship called the Lexington. The total number of troops is estimated to be around three thousand. Our main fleet has already been destroyed and counting all our troops, we only have around two thousand. We weren’t prepared for a war, so that was all we could field. However, the worst is that they have complete aerial dominance. Our troops will surely be decimated by their cannons."

“What’s the current situation?”

“The enemy dragoons are setting fire to the village of Tarbes… We requested aid from Germania, but they say the soonest they can arrive is in three weeks…”

Osman sighed and said, “… They’re planning to abandon us. During that period, Tristain’s towns will fall readily into the hands of the enemy.”

With their ears pressed against the door of the principal’s room, Louise and Saito looked at each other. Louise’s face had become pale at the mention of war, and Saito’s at the mention of Tarbes. ''Isn’t that Siesta’s village?'' Saito dashed off. Louise panicked and followed him.

Saito reached the courtyard and started climbing into the zero fighter. Louise hugged his waist from behind.

“Where are you going?!”

“To Tarbes!”

“Why?!”

“Isn’t it obvious?! I’m going to go save Siesta!”

Louise grabbed his arm and tried to shake him off, but he firmly clung on.

“You can’t! It’s a war! Even if you went, it wouldn't make a difference!”

“I have this zero fighter. The enemy is attacking with those airships right? This can fly too. I’ll figure something out.”

“What can you do with a toy like this?!”

“This isn’t a toy.”

Saito grabbed the zero fighter’s wing with his left hand. His runes shone.

“This is a weapon from my world. It’s a tool for killing people. It’s not a toy.”

Louise shook her head.

“Regardless, whether this is a weapon from your world or not, there’s no way you can win against those large warships! Don’t you understand? You can’t make a difference! Just leave it to the soldiers!” said Louise, looking straight into Saito’s face.

''This guy… this reckless familiar doesn’t know anything about war,'' Louise thought. This was different from the journey they took to Albion. The battlefield was a place filled with death and destruction. If a novice went, it would result only in his death.

“He said that Tristain’s fleet had been wiped out didn’t he?”

Saito slowly patted Louise on the head and spoke in a low voice.

“It might not amount to anything. I can’t imagine beating those warships. But…”

“But what?”

“I don’t fully understand, but I’ve received these legendary familiar powers. If I were just a normal, regular person, I wouldn’t have thought of going to save them. But it’s different. I have Gandalfr’s power. I might be able to save them. I can perhaps save Siesta…and those villagers.”

“The probability is almost zero.”

“I know. But, it’s not zero. So, I’ll do it.”

Surprised, Louise replied.

“Are you an idiot!? You want to return to your own world right? How is dying here going to help?!”

“Siesta treated me kindly. You too, Louise.”

Louise’s face turned red.

“I’m not from this world. I don’t necessarily have to care what happens to this world, but I want to at least protect the people who have treated me well.”

Louise noticed that Saito’s hands were shaking. Raising her head, she said, “Aren’t you scared? You idiot. Stop trying to act cool if you’re scared!”

“I am scared. I’m even reluctant to do this. But that prince said, the importance of protecting something, will make you forget the fear of death. I think he’s right. That time, when fifty thousand Albion soldiers came charging towards us… I wasn’t scared. I was busy thinking of protecting you, so I wasn’t scared. I’m not lying.”

“What are you saying? You’re just a commoner. You aren’t a courageous prince or anything.”

“I know. It’s got nothing to do with whether I’m a prince or a commoner. Which country you were born in, the time period… even which world, is irrelevant. If you are a man, then you would surely think the same way.”

Louise’s face started to distort as she tried to hold back her tears. 

“If you die, what will I do…? No… I, if you die…”

“I won’t die. I will come back. If I die, I won’t be able to protect you right?”

“I’m going as well.”

“No. You’re staying here.”

“No, I’m going as well.”

“You can’t.”

As his hard-found courage was about to escape him, Saito separated himself from Louise and climbed into the cockpit from the wing.

Suddenly he realized. He hadn’t refueled the plane.

Saito left Louise there and rushed off to Colbert’s laboratory. With her fists tightly clenched, she groaned. Why was he so stubborn! ''Even though I said it would be dangerous…'' Louise bit her lip and held back her tears. Nothing would come from crying. Louise looked at the zero fighter.

“What chance does this thing have of winning against Albion’s forces!”

<center>***</center>

Saito woke up the sleeping Colbert.

“Huh? What?”

“Mr. Colbert! Have you made the gasoline?”

“Huh? Yes, I’ve made the amount you needed. It’s over there.”

“Then help me carry it! Quickly!”

Colbert carried the gasoline for Saito. Colbert, who was still partially asleep, didn’t know about the war. Saito didn’t bother explaining.

“You’re going to fly it so early in the morning? At least let me freshen up.”

“We don’t have time for that.”

Louise was nowhere to be seen. He was relieved. If Louise had pleaded him to not go once more, his determination would fade. There was no reason why he wouldn’t be scared. The prince did say that the importance of protecting something would make the fear of death go away, but… nope. It was still scary.

Even then, Saito sat in the cockpit and performed the necessary operations to start the engine. Colbert then used his magic like before and the engine started to run. The engine started with a loud noise and the propellers started to spin.

He checked the gauges. The runes on his left hand told him that everything was normal. He checked the machine gun in front of him. Bullets were loaded. The machine guns on the wings were also loaded.

Releasing the brakes, the zero fighter started moving. He looked to the front and headed in the direction of the best take-off spot. “Austri” was not a small courtyard but his Gandalfr runes told him that it was a bit short for a runway. At that moment, Derflinger, who was leaning in the cockpit, said, “Partner, tell the noble to use wind to propel you from the back.”

“Wind?”

“Yes, so that this thing can take off even with the shortened distance.”

“How do you know that? You don’t know a thing about airplanes.”

“This is a ‘weapon’ right? I’m with you all the time, I know about it in general. Have you forgotten? I’m ‘legendary’.”

Saito popped his head out from the windshield and called out to Colbert. His voice didn’t reach him. He tried some gestures, signaling him to cause wind to blow from the back. Colbert was quick witted. He understood Saito’s gestures and nodded.

As the incantation for the spell finished, a strong gust of wind came from the back. He put on the goggles Siesta entrusted him and relaxed the pressure on the brake. He opened the cowl flaps and adjusted the propeller’s pitch lever. He futher released the brakes and he pushed the throttle lever down.

Like a spring, the zero fighter accelerated forward with great force. He pushed the control stick slightly forward. The tail had left the ground. The zero fighter was gliding. It approached the academy’s walls. Saito gulped.

“Partner! Now!”

Just as they were about to hit the wall, he pulled the control stick. The zero fighter flew up in an instant. Grazing the wall slightly, the zero fighter flew in the air. He retracted the landing gear. The indicator light, bottom left from the gauges turned from green to red.

The zero fighter continued to ascend. Saito looked at the runes with a relieved expression.

“Wow! It’s flying! This is pretty interesting!” Derflinger said excitedly.

“Of course it is. It was made to fly.”

Under the bright sun, the zero fighter split the winds, and rose up into the sky of another world. 

<center>***</center>

The fire consuming Tarbes had calmed but the area had changed into a cruel battlefield. Battalions had been assembled in the field and were awaiting the moment they would clash with Tristain troops in the port city La Rochelle. Protecting them above were the Lexington's dragons. The Tristain dragoons would attack sporadically, but they had all been forced to retreat.

Before the battle, Albion command decided that they would use the cannons of the warships to deal with the Tristain troops. And so, the fleet prepared its cannons.

One dragoon on the lookout above Tarbes noticed an enemy dragoon was approaching from above, about two thousand five hundred meters away. The dragoon had the dragon cry out, alerting the others that an enemy was approaching.

<center>***</center>

Saito looked out from the windshield and saw Tarbes below him. There was no trace of that simple, beautiful village he had seen before. The houses were scorched with black smoke rising from them. He clenched his teeth. He remembered how recently he and Siesta were looking out at the field. Siesta’s words replayed in his head.

“Isn’t this field beautiful? This is what I wanted to show Saito.”

A dragoon unit breathed fire at the forest located at the outskirts of the village. The forest was instantly set ablaze.

Saito bit his lip. He could taste the blood in his mouth.

“I’ll kill you.” He said in a low voice.

Saito pushed the control stick to the bottom left while pressing the throttle firmly. The zero fighter started to swoop down towards Tarbes.

<center>***</center>

“What could one dragoon possibly do?” muttered the ascending dragoons as they prepared to attack.

However, it had an unusual figure. It had two horizontal wings stretched out, as if the wings were fixed and didn’t flap. It also made a thunderous roar they had never heard of before.

Did such a dragon exist in Halkeginia?

However… no matter what dragon it was, it would be finished off with a single breath from the Albion fire dragons, just like the rest. When its wings are burnt it would probably go down. Using this strategy, they had already killed two of Tristain’s dragoons.

“This is the third,” said a dragoon awaiting the descending enemy, with the corner of his mouth bending into a smile.
[[Image:ZnT03-231.JPG|thumb]]

He was surprised. It was fast. Faster than any dragon.

Panicking, the dragoon made the dragon breath fire. At that moment, the wing of the descending enemy flashed. Countless number of shining white things were flying towards him. Large holes appeared on the wings and the body of the dragon. A round entered the dragon’s mouth. A fire dragon has pockets of oil for strong combustion in its throat. The autocannon shell caught one of the oil pockets. The fire dragon exploded.

Slipping by the dragon that had exploded in midair, Saito continued to descend in the zero fighter. The zero fighter’s machine gun range was tens of times than that of the dragon’s breaths. Letting his rage take control of him, he fired the 20mm autocannon shells and the 7.7mm machine gun on both wings at the dragoons.

Four more dragons fluttered in the skies above the village. They had seen the dragon which exploded from the enemy’s attack. The attack wasn’t a breath. Which meant that it was probably a magic based attack. Whatever attack it may have been, one dragoon alone can’t do anything. Three dragoons ascended to attack.

“Three more are coming from the bottom left,” said Derflinger in his usual tone.

Three dragoons were spread out below him and ascending.

“Don’t get hit by their breath. You’ll get burnt to ashes in an instant.”

Saito nodded. He did a hundred and eighty degrees turn above the dragoons. Drawing a path similar to spiraling down a funnel in a bottle, he ended up behind the dragoons. The dragoons couldn’t catch up. The speed of the fire dragons was about 150km/hr. The zero fighter’s speed was close to 400km/hr. It was like attacking something that wasn’t moving.

By the time the panicking dragoons had turned around, they had already been clearly targeted. Saito readied the pointer on the glass pane of the sighting device and pressed the throttle lever’s fire button.

With a dull sound followed by the shaking of the plane, the autocannons on both wings opened fire. The wings of the fire dragons broke, and they went spiraling down. In the next instant, Saito had put his foot down on the right foot bar and glided the zero fighter, taking aim at the next dragon. Saito fired again. Taking numerous hits from the autocannon on its torso, the fire dragon shrieked in pain and dropped towards the ground.

When the third had suddenly dived in an attempt to escape, the 7.7mm machine gun filled its body with punctured holes. The fire dragon died and dropped straight down.

Saito quickly made the airplane ascend, controlling the plane naturally. He switched the velocity level to high. Against dragons, the zero fighter which had a reciprocating engine, had the most advantage at those speeds. As the zero fighter descended, the velocity would increase. The first thing to do was to control the area above the enemy. With the shining runes on his left hand, he maneuvered the zero fighter like a veteran.

Derflinger, who was looking out for him, told him his next target. Just as he was about direct the plane there, he heard a voice behind him.

“T-T-T-That’s incredible! These Albion dragons are reputed to be unrivaled yet they’re dropping like flies!”

Startled, Saito looked backwards. Louise’s head popped out from the gap between the seat and the rest of plane. Behind the seat was originally a stupidly big radio, but since this world didn’t have anyone who could contact through him the radio, he had removed it while he was adjusting the plane. After taking that off, only the wires connected to the rudder were left. Louise had slipped in there.

“You were here all this time!? Get off!”

“There’s no way I can get off now!”

Louise’s hands held the Founder’s Prayer book. It seems like she didn’t go anywhere like he had thought and instead slipped inside the plane.

“It’s dangerous! You idiot!”

Louise firmly wrung his neck.

“Don’t forget!"

"You. Are. My. Familiar. So. Don’t. Just. Go. Do. What. You. Want! I. Will. Not. Forgive. You. Understand!?”

As the engine drowned out her voice, she shouted in his ears.

“I’m your master! If the master doesn't lead the way, then the familiar won’t listen! And I would hate that!”

Saito drooped his shoulders, sighing heavily. It seems that saying things like “It’s dangerous, don’t come” had absolutely no effect on Louise.

“What happens if you die?!”

“Then try harder! Even if you or I die, I will still find some way to kill you!” She shouted at Saito with her eyes open.

Saito felt a headache coming from the absurd things coming out of her mouth.

“Partner, sorry for interrupting but…”

“What?”

“Ten from the right have just arrived.”

The fire dragon’s breath came flying to them. At that instant, he pushed the control stick quickly to the left. The plane rolled and dodged the breath of the dragon. Louise fell down in the plane with a small cry.

“Control it more elegantly!”

Saito shouted, “Don’t say ridiculous things!”, and made the plane descend. The dragoons couldn’t follow his movements. Taking advantage of this moment, he made the plane ascend, and at its peak he turned it around. With the sun behind him, he descended again. Aiming at the dragoons who were chasing him before, he fired the autocannons and the machine guns at them.

Louise, who had fallen down in the plane, was about to cry from the terror. “Perhaps I really shouldn’t have come?” Her fear asked her. She bit her lip and grasped the Founder’s Prayer book tightly. ''Didn’t I sneak on because I couldn’t let Saito die? Hey, don’t pretend as if you’re fighting alone, I’m also fighting!''

Even so, she couldn’t do anything. It was always like this, but this time she felt a tinge of regret.

But nevertheless, losing to your fear won’t accomplish anything.

She searched her pockets for the Water ruby ring Henrietta gave her, and put it on. She grasped that finger tightly.

“Princess, please protect us…” she whispered.

She patted the Founder’s Prayer book in her right hand softly.

In the end, she hadn’t finished the edict. She cursed her own lack of poetic talent. She was hoping to think of the edict on the carriage to Germania.

''That’s right. I was going to go to Henrietta’s wedding ceremony. I was waiting outside the academy’s gates for the carriage to arrive. I then learned war had broken out. Destiny is a cynical thing.'' She opened the Founder’s Prayer book while muttering to herself. She was planning to pray to the founders for their safety. She opened the book and flipped to a random page. The Water ruby and the Founder’s Prayer book suddenly shone, taking Louise by surprise.

<center>***</center>

“They got… wiped out? In only twelve minutes they got wiped out?”

Sir Johnston, the supreme commander of the invasion force, who was on the afterdeck of the flagship, Lexington, looking over the preparations of the bombardment attack with the ship’s cannons, turned pale at the report.

“How many enemy units were there? A hundred? Tristain has that many dragoons left?”

“Sir. A-According to the report, only one.”

“A single unit?”

Johnston stood motionless with a dumbfounded expression. He threw his hat to the ground.

“Nonsense! Twenty dragoons taken out by a single enemy unit? Surely you jest!”

Frightened at the supreme commander’s attitude, the messenger took a step back.

“According to the report, the enemy dragoon had incredible speed and agility, and also had strong, long ranged, magic based attacks. Our units were killed one by one…”

Johnston grabbed the messenger.

“What about Wardes?! Wardes, who was given command of the dragoons, what about him?! What happened to that cocky Tristainian?! Was he also killed?!”

“The viscount’s wind dragon was not included in the list of casualties. But… it seems like he wasn’t seen around…”

“So he betrayed us! Or otherwise he was too much of a coward! Whichever it was, we can’t trust him…”

Quietly reaching out his hands, Bowood said, “Reacting like that in front of all the soldiers will lower their morale, commander in chief.”

Enraged, Johnston took his anger out on Bowood.

“What are you saying?! It’s your fault that the dragoons got wiped out! Your lack of competence was just asking for our precious dragoons to be destroyed! I will report this to His Excellency. I will report it!” Johnston yelled as he reached out to grab Bowood.

Bowood drew his wand and jabbed Johnston’s stomach. The white of his eyes showing, Johnston fainted to the ground. He ordered the soldiers to carry him away.

“Should have just made him sleep in the first place,” Bowood thought.

Noise apart from that of explosions and cannons only agitated the troops. A single decision could be the difference between victory and defeat, especially during battle.

Bowood turned to the messenger who was staring at him with a worried expression. He spoke with a calm, composed voice.

“Even though the dragoon force has been wiped out, the Lexington is still undamaged. Also, Wardes has probably devised a plan. Don’t worry about it, just put effort in what you’re doing.”

“A single unit killing twenty units? A hero, eh…” Bowood whispered.

But at most a hero. And thus only an individual. No matter how much power an individual holds, there’ll be things he can change and things he can’t change.

“And this ship is the latter,” Bowood whispered.

He issued orders.

“Advance the entire fleet. Prepare the left cannons.”

After a while, far away, at the other end of the field of Tarbes, the battle array of Tristain’s troops, situated in La Rochelle, which was a natural stronghold due to the mountains around it, could be seen.

“All fleets advance slowly. Ship to starboard.”

The fleet turned so that the Tristain forces would be facing their left side.

“Fire the left cannons. Continue firing until further orders.”

“Upper part and the lower part, prepare the right cannons. Use grapeshot.”

<center>***</center>

Five hundred meters in front of the Tristain troops crowded within La Rochelle, the enemy force could be seen. It had the three colored Reconquista flag, and was approaching quietly. Having never actually seen an enemy before, Henrietta, mounted on a unicorn, was shaking. She closed her eyes to offer a prayer so that the soldiers around her wouldn’t see her shaking in fear.

But… her fear did not stop so easily.

Henrietta looked up at the large enemy fleet and turned pale. It was Albion’s fleet. The side of the fleet flashed. It was enemy fire. The cannon shells accelerated by gravity were flying towards Tristain’s troops.

Impact.

Hundred of cannon shells dropped down on the troops in La Rochelle. Rocks, horses and people were thrown together, sent flying through the air. The troops were trying to flee from the overwhelming might before them. The place was drowned by the sound of thunderous roars.

“Calm down! Everyone calm down!” Henrietta shouted, driven by her fear.

Mazarini whispered in Henrietta’s ear.

“You need to calm down first. If the general is distraught, there’ll be chaos in the blink of an eye.”

Mazarini quickly whispered to the generals nearby. While Tristain was a small country, it was one filled with history. Its history included many righteous nobles. Of all the Halkaganian nations, the Tristain army had the highest percentage of mages within it's ranks.

By Mazarini’s command, the nobles created barriers of air within the openings of the mountains. The shells would hit them and break. But some of the shells got through. Screams could be heard with rocks and blood scattering.

“As soon as the enemy stops their bombardment, they will most likely stage an all out assault. There’s no other way but to face them,” whispered Mazarini.

“Is there a chance of being victorious?”

Mazarini noticed that the soldiers were starting to tremble before the enemy bombardment. They had advanced with great vigor but… there are limits to people’s courage. He did not want to tell the truth to the princess who had made him remember something he had forgotten.

“We’re evenly matched.”

Impact. The ground below them shook like an earthquake.

Marzarini sorrowfully understood the situation.

Three thousand strong troops formed the enemy's numbers, while their forces, crumbling from the bombardment, only numbered two thousand.

They had no chance.

<center>***</center>

Louise looked at the letters that appeared in the light.

It was… written in ancient runes. As Louise took lessons seriously, she could read the ancient language.

Louise chased the letters in the light.

Foreword.

Henceforth, I shall record the truth I know. All materials in the world are comprised of fine grains. The four branches intervene with these fine grains and apply an influence, which transform them into spells. This was how “Fire”, “Water”, “Wind” and “Earth” became.

Louise was filled with curiosity. With an impatient feeling, she turned the page.

The gods bestowed upon me a greater strength. The fine grains, which the four branches bore influence over, are comprised of even finer grains. The power bestowed upon me by the gods, does not belong to any of the four. The branch I wield intervenes with even finer grains and applies an influence, transforming them into spells. A Zero that belongs to neither of the four. This so-called Zero is “Void”. I name the Zero the gods have bestowed upon me “Void”.

“The branch of Void… Isn’t that a legend? Isn’t that the legendary branch?!”

Whispering to herself, Louise turned the page. Her pulse was racing.

Saito, who had wiped out the dragoon fleet, looked over the sky. Above the fields, he spotted the large warship between the gaps of the clouds, far away. Below that ship, was the port city La Rochelle.

“Partner, that’s the head. No matter how many small fry you take down, if you don’t take it down… nothing will change…”

“I know.”

“It’s impossible.”

Saito remained silent and opened the throttle of the zero fighter. It was at full boost. The zero fighter ascended towards the large warship.

“It’s impossible, partner. No matter how much you try, it is impossible.”

Derflinger, who had evaluated the power difference, told Saito in his usual tone. However, Saito did not respond.

“I understand… but your partner is an idiot.”

Saito brought the zero fighter closer.

The right side of the ship shone. Aimed at Saito’s zero fighter, something was flying towards him. They were countless numbers of lead bullets. They pierced the plane with holes while shaking it. Breaking the windshield, a shard grazed Saito’s cheek. A trickle of blood ran down his face.

“Don’t go near it! They're using grapeshot!” yelled Derflinger.

Saito made the zero fighter do a sudden dive, avoiding the second round of fire.

“Damn, they put small bullets in those large cannons!”

Saito bit his lip.

He coudln't even get close to the ship, much less sink it.

Behind the seat, Louise had lost herself in reading the Founder’s Prayer book. The thunderous noises did not reach her ears. She could only hear her own pulse getting louder and louder.

The one who is able to read this, will inherit my deeds, thoughts and objectives. They will become the bearer of this power. Be mindful, wielder of this power. For my brethren and I, who have died unfulfilled, you should strive towards reatking the “Holy Lands” stolen by heathens. “Void” is powerful. Yet, the incantations are of great length and consume much energy. Take heed, incantator. At times, your life will diminish depending on the power. Thus, I choose the reader of this book. Even when one not qualified wears the ring, they cannot open this book. Only when the chosen reader wears a ring of “The four branches” can they open this book.

Burimiru Ru Rumiru Yuru Viri Vee Varutori (ブリミル・ル・ルミル・ユル・ヴィリ・ヴェー・ヴァルトリ) 

Following, are my recordings of the “Void” spells I used. The first step of the very beginning. “Explosion”.

A spell in the ancient language followed after that. Dumbfounded, Louise whispered, “Founder Burimiru, aren’t you forgetting something? If I wasn’t wearing this ring, I wouldn’t be able to read the Founder’s Prayer book right? The stuff about the chosen reader… and the “take heed” section has no meaning then.”

And then she realized. Chosen reader… that means…

I’m the chosen reader?

I don’t really understand but… I can read the words. If I can read it, I can probably perform this spell written here. Louise remembered how every time she recited an incantation, an explosion would result. That’s… in other words, that’s the “Void” written about here?

When she thought about it, no one could tell her the reason why she made things explode. Her parents, her sisters, her teachers… her friends as well… they only laughed at her for being a “failure”. They didn’t think anything of the explosions.

''Perhaps I really am the chosen reader.''

''I can’t really believe it, but I perhaps am the chosen reader.''

''This might be worth trying out.''

''And also… There’s nothing else to fall back on now.''

She was calm and cool. The runes she had just looked at were on the tip of her tongue as if they had greeted one another many times.

Like the lullabies she had heard in the past, the spell’s tune was somewhat similar.

''I’m going to try it.''

Louise stood up.

From behind the seat, she started making her way to the front through the gap.

“What are you doing?! Just stay still! Argh! I can’t see in front of me! Hey!”

Like a snake, she slipped through with the gap with her small body. She made her way to the front of the seat, where Saito was sitting. She sat her small bottom down in between Saito’s widened legs.

“…I can’t believe it but… I can’t really say it but… I might have been chosen. This could be some mistake though.” Louise muttered.

“Hah?”

“Just listen to me. Fly near the warship. It might just be a hoax… but trying it out is better than not doing anything. Besides, there’s no other way to sink that warship…. The only way is for me to do it. I understand. I’ll try it.”

Saito was dumbfounded by Louise’s ramble to herself.

“Are you alright? You’ve finally gone crazy from being scared?”

Louise shouted at Saito.

“I told you to go near it didn’t I?! I’m your master! Familiars obey their master’s orders obediently!”

It was useless to oppose Louise when she used that threatening attitude. Saito reluctantly approached the large warship.

The grapeshot flew towards them. Going around to the left side would probably have the same result. The ship also had cannons sticking out from the bottom as well. The Lexington was like a porcupine with cannons.

“What are you doing?!”

“It’s impossible! I can’t get near it!”

As if suddenly thinking of something, Derflinger opened its mouth.

“Partner, go straight above the ship.”

“Eh?”

“There’s a blind spot there. It’s where the cannons can’t reach.”

Saito rose above the Lexington like he was told.

Louise straddled Saito’s shoulders. She opened the canopy. A strong wind blew across her face.

“Hey what are you doing?! Close it!”

“Until I give you the signal, keep circling around here.”

Louise took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

Then, as if she were flaring up, she opened her eyes and started to read the runes written in the Founder’s Prayer book.

She read the spell amongst the roar of the engine. Saito was circling the above Lexington in the zero fighter like he was told to.

It was at that moment.

“Partner, behind you!”

Quickly looking behind, a dragoon could be seen flying towards them like a gale.

It was Wardes.

Mounted on top of the wind dragon, Wardes grinned. He had been hidden amongst the clouds above the Lexington, waiting for his chance to strike. So this was the mysterious dragoon who had crushed all the fire dragons. Wardes didn’t have much chance of winning if he faced him front on. Which is why he had to aim for a weak spot.

His plan hinged on the warship. The enemy’s aim would definitely be this warship. And if he was a skilled enemy, he would be able to find the blind spot of the warship. Thus, hiding nearby and waiting was the best option. Wardes' prediction was right.

His target started to dive.

I see… he avoided the fire dragons like that.

But, my wind dragon’s speed is greater than that of the fire dragons.

Wardes steadily shortened the distance separating them.

With deep interest, he looked at the zero fighter.

It’s not a dragon. That’s… not something made from Halkeginia’s logic… the “Holy Lands”?

He saw a familiar face, with pinkish blond hair, inside the cockpit. The grin on Wardes' face grew larger.

''So you’re alive.''

Then the one controlling the psuedo-dragon would be…  

The left arm he had once lost throbbed.

His wind dragon’s breath wasn’t of any use, but he had his powerful spells. Gripping the reins with his artificial left hand, Wardes cast a spell. “Air Spear”. The air solidified to form a spear to skewer them.

Saito couldn’t lose the dragon that was following them.
With Louise was riding his shoulders, Saito was beginning to feel frustrated.
''But… if I die here, I won’t be able to protect Louise or Siesta.'' The runes on Saito’s left hand shone brightly.

He set the throttle to minimum and opened all the flaps. As if something had grabbed the zero fighter, its speed dropped.

He pushed the control stick to the bottom left. At the same time, he stepped on the foot bar. The vivid earth and sky rotated before them.

The zero fighter had disappeared from Wardes' sight, who had just finished casting his spell. He looked around him restlessly. They weren't anywhere to be seen. However, sensing a tinge of a murderous intent from behind , Wardes' turned around. The zero fighter was smoothly spiraling down as if tracing a path inside a bottle. It quickly got behind Wardes’ wind dragon. Followed by a bright light, the machine gun bullets tore through the wind dragon, which had thinner scales than the fire dragons. Wardes was hit in the shoulder and back and his face distorted in pain. The wind dragon gave out a shriek. As if slowly gliding down, the dragon Wardes rode crashed to the ground.

Saito ascended the zero fighter once more. Even while he did those maneuvers Louise straddled onto Saito’s shoulders firmly. Then again, Louise was very skilled at horse riding. Louise continued her incantation in a low voice. What the heck is she doing, Saito thought.

Eoruu Suunu Firu Yarunsakusa (エオルー・スーヌ・フィル・ヤルンサクサ)

A rhythm had started pulsating through Louise. She felt as though knew the rhythm from somewhere. With every word of the incantation, the rhythm grew stronger. It sharpened her senses, while not a single noise around reached her ears. It was as if something within her body was born, and was searching for a destination… Louise remembered what she was told once. When you recite an incantation of your own branch, a feeling similar to what she was feeling would be felt. Is it really what I’m feeling? Me, who has always been despised for being a zero. Me, who was said to have no talent in magic by teachers, parents, sisters and students. Is this the real me?  

Osu Suunu Uryu Ru Rado (オス・スーヌ・ウリュ・ル・ラド)

She could feel a wave being born inside of her, slowly swelling.

Beoozusu Yuru Suvyueru Kano Oshera (ベオーズス・ユル・スヴュエル・カノ・オシェラ)

The wave inside her, searching for a destination, went berserk. Louise gave Saito a signal with her leg. Saito nodded and pushed the control stick down. The zero fighter began to swoop down at the Lexington below them. Opening her eyes, she timed her incantation.

“Void”

The legendary branch of magic.

I wonder how powerful it is?

No one knows.

Of course, there’d be no reason I’d know.

This was supposedly beyond legendary.

Jera Isa Unjyuu Hagaru Beookun Iru… (ジェラ・イサ・ウンジュー・ハガル・ベオークン・イル)

After the long incantation, the spell was complete. At that moment, Louise understood the power of the spell. It would swallow everyone. Every person in her vision, would be swallowed by her spell. There were two options. Kill, or don’t kill. What was she meant to destroy? With the winds blowing against her face, she looked down. A large warship appeared before her eyes. The Lexington. Following her impulse, she aimed at a single point and swung her wand down.

An unbelievable scene unfolded before Henrietta’s eyes. The warship that had been bombarding them… A ball of light had appeared in the sky. It was like a smaller version of the sun, and it expanded. And… it swallowed it. It had swallowed the warship in the sky. The light continued to expand until it was all she could see. There was complete silence. Henrietta suddenly closed her eyes. The light of the sphere was so intense that anyone would think that their eyes would burn from staring at it. And then… after the light had faded, the whole fleet was on fire. The fleet led by the Lexington had all their sails and decks burning. As if it were a lie, the head of the fleet that had been tormenting the Tristain troops, sank to the ground.

A tremor in the earth could be felt. The fleet had come crashing down. Henrietta was dumbfounded. Complete silence overcame them. Everyone stared at the unbelievable scene.

The first one to come to his senses was Cardinal Mazarini. He was looking at the silvery wings, shining under the sun in the sky. It was Saito’s zero fighter.

Mazarini cried out, “People! Look! The enemy fleet has been destroyed by the legendary Phoenix!”

“Phoenix? The immortal bird?”

A commotion spread through the troops.

“Look at that bird flying in the sky! That’s the legendary bird that’s said to come at Tristain’s hour of need! The Phoenix! The founder’s have blessed us!”

Shouts of joy could be heard everywhere.

“Long live Tristain! Long live the Phoenix!”

Henrietta asked Mazarini quietly, “Cardinal, the Phoenix… was it the truth? I haven’t heard of anything called the legendary Phoenix…”

Mazarini mischievously smiled.

“It’s a big lie. But, everyone’s sense of judgement is lost at the moment. They can’t believe the scene they saw. Neither can I. However, the truth is that there was an unfamiliar bird fluttering about after the enemy fleet had fallen. There was no choice but to use it.”

“Hah…”

“What? No one cares if what I said was the truth or a lie. What they do care about is whether they’re dead or alive. In other words, victory or defeat.”

Mazarini peered into the princess’s eyes.

“You must use everything that you can use. It’s one of the basics of politics and war. Remember it well, Princess. Because from today onwards, you are the ruler of Tristain.”

Henrietta nodded. It was just as the Cardinal had said. The thinking… could come later.

“The enemy’s morale will be low and they will no doubt be trying to flee. Their supporting fleet is now gone. There’s not a better chance to strike.”

“Yes.”

“Princess. Shall we go forwards to victory?” asked Mazarini.

Henrietta nodded strongly once again. She held up her shining crystal wand.

“All troops, charge! Royal troops, follow me!”

<center>***</center>

Tired, Louise cuddled with Saito.

“Hey Louise.”

“Hm?” replied Louise, absentmindedly.

A feeling of fatigue overcame her. But this was a nice tired feeling. It was fatigue that came with the satisfaction of accomplishing something.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Yeah.”

“What was that just then?”

“It’s a legend.”

“Legend?”

“I’ll explain later. I’m tired.”

Saito nodded and smiled. He patted Louise gently on the head.
[[Image:ZnT03-257.JPG|thumb|''He patted Louise gently on the head.'']]

Below them, the Tristain troops had just charged at the Albion forces. The vigor of the Tristain troops was obvious even to a novice. It was vigor that even would triumph against enemies that outnumbered them.

“Yeah, later is fine.”

Looking at the scorched and blackened village, Saito wondered if Siesta was alright.

<center>***</center>

That evening…
With her siblings, Siesta timidly came out of the forest. News that the Albion troops had been defeated reached the village people who had taken shelter in the forest.

Albion's troops were crushed by Tristain’s charge, and many had surrendered. Well, there weren’t any Albion soldiers strutting along the village around noon. The angry bellows, the clash of arms and the explosions had ended. Black smoke rose from the field, but the battle had ended.

A thunderous noise could be heard in the skies above. After looking up, a familiar object was flying in the sky. It was the “Dragon’s Raiment”. Siesta’s face brightened.

When the zero fighter landed on the field, Saito opened the canopy. Someone from the forest, south of the village, came running towards him. It was Siesta. Saito jumped off the zero fighter and ran towards her.

Louise watched Saito as he was running off and sighed. "Well, I guess it’s good that that girl is still alive, but couldn’t he spend more time consoling me? The spell just then… “Explosion” of the void magic branch. It seems like it didn't happen. Perhaps it doesn't feel real because it was void magic. Am I really the “User of Void magic”? Is there some misunderstanding? But it explained how I was able to give Saito the legendary Gandalfr familiar powers. There are lots of legends, aren’t there," she whispered.

"In any case, it’ll probably be busy from here on. I really feel as if this didn't happened… and I can’t believe that I’m the one mentioned in the legend…" Louise sighed. If this were a dream, I would be so relieved. But I’ve decided not to think too much about it. I should learn from that idiot familiar of mine. Although he’s the legendary familiar, he doesn’t seem like it at all. But perhaps that is for the best. Anyway, this “legend” stuff is too much for me.

“Hey, legendary mage.”

“What, legendary sword?”

Derflinger had called out to Louise in a teasing tone.

“It’s okay to be stubborn… but if you don’t go after him, he’ll get taken by that village girl.”

Louise’s cheeks went red.

“I don't mind.”

“Really?” whispered Derflinger.

Giving a cry of frustration Louise hopped out of the cockpit and chased after Saito. Derflinger watched Louise’s running figure and said in large voice.

“And she even understands that she’s the one mentioned in the legend… Perhaps her love life is more important to her. Humans around this age are beyond help."

While running, a stream of thoughts ran through her mind. When she looked at Saito’s back, her pulse hastened. Her mind would go blank. It was weird. ''That idiot. He even kissed me. Is that girl really that good? She might be cute. She’s good at cooking as well. I know boys like girls like that. But, I…I…''

The Founder’s Prayer book, the Void magic branch… they completely left Louise’s mind for the time being.

If I don’t go after that familiar of mine, he’ll be gone somewhere.

If I don’t open my eyes wide and run, I’ll be left behind.

But, if it’s going to be like that… I’ll just continue chasing him.

I’ll chase him wherever he goes… and when he turns around, I’ll hit him good.

----

<noinclude>
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| [[Zero_no_Tsukaima:Volume3_Chapter9|Back to Chapter 9]]
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</noinclude>

Zero no Tsukaima:Volume3 Chapter9

2008-04-20T03:39:23Z

128.61.59.72:

===Chapter Nine: Declaration of War ===

The Germanian king, Albrecht the Third, had arranged for Princess Henrietta’s wedding ceremony to take place in Germania’s capital, Vindobona. The date of the ceremony: the first day of the month Nyuui (ニューイ).

Currently, the Mercator flagship of the Tristain fleet was to welcome the guests of the New Albion government by leading them to La Rochelle, where they would stay anchored in the skies above it.

The commander in chief of the fleet, Count La Ramée, sat in the quarterdeck in formal attire. Next to him, Captain Fevisu (フェヴィス) was stroking his moustache. It was far past the arranged time.

“They sure are late, Captain.”

La Ramée replied with an irritated voice.

“Those Albion dogs who killed their king with their own hands are probably still busy acting like dogs.”

The sailor on the top deck suddenly informed him of the fleet’s approach in a loud voice.

“A fleet! From the left!”

With a large ship leading in front, which could easily be mistaken as a cloud, the Albion fleet had started to descend.

“So that’s the standard of Albion’s ‘Royal Sovereign’ fleet…” said the captain, watching the large ship in awe.

It was the ship that would have had the ambassador on it.

“Something that no one would want to meet on a battlefield, that’s for sure.”

The Albion fleet descended until they were level with Tristain's fleet. The Albion ship began sending signaling messages from the mast.

“We thank you for your fleet’s welcome. This is the captain of Albion’s Lexington.”

“We have an admiral on board! Using a captain to correspond… we’re being treated like fools” the captain said resentfully, while looking over Tristain’s weak array of ships.

“They’re probably thinking the world is within their grasp now that that they have that ship. Reply to them with ‘We give you our warmest welcome. This is the commander in chief of the Tristain fleet’”

La Ramée’s words were passed on to the sailor who was standing on the mast. The signaling flag for the message was then hoisted up.

The Albion fleet fired their cannons in salute. There were no shells inside the cannon, they had merely let gunpowder explode.

Though the Lexington fleet had done a mere cannon salute, the air around it shook. La Ramée retreated slightly. Even though he knew that live ammunition couldn't possible reach across the distance seperating them, the force of the cannons from the Lexington fleet was able to make the experienced admiral retreat.

“Fire our cannons in response.”

“How many shells shall we fire? For the top nobles, eleven is required.”

The number of shells to be fired was depended upon the person’s rank and social status.

“Seven will do,” ordered La Ramée watching with a grin on his face like a stubborn child.

“Prepare the cannons! Seven shots, one by one! Fire when they’re ready!”

On the afterdeck of the Lexington, flagship of the fleet, Bowood was looking at the Tristain fleet. Next to him was Sir Johnston, the commander in chief, responsible for the entire invasion squad. Being a member of the council of nobles, Cromwell trusted him deeply. However, he had no experience. He was a politician after all.

“Captain…” Johnston said to Bowood in a worried voice.

“Sir?”

“Is it alright to go so close to them? We have those new long range cannons equipped right? Put some distance between us. His Excellency has entrusted me with important soldiers.”

“Cromwell’s puppet, huh…” Bowood whispered coldly to himself.

“Yes we do have the new cannon model, but if we fire from maximum range, they won’t hit.”

“But I bear his Excellency’s task of letting off those soldiers safely in Tristain. We can’t have the soldiers scared. Their morale will drop.”

''I don't think it's the soldiers that are scared…'' Bowood thought.

Ignoring Johnston, he issued a new command. No law governs the sky, after all.

“Prepare the left cannons.”

“Yes sir! Prepare the left cannons!”

The sailors on the deck started to load the cannons with gunpowder and shells.

A thunderous roar could be heard from the Tristain fleet, which was aimed at the skies. Tristain was returning the cannon salute.

The battle plan had commenced.

During that moment, Bowood had turned into a soldier. The political details, his human feelings, the cowardice and foul play of this operation were all forgotten. As the captain of the Lexington fleet of The Republic of the Holy Albion, he proceeded to rapidly issue orders.

The crew of the old Hobart ship trailing at the end of the fleet had finished their preparations, and started to evacuate via the boats they had made levitate with the “Fly” spell.

A startling scene unfolded before La Ramée’s eyes. The ship trailing at the end… the oldest and one of the smallest ships had started to go up in flames.

“What? A fire? Was it an accident?” whispered Fevisu (フェヴィス)

The next instant, another startling thing occurred. The ship that was engulfed by flames and exploded in the air.

The Albion ship was reduced to ruins and came crashing down to the ground.

“W-What is this? Did the fire reach the ammunition storage?”

The Mercator was in an uproar.

“Calm down! Calm down!” Fevisu (フェヴィス) yelled at the sailors.

A signal flag was seen from the Lexington. A sailor started reading the signals with a telescope.

“From the Lexington fleet captain. Explain the meaning behind sinking Hobart.”

“Sinking? What is he saying?! It exploded by itself!”

La Ramée was panicking.

“Send a reply. ‘The fire from my ship was a response to your salute. The salvo didn’t contain any live shells’”

A reply was sent promptly by the Lexington.

“Your ship's attack used live ammunition. We shall return your intent of war.”

“What nonsense!”

La Ramée’s cry was drowned by the bombardment from the Lexington.

Impact. The mast of the Mercator broke off and a few holes had been made in the deck.

“How can their cannons reach from such a distance?!” said a surprised Fevisu (フェヴィス) on the shaking deck.

“Send a message! ‘Cease fire, we have no intent of war’”

The Lexington replied with a barrage of cannon shells.

Impact. The ship was shaking and fires had started here and there.

Like a shriek, Mercator’s message repeated over and over.

“We repeat! Cease fire! We have no intent of war!”

The Lexington’s fire showed no signs of stopping.

Impact. La Ramée’s body was sent flying out of Fevisu’s (フェヴィス) sight.

The sock of the impact had thrown Fevisu (フェヴィス) onto the floor. He suddenly realized that the attack was all planned. They never had any intention of a “good-willed visit” at all. They had all been deceived by Albion.

The ship started to go up in flames and the injured sailors groaned in pain. Shaking his head while standing up, Fevisu (フェヴィス) yelled, “The commander in chief is dead! The flagship captain will now take control of the fleet! Damage report! Full speed ahead! Prepare the right cannons!”

“So they’ve finally realized.” Said Wardes, who was standing next to Bowood, as he leisurely watched the Tristain fleet. Wardes also believed the commander in chief, Johnston, didn't deserve the title and would be unable to do anything. Wardes was in effect, the commandering officer.

“Seems like it, viscount. However, it seems we will win soon enough.”

The Albion fleet, which had superior mobility, had already taken action to suppress the full on charge of the Tristain fleet.

The Albion fleet kept a fixed distance, and continued firing their cannons. Their fleet numbered twice that of Tristain’s and in addition they had the huge Lexington, which had the new cannon model. There was no contest in firepower.

As if they were tormenting the Tristain fleet, the Albion fleet continued their fire. The Mercator, which was already on fire, had started to slant. In an instant, the Mercator exploded with a deafening roar. None of the ships in the Tristain fleet were undamaged. The fleet was thrown into chaos with the loss the flagship.

Destroying them was only a matter of time now. Ships could be seen flying their white flags already.

On the Lexington, cries of “Long live Albion! Long live the holy king Cromwell!” could be heard. Bowood knitted his eyebrows. During the days of the Royal Air force, no one used to say things like “Long live so and so” during battle. Even the commander in chief, Johnston had joined in.

“Captain, a new page in history has begun.” Said Wardes

As if mourning for his enemies, who didn’t even have a chance to cry out in pain, Bowood whispered, “No, only a war has begun.”

<center>***</center>

Soon after the news that the entire Tristain fleet in La Rochelle had been wiped out arrived, a declaration of war was issued by Albion. It blamed Tristain for breaking the non-aggression treaty by attacking their fleet without reason, and stated “As an act of self-defense, The Holy Republic of Albion shall declare war on the kingdom of Tristain.”

The palace, which had been busily occupied with Henrietta’s departure for Germania, was thrown into a state of confusion from the turn of events.

The generals, cabinet ministers and other officals immediately held a meeting. But the meeting was little more than a disordered ramble. Opinions that they should inquire Albion about the circumstances of the events, or that they should dispatch messengers requesting aid were thrown about.

Sitting in the meeting’s seat of honor was a shocked Henrietta. She was wearing her beautiful wedding dress that had just been finished. She had originally planned to head to Germania by carriage after the dress had been finished.

She was like a blooming flower in the meeting room. But no one had even noticed.

“Albion states that our fleet attacked them first! However our fleet says they only did a cannon salute.”

“Accidents can cause misunderstandings.”

“Let’s hold a meeting in Albion to sort this out! Perhaps there is still a chance to mend this misunderstanding!”

While the powerful nobles stated their opinions, the Cardinal Mazarini nodded.

“Right. Dispatch a special envoy to Albion. We will approach this cautiously, before it turns into a total war over a mere misunderstanding.”

At that moment, an urgent report arrived.

The messenger carrying the letter from the carrier owl, rushed into the meeting room.

“It’s an urgent report! After landing, the Albion fleet has started capturing land!”

“Where did they land?”

“The outskirts of La Rochelle! It seems like in the field of Tarbes!”

In the garden of her parent’s house, Siesta hugged her young siblings, watching the skies with an uneasy face. An explosion had been heard not long before in the direction of La Rochelle. Surprised, she went out to the garden and saw the dreadful scene in the sky. Numerous ships were on fire and sinking, crashing onto the mountain’s surface and dropping into the middle of the forest.

The village was in a state of confusion. A short while later, a large ship had descended from the sky. The ship, so large that it could be easily mistaken for a cloud, dropped it’s anchor on the field in the village.

Numerous dragons flew out of it.

“Sister, what’s happening?” asked her younger brothers and sisters.

“Let’s get in the house,” urged Siesta, hiding her fear.

Inside the house, her parents were looking out the windows with troubled expressions.

“Isn’t that Albion's fleet?” her father said, looking at the ship anchored in the field.

“Could it be … A war?”

Her father shook his head.

“That’s not possible. We have a non-aggression treaty with Albion. The lord proclaimed it recently.”

“Then why was the sky full of sinking ships?”

The dragons flying above the ship headed towards the village. Her father grasped his wife and stepped away from the window. With loud cries, the dragons descended upon the village and set the houses on fire.

Her mother screamed. The house was alight and the glass from the windows scattered everywhere. The village was saturated in the blazing flames, roaring of the dragons and the shrieking of the people. Carrying her unconscious mother, the father turned to Siesta, who was shaking.

“Siesta! Take your siblings and run to the forest!”

Straddling a large wind dragon, a smile appeared on Wardes’ face as he trampled on his home country. The dragoons under his command rode fire dragons. A wind dragon cannot match a fire dragon in power, but surpasses a fire dragon in speed. He had chosen the wind dragon solely because he was commanding. To clear the path for the main force, Wardes mercilessly set the village on fire. In the background, soldiers were dropping down one by one with ropes from the Lexington. The field was an excellent strategic foothold for the invading troops.

From the direction of the field, dozens of the neighboring lord’s troops were charging forward. The Tristainian troops could pose a significant threat to the soldiers disembarking onto the field. Wardes signaled his underlings to crush the small opposition force. A barrage of fire magic flew from the dragons but still, the Tristainians ferociously charged forward. The reckless force was utterly devastated by the dragon’s flames.

<center>***</center>

It was past noon. Reports of the events came bursting in the conference room.

“The lord of Tarbes has died in battle!”

“The scout sent to investigate the dragoons has not returned!”

“We still haven’t received a reply from Albion regarding our enquiries!”

Meaningless discussions repeated themselves in the conference room.

“We should request aid from Germania!”

“Aggravating the matter like that would…”

“How about attacking them with our whole dragoon force?”

“Round up the remaining ships! All of them! No matter how old or small!”

“Let’s dispatch a special envoy! Attacking them will only give them an excuse to engage in a total war!”

The meeting could not reach an agreement. Mazarini was having difficulty coming to a conclusion himself. He was still hoping for a way to settle things diplomatically.

Amongst the heated debate, Henrietta looked at the wind ruby she wore on her ring finger. It was a memento from Wales. She was reminded of the man’s face she entrusted herself to.

Did I not vow upon this ring back then?

If my dear Wales has courageously died then… I too should live courageously.

“Tarbes is up in flames!”

She was surprised at her own voice but quickly regained her composure. With a deep breath, she stood up. Everyone looked at her. Henrietta spoke in a trembling voice.

“Aren’t you all ashamed of yourselves?”

“Princess?”

“Our lands are being captured by enemies. There are things we need to do before bickering about alliances and special envoys, isn’t there?"

“But… princess… It’s just some tension caused by a misunderstanding.”

“Misunderstanding? How can you still say that? Sinking a ship during a cannon salute is a bit extreme isn’t it?”

“We have signed a non-aggression treaty. It was an accident.”

“And that treaty is broken as easily as paper. They had no intention of keeping that treaty. It was just a lie to gain time. Albion’s actions clearly show that they have intention to war.”

“But…”

Henrietta hit the table and started yelling.

“The blood of our people is being spilled while we are doing this! Is it not the duty of nobles to protect them? For what reason do we bear royal and noble names? Have they not let us reign over them so we can protect them in times of need like this?”

Everyone was speechless. Henrietta continued with a cold voice.

“You’re all scared, aren’t you? Albion is a large country after all. If we counterattack our chances of winning are slim. Is it because you think you will be held responsible as one of the leaders of the counter attack after the battle is lost? You all plan to cower here to lengthen your lives?”

“Princess,” interjected Mazarini.

"However," Henrietta continued.

“I will ride forth. You can continue your meeting here.”

Henrietta burst out of the conference room. Mazarini and numerous nobles tried to hold her back.

“Princess! You should rest before your wedding!”

“Ugh! It’s so hard to run in this!”

Henrietta tore her wedding dress so that it was above her knees and threw the torn piece at Mazarini’s face.

“Perhaps you can go get married.”

“My carriage and my guards! Come!” she yelled when she reached the courtyard.

Her carriage was brought, led by the holy beasts, unicorns.

The remaining magical defense squad in the courtyard assembled at once on Henrietta’s call.

She unfastened one unicorn and straddled it.

“I shall command the troops! Regiments, assemble!”

Aware of the situation, every soldier saluted simultaneously.

Henrietta hit the unicorn’s stomach.

The unicorn magnificently raised its hooves up high under the bright sun and set off.

“Follow the princess!” cried the soldiers while following Henrietta, mounted on the beasts.

“Follow! A delay brings shame to the family name!”

The nobles in the courtyard dashed out. The word spread through the regiments scattered about the town.

Watching this absent mindedly, Mazarini looked up at the skies.

"I knew we would go to war with Albion someday, despite my efforts, but… our country is not prepared."

He was not concerned about his own life. He bore the worries of his country in his own way, and for the sake of the people, he had made his decision. Even if it meant a small sacrifice, he didn’t want to engage in a lost battle.

But, it was as the princess said. His efforts and devotion to diplomacy had been boiled away. Of what use is clinging to it? There are things to be taken care of first.

One of the high-class nobles whispered in Mazarini’s ear.

“Cardinal, about the special envoy…”

Mazarini slapped the nobles face with his cap. He coiled the torn piece from the wedding dress, which Henrietta had thrown at him, on his head.

“All of you! To your horses! If we let the princess go alone we will be forever cast in shame!”

----

<noinclude>
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|-
| [[Zero_no_Tsukaima:Volume3_Chapter8|Back to Chapter 8]]
| [[Zero_no_Tsukaima|Return to Main Page]]
| [[Zero_no_Tsukaima:Volume3_Chapter10|Forward to Chapter 10]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Zero no Tsukaima:Volume3 Chapter8

2008-04-20T03:09:25Z

128.61.59.72:

===Chapter Eight: Colbert's Laboratory ===

Mr Colbert was forty-two years old. He had been in the service of the academy for twenty years. He was a mage whose nickname was “Flaming Serpent”. His hobby… or more accurately, his life was centered around research and invention. He had rushed down to the courtyard once he had seen the object being carried by the dragons from his research laboratory. His curiosity had been set alight.

“You, what’s that? Can you explain to me?”

Colbert’s face shone as he looked at Saito, who was watching the zero fighter being lowered.

“Ah, I wanted to talk to you about it actually.”

“Me?”

Colbert was taken aback. Who exactly was this young commoner? All he knew was that he was the legendary familiar, Gandalfr, summoned by Miss Vallière. Born in Roba Aru Kariei, he was the only person to have called Colbert’s invention “great”.

“This is called an airplane. In my world, they’re seen flying everywhere.”

“This flies!? Wow! Wonderful!”

Colbert started looking at different parts of the zero fighter with a deep interest.

“Could it be that this is the wing! It seems like it can’t flap like normal wings! What about this windmill?”

“That’s called a propeller. When it spins it causes the airplane to go forward.”

Eyes wide in amazement, Colbert drew closer to Saito.

“I see! When it spins, it causes the power of wind! It’s well made, isn’t it! Could you fly it for me? Look, my hands are shaking from my curiosity!”

Troubled, Saito scratched his head.

“Um… To turn the propellers, I need gasoline.”

“Gasoline? What’s that?”

“That what I want to talk to you about. You know the class we had where you showed us that invention of yours?”

“The joyful snake?”

“Yes! You had to burn oil to make it move right?”

“So you need oil? That’s a problem that is easily solved!”

“No, I don’t think that will work. It has to be gasoline.”

“Gasoline? Hm… well there are many different types of oil.”

Saito suddenly realized the dragoons were grinning broadly at them. Guiche whispered in Saito’s ear.

“Sorry if you are busy, but if you don’t pay the transportation fee…”

“You guys are nobles too aren’t you? Stop constantly bickering about money.”

“Hey, soldiers are poor you know.”

Saito smiled at Colbert.

“Mr Colbert, could you possibly pay the transportation fee for the time being?”

<center>***</center>

Colbert’s laboratory was situated in a small area between the central tower and the fire tower. It was much like an old dugout shed.

“At first I conducted experiments in my own room, but noise and bad smells come naturally with research. I was complained to by the people next to me shortly afterwards.”

The wooden racks were cluttered with bottles of medicine, test tubes, jars containing nostrum and the like. Next to that was a wall of bookshelves, crammed with books. There was a celestial globe made from parchment stuck on a sphere, and other various maps. There were lizards, snakes and birds that he had never seen before inside cages. A musky smell which was neither from dust nor mold filled the entire room. Saito pinched his nose.

“You’ll get used to the smell soon. A woman however wouldn’t, which is the reason why I’m single.”

Colbert sat down while muttering answers to questions he wasn’t being asked. He sniffed the gasoline he had gotten from the bottom of the zero fighter's fuel tank. Since a permanence spell was placed on the zero fighter, the gasoline had not undergone any change in chemical composition.

“Hm… It’s a smell I’ve never smelt before. Giving off such a smell without even being heated… This must be quite easy to burn. If this were to be used as an explosive, it would be of alarming strength.”

He reached for a piece of parchment near him and started jotting down notes.

“If I duplicate this oil, that ‘airplane’ will fly?”

“Probably… If it hasn’t broken already.”

“Interesting! Concocting substances is tough work but I’ll try it!”

Muttering to himself, he took out all sorts of substances and lit his alcohol lamp.

“You’re called Saito, right?”

Saito nodded.

“You said in your home town, these could be seen flying everywhere? The technology of the lands the elves govern in the east seem to far outclass any technology in Halkeginia.”

Saito felt somewhat bad for lying to Colbert, who had been more than willing to help him in concocting gasoline and had also paid for the transportation fees.

“Mr Colbert, actually, I’m… not from this world. This airplane, and also the “Staff of Destruction” which destroyed Fouquet’s golem and I, are from another world.”

Colbert’s hand suddenly stopped.

“What did you say?”

“I come from another world.”

Colbert gazed steadily at Saito and then proceeded to nod his head, as though he were impressed.

“I see.” he whispered.

“Aren’t you surprised?”

“Well, of course I am. But you definitely seem like it. The way you speak and your behavior has a different feel. Hm, this is becoming more and more interesting.”

“You’re a strange person aren’t you, Mr Colbert?”

“I get called strange by many people. I haven’t even found someone willing to marry me yet. But I have a belief.”

“A belief?”

“Yes. The nobles of Halkeginia treat magic as a mere tool… Like a broom, they only see it as a handy tool. I don’t think magic is something like that. Magic could be used for so much more. Instead of simply sticking to the traditional uses of the different branches of magic, we should be experimenting to find different ways to utilize it.”

Nodding, Colbert continued.

“After seeing you, my belief has grown stronger. Who would have thought there was another world! This shows that the rules of Halkeginia are not absolute! Interesting! Such an interesting topic! I want see this world. There are probably lots of new things to be discovered! It’ll probably add a new page to my research! If you have any questions at all, just come and talk with me. Colbert the flaming serpent will always help you.”

<center>***</center>

In the Austri courtyard, Saito was sitting in the cockpit of the zero fighter and inspecting it's parts. When he grasped the control stick, or even if he merely touched a switch, the runes on his left hand shone. Information would then flow to his brain, and tell him the condition of the part. When he moved the control stick, the ailerons of the wings and the elevator on the tail moved with a clank. The tail rudder moved when he stepped on the rudder bar and a cross shaped pointer appeared on the glass pane when he pushed the sight device switch on the instrument board. The engines on either side of the body of the plane were still alive. The shining Gandalfr runes told its user quite a bit. A smile appeared on Saito’s face.

“Partner, can this fly?”

“Yes.”

“Something like this flying… Your world is a strange one.”

Numerous students were watching Saito in the zero fighter, but they quickly lost interest and left. ''There are only a few nobles who would be interested in this, like Colbert,'' Saito thought. Suddenly a girl appeared, proudly brushing her pinkish blond hair with her hand.

Louise stared at Saito and the thing he was in. As if she were angry, she pointed her finger at it and said, “What’s that?”

Saito raised his head from the cockpit and simply replied, “An airplane”. As they still weren’t on good terms, he said it while facing away.

“Come down from that airplane thing, then.” Ordered Louise, pouting her lips while placing her hands on her hips. He ignored her and continued inspecting the parts of the zero fighter. Louise grasped the end of a wing and started to make the zero fighter wobble.

“I said come down, didn’t I?”

"Fine", whispered Saito as he got off and headed to Louise.

“Where did you go?”

“Treasure hunting.”

“What were you thinking, going without telling your master?”

Louise crossed her arms and stared at Saito. Saito noticed that her eyes were puffy.

“Didn’t you fire me?”

Louise cast her eyes downwards and spoke with a voice as if she were about to cry.

“I suppose you deserve a chance to explain yourself. If you have anything you want to say, then say it now.”

“What is there to explain? I didn’t do anything. This is about Siesta right? Siesta was just about to fall down so I tried to catch her. I then fell down as well, making it look as if I had pushed her down onto the bed."

The real reason was because Siesta had suddenly started to take off her clothes, but for Siesta’s sake he didn’t say that.

“Then, nothing really happened?”

“Nothing. Why were you so angry? That was the first time she came to the room. As if something like that would happen. Why were you angry, anyway? What me and Siesta do is none of your business, right?” Said Saito.

''Louise only thinks of me as a familiar. The only reason she treats me better is becuase of her newfound compassion for animals.'' 

“It’s none of my business, but in some ways it is.”

“Which one is it?”

Louise glared at Saito and groaned.

Louise tugged at his sleeve. She was whispering things like “Hey, apologize” and “Why are you being so uptight, you made me so worried”, but Saito wasn’t looking at Louise anymore. He was looking at the zero fighter in a daze.

Louise had jumped to her own conclusions. She was ashamed that she had shut herself in her room and sulked. She drew out the deadly technique she had been saving. It was a girl’s secret technique, which would sweep away any suspicion, anger, contradiction, and even the fact that Louise drove Saito out. She burst into tears.

Buckets of tears came streaming down from her eyes.

“Where did you go all this time! Idiot! I hate you!”

[[Image:ZnT03-191.JPG|thumb|''“Where did you go all this time! Idiot!”'']]
Sniffling, she wiped the streaming tears with the back of her hand.

“H-Hey, don’t cry.”

Panicking, Saito placed his hands on Louise’s shoulder. Louise cried even harder.

“I hate you! I hate you!”

Kirche approached them, holding a mop and a dust cloth in her hands. Because they had skipped lessons, their punishment was to wipe the academy’s windows clean. As Saito was neither a noble nor a student at the academy, he didn’t have to do anything.

Guiche looked at Saito, who was comforting Louise, and grinned.

“You can’t just make your master cry like that.”

Kirche said dully, “Made up already? That’s no fun…”

Tabitha simply pointed at the two and said, “After the rain comes fair weather.”

<center>***</center>

That night…

Louise lay in her bed, tightly grasping her pillow. After Saito removed his parka, Louise slipped into it, as though it was a given. She was frantically pretending to read a book. Saito looked around the room which he had been away from for a week or so. Tableware was scattered everywhere.

“So you’ve been absent from lessons?”

Montmorency had mentioned it when they passed by her in the corridor. Montmorency told Louise that she had been absent for too long, but Louise just ignored her and walked off.

Louise glared at Saito, slightly taken aback.

“So what?”

“Are you feeling ok?” asked Saito, who seemed to be worried.

She was about to say "Whose fault do you think it was that I have been skipping lessons?" but her pride got the better of her. Putting the blanket over her head, she snuggled under it. Saito scratched his head and looked at the haystack. ''So she didn’t throw it out,'' he thought, warmly glancing at Louise.

Three days pass.

Colbert awoke to the sound of hens. It seemed like he had fallen asleep without realizing. He had been absent from lessons and had shut himself in the laboratory for the past three days. In front of his eyes was a flask placed on top on an alcohol lamp. A glass tube stretched out of this, which let the heated catalyst cool and coagulate in the beaker to it's the left. This was the final step. Colbert sniffed at the gasoline he received from Saito and started cautiously reciting the alchemy incantation at the substance in the beaker while concentrating on the smell of the gasoline.

A poof of smoke rose from the beaker and the color of substance inside changed to a yellowish brown. He smelt it. The strong smell of gasoline drifted to his nose. Colbert opened the door with a thud and rushed outside.

“Saito! Saito! I’ve made it! I’ve made it! I’ve finished concocting it!”

Out of breath, Colbert approached Saito, who was inspecting the zero fighter. Within the wine bottle he held out, there was a yellowish brown liquid. Saito opened the cover of the fuel tank, which was in front of the windshield. There was a lock on it, so he had Colbert cast the unlock spell on it. He poured two bottles of the gasoline in to it.

“I analyzed the composition of the oil you gave me,” said Colbert proudly.

“It seemed to be made from microorganisms in fossils, so I searched for something similar. I decided to use the fossils of trees… in other words coal. I soaked that in a special catalyst and extracted a similar composition. After spending days doing that, I cast the alchemy spell on it. And that turned it into…”

“Gasoline, right?”

Colbert nodded and urged Saito“Quickly, turn those windmills for me. I was so excited that I didn’t even sleep.”

After filling the gas tank, Saito returned to the cockpit. Information on how to start the engine and fly the zero fighter came rushing to his brain. To start the engine, the propeller must first be spun. Saito popped his head from windshield.

“Mr. Colbert, could you spin the propeller using magic?”

“I thought it turned using the power from burning the oil?”

“To start the engine, the crank inside must be rotated manually first. I don't have a tool to turn the propeller, so if you could use magic please.”

Colbert nodded. Saito began to prepare the plane.

Firstly, he set the fuel source to the tank he had just put the fuel in.
Then he set the mixture ratio lever and the propeller pitch lever to their optimum states. Saito’s hands moved by themselves. His Gandalfr power carried out all the operations. He opened the cowl flap and closed the lid of the oil-cooling radiator. The propellers rumbled as Colbert used his magic. With his eyes wide open, Saito pressed the ignition with his right hand at the proper time. His left hand gripping the throttle lever, he tilted it forward slightly.

A sputtering sound was heard and the engine started to run after the spark plug’s ignition. As they ratted, the propellers started to turn. The body of the airplane vibrated. The brake wasn’t on and so the plane started to propel itself forward.

Colbert watched with a moved expression on his face. After checking that the engine gauges were moving, Saito turned the ignition switch off.

Jumping out of the cockpit, he hugged Colbert.

“Mr Colbert, the engine started!”

“Yes, we did it! But why didn’t it fly?”

“There’s not enough gasoline. In order to fly, we would need at least five barrels.”

“That's a lot to make! But since I’ve already done so much, I’ll finish it!”

After Colbert had returned to his laboratory, Saito continued his adjustments. He didn’t have any tools however, so he cleaned the parts. Louise called out to Saito who was seemingly absorbed doing this.

“Hey, it’s time for dinner. What have you been doing? It’s already dark.”

“I started the engine!” yelled Saito happily.

But Louise replied back dully.

“Really now. Good for you. What happens after you get the engine running?”

“It flies! It will fly!”

“What will you do when it flies?” Asked Louise in a lonely voice.

Saito told Louise of the ideas that had gone through is mind in the past two to three days.

“I’m going to try to fly east.”

“East? I can’t believe you. Are you saying you’re heading to Roba Aru Kariie? I seriously can’t believe you!”

“Why? The owner of this airplane flew from there. I could maybe find some clues on how to return to my own world.” Said Saito feverishly.

Louise didn’t seem to bear any interest however. She replied back in a lonely voice.

“You’re my familiar. You can’t just do what you want. Also, the princess’s wedding is in five days. I have to read an edict then. But I haven’t thought of anything good to say.”

Absorbed by the zero fighter, Saito nodded as if he were listening. Once he knew that it could fly, he had become mesmerized by it.

Louise pulled his ear. She was bored. ''He hasn’t paid any attention to me since he’s returned and instead just gazes at this ‘airplane’.''

“Listen to me!”

“I’m listening!”

“You’re not. You’re daydreaming. There’s no familiar that listens to its master while looking away!”

Louise dragged Saito back to her room.

Louise opened the Founder’s Prayer book in front of Saito.

“I’ll read out what I’ve thought already for the edict.”

With a cute cough, Louise began to read her edict.

“On this beautiful day, I, Louise Françoise Le Blanc de la Vallière, praying for the holy presence of the founders, shall read the blessed edict…”

And then, Louise stopped.

“Continue?”

“From here on I have to give thanks to the four branches of magic. It has to be poetic and also in rhyme….”

“Then just make it rhyme.”

Louise pouted her lips as if she were sulking.

“I can’t think of anything. Writing it poetically is a pain in the neck. I’m not a poet or anything.”

“It’s ok, just read what you have written there.”

With a troubled look, she read her ‘poetic’ lines.

“Um, as fire is hot, one needs to be careful.”

“’Needs’ isn’t poetic. You should probably remember that.”

“Shut up. When the wind blows, those who sell barrels prosper.[http://www.baka-tsuki.net/project/index.php?title=Talk:Zero_no_Tsukaima:Volume3_Chapter8#Proverb:_.22When_the_wind_blows.2C_those_who_sell_barrels_prosper.22]"

“Why would you use that proverb here?”

Louise, who didn’t seem to have any poetic talent, threw herself on the bed as if sulking and whispered, “I’m going to sleep.”

As was now usual, she changed while hiding her body behind her bedsheets. After turning off the lamp she called out to Saito, who had dove onto his haystack already.

“I said to sleep in my bed, didn’t I?”

Saito’s heart started racing.

“Really? It's ok?”

Louise didn't respond. Saito slipped into the bed thinking that she would probably get angry if he didn’t do what he was told.

Louise was still awake. She opened her mouth, as if she had wanted to talk to him.

“So, you’re really going to the lands in the east?”

“Yeah.” Saito replied.

“It’s dangerous you know. Those elves hate humans…”

“But humans live in the areas beyond the lands of the elves right? Like that place called Roba.”

“The nature of those humans is completely different. It’ll be dangerous.”

It seemed like Louise was worried about letting Saito go.

“You’re still going to go?”

Saito thought about it briefly and nodded.

“Well, I might be able to find a clue to go back home.”

Louise was moving around under the sheets. Just as he was wondering what she was doing, she rested her head on his chest.

“Wha-“

“I'm just using it instead of my pillow!” Said Louise in a sulky and angry voice.

Louise placed her hands on his chest and lightly traced her fingers on it. Electricity seemed to flow through Saito’s spine.

“Don’t misunderstand me. This doesn’t mean I like you or anything!” Louise said in an embarrassed voice.

She then went back to her usual angry voice.

“Are you still going to go even if I say no?”

Saito remained silent.

“I thought so…” Louise whispered.

“This isn’t your world, is it… Of course you’d want to go back.”

Louise’s hair had a beautiful fragrance. The sound of her breathing was close as well. The two were silent. Saito was thinking of many things. Saito wasn’t talking, and Louise didn’t know what else to say, so she simply hugged Saito’s chest tightly.

“I don’t want you to leave. When you’re beside me I can sleep without worrying. You make me angry…” Louise said in a tiny voice while embracing Saito.

''Looks like those puffy eyes were because she didn’t sleep,'' thought Saito. Soon, Louise’s steady breathing, like that of a child’s, could be heard near Saito’s chest. She was fast asleep.

Louise was so pampered it made his heart race. ''Seems like she’s uneasy without me around. Well, I’m a familiar after all.''

Listening to her breathing, Saito was deep in thought. He thought of the people he had met in this world.

He had met many people within his few months in Halkeginia. There were evil people, but also kind people.

There was Marteau from the kitchen who gave him food.

Osman, who had told him he would lend him his hand if he needed help.

Colbert, who had gladly concocted the gasoline for him.

A snob and often offensive, but a friendly person who had his own qualities, Guiche.

Not a human but a sword, a partner he had depended on, Derflinger.

Henrietta, the beautiful princess.

Courageous… and dead because of it, Prince Wales.

Tabitha, a silent person but someone who had saved him on numerous occasions.

The seductive Kirche, who said she liked Saito, though it might have been a joke.

Siesta, the cute and kind maid… who probably had feelings for him.

And lastly, his master next to him, who made his heart race. Arrogant and stuck up, but one who occasionally showed kindness that would melt his heart, Louise. A girl with pinkish blond hair and big reddish brown eyes.

''When the time comes for me to go home, will I be able to leave these people with a smile on my face?''

''Will I be able to leave Louise with a smile?''

''I don’t know.''

''But…'' Saito thought

''The people who have been kind to me, I want to do the most I can for them.''

''At least while I’m in this world, I want to do something for them.''

He hadn’t felt these feelings before up until now.

For the time being, Saito embraced Louise’s head gently.

Louise groaned in her sleep.

----

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