Baka-Tsuki - User contributions [en]

Zero no Tsukaima:Volume11 Chapter3

2011-06-06T03:18:10Z

203.218.133.154:

{{Template:PREVIEW}}

===Chapter Three: Karin the Heavy Wind===

It was the morning of the second day since leaving Tristain when the Queen's carriage crossed the drawbridge of the La Vallière residence. Since it was a low-profile visit, other than Agnes and Colbert, there were only five musketeers guarding the wagon.

As the party passed the bridge and gates, the servants who gathered there rejoiced. The flagpole in the front yard had the Lilies emblem, the arms of the Tristanian royal family, on it. A small courtesy for the incognito queen.

When Agnes got off the horse, she opened the door of the carriage.

The armor of a magic knight was seen in the center of the stairs that continued to the castle. Agnes squinted at it.

“What’s the matter, commander?”

Then Henrietta saw the knight who stood at the center of the stairs, and gasped in surprise.

“That’s the armor of the Manticore Corps.”

Indeed, the armor had the big black mantel with the Manticore Corps' emblem sewn on it.

“But the Manticore Corps works at the castle now. Besides, that shuttlecock decoration… That hat belongs to a commander.”

“But the body is too thin to be De Cesaire.”

“Perhaps it’s not his to begin with.”

The knight slowly went down stairs. Musketeers, surrounding the Queen, watched the figure intensely with their hands on their guns.

Then Agnes took one step forth and blocked the knight’s path. The lower half of his face, under the knight's hat decorated with shuttlecock, was covered with an iron mask. Feeling intense pressure for the moment, Agnes grasped the handle of her sword.

“Are you a friend of Duke de La Valliere? To go out to meet Her Majesty like this - it’s too much even for a prank. Introduce yourself.”

However, the knight ignored Agnes's words, and knelt down on one knee in respect.

“It's been a long time, Your Majesty. However, you will surely not remember me, because it has been a good 30 years since the last time I served the castle.”

“Umm…”

Henrietta, with an open-jaw, looked at the knight. Indeed, though the mantle's colors faded a lot over the years, it was still nicely kept - neither stain nor tear could be found.

“I am Karin, the former commander of the Manticore corps. However, even though I introduced myself with a different name back then, my loyalty for the royal family has not changed.”

Henrietta had heard about the former commander of Manticore Corps, so her face turned pale.

“Then, you are Karin the Heavy Wind?!”

“Yes, I am honored that you know the name.”

“Of course I know – you are infamous! Agnes, this is Karin the Heavy Wind, the legendary magic knight commander! I grew up hearing about her heroic adventures!”

Henrietta had the face of a starry-eyed little girl as she took Karin’s hand.

“I had yearned to meet you so much since childhood! Fire dragon extermination! Rescue of a city attacked by orcs… Gorgeous use of weapons! Presence massive as a mountain! Ages when nobles were still noble, and true knights. A lot of knights respect you and try to be just like you!”

“It’s embarrassing.”

“What would you say?! I-I know all your adventures by memory! You are a woman, right? After you retired, though, I heard that you disappeared like the wind, but you were with La Vallières. What are you doing now?”

Karin removed her mask abruptly. Seeing her face, Henrietta’s eyes almost popped from their sockets.

“Duchess! You are the Duchess!”

Agnes was surprised too.

“Then, this…”

“In other words, I am the Duchess de La Vallière – the mother of Louise…”

“I took the opportunity to marry and took off my armor. But it is a long story since that time, so please pardon me.”

“I understand, but why…”

Henrietta wanted to ask why she now wore the armor that she previously took off.

Karin stood up straight.

“For today, I am not the Duchess Karin. I am Karin, the former commander of the Manticore Corps, who respects the rule of steel. And I will punish that law breaking daughter of mine. This will be the proof of my loyalty to Your Majesty and family.”

“Punishment?! Heavy Wind’s punishment on Louise?!”

Henrietta watched Karin in deep shock, shaking her head. Her face turned pale. She had gone there with the intention to punish Louise, so her feelings withered for a moment. But this person would give a much more severe punishment than she herself intended. Should the punishment be dealt, Louise would die for sure!

“You should not be violent! I came here to deal with Louise’s punishment myself. Because I am young, at first I was resented. However, I thought about it a lot. Though Louise passed national borders certainly without my permission… I am also worried about it as a friend too. Just a strong reprimand will do, I do not intend to give a violent penalty.”

“Your Majesty, your words are kind, and you feel regretful. However, Your Majesty's royal prerogative is of the sacred non-aggression given by the Founder. Thus, you have to protect the laws of the country promulgated in that name, too.”

Karin quickly raised her right hand. From the shade of the castle, a huge, black shadow flew. A strong dust storm rose as it touched the ground.

It was an old and huge mythical beast, the Manticore.

“If the laws of the country that should be respected are neglected, Your Majesty should keep her royal principles. But because the law-breaker is my own daughter, I cannot forgive it all the more.”

Karin effortlessly flew up fifty meters and straddled the manticore.

“K-Karin-dono!”

The Manticore flapped its huge wings. And, with amazing speed, the mythical beast flew up to the sky with its master.

La Vallière's castle was closer to the border of Germania than the capital. After passing the nation's borders at three o'clock, they could already see the high steeples of the castle.

“H-Hey Louise… Your mother is really the Heavy Wind of the Manticore Corps?”

Saito opened his mouth, breaking the heavy silence. However, Louise did not say a thing. Those days, Louise passed her time trembling and staring at the ceiling.

“As good as thirty years passed, maybe she's changed? Nah? It is not unreasonable that the scary knight of the past mellowed out over the years. Even if you say punishment, I think you will just be grounded, at most.”

“…You don’t understand.”

Louise said in the voice of someone at her own execution.

“Violence is part of youth, no human can keep it steady forever,”

Montmorency rationalized.

“…You just don’t understand.”

“Don't worry so much.”

“…Saying so plainly, my mother. That person…”

After those words, everyone in the wagon felt nervous. It became impossible for Saito to bear the tension, and he laughed aloud. Mere bravado.

“Ahahaha! Worrying this much!”

“Really! Even if she was the legendary Heavy Wind, she may just be a Duchess now! Refined by society, she may have completely forgotten the dust and dirt of the battlefield!”

At that time, Tabitha pointed to the window,

“A manticore-riding knight.”

Louise suddenly sprung to her feet, and as if overtaken by panic, broke the window of the carriage and flew outside.

Gooooooooooooooooo!
　
A huge tornado appeared and followed Louise’s tracks.

“W-What’s that?!”

The moment Saito was dumb-founded… the tornado enlarged and hit the entire carriage with enormous strength. The violent power blew off the harness that tied horses to the wagon and sucked it and the horses in, lifting them up into the sky.

“What’s thaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!” Saito shouted.

“Giyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!” Guiche screamed.

“Uwaaaaaaaaaaaa!” Malicorne bellowed.

“Nooooooooooooooooooooo!” Montmorency cried.

“I give uuuup…” Kirche complained.

“…” Tabitha was silent.

It was as if a huge hand made of wind grabbed the carriage and lifted it up. Six people in the wagon were shaken like a cocktail in a shaker.

“Aii! Dee! Giyaaa!”

The six screaming people were hitting walls, seats, and each other. Then the tornado stopped abruptly and the wagon fell to the ground.

“Falling! Falling! Falling!”

''Is this how it feels to be in a lift that had its cable cut?'' Saito thought dumbly as the carriage casually floated in the air.

The knight had placed the “Levitation” spell on them.

Though the wagon slowly landed, the party was lying scattered and worn out inside the carriage.
　
Saito, thinking desperately, crawled out of the wagon. Louise was lying shaking on the ground.

“Lou-i-se!”

Though he tried to shout and run up to her, he could not move well.

Riding atop a huge manticore, the knight wearing a black mantle appeared. That must have been Louise’s mama. However, she was frightening. Standing there, it looked like “stern” was the character of this knight and that “fear” was deeply emblazed in this armored doll-like figure.

Then she stopped at the fallen Louise and called out her daughter.

“Get up, Louise.”

Louise raised herself.

“Mother-sama…”

She was shaking violently as if suffering from a strong cold. Like a small dog threatened by a big German shepherd. Though Louise could be scary when she was angry as well, this had a completely different feeling to it – it was like comparing a bear to a rat.

“You. Report what you have broken to your mother.”

“That… b-border without permission, umm…”

“I cannot hear you.”

“B-Border crossing without permission.”

The tornado flew. It caught Louise and threw her two hundred meters up into the sky, and once she started falling down, the wind started spinning her around like a tiny fallen leaf.

“Is this what your mother taught you?”

Her pink hair was disheveled and her skirt was blown off somewhere, revealing her underwear in their full glory, but it was not the place for Louise to feel shy about it.

“I-I’m sorry for breaking the laws of the country! But there were extenuating circumstances!”

The knight extended the wand.

“Your little good deeds do not matter much in this respect. Whatever the circumstances were, the law has been broken. As a result, it can make a lot more people unhappy.”

The storm blew hard against Louise.

Not able to look at this anymore, Saito ran up to stand in front of Louise.

“P-Please stop!”

“And you are?”

Wearing black mantle, her lower half of the face hidden behind the mask, Karin asked Saito.

“Well… umm, Louise’s familiar.”

“Aah!”

Karin nodded.

“You were the boy accompanying Louise the other day. So, you were a familiar.”

Saito then knelt on the ground and took Louise in his arms, trying to wake her up.

“Hey! Are you alright? Are you alive?”

“Fhn… mou, no… fhn”

Louise’s eyes were still spinning and she looked out of shape. It could hardly be otherwise. It was as if she had been thrown into a huge washing machine– washed, rinsed, dried and blown. Even the prettiest girl in the country would look a mess after such ride.

Karin set up the wand again.

“W-Wait! Can’t you stop for now! Louise is already worn-out!”

Seeing Saito acting like this, Guiche called out.

“Stop it, Saito. It’s a problem between family members. Are you tired of living?”

Karin quietly watched Saito.

“A familiar is their master’s shield. For that reason, the shield needs to be blown off. No hard feelings I hope?”

A huge tornado appeared behind Karin. It was almost on the same size as the one that blew the wagon. Saito grasped Derflinger. The runes on his left hand started to shine.

[[Image:ZnT11-059.jpg|thumb]]

“Hey Derf.”

“What?”

“Is it bad?”

Saito pointed at the huge tornado.

“It is bad. It isn’t just a wild tornado. The layer of the vacuum narrows around it and will cut deeply if touched. Frightening square spellcraft…”

There was no time to hear the explanation.

It leaped right at him and Saito, aiming the sword forward, received it at once.

“Stop! Run away!”

Though Derflinger shouted, there was no time. Long, deep cuts, as if done by innumerable sharp razors, appeared all over Saito’s body.

“H-Huuuuuuuuurts!”

“Told you so! This fellow is a ‘Cutter Tornado!’ You will be cut to pieces before I can absorb it!”

Though Saito was soaking with blood, he did not move an inch.

Confused and paralyzed with fear, Louise’s eyes caught the sight of the wounded Saito. In an instant, her mind, dyed with the pure white of fear a few moments before, now blazed with anger like a raging fire.

Normally, Louise would never rebel against her mother. She grew up disciplined like that.

Without thinking, Louise lifted her wand and recited the "Void" spell.

Once the sounds of spell chanting reached Karin’s ears, she slightly puckered up her brows. She never heard of such spell. It was not fire. Not water. Nor wind. It wasn’t even an earth spell.

Louise rejected the wand and lowered it. The rampaging "Cutter Tornado," that engulfed Saito, started to shine.

Not used to such light, Karin flinched for a split second.

What on earth was that spell that her daughter cast?

Though the preparation time was short, it was still strong enough to cancel her own spell.

Louise’s "Dispel Magic" made her mother’s "Cutter Tornado" vanish…

When Karen finally recovered from the shock and started to utter an incantation again, something pressed against her back.

“Please stop it! That’s enough! Please stop!”

It was Henrietta, who rode by the horse all the way from La Vallière castle. Agnes was right behind her.

“I won’t tolerate any more fights in front of me! Moreover, you are parent and child! If you want to continue, you’ll have to turn your wand against me!”

Following the queen’s words, Karin put down the wand. Louise and Saito, who had already reached the limit of their physical strength and energy, both crumbled to the ground.

Henrietta ran up to the fallen Saito.

“You are badly injured!”

Panicking, she started to recite a water magic spell. Saito's injuries were healed by the queen’s "Healing." He lifted up his bloody face.

“Princess-sama…”

“Don’t talk! You are badly hurt!”

Henrietta recited another water magic in succession.

“Louise…”

Henrietta's cheek trembled.

“It’s alright – she is safe. Her friend is looking after her.”

It was Montmorency who left the wagon and now was tending Louise.

“I see…” muttered Saito and fainted.

Next to the tending Henrietta, Karin knelt down

“Your Majesty, I punished my sinful daughter. Hope you will show her a greater punishment than mine.”

Henrietta let out a long sigh.

“Mo! What is that! You! When child and parent point their wands at each other – it makes the Founder Brimir grieve! Didn’t I say that I did not intend to give any punishment since the very beginning!”

“Solving everything with wands - is the way of old nobles.”

“Unnecessarily bloodshed is what I hate the most! You there! Quick, carry these two injured people to the residence!”

Following Henrietta's orders, Guiche and others put "Levitation" on Louise and Saito and started to carry them to the castle.

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Back to [[Zero_no_Tsukaima:Volume11_Chapter2|Chapter 2]]
| Return to [[Zero_no_Tsukaima|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Zero_no_Tsukaima:Volume11_Chapter4|Chapter 4]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Zero no Tsukaima:Volume11 Chapter3

2011-06-06T03:17:32Z

203.218.133.154:

{{Template:PREVIEW}}

===Chapter Three: Karin the Heavy Wind===

It was the morning of the second day since leaving Tristain when the Queen's carriage crossed the drawbridge of the La Vallière residence. Since it was a low-profile visit, other than Agnes and Colbert, there were only five musketeers guarding the wagon.

As the party passed the bridge and gates, the servants who gathered there rejoiced. The flagpole in the front yard had the Lilies emblem, the arms of the Tristanian royal family, on it. A small courtesy for the incognito queen.

When Agnes got off the horse, she opened the door of the carriage.

The armor of a magic knight was seen in the center of the stairs that continued to the castle. Agnes squinted at it.

“What’s the matter, commander?”

Then Henrietta saw the knight who stood at the center of the stairs, and gasped in surprise.

“That’s the armor of the Manticore Corps.”

Indeed, the armor had the big black mantel with the Manticore Corps' emblem sewn on it.

“But the Manticore Corps works at the castle now. Besides, that shuttlecock decoration… That hat belongs to a commander.”

“But the body is too thin to be De Cesaire.”

“Perhaps it’s not his to begin with.”

The knight slowly went down stairs. Musketeers, surrounding the Queen, watched the figure intensely with their hands on their guns.

Then Agnes took one step forth and blocked the knight’s path. The lower half of his face, under the knight's hat decorated with shuttlecock, was covered with an iron mask. Feeling intense pressure for the moment, Agnes grasped the handle of her sword.

“Are you a friend of Duke de La Valliere? To go out to meet Her Majesty like this - it’s too much even for a prank. Introduce yourself.”

However, the knight ignored Agnes's words, and knelt down on one knee in respect.

“It's been a long time, Your Majesty. However, you will surely not remember me, because it has been a good 30 years since the last time I served the castle.”

“Umm…”

Henrietta, with an open-jaw, looked at the knight. Indeed, though the mantle's colors faded a lot over the years, it was still nicely kept - neither stain nor tear could be found.

“I am Karin, the former commander of the Manticore corps. However, even though I introduced myself with a different name back then, my loyalty for the royal family has not changed.”

Henrietta had heard about the former commander of Manticore Corps, so her face turned pale.

“Then, you are Karin the Heavy Wind?!”

“Yes, I am honored that you know the name.”

“Of course I know – you are infamous! Agnes, this is Karin the Heavy Wind, the legendary magic knight commander! I grew up hearing about her heroic adventures!”

Henrietta had the face of a starry-eyed little girl as she took Karin’s hand.

“I had yearned to meet you so much since childhood! Fire dragon extermination! Rescue of a city attacked by orcs… Gorgeous use of weapons! Presence massive as a mountain! Ages when nobles were still noble, and true knights. A lot of knights respect you and try to be just like you!”

“It’s embarrassing.”

“What would you say?! I-I know all your adventures by memory! You are a woman, right? After you retired, though, I heard that you disappeared like the wind, but you were with La Vallières. What are you doing now?”

Karin removed her mask abruptly. Seeing her face, Henrietta’s eyes almost popped from their sockets.

“Duchess! You are the Duchess!”

Agnes was surprised too.

“Then, this…”

“In other words, I am the Duchess de La Vallière – the mother of Louise…”

“I took the opportunity to marry and took off my armor. But it is a long story since that time, so please pardon me.”

“I understand, but why…”

Henrietta wanted to ask why she now wore the armor that she previously took off.

Karin stood up straight.

“For today, I am not the Duchess Karin. I am Karin, the former commander of the Manticore Corps, who respects the rule of steel. And I will punish that law breaking daughter of mine. This will be the proof of my loyalty to Your Majesty and family.”

“Punishment?! Heavy Wind’s punishment on Louise?!”

Henrietta watched Karin in deep shock, shaking her head. Her face turned pale. She had gone there with the intention to punish Louise, so her feelings withered for a moment. But this person would give a much more severe punishment than she herself intended. Should the punishment be dealt, Louise would die for sure!

“You should not be violent! I came here to deal with Louise’s punishment myself. Because I am young, at first I was resented. However, I thought about it a lot. Though Louise passed national borders certainly without my permission… I am also worried about it as a friend too. Just a strong reprimand will do, I do not intend to give a violent penalty.”

“Your Majesty, your words are kind, and you feel regretful. However, Your Majesty's royal prerogative is of the sacred non-aggression given by the Founder. Thus, you have to protect the laws of the country promulgated in that name, too.”

Karin quickly raised her right hand. From the shade of the castle, a huge, black shadow flew. A strong dust storm rose as it touched the ground.

It was an old and huge mythical beast, the Manticore.

“If the laws of the country that should be respected are neglected, Your Majesty should keep her royal principles. But because the law-breaker is my own daughter, I cannot forgive it all the more.”

Karin effortlessly flew up fifty meters and straddled the manticore.

“K-Karin-dono!”

The Manticore flapped its huge wings. And, with amazing speed, the mythical beast flew up to the sky with its master.

La Vallière's castle was closer to the border of Germania than the capital. After passing the nation's borders at three o'clock, they could already see the high steeples of the castle.

“H-Hey Louise… Your mother is really the Heavy Wind of the Manticore Corps?”

Saito opened his mouth, breaking the heavy silence. However, Louise did not say a thing. Those days, Louise passed her time trembling and staring at the ceiling.

“As good as thirty years passed, maybe she's changed? Nah? It is not unreasonable that the scary knight of the past mellowed out over the years. Even if you say punishment, I think you will just be grounded, at most.”

“…You don’t understand.”

Louise said in the voice of someone at her own execution.

“Violence is part of youth, no human can keep it steady forever,”

Montmorency rationalized.

“…You just don’t understand.”

“Don't worry so much.”

“…Saying so plainly, my mother. That person…”

After those words, everyone in the wagon felt nervous. It became impossible for Saito to bear the tension, and he laughed aloud. Mere bravado.

“Ahahaha! Worrying this much!”

“Really! Even if she was the legendary Heavy Wind, she may just be a Duchess now! Refined by society, she may have completely forgotten the dust and dirt of the battlefield!”

At that time, Tabitha pointed to the window,

“A manticore-riding knight.”

Louise suddenly sprung to her feet, and as if overtaken by panic, broke the window of the carriage and flew outside.

Gooooooooooooooooo!
　
A huge tornado appeared and followed Louise’s tracks.

“W-What’s that?!”

The moment Saito was dumb-founded… the tornado enlarged and hit the entire carriage with enormous strength. The violent power blew off the harness that tied horses to the wagon and sucked it and the horses in, lifting them up into the sky.

“What’s thaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!” Saito shouted.

“Giyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!” Guiche screamed.

“Uwaaaaaaaaaaaa!” Malicorne bellowed.

“Nooooooooooooooooooooo!” Montmorency cried.

“I give uuuup…” Kirche complained.

“…” Tabitha was silent.

It was as if a huge hand made of wind grabbed the carriage and lifted it up. Six people in the wagon were shaken like a cocktail in a shaker.

“Aii! Dee! Giyaaa!”

The six screaming people were hitting walls, seats, and each other. Then the tornado stopped abruptly and the wagon fell to the ground.

“Falling! Falling! Falling!”

''Is this how it feels to be in a lift that had its cable cut?'' Saito thought dumbly as the carriage casually floated in the air.

The knight had placed the “Levitation” spell on them.

Though the wagon slowly landed, the party was lying scattered and worn out inside the carriage.
　
Saito, thinking desperately, crawled out of the wagon. Louise was lying shaking on the ground.

“Lou-i-se!”

Though he tried to shout and run up to her, he could not move well.

Riding atop a huge manticore, the knight wearing a black mantle appeared. That must have been Louise’s mama. However, she was frightening. Standing there, it looked like “stern” was the character of this knight and that “fear” was deeply emblazed in this armored doll-like figure.

Then she stopped at the fallen Louise and called out her daughter.

“Get up, Louise.”

Louise raised herself.

“Mother-sama…”

She was shaking violently as if suffering from a strong cold. Like a small dog threatened by a big German shepherd. Though Louise could be scary when she was angry as well, this had a completely different feeling to it – it was like comparing a bear to a rat.

“You. Report what you have broken to your mother.”

“That… b-border without permission, umm…”

“I cannot hear you.”

“B-Border crossing without permission.”

The tornado flew. It caught Louise and threw her two hundred meters up into the sky, and once she started falling down, the wind started spinning her around like a tiny fallen leaf.

“Is this what your mother taught you?”

Her pink hair was disheveled and her skirt was blown off somewhere, revealing her underwear in their full glory, but it was not the place for Louise to feel shy about it.

“I-I’m sorry for breaking the laws of the country! But there were extenuating circumstances!”

The knight extended the wand.

“Your little good deeds do not matter much in this respect. Whatever the circumstances were, the law has been broken. As a result, it can make a lot more people unhappy.”

The storm blew hard against Louise.

Not able to look at this anymore, Saito ran up to stand in front of Louise.

“P-Please stop!”

“And you are?”

Wearing black mantle, her lower half of the face hidden behind the mask, Karin asked Saito.

“Well… umm, Louise’s familiar.”

“Aah!”

Karin nodded.

“You were the boy accompanying Louise the other day. So, you were a familiar.”

Saito then knelt on the ground and took Louise in his arms, trying to wake her up.

“Hey! Are you alright? Are you alive?”

“Fhn… mou, no… fhn”

Louise’s eyes were still spinning and she looked out of shape. It could hardly be otherwise. It was as if she had been thrown into a huge washing machine– washed, rinsed, dried and blown. Even the prettiest girl in the country would look a mess after such ride.

Karin set up the wand again.

“W-Wait! Can’t you stop for now! Louise is already worn-out!”

Seeing Saito acting like this, Guiche called out.

“Stop it, Saito. It’s a problem between family members. Are you tired of living?”

Karin quietly watched Saito.

“A familiar is their master’s shield. For that reason, the shield needs to be blown off. No hard feelings I hope?”

A huge tornado appeared behind Karin. It was almost on the same size as the one that blew the wagon. Saito grasped Derflinger. The runes on his left hand started to shine.

[[Image:ZnT11-059.jpg|thumb]]

“Hey Derf.”

“What?”

“Is it bad?”

Saito pointed at the huge tornado.

“It is bad. It isn’t just a wild tornado. The layer of the vacuum narrows around it and will cut deeply if touched. Frightening square spellcraft…”

There was no time to hear the explanation.

It leaped right at him and Saito, aiming the sword forward, received it at once.

“Stop! Run away!”

Though Derflinger shouted, there was no time. Long, deep cuts, as if done by innumerable sharp razors, appeared all over Saito’s body.

“H-Huuuuuuuuurts!”

“Told you so! This fellow is a ‘Cutter Tornado!’ You will be cut to pieces before I can absorb it!”

Though Saito was soaking with blood, he did not move an inch.

Confused and paralyzed with fear, Louise’s eyes caught the sight of the the wounded Saito. In an instant, her mind, dyed with the pure white of fear a few moments before, now blazed with anger like a raging fire.

Normally, Louise would never rebel against her mother. She grew up disciplined like that.

Without thinking, Louise lifted her wand and recited the "Void" spell.

Once the sounds of spell chanting reached Karin’s ears, she slightly puckered up her brows. She never heard of such spell. It was not fire. Not water. Nor wind. It wasn’t even an earth spell.

Louise rejected the wand and lowered it. The rampaging "Cutter Tornado," that engulfed Saito, started to shine.

Not used to such light, Karin flinched for a split second.

What on earth was that spell that her daughter cast?

Though the preparation time was short, it was still strong enough to cancel her own spell.

Louise’s "Dispel Magic" made her mother’s "Cutter Tornado" vanish…

When Karen finally recovered from the shock and started to utter an incantation again, something pressed against her back.

“Please stop it! That’s enough! Please stop!”

It was Henrietta, who rode by the horse all the way from La Vallière castle. Agnes was right behind her.

“I won’t tolerate any more fights in front of me! Moreover, you are parent and child! If you want to continue, you’ll have to turn your wand against me!”

Following the queen’s words, Karin put down the wand. Louise and Saito, who had already reached the limit of their physical strength and energy, both crumbled to the ground.

Henrietta ran up to the fallen Saito.

“You are badly injured!”

Panicking, she started to recite a water magic spell. Saito's injuries were healed by the queen’s "Healing." He lifted up his bloody face.

“Princess-sama…”

“Don’t talk! You are badly hurt!”

Henrietta recited another water magic in succession.

“Louise…”

Henrietta's cheek trembled.

“It’s alright – she is safe. Her friend is looking after her.”

It was Montmorency who left the wagon and now was tending Louise.

“I see…” muttered Saito and fainted.

Next to the tending Henrietta, Karin knelt down

“Your Majesty, I punished my sinful daughter. Hope you will show her a greater punishment than mine.”

Henrietta let out a long sigh.

“Mo! What is that! You! When child and parent point their wands at each other – it makes the Founder Brimir grieve! Didn’t I say that I did not intend to give any punishment since the very beginning!”

“Solving everything with wands - is the way of old nobles.”

“Unnecessarily bloodshed is what I hate the most! You there! Quick, carry these two injured people to the residence!”

Following Henrietta's orders, Guiche and others put "Levitation" on Louise and Saito and started to carry them to the castle.

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Back to [[Zero_no_Tsukaima:Volume11_Chapter2|Chapter 2]]
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| Forward to [[Zero_no_Tsukaima:Volume11_Chapter4|Chapter 4]]
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</noinclude>

Zero no Tsukaima:Volume11 Chapter3

2011-06-06T03:17:09Z

203.218.133.154:

Zero no Tsukaima:Volume8 Chapter10 - MTL

2011-06-05T15:12:28Z

203.218.133.154:

{{Template:PREVIEW}}

===Chapter Ten: Swordsman===

Meanwhile…

At Emma’s house, Saito, who wasn't able to fall asleep, was spending the night with Agnes. Because Louise was staying at Tiffania’s house, Saito lost his lodging. In only a single room, Saito and Agnes were sitting at the table. In the bed nearby, Emma was already asleep.

“So, you don’t have the ability to protect her?”

Agnes muttered after listening to Saito’s story.

“…Aye. Because I am not Gandálfr anymore.”

After thinking for a while, Agnes asked…

“You were defending Miss Vallière because you were Gandálfr?”

“Indeed. Because I was Gandálfr, I could protect Louise.”

“That’s not it.”

“Eh?”

“It is not the meaning I was implying. It was a question about will. There is a different meaning between ‘able to protect due to being a Gandálfr’ and ‘protecting due to being a Gandálfr’.”

Saito was startled.

“So, who was protecting Miss Vallière? Was it Gandálfr? Or Saito Hiraga? That’s what I want to hear.”

“That…”

Saito looked hesitant before answering.

“It’s easy to belittle oneself. It’s easy to mutter ‘I can’t’ and give up one’s courage. But…”

Agnes continued.

“To risk your life for a woman, is worth a whole lifetime.”

Looking at Sheffield, who introduced herself as a Void familiar, Louise asked,

“…Is it some kind of bad joke. How can there be another Void familiar."

“It is up to you to believe or not. You are free to not believe me. It’s your choice. Now, be obedient and give me that Founder’s Prayer Book…”

Louise responded with a bitter expression,

“…And if I would oppose you, you’d knock me down and take it?”

“Not so harshly.”

“Stop joking!”

She pointed her wand and unleashed a small explosion towards the woman with robe.

[[Image:ZnT08-261.jpg|thumb]]

Yet, it was also a gargoyle.

Another one opened its mouth.

“This is a doll, not a gargoyle. It’s a special ancient magic item that can take the shape of a person, whose blood they get to drink. This ability… Was used by kings in ancient wars. Some noble historians compare it to a play. Well, we want to thank you.”

Gargoyles approached slowly.

“They are not very useful against swordsmen and soldiers. But because of their usefulness against mages, in history, they are feared as ‘mage killers’.”

“Ku!”

Louise again unleashed Dispel Magic at the approaching beings.

However… it was a futile attempt of resistance against such overwhelming numbers.

A Void spell's power is proportional to the time it takes to cast. Yet… she couldn't make long chants. During casting, a mage is defenseless. She would be easily caught by an enemy.

“So, what do you say? Join in the war game! Just think about it! How long can you keep doing cancellation spells? Here!”

All the gargoyles turned into swordsmen.

There was nothing she could do about it; Louise ran away.

“Aahaha! Strange! Are you really a Void user? Without your Gandálfr, you can’t even chant a spell!”

Louise ran, trying to escape back to the forest. Behind her, Myoznitnirn's magic dolls followed her. Seems like they wanted to tease, or maybe measure Louise’s ability, since they followed Louise at her own pace.

Her feet stumbled on a tree root and Louise fell down.

“Hurts…”

From the other side, thick shadows and damp footsteps of gargoyles stepping through the forest soil echoed.

Fear struck her.

Yet… with her mind stricken with terror, what escaped her mouth was not a Void spell, nor a prayer to God, but…

“Saito!”

The name of the familiar that no longer existed in this world.

In a weeping voice, Louise cried,

“Help… Help me Saito…”

Damp footsteps echoed closer.

The rational part of her mind denied Saito being alive.

''Abandon this belief… Saito is dead.''

''Give up.''

''Give up, Louise.''

''Your familiar is dead!''

Louise bit her lip.

“So what...”

She knew that already.

Louise screamed in crying voice.

“So what! Sowhatsowhat!”

She could not allow her mind to whisper about his death.

“Everyone keeps telling he is dead, dead, dead… I KNOW that already! He’s dead!”

Louise stood up.

And began to utter an incantation.

The ancient words escaped Louise’s lips. It was a common magic spell, that everyone can use.

“I, Louise Françoise Le Blanc de La Vallière…”

She knew.

This was not a spell one should cast at a time like this.

What should have been recited were… Void spells.

However, she decided to believe in it.

And to trust in it.

With her life at stake… she placed her trust into his name.

Louise decided deep inside…

She believes.

''Because, I still have not said those words.''

Louise recited the spell to meet Saito and shouted.

“In the name of the great Five Pentagon Powers! Following my fate, summon a familiar!”

Louise lowered her wand.

In front of Saito, who was sitting, holding his knees… the gate opened.

The gate that he saw in Tokyo some time ago.

Saito stared with a blank surprise all over his face.

“This…”

Derflinger said in a casual voice.

“…Haa, seems like your fate is to become that lass’s familiar after all.”

“But…”

“Well, Contract Servant doesn’t necessarily succeed.”

“It’s not the time for such talks.”

Agnes said pointing at the gate. Louise's scream echoed from the inside.

“Come! Come come! Help! Noo!”

“…So, what are you going to do now, partner?”

When Derflinger was finishing saying that… he was pulled up by Saito.

“Mo, so be it. But mate, it is your life tha-…”

Saito grabbed Derflinger, who was still muttering, and jumped into the gate.

On the other side of the gate, in the darkness, gargoyles appeared.

But, Louise was not trembling.

She was engulfed by a warm feeling.

''He will come.''

''Saito will come.''

''Because I am about to die… Saito will come and rescue me.''

Encircling Louise at the gate, one of gargoyles raised a sword.

At that moment… the gargoyles upper body crumbled down.

The first thing that caught Louise’s eyes was Derflinger.

Then, she saw the black hair she had seen so many times… Louise felt the tears that she was holding back for so long start to flow.

The moment when Saito came out of the gate, he was greeted by the sight of a fencer lowering his sword. Fearlessly, Saito avoided the swing and thrust Derflinger forward.

Taking his chance, he pierced and cut down the fencer.

From the back… he could hear nostalgic sounds of Louise crying and snarling at the same time.

“W-w-w-where were you!”

Though Saito wanted to calm down Louise, the only words that came were “Wa-was away for a bit…” - truly pathetic response.

Louise started pouring out words in a frenzy.

“You are my Gandálfr! Don’t go anywhere and protect me! D-defend…”

Ignoring his feelings, he said…

“Shut up, stupid!”

“Who are you calling stupid?!”

“It's all right now, so calm down.”

“What was that?!”

From the darkness, Myoznitnirn, Sheffield's voice rang.

“Hey, hey. Gandáflr showed up? Aren’t you a little late. Where were you loafing?“

“I'm not Gandálfr.”

“Then who are you?”

“A free earthling.”

“What? And I thought that I was able to meet a companion… pity.”

Hearing this exchange between Saito and Sheffield, Louise shouted,

“W-what do you mean?!”

“As I said. I am not Gandálfr now.”

“Ha? Why?”

“The runes disappeared because I was close to death.”

“Are you s-s-ss-stupid! Why did you come through the gate!”

“Shut up. I am not protecting you because I am Gandálfr.”

“What other reason?!”

“I protect you because I love you!”

Louise's face crimsoned. Even at such time, Louise blushed furiously.

She coughed to clear her throat and said…

“Th-then, anyway… lets do the Contract Servant again…”

“We don’t have much time for that. Just chant the Void spell and do not worry, I will win somehow.”

“What are you saying?! Not being a Gandálfr, what can you do with gargoyles as your opponents…”

“Gargoyles?”

“Magic dolls.”

“I see. So they are not human. I won’t hold back then.”

The crowd of gargoyles closed in.

For a while, they were eying them.

Saito set up the sword.

“It’s all right, entrust me with your life.”

Hearing him say that in such confident way… Louise bit her lip. And rubbed her eyes.

She was happy.

Concentrating on her wand, Louise began to chant the spell.

Hearing the nostalgic Void chant from behind him, Saito faced the direction from which the enemies were coming.

From the darkness, another gargoyle, dressed in a differently shaped armor, jumped towards him. He dodged the enemy's attack in a dash and jumped back.

He was looking at the enemy’s foot position.

It was time, for the intensive training he had with Agnes to start repaying, Saito thought.

“Follow the feet…”

After dodging several times, he understood the pattern of the enemy's attack.

Then, when the enemy lifted it's sword and was about to bring it down, Saito thrust decisively.

The shoulder of the gargoyle was torn and the sword fell to the ground.

“Ah, I hit it!”

Saito’s hands shook with excitement as he cut another gargoyle down.

However, though he was pleased about the hits… more enemies popped up one after another.

“Damn…”

He remembered Agnes’s words:

“Avoid situations where you have to fight more than one on one.”

He thought about escaping, but heard Louise chanting from the back.

She said she entrusted her life to Saito.

She entrusted her life not to Gandálfr, but to Saito Hiraga.

Even if cost him his life, he wouldn’t let her down.

Taking a breath, he mustered his courage.

The enemies approached.

Towards him.

Derflinger, who had kept silent till now, opened his mouth.

“Partner, I ask you. Just now, you cut down two enemies at the same time. Don’t you understand? You are a simple mortal; you can’t attack two gargoyles at the same time.”

“Aye.”

“Have confidence. You are strong. Just listen to my instructions now. Follow them, all right? If you do so, you can surely win.”

“Yeah.”

Derflinger's confident voice calmed Saito down.

“Center.”

A gargoyle with a spear attacked him.

“To the right.”

Following Derflinger’s instructions, Saito dodged to the right.

Pon – the spear hit the place where Saito stood just a moment ago. Taking the chance, Saito cut it down.

“On the right. Squat down. Cut away the feet.”

He squatted down.

The gargoyle's sword sliced through the place where Saito’s head was a few moments ago. Still squatting, he swung his sword and cut down the dolls legs, leaving it lying on the ground.

“On the right. Round up.”

Saito rounded up to the standing position and hit the gargoyle’s groin with his sword.

“Turn around, cut.”

He turned around. Though the spear was aimed right to his face, he was not afraid anymore.

At the same time, he turned around the sword with a wide swing, cutting the gargoyle from the back into half.

The remaining one lifted up its sword.

”Block!”

Seeing an opening, Saito pierced.

“Idiot! Don’t pierce!”

Though Derflinger shouted, Saito already pierced the gargoyle, pinning it with the sword to a tree

“Seventh!”

Saito shouted happily in excitement.

“Hey, pull out!”

“Haven’t I told you?! Never pierce against many opponents!”

A new one appeared there, Saito fell into panic.

“W-what do I do?!”

“It’s too late! The end! Good-bye!”

“T-that!”

Though Saito tried to pull out the stuck sword using his leg, it didn't came out.

The new doll jumped up at Saito.

At that moment, there was a gun shot. The doll collapsed right before Saito’s face.

“What was that?”

Then he saw Agnes standing there, holding a pistol.

“Agnes-san!”

Then Agnes threw away the pistol, and pulled out another one from under her belt and aimed at him. Another shot, and the gargoyle next to him fell.

With much effort, Saito finally was able to pull out Derflinger.

Having already used her both pistols, Agnes pulled out her sword.

“Come on.” She faced Saito raising her jaw.

Reassured by her presence, Saito felt his courage rising again.

However, another gargoyle appeared from the other side and approached the still-chanting Louise.

Even though he instantly ran, it didn’t look like he was going to make it there on time.

If he were a Gandálfr, he could make it on time! It was the first time he regretted not being it… *Blonk!* something knocked against the gargoyle’s head.

A frying-pan.

Slowly, the gargoyle crumbled to the ground.

Behind Louise, dressed in nightclothes and trembling, stood Siesta. Apparently she threw a frying-pan at the gargoyle that was approaching Louise.

“Siesta!”

“Ah, I hit it…”

Then, noticing Saito, Siesta’s face started to glow with joy.

“I couldn't fall asleep, and when I looked out of the window… I saw this girl running without protection with a different expression on her face, so I followed! And then Saito-san! Waah waah! Waaah!”

Seeing Siesta sobbing, taken by emotions, Saito tightened his grip on Derflinger again.

He didn’t show any surprise upon seeing Siesta in such a distant place.

Saito leaped towards the place where Agnes had her sword crossed with three gargoyles.

Due to the training… Agnes' and the gargoyles' movements seemed slow somehow.

Though it wasn’t on the same level as with Gandálfr's power of course, it was enough.

It didn’t take much time for Saito and the others to knock down the three remaining gargoyles.

Within the darkness, Sheffield was perplexed.

Those three were mere humans.

Yet… the two fencers cut Sheffield’s gargoyles one after another.

Though the woman seemed to be a skillful warrior… it was the boy that surprised Sheffield the most.

His movements seemed to grow in pace whenever he hit a gargoyle.

As if he stopped thinking about his movements, and was just smoothly swinging his sword.

“Hmmm… this must be Gandálfr’s inheritance. On the same level as I. Tough one.”

Sheffield, like a predator watching her prey and with a smile on her lips, followed the fight.

After a moment, her expression changed.

Sheffield, with the face of a girl in love, shouted,

“Joseph-sama!”

Then her face clouded.

“But why? If I would take it really seriously, I could take them down at once!”

After a few words said in her mind, she smiled again.

“I see. You enjoy the game? Indeed… Void against Void. After all, this is what makes me and Joseph-sama similar… I’ll simply collect rings and treasures for now. Then, in the end, I will measure that user's power. Because you can’t make her into a game partner if you do not closely measure it…”

Louise released the ancient spell.　

A wave of Void rippled through the place.

She gathered it with all of her will powers' limit… and released it.

The long spell ended, the cantrip was completed.

'Dispel Magic'.

All gargoyles were wrapped up by this magic… which like "even smaller grains" canceled the effect of the spell that made the dolls move.

All the former gargoyles… changed back to Alviss.

Then, as if put under the Silence spell, the forest immediately became quiet once again.

<noinclude>
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| Back to [[Zero_no_Tsukaima:Volume8_Chapter9_%7EPreview%7E|Chapter 9]]
| Return to [[Zero_no_Tsukaima|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Zero_no_Tsukaima:Volume8_Epilogue_%7EPreview%7E|Epilogue]]
|-
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</noinclude>

Zero no Tsukaima:Volume3 Chapter4

2011-06-05T06:50:41Z

203.218.133.154:

===Chapter Four: Love Triangle===

Louise was seated in the east courtyard of the Academy of Magic, commonly known as Austri, and frantically knitting. The spring weather was beginning to change as summer approached, but Louise could still be seen in her spring clothing. Even during the summer, it was quite dry instead of humid.

Ten days had passed since they had returned from Albion. That day was a day off. Without even eating dessert, Louise came to the courtyard after her meal to knit. Sometimes, she would give her hands a rest and stare at the white pages of the Founder’s Prayer book while thinking of a fitting edict for the Princess’s ceremony.

Around her, students were enjoying themselves. There was a group playing with a ball. Using magic, they would throw the ball into a basket without using their hands and try to score the most points. Staring at the group of people, Louise sighed heavily and looked at what she had started to knit.

Looking at the scene from the side, it was much like a painting. Sitting there quietly, Louise looked like a beautiful girl. Louise’s hobby was knitting. When she was small, her mother told her that if she had no talent for magic, she should at least have something she was good at, and so her mother taught her how to knit.

But it seemed like the heavens did not give Louise any talent in knitting. Louise had planned to knit a sweater. However, regardless of how favorably she looked upon it, it looked more like a distorted muffler. Actually it was more like an object complicatedly entangled with wool. Louise stared bitterly at the object and let out another sigh.

The face of the maid working in the kitchen resurfaced in her mind. Louise knew that she was making food for Saito. Saito thought Louise didn’t know, but she was not completely oblivious.

''That girl can cook well. Kirche has good looks. What do I have?'' Harboring these thoughts, she decided to try her hobby, knitting, but it seems like it wasn’t such a good choice.

Just as she was becoming slightly depressed from staring at the thing she was knitting, someone tapped her on the shoulder. It was Kirche. Panicking, Louise quickly hid what she was knitting with the Founder’s Prayer Book.

“What are you doing Louise?”

Kirche gave her usual smile that seemed like she was looking down on her, and sat next to Louise.

“C-Can’t you see? I’m reading.”

“But, that book is blank, isn’t it?”

“This book is a national treasure called the Founder’s Prayer Book, you know?”, said Louise

“Why do you have a national treasure?”

Louise explained to Kirche that at Henrietta’s wedding ceremony, she was to read out the edict and how she was to use the Founder’s Prayer Book, and so on.

“I see. I’m guessing that the Princess’s wedding ceremony has something to do with the journey to Albion?”

Louise considered whether to answer Kirche truthfully or not, but since Kirche had acted as a decoy so that they could go on ahead, she nodded.

“We risked our lives so that the Princess’s wedding could proceed smoothly? Not a very prestigious task… So, basically it has something to do with the alliance between Tristain and Germania announced the other day?”

Kirche was quite sharp.

“Don’t say anything to anyone about it,” said Louise with a slightly discouraged expression.

“Of course I won’t. I’m not Guiche you know. Our two native countries have become allies. We should try and get along from now on. Right, La Vallière?”

Kirche put her hands on Louise’s shoulders and smiled, almost purposefully.

“Did you hear? Albion’s new government proposed a non-aggression treaty. Cheers to the peace that we brought about.”

Louise replied half heartedly. For the sake of this peace, Henrietta had to marry a prince whom she didn’t even love. You could say that she had no choice, but it wasn’t something to be happy about.

“By the way, what were you knitting?”

Louise blushed deeply.

“I-I wasn’t knitting anything.”

“You were. It’s here, right?”

Kirche grabbed it from under the Founder’s Prayer Book.

“Hey, give it back!”

Louise was trying to take it back, but Kirche easily restrained her.

“What is it?” asked Kirche, dumbfounded while looking at the object.

“I-It’s a sweater.”

“A sweater? It looks more like a starfish. And a new species at that.”

[[Image:ZnT03-107.JPG|thumb|''“A sweater? It looks more like a starfish.”'']]
“As if I would knit something like that!”

Louise finally snatched her knitting back, and looked downwards, embarrassed.

“Why are you knitting a sweater?”

“None of your business.”

“That’s ok. I know why anyway.”

Kirche put her hands on Louise’s shoulders again and approached her face.

“You were knitting it for your familiar weren’t you?”

“N-No! I would never do such a thing!” cried Louise, with a bright red face.

“You’re really easy to understand you know. You like him, right? Why?”, asked Kirche while looking into Louise’s eyes.

“I-I don’t like him. You're the one who likes him. That idiot doesn’t have any good qualities.”

“You know Louise, when you lie, you’re earlobes shake. Did you know that?”

Louise quickly grabbed her earlobes. Realizing that it was a lie, she returned her hands to her knees in a flustered manner.

“A-Anyhow, I won’t give him to you. He’s my familiar anyway.”

Kirche laughed and said, “It’s good that you want him for yourself. But I'm not the one you are worrying about, I think.”

“What do you mean?”

“Um… perhaps that kitchen maid?”

Louise’s eyes shifted.

“Heh, so I was right?”

“N-Not really…”

“If you go to your room now, you might see something interesting.”

Louise stood up quickly.

“I thought you didn’t like him?” Said Kirche in a playful tone.

“I only forgot something!” cried Louise while dashing off.

Saito was cleaning the room. He had to sweep the floor with a broom, and wipe the tables with a cloth. As Louise had recently been doing her own laundry as well as other things related to her appearance, Saito’s work was reduced to cleaning.

Cleaning was done very quickly. Louise’s room didn’t have many things in the first place, a small desk with drawers next to the closet, a table with a small vase containing a small plant, two chairs at a table, her bed and her bookshelf. As Louise was a fairly studious person, her bookshelf was lined with thick books.

He took one of the books down. It had characters that he had never seen before. ''Well of course'', thought Saito as he put it back. But, why was he able to communicate with Louise then? Their language was different, and yet they were able to understand each other.

“What’s wrong partner?” asked Derflinger who was leaning against the wall of the room.

“Derf! Why do I understand what you’re saying?” asked Saito as he rushed to Derflinger.

“Well, if you didn’t understand, we would be in a bit of a pickle.”

“I come from a different world. And despite that I’m still able to understand your language. I don’t understand why!”

Saito remembered the person who was saved by Old Osman around thirty years ago. He was a person from his world. It seems like he and Osman had spoken with each other.

“How did you come to Halkeginia anyway partner?”

“I’m not sure myself… there was strange gate giving off this light…”

“Then I would think that the answer has something to do with that gate.” Said Derflinger, as though it were nothing important.

“What exactly was that gate then?”

“Dunno.”

Saito was a bit surprised.

“You’re a legendary sword and yet you don’t know anything. You should know a bit more since you’re legendary. Like, how to get me home…” Said Saito bitterly.

“I’m forgetful and not really interested anyway. Can’t rely on legends too much.”

Someone knocked on the door. Who could it be? If it was Louise, she wouldn’t knock. It’s probably Guiche or Kirche? “It’s not locked” Said Saito.

The door opened and Siesta popped her head in.

“S-Siesta.”

“Umm…”

She was in her usual maid uniform but looked slightly different. Her done up silky black hair dangled on her forehead and the freckles on her face emitted some charm. She was holding a large silver tray, filled with food.

“Um, you haven’t come to the kitchen recently…”

Saito nodded. As Louise let him eat whatever he wanted to, he visited the kitchen less often.

“So I was worried that you might be hungry…” Siesta said nervously.

Seeing her cute gestures, Saito’s heart started throbbing.

“T-Thanks. But, Louise has let me eat at the table now, so I haven’t really been hungry.”

“Really? I’ve been serving the teachers table recently so I didn’t notice. If I’m just a being nuisance then…”

Siesta hung her head slightly.

“N-No, that’s not it at all! I’m really happy that you brought me food! I’m actually hungry right now!” Said Saito, even though he was full from eating at the Alviss dining hall just a while ago.

“Really?”

Siesta’s face brightened.

“Well, eat to your heart’s content.”

The small table was crammed full of food. Siesta sat next to Saito, smiling. Saito started to hate himself for eating so much before but he couldn’t just let Siesta’s good intentions go to waste. Determined, he started to eat the food.

“Is it good?” asked Siesta.

“Yeah, it’s really good.”

He wasn’t lying, but it would have been even better if he had been hungry.

“Ehehe, eat all you want then.”

Siesta gazed at Saito who was eating in a hungry fashion.

“Oh sorry, my table manners…”

“N-No, it’s not that! It’s the opposite. I’m really happy that you like the food so much! The food and the cooks would be really happy!”

Blushing, she wiped her eyes with her hands. Siesta was cute like that. Saito couldn’t taste the flavor of the food anymore.

“I made that one,” said Siesta in a shy voice.

“Really?”

“Yeah. It was difficult to make it in the kitchen, but because you’re eating it, I’m glad I did it.”

Saito felt his heart tense up. ''Siesta was thinking of me. Me of all people''. He lost himself within his thoughts. The atmosphere between them was very tense. Siesta suddenly said in a flustered tone, “S-Saito!”

“Y-Yes?”

“Umm.”

Siesta paused, as if trying to choose the right words.

“That talk, that we had before, was a lot of fun! Especially about that thing! Um, what was it called? Oh, the airplane!”

Saito nodded. Saito had talked to Siesta about his world and Japan in the bath. Siesta, coming from a village, didn’t know much about the world and was able to grasp what Saito had said as though they were things from another country.

“Ah, the airplane.”

“Yes! Being able to fly without magic must be wonderful! So even commoners like us, can fly freely in the sky like birds?”

“Isn’t there an airship?”

“It only hovers.”

“My village is actually a very nice place. It’s called Tarbes. It’s about three days from here by horse, in the direction of La Rochelle."

Saito listened intently while eating the food.

“It’s a very remote village and there’s nothing really special there but… it has a very spacious and beautiful field. During the spring, the spring flowers bloom and during the summer, the summer flowers bloom. It’s like a sea of flowers, as far as the eye can see, past the horizon. It should be very beautiful at the moment…” Said Siesta, eyes closed as if she were drowning in memories.

“I want to look at that sea of flowers just once in an airplane.”

“Sounds nice…”

“Oh, why didn’t I think of it before!” cried Siesta who suddenly grasped Saito’s hand.

Surprised, Saito nearly fell backwards.

“W-What?”

“Do you want to visit my village Saito?”

“Huh?”

“The princess is getting married right? There’s a special holiday for us. It’s been quite a long time since I’ve returned to the village… If it’s ok, please come. I want to show you that beautiful field of flowers. My village has this really nice way of cooking stew as well. It’s called "Yosenabe". It’s made from vegetables that people don’t usually use. I really want to let you taste it!”

“W-Why do you want me to come?”

“…You showed me that there’s a possibility,” said Siesta, nervously looking downwards.

“A possibility?”

“Yes. A possibility that even commoners can win against nobles. We live in fear of the nobles. Knowing that there are people who don't live like that makes me happy, as if their happiness was my happiness. Everyone in the kitchen believes that as well.”

“I want to show such a person to my hometown…” said Siesta.

“I-I see…”

Saito felt embarrassed. ''I’m not great or anything. Occasionally I’m a legendary familiar, but that’s all. It’s not something to be praised over''.

“Of course, it’s not only that. I also want to show Saito the village… But, if I bring a man back suddenly, my family will be shocked. What should I do…”

Suddenly Siesta blushed deeply and whispered, “I can just say you’re my husband.”

“W-What?”

“If I say it’s because we’re getting married, they’ll be happy. My mother, father, brother and sister will all be happy.”

“Siesta?”

When Siesta glanced at Saito, who was staring at her dumbfounded, she shook her head.

“Sorry! That will be troublesome! I'm not sure if you'll even come! Haha!”

Embarrassed, Saito replied, “S-Siesta, you’re really bold sometimes. Like when we took a bath.”

Siesta blushed once again.

“I’m not being bold or anything.”

“Eh?”

“When I left home, my mother told me to not show anyone my body except to my chosen man.”

And with that, Siesta reached out and grasped Saito’s hand. Saito’s heart beat very loudly.

“I would have showed you if you simply asked.”

“Y-You’re joking…right?” Saito said, slack jawed.

“It wasn’t a joke. Even now…”

“W-W-What about now?”

Siesta looked straight into Saito’s face.

“Am I not attractive?”

“No, that’s not it at all.”

She was attractive. Too attractive.

“Really?”

Siesta continued looking into Saito. ''Stop'', Saito thought, feeling as though he were being drawn into those black eyes.

“Then why didn’t you do anything when we were taking a bath?”

Siesta hid her eyes sadly.

'' Ah, don’t look like that, I’ll feel as though I’ve done something very bad.''

“…I see, I’m not attractive. You have such a cute girl with you too…That La Vallière is a noble too. I’m just a village girl after all.” Said Siesta sadly, sighing.

“No, it’s not like that at all!”

“Saito.”

“You’re really attractive. I can guarantee it. You look stunning without clothes on.”

Normally those words would get him beaten up, but Siesta was glad.

She had been wondering whether to bring in the dessert or not. While Saito was rambling on, she closed her eyes and stood up. With a deep breath, she let her apron fall to the ground.

“Siesta!” Said Saito, shocked.

Siesta looked at him calmly. She was the kind of person who would do something well once she had decided to do it. She started to undo the buttons on her blouse one by one.

“Siesta! I don’t think it’s a good idea!” cried Saito, shaking his head.

“Don’t worry.”

Her blouse was half undone. Her well-sized cleavage captured Saito’s vision. Saito sprang at Siesta, but suddenly found himself shaking his head, crying, “W-Wait! Wait a moment! I have to think about something like this!”

“Kya!”

Siesta, whom Saito was grasping by the shoulders, lost her balance and fell onto Louise’s bed behind them, as if Saito had pushed her down.

“Sorry…”

Directly below Saito, Siesta lay with her blouse undone. Siesta put her hands on her chest and closed her eyes.

With superb timing, Louise had opened the door.

Within ten seconds, various things occurred.

One: Louise noticed that Siesta was pushed onto the bed by Saito.
Two: Louise noticed that Sieta's blouse was undone.
Three: Saito and Siesta stood up flustered.
Six: Siesta buttoned up her blouse.
Seven: Siesta dashed out of the room, facing away from Louise.
Eight: Saito cried, “Wait Siesta!”
Nine: Louise regained herself.
Ten: Just as Saito was about to explain what had happened, he felt an intense pain as Louise high kicked him.

And with that, Saito was lying on the floor ten seconds after Louise opened the door.

Louise stepped on Saito’s head. Her voice and body were shaking.

“What exactly were you doing?”

“It’s not what it seems, Louise.”

“What were you doing on my bed?”

“It’s a long story, Siesta was bringing me food and…”

“A familiar doing something like that on his master’s bed. I can’t forgive you.”

“It’s not what it seems to be. I didn’t plan to do anything like-“

“That was the last straw.”

Tears started to fall from Louise’s eyes. Saito stood up and grasped Louise’s shoulders.

“Listen to me, it’s a misunderstanding!”

“Enough already.”

Louise glared at Saito.

“What?”

Saito couldn’t understand why Louise was so angry. She didn’t even like him. It definitely wasn’t something to cry about.

“Get out.”

“Um, just then, I didn’t mean for it to happen…”

“Get out! You’re fired!”

Saito was also starting to feel angry. ''First you summon me, then you fire me? What am I supposed to do?''

“I’m fired?”

“Yes, you’re fired! Go die in a ditch somewhere!”

Those were harsh words, no matter what he had done. All that, just because he and Siesta were on her bed. ''We weren’t even doing anything. And I thought she was becoming nicer.''

“Ok, fine.”

“I don’t want to see your face ever again!”

Saito grabbed Derflinger and left the room without another word.

Alone in the room, Louise laid on her bed. She put the blanket over her head.

''So mean'', Louise thought.

''It hasn’t only been today. When I’ve been having lessons, he’s been bringing that girl in and doing that and I didn’t know. I won’t forgive him.''

Louise bit her lip. So his feelings for her were all lies. Tears ran down her cheek.

“I hate you... and you even kissed me.”

She whispered the words repeatedly, as if they were meant for herself.

“… and you even kissed me.”

While searching for Verdandi, Guiche spotted a tent in the corner of the Vestri courtyard. For some reason a huge kettle was placed next to it. Guiche wondered what the kettle and the tent were for.

It was a crude tent made from a stick and an old rag. There were remains of food, bones and skin from fruits, scattered around. It seemed like someone was living there. His beloved familiar came out of the tent while he was looking at the tent with his head tilted in wonder.

“Verdandi, so you’re here!”

Guiche got on his knees and rubbed the large mole’s cheeks. The mole happily twitched its nose.

“Verdandi, what are you doing here?”

Someone crawled out of the tent and called out to the mole.

“Come here, mole. You and I, we're friends right?”

It was Saito. Disheveled and with a wine bottle in his hand, he was obviously drunk.

“What on earth are you doing?” asked Guiche, surprised.

Saito took a sip from the bottle and continued to call out to the mole, ignoring Guiche.

“Hey, come here. You’re the only friend I can trust.”

The large mole, as if it was troubled, looked at both Guiche and Saito.

“Verdandi, don’t go over there. Why is Verdandi your friend anyway?”

When Guiche asked that, Saito replied with a dead voice, lying on the ground.

“Because I’m a mole. A useless, poor, miserable mole.”

“I don’t know what happened, but don’t go thinking Verdandi is the same as you.”

Guiche peered inside the tent. Derflinger and for some reason, Kirche’s salamander were in there.

“Kyuru kyuru.”

“What do you want?” Each of them said.

There was a pile of straw on the ground, and an upturned cup. That was all that was in the tent.

Guiche turned to Saito.

“So, you were driven out of Louise’s room?"

Lying on the floor, Saito nodded.

“And so you made this tent?”

Saito nodded again.

“Being lonely, you gathered people’s familiars and got drunk?”

Saito nodded vigorously. Guiche closed his eyes and nodded himself.

“Hmm. So you’re a good for nothing.”

“What else am I supposed to do? I’ve got no place to go. I don’t even have a clue how to get home. I can only drink.”

Saito gulped down the wine. Someone came rushing towards them. It was Siesta.

“Oh, I’m sorry I’m late. Here’s your lunch.”

It seemed like this maid from the kitchen was taking care of Saito.

“You’ve drank this much already?! I told you a bottle per day!”
Siesta grabbed his hand while scolding him.

“Sorry…”

Saito sadly hung his head.

“You guys! I told you to keep an eye on how much he drank!”

“Kyuru kyuru.”

“My bad,” replied both the salamander and Derflinger in a sorry voice.

Siesta hastily cleaned up the mess around the tent and made Saito stand up.

“I’ll come again in the evening! Don’t drink too much!”

And then Siesta hurried away in the same fashion she had came.

Watching her leave, Guiche said with an artificial rose in his mouth, “Well, Louise would get angry if you were two timing.”

“I’m not two timing! I’m not even involved with anyone, neither Louise nor Siesta!”

He had kissed Louise while she was sleeping, but he didn’t say that. He would rather forget about it.

“Well whatever, but do you plan on living here?”

“Got a problem?”

“You’re ruining the school's beautiful scenery.”

“Shut up.”

“You’ll be told to get out if the teachers see you, you know?”

Saito gulped down his wine without another word, returning to the tent while hugging Guiche's mole. The mole looked desperately at Guiche.

“Hey, give me back my Verdandi!”

Meanwhile, Louise had been skipping class and staying in her bed, worrying endlessly. Three days had passed since she drove Saito out. She was thinking about the familiar she drove out.

''He even kissed me, he even kissed me, he even kissed me,'' she thought endlessly. Having your pride hurt is really a terrible thing. She sadly glanced at the haystack that Saito used to use. She wanted to throw it out, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

Suddenly a knock came from the door. The first thought she had was that Saito had finally returned. Her sadness turned to joy, and within that joy she felt anger. ''Why am I glad he’s back? I should not let him back in for coming back so late.''

The door opened. Louise jumped up and cried angrily.

“Idiot! Where have you…eh?”

It was Kirche who had come in. Brushing her flaming hair, she smiled at Louise.

“It’s only me, sorry.”

“What are you doing here?”

Louise went back to her bed. Kirche walked briskly to the bed and sat down. She threw away the blanket at once, revealing Louise curled up, sulking, in her negligee.

“You’ve been absent for three days now, so I came to see you.”

Kirche sighed heavily. Having a good conscience really did have its pains. She didn’t think Louise would drive him out of the room. She thought it would be good for the two to have a fight and separate from each other a bit, but she didn’t think Louise would go this far.

“So, what are you planning to do, now that you’ve driven your familiar out of your room?”

“None of your business.”

Kirche looked at Louise coldly. On her rosy cheeks, there were rivulet vestiges of tears. She had probably been crying for a while now.

“I knew you were foolishly arrogant and proud but I didn’t think you were this cold hearted. They were just eating together.”

“It wasn’t only just that, of all things they were on my bed…” Louise muttered.

“Were they in each other’s arms?”

Louise nodded. Kirche was quite shocked. To make a move on a girl who came to bring him food… Saito was pretty good.

“Well, seeing the guy you like with a girl on your own bed must be quite a shock.”

“I don’t like him! It’s just that they were on my bed…”

“That’s just an excuse. You drove him out because you like him, and you were angry with him.”

Kirche’s words had hit the mark, yet Louise disagreed and pouted her lips.
“I can’t say I didn’t see it coming. It’s because you didn’t give him anything. It’s only natural he’d go flirt with another girl.”

Louise remained silent.

“La Vallière, you’re a strange girl you know. You’re angry at and crying over a guy who you won’t even kiss. You can’t win like that…” said Kirche in a bored tone while standing up.

“I’ll do something about Saito. I was looking forward to taking Saito away from you… but you hit him, and kicked him, and drove him out, I actually feel quite sorry for him. He’s not a toy you know.”

Louise bit her lips.

“A familiar is a mage’s partner. You fail as a mage because you can’t treat him properly. Well… you are zero after all.”

And with that, Kirche left. Louise didn’t reply. She crawled back onto her bed, full of sorrow and regret, and cried like she used to when she was small.

By the time Kirche had come to Saito’s tent, it was late at night already. Saito’s drunken voice could be heard within the crude tent. Flame’s “Kyuru kyuru” could also be heard in the tent. It must had come here to play when she had gone out to the streets.

Kirche opened the flap of the tent. The scene inside was disgusting. Guiche had his face buried in his mole, crying. Saito was hugging Flame, while grumbling with a wine bottle in his other hand.

“It’s just like you said! You're an idiot!” shouted Saito. It seems like he had drunk so much he couldn’t even articulate properly.

“I didn’t even do anything with that Katie. She held my hand, and I had only lightly kissed Mortmerncy! Despite that, I-!”

Guiche burst into tears. He was the type who cried when he drank. Kirche sighed. ''Why do men have to be such idiots?''
Derflinger noticed Kirche and informed Saito.

“Gentlemen, there’s a guest.”

“Guest?”

Saito looked groggily at Kirche.

“Kirche?”

“Looks fun, can I join?” Said Kirche, with a smile on her face.

Saito, who couldn’t possibly get any more drunk, was angered by the sight of a woman. He faced Kirche.

“Those large tits, if you show me them, you can join.”

Guiche started clapping his hands.

“I absolutely agree! In the name of Tristain’s nobles! I totally agree!”

Instead of replying, Kirche took out her wand and started reciting an incantation.

“Less drunk now?”

Saito and Guiche, who were both sitting straight now, nodded.

Everything around them was scorched. Even they were scorched. Kirche’s fire magic made Saito’s hair and Guiche’s nice shirt ragged looking. They had heard of water being a good trick to use, but they didn’t think fire would work just as well.

“Well then, get ready to leave.”

“Get ready to leave?”

Guiche and Saito looked at each other.

“Yes. Hey Saito.” Kirche called him by his name instead of darling.

“What?”

“Do you plan on living in a tent for the rest of your life?”

“No, but… I got driven out, and I haven’t found a way back home either…”

''A way back home?'' Kirche and Guiche looked at each other. Saito suddenly shook his head.

“No, I mean, that, Rub' in the east!”

“Ah, you were born there weren’t you?”

Kirche nodded in comprehension. Saito sighed in relief.

While Kirche caressed Saito’s cheek, she said, “Don’t you want to become a noble?”

“A noble?”

Guiche was slightly taken aback.

“But Kirche, he’s a commoner. He can’t be a noble since he’s not a mage.”

“In Tristain that is. By law, commoners are strictly forbidden to purchase land or become nobles."

“Exactly.”

“But, in Germania it’s different. If you have money, even if you’re a commoner, you can buy land and become a noble, or buy the rights to a position and become a tax collector or a commander.

“And that’s why they call Germania uncivilized.” Said Guiche as though he were feeling sick.

“Uncivilized? People who are fussed over traditions and customs like ‘if you’re not a mage you can’t be a noble’, which make their country weak, have no right to talk. It’s the reason why Tristain has to ally with Germania to be able to oppose Albion.

Saito, who had been quietly listening, finally opened his mouth.

“Um, so Kirche. What you’re saying is that I should become a noble through money, in your country?”

“Exactly that.”

“I don’t have that kind of money. I’m penniless.”

“Then earn some.”

Kirche tapped Saito’s face with a bundle of parchment.

“What’s that?”

Guiche and Saito looked at the bundle. They seemed like maps.

“They’re treasure maps.”

“Treasure?!” Guiche and Saito said, surprised.

“Yes, we’re going to go treasure hunting and sell the treasure we find. Saito… you can do whatever you want then.”

Saito gulped. Kirche was embracing Saito, with her breasts pushing against him. Saito was shaking as though he was suffocating.

“When you become a noble… you can propose to me ok? I like guys like you. I don’t care if you’re a commoner or a noble. People who can overcome their difficulties and obtain things beyond people’s imagination… I like people like that.” Said Kirche, who was smiling seductively.

Guiche, who was looking at the map, whispered doubtingly, “No matter how I look at it, these maps seem a bit suspicious…”

“I got them from various places like magic shops, stalls, general stores…”

“It’s definitely something dodgy. I know of a few people who just sell ordinary maps, calling them treasure maps. There are even nobles who become bankrupt because of these hoaxes.”

“That attitude won’t do!” Said Kirche, with her hands clenched into tight fists.

“Most of them might be scrap, but there might be a real one hidden inside there.”

Gah…Guiche groaned while slapping his forehead.

“Saito, let’s go. Let’s go find treasure and abandon Louise… and then you’ll propose to me, ok?”

Abandoning Louise… that did have a nice ring to it. Nobles… they are always so proud, and they even forget about the people who have saved them before. Saito made up his mind.

“Alright, I’m in. Let’s go!”

Kirche hugged Saito tightly. Suddenly someone burst in.

“Nononono, you can’t do that!”

“Siesta?”

Before them was Siesta in her maid outfit.

“You can't marry, Saito!”

Siesta pulled on Saito.

“Don’t you wish the man you love to be happy?”

Siesta was taken aback by Kirche’s words and looked at Saito. She suddenly shook her head.

“Just because you’re a noble doesn’t necessarily mean you’re happy. You can stay at my village, and buy a vineyard with that money!”

“A vineyard?”

“In my village, there are a lot of good vineyards! We can make nice wine together! Its brand name could be Saito Siesta!”

Kirche and Siesta were both pulling on Saito. It was the first time in his life that he was fought over by girls. He blushed deeply. This probably wouldn’t happen ever again.

“As if you’d find treasure.” Guiche said in a bored tone.

“Guiche. If we find treasure you can give it to the Princess as a present and perhaps she will see you in a different light.”

Guiche stood up.

“Ladies and gentlemen, let’s go.”

“Take me along please!” Siesta called out. If she didn’t go along, there would be no doubt that Kirche would seduce Saito.

“No, you can’t. Commoners are just a burden.”

“Don’t treat me like an idiot! Even though I look like this, I’m…”

Siesta was shaking. Both her hands were clenched tightly together.

“Yes? Go on.”

“I can cook!”

“As if we didn’t know,” everyone said.

“But, but, meals are important right? While we’re searching for treasure, we’ll be camping right? We can’t just rely on the food we bring. I could make good food for everyone.”

Well she was right on that point. Guiche and Kirche were both nobles and couldn’t stand eating bad food.

“But you have work to do right? Are you just going to take a break?”

“The cook always lets me leave if I say I’m doing something for Saito.”

The head chef really liked Saito; he would probably do exactly as Siesta had said.

“Fine, do what you want. But I’ll tell you beforehand, the ruins, forests and caves we’re heading to are dangerous places. There are lots of monsters there.”

“I’ll be fine, Saito will protect me!”

And with that, Siesta grabbed Saito’s arm, leading him to fantasizing about Siesta’s naked breasts pressing against him.

Kirche nodded and turned to everyone.

“After the preparations are done we’re heading off!”

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