Chapter I
Yes, another new story. I know I am doing a lot of these lately, I will slow down soon. I promise. Anyway, this story, if you could not tell by the title, is Dragon of Zerbst. It is an alternate telling of Dragon of Zero that puts Kirche in the central position as main girl instead of Louise. I will not say anything more than that for spoilers so...yeah. The overall story will be similar to canon, with obvious changes due to the change of Kirche being the main girl. Now I am mostly doing this as a test. I will work on this for a few chapters, not many, two or three. It is a test of an alternate flow of events for Dragon of Zero, and I would like to see which version of events my readers, you guys, like best. I like both versions of this story, but this one has been poking me in the back of the brain for a few weeks, so I decided to put this up and get opinions from you guys on it. So yes, if you would be so kind, I would really appreciate reviews stating which version of the story (Dragon of Zero or Dragon of Zerbst) that you like best. So I really would like opinions from all of you on it. So with that said, the basic idea of this story is Kazuma Soryu gets summoned by Kirche von Zerbst as her Familiar instead of Louise la Valliere summoning him. The story crosses over mainly Familiar of Zero and Dragonar Academy in terms of storyline, with other anime thrown in later down the line. That said my coauthor for this story is, as usual, Bakuto Masaki so I would like to thank him for the help in that regard. But I suppose with nothing else to add, it is time to start the story.
EDIT: I have added a poll to my profile page so you can give an opinion there as well. Reviews are obviously GREATLY appreciated, but the poll also provides a plain, numerical representation of the opinions. Thank you.
In a medium sized room with fancy furnishings, a door near the rear, right-hand corner, a fireplace to the right of the door on the right-side wall, a large wardrobe to the left of the fireplace, a small table with two chairs next to the wardrobe, another door on the leftmost end of the wall, the perpendicular wall opposite the first door having a window in the center, the left-side wall having a large, ornate bed in the middle of the wall, with the head of the bed facing towards the wall with a window, with a small dresser at the end, and then an armoire on the wall next to the first door, a tall, attractive young woman with dark skin, waist-length, curly, fire-red hair which curved at different spots like fire and covered one of her dark red eyes laid in the large bed.
The woman slowly sat up as her one visible eye opened to see around her, a melancholic expression filling her face. She grabbed a wooden wand from the bedside table next to her and lightly flicked it, causing garments to exit the wardrobe.
She proceeded to dress in a white blouse that she kept slightly unbuttoned, exposing a portion of her generous bosom, a short, pleated, black skirt, thigh-high black stockings, black dress shoes, a red ribbon clipped shut with a gold clip with a five-pointed star engraved on it, and a black cape around her shoulders.
Before leaving the room she looked at a photo on top of her fireplace. Her frown deepened sadly as she thought, 'Hard to believe it's already been almost a year…' She took a breath and then her expression instantly changed to a bright, playful smile.
She then made her way out of her room into a long hallway with multiple doors, which was inside a multi-floor, round tower, one of five in a pentagram formation around a central tower with walls connecting the towers, four long hallways going from four of the outside towers to the center tower.
In the upper right tower, the girl along with many other students sat in a semicircular classroom with a single flat wall, a round series of steps around it with desks on each level, three students being able to sit at each desk.
At the bottom level of the class behind a desk in front of a blackboard, a heavyset woman with curly brown hair and brown eyes wearing black robes with a purple cape, and a pointed, purple hat stood and looked around at the students. "Congratulations to each of you for making it to your second year at the Tristain Magical Academy." She then looked around the room and asked, "So, can anyone here explain the primary elements of magic?"
A male student with short, wavy blonde hair, blue eyes, and wearing a high-collared, white, button-down shirt with frills along the middle and the first few buttons undone, exposing his chest, a pair of black pants, black shoes, and a black cape fastened around his chest stood up with a rose in his hands. "I can, Miss Chevreuse."
The teacher, Miss Chevreuse, nodded in agreement. "And you are?"
"Guiche de Gramont," he answered proudly, bringing a rose up to his face.
"Very good de Gramont. Now, what are the four principle elements to magic?"
Guiche chuckled lightly, getting the attention of the female students, and explained, "They are Earth, Water, Fire, and Wind."
"Very good," Miss Chevreuse praised with a light clap. "There are also multiple levels to a mage. Could you explain what those are?"
Guiche chuckled once more and responded, "Certainly. A mage who is able to use a single element is a Dot. Two elements is a Line. Three is a Triangle. Four is a Square."
"That is right Mr. de Gramont. Now, as an Earth mage myself, I shall teach you all a simple Earth spell." She set down four pebbles on the desk in front of her and waved her wand lightly in front of her. "Earth is an important element, as it is involved with the creation of all things." As she waved her wand she chanted, "Lel, in, yan." The three pebbles lit up with bright light before the light died down and the stone pebbles were now shiny.
"Is that gold?!" the red-haired young woman asked in surprise, her large breasts bouncing as she stood up in shock at Chevreuse's spell.
Miss Chevreuse chuckled lightly. "No my dear, it is brass."
The dark-skinned teen frowned in disappointment before sitting back down in a huff.
Miss Chevreuse then looked around the room and asked, "So, now I would like a student from the class to perform the spell for everyone."
Guiche put the rose in his mouth as he flipped a portion of his hair and declared, "As an Earth mage like yourself, Missus, I believe it is my duty to perform the spell."
Miss Chevreuse thought for a moment and shook her head. "No, I believe that…you should do it." She pointed to the red-haired teen.
The redhead nodded as she stood up.
"What is your name?"
Taking a light breath, the redhead answered, "My name is Kirche Augusta Frederica von Anhalt-Zerbst."
Miss Chevreuse nodded. "Miss Zerbst, would you like to perform the spell?"
Kirche nodded in return as she picked up her wand, though she momentarily winced.
One student, a girl with short, light blue hair, blue tired blue eyes, wearing the same uniform as the other girls with the cape reaching the ground and pooling behind her, a set of red, square-frame glasses, and a long, wooden staff that curved at the top, who held a book that enraptured her attention, noticed this and stood up before walking out of the room, closing the door behind her.
Kirche walked to the set of three stones and flicked her wand, thinking of the spell and uttering, "Lel, in, yan."
As the blue-haired girl walked away the door flew off the hinges with an explosion.
In another area of the school, an old man with long gray hair that extended into a pointed beard that covered his mouth and black eyes wearing a long black robe with a staff in his hands that widened at the top, stood in a large office with a desk and multiple bookshelves. As he stood he took a puff from a fancy smoke pipe and looked out onto the school grounds.
His secretary, an attractive young woman with long green hair tied up in a ponytail with a yellow band, bangs framing her face that were tied back with hairclips, and a single strand hanging down over her forehead, chocolate brown eyes as well as a considerable bust wearing round, frameless glasses, a dark blue, two-piece uniform with white trim, and a purple cape wrapped around her shoulders waved a wand in her hand with an annoyed expression.
The old man watched as his pipe left his hand.
"Mr. Osmond, I've told you many times you shouldn't smoke, it's not good for your health," the woman chastised.
The old man sighed and walked over to her. "Come now Ms. Longueville, don't be like that." Osmond then proceeded to rub his hand against her hip.
Longueville remarked, "That's harassment Mr. Osmond."
Osmond then started wandering around the room mumbling.
Longueville sighed and retorted, "You haven't gone senile yet Mr. Osmond."
Osmond flinched as she called him at his game.
A small mouse then hopped down from the chair Longueville was sitting at, ran up Osmond's robe and onto his hand and began squeaking at him.
Osmond smirked perversely as he said, "Ohh? Pure white? That's nice."
Longueville's face turned bright red.
"I think she'd look better in lacy black." Osmond turned and winced as an angry Longueville slapped him hard.
She was about to continue her retaliation when a loud explosion rumbled throughout the school.
Back in the classroom, Kirche looked at her wand with a deflated expression as the room around her was in shambles.
"W-well…" Miss Chevreuse remarked weakly, "That didn't go as I expected."
Kirche merely sighed in defeat.
Some period of time later, Kirche walked out of Osmond's office. As she walked down the spiral staircase she was surprised to see the blue-haired girl and a girl with blonde hair that spiraled in multiple drill shapes wearing the same uniform as the others standing nearby.
Kirche looked at the two curiously. "What are you two doing here, Tabitha, Montmorency?"
The blue-haired girl, Tabitha, merely motioned her large staff towards Kirche.
The blonde girl, Montmorency, folded her arms as she looked at Kirche. "Tabitha told me why that spell of yours exploded like that."
Kirche gloomed guiltily.
Montmorency frowned worriedly.
Kirche's expression immediately returned to a bright smile. "I was simply tired, I was up late last night and wasn't concentrating. Now, let's finish up for the day."
The other two nodded in agreement, though Montmorency kept her concerned expression while Tabitha's remained still.
The next day in the large courtyard of the school, a tall man with balding black hair and blue eyes wearing round, frameless glasses, and a dark blue robe with white trim holding a long staff with red accents stood in the center of the courtyard standing in front of the second year students. "Alright everyone, listen closely, today we will be doing the familiar summoning ritual. Today you will all summon the familiars that will be with you for the rest of your lives."
Montmorency glanced at Kirche. "Are you sure you're feeling alright Kirche?"
Kirche looked at Montmorency and smiled happily. "You don't need to worry about me. I'm merely excited about summoning my beautiful familiar."
The teacher looked around and asked, "So, who shall summon first?"
Guiche stepped forward and said, "Mr. Colbert, I shall summon my wonderful familiar first."
The teacher, Colbert, nodded in agreement. "Very well Mr. Gramont, then summon your familiar."
Guiche stepped forward and chanted a phrase before waving the rose, his wand, as the ground shook some before a section buckled up some, then more and more until a massive, human-sized mole popped out. Guiche turned blue in worry and knelt down. "A-a mole…?"
The mole made happy grunts towards Guiche.
Guiche sighed in disappointment.
The other students proceeded to summon their familiars.
Tabitha summoned a large, quadrupedal, blue dragon with large wings and Montmorency summoned a yellow and brown spotted frog.
Montmorency twitched an eyebrow at her summoned familiar.
After a while Colbert looked around and asked, "So, has everyone summoned their familiars?" He looked around and noticed Kirche standing alone. "Miss Zerbst, is there a reason you have not summoned your familiar?"
Kirche flinched in surprise, glowering in frustration momentarily before smiling confidently. "No, no, I simply wanted to summon my familiar last. That way everyone will see it and its majesty."
Colbert sweat-dropped. "Ah…I see…well…then on with the spell I suppose."
"Right," Kirche answered as she stepped forward. She frowned lightly as the other students started spacing themselves out. She looked at her wand with a light frown. 'Now…I should say something she would say…' After a moment she smirked and thought, 'I've got the perfect thing.' "My servant that exists somewhere in this vast universe!"
The other students started laughing mockingly at her.
Montmorency blinked curiously. "Has she finally lost it?"
Kirche ignored the others and continued, "My divine, wise, beautiful servant, heed my call! I wish from the bottom of my heart, appear before for me!" Kirche blinked curiously as she looked at her wand. She shook it and then tapped it against her hand before there was suddenly a massive explosion.
All of the students began coughing heavily as smoke and dust filled the air.
Kirche moaned in annoyance. "Ooohhh…that wasn't supposed to happen. Now I've got dust in my hair."
As the dust began to clear everyone noticed a figure in the smoke.
The figure lying on the ground was a young man with short brown hair, brown eyes, and several scars on his face, one extending from just to the right of his nose to the left side of his face and the other extending from his forehead to his cheek on the right side, wearing black under armor that covered his entire body in light padding, hiding his physique, thigh length metal greaves that left the backs of his knees exposed for movement with two rings of armor going up his thighs attached to the rest of the greaves, waist armor attached to a belt that wrapped around his sides and back, allowing his front to move freely, torso armor that covered his chest and upper back, allowing him flexibility in the midsection, wide shoulder pauldrons with plates the stuck up to the sides to protect his neck and shoulders with plates facing down to protect his upper arms, plated gauntlets that covered his forearms and the backs of his hands, and a long red cape attached to the torso armor.
At the time Kirche was summoning her familiar, in another unknown place that had an endless sky of jet black, with a ground made of countless stone blocks varying in size and height three figures, two humanoids and a rotting corpse resembling a dragon sat.
The first humanoid figure which laid on the ground was the armored young man. A faint green light nearby stirred the man from his sleep as his eyes slowly opened. He glanced to one side and saw a tall, elliptical portal nearby.
The man found himself in a strange, rainbow colored abyss.
Looking around puzzled he thought, 'Ddraig, where am I? What happened to him?'
A voice in his head responded, 'I'm uncertain, Kazuma, but I believe he's dead. Where we are now though…I do not know. I cannot even say how much time has passed.'
'Damn…wait…does it feel like I'm falling…?'
'Probably…'
Everyone, including Kirche, looked at the figure she summoned in confusion.
After a moment the young man, Kazuma, flinched, groaned and then sat up. As he looked around he sighed. "Well that friggin' hurt." He looked ahead of him and then saw Kirche standing in front of him. He stood up and brushed some of the dirt from her cape.
Kirche blinked curiously and asked, "…Are you…the one I summoned…?"
Kazuma folded his arms in thought. "I think…"
Kirche sighed as she suddenly heard snickering that turned into laughter. She looked around worried as she realized the other students were bursting out in laughter at her.
Kazuma looked around and noticed first the students laughing wildly and then Kirche's solemn expression. He narrowed his eyes and then demanded, "Oy! What's so funny?!"
Kirche looked at him surprised as one of the students answered, through his laughter, "She…she tried to summon some big beast and she got…a human…!"
Kazuma narrowed his eyes in annoyance. "Che, fine, if that's what you want…" Taking a moment to assess the amount of energy in his body he closed his eyes before they snapped open, his brown eyes now turned red with vertical slits before his body was bathed in red light, the form of his body formed from the light then burst outward into a new shape. After a moment, the light died down to reveal a three story tall, humanoid, bipedal dragon with blood red scales, though the insides of its arms, hands, and legs, the underside of its head and tail, and the front of its neck and chest with a long tail extending from the base of its spine, a long, reptilian head with four large horns pointing back on a short, straight neck, five clawed fingers on each hand, five clawed toes on each foot, a wide wingspan with each wing resembling an elongated hand, with a piece sticking up like a thumb, spiked spines going down its back, similar spikes on its elbows and knees, along with slitted, deep red eyes.
The dragon Kazuma had become growled and then asked in a deep, booming voice, "Is this beastly enough for you?"
The students' laughter swiftly died down as they backed away some.
After a moment the dragon's body lit up red before the light shrank back down and Kazuma returned to his human form. Kazuma then looked at Kirche and asked, "So you're the one who summoned me then?"
Kirche nodded slowly in response. "Yes. I summoned you as my servant, my Familiar."
Kazuma raised an eyebrow as he looked at Kirche. The image of a woman with deep crimson hair filled his mind as he thought, 'It's always busty redheads. It could be worse though.'
"So…are you…a human or…?" Kirche asked unsurely."
"Hmm…let's say I'm a dragon and keep it simple."
Kirche nodded in response. "Very well. Since you are a dragon, I must ask, do you have a name of your own?"
Kazuma nodded and was about to answer when he thought, 'Hmm…I shouldn't use my real name…'
A voice in its head added, 'Just pick one.'
"…Ddraig…my name is Ddraig," Kazuma answered.
The voice in his head grumbled in annoyance.
Colbert's eyes widened in shock.
Kirche then walked up to "Ddraig".
"Is…something wrong…?" Kazuma asked unsurely.
Colbert, still uncomfortable and deep in thought, explained, "The familiar pact is sealed with a kiss."
"I see…" he answered thoughtfully as he looked at Kirche.
"So, we need to kiss," Kirche explained.
Many of the male students gaped as she and Kazuma neared each other, their lips grasping each other, sealing their pact.
Kirche's eyes widened as she pulled back in surprise.
Kazuma raised an eyebrow in confusion. "What? You said it was a kiss…didn't you…?"
Kirche put a hand over her mouth with an amused smirk, "True, but I didn't expect you to be quite that forward."
Kazuma sighed and scratched at his neck. "Damn, is it just me or is it getting hot?" His body started to glow slightly red with heat before he felt a strange sensation on his left hand. The gauntlet on his left hand along with the left sleeve of his under-armor disappeared in a flash of light and revealed a complex rune on the back of his hand.
However, Kirche and the others noticed instead the strange red markings going up his arm instead. Kirche looked at the markings in thought.
Kazuma noticed her staring at him and glanced at her. "Something wrong?"
"Hm? Oh, no," Kirche answered thoughtfully, "Nothing in particular."
Colbert walked up to Kazuma and asked. "So…your name is Ddraig and…may I see your Familiar Rune?"
Kazuma raised an eyebrow and then nodded dumbly. "Oh, uh, yeah, it is." He then showed Colbert the back of his hand.
Yet again Colbert's eyes widened when he saw the marking. Nodding he said, "Uhm, thank you."
Kazuma nodded and the gauntlet reappeared on his arm in a flash of light.
Kirche put a hand to her chin and smirked. 'Hmm…on first sight, he's actually not half bad. He at least seems to have a little more muscle than most of the students. Having him as my Familiar will definitely be interesting.' Kirche then looked around at the other students and put a hand on his shoulder. "Why don't we get going?"
Kazuma looked at her curiously. "Oh? Where to?"
"My room, where else?" she responded.
Kazuma nodded and followed behind her. 'I wonder what this place is.' As he looked around he noticed something near one of the towers but ignored it.
'I'm still trying to figure out why you used my name in place of your own,' the real Ddraig said.
Kazuma sweat-dropped. 'Oh, uh, well that's…I had to think of something and I don't know if I'm known here or not. So I figured an alias was the best way to go.'
Ddraig just sighed. 'Well, I guess you aren't called the Chaos King for nothing, are you?'
Kazuma just grinned as he walked away, leaving the rest of the students puzzled as to what had just occurred.
As the two arrived back in Kirche's room, Kazuma looked around the area curiously. "There certainly isn't a vast amount of space in here is there?"
Kirche smirked as she sat down on her bed. "Perhaps, but it's enough for a girl like me," she answered plainly.
Kazuma raised an eyebrow at her sudden change of inflection. He then noticed the photo on her mantle. It was of a teenage girl with waist-length, wavy pink hair that came down over her forehead, with one long bang coming down further than the rest in between her dark pink eyes, and with a considerably flat bust wearing the same female uniform as the other students, though he noticed the brown cape rather than the black one. He pointed at the photo and asked, "So who's this? She looks nothing like you."
Kirche clenched a fist and bit her lip lightly. "That is… Louise Francoise Le Blanc de La Valliere."
"Friend of yours?" he asked.
Kirche nodded slowly. "She was…"
Kazuma raised an eyebrow and noticed the dampened expression in her eye. "I did not mean to bring up a difficult subject."
"No, you're my Familiar. If you ask it's only right I explain," Kirche responded bluntly.
Kazuma raised an eyebrow but nodded in understanding. "Alright then, if you explain, I'll listen."
Kirche began, "It happened a few months into the first year. Louise had come to the school along with the rest of us to learn magic and prove herself a true noble. However, she was miserable at using magic."
Kazuma remained silent as she continued.
"With every spell she tried to cast all that happened is it exploded. Even something as simple as making an object levitate caused an explosion. Due to her near total lack of magical ability, the other students started taunting her by giving her the insulting title 'Louise the Zero'."
Kazuma noticed Kirche's fist tighten as she spoke. "You were one of them…?"
Kirche nodded slowly. "Yes. Turns out, her family, Valliere, and mine, Zerbst, have a long-standing rivalry and hatred with each other. Personally I find it useless and taxing, so I tried to bridge the gap."
Kazuma scrunched his brow in thought. "Pardon my rudeness, but insulting someone usually isn't the best way to get their affection."
Kirche chuckled mirthlessly, "Yes, looking back I realize that. I figured that I tried to get a rise from Louise's competitive spirit, since she was a noble after all, her skill would improve. I thought that, since she still believed in the old rivalry, she would like a rival but…"
Kazuma frowned sympathetically. "She probably wanted a friend, not a rival."
Kirche nodded slowly in confirmation.
Kazuma sighed lightly. "So, what happened?"
"Despite Louise's complete and total lack of magical skill and her obviously petite form, many of the other girls in the school felt that the level of pride and honor Louise at least attempted to carry herself with was unwarranted. So a few of them banded together to get that pride out of her."
"…You overheard them planning this, didn't you?"
Kirche grit her teeth and nodded slowly. "…Yes…I did. I ignored them since I figured that they're just low-level mages, none of us had learned any magic or techniques that could really do anything."
Kazuma remained quiet for a moment before asking, "…What did they do?"
Kirche clenched her fist tightly. "There used to be an old horse in the stables that had been at the school for a long time. By the time we started attending the school it wasn't being used for carriage pulls anymore and was just being kept at the stables for tradition. Those girls spread a rumor the horse was supposedly a powerful wizard who'd been cursed and that he would teach his magic to whoever could break his curse with a kiss."
Kazuma sighed heavily. "Let me guess…"
Kirche nodded. "Louise, who was so desperate to increase her skill with magic snuck into the stables and did just that. Unfortunately those girls were waiting for her and used a simple spell to secretly take a picture of her doing it and spread it throughout the school. Eventually slurs towards bestiality were added to the taunts Louise received. One day she didn't show up for any classes and I went to check on her…"
"Well…?"
"I found her on her bed motionless, a short note on her nightstand apologizing to her sister and the princess. She mixed a poison made with special beads and ingested an entire glass of it…"
Kazuma narrowed his eyes. "Kiss of the Abyss."
Kirche looked at him confused.
"It's what the poison is called. I've encountered it before. Sorry, I wasn't being cruel."
Kirche nodded slowly in understanding.
"So…what happened after that?"
"A funeral was held for Louise, and that was it."
Kazuma narrowed his eyes. "Those girls were never punished?"
Kirche Nodded slowly. "At first they weren't since there was no feasible way to connect the rumor to malicious intent. Eventually I told Osmond what I saw and they were swiftly expelled from the school. Unfortunately that's the end of it. Nothing else happened after that."
Kazuma sighed heavily.
"…Well…now you know."
Kazuma nodded. He then looked around.
"So, do you have any other questions?"
"Nothing as loaded as that. And to be honest, perhaps you should take a break after that."
Kirche looked back at the photo of Louise and nodded. "Perhaps. What about you?"
"I'm going to try and learn everything I can about this place since I've got no idea what this place is," Kazuma explained.
"You mean you don't know?" Kirche asked with slight confusion.
"That's what I said."
"You're at the Tristain Academy of Magic," Kirche explained plainly.
"That's a little too specific. I'm not even sure what planet this is."
Kirche blinked curiously. "It's called Halkeginia."
"Halkeginia…not a name I'm familiar with," Kazuma responded. "If you don't mind I'm going to walk around the school and try to get my bearings."
Kirche nodded in understanding.
"Then I suppose I'll be back soon." He stopped for a moment and then handed her a simple ring.
"What's this?"
"It's a ring made of mana, if you pulse mana into it I'll be able to feel it, just in case you have a reason for me to return quickly."
Kirche nodded in understanding as he walked out the door.
Kazuma walked out the door and down the hallway. Scratching his head in thought as he walked he muttered, "So, looks like my life cycles doesn't it? First I'm Forbesii's servant, then arguably Arturia's, then Rias', and now Kirche's. Though I can't really complain about the last three. Though it is pretty annoying to have finally beat that bastard and now I'm somewhere I don't recognize.
Kazuma turned the corner and noticed Guiche, whom he had yet to meet personally, wooing a girl with long brown hair in a hime cut with brown eyes wearing the female uniform and a brown cape.
"You're so beautiful this night, dear Katie," Guiche said affectionately to the girl.
Katie giggled in light amusement and responded, "Oh, Guiche, you're so romantic."
The two then blinked and turned to the side, seeing Kazuma watching them confused.
Guiche blinked curiously and asked, "Wait, aren't you the Familiar Kirche the Ardent summoned?"
Kazuma raised an eyebrow. "Ardent? Sure, whatever you say Adonis."
"Adonis? My name is Guiche," he corrected.
Kazuma twitched slightly, trying and failing to suppress his laughter. "G-Guiche? You must be joking."
"No I am not! My name is Guiche de Gramont and I am quite proud of it!"
"Sure, whatever Butch."
"It's Guiche!"
In another area of the school, Colbert paged through a series of books before seeming to find what he was searching for, causing his eyes to narrow. He saw a series of symbols in a book that strongly resembled the symbols on Kazuma's hand. "This is it, just as I thought. I need to tell the headmaster about this."
Kazuma chuckled as he walked past the two lovebirds and thought, 'Oh yeah, Blondie's gonna be loads of fun.' He then made his way out of the main building and into the courtyard.
He looked at the area around him in thought. With a sigh he remarked, "Crap. All I see is fields and mountains. Nothing helpful at all." He then looked up and saw something strange. Two moons in the sky, one larger, blue moon, and another smaller, red moon. His eyes then widened as he realized something. 'Hey, Ddraig, that large moon…you don't think it could be…Rieze Maxia…do you…?'
The voice in his head remained silent for a moment before responding, 'Hmm…I think it might be. That would mean…'
Kazuma sighed and ran a hand through his hair. 'That means we're on Elympios. We're in Vanaheim.'
'If you're right, then we are. This place…if it truly is Vanaheim, then matters could get complicated.'
A new, second voice in his head then interjected, 'That they will. You do not intend on merely lazing around I hope.'
Kazuma smirked in amusement. 'Have you met me, Zangetsu? For the moment I'm perfectly content just waiting, especially with what I recently went through.'
The new voice, Zangetsu sighed in exasperation. 'Why does this not surprise me? You are a walking contradiction.'
Ddraig, the first voice in his head, interrupted, 'I suggest you stop trying to convince him to get the lead out old man. Have you learned nothing so far?'
Zangetsu remained silent.
Kazuma chuckled lightly as he looked around. He glanced up to the side and noticed a figure watching him on a balcony that shortly vanished. He narrowed his eyes before turning to get back to the room before he began sweating lightly. "…Shit…"
'What now?' Ddraig asked.
'I…forgot how to get back to the room…' Kazuma responded weakly.
'…You dumbass.'
Eventually Kazuma made his way back to the room he shared with Kirche and noticed the busty redhead asleep on her bed, sleeping peacefully.
He smiled lightly before looking at the picture of Louise. 'I wonder if…' Shaking the thoughts from his head he walked to the end of the bed and sat down on the floor there and closed his eyes, going to sleep swiftly.
Kazuma woke up the next morning feeling a slight shaking sensation. His eyes opened and he saw Kirche crouching in front of him.
"Something wrong?" he asked plainly.
"You're very hard to wake," Kirche answered.
Kazuma stretched his shoulders before he stood up. "Sorry 'bout that. So, is there something specific you need?"
Kirche walked over to the door and shook her head. "No, but it's time to head for breakfast, I assume you'll be joining me?"
Kazuma shrugged. "Can Familiars join their Masters to eat?"
"Normally, no. But since you at least look human I'm sure they'll make an exception. Besides, I doubt the usual feed they give to Familiars would work for you."
Kazuma shrugged again. "Technically I can eat anything. Though what gives me the most benefit is fire."
Kirche looked at him surprised. "What do you mean?"
"Fire. You know, flames. I devour them and convert them into mana. My whole body is made of mana rather than biomass."
Kirche blinked in thought and then picked up her wand.
Kazuma backed away slightly.
Kirche narrowed her eye. "Oh don't be like that."
"It exploded when you summoned me."
Kirche sighed heavily. "Yes, I won't argue that. After what happened to Louise my magic occasionally randomly does that despite working most of the time. Though it was especially caustic yesterday. It'll be fine today."
Kazuma remained silent for a moment before nodding. "If you say so."
Kirche nodded in response.
Kazuma watched as Kirche flicked her wand and conjured flames in the air. He blinked curiously and then began inhaling the flames, gulping them down swiftly and effortlessly. Kazuma blinked in thought and said, "Very sweet, I'm glad I was summoned by someone with such tasty flames."
Kirche smirked in amusement. "I'm glad I got a Familiar who enjoys my flames so much. Now, shall we go?"
Kazuma nodded in response and followed behind her.
The two quickly made their way to a set of large double doors at the end of a long, tall hallway.
As the doors opened, the two walked into the room and Kazuma looked around at the large, long hall with many tall windows on one end with many long tables covered in extravagant meals and candles from end to end.
However, as they entered, Guiche looked around and noticed many of the students, mostly girls, looking at Kazuma intrigued. Standing up annoyed he walked over to Kazuma and Louise proudly. "Hmph, you know, wearing combat gear in the cafeteria is very rude."
Kazuma raised an eyebrow and shrugged. "Whatever you say Douche."
"My name's not Douche, it's Guiche!"
Kazuma then snapped his finger and his gauntlets, shoulder pauldrons, body armor, and greaves minus the shoes disappeared in a flash of light.
Guiche hated himself for that.
It left Kazuma in nothing but armored shoes and his skintight, black, under armor, showing off his muscular body that was hidden by the armor, also showing more of the scars on his body, one on his right shoulder, one on his right bicep, and one that seemed to extend through his right hand.
Many of the girls turned red at the sight, even Kirche felt her own cheeks heat up slightly at the sight.
As the duo made their way to the spot Kirche wanted Kazuma pulled a seat out for her to sit at.
Kirche smiled appreciatively as she sat down.
Kazuma folded his arms and asked, "So, where am I supposed to sit?"
Kirche put a hand on her chin and then pointed next to her, "That seat should be open."
Kazuma nodded in understanding as he sat down.
On Kirche's opposite side Tabitha sat down.
"Ah, Tabitha, how good of you to join us," Kirche remarked.
Tabitha nodded in response and leaned forward slightly to see Kazuma, nodded lightly to him.
Kazuma smiled and waved in response before resting his head on his fist, with his arm on the table, and asked Tabitha, "You're the one who summoned that Rhyme Dragon, right?"
Tabitha looked at him curiously for a moment and then nodded. "Yes, Sylphid."
Kirche then chuckled and pointed to Kazuma. "Here, watch this." Flicking her wand, she conjured several orbs of flame that Kazuma instantly and gleefully gulped down.
Tabitha's eyes widened just barely.
Kirche smirked. "He eats fire, isn't that such a perfect match?!"
Tabitha nodded in response.
Kazuma leaned over and added, "Technically I can eat anything and it gives me mana, fire is just the most delicious."
Kirche looked at him surprised. "Oh? Anything?"
Kazuma nodded in response.
Before Kirche could say anything Tabitha conjured a ball of ice in the air.
Kazuma grabbed it out of the air and swallowed it as well. He twitched an eyebrow. "So bitter…"
Tabitha frowned in annoyance.
The rest of the meal passed with little incident, though Kazuma noticed Guiche constantly glaring at him.
As the other students started filing out of the room Kazuma noticed Kirche walk seemingly away from the classrooms.
"Am I missing something?" Kazuma asked as he walked beside her, his armor now reapplied to his body.
"All of us second years have the day off to spend time with our Familiars," Kirche explained.
"Uh-huh," Kazuma responded in thought. "So, what exactly constitutes spending time with your Familiar?"
Kirche motioned to the side where many of the second year students sat gathered in a garden-like area with their Familiars.
"…Ah…"
"So, want to have some tea?" Kirche asked with a smile.
Kazuma shrugged in response as they walked into the gathering place.
As the two walked in Kirche looked around. "There should be a maid around here with some food…"
Kazuma glanced to the side and saw a young woman with short black hair in a bob cut that framed her face as well as bangs hanging just above her dark blue eyes and fair skin wearing a maid uniform that included a black dress, a white, frilled apron that had an extra support piece for her sizable breasts, an orange ribbon held by a blue jewel, a white headpiece, and tall, brown boots walking towards them but walked towards her when he saw the tail of one student's Familiar catch her ankle and knock her off balance.
Kazuma rushed over to the maid and caught her by the waist, catching her tray of food in his hand. After a moment Kazuma sighed and then stood the maid up straight, handing her tray to her. "You alright?"
"Y-yes, I'm fine," the maid responded slightly confused. "Thank you," she responded still mildly confused. "Do you…want some cake…" she asked.
Kazuma thought for a moment and then responded, "How about you just tell me your name?"
The maid looked at him further confused. "Uhm…okay. My name is Siesta."
Kazuma nodded and answered, "My name is K-er, Ddraig."
Siesta nodded in return and bowed. "It's good to meet you Mr. Ddraig."
Kazuma waved a hand. "Just Ddraig is fine."
Siesta raised an eyebrow and nodded with a smile. "Okay, Ddraig it is."
Kazuma turned to the side and then noticed Guiche sitting nearby. However, rather than Katie, he was speaking with and presumably, based on what Kazuma's ears could hear, wooing Montmorency. Kazuma didn't have much of an issue like that until he heard Guiche say several things he said to Katie last night. Sighing, Kazuma thought, 'This halfwit's sneaking around with these two girls, isn't he?'
'Seems like it,' Ddraig commented.
Kazuma raised an eyebrow in thought and then got an idea and asked Siesta, "Where were you planning on taking that pie?"
Siesta blinked and answered, "Uhm, Mr. Gramont. Why?"
"Why don't you let me do that instead?" Kazuma offered.
Siesta tilted her head in thought but before she could respond Kazuma had already walked off with a piece, leaving a puzzled Siesta standing next to an intrigued Kirche.
Kazuma walked over to Guiche carrying the pie. "Here you go."
Guiche looked up at Kazuma suspicious and annoyed. "You…you're Kirche von Zerbst's Familiar, right?"
Kazuma folded his arms as he put the pie down on the table. "I am."
"What, are you moonlighting as a waiter now?" Guiche taunted.
"Maybe. Maybe not." 'It helps that I've already worked as a waiter.'
"I see…"
Kazuma then looked over and asked, "Is this the same girl you were with last night?"
Guiche flinched in concern as Montmorency looked at Guiche curiously.
"What does he mean by that, Guiche?" Montmorency asked.
"Ah…well I…" Guiche stammered.
Kazuma then turned to Montmorency and asked, "Hey, what do the different color capes mean?"
Montmorency raised an eyebrow and responded, "Why do you wish to know?"
"Because I saw him with a girl that had a brown cape."
Montmorency frowned and accused, "Are you two-timing me, Guiche?!"
Guiche stood up in worry. "N-no my dear. I would never betray you."
"So does that mean you'd betray her?" Kazuma asked, pointing to Katie behind Guiche.
"Aaah! Katie!" Guiche exclaimed. Guiche then turned to Kazuma and asked the girls, "Are you really going to believe the accusations of some familiar like him?!"
Kazuma folded his arms silently as Siesta and Kirche walked up to Kazuma.
"What's going on over here?" Kirche asked curiously.
Kazuma pointed to Guiche and explained, "He's going out with one girl while also secretly going out with another."
Kirche looked at Guiche curiously and then turned to Montmorency and pointed at Guiche. "You're going out with him?"
Guiche stammered, "I-I can explain."
Kazuma raised a hand in front of him. "Don't bother, you're just a weakling."
The others looked at him in surprise.
Kirche raised an eyebrow as he spoke.
Guiche clenched a fist and asked, "What do you mean by that?"
"You're secretly seeing one girl while going out with another."
"And who are you to judge?"
"Because, if you're going to see two girls, at least make sure they know about it."
"Eh…?" everyone grunted in response.
Siesta tilted her head in mildly confused thought.
Kazuma pointed to the sky in an instructive manner. "A real man can have and satisfy multiple women at the same time. And since you cannot do so without sneaking around under cover of dark you obviously don't have the confidence it takes." Kazuma blinked and then looked around him. "What? What'd I say?"
Kirche put a hand on her chin as Montmorency asked, "So are you saying that it takes a real man to cheat…?"
Kazuma shook his head. "No, cheating is when you go behind one person's back. It's different if all the girls involved know about it."
Kirche flattened her brow. "Even I'm confused now."
Kazuma sighed and then had an idea. The armor on his arms disappeared in a flash of light, allowing all present to see the long string of red markings on his arms.
Ddraig asked puzzled, 'Your Command Seals? Oh…I get it.'
Kazuma pointed to the markings and asked, "You see them? All these marks?"
Everyone present nodded, Guiche asking, "And your point? You just showing off?"
"No, well, not technically. Each one of these markings acts like a marriage band. I've got eleven total."
Guiche gaped while Kirche looked at Kazuma in surprise and intrigue.
"So…hang on…does that mean you…?" Kirche asked curiously.
"What do you think it means?" Kazuma asked.
"That you're married to eleven women," Siesta added bluntly.
Kazuma put a hand to his chin in thought. He was then silent for several seconds.
Kirche sweat-dropped and added, "I don't think there's any reason to count."
"You don't?" Kazuma responded.
Kirche waved a hand. "Let's deal with one thing at a time."
Kazuma shrugged in response. "Eleven at least. Though I think it's likely more. Either way, my point is, Guiche, if you were a real man you wouldn't need to slink around in the dark lying to these girls."
Montmorency asked puzzled and irritated, "And what if, let's say, one of these girls happened to not like the idea of Guiche being with another girl?"
Kazuma answered plainly, "That's simple, he just picks the one who matters to him more."
Guiche began slinking away slowly.
Montmorency grabbed his collar and shouted, "No way! You are not getting off easy just because Ddraig's a jerk!"
Kazuma scratched his head puzzled. "I am completely confused here but whatever."
'You're too used to being a ladies man, Kazuma. You forget that most human relationships are one man one woman,' Ddraig explained.
Kazuma raised an eyebrow and then sighed. 'Oh yeah…I forgot about that. I guess I just forgot about that with everything that's happened. That or I know some of the most exceptionally accepting women.'
'Probably a mix of both. But now, you've gotten yourself up shit creek.'
Kazuma looked around him at the rather perturbed stares from the girls. 'Huh…shit…' Kazuma sighed and then said, "Well obviously I'd say it seems you messed up either way, Guiche."
"So…" Katie interjected for the first time, "Does that mean it's just okay for a man to have multiple wives?"
Kazuma shook his head. "No, it goes both ways."
Katie looked at him confused.
"I think you're missing her point," Kirche remarked.
"Am I?" Kazuma asked puzzled.
"I think her point is that you seem to think it's okay for one person to have multiple relationships," Siesta proposed, to which Katie nodded in agreement.
Kazuma blinked and answered, "Well…yeah."
"You're just a pervert," Montmorency derided.
"I am but that's not the point."
Siesta once again added, "Though, might I point out that most nobles have side relationships?"
Guiche cleared his throat and added, "Y-yes, she's right."
Kazuma deadpanned, "You were lying so you don't count."
"Grrr…" Guiche then sighed and pointed his rose at Kazuma. "I've had enough of you making a fool out of me."
Kazuma raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And what do you plan on doing about it?"
Guiche smirked and challenged, "A duel. You against me."
Kazuma shrugged. "Fine by me. I haven't had a chance to stretch my muscles since getting summoned here."
Montmorency gaped and then turned to Kirche. "You're not really going to let your Familiar fight Guiche are you?"
Kirche smirked. "I don't see why not. It'll be fun to see Guiche get beaten."
"…You really think your Familiar can win?"
"Let's call it a hunch."
Soon Guiche and Kazuma stood opposite each other with a crowd around them.
"Are you ready, you pathetic little lapdog?" Guiche taunted.
"Did you just call me little? I'm going to enjoy flattening your face," Kazuma rebutted.
"That's the part he focused on…?" Kirche, Siesta, and Montmorency remarked in unison.
Guiche smirked and pointed his rose at Kazuma. One of the petals flew off and hit the ground, a humanoid, feminine suit of green armor with a spear rose out of the ground. "I am Guiche the Bronze, and as I use Earth magic, this will be your opponent, one of my Valkyries."
Kazuma nodded. "Alright then, I'll give you the first blow."
Guiche smirked. "You will regret that. Go my pretty!"
The Valkyrie rushed forward, pulled back its unarmed fist, and slammed it into Kazuma's face.
Guiche chuckled proudly but then raised an eyebrow.
The Valkyrie pulled back its fist and Kazuma stood motionless, unharmed. Kazuma smirked and said, "My turn." He grabbed the Valkyrie by the arm, slammed it into the ground and then threw it at Guiche.
Guiche gasped as the Valkyrie slammed into him, smashing him onto the ground.
Colbert showed up at that moment, having heard the commotion, and was in shock as he watched Kazuma so easily dispatch Guiche's Valkyrie.
Kirche put a hand to her chin in thought. "My, my, he seems to be off to a good start."
Guiche stood up angrily and waved his rose wildly, "Take this, and this!" Eight petals fell off and turned into eight Valkyries that immediately rushed Kazuma.
Kazuma grabbed the first Valkyrie by the arm with his right arm, slammed it into the second Valkyrie to his right side, back to the other side against the Valkyrie to his left side, then threw the three stuck-together Valkyries at Guiche. Kazuma then grabbed another Valkyrie by the waist and spun it around his arm to take out two other Valkyries and then threw it as well back at Guiche, the other two it hit going with it. He then used the same arm to punch another Valkyrie's head off, swung his fist and beheaded the seventh before punching a whole into the last Valkyrie's torso and tossing it back at Guiche, leaving the pompous blonde under a pile of defeated Valkyries.
Guiche's hand stuck out under the pile, twitching.
Kazuma sighed and turned to Colbert. "Hey, Teach, call the match, I'm bored."
Kirche smirked at Montmorency. "See? What did I tell you?"
Montmorency merely gaped in shock at the pile of defeat Guiche was buried under.
Kirche then quickly walked up to Kazuma, following him back into the main hallways of the academy.
Colbert looked at the utterly defeated Guiche and gulped. 'He…he defeated one of our best second year students with only one arm. He didn't even move during the whole duel.'
Kirche and Kazuma soon arrived back at Kirche's room as Kazuma walked over to the small table.
"I have to say, that was quite a show you put on," Kirche complimented.
Kazuma looked at her thoughtfully. "Was it now? I'm glad you enjoyed it so much, that blonde bastard barely put up a good fight as far I'm concerned."
Kirche stood silently for a moment before walking over to Kazuma with a playful smirk. "If that battle bored you, I think I may know one that would interest you more."
"Oh? And what might that be?" Kazuma returned with an intrigued smirk as Kirche walked towards him.
However, as she neared him a loud sound erupted in the hallway.
Kazuma narrowed his eyes and stood up. "Wait here," he ordered as he stepped outside into the hallway.
Kazuma and Kirche looked down the hall before Kirche pointed towards one end. "Look."
Kazuma turned the direction she pointed and saw a table at the end of one of the hallways knocked to the ground. He narrowed his eyes as he walked up to it.
"What happened?" Kirche asked curiously.
"Probably just someone's Familiar running loose," Kazuma eased. He narrowed his eyes further as he noticed a small, dusty mark on one shard of the pot. "Well, there's nothing we can do about it for now."
Kirche sighed in exasperation.
Back at Osmond's office, Colbert walked through the door with a sigh. "Sorry for the interruption, it seems Guiche de Gramont had challenged Kirche von Zerbst's Familiar to a duel."
Osmond nodded as he puffed from his pipe. "Yes, I'm aware. I saw it all."
Colbert raised an eyebrow and asked, "Then…what did you think?"
Osmond chuckled in amusement. "I must say, that Ddraig has an interesting world view. I think I like him."
Colbert sweat-dropped and asked, "Err…I meant the fight…"
"Oh…well that was quite impressive as well. His skill and strength are far above what would be expected of a normal Familiar."
"About that, I think I may know something about it."
Osmond narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.
Back in Kirche's room, Kirche, wearing a set of revealing lingerie, sat on the edge of her bed as Kazuma sat down on the floor. "Are you sure you'd rather sleep on the floor down there?" Kirche asked confused.
Kazuma nodded in return. "Yes, I usually end up getting intimate with the people I lie in bed with."
Kirche looked at him puzzled.
"I think it'd be best to wait just a little bit on that."
Kirche sighed and shrugged in response, slipping into her bed and closing her eyes.
Kazuma also sat down and closed his eyes.
Only a little time passed before Kazuma cracked an eye open. He heard Kirche sleeping peacefully in her bed and stood up. 'Sorry about leaving you alone, but I still need to confirm a few things.'
With those thoughts in his mind he walked out into the hallway and turned to the window nearby. His eyes narrowed as thoughts of curiosity filled his mind. 'I wonder…how long has it been? Ten years? Fifty? One hundred?'
'Careful, those kinds of thoughts will consume you,' Ddraig cautioned.
Kazuma sighed as he looked down the hallway in thought. 'Yeah…I know. But I simply passed out after killing that big black bastard dragon. I lost all sense of time. I wonder…if everyone's alright. Rias…Orihime…Miya…Erza…everyone. I can't even be certain if they're all alive. Although…my Command Seals are all intact…and I can feel a remnant of my Tethers…so they must be alive somewhere…maybe not on Midgard but somewhere.'
Ddraig sighed and then commented, 'We can only hope. At the very least you can be certain Arturia and the others are still alive. Transcendents are nearly indestructible.'
Kazuma was about to respond when a voice called, "Ddraig?"
Kazuma glanced to the side and saw Siesta standing nearby. "Ah, you're that maid, aren't you? Siesta was it?"
Siesta nodded in agreement. "I'm glad you remembered, Mr. Ddraig."
Kazuma stood up and waved a hand. "Just call me Ddraig, I'm not much for titles. So, what exactly are you here for?"
"Just delivering a set of clean laundry to one of the students."
"Is that so?"
"What about you?" Siesta asked.
"I'm still trying to get used to the school, so I'm taking a look around to familiarize myself with it."
Siesta nodded and asked, "If you want, after I deliver these I could show you around."
Kazuma nodded in return. "That actually sounds like fun. I'll just be right here when you get back."
It did not take long for Siesta to return to where Kazuma was. "Welcome back," Kazuma remarked amusedly.
Siesta giggled in amusement and nodded. "So, shall we begin?"
Kazuma nodded.
"I suppose we should start with the servants' quarters since I need to go there first."
Kazuma nodded in agreement.
Soon Siesta took Kazuma to the servants' quarters, and more precisely the kitchen where he was lovingly greeted by the head cook, a tall, burly man with brown hair and brown eyes with a scruffy beard and a happy disposition wearing a chef's uniform.
"Hahah! Welcome our sword!" the man shouted excitedly.
Kazuma blinked curiously. "Pardon? Your sword?"
Siesta motioned to the man and said, "This is the head cook in the academy, Marteau."
Kazuma nodded in his direction. "Nice to meet you."
Marteau walked up and vigorously shook Kazuma's hand. "No, no, the honor is all mine!"
Kazuma pulled his hand from the man's and asked, "While that's all well and good, why did you call me your sword?"
Marteau smiled wide and patted Kazuma's back roughly. "Because, thanks to you, we don't have to take as much guff from the nobles! You really showed that Guiche de Gramont what for, and we all appreciated it! So as our thanks, eat as much as you like! It's not like the nobles are going to eat it anyway, hahahah!"
Kazuma tilted his head in thought. He then turned to Siesta.
Siesta laughed weakly. "Sorry, I honestly didn't expect this to happen."
Kazuma nodded puzzled and sat down at the long table to see the food in front of him. Kazuma looked around and then sighed. "You're too persistent. Well, I'm not one to turn down food though, so I don't mind."
Marteau nodded happily. He then put an arm around Kazuma's shoulder and whispered to him, "Plus our little Siesta seems to have taken a liking to you."
Kazuma blinked curiously. "That so?"
Marteau looked at Kazuma puzzled. "Is that not a good thing?"
Kazuma weakly pointed to a red-faced Siesta.
Marteau sighed in embarrassment. "My bad…"
Kazuma looked at the food curiously and asked, "Hey, Marteau, can I ask you a favor?"
"Anything our sword!" Marteau responded spirited.
Kazuma twitched an eyebrow. 'As auspicious as the meaning is…that title will get old really fast.' Shaking the thought from his head Kazuma asked, "Could I get these in flambé?"
Marteau looked at him curiously but then nodded emphatically. "Right, coming up!" He turned to one of his fellow cooks and said, "Get me some alcohol and a flame."
The other cook nodded and ran off.
'Well, he's got energy, that's for sure,' Kazuma thought.
Moments later he returned and Marteau bathed the different food items in the alcohol before setting them alight. "Well, there you are, so what will you-?"
Marteau and the others paused as Kazuma took an entire flaming loaf of bread and stuffed it in his mouth, chewing it just enough to swallow it.
Marteau blinked in thought and then laughed heartily. "You like your food hot do you?! That's a real man!"
Kazuma gulped down another bite of food and nodded in appreciation. "The food's all really good, Marteau. You're an excellent cook."
"Awww, you're makin' me blush! Besides, I'm not the only one here who cooks!"
Kazuma nodded and then finished the last of the food before getting up to leave.
After the meal, Siesta led Kazuma around the remainder of the servant's quarters and then outside the area to the rest of the school.
Once she showed him the locations of each of the main buildings and rooms and how to get there, she led him back to Kirche's room.
Kazuma commented, "You didn't have to follow me back."
Siesta shook her head. "No, it's alright. Plus I wouldn't want you to get lost."
Kazuma twitched an eyebrow. 'Is my lacking sense of direction that obvious…?'
Ddraig eased, 'No, I think she's just being kinder than necessary.'
'Let's just hope so.'
The next morning, Kazuma woke up like usual, being shook awake by Kirche.
Kirche stood up with her hands on her hips. "You sleep like a rock."
Kazuma stood up and stretched his neck. "Sorry 'bout that." He then looked at Kirche in thought.
"Something wrong?" she asked curiously.
"No, it's nothing," Kazuma answered.
Kirche shrugged as she left the room, Kazuma following after.
'Damn…' Kazuma thought in irritation.
Zangetsu sighed and asked, 'What has got you irritated now?'
'She's usually wearing that uniform when I wake up but sleeps in that negligee…' Kazuma answered in annoyance.
'I fail to see your point,' Zangetsu answered confused.
'He's saying he misses seeing her change in the mornings 'cuz he's on his ass sleepin',' Ddraig answered nonchalantly.
'Why am I not surprised it is something like that?'
"So where are you off to now?" Kazuma asked curiously.
"I've got class today unlike before, so I'll be heading to my classroom," Kirche explained.
"Ah."
Kirche put a hand on her chin in thought. "Which reminds me, I've got to figure out what to do with you."
Kazuma looked at her incredulously. "And what's that supposed to mean?"
Kirche looked at him curiously and flattened her brow. "Oh don't give me that look. It's simply that students generally aren't supposed to bring their Familiars to class. Normally they leave them in their rooms or the garden."
"I see. I don't mind waiting for you, it'll give me some more time to look around."
Kirche nodded in response. "Then I'll come and find you after I'm done with class."
Kazuma nodded and asked, "So where's the garden?"
"That place where you thrashed Guiche."
"Oh I remember that, just not how to get there."
"Oh…" Kirche responded lamely. She pointed and said, "It's on the other side of that wall."
Kazuma nodded in understanding and vanished in an instant.
Kirche blinked curiously in response. "Well then…"
Kazuma appeared in the small garden and saw many other creatures gathered around him.
He looked around disparagingly at the other creatures. "Huh…for some reason I didn't expect them to be this…ugly…" He turned as a small purple ball-like creature with a single large eye hopping on a single black tendril bounced over to him and looked up at him.
Kazuma twitched an eyebrow and shooed the creature away.
Instead it rubbed against his leg and made a vaguely purr-like sound.
Kazuma twitched both eyebrows as a single, black, pointed tendril appeared from his shadow and then smacked the creature away, causing it to slam into the opposite wall and slide down before falling to the ground. Kazuma sighed as he sat down next to the wall he was standing by and looked around.
He raised a hand slightly in front of him, several small, wormlike creatures appearing in his hand.
"Alright you guys, take a look around for me."
The tips of their heads spread apart, resembling horns, as small wings sprouted from their sides as they took off into the sky before a haze covered them and they became invisible.
'Alright, those guys should be able to look around better than I could last night. Hopefully I can figure out where I am exactly.' Kazuma looked around the area thoughtfully when he heard a strange sound nearby.
Standing up with curiousity, he walked over and saw a doorway leading outside the school.
He walked out and saw a smaller building just beyond the school's walls. "Hmm…must be stables. Still, that's a dragon's howl." Narrowing his eyes in thought he made his way over to the small stone structure.
The building seemed as he expected, filled with horses, until he got to one of the deeper stalls.
"That's…" he remarked as he saw a large, blue scaled dragon with multiple small horns on the back of its head, dark green eyes, a light blue underside, and elongated arms sitting in the stall, eying him curiously.
Kazuma folded his arms with an amused smirk. "Ah-hah, so you're the one making all that noise."
The dragon growled in curiousity.
"You're Sylphid, correct?" Kazuma asked.
The dragon, Sylphid, nodded slowly.
"Seems you can already understand human speech, impressive."
Sylphid cooed in amusement, reaching one of her clawed hands out, unable to reach through the gate. She grumbled in irritation.
"Now, now, no need to get agitated," Kazuma cautioned as he reached a hand through the gate, patting the back of Sylphid's lightly.
Sylphid growled happily.
"There, happy now?" Kazuma asked lightly.
Sylphid nodded.
Kazuma glanced over and noticed Sylphid's food bowl. He saw that it was empty and sighed. He reached a hand through the gate and red energy sparked at his hand, causing a large slab of meat to form from thin air and fall to the ground.
Sylphid sniffed at the slab curiously and then began happily tearing chunks off to eat.
Kazuma smirked happily when he noticed one of the flying worms return to him. "I guess this Magatama already finished its patrol," he remarked as he placed the creature near the back of his neck, its large horns digging into his skin. "Tch, I'll never get used to that." After a moment he pulled the creature away and it disappeared into mist. "That didn't turn up anything useful," he remarked with a sigh before waving to Sylphid. "I suppose I'll see you later."
Sylphid nodded lightly as she continued eating the meat he'd given her.
Sometime later, after Kazuma had returned to the garden, he saw Kirche walking towards him.
"So, did you have fun?" he asked lightly.
Kirche sighed heavily. "It was deathly boring. I couldn't stand it."
"I got to sit here and sleep all day," Kazuma replied proudly as he stood up.
"Well aren't you just special," Kirche responded sarcastically.
"So, where to next?" Kazuma asked.
Kirche was about to answer when she leaned over to look past him.
"Something wrong?"
Kirche ignored him as she ran past him.
Kazuma raised an eyebrow and followed after her.
The two of them approached Tabitha who was preparing to leave the academy.
"Tabitha, where are you going so late in the day?" Kirche asked curiously.
Tabitha glanced at Kazuma and then back to Kirche. "Shopping."
Kirche blinked curiously. "Shopping? You? That's unusual. Well, if you're going I might as well join you. Want to come, Ddraig?"
Kazuma shrugged in response and asked, "How do you plan on getting there?"
"Carriage," Tabitha answered.
"Oh, those things are so slow," Kirche answered annoyed. She then perked up as an idea hit her.
High in the sky, Kazuma, in dragon form, flew, Tabitha and Kirche riding on his neck.
"I don't appreciate you using me as a free ride," Kazuma complained, his deep voice in dragon form booming.
Kirche smiled and lightly massaged the side of his neck. "Aww, come on, don't be like that."
Kazuma just grunted in annoyance before asking, "So where is this place?"
Kirche put a hand above her eyes to block the sun and then pointed down slightly ahead of them. "It's just over there."
"Then we stop here," Kazuma said as he dove to the ground.
"What? Why?" Kirche asked as Kazuma landed on the ground, suddenly reverting to human form, causing the two girls to land on the ground hard.
Kazuma turned around and saw Tabitha lying on her back while Kirche lightly massaged her shapely bum.
"You should warn us next time you do that," Kirche chided as she and Tabitha stood up.
"Sorry, my mistake," Kazuma responded unrepentantly.
"Hmph," Kirche huffed in annoyance.
Soon the trio made their way into the village walking around the many different shops.
After passing many shops of different types, Kirche sighed and asked, "Tabitha, just what are you looking for here?"
Kazuma just sighed before he glanced over and saw a small shop at the end of an alleyway.
"What's wrong Ddraig?" Kirche asked as she and Tabitha walked up beside him.
"There's something unusual about that shop over there," Kazuma said as he started walking.
Kirche and Tabitha looked at each in thought before following behind him.
As the trio walked into the tiny shop, Kirche looked around at the many shelves holding a variety of different objects.
"What is this place?" Kirche asked uncomfortably as she looked around. "Everything about it is creepy."
Tabitha lightly swung her wand to swat away a large bug that flew towards her.
"I'm sorry to hear that my dear," a dry, conniving voice remarked.
Kirche and Tabitha instantly looked to the side and saw a young man with pale skin, crimson eyes, and shoulder-length silver hair wearing a light blue shirt, black pants, geta sandals, and an ankle-length black haori with a raining, green matrix code design on it draped over his shoulders.
Kazuma looked to the side glared in frustration. "About time I found you," he said annoyed.
Kirche blinked curiously and asked, "Do you know this creepy guy?"
Kazuma nodded as he walked up to him. "Alright Naoya, I need to ask you a few questions."
"My, my, you know my name already? Ooh, you must be a psychic. Please, tell me what I'm thinking," the strange man, Naoya, said playfully.
"You're thinking that if you don't stop this gibberish I'm going to knock you out."
"Wow! You really are a mind reader!" Naoya responded excitedly.
Kazuma twitched an eyebrow. "Whatever, look, just tell me how much time has passed."
Naoya chuckled in amusement. "I never really bothered keeping track of Time. It is much more interesting when she sneaks up on you."
Kazuma twitched both eyebrows. "Alright, then will you at least tell me where I am?"
"Does anyone truly know where they are in this world?"
Kazuma sighed heavily. "Why do I always get an aneurism when talking to you?"
"Maybe it's the sheer amount of joy in your head trying to escape."
"I highly doubt that."
"Well, that aside, I really must thank you for these black dragon scale boots," Naoya said as he picked up a pair of shiny black boots with a blue sheen. "Those scales have proved most useful."
Kazuma gained a tic mark on his head. "Alright you annoying prick, stop speaking in riddles or I'll make sure you turn into a pool of primordial jelly."
"Oh my, so violent. It's not very good to get so aggressive in front of your lady friends," Naoya teased.
Kazuma sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "This is useless, I'm leaving."
Naoya put a hand on Kazuma's should with a wide grin. "Perhaps I could convince you to stay for just a few moments."
Kazuma narrowed his eyes as he turned around.
"Just follow me."
Kazuma sighed and followed behind him, the perplexed Kirche and Tabitha following behind.
As they neared the desk at the back of the store, a strange new voice said, "Oy, Partner!"
Kazuma raised an eyebrow and then looked around.
"Over here!"
Kazuma walked over to a barrel of weapons and widened his eyes. Inside he found a rusty sword inside of a black sheath with bandages tied around two spots that held the strap for it to go over the wielder's back.
Kazuma grabbed the sword and pulled it out. "I'll be damned…"
"Aren't you glad you stayed?" Naoya asked with a smirk.
Kazuma churlishly slammed the sword into its scabbard and asked, "Knowing you even he isn't free, so how much are you charging for my friend here?"
Kirche looked at the rusty old sword in confusion. "Friend? He?" Kirche blinked in bewilderment. "I think my Familiar has lost his mind."
"Oh don't worry dear, he didn't have one to begin with," Naoya chimed in, only for Kazuma to slam his head onto the table. "My, that actually hurt. Well, the sword itself is one hundred gold pieces. Although I'll throw in a special item for one-fifty."
Kazuma narrowed his eyes in thought. "What is it?"
Naoya placed a small black scroll with teal edges on the desk.
Kazuma narrowed his eyes and nodded. "Fine. Since I highly doubt a cheapskate like you would go down on the price I'll make this easy and just buy it."
"Now, now, hold it," Kirche interrupted.
"What?"
"If this is something that you want, it's my duty as your Master to buy it for you."
"There's no need to do that," Kazuma argued.
Kirche smiled. "Consider it the traditional gift from Master to Familiar."
Kazuma sighed and shrugged. "So be it."
Naoya chuckled in amusement. "My, my, you do like'em busty, don't you?"
Kazuma twitched an eyebrow. "I'm gunna kill you."
And there you have it, the first chapter of Dragon of Zerbst. Hopefully everyone of you enjoyed it, and I really would appreciate a review from each of you telling me whether you like this version or the original version of the story, Dragon of Zero, better.