Hello everyone, it's your buddy Fenikkusumaru, here to bring to you another chapter of Wizard of Zero! So let's get with the story! Oh, before I do, I better address something. About the opening, I know it's kinda like The Wild Fang's version of his crossover of Familiar of Zero and Kamen Rider Wizard, but I assure you all, it's all coincidental that the openings are somehow similar in terms of what's happening in the song. I don't want you people thinking I am scamming the Wild Fang for copying his song or something like that. I don't want you people thinking that he started it, but it all ended up having me taking all of the credit. Just thought I'd get that clear with ya. So anyways, with that being said, let's go with the story!
Disclaimer: Same thing.
It's been a few days since the Anansi Phantom attacked Tristain Academy and my fight with the Phantom and Siesta's rescue from falling into despair, restoring her hope, spread like a virus. It was the talk of the school. I have to admit, I kinda like this attention. Since then, all the staff members who were servants or maids would come up and want to talk to me, which I have no problem with. It's good to know that I at least got fans in the commoners.
Best of all, I had Siesta as my number one fan since I saved her. Although during the first couple days, it was a bit awkward. When I told her about how I used the Engage Ring to save her, she immediately assumed something that involved romantic stuff, but I quickly managed to clear the air with that. Still, the awkward part about it was that people started talking about Siesta and I being a couple since I gave the ring to her. Of course, both of us were embarrassed about it, but Siesta understood that it wasn't the case. However, it did cross my mind. Maybe somewhere along the way, if Siesta really was the one for me, then yeah, I'd probably marry her. Wait a minute, what am I saying?! Why am I talking about marriage already?! I'm only 17 for crying out loud.
The nobles on the other hand truly became respectful. Repeatedly I exhibited magic both similar to theirs and along the lines of something they'd never seen before. As far as they were concerned, I was a noble like them, just from a foreign nation. I had stopped trying to correct them since they never believed me. Of course, I was beginning to get the distinct impression that several were going to try and pull me into the game of politics if only to bring support of a powerful magic–user to their side. How they figured I would enhance their agendas, I don't know, but they believed it.
As of tonight, I'm enjoying food that the Academy's chef, Marteau, cooked up in the kitchen. Even though it was all leftovers from the nobles, how he cooked it was amazing. It tasted that good!
"Wow, this is the best food I've ever eaten!" I exclaimed happily.
"Only the best for Our Sword!" the jolly chef grinned.
Marteau wasn't my biggest fan at first. Although he appreciated the fact I stuck up for Siesta, the fact that I was capable of using magic made him think I was a noble. To put it simply, he hated dealing with nobles despite being a chef for a school of them. I guess he had to deal with one too many spoiled snobs mucking up his life on a whim or something. Still, Siesta explained to him the status of magic in my home world and once I confirmed it, he was as jolly as they came. He often hinted he wanted me to help him learn magic though.
"…Our Sword?" I blinked.
"That's right! You saved Siesta and you knocked off one of the nobles off his high horse! Not to mention that you're a commoner that can use magic! You're the pride of us commoners: Our Sword!"
I couldn't help but chuckle lightly at that. As far as nicknames went, it could be worse I suppose. If the other servants shared Marteau's view, it served to explain why some of them seemed to be reverent of me. I just hoped that they didn't think I was going to be some sort of revolutionary which would redefine the social classes. I didn't quite think I had that much initiative in me.
"I only did what I could." I shrugged. "Besides, I really didn't do anything that notable. I just... somehow get caught in these situations."
"You see? A true master never boasts about his skills! That's very impressive!" Marteau said to his coworkers.
I'm a master all of a sudden? I was just a fan boy who lucked into skills he knew back and forth beforehand. I would've tried to correct him, but like the nobles who saw me as one of them, likely the Servants wouldn't believe it either. To them, I was just being friendly and humble, not wanting to lord my status over the others around me. While the praise and adoration was uplifting for my ego I didn't want to become something I wasn't.
"Anyways, whenever you wanna grab a bite to eat, come over to the kitchen and I'll cook something up for ya! I, the great chef Marteau can make any magnificent food taste great! It's my own form of magic!"
"No wonder your food tastes so good." I chuckled.
"Oh, you're a great guy Kurogasa!" Marteau said, wrapping an arm around my shoulder. "You're so great, I just wanna kiss you!"
"Please don't." I sweat dropped. "A hearty meal is good enough for me."
Marteau heartily laughed at that. "Of course, not only are you a master, but you're modest too. That's very impressive."
The chefs, servants, and maids chattered happily amongst each other. I looked to Siesta, and she smiled at me, making me smile back.
The magical Wizard Rings: It contains the power of the four elements: Fire, Water, Wind, and Earth.
(The magic seal appears with the Flame, Water, Hurricane, and Land Style rings float out from it.
From the Sands of Despair, a familiar with modern magic is unearthed.
(A silhouette of a hand appears as the Flame Style ring slides into his left middle finger and the Driver On ring slides into the right middle finger.)
He is known as the Jewel of Hope: Kamen Rider Wizard.
(The figure Kurogasa Kururugi hovers in front of the magic circle and looks at the screen, before turning into Kamen Rider Wizard.)
(Cue in Life is SHOW TIME!)
(Maji ka?! Maji de?! Maji da! Show Time~!) The montage starts with Kurogasa as Kamen Rider Wizard with the entrance of Tristain Magic Academy behind him. He scans the Dragorise Ring and raises his arm in the air before a big magic circle appears from above and WizarDragon comes out of the magic circle, flying into the sky. Kamen Rider Wizard then jumps onto WizarDragon's before the latter spew out flames, making the title: The Wizard of Zero appear before WizarDragon flew away, made a u–turn, and flew towards the screen before shifting to the next scene.
(Maru de tsuki to taiyou) In the classroom, Louise tried to do a spell, but it backfired, causing her to make an explosion, and it showed her dirty with her clothes messed up after the smoke cleared.
(Kasanaru toki no shougeki!) The scene then changed to outside with Siesta serving food, to one of the students, before she looked up and noticed Kurogasa who was walking around the courtyard.
(Dare datte kiseki wo shinjitemitai) Kurogasa looked at his Style Rings in one hand before clenching them and looked up in the sky as a solar eclipse happened and the scene suddenly shatters to pieces.
(Kitto hitsuyou~ fukaketsu no) Kirche was surrounded by a bunch of men who were enamored by her while Tabitha sat quietly on the bench while reading her book.
(ENAJII~ kokoro tame) Guiche tried to woo another girl, but Montmorency wouldn't have any of it, as she pinched his ear, making Guiche flail in pain.
(Yume to yosou ii ima de uragitte kureru mono~) The scene then changes to a quick montage of the other characters show starting with Osmond, Colbert, Longueville (Fouquet), Jessica, Scarron, Princess Henrietta with Prince Wales, Wardes wielding his sword wand, Cromwell smiling evilly wearing the Ring of Andavari, and finally a silhouette of a Phantom before light shone on it to reveal Wiseman, before the camera shows Kurogasa, ready to transform.
(3! 2! 1! Show Time!) On "3" He flips his Hand Author to the left. At "2" Kurogasa slips on his Flame Style ring. At "1" he places the Flame Style ring in front of the Hand Author. And at "Show Time" a bright white light engulfs the entire screen before fading to the next screen.
(Magic time~! trick janai!) Kurogasa transforms into Kamen Rider Wizard and twirled around before showing his Flame Style ring.
(Mahou wo hero hanpa nee zo [Mahaluto Hallelujah!]) Garuda, Unicorn, Kraken, and Golem jump towards the screen before showing Wizard stuck his arm out to the side as the elements of fire, water, wind and earth spread out behind him.
(Kioku no ROOTS moguri–konde) The spell circles slide over Kurogasa, changing him into Water Style, Hurricane Style, and Land Style.
(Kibou wo tsukui dasou~) In Land Style, Kurogasa uses the Drill ring to drill down into the ground, disappearing.
(Show Time!) Siesta, Jessica, Scarron, Henrietta, Colbert, and Osmond pop out of nowhere and shout, "Show Time!" before popping down to reveal the next scene.
(Life is Show Time! tobikkiri no) The next scene shows Kurogasa riding on the Machine Winger with Louise sitting behind him as WizarDragon flew beside them before Kurogasa revved up his Rider Machine and jumped on WizarDragon's back, letting the wheels of the machine become the wings.
(Unmei DORAIVU mucha shitemo [Mahaluto Hallelujah!]) WizarDragon then flies through a magic circle, appearing on the other side flying over the top of the Tristain Academy.
(Kinou, kyou, ashita, mirai) Louise smiled seeing the sight, but the joy was cut short when Kirche somehow got through the magic circle too and landed between Kurogasa and Louise and Kirche hugged Kurogasa from behind much to his dismay and Louise suddenly gets ticked off.
(Subete no namida wo~!) As they pass a tower, though, a silhouette is seen of a young man with a newsboy cap and a giant winged lion against it.
(Show Time!) Derflinger in the WizarSwordGun pops out of nowhere and shouts "Show Time!" before popping back down to the next scene.
(Houseki ni kaette yaru ze) Four versions of Wizard, each one in a different style, converge on one another, merging into one in a big flash of light.
(Maji ka?! Maji de?! Maji da! Show Time~!) Louise holds up her wand and winks at the camera as Kurogasa smirks as puts on the Flame Style ring and transforms into Wizard one more time as he and Louise freeze, the show logo appearing.
Chapter 3: The Subtle Heat's Allure
"Ahhhhh… that was some good food…" I sighed in content, patting my stomach as I walked down the hallway, on my way back to Louise's room.
Reaching the room in question, I entered it to find Louise fiddling with my Wizard Rings, apparently trying to cast spells with them. With the rings on her fingers, she was wave her hands about before pointing out with commands like, 'Fireball!' or 'Tornado!' but to no effect. The stones in the rings didn't shine nor did they show any reaction to Louise's experiments.
"Uh… what are you doing Louise?" I asked, startling her.
Her cheeks turned red as she snapped at me saying, "N–Nothing! I… I was just curious! About your rings I mean! So… so I decided to experiment a little!"
"Experiment a little?" I asked raising an eyebrow, crossing my arms leaning against the doorway that was still open. "The way I see it, I think you're actually trying to use it."
"S–So what if I was trying to use it? If you can cast spells with these I can too!" Louise huffed.
"Sorry Louise, but it doesn't work that way."
Louise looked at me incredulously and asked, "Why not?!"
"The stones absorb magic power to cast the spells, but only when it's drawn in through the material that makes up my Hand Author." I gestured to my belt. "It creates a channel from my source, the Phantom inside of me, which draws the magic into the ring to activate it. We can both use magic, but the source of my power is drastically different from yours."
"Mmmm…" Louise pouted, puffing one cheek.
"Then again, you could get it if you were a Gate, and would have to fall into despair and hold onto your hope on your own. But you and I both know that you don't want that."
Louise shivered at the thought. Seeing the pain myself and Siesta went through probably switched her off the idea of trying to learn magic my way.
"Well… you have a point there." Louise mumbled grudgingly.
Technically, if Louise made a contract with a Phantom like Chimera she could use my kind of magic. I sincerely doubted that there would be a Phantom that would accept such a contract though. Chimera was a special case as far as I knew, the cannibalistic beast that he was.
"Don't worry though. I'm sure your own magic has it uses." I assured.
"Yes, being zero…" Louise grumbled.
"Okay, I'll give you that. But I'm sure the potential is there. You have to… I don't know… get that magic to wake up somehow."
"Wake up?" Louise frowned.
"Yeah, wake it up." I nodded. "I guess in a sense, you're… kinda like a Gate."
Louise asked, "How?"
"Well, we know you have magic in you. You wouldn't have been able to summon me otherwise." I explained. "So I think if you're having as much trouble with magic as it seems, you either just have too much and that's why everything explodes or your body can't channel the magic properly for some reason."
"Hmm…" Louise pondered.
"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm gonna do my daily routine night watch for Phantoms for a few hours, and then head back here to turn in for the night. I'll see ya later." I waved off.
As for that night watch, well, lucky for me there were no Phantoms. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, I doubt they would attack after what happened with the Anansi Phantom. I've sent Garuda, Unicorn, Kraken, and Golem out just to double check, despite Golem still being a bit shy as usual. When they got back, they all came to the same conclusion that there were no Phantoms anywhere. So after that, I went back into the tower and up the stairs to go back to Louise's room and turn in for the night.
"Oh man…" I yawned. "What a day. Well, there's no Phantom tonight, so I'm gonna go to bed…" However, when I turned the corner, there was something at the end of the hallway. In front of me, was a large red salamander with a flame on the tip of its tail with its yellow and black slit eyes staring at me as its tongue flickered.
"Hey… aren't you…" I remember seeing this salamander somewhere… during the past few days, I've been here. I've seen different familiars of all kinds. They were mostly animals and some were bizarre like this floating eye thing called a Bugbear. That thing looked nothing like the Bugbear I saw from the Tales of Phantasia video game, which by the way is a great game. That aside, that salamander in front of me was also one of the familiars I saw…
Then it hit me. IT belonged to Kirche!
"Oh crap!" I freaked out, as I tried to make a run for it, but the salamander was too quick and tackled me to the ground, making me land face first. After that, it grabbed me by the back of my coat and lifted me up so that it was standing on its hind legs. "Hey! What do you think you're doing?! Let go of me, you overgrowing Charmander!" I shouted, flailing around.
That thing wouldn't listen and the next thing I know I'm being carried off, the stupid thing on its hind legs so it could walk while still holding me in its mouth. It's not every day that you're being carried by the mouth of a huge salamander but for crying out loud this is something I definitely didn't want to experience while I'm here! This is so wrong in more ways than one! It didn't seem to be that long of a ride because the stupid lizard dropped me on the floor.
"Dang…" At least that ride was done. But now where was I? I looked around. It seemed similar to Louise's room… And why is it dark and have candles all around? Wait a minute… a dark room full of candles? Oh no… this was bad! This is really, really bad!"
"Welcome…" A soft, feminine voice greeted me as I looked up… and regretted doing.
It was Kirche in her pajamas, rather revealing ones at that! She was wearing a purple nightgown that reached to her mid–thigh, but was open at the front to reveal her purple panties. In other words, Kirche was wearing lingerie! This is REALLY bad! I wanna get out of here now!
"Uh… hi…?" I said almost uncertainly. "So, how are you doing?"
"That's no way to greet your host." Kirche pouted playfully, before smiling seductively again. "I just wanted to welcome you to my suite room, Kurosaga… or is that Kurogasa?"
"Just… Kurogasa..." I stuttered. Yeah, this was definitely bad! I want out of here!
"You got it… Kurogasa…" Kirche said before striking a seductive pose. "I know this sounds dirty, but my nickname is Kirche "The Ardent"." Looking at me huskily she said, "Like a torch, I'm easy to turn on."
AND IT'S EASY THAT YOUR FORWARDNESS TURNS ME OFF!
"Don't you get it? I'm in love with you."
NO YOU'RE NOT! YOU JUST WANNA GET INTO MY PANTS!
She was beginning to draw in closer to me, causing me to become even more nervous. Fortunately, I was saved when someone actually came to her window, as strange as that was. He looked like another one of the students. He also didn't look all that pleased either.
"Kirche," He whined. "You said we were going to meet tonight! What was all that you said about sharing an evening of hot passion? And who's that guy?!"
"Oh Sticks!" Kirche gasped. "Sorry, but I'm a bit busy right now. Let's move our date two hours from now."
"That wasn't the deal!" Sticks shouted.
With a wave of her wand, one of the flames of the candles turned into a flame snake and shot it at Stick's face, sending him down to the ground.
I managed to stutter out, "I–Isn't that, uh… Th–Three story f–fall?"
"Oh, he's fine." Kirche waved off, before turning to me with that seductive smirk, making me sweat. "Now… where were we?" Kirche smiled as she crawled towards me, causing me to crabwalk backwards as she said, "My family have always been connected with romance and desire, and right now, I want to burn up in my passion for you!"
I'M GONNA BURN UP IN THE INFERNO IF I DON'T GET OUT OF HERE!
I kept crab–walking until she had me pinned up against the wall. Then, oh no, she straddled me right on my lap, wrapping her arms around my neck. "Oh, that's so cute, you're shy… You must be a virgin… That's even better… I get to be your first…" Before I could say anything, she leaned in and began to kiss me all over my neck!
SOMEONE HELP ME!
"Kirche, you were supposed to meet me an hour ago! Why are you here with another guy?!"
I blinked, my panic momentarily forgotten as I saw another boy hovering at the window. It wasn't that Sticks guy, but apparently somebody Kirche had promised another date to. I couldn't help but feel the surrealism of the moment: Kirche trying to bed me when two guys now have come to her window complaining about how she missed their dates. Was she really that easy? I almost felt sorry for the guy to be honest. He looked like he was honestly distressed about Kirche blowing him off for another guy. The other guy, Sticks, just looked ticked off that he wouldn't be able to get his hands on Kirche's body like he had been hoping.
Unfortunately, he met the same fate like the first guy.
Rolling her eyes, she said, "Geez, I'll see you in four hours!" She then smiled at me seductively and said, "I'm so sorry, my love… These other boys just don't understand I want to be with you right now. It's all because I love you so much!"
Oh man.
"KIRCHE," Three guys shouted. Wait, three guys?! Seriously, how many of these guys does Kirche have wrapped around her finger?! "We've been waiting for you! We were supposed to make love tonight!" They shouted. They then began fighting with each other, each of them saying it was they who were supposed to be with her, not the other two.
Kirche rolled her eyes again and said, "Jeez, relax! I'll be with you tonight in six hours!"
"It'll be morning by then!" One of the guys complained.
"Mmmm…" Kirche pouted. "Flame~, get them!" She said. Her salamander got in front of her and unleashed a Flamethrower on the three guys making them fall to the ground. Wait a minute… THAT'S IT!
Reaching into my pocket, I had in my hand the Fall Ring! Good thing I showed some of my rings to the chef and maids since they wanted to know more about me! Slipping on the ring, I placed it in front of the Hand Author.
FALL! PLEASE!
The magic took effect, opening a hole in the floor under me. Naturally, I fell through it and crashed to the ground of the room below me. It kinda hurt, but I felt way safer. I heard Kirche try to call for me before the hole closed again. Sitting up, I rubbed my sore butt as I got my footing back.
"Ah!"
I heard the timid gasp and looked to the side of the room. There was a frilly bed as expected of a girl and sitting up in it was a familiar brunette. Now where did I…? Oh, wait, she was the girl that Guiche had been seeing behind Montmorency's back. Katie I think her name was.
"Sorry. Had to make a quick escape," I winced. Turning around, I headed for the door. "Sorry for disturbing you."
I stepped into the hallway, heaving a sigh. Well, this easily qualified as the most awkward day of my life. Hopefully I didn't traumatize that Katie girl with my sudden drop. Somehow, I didn't think Kirche would give up until she could add my notch to her headboard. Maybe Tabitha could give me some tips on how to avoid her.
My friends back home would laugh at me for running away from such a sexy girl.
But still… I GOT AWAY FROM HER! YEAH!
Kirche looked back to where Kurogasa was previously once Flame finished burning her other suitors and was immediately confused. "K–Kurogasa…? Where'd he go?"
"YES! YES! YES! I'M FINALLY FREE!" A voice shouted from outside.
Kirche ran over to her window to see Kurogasa celebrating his escape from her and pouted. "Why is he so happy? He ran away from making love with me! Doesn't he know how lucky he should consider himself!? That does it! I'm getting him! After all, Louise got something and a true Zerbst like me always gets what one wants from a Vallière!"
Nodding to Flame, she hopped on his back as he ran down the tower. When they got to the ground, she sent Flame to chase after him. "You can't run from my love, Kurogasa, darling! Don't deny you want me!"
I was suddenly hit with a chill in my spine, as if someone bulldozed over my grave and dug me up just to get at me all over again.
What brought that on?
That was when I heard Kirche shout, "You can't run from my love, Kurogasa, darling! Don't deny you want me!" Looking in the direction of her voice, I saw Flame charging towards me.
I then, much to my regret even to this day, let out the most feminine scream I had ever made in my life as I ran from the giant Charmander wannabe. However, as I ran, it was at that moment I wish I had my buddy Koji there. He'd be more than willing to take my place with Kirche. Koji was my best friend with a mind stuck in the 1970's and always smooth with the ladies.
"LEAVE ME ALONE!" I yelled at Kirche as I kept on running.
Kirche shouted to me from across the field, "Don't deny your feelings just because you're shy! I promise I'll be gentle, sweetie!"
"IT'S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!" I shouted as I kept on running.
After a few minutes, I ran up the tower all the way up to the fifth floor to Louise's room. "Louise! Open up! Open up!" I yelled frantically banging on her door. Now I'll admit that this will be an emasculating blow to my male persona but a one night stand with a woman having mixed empty raunchy feelings is not what I want in my life! I have standards! Standards I tell ya! STANDARDS!
"LOUISE! OPEN UP! OPEN UP!" I yelled.
"WHAT IS IT?!" I heard the pinkette snap before she whipped open her door. I didn't reply, dashing into the room and diving under her bed. My masculine image would be a thing of the past, but I would be safe. It's a fair trade in my mind. "Uh… what are you doing?"
"What's it look like I'm doing?! I'm hiding!" I panicked poking my head out from under the bed.
"What are you hiding from?"
"Not what! It's who! I'm hiding from Kirche!"
"Why?"
"She tried to rape me!"
Louise blinked at me. No doubt she had never heard about someone running away from Kirche before. I didn't blame her. A girl as pretty and sexually liberated as her, Kirche probably could entice anyone she wanted. Until now, considering what I had seen of noble boys, no one had likely turned her down before.
Well, they didn't have standards like I did.
And then Louise looked at me with wide eyes that seemed to border on a mix of confusion and rage as she just registered what I said. "She tried to what?!"
"I didn't stutter!" I said. "I have standards when it comes to girls and a one night stand with a woman having mixed empty raunchy feelings who tries to seduce and rape you so she could take your virginity doesn't qualify as one of those standards!"
"Oh, Kuro–Kins where are you?" I heard Kirche from the hallway. Great, she's got a pet name for me…
"Oh no… she's almost here!" I paled in horror. "I'm never here!" I said, before putting my head back under the bed.
I admit I may have been cowardly, but this was something to cower about! I heard the door move again and the padding of feet.
"Oh hello there Louise… Where is that Familiar of yours? He and I were having a most interesting meeting."
"What are you doing here Zerbst?!" Louise demanded.
Kirche ignored her, looking around the room as Flame sniffed around. "I know he came in here… It's only a matter of time before I find Kuro–Kins…"
"Well, I'll have you know he's actually not here!" Louise huffed.
Kirche snorted at her as she replied, "I'll determine that for myself, Vallière! Flame's nose is never wrong! He smelled my lover, come in here and I'm not leaving until I drag him out of this room and into my bed!"
Louise shrieked, "How dare you say such a thing!? You keep your hands off of my familiar!"
"Oh, by the time I'm done with him, he probably wouldn't want to keep his hands off of me!" Kirche cooed. I shuddered at the thought. WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS WOMAN?!
Still, Kirche seemed to get the message and figured she could likely get me another time. She left, allowing Louise to close the door. Once she did, I crawled out from under the bed, heaving an unashamed sigh of relief. "You know, you can fight monsters but when a girl tries to seduce you, you run?" Louise smirked at me.
"HEY! She's too forward for my taste and I'm not having my notch added to her headboard!" I snapped.
Louise crossed her arms, looking unconvinced, "Are you sure? Or were you just intimidated because she took the lead which men usually do?"
"Yes, I'm sure! I don't like to have my virginity taken like that, thank you very much!"
Louise frowned at me before she huffed, "And I thought men who thought like that were a myth."
"Well, now you got someone like that here and now." I sighed. "Man, now I'm gonna have to watch my back tomorrow." I said as I sat down Indian style on the floor. "I can't outrun Kirche forever." With a groan, I said, "If my buddy Koji were here, he'd appease Kirche for me."
"Who's Koji?" Louise raised an eyebrow.
"He's my best friend." I answered. "He's something of a ladies' man and obsessed with disco."
Louise looked at me in confusion as she said, "What's disco?"
Crap… how do I answer that one? "Uh… it's a form of dance where I'm from." I answered. "Anyways, I need to find a way to avoid Kirche tomorrow. Do you have any ideas?"
"Ask Tabitha," Louise huffed. "Kirche's too dumb to give up on anything. Tabitha knows her better than anyone."
"Wait, you mean that baby blue haired girl with the glasses, reading a book, and carrying that huge staff?" I raised an eyebrow.
"That's her," Louise nodded. Good, we were thinking of the same girl then. "She's been friends with Kirche for ever. Likely she's the only girl who can stand being around her for any length of time. Germanians… always so vulgar… Tabitha's from Gallia so that may be why."
"Hmmm…" I said, thinking about it.
"And if you want, I was planning to go into town tomorrow, so I suppose you could come with me."
"That's fine by me. Anything's better than having to be around Kirche." I agreed. "You'll get no arguments from me."
"Very well then," Louise said. "Also, since we're going tomorrow on Voidday, we're going to get you a spare sword."
I guess this Voidday Louise is talking about must be something similar to a Saturday or something. Wait a minute, getting a new sword?
"Huh?" I blinked. "But my WizarSwordGun works fine."
"True. But you never know. It could break at any moment and you'll have nothing else to use as a weapon. Those rings of yours can only do so much."
I highly doubted that since the WizarSwordGun was made of magical alloys made to fight Phantoms. Way more advanced than the simple iron forging that this world could do. Louise probably judged my weapon like she did because it was able to shift and change, possibly compromising its integrity. I could have argued, but I didn't because Louise just bailed me out and I didn't want to start an argument.
I shrugged slightly, seeing the truth in her words, though I doubted that would happen. "I guess you have a point there. Alright, sounds like a plan there. But… you promise it'll be a cool looking sword like my WizarSwordGun?"
"Don't push your luck." Louise frowned.
I rolled my eyes and said, "Oh fine… Sheesh…"
"One more thing: We need to get you new clothes. You stand out too much in that outfit. If I have enough money, I'll let you customize your own clothes."
"Okay," I nodded. Well, Louise was probably springing for outfits since I was proving to be more than just a simple commoner. If I could be impressive, she wanted me to look the part of the impressive Familiar.
"But I expect that you return a favor!" Louise added. "What I do for you is not always for free."
I groaned as I looked to her deadpan and said, "I thought I've already been doing that by not running away from you when you first brought me here."
"That's different! This is for other things!"
"Like what?" I asked.
"The Familiar Exhibition Festival, that's what!" Louise retorted.
"What's that?"
"After the students have summoned their Familiars, it is tradition for them to display their Familiars and their talents," Louise explained. "We shall be participating and I need you to look your best and prepare your most amazing spells if we are to win!"
"Ugh… so I'm doing tricks all of a sudden?" I deadpanned.
"The Princess will be watching too."
"Eh?" I blinked.
"The event is going to be hosting the Princess who has decided she will attend and even be one of the judges!" Louise answered. "That means you will be on your best behavior and no more of your usual hijinks like with Kirche or that maid!"
"With Kirche, no problem and why can't I be with Siesta?! She's a good friend and I like having her for company!"
"She's getting entirely too clingy with you," Louise huffed. "She's probably just hoping to advance herself by being the woman for an unranked noble."
"No she's not!" I said. "And I told you before, I'm no noble! I'm a commoner that can use magic!"
"Why would you even want to admit that?!" demanded Louise. "Any other commoner would have been quick to declare themselves to the queen in order to gain a title in some capacity! Just by winning, you can make a good impression on the princess and she may even vouch for you! You may as well be a noble since you can use magic."
Seeing that Louise has a one tracked mind about this, waving my hand dismissively, I said, "Oh, fine, fine, fine… I'll return the favor, sheesh!"
"Good." Louise smirked with satisfaction. "Now go on and sleep. We have a big day tomorrow."
"Right," I said.
The sun had risen and Kirche was sitting at her vanity table, getting herself ready for the day. Of course there was only one thing she had in mind.
"Hmmm… seducing Kurogasa is gonna be much harder than I thought." she said, brushing her hair. "I've never gone after a guy who played hard–to–get… Heh, heh… It probably means he'll be an even better lover." she said with a smirk at the end.
"A–Are you sure it's safe to ride on that thing?" A voice asked from outside.
"Huh?" Kirche said, as she stopped brushing her hair.
"It's fine Louise. My Machine Winger is perfectly safe."
Kirche stopped her daily ritual and looked out her window, seeing her now love and the zero sitting at some kind of two–wheeled machine that was set on the path near the front gates of the school. It was a strange contraption and Kurogasa was sitting on it and trying to convince Louise to mount it with him. "What is that!? And more importantly, why is he riding it with Vallière instead of me!?"
"I–I'm not sure about this!" Louise stuttered.
"Relax Louise. This thing is basically a metal horse with wheels, only it doesn't neigh and… well, you get the idea. That aside; as long as you hold onto me, you'll be fine."
"W–well, okay…"
VROOM!
"AHH LET ME OFF! LET ME OFF!"
"Louise, I just turned it on."
"Huh?" Louise blinked as she saw that they were still stationary. "Oh…" She blushed in embarrassment.
"I told you to relax." Kurogasa said. "Don't worry. I'll try to keep the ride as smooth as possible."
VROOM!
Louise screamed, "AHHHHHHHHHH!" as the pair took off, with her screaming the whole way. Kirche watched them go, surprised the odd machine worked before she began to fume in jealousy. "Why that little–, she's trying to steal time with my new darling! I'm gonna need Tabitha for this one." Getting up, she signaled Flame to follow her as she went to find Tabitha. After a bit of walking, she knocked on the door and said, in a somewhat sing–song tone, "Oh, Tabitha~!"
In the said person's room, the light–blue haired girl, now known as Tabitha was reading her book before she took her staff and waved it gently. Kirche burst into the room and was talking to her, but nothing came out of her mouth as silence was the only thing looming. After a while, Tabitha waved her staff again.
"–'m telling you Tabitha, we have to go now!" Kirche exclaimed.
"Voidday…" Tabitha said softly.
Kirche sighed as she sat down the other end of the bed and pouted, looking to Tabitha as she said, "Yes, I know, we're supposed to be spending this day to bond with our familiars, but I need help!"
Tabitha looked at Kirche from over the top of her book and asked, "Why?"
"Why else?" Kirche asked incredulously. "I'm going after Vallière and her familiar!"
Tabitha stared at Kirche before going to her book and said, "…Bad explanation."
"Hmph," Kirche huffed. "Don't you understand Tabitha? I'm in love! Love! I wanted to spend today with him but Louise spirited him off on the back of some strange machine!"
"…And the other five guys?" Tabitha asked.
"That was only a mere alliance! A way to pass the time and exercise my passions! It's the real thing this time!" Kirche insisted.
"You said that to the other five guys too…"
"I mean it this time!" Kirche whined. "Oh please Tabitha! Please help me! I'm your best friend aren't I? I'd do the same for you!"
Tabitha was silent for a while before closing her book and finally sighing, "Fine."
"Oh, thank you Tabitha!" Kirche said in glee hugging her. After that, Tabitha opened her window and whistled for her familiar.
"Kyuuui!"
Soaring down from above and clinging to the side of the tower came Tabitha's Familiar Sylphid, a blue dragon who was likely a young one. Dragons were usually much larger, even if the blue dragon was in fact large enough to fit several people on her back. Kirche and Tabitha climbed out the window onto the dragon's back before taking off once again.
"Two people on white machine… Tall boy… Girl with pink hair… No eating." Tabitha whispered to her Familiar. The dragon nodded before it pushed off the tower and took to the air.
After a while of driving on the open dirt road, we finally reached the closest town and I parked the Machine Winger where the people won't see it. I don't wanna have people look at me weird. I already had enough trouble with that, back at the Academy.
Louise and I both got off. Though, Louise more or less wobbled off and looked like she was about to puke.
"You okay?" I asked.
"Do I *urp!* look it?" Louise mumbled back.
"Sorry about that. I guess I should've gone slower." I said with a sheepish grin.
"Oops he says," Louise scowled. "Whatever. Let's just… get going."
"Hai, hai…" I waved off, before the two of us went into town.
"What did you say?"
"I meant yes, yes," I sighed. Following her lead, I asked, "So where is this sword shop?"
"Hmmmmm… it should be around here somewhere." Louise frowned, looking all over the town for the said shop. It was hard to find it because with towns like these, it was bustling with energy, not to mention crowded too.
"I think I can help with that." I said before taking out two PlaMonster Rings. I slipped one of them in my right middle finger and placed it in front of the Hand Author.
GARUDA! PLEASE!
KRAKEN! PLEASE!
The red garuda and the yellow kraken appeared in the air after assembling themselves. I then slipped their rings into their body slots, fully bringing them to life. "Think you guys can help us find the sword shop?" The two of them chirped at that. "Okay, I'm counting on ya." I said. With that, the two flew off.
Louise and I continued walking down the streets and I couldn't help but look around. It was like stepping back in time to around the Victorian era or maybe the age of Camelot or something. All of the buildings were made of simple stone and wood. Signs hung from every store, showing some kind of picture, likely what the shop did or sold.
"Louise, how come none of the signs have words on them? It would be easier to figure out what these stores are." I commented.
"That's because some of the commoners can't read." Louise answered.
"You're kidding me… right?" I asked incredulously.
"What's so unbelievable about it?" asked Louise, looking like being illiterate was perfectly normal.
"Louise, being able to read and write is the basics of the basics in society. How come they're not taught on how to read and write?"
"Well, basically because many commoners just cannot dedicate themselves to it." Louise explained. "They usually don't have the resources to enter schools and learn the skill. Even if they did, many don't, simply because they don't have the time to dedicate to it due to the trades they must learn from masters or their families. The only ones that do usually deal with the written word are scribes, copiers, or librarians."
"It's the medieval period here." I grumbled.
"It's the way it is." Louise shrugged. "You make it sound like everyone can read in your homeland."
"They can." I frowned. "Everyone can read back home. Everyone can go to school. Everyone can study to learn a set of skills which their families don't teach them. There are scholars, technicians, artists, and everything in between. You want it, you can go learn it."
"What a strange home you come from then…" Louise said.
Before I could say anything else, Garuda and Kraken came, flying back to me. "Guess they found it," I sighed. "Lead the way boys."
"They found the sword shop?" Louise asked.
"I think they did. That's why we're following them." I said, before following them with Louise following me.
We turned around a few corners while walking on the streets, ending up on a side street. A building ahead of us sported a sign with a sword on it. No words were on the sign so all we could do was assume that it was the place we were looking for. Then again… with what Louise told me, I'm not surprised.
"This must be the place." I said, before turning to Garuda and Kraken. "Thanks for the help guys." I said. The two chirped before disappearing and I caught their rings.
"So… shall we go in?" Louise asked.
"I might as well." I shrugged, before she opened the door to the shop and we went in.
We stepped inside, finding a somewhat enclosed space with only a few small windows and some lamps to light the place up. Rows and rows of swords were placed on shelves while others were stacked up in barrels like the bargain bin. At the far end was a desk with a greasy, mousy–looking guy who must have been the owner of the place.
"Ah, welcome to my humble sword shop!" The owner said, rubbing his hands together. "What can I do for you?"
"I require a sword for my Familiar." Louise explained, gesturing to me while I stood. I decided to let her take the lead in negotiations.
"He's your familiar?" The owner asked confused. "But he's human."
"That's a long story." I sweat dropped.
The man shrugged, obviously disinterested before he put on his salesman smile, "Well, if the young lady is looking for a sword then I have what you need."
"Good. Give me the best sword you have to offer." Louise said.
The man grinned and turned to the back before he came back out with the flashiest sword I had ever seen. It looked like it was made more from gold than steel with a whole jewelry set worth of gems encrusted in the hilt. I may have been a novice with a sword, but even I could tell it was useless.
Louise however, did not.
"Wow, it's beautiful!" She said in awe.
"Made by the famous Germanian alchemist." the salesman grinned, seeing the sale and gold dancing in his eyes.
"How much is it?"
"3,000 gold coins."
A~nd there's the rip–off price. Nice try, but you're not getting her money.
Louise cried out, "WHAT?! That's enough for a new manor with servants included!"
"A good sword is worth just as much!" the man defended his choice.
"Look, as nice as it is I was hoping for something a little more subtle." I tried to offer. "When I need to host a dinner party, then I know where to go for a nice piece to impress some snobs with."
"WHAT?" Louise and the store owner asked shocked.
"Do you have anything more… low key?" I asked.
"Oh ho, so you know what you want in a sword huh?" A new voice said. Huh? Who said that? I looked up when I heard the voice. I heard it from the corner and saw nobody. The only thing that was there was a barrel filled with bargain swords, likely the low quality stuff considering how plain or rusty the weapons looked like. I could've sworn that I heard someone talking over there though… "Over here!" the voice called, and several of the swords in the barrel rattled.
"Oh not again…" the salesman groaned.
"Down here kid!" The voice said again. I looked down and saw one of the swords pop up and say, "Hi!"
"Whoa!" I said startled, landing on a butt, before blinking, "A… talking sword?"
"Yeah, and he never shuts up! He's been nothing but a bane to my business since I bought him from the scrap dealer!" the salesman snapped. "You'd think a talking sword would be a gem but noooo! He has to mouth off at everyone who comes in! It's ruining my reputation!
"Says the guy who keeps ripping off people," The sword huffed.
"You shut up Derf!"
"Derf?" I asked, looking down at the sword. He was incredibly rusty but he was in the shape of a sword. A piece of his hand guard moved as he spoke, giving the illusion of a mouth.
"That's me! The legendary Derflinger!" the sword introduced himself. "I saw that you knew that big showoff the salesman wanted to shove off onto you was junk. How about you pass some gold over to him and take me home?"
"Huh…" I said lifting up Derflinger from the barrel and gave him a few test swings. "Hmmm… your weight's pretty good. And you may be rusty, but I think you'd look great after a good polishing."
"Oh man! It's been so long since I was polished!" Derflinger almost shuddered in glee. "Well what are you waiting for? Buy me so we can get out of here!"
"I refuse to waste my money on that… that… rusty piece of scrap!" Louise snapped.
"Hey! Who are you calling rusty girly?!" Derf snapped. "I'm a great sword to be used!"
"Oh really…" Louise huffed, obviously not believing the animated sword. "You're great at what exactly? Your edge looks like it's gone and you're covered in rust too! I doubt you could cut butter!"
But before anyone else could say anything…
*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!*
"Huh? What was that?" I asked startled.
"It sounds like trouble!" Derf noticed.
"Gee, what was your first clue?" Louise deadpanned.
We dashed outside, forgetting that Derflinger was still in my hand as I was running. Luckily the salesman was too busy hiding under his desk to try and stop us. Louise and I stopped in the main street where people were running for their lives and soldiers were running to the source. Up ahead, one of the many buildings had a hole blown in it with smoke spewing out.
"Oh no, that's the clothes store I was going to take you to!" Louise cried out.
"Who would want to blow up a clothes store?" I asked, confused.
"Hehehehe… be still now…" A voice said from the sight. "I want you to fall into despair!"
"Oh great…" I groaned. "We got another Phantom?!"
I dashed ahead, pushing past a few soldiers as they tried to rally and attack the monster in the source of it all. Some tried to stop me, but I pushed them off as I cleared their circle and ran at the clothing store, looking for the Phantom.
The Phantom stepped out of the smoke, crushing stones as it went. Its head appeared to be equine with a thick white mane which partially concealed its facial features. A sharp gold horn rose from the forehead, sparking with electric power. Gold hung around its neck and shoulders, sparking with more electric power. It legs looked equine with thick fur under the knees and obsidian black hooves. Embedded on its waist was the usual gem of the Phantoms, this one being green and symbolizing an air affinity or perhaps lightning in this case. Behind him, was a thick white tail swished, further making him horse like.
This was the Sleipnir Phantom.
How I knew that I wasn't sure, but just looking at the Phantom just seemed to bring up the name just like the Anansi Phantom before it. I wasn't positive how I knew this, but I could worry about it later when I wasn't about to put my life at risk.
"Whoa! What the heck is that?!" Derflinger cried out.
"I'll explain later." I answered before bringing my Driver on Ring to my Hand Author.
DRIVER ON! PLEASE!
The WizarDriver formed around my waist surprising Derflinger. "What the–"
"Louise, hold him for me." I said, giving the talking sword to her, which she took before I flipped the Hand Author to my left.
SHABADOOBIE, TOUCH TO HENSHIN! SHABADOOBIE, TOUCH TO HENSHIN!
I slipped on my Flame Style ring before shouting, "Henshin!" and placed it in front of the Hand Author.
FLAME! PLEASE! HII! HII! HII, HII, HII!
The Phantom immediately lost interest in wherever his intended victim was as I transformed into my armored form, "Yubiwa no Mahōtsukai?! How can this be? You were left behind in Tokyo!"
"Sorry to burst your bubble, but I'm right here, right now!" I declared.
"WHOA! You didn't tell me that the kid was a magic user!" Derflinger cried out in complete shock and surprise.
It was a surprise for me too," Louise mumbled, her pride forgotten as she feared her Familiar was putting his life at risk once again.
"Prepare to fall before the Jewel of Hope! It's showtime!" I shouted before charging at the Sleipnir Phantom.
My opponent snorted, not sounding unlike a horse, before bolts of lightning fired from his horn and sizzled the air as they surged towards me.
"Whoa!" I shouted, dodging to the side. "Geez, you don't play nice do ya?" I said before switching the Hand Author and switching rings too.
CONNECT! PLEASE!
My magic seal appeared before I pushed my hand inside and brought out my WizarSwordGun back out. I shifted it into its gun form and took aim. I was pretty sure I could hear Derflinger shouting something in the background. It was drowned out by the sounds of my shots flying at the Sleipnir Phantom.
More voltage sparked around the Phantom's feet and it suddenly moved, my bullets missing completely. I couldn't even get them to curve around since I had no clue where the Phantom had gone. I quickly got the answer when the smell of ozone hit my nostrils before something blasted me in the stomach with enough force to take me off my feet.
I shouted in pain, "GAH!" before landing on my back.
"Kurogasa!" Louise cried out.
"Ow…" I groaned, as smoke rose out of my armor. Okay, it could run on lightning or something. Not good. Fortunately, the elements were on my side as well. Slipping off the Flame Style, I pulled the Land Style Ring from the chain at my side and slipped it onto my finger. "Alright, let's see if you can get through this!" I said, before flipping the Hand Author and placed my ring in front of it.
LAND! PLEASE! DO! DO! DO! DODODON! DO! DODODON!
My armor quickly transformed as the smell of ozone spiked again and another blast struck ne, this time from behind. This time, the electric power of the attack didn't affect me thanks to my earth magic keeping me grounded and bleeding off the voltage. It still hurt from the force of the kick I felt, stumbling but not flying off my feet.
"What?" The Sleipnir Phantom gasped.
"Gotcha!" I grinned behind my mask before switching rings and flipping the Hand Author.
BIG! PLEASE!
The magic seal appeared and I punched through it, a massive fist coming through the other side. I felt the fist, strike the Phantom, sending it flying away with a cry of pain. It landed in a heap on the ground as I pulled my arm back.
"Whoa! Look at the kid go!" Derflinger said impressed. "He's pulling out tricks I've never seen before!"
"My Familiar is more magical than me…" Louise grumbled, seeing the outrageous spells I was using. "It's not fair."
"It's time I blow you away!" I said.
HURRICANE! PLEASE! FU! FU! FU, FU! FU, FU!
The green seal formed above with a green wind surrounding me, before I jumped up through the seal and assumed Hurricane Form. Using the wind currents, I slew towards the Sleipnir Phantom who was still flying away and slashed him repeatedly with my WizarSwordGun.
The Phantom growled at me before his body sparked with more electricity and he was gone like a shot. I quickly began moving, using the wind around me to try and move as fast as I could. Sure lightning was faster, but I was counting on his reflexes not being as sharp. What physical being could keep up with lightning?
I quickly learned that this Phantom could.
*WHAMMO!*
I crashed down to the ground in a heap. In hindsight, it dawned on me that wind was slower than lightning and all he had to do was go in straight lines since he was that much faster than me. He just had to aim where he knew I was going to be. Heh… and they say science was a worthwhile subject.
"It looks like I'm gonna have to be flexible… literally." I said as I switched rings and flipped the Hand Author.
EXTEND! PLEASE!
With that, my body suddenly felt rubbery like I was Luffy from One Piece. Seeing the lightning shot, I moved by body around, dodging him with my now rubbery and flexible body. Even if he did hit me, I'd be resistant to lightning because rubber insulates electricity. I hope…
"Hold still mahōtsukai–yaro!" Sleipnir Phantom said irritated.
He fired another blast of lightning at me which I literally curved around to avoid. Twisting, I spun my torso up like a rubber band before I leaped up at the electrified Phantom. As I went, I shifted my weapon into its sword position. I then let the tension in my torso release and I spun like a top, swinging my WizarSwordGun at a rapid pace.
"GUM–GUM RAPID SLASH!" I joked as I slashed him in multiple places.
Sparks flew from the impacts and the Phantom flew back even further, skidding on the cobblestone roads and crashed into one of the buildings. Smoke flew up from the impact as I landed on the ground, reading to finish the Phantom off once he showed his ugly face.
"Grrrr… this wasn't supposed to happen!" Sleipnir Phantom growled.
"You shouldn't have attacked that Gate in the first place!" I retorted before switching rings and flipping the Hand Author twice.
VERY NICE! KICK STRIKE! FABULOUS!
A green magic seal appeared below me before the wind picked up, wrapping around me to create my finishing attack. I dashed forward, doing a front flip before kicking off into the air with a corkscrew kick aimed right at the Phantom.
*BAM!*
I hit my target and soon after skidded to a halt kneeling on one knee as the Sleipnir Phantom staggered, while standing. I got back up with my back towards the Sleipnir Phantom before saying, "Take your final bow."
My magic circle appeared over the Phantom as green magic raced over its body. It screamed loudly before it collapsed to the ground and exploded. Satisfied, I stood up and dusted off my hands. Well, that solved the problem for me. "Phwee…" I sighed in relief as I went back to civilian form.
"WOW! That was amazing!" Derflinger cheered in excitement.
I looked around more and saw the owner of the store. It was an old lady in her 50's wearing simple commoner clothes. Louise gasped at who it was, gasping out, "Ms. Quinn?!"
"Eh?" I blinked, looking at Louise. "You know her?"
"Of course I do! She repairs my uniforms whenever I… have one of my accidents!" Louise said.
"Accidents," I asked again. "Oh, you mean those." I realized. I knew what she was talking about. During her classes, I'd see explosions going off somewhere in the Academy and the students would always complain about Louise making those explosions.
"Oooh," the tailor groaned as she emerged from the ruins of her store. Looking at it, she looked ready to cry. "Oh dear… Now what will I do? All of my orders were destroyed by that beast!"
Man, the Merry Christmas ring would work, but I don't have that and it's not even Christmas! How am I gonna restore all of it?
"Ms. Quinn!" Louise cried out, running over to her.
"Huh?" The said person blinked before seeing Louise running up to her. "Oh, Louise…"
"Are you okay?" Louise asked worriedly.
"Oh, well I'm a little mussed up but I'm fine." the lady smiled. I was a little surprised to see Louise talk so casually to a commoner… or was she really one? If she was a Gate, she must have had noble blood in her.
"Well, I'm glad you're alright ma'am." I said walking over to the two. "I'm just sorry that your store had to get all ruined."
"It is a shame." Ms. Quinn sighed sadly. "Oh dear, I may have to take a loan from the moneylenders and Turune has them in his pocket. I'll be in debt forever."
"Who's Turune?" I raised an eyebrow.
"Chillian Turune," Ms. Quinn sighed. "He's the royal tax collector. He's supposed to make sure that everyone pays their taxes in time, but he treats the city like his own piggybank. He changes the rates all the time to favor his friends and discredit people who stand up to him. If I take a loan to repair my shop, he'll keep the debt going for the rest of my life so he can skim gold off the top."
Great… Phantoms and corrupted nobles… oh joy… I wouldn't be surprised if these corrupted nobles are Phantoms in disguise too.
"But in any case, I have to thank you somehow for saving my life, young man. If it weren't for your magic, I would've been dead for sure."
"It's what I do." I shrugged. I looked around, "Where'd all the guards go?"
"I'm sure that they'll report all of this to the Princess." Ms. Quinn said. "Now as for how I can thank you, why don't you come with me to my house? I'll fix you a nice lunch and let you customize your clothes free of charge seeing as my store is nothing more than shambles."
"Um, it's really not that necessary." I said politely.
"Oh nonsense," Ms. Quinn waved off. "In my family, we don't leave debts unpaid and this one I can definitely pay." she insisted.
Well, if she insisted I suppose it was okay…
"Well… if you insist, I'll go. Thank you, ma'am,"
"Call me Quinn. That's what everyone calls me."
So with that, we went over to her house and I used my Connect Ring to get my Machine Winger here too. After that, she fixed up for Louise and I, a bowl of beef stew and I have to admit it's really good. While we ate, I didn't mind telling Ms. Quinn about my magic and how they came to be. And in turn, she told me about herself and I was actually surprised to hear that she used to be a noble, but went to commoner status due to not being able to live such a highly sophisticated life.
I guess she ran away from the snobbish lifestyle and found her calling in making clothes.
And speaking of coats, after lunch, Ms. Quinn asked me about my clothes and I told her the specifics. Basically, I would like to have four trench coats of red, blue, green, and yellow to represent the four elements. There would be a small magic seal on the front on the left side of my chest and a large seal on the back of my coat. I have a photographic memory, so I knew every small detail of it and drew it on a piece of paper. It took a while, but I managed to get it done.
"Well, at least you have proper pride in your magic." Louise admitted as she observed the seal I wanted and what kind of clothes I wished for.
"Hey, when it comes to things like this, I don't screw around." I said.
"That seal looks really funky, but cool." Derflinger commented. Oh yeah, I almost forgot about him.
"So what do we do with you Derflinger?" I asked. "We'll need to get some supplies to get all that rust and crap off of you."
"Oh no need, just get me in that other sword you have!"
"Eh?" I asked confused.
"What?" Louise blinked. "After all we paid for you?"
"Uh, you didn't pay for me girlie." Derflinger snickered. "Partner here took me in all the chaos. I don't think the salesman even noticed!"
"He's got a point." I said.
"And besides, I wanted to get out of that shop anyways! It feels good to be out in the open again and not in some barrel of other rusted swords." Derflinger added.
"But hold on. What do you mean you want to get in my WizarSwordGun?" I questioned.
"Oh, you mean you can't tell?" asked Derflinger. "With all the tricks I saw you pull I thought you'd know. I'm more than just a sword! I'm a sword spirit! It doesn't matter how nicked or cracked I get. Once my body breaks, I can just go into a new sword. Easy as pie! Might take me a while to get all the way in there though…"
"Oh…" I blinked. "Well in that case…" I said, before placing a ring in front of the Hand Author.
CONNECT! PLEASE!
The seal appeared in the air and I stuck my hand in before pulling out my WizarSwordGun in sword mode. "You can come on in!"
"Great! Go ahead and break this old rusty body of mine!"
"Uh… are you sure? I don't wanna hurt ya." I said uncertain.
"I'm sure! Just break this thing!" Derflinger insisted.
I looked to Louise with worry. "Don't look at me! What are you waiting for? Do it!"
I sighed and pulled back the WizarSwordGun before bringing it down on Derflinger's rusty blade. Sure enough, the old steel shattered against the more advanced metal which made up my weapon. For a second, I was sure that I saw… something, pass through the air but then it was gone.
"WOHOO, I like this new body!" I heard Derflinger cheer as I saw the Hand Author of the WizarSwordGun… open and close like a mouth? That gives the saying, 'talk to the hand because the face ain't listening.' a whole new meaning.
"You okay Derflinger?" I asked, lifting up my sword. "Nothing feels weird or wrong?"
"Are you kidding? I feel great!" Derflinger cheered. "And I can feel all the energy in this sword too!"
"I'm glad to hear that… aibou." I smiled.
"At least someone came away happy." Louise sighed.
"Well then, shall we take your measurements?" Ms. Quinn asked.
"Yes, please." I nodded.
You know, for some odd reason, I feel like something else was supposed to happen. Oh well… whatever it is, it's not important.
"Uggggggh… where are they~?" Kirche whined.
"…A waste of time…" Tabitha said.
Kirche pouted, looking over the city to try and see where her new darling had gone. She did in fact notice something going on ahead, "Hm. Did something catch fire?"
"We're leaving…" Tabitha said quietly.
"Nooooo," Kirche complained. "Please Tabitha! Stay and help me! Please?"
But Tabitha wouldn't have any of it as she whistled for Sylphid. The dragon came down to the ground and Tabitha used her staff to somehow lift Kirche up by the back of her shirt and climbed aboard Sylphid. "What are you doing Tabitha? Let me go! I want to find Kuro–Kins!"
"No…" Tabitha said before whispering to Sylphid, "Tristain Academy…"
"Awwwww…!"
With that, Sylphid took off to the air back to school.
And there you have it people! That's another chapter down! Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did writing it! Until next time!