Louise stared at the mysterious box in front of her.
It had a side with black glass, and the other sides were made of something akin of metal, smooth but hard.
She poked it twice. "This is what everybody has on their pockets in your world?" Louise was incredulous.
Saito switched his phone on by pressing on one of the buttons beside the screen.
Louise jumped at the sudden flash of light from the phone. Her eyes were as wide as a goldfish's.
"Welcome back!" The phone vibrated.
"What is that?!" Louise was so scared that she hid behind Saito, her body trembling.
Saito picked his phone up. It was one of the newest smart phones at his time. He was returning home with it when he was picked up by the mysterious circle of light that appeared out of thin air.
"This is a phone. It's something I use when I want to talk to someone far away." He swiped the lock screen away and pressed the gallery icon.
"F-fone? What a strange name. " She looked at it incredulously. "Is it a magical item?"
"No, it's science. Now that you've mentioned it, I never noticed any communication device here. What do you do when you want to talk to your family far away?"
"Well, I can either go home or write letters and send them by pigeon post."
"Jeez, it's really like the middle ages here."
Saito showed Louise the scenery of the park near his home in spring when all the cherry blossom trees are in full bloom. He sighed. His phone was all that was left that connected him and his world. Luckily he switched off the phone as soon as he got the chance so there was around 40% battery left.
Louise eyes widened. She smiled, her hazel eyes twinkling in the candlelight of her room.
"It's beautiful! The fona can create beautiful things in it too?"
"It's ph-oo-ne, not fona. These are pictures I have taken around my house in spring, so it's not created by the phone, in a sense."
She sure is pretty when she smiles, Saito thought as he swiped the screen to show more of the scenery to Louise.
"Here, try swiping the screen yourself." He handed the phone carefully to Louise.
Louise gulped and placed her finger on the screen. She moved it to the side and the picture changed on screen.
"W-wow! This is amazing! Is science a kind of magic?" Louise swiped a few more times.
Saito puffed out his chest in pride. "Nope, not one bit of magic at all!"
He waited for an answer from Louise but she was simply staring at the screen.
Her nape started to turn red, and then her face slowly blushed deep red. Her fingers trembled and her entire body began to shake.
Saito cocked his eyebrows. What would have caused her to be in such rage? He snatched the phone from her and almost popped his eyes when he saw what was on the screen. He began to sneak away, but was caught by the collar.
The crack of the whip reverberated around the room.
"Why are there half naked women in your fona, you pervert!" Louise kicked Saito in the rear, forcing him to kneel on the floor.
Principal Osmond thought he heard a faint scream somewhere, but it quickly subsided, so he dismissed it and returned his attention back to the imperial messenger before him.
"…Is there anything I need to clarify further?" The messenger looked up from the parchment he was holding.
"What? Oh, uh, nothing much."
"Alright then. The Palace holds your post in the highest regard, sir. I hope you won't disappoint."
Principal Osmond narrowed his eyes at the faintly veiled threat.
"Miss Longbill, please show Mr Steven to the main gate."
As soon as the imperial messenger has left, Mr Osmond heaved a sigh. The messenger has come to confirm the transfer of a certain mystical box from the Holy Land, said to contain technology beyond their understanding to the Academy vaults.
The official explanation for the transfer was that it would be better available for the professors to research on it, but Mr Osmond has read between the lines and knew that there was something more behind this.
However, he just couldn't pinpoint the reason behind his intuition. Perhaps it was the rumour behind a legendary thief, Fouquette that has stolen countless valuables from nobles.
From what he heard, the thief was a powerful Earth Mage who would use Alchemy to circumvent security measures. If that failed, he would use a huge and powerful golem to destroy the vault instead. It was crude but effective. From whatever information he could gather, the thief was a Triangle mage.
He shook his head. With great power comes great responsibility. Why would people misuse magic was beyond his understanding. That said, he should ask Miss Longbill to prepare a speech on these topics for the talk tomorrow during breakfast.
"Sorry for bothering you, Siesta." Saito sat on his chair, looking sheepish.
"It's no big deal, Mr Saito. In fact, Mr Erfurt told me that you're welcome to come eat here any time. It's just leftovers from the noble's meal anyway." Siesta gave him a sweet smile as she place another plate of bread and steak before Saito.
"Tuck in, Mr Saito."
Saito nodded and began to eat ferociously. Due to his mishap yesterday, Louise refused to let him eat breakfast and lunch today. By afternoon, Saito have already passed out with hunger. Luckily, he was spotted by Siesta when she walked passed by after her break.
Saito felt someone suddenly lock his neck with an arm of great strength.
"Come on, Mr Saito, don't be shy! You've been our pride ever since you've shown that plebeians can beat nobles in magic too!" Mr Erfurt was the main chef of the kitchen.
"It was nothing really. I don't even know what happened."
"Ah, don't be modest. Look, he's so modest! Boys and girls, learn from him!" Shouts of affirmation echoed around the kitchen.
Saito simply smiled sheepishly and declined Mr Erfurt's request for a kiss.
Come to think of it, he has not gave the events of that day serious thought. He remembered being pummelled by Guiche's golems. Louise came to block a blow for him, but luckily he managed to take it for her.
After that was when strange things happened. He felt his chest turn warm. His injuries were suddenly gone and his strength returned.
Saito wondered what the runes on his hands were about. Maybe he would get gain a deeper understanding if he knew how to read them. He hoped that it was not some kind of arcane language though. For someone who has only mediocre grades in school, Saito still had a healthy interest in learning.
Maybe he could ask Louise to teach him?
Saito mentally shook his head. He was not going to let some abusive pretty face ruin his experience of learning a new language. Besides, he was still angry at her for not letting him switch off his phone so the battery was now dead.
"Siesta, can you teach me how to read?"
Siesta was startled by his request. She stammered.
"Actually, I don't really know how to read. I'm still learning from my uncle Scarron…"
"Oh well, do you know anyone who could teach me?"
"How about Louise?"
"No. She'll just call me stupid and ask me to beg like a dog."
"B-b-beg like a dog? U-um, maybe you could ask around in the library."
"There's a library here? Where is it?"
"It's in the third floor of the main tower."
Saito thanked Siesta and Mr Erfurt for the meal and began to walk to the library.