Many students had gathered to see another fight between a noble and a commoner. This time, the result would be different. That was likely what the other students thought. Tabitha wasn't so sure.

"You nobles sure place a lot of pride in wielding your magic." Aselith remarked as he gazed at Louise's familiar and Guiche. "Is magic a recent discovery?"

"Old." Tabitha responded.

"How old?"

"6,000 years."

Aselith looked to her, bewildered. "My view on your world's nobility is declining sharply."

Perhaps that was a fair assessment, to his point of view. Tabitha could conceive that. He has been to other worlds and likely learned much of their history—or, she might have if she was in his position. Much knowledge and power had been lost and regained over the millennia, usually due to wars. The largest detriment has been the crusades against the elves, of which there have been countless.

"Let us begin." Guiche calmly declared, flourishing his rose-wand.

The familiar ran toward him, only to stop in his tracks after one of Guiche's bronze valkyries appeared in front of him. After that, the valkyrie punched the familiar in his stomach with its free hand, sending him flying backwards.

"That spell." Aselith pointed at the valkyrie. "The boy didn't say any words to create it."

"Petals." Tabitha said.

"Ah. Precast spells. Line?"

She shook her head. "Fill with willpower. Dot." Guiche came from a military family, and had likely been trained and taught how to prepare spells ahead of time, just lacking the willpower to manifest them. It would otherwise take a large amount of time to summon the number of golems Guiche could create normally.

"Hm." Aselith crossed his arms. "Then the fat one was holding back. If I was weaker, I'd be insulted."

Tabitha doubted Malicorne held back. He wasn't particularly gifted—nor weak—though he came from a good family. That was why Guiche was friends with him.

"Um…" A voice from behind them drew their attention. It was the servant girl from before, the one who wasn't sure if she should serve Aselith some food.

"Yes?" Kirche was the one to respond to her.

"E-Excuse me, noble ladies!" The servant quickly bowed her head, peeking up at Tabitha. "I-I wished to ask something of your familiar, Miss."

"Speak quickly." Aselith said, keeping his head turned away. "It looks like the fight is about to resume."

Sure enough, the familiar had stood back up and was arguing with Louise again. She was insistent on him stopping, though he refused to listen.

The servant looked between them, unsure what to do. Tabitha gave her a curt nod.

"I-If the noble Saito is fighting…If Saito is in danger of…I-I wish for him not to be too badly hurt…" The servant rambled on.

"Yes, yes, I understand." Aselith spoke, never turning to face her. "If the boy is in peril, I will intervene. Peacefully." He added the last part, giving Tabitha a glance.

"Thank you, Sir!" She bowed repeatedly. "I apologize if I'm overstepping. Much of the staff were fascinated by not one but two commoners being summoned as familiars, and so—"

"Yes, yes." Aselith dismissively waved her back. The girl gave one final bow and left.

It was a bit strange for a servant to approach a noble for something like that.

"Your statue is a bit weak."

At the sound of hard metal meeting flesh, Tabitha turned back to the resuming fight. The valkyrie struck the familiar—Saito—on his face, sending him to the ground again.

"He really isn't in a position to be taking this lightly." Aselith commented. "Well, whatever it takes to build up confidence against something this strong, I suppose."

That might very well have been the case. Saito stood up again, raised his fist, and was kicked to the side.

"Why are you interested? What else is special about him?" Tabitha probed for more information.

Kirche looked over at her, likely surprised at how vocal she was being again.

"Well," he said, eyes watching another strike and knockdown, "aside from what I said earlier, they have the same…scent, I suppose. Or they feel the same? I'm not sure how to describe it to you, but it's like they have the same magic."

"As in, Louise gave him some magic?" Kirche asked.

"Runes." Tabitha offered, reminding him. She did mention how the runes carved onto a familiar might grant them certain abilities.

"That's what I'm thinking." Aselith said. Saito was sent flying again. "But it's different from what I feel on the other familiars. Much closer to the girl's magic."

Tabitha pondered what that could mean.

Meanwhile, Saito continued to stand and be knocked around. By the eighth or ninth time, Louise stepped forward again when he couldn't stand.

"He really doesn't like nobles." Aselith said with a chuckle. "Well, that's a positive thing, I suppose."

Tabitha heard Saito mention something about that after the first strike, how nobles had large egos. Seeing how this fight was progressing, a large ego was a valid thing to have, and this was from a dot mage. Since Guiche was from a military family, this level of power was to be expected.

The fact that Saito hadn't passed out yet was astonishing. His face was bloody and bruised, his left eye was swollen, and that last strike ended with a loud snap from his right arm. And it sounded like he still wasn't going to give up.

Guiche chanted a quick spell and flicked his wand, a bronze sword rising from the ground. He threw it toward Saito, the blade sinking into the ground near his feet.

"If you want to continue, you should at least have a weapon. It's the only hope a commoner has against a noble." Guiche sneered at him. "Or, if you don't, then apologize from the bottom of your heart."

Saito reached for the blade.

"Saito! Stop! You might not survive if you continue!" Louise yelled.

"Hm." Kirche hummed. "I think you might have to intervene, handsome."

"Maybe so." Aselith sighed. "And I had high hopes for him. Perhaps I'll need to coax whatever newfound magic there is out of his body myself."

"I can't go back to my world." Saito said, his voice strained.

"What does that matter? Just stop!" Louise pleaded.

"I'll put up with being a familiar, sleeping on the ground, not having a meal, washing clothes…but I refuse…"

"Refuse what?" Louise asked.

Saito gripped the sword with his left hand. "I refuse to bow my head to anyone I don't want to!" Then, he pulled it from the ground.

"Oh?" Just as Aselith started to move forward, he froze in place. "Ah~. There it is."

Tabitha watched it play out, trying to see what Aselith saw. The first thing was the runes on Saito's left hand glowing.

"Hah…So be it." With a sigh, Guiche directed his valkyrie forward. It readied its spear to attack…

And was swiftly cut in half. The two halves of the bronze statue fell to the ground.

Saito looked to Guiche and charged, closing the distance quickly. Panicking, Guiche waved his wand around, petals falling and forming into his valkyries. They fell nearly as quickly as they formed.

Guiche tried to back up, but Saito was already next to him. With a swift thrust, Saito stabbed Guiche in his hand, making him drop his wand. In another flourish, Saito struck Guiche's face with the pommel of the sword and knocked him to the ground.

"You want to continue?" Saito asked, pointing the sword at Guiche.

Cradling his bleeding hand, Guiche looked up at Saito in utter fear. "I-I surrender!"

With that, Saito turned around and walked away from him.

Unlike when Aselith beat Malicorne, there were cheers from the gathered students.

"He actually beat Guiche?"

"That's amazing!"

The crowd continued to cheer.

"Hm. I feel as though I tested the strength of the wrong mage." Aselith commented.

"Jealous~?" Kirche asked, smirking up at him.

"Hardly. I'm impressed. Ah…" He trailed off, looking at Saito.

The boy had let go of the sword, taken three more steps, then fell forward as Louise tried to hold him up.

"Saito!" Louise cried out, only to fall to the ground with him.

Tabitha figured his body finally gave out. One of his arms was broken, after all.

"Where are you going, handsome?" Kirche asked as Aselith walked forward.

"More observations, of course." He said.

It seemed like the time for observations was over, but perhaps Aselith knew something Tabitha didn't. Nonetheless, she followed after her familiar.

Aselith picked up the bronze sword Saito used, examining it. Seeing as Louise couldn't move Saito, and wanting to learn more of what Aselith was thinking, Tabitha approached the master and familiar.

"Here." She spoke, casting a levitation spell with her staff over Saito. It would be much easier to bring him to the Water Tower for healing this way.

Author's Notes:

Surprise! Two days in a row! I knew I'd have an easier time writing a chapter for this fic today, so that's what I went with.

Now Aselith has seen Louise cast a spell (2, technically, Summon Servant and a failed Transmutation) and Saito use his Gandalf power. I wonder what he's planning.