In a rather unexpected interruption of his everyday life on Earth, a young Canadian man suddenly...
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Vol. 1 Chapter 01 - Begin Again
BakaSmurf
My journey has been one of remarkable floundering
- Location
- Canada
In a rather unexpected interruption of his everyday life on Earth, a young Canadian man suddenly finds himself transported to Alfheim; a world of fantasy, adventure and danger the likes of which he'd only ever dreamed of previously.
Summoned and bound as the Guardian Familiar of a fledgeling young Noble Mage named Louise Françoise le Blanc de La Vallière, a student of the prestigious Tristain Academy of Magic known to her peers as 'the Zero,' he resolves to make the best out of a bad situation and adapt to a new life he never asked for.
Surely, his tenure as the Familiar of Zero will be an auspicious one?
Cover Art by Phearo
---
Pre-Story Notes:
Well.
Here we go again. Let's hope I don't completely shit the bed this time, yeah?
This is a rewrite of my earlier work, RotN, by the way. Only this time with the cancerous fat cut off and discarded. I've learned a lot of lessons since I started RotN, and hopefully I'll be able to do it justice this time around.
A special thanks to luckychaos, Fission Battery, Dr. Doctor, and Alleydodger. You guys are great. Without your help and encouragement, this never would have happened. One couldn't hope for a better group of shitlords to post with.
Also, Scranity sucks.Mostly. Okay, he's not so bad, but the transparent masochism is a little weird. Yes, I enable it, but still. He's literal human trash of the worst kind. An absolute butthead.
So.
Let's get started, shall we?
===
Chapter 01 - Begin Again
===
With a furious grumble, he grabbed his spare pillow and threw it towards the bright light suddenly shining on his face, interrupting his sleep as it did so.
He was having a rough time at work lately, so much so that he'd actually fallen asleep fully dressed once he'd got home, complete with his blasted rain cloak still on! He really didn't need some asshole joker waking him by shining a flashlight right in his eyes on top of everything else!
"Fuck the hell off you mother-!" The man snarled furiously for a moment before he blinked at the sight before him.
As he opened his eyes to get a glimpse of the perpetrator, assumed to be his roommate, the man was stunned into silence by a glowing green orb of light hovering in the centre of his room.
The man blinked in confusion at the sight, then slowly rose from his bed to his somewhat above-average height, giving the glowing ball a cautious stare as he did so.
There didn't really seem to be much more to it, upon closer inspection.
Though…
He moved for the corner of his room, picking up his favourite sword, a Zombie Tools Hellion, and casually swung it over the top of the curious object. He'd expected it to suddenly fall to the ground as the surely transparent line suspending it was cut.
Nothing happened.
"What the fuck…" The sword-wielding man groused under his breath, still staring at the floating object.
It was then, in his half-asleep state, that he did something he'd surely never have done had he been fully aware right then.
With the tip of the sword, the man reached up from beneath his cloak and poked it.
Immediately, the blade was stuck and drawn part-way in; and more importantly, his hand was stuck to the grip.
The pulling increased in force, the sword seemingly being consumed by the green orb, with him stuck to it.
He began to panic.
While thrashing around, trying to grab at something to pull himself free, he lashed out and took a hold of something at random, and at that moment he was quite violently torn off his feet and sucked into the light entirely.
Regret was a sensation he really wished he hadn't grown so accustomed to by then.
---
It took the man a beat to really process what had just occurred, and it wasn't until he slammed back-first into what felt like grassy earth that his brain started spooling up into overdrive mode.
The air around him was thick with fast dissipating smoke as he forced himself to his feet as quickly as possible; sword still in hand and now brandished before his person defensively.
The sounds of chattering were occurring all around him as he struggled to get his bearings-
...Wait, chattering? His roommate was gone on vacation, and…
Only then did the man notice that he was suddenly outdoors. In a bright, temperate location; despite that fact that it should have been a cold, rainy, Canadian autumn night.
He raised the primitive weapon warily, not sure of what would be revealed by the complete disappearance of the smoke… And a few seconds passed before the fumes were suddenly swept away, as if by a particularly strong gust of wind.
He'd flinched at the hard billowing gust, bracing himself with a hand raised to shield his eyes from the wind, the waterproof fabric of his cloak and his long dark brown hair whipping around him uncontrollably.
As soon as it stopped, he'd noticed that the speaking had also ceased. He immediately dropped his hand to see…
Once again, he owlishly blinked in confusion.
The man was surrounded, by what looked to be a shit-tonne of knock-off Harry Potter cosplayers. All wordlessly staring right at him, mouths agape.
Everyone was dead silent for a time, enough for him to blink a few more times and start glancing around, struggling to process all the new information-
[Is that a fucking dragon!?] He sharply thought to himself, as he noticed a massive blue scaled quadruped creature staring at him from behind the crowds, head tilted to the side and massive black eyes peering into his own. The huge, folded wings held up against its sides made it easy to identify the creature at a glance.
Movement out of the corner of the man's eye caught his attention-
[A fucking beholder!?] He internally screamed at the sight of a huge, floating eyeball hovering in place over the heads of the cosplayers-
As he was spinning in place, the man suddenly felt himself being tugged downwards by the front of his shirt, followed immediately by an incredibly soft sensation pressing against his lips, along with his nostrils being assaulted by what smelled like roses.
With yet another blink, he realised that he was staring at a pair of very tightly shut eyes for but a moment before the figure rapidly beat a hasty retreat. As the front of his shirt was released, it became clear that it was a girl- No, a young blonde woman with... purple eyes, who was rapidly turning bright crimson, and giving him a thoroughly conflicted look…
His brain finally processed what had just happened, and it was then that he finally spoke up.
"Did you just fucking kiss me-!?" He began, utterly stupefied.
The man's voice caught in his throat as a sharp, terrible burning sensation emerged on the back of his left hand. Lifting the limb up into view in a panic, he found… runic symbols, searing themselves into his flesh.
His thoughts quickly turned incoherent as the pain intensified seemingly a thousandfold, and he found himself collapsing on the ground, clinging to his hellishly burning hand. If he was screaming, he wasn't aware of it, as all his brain power was focused entirely on the all-encompassing pain.
The pain which seemed to be lancing up his arm, through his veins, and all throughout his body.
The world became an indistinct blur as his mind was overloaded by the intense sensory input. Moments later, everything faded to darkness…
---
With a twitch of a brow, the man found himself fading in from sleep, a rather distinct sensation of a stinging discomfort lacing his body.
With a groan, he began to raise a hand to his face-
A distinctly unfamiliar voice suddenly spoke up from his side. "Ah! Y-you're awake!"
Immediately, his eyes shot open as everything came rushing back to him, and he found himself reflexively rolling off to the side away from the voice, very clumsily catching himself moments before slamming face-first into the cold stone-tiled floor beneath him, and leapt up to his feet in a mad rush.
On the other side of the bed was a tiny girl- no, a short young woman. Strawberry blonde hair, vibrant violet irises, sharp, and noble Nordic features.
She was standing, half-leaning over the bed, her eyes wide as saucers, filled with concern of all things.
He might have found himself taken by her beauty had he not been in a state of panic right then.
"W-wait! Calm down!" She cried out, holding her arms out in a halting motion. "Please! We just rushed you to the infirmary, you may still be ill!"
Her mouth flaps were very noticeably not matching up with her words, like her speech was being lazily dubbed over in real-time, which did nothing to help his state of blind panic right then.
The man instinctively took a few alarmed steps back, adrenaline coursing through his veins as he whipped his face around the environment, barely taking anything in as he-
With a yelp, he found himself tumbling backwards, his back colliding with a soft surface as he briefly flailed his arms in a blind panic before realising he'd walked back into another bed.
"Calm yourself!" The tiny woman cried again in a dignified voice, running around the bed he'd been laid upon and jumping on his right arm in an apparent attempt to pin him down. "You might hurt yourself!" She declared while glaring at the man, her large violet eyes showing a distinct… concern?
At that, he found himself pausing, and a few moments passed as the man blinked, his mind now properly processing what was transpiring, and with each passing second his heart rate dropped, though the wariness hadn't faded at all.
"...Where…" He began haltingly, "...where am I? Who are you? What the hell is going on?" He inquired with no small amount of worry.
He noted just then, that his sword didn't seem to be within arm's reach. Also, that he distinctly remembered seeing a dragon and a beholder before he passed out-
His eyes widened as he immediately lifted his left hand to his face again… And saw what looked like nordic runes seared into his flesh, as if he'd been branded.
The girl visibly swallowed her anxiety, giving him a very disconcerted look. "...L-listen, we should go see Professor Colbert. He asked me to bring you to him once you were awake, and it may be best if he answers any questions you have himself." She advised nervously.
His heart rate had slowed considerably, and his breathing had returned to normal. The man glanced around the room again, this time with his wits about him.
It looked to be some sort of primitive medical infirmary. Dozens of beds set side-by-side running along both walls of a room, linen stacks resting atop every mattress, handsome wooden cabinets strategically placed around the room, large, old school windows allowing copious amounts of natural light to flood the space, brightly painted walls…
Yeah, definitely an infirmary, if a rather archaic, early modernish one.
He looked back at the tiny girl, making an attempt to pin him down by his bare, hairy arm which wouldn't have worked if he really wanted to stand back up.
She mentioned that this 'Professor Colbert' would answer his questions…
"Okay," The man started with a sigh, "bring me to this 'Colbert' then."
She remained still for a few seconds before slowly backing off of him and removing her miniscule body weight from his arm, and as she did so the man distinctly remembered that she'd just forced a kiss onto him moments before he'd passed out…
He shook his head as his cheeks started to turn red, and once the girl was off of him, he rose to his full height-
[Holy shit- fun-sized-!] He remarked internally as he just then noticed how short the girl was. She barely came up to his chin! She couldn't have been more than 5'0".
She seemed to notice the difference in their heights as well, if the way her eyes widened once he was flat on his feet and towering over her was any indication.
As he quickly gave her a once-over, he'd noted that she seemed to be dressed similarly to a Catholic School girl; a plain white long-sleeved button-down, dark grey skirt which came down to just above her knees, what seemed to be dark stockings or tights, and simple though finely made leather dress shoes.
Though rather than the expected crucifix, she had a gold- no, bronze talisman adorned with a simple pentagram, held in place at her collar with a red ribbon.
...Oh, and a dark grey woollen wizard's cloak.
Because dragons and beholders.
[There happen to be any dungeons around here as well?] He internally snarked to his own mild amusement.
The man shook his head.
[Right. Some kind of mage-in-training,] he supposed with a small internal sigh at even supposing such ridiculous things...
They both stood there, silent for a time. Now looking at her perfect, porcelain features, he couldn't help but feel heat rising to his face at the idea that this beautiful, tiny young woman had just kissed him not that long ago.
She seemed to notice his reaction to her features, if the way she started clearing her throat while obviously looking away from him was any indication.
"So, uh," she began with a stutter, "y-your cloak, coat and belongings are right there," she pointed at a coat rack, which indeed, his trusty black rain cloak and combat jacket were hanging from.
Also resting beside it was his sword and… The bag of aluminum cans he had been counting for recycling before going to work. Meaning the thing he'd grabbed while being pulled into the portal-thing had been...
...
[...Great.] He groused internally.
The girl paused for an awkward moment before continuing.
"Um, right, Professor Colbert… please, follow me."
Immediately, she turned on her heel and began marching down the path between the rows of beds, to a large double-doorway with a purpose.
Though he hesitated briefly, he quickly grabbed his cloak, coat, blade and... cans, before noticing a familiar weight in his pocket, his dead Vita, for all the good it'd do him. Falling into step behind her, he tossed the items on, more out of a force of habit than anything, and noted that there wasn't much he could do then and there besides following the gorgeous girl.
And so follow her he did.
---
"Ah, you're finally awake," the older blue-robed and bespectacled kindly looking chestnut-haired man started once the two stepped into what he could only describe as an alchemist's chambers.
He couldn't be more than 5'4", barely coming half-way up the taller man's nose.
"That is good. It was rather concerning, the way you collapsed into a hysterical, screaming pile during the summoning, you know," the older man lightly chided in what seemed to be a slightly playful manner, his chestnut eyes twinkling with mild amusement.
The taller man blinked owlishly at that, fighting back a snide remark at the robed fellow's statement, suppressing it with a sigh.
"Could… could we just skip to the part where somebody explains to me what's going on?" He asked wearily, already feeling completely burned out by everything that had happened so fast and without explanation.
The cute blonde had claimed a nice-looking wooden chair in front of the older man's desk and sighed as well. "Professor, please," She breathed out in a wispy tone.
With a robed arm, the professor made a placating motion with his hands as he replied. "Right right, my apologies miss, I was merely attempting to lighten the mood."
Looking back at the newcomer, the wizard-looking man sighed himself.
"Well, we certainly seem to have gotten ourselves wrapped up in an interesting predicament, haven't we?" He asked, seemingly rhetorically. "Lady le Blanc summoning a foreign nobleman as her familiar, then acting on the pact before anyone had the chance to process what had just happened…"
The older man gave the young woman a sideways look, and she sheepishly looked away at a beaker full of a strange bubbling liquid.
Meanwhile, our intrepid hero was confused by being referred to as a 'nobleman…'
"This event is… rather unprecedented, I must say…" The apparent alchemist shook his head lightly. "Though I am getting ahead of himself, aren't I? Allow me to introduce myself; I am Professor Stephen Tyrone Colbert. Potions and applied Fire Magics teacher here at the Tristain Academy of Magic."
[...Wait, Magic- A dragon and beholder. Jesus Christ, was that- Was that green sphere a portal to another dimension of magic or something? And wait a minute, this 'Colbert' looks awfully familiar…] The cloaked man thought to himself as he started putting two-and-two together.
Colbert lightly bowed his head as he continued. "And this is…"
He motioned to the blonde, and she promptly stood from her seat with a look of embarrassment on her face.
"L-L-Louise Françoise le Blanc de la Vallière!" She declared with a stutter. "P-pleased to make your acquaintance, good sir…" She curtsied rather cutely at that as she seemed to gather her wits.
The man glanced between the pair, and the pieces of the puzzle fell into place. From what he'd already seen of the locale while walking to the office with Louise… It seemed that he was in some manner of low-tech fantasy world, where cloaks seemed to be a symbol of nobility going off of context, meaning…
That's why he was being treated with such respect. They were under the impression that he was like them, a 'noble' because of his $30 military surplus rain cloak. If that were to change… No, that wouldn't do at all. Perhaps…
He bowed somewhat theatrically, directing his face to the ground to buy himself a few precious moments to think… "I am, Jophiel Pholus van Cazonium… the Second," The man said as he returned to his full height. "At your service."
The Archangel of Wisdom. No ironic hubris there at all, nope, no siree bob.
Both Louise and Colbert seemed pleased with his little show, and she returned to her seat in a rather dignified manner.
"Curious that you should say that, Lord… Pholus?" Colbert inquired, to which Jophiel nodded once. "Right, Lord Pholus. As I stated earlier, Lady le Blanc has summoned you as her guardian familiar, who-"
"I have no intention of forcing Lord Pholus into servitude," Louise suddenly and rather heatedly interjected, to his surprise and Colbert's apparent amusement.
"Well then, young Lady," Colbert began in a somewhat condescending tone. "Perhaps you should have thought twice before rushing forward to seal the pact with him-"
"I. Am. Not. Going to treat him like an animal," the girl pointedly declared with a little more heat to her tone.
"Um," Jophiel spoke up, raising his hand. "What?"
Colbert sighed. "Traditionally, Lord Pholus, a Mage summons an animal during the beginning of their Second Forms-"
"And Lord Pholus is a human," Louise interjected again, giving Colbert a rather sharp look.
He merely sighed before continuing unabated. "-Which is bound to them by the Familiar Bond, a magical link which permanently ties a mage and creature together… and never before in all of the history of Halkeginia, has a human been summoned in the Familiar Summoning Ritual."
The older man removed the primitive glasses from his face and set them down on the desk in front of him to pinch the bridge of his nose.
"As you can guess, Lord Pholus, this… complicates matters."
Louise 'humphed' to the side, looked rather annoyed herself. "I disagree. The Founder's Laws make it perfectly clear that one is not to force one's fellow man into unlawful servitude, or treat one's fellow man as property, be they of noble or common breed," she asserted blandly.
Colbert deeply sighed again. "Complicates matters indeed."
Louise leaned forward combatively. "It seems rather simple to me-"
"Perhaps if you hadn't completed the ritual and marked Lord Pholus as your familiar, Lady le Blanc," Colbert interjected while gesturing to Jophiel's left hand-
[...Ah. So that's what those are…] Jophiel noted to himself, sparing the runes on the back of his palm a cursory glance.
"I panicked!" She asserted defensively. "I didn't know-"
"Stop stop stop stop stop!" Jophiel interjected hastily, while making a chopping motion between the two with his hand. "First off," he started, pointing to Colbert, "can I be sent back home?"
Colbert sighed quite warily. "No, young Sir. The Summoning ritual is strictly one-way, and no spell is known to return summoned creatures to their original domain."
Louise growled while Jophiel fought the urge to make a fist and start cursing like a sailor.
"Lord Pholus," Colbert began. "How would you feel about signing a contract, or pact with Lady le Blanc?"
Louise turned to look at Colbert sharply but didn't otherwise speak up.
"It would satisfy the rules of the Summoning Ritual, being that it would result in you acting in Lady le Blanc's service, but you'd be signing into it willingly, and with whatever benefits you may be able to negotiate into the contract, which would surely satisfy the Lady's sense of honour, no?" He inquired, looking at Louise.
She looked a little sceptical as she replied. "That… might be acceptable," she allowed hesitantly.
Jophiel paused for a long while after that, eventually sighing deeply as he replied. "I…" he glanced at the window behind Colbert, and noted that it was quickly getting dark out. "It's rather late… is there any chance that we might conclude this meeting tomorrow? I… need some time to think about all this."
The two apparent mages gave him a long look, though eventually they both sighed and relented.
"Very well," Louise stated, sounding quite tense.
"I see nothing wrong with that, so long as we do conclude the arrangement tomorrow," Colbert noted simply. "It is important that Lady le Blanc confirm that she has a familiar as soon as possible, or…"
Louise very noticeably grimaced at that, but neither of them seemed to feel the need to fill Jophiel in on why, and he had his own concerns to worry about at that moment.
"Okay…" Jophiel said with a shrug, rather wanting the meeting to end so that he could leave and just… think. "So, where will I spend the night?"
Louise jolted up at that, looking like a deer in headlights while Colbert just looked all the more exhausted by the inquiry.
"That… is a very good question," the older fellow started as he leant back in his seat. "The servant's quarters or one of the spare infirmary beds would do, I imagine-"
Louise sounded positively aghast at the suggestions. "W-we cannot have a noble guest sleep with the servants or where the sick are kept! There are dedicated rooms meant specifically for visiting nobles to use!"
Colbert sighed again. "Except that Lord Pholus isn't technically a guest by the laws and customs of the Founder…"
Louise looked about ready to pop a blood vessel right then.
"Fine! Then he shall share my room for the night!" She heatedly declared.
[Wait, what.] Jophiel thought to himself with some surprise.
Colbert looked a little taken aback by that. "L-lady le Blanc, that would be highly inappropriate-"
"I will not have a noble guest spat upon in such direct defiance of the Founder's will! If the Academy will not treat him with appropriate guest rights, then I will!" She proclaimed as she forcefully stood from her seat and began stomping towards the door. "Lord Pholus, we will return here in the morning! Follow me!" She all but growled out as a command.
Despite the girl's small size, she managed to come across as rather intimidating right then, and not wanting to piss her off, Jophiel immediately followed her out of the office without turning to address Colbert on their way out.
---
"…So, this one's my room." Louise stated as the two stood outside a handsome wood panelled door in a luxuriously decorated hall.
It was becoming very clear very quickly that the place was indeed some manner of very high-class establishment… though Jophiel was more focused on thoughts of… everything pertaining to his situation such as it was.
"Do you want to go to bed now, or…" She began quietly. "Well, you were unconscious for a long while, I wouldn't imagine you'd be all that tired all things considered…"
"I…" Jophiel halted. "Would like the opportunity to be alone for a time," the much larger man said warily. "I believe I should be able to find my way back here when I'm ready to turn in… If you're truly okay with letting me-"
"I promised you guest rights!" The tiny girl all but snarled. "I do not make promises I've no intention of keeping!"
Jophiel raised his hands in a placating gesture at the furious response. "O-okay, okay! I'll… Uh…"
Louise's nostrils flared for a moment as she seemed to be doing a breathing exercise to calm herself. "…I will arrange the sofa to be more comfortable for a night's rest…" She glanced back at him, giving him a quick once-over and grimacing. "Or as comfortable as it can be for someone whose legs will be hanging over the side…"
Jophiel shrugged. "It's fine… I appreciate the gesture either way. It's more than that Professor was willing to do for me, apparently."
She scoffed at that as she opened her door. "'Not a noble guest…' borderline blasphemy…!"
Immediately, Jophiel felt a chill down his spine. Was he in a religious fundamentalist fantasy world? "…What was that about, anyways?"
Louise looked contemplative, then shrugged. "I will inform you tomorrow. It is rather late for me by now, and I have a sleeping schedule I'd rather not break."
Jophiel nodded and stepped back from the door. "Then sleep well Lady le Blanc, I will attempt to avoid waking you when I return from my… walk."
She simply nodded once. "Very well. I will take whatever you don't need for the night now then, unless you intend to carry your sword and that bag around the school grounds?"
Jophiel nervously chuckled at that before handing her the blade and sack of cans. "The sword is expensive, please be careful with it."
"I am no stranger to such weapons, and I know to treat a fellow noble's belongings with respect," she asserted while taking the objects, noticeably looking surprised at how light the bag was. "I will keep the door unlocked. I'll trust you to be quiet when you return for the night. I will talk to you tomorrow, Lord Pholus."
With a parting nod, Louise stepped inside and closed the door behind her, leaving him standing alone in the long, luxurious, and dimly-lit hallway.
Familiars. Robes. Cloaks. Wizarding schools. Nobody's speech matching up with the movement of their mouths, almost as if they were... being dubbed over...
[...Translation magic, huh?] Jophiel silently noted to himself, which caused the gravity of his situation to hit him all the harder.
After a few moments, he allowed himself to speak freely for the first time since he'd awoken in that place.
"Holy mother of fuck, what fresh hell have I gotten myself into this time…"
===
Summoned and bound as the Guardian Familiar of a fledgeling young Noble Mage named Louise Françoise le Blanc de La Vallière, a student of the prestigious Tristain Academy of Magic known to her peers as 'the Zero,' he resolves to make the best out of a bad situation and adapt to a new life he never asked for.
Surely, his tenure as the Familiar of Zero will be an auspicious one?
Cover Art by Phearo
---
Pre-Story Notes:
Well.
Here we go again. Let's hope I don't completely shit the bed this time, yeah?
This is a rewrite of my earlier work, RotN, by the way. Only this time with the cancerous fat cut off and discarded. I've learned a lot of lessons since I started RotN, and hopefully I'll be able to do it justice this time around.
A special thanks to luckychaos, Fission Battery, Dr. Doctor, and Alleydodger. You guys are great. Without your help and encouragement, this never would have happened. One couldn't hope for a better group of shitlords to post with.
Also, Scranity sucks.
So.
Let's get started, shall we?
===
Chapter 01 - Begin Again
===
With a furious grumble, he grabbed his spare pillow and threw it towards the bright light suddenly shining on his face, interrupting his sleep as it did so.
He was having a rough time at work lately, so much so that he'd actually fallen asleep fully dressed once he'd got home, complete with his blasted rain cloak still on! He really didn't need some asshole joker waking him by shining a flashlight right in his eyes on top of everything else!
"Fuck the hell off you mother-!" The man snarled furiously for a moment before he blinked at the sight before him.
As he opened his eyes to get a glimpse of the perpetrator, assumed to be his roommate, the man was stunned into silence by a glowing green orb of light hovering in the centre of his room.
The man blinked in confusion at the sight, then slowly rose from his bed to his somewhat above-average height, giving the glowing ball a cautious stare as he did so.
There didn't really seem to be much more to it, upon closer inspection.
Though…
He moved for the corner of his room, picking up his favourite sword, a Zombie Tools Hellion, and casually swung it over the top of the curious object. He'd expected it to suddenly fall to the ground as the surely transparent line suspending it was cut.
Nothing happened.
"What the fuck…" The sword-wielding man groused under his breath, still staring at the floating object.
It was then, in his half-asleep state, that he did something he'd surely never have done had he been fully aware right then.
With the tip of the sword, the man reached up from beneath his cloak and poked it.
Immediately, the blade was stuck and drawn part-way in; and more importantly, his hand was stuck to the grip.
The pulling increased in force, the sword seemingly being consumed by the green orb, with him stuck to it.
He began to panic.
While thrashing around, trying to grab at something to pull himself free, he lashed out and took a hold of something at random, and at that moment he was quite violently torn off his feet and sucked into the light entirely.
Regret was a sensation he really wished he hadn't grown so accustomed to by then.
---
It took the man a beat to really process what had just occurred, and it wasn't until he slammed back-first into what felt like grassy earth that his brain started spooling up into overdrive mode.
The air around him was thick with fast dissipating smoke as he forced himself to his feet as quickly as possible; sword still in hand and now brandished before his person defensively.
The sounds of chattering were occurring all around him as he struggled to get his bearings-
...Wait, chattering? His roommate was gone on vacation, and…
Only then did the man notice that he was suddenly outdoors. In a bright, temperate location; despite that fact that it should have been a cold, rainy, Canadian autumn night.
He raised the primitive weapon warily, not sure of what would be revealed by the complete disappearance of the smoke… And a few seconds passed before the fumes were suddenly swept away, as if by a particularly strong gust of wind.
He'd flinched at the hard billowing gust, bracing himself with a hand raised to shield his eyes from the wind, the waterproof fabric of his cloak and his long dark brown hair whipping around him uncontrollably.
As soon as it stopped, he'd noticed that the speaking had also ceased. He immediately dropped his hand to see…
Once again, he owlishly blinked in confusion.
The man was surrounded, by what looked to be a shit-tonne of knock-off Harry Potter cosplayers. All wordlessly staring right at him, mouths agape.
Everyone was dead silent for a time, enough for him to blink a few more times and start glancing around, struggling to process all the new information-
[Is that a fucking dragon!?] He sharply thought to himself, as he noticed a massive blue scaled quadruped creature staring at him from behind the crowds, head tilted to the side and massive black eyes peering into his own. The huge, folded wings held up against its sides made it easy to identify the creature at a glance.
Movement out of the corner of the man's eye caught his attention-
[A fucking beholder!?] He internally screamed at the sight of a huge, floating eyeball hovering in place over the heads of the cosplayers-
As he was spinning in place, the man suddenly felt himself being tugged downwards by the front of his shirt, followed immediately by an incredibly soft sensation pressing against his lips, along with his nostrils being assaulted by what smelled like roses.
With yet another blink, he realised that he was staring at a pair of very tightly shut eyes for but a moment before the figure rapidly beat a hasty retreat. As the front of his shirt was released, it became clear that it was a girl- No, a young blonde woman with... purple eyes, who was rapidly turning bright crimson, and giving him a thoroughly conflicted look…
His brain finally processed what had just happened, and it was then that he finally spoke up.
"Did you just fucking kiss me-!?" He began, utterly stupefied.
The man's voice caught in his throat as a sharp, terrible burning sensation emerged on the back of his left hand. Lifting the limb up into view in a panic, he found… runic symbols, searing themselves into his flesh.
His thoughts quickly turned incoherent as the pain intensified seemingly a thousandfold, and he found himself collapsing on the ground, clinging to his hellishly burning hand. If he was screaming, he wasn't aware of it, as all his brain power was focused entirely on the all-encompassing pain.
The pain which seemed to be lancing up his arm, through his veins, and all throughout his body.
The world became an indistinct blur as his mind was overloaded by the intense sensory input. Moments later, everything faded to darkness…
---
With a twitch of a brow, the man found himself fading in from sleep, a rather distinct sensation of a stinging discomfort lacing his body.
With a groan, he began to raise a hand to his face-
A distinctly unfamiliar voice suddenly spoke up from his side. "Ah! Y-you're awake!"
Immediately, his eyes shot open as everything came rushing back to him, and he found himself reflexively rolling off to the side away from the voice, very clumsily catching himself moments before slamming face-first into the cold stone-tiled floor beneath him, and leapt up to his feet in a mad rush.
On the other side of the bed was a tiny girl- no, a short young woman. Strawberry blonde hair, vibrant violet irises, sharp, and noble Nordic features.
She was standing, half-leaning over the bed, her eyes wide as saucers, filled with concern of all things.
He might have found himself taken by her beauty had he not been in a state of panic right then.
"W-wait! Calm down!" She cried out, holding her arms out in a halting motion. "Please! We just rushed you to the infirmary, you may still be ill!"
Her mouth flaps were very noticeably not matching up with her words, like her speech was being lazily dubbed over in real-time, which did nothing to help his state of blind panic right then.
The man instinctively took a few alarmed steps back, adrenaline coursing through his veins as he whipped his face around the environment, barely taking anything in as he-
With a yelp, he found himself tumbling backwards, his back colliding with a soft surface as he briefly flailed his arms in a blind panic before realising he'd walked back into another bed.
"Calm yourself!" The tiny woman cried again in a dignified voice, running around the bed he'd been laid upon and jumping on his right arm in an apparent attempt to pin him down. "You might hurt yourself!" She declared while glaring at the man, her large violet eyes showing a distinct… concern?
At that, he found himself pausing, and a few moments passed as the man blinked, his mind now properly processing what was transpiring, and with each passing second his heart rate dropped, though the wariness hadn't faded at all.
"...Where…" He began haltingly, "...where am I? Who are you? What the hell is going on?" He inquired with no small amount of worry.
He noted just then, that his sword didn't seem to be within arm's reach. Also, that he distinctly remembered seeing a dragon and a beholder before he passed out-
His eyes widened as he immediately lifted his left hand to his face again… And saw what looked like nordic runes seared into his flesh, as if he'd been branded.
The girl visibly swallowed her anxiety, giving him a very disconcerted look. "...L-listen, we should go see Professor Colbert. He asked me to bring you to him once you were awake, and it may be best if he answers any questions you have himself." She advised nervously.
His heart rate had slowed considerably, and his breathing had returned to normal. The man glanced around the room again, this time with his wits about him.
It looked to be some sort of primitive medical infirmary. Dozens of beds set side-by-side running along both walls of a room, linen stacks resting atop every mattress, handsome wooden cabinets strategically placed around the room, large, old school windows allowing copious amounts of natural light to flood the space, brightly painted walls…
Yeah, definitely an infirmary, if a rather archaic, early modernish one.
He looked back at the tiny girl, making an attempt to pin him down by his bare, hairy arm which wouldn't have worked if he really wanted to stand back up.
She mentioned that this 'Professor Colbert' would answer his questions…
"Okay," The man started with a sigh, "bring me to this 'Colbert' then."
She remained still for a few seconds before slowly backing off of him and removing her miniscule body weight from his arm, and as she did so the man distinctly remembered that she'd just forced a kiss onto him moments before he'd passed out…
He shook his head as his cheeks started to turn red, and once the girl was off of him, he rose to his full height-
[Holy shit- fun-sized-!] He remarked internally as he just then noticed how short the girl was. She barely came up to his chin! She couldn't have been more than 5'0".
She seemed to notice the difference in their heights as well, if the way her eyes widened once he was flat on his feet and towering over her was any indication.
As he quickly gave her a once-over, he'd noted that she seemed to be dressed similarly to a Catholic School girl; a plain white long-sleeved button-down, dark grey skirt which came down to just above her knees, what seemed to be dark stockings or tights, and simple though finely made leather dress shoes.
Though rather than the expected crucifix, she had a gold- no, bronze talisman adorned with a simple pentagram, held in place at her collar with a red ribbon.
...Oh, and a dark grey woollen wizard's cloak.
Because dragons and beholders.
[There happen to be any dungeons around here as well?] He internally snarked to his own mild amusement.
The man shook his head.
[Right. Some kind of mage-in-training,] he supposed with a small internal sigh at even supposing such ridiculous things...
They both stood there, silent for a time. Now looking at her perfect, porcelain features, he couldn't help but feel heat rising to his face at the idea that this beautiful, tiny young woman had just kissed him not that long ago.
She seemed to notice his reaction to her features, if the way she started clearing her throat while obviously looking away from him was any indication.
"So, uh," she began with a stutter, "y-your cloak, coat and belongings are right there," she pointed at a coat rack, which indeed, his trusty black rain cloak and combat jacket were hanging from.
Also resting beside it was his sword and… The bag of aluminum cans he had been counting for recycling before going to work. Meaning the thing he'd grabbed while being pulled into the portal-thing had been...
...
[...Great.] He groused internally.
The girl paused for an awkward moment before continuing.
"Um, right, Professor Colbert… please, follow me."
Immediately, she turned on her heel and began marching down the path between the rows of beds, to a large double-doorway with a purpose.
Though he hesitated briefly, he quickly grabbed his cloak, coat, blade and... cans, before noticing a familiar weight in his pocket, his dead Vita, for all the good it'd do him. Falling into step behind her, he tossed the items on, more out of a force of habit than anything, and noted that there wasn't much he could do then and there besides following the gorgeous girl.
And so follow her he did.
---
"Ah, you're finally awake," the older blue-robed and bespectacled kindly looking chestnut-haired man started once the two stepped into what he could only describe as an alchemist's chambers.
He couldn't be more than 5'4", barely coming half-way up the taller man's nose.
"That is good. It was rather concerning, the way you collapsed into a hysterical, screaming pile during the summoning, you know," the older man lightly chided in what seemed to be a slightly playful manner, his chestnut eyes twinkling with mild amusement.
The taller man blinked owlishly at that, fighting back a snide remark at the robed fellow's statement, suppressing it with a sigh.
"Could… could we just skip to the part where somebody explains to me what's going on?" He asked wearily, already feeling completely burned out by everything that had happened so fast and without explanation.
The cute blonde had claimed a nice-looking wooden chair in front of the older man's desk and sighed as well. "Professor, please," She breathed out in a wispy tone.
With a robed arm, the professor made a placating motion with his hands as he replied. "Right right, my apologies miss, I was merely attempting to lighten the mood."
Looking back at the newcomer, the wizard-looking man sighed himself.
"Well, we certainly seem to have gotten ourselves wrapped up in an interesting predicament, haven't we?" He asked, seemingly rhetorically. "Lady le Blanc summoning a foreign nobleman as her familiar, then acting on the pact before anyone had the chance to process what had just happened…"
The older man gave the young woman a sideways look, and she sheepishly looked away at a beaker full of a strange bubbling liquid.
Meanwhile, our intrepid hero was confused by being referred to as a 'nobleman…'
"This event is… rather unprecedented, I must say…" The apparent alchemist shook his head lightly. "Though I am getting ahead of himself, aren't I? Allow me to introduce myself; I am Professor Stephen Tyrone Colbert. Potions and applied Fire Magics teacher here at the Tristain Academy of Magic."
[...Wait, Magic- A dragon and beholder. Jesus Christ, was that- Was that green sphere a portal to another dimension of magic or something? And wait a minute, this 'Colbert' looks awfully familiar…] The cloaked man thought to himself as he started putting two-and-two together.
Colbert lightly bowed his head as he continued. "And this is…"
He motioned to the blonde, and she promptly stood from her seat with a look of embarrassment on her face.
"L-L-Louise Françoise le Blanc de la Vallière!" She declared with a stutter. "P-pleased to make your acquaintance, good sir…" She curtsied rather cutely at that as she seemed to gather her wits.
The man glanced between the pair, and the pieces of the puzzle fell into place. From what he'd already seen of the locale while walking to the office with Louise… It seemed that he was in some manner of low-tech fantasy world, where cloaks seemed to be a symbol of nobility going off of context, meaning…
That's why he was being treated with such respect. They were under the impression that he was like them, a 'noble' because of his $30 military surplus rain cloak. If that were to change… No, that wouldn't do at all. Perhaps…
He bowed somewhat theatrically, directing his face to the ground to buy himself a few precious moments to think… "I am, Jophiel Pholus van Cazonium… the Second," The man said as he returned to his full height. "At your service."
The Archangel of Wisdom. No ironic hubris there at all, nope, no siree bob.
Both Louise and Colbert seemed pleased with his little show, and she returned to her seat in a rather dignified manner.
"Curious that you should say that, Lord… Pholus?" Colbert inquired, to which Jophiel nodded once. "Right, Lord Pholus. As I stated earlier, Lady le Blanc has summoned you as her guardian familiar, who-"
"I have no intention of forcing Lord Pholus into servitude," Louise suddenly and rather heatedly interjected, to his surprise and Colbert's apparent amusement.
"Well then, young Lady," Colbert began in a somewhat condescending tone. "Perhaps you should have thought twice before rushing forward to seal the pact with him-"
"I. Am. Not. Going to treat him like an animal," the girl pointedly declared with a little more heat to her tone.
"Um," Jophiel spoke up, raising his hand. "What?"
Colbert sighed. "Traditionally, Lord Pholus, a Mage summons an animal during the beginning of their Second Forms-"
"And Lord Pholus is a human," Louise interjected again, giving Colbert a rather sharp look.
He merely sighed before continuing unabated. "-Which is bound to them by the Familiar Bond, a magical link which permanently ties a mage and creature together… and never before in all of the history of Halkeginia, has a human been summoned in the Familiar Summoning Ritual."
The older man removed the primitive glasses from his face and set them down on the desk in front of him to pinch the bridge of his nose.
"As you can guess, Lord Pholus, this… complicates matters."
Louise 'humphed' to the side, looked rather annoyed herself. "I disagree. The Founder's Laws make it perfectly clear that one is not to force one's fellow man into unlawful servitude, or treat one's fellow man as property, be they of noble or common breed," she asserted blandly.
Colbert deeply sighed again. "Complicates matters indeed."
Louise leaned forward combatively. "It seems rather simple to me-"
"Perhaps if you hadn't completed the ritual and marked Lord Pholus as your familiar, Lady le Blanc," Colbert interjected while gesturing to Jophiel's left hand-
[...Ah. So that's what those are…] Jophiel noted to himself, sparing the runes on the back of his palm a cursory glance.
"I panicked!" She asserted defensively. "I didn't know-"
"Stop stop stop stop stop!" Jophiel interjected hastily, while making a chopping motion between the two with his hand. "First off," he started, pointing to Colbert, "can I be sent back home?"
Colbert sighed quite warily. "No, young Sir. The Summoning ritual is strictly one-way, and no spell is known to return summoned creatures to their original domain."
Louise growled while Jophiel fought the urge to make a fist and start cursing like a sailor.
"Lord Pholus," Colbert began. "How would you feel about signing a contract, or pact with Lady le Blanc?"
Louise turned to look at Colbert sharply but didn't otherwise speak up.
"It would satisfy the rules of the Summoning Ritual, being that it would result in you acting in Lady le Blanc's service, but you'd be signing into it willingly, and with whatever benefits you may be able to negotiate into the contract, which would surely satisfy the Lady's sense of honour, no?" He inquired, looking at Louise.
She looked a little sceptical as she replied. "That… might be acceptable," she allowed hesitantly.
Jophiel paused for a long while after that, eventually sighing deeply as he replied. "I…" he glanced at the window behind Colbert, and noted that it was quickly getting dark out. "It's rather late… is there any chance that we might conclude this meeting tomorrow? I… need some time to think about all this."
The two apparent mages gave him a long look, though eventually they both sighed and relented.
"Very well," Louise stated, sounding quite tense.
"I see nothing wrong with that, so long as we do conclude the arrangement tomorrow," Colbert noted simply. "It is important that Lady le Blanc confirm that she has a familiar as soon as possible, or…"
Louise very noticeably grimaced at that, but neither of them seemed to feel the need to fill Jophiel in on why, and he had his own concerns to worry about at that moment.
"Okay…" Jophiel said with a shrug, rather wanting the meeting to end so that he could leave and just… think. "So, where will I spend the night?"
Louise jolted up at that, looking like a deer in headlights while Colbert just looked all the more exhausted by the inquiry.
"That… is a very good question," the older fellow started as he leant back in his seat. "The servant's quarters or one of the spare infirmary beds would do, I imagine-"
Louise sounded positively aghast at the suggestions. "W-we cannot have a noble guest sleep with the servants or where the sick are kept! There are dedicated rooms meant specifically for visiting nobles to use!"
Colbert sighed again. "Except that Lord Pholus isn't technically a guest by the laws and customs of the Founder…"
Louise looked about ready to pop a blood vessel right then.
"Fine! Then he shall share my room for the night!" She heatedly declared.
[Wait, what.] Jophiel thought to himself with some surprise.
Colbert looked a little taken aback by that. "L-lady le Blanc, that would be highly inappropriate-"
"I will not have a noble guest spat upon in such direct defiance of the Founder's will! If the Academy will not treat him with appropriate guest rights, then I will!" She proclaimed as she forcefully stood from her seat and began stomping towards the door. "Lord Pholus, we will return here in the morning! Follow me!" She all but growled out as a command.
Despite the girl's small size, she managed to come across as rather intimidating right then, and not wanting to piss her off, Jophiel immediately followed her out of the office without turning to address Colbert on their way out.
---
"…So, this one's my room." Louise stated as the two stood outside a handsome wood panelled door in a luxuriously decorated hall.
It was becoming very clear very quickly that the place was indeed some manner of very high-class establishment… though Jophiel was more focused on thoughts of… everything pertaining to his situation such as it was.
"Do you want to go to bed now, or…" She began quietly. "Well, you were unconscious for a long while, I wouldn't imagine you'd be all that tired all things considered…"
"I…" Jophiel halted. "Would like the opportunity to be alone for a time," the much larger man said warily. "I believe I should be able to find my way back here when I'm ready to turn in… If you're truly okay with letting me-"
"I promised you guest rights!" The tiny girl all but snarled. "I do not make promises I've no intention of keeping!"
Jophiel raised his hands in a placating gesture at the furious response. "O-okay, okay! I'll… Uh…"
Louise's nostrils flared for a moment as she seemed to be doing a breathing exercise to calm herself. "…I will arrange the sofa to be more comfortable for a night's rest…" She glanced back at him, giving him a quick once-over and grimacing. "Or as comfortable as it can be for someone whose legs will be hanging over the side…"
Jophiel shrugged. "It's fine… I appreciate the gesture either way. It's more than that Professor was willing to do for me, apparently."
She scoffed at that as she opened her door. "'Not a noble guest…' borderline blasphemy…!"
Immediately, Jophiel felt a chill down his spine. Was he in a religious fundamentalist fantasy world? "…What was that about, anyways?"
Louise looked contemplative, then shrugged. "I will inform you tomorrow. It is rather late for me by now, and I have a sleeping schedule I'd rather not break."
Jophiel nodded and stepped back from the door. "Then sleep well Lady le Blanc, I will attempt to avoid waking you when I return from my… walk."
She simply nodded once. "Very well. I will take whatever you don't need for the night now then, unless you intend to carry your sword and that bag around the school grounds?"
Jophiel nervously chuckled at that before handing her the blade and sack of cans. "The sword is expensive, please be careful with it."
"I am no stranger to such weapons, and I know to treat a fellow noble's belongings with respect," she asserted while taking the objects, noticeably looking surprised at how light the bag was. "I will keep the door unlocked. I'll trust you to be quiet when you return for the night. I will talk to you tomorrow, Lord Pholus."
With a parting nod, Louise stepped inside and closed the door behind her, leaving him standing alone in the long, luxurious, and dimly-lit hallway.
Familiars. Robes. Cloaks. Wizarding schools. Nobody's speech matching up with the movement of their mouths, almost as if they were... being dubbed over...
[...Translation magic, huh?] Jophiel silently noted to himself, which caused the gravity of his situation to hit him all the harder.
After a few moments, he allowed himself to speak freely for the first time since he'd awoken in that place.
"Holy mother of fuck, what fresh hell have I gotten myself into this time…"
===
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Seems weird to assume he's a noble based on his cloak. I'm pretty sure that commoners wear cloaks as well, tho it could be an AU. But it would also be weird for a noble to brandish a sword, and not a wand. Tho assuming it's an AU where only nobles have cloaks they would probably decline to check him for a wand. Not really a deception that seems like it will last. Ballsy move tho. Also, it's weird to say "be careful, it's expensive," when handing a small girl a sword. I think normally you would say "be careful, it's dangerous." Swords are pretty durable after all, little girls not so much...
Edit: Ah, I see you've got Alternate Universe in the tags.
Edit: Ah, I see you've got Alternate Universe in the tags.
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Vol. 1 Chapter 02 - Boy Meets Girl
BakaSmurf
My journey has been one of remarkable floundering
- Location
- Canada
Pre-Story Notes:
So on a scale of one-to-Bethesda, how badly am I shitting the bed with this reboot?
===
Chapter 02 - Boy Meets Girl
===
Shortly after departing to find an exit to the exterior of the… Castle? Mansion? Whatever kind of building it was, Jophiel's stomach began a-rumbling, and only then did he realise he'd not eaten at all the day previous before passing out.
A quick glance out a window confirmed that it was twilight out, with night likely fast approaching…
Having little else to do, he decided that focusing on attempting to find food took priority over going outside.
---
A few minutes of exploration led him to… Another fancifully decorated but otherwise nondescript hallway. Grunting in annoyance, Jophiel ran his hand through his long, loose hair; noting that it was gonna suck not having an elastic to tie it back.
After pausing a moment to take a calming breath, he released his hand, allowing it fall back to his side and proceeded down the hall again. With luck-
Just then, he noticed a sweet voice coming from down the finely decorated, high-class old European-style corridor. It seemed to be a woman's voice, humming a song.
Though he was normally not one to ask for directions, instead stubbornly wandering around until happening upon his destination, he was getting rather peckish and opted to seek out the humming person.
Stepping around the corner at the end of the corridor, he noted that the woman was standing just around it; and lo and behold, it seemed to be a maid by the look of her dress and the way she was dusting a painting.
"Excuse me-" Jophiel started, which startled the woman who evidently hadn't seen him, based on the way she 'eep'd,' spun around and jabbed her feather duster in his face.
Reacting too slow, he took the full brunt of the duster and inhaled a nose full of dust, causing a terrible sneezing and coughing fit.
It took him a few moments to regain his composure, and once he was once again in control of his faculties, Jophiel noticed that the girl was bowing and apologizing rather furiously. While he was annoyed, of course, she clearly hadn't meant to do that. So he'd decided to take a hold of her shoulder to stop her bowing and calm her.
"It's- Christ, it's okay, calm yourself!" The much taller man declared while using his free arm to wipe his face of dust.
She couldn't have been more than 5'2". Barely any taller than the already miniscule Louise.
After taking a moment make sure his face was clean, he finally really looked at the girl… And was promptly stunned by her beauty.
Flawless silky smooth bobbed raven locks adorned with a cute, ruffled headdress framed her exotic, pale angelic face free of blemishes. An oriental twist to a nordic visage made her a sight to behold as glistening pupils ringed in hazel of emerald and chestnut gazed back at him in naked concern.
Her ample, heaving bosom was emphasized by her slate grey uniform, trimmed in white lace and a white, ruffled apron which seemed custom designed and fit to cling to her shapely form, the plain fabric distressing in protest as she heavily panted, her panicked attempt at begging forgiveness having left her breathless.
Her thin waist implied an hourglass figure; a curvy, exotic woman whose beauty all but demanded the eyes of any who laid their gaze upon her flawless form.
She was absolutely stunning.
Realizing that he was staring, Jophiel cleared his throat and relented his grip on her slight shoulder. "I-it's fine, really, don't worry about it," His voice almost cracked in embarrassment. Almost.
She seemed to relax ever-so-slightly, though didn't let her guard down entirely.
"Um…" The exotic beauty started nervously, fidgeting in place ever so slightly as she made a point to cast her eyes downwards; tearing her vision away from his face. "Is… is there anything I can help you with, mi'lord?"
[Mi'lord…? Ah, right, cloaked noble… Guess I'd better keep that misinformation spreading, huh?] Jophiel thought to himself with an internal shrug as he cleared his throat and straightened his back. "Yes, actually. I'm new to the academy and am searching for the kitchens, as I've yet to eat today." The much taller man declared politely.
Keeping her eyes downcast, she nodded stiffly.
"The kitchens are not far from here, I can escort mi'lord there if need be," she quietly replied, seeming to make a deliberate attempt to make herself seem even smaller than she already was compared to him.
"That would be very much appreciated." Jophiel kindly said with a small, disarming smile.
Just because he was masquerading as a noble, didn't mean he intended to be a dick about it.
"V-very well, please follow me, if it pleases mi'lord," the gorgeous girl quietly quavered as she motioned down the hallway to her back, before meekly starting down it at a middling, yet still gracefully practised pace.
As he quietly sidled up beside her, Jophiel noted with some annoyance that he didn't like how on-edge the girl seemed to be. Were the local nobles really that bad, to have her so obviously concerned by encountering one on her lonesome?
Suppressing a grimace, he stomached it. He shouldn't be drawing attention to himself by treating the local commoners as being no different from himself, regardless of how true it was.
Still…
"If I am distracting you from your work and you are chastised for it, inform your lords to seek out Jophiel Pholus van Cazonium," he began, deciding to throw the girl a bone regardless. It wasn't in his nature to be an asshole, even it the situation likely called for it. "I will sort out any issues quickly."
"A-ah..." the pretty maid stumbled, not seeming to know how immediately reply. "Y-you are most gracious, mi'lord, but that shouldn't be necessary. I am simply doing busy work, such as it was."
Jophiel nodded. "Very well, if so say so."
The two proceeded to the kitchens from then on without any further exchange of words.
---
"S-so, um… here we are, mi'lord, though it seems as the staff have left for the night. I apologize, but-" The beautiful girl of mixed ethnicity paused with some surprise to see the big foreign noble start pulling the tops of barrels and opening cupboards with nary a hint of noble pride without missing a beat.
It took her a moment to gather her wits after bearing witness to such a strange sight.
"...Mi'lord…?" She began questioningly, perplexed as she was.
She was half-expecting him to order her to prepare food for him, once it was clear the kitchen staff were gone. Not to… rifle through raw food stores himself like a hungry commoner.
He hummed inquisitively, turning around to face her from a tall cupboard with an oblong white fruit in his hand.
She just stared for a few moments, before he seemed to realise what he was doing with widened eyes and an embarrassed grimace.
"A-ah, I-I am very hungry, and it isn't as though there are any cooks around to call upon at this hour!" he asserted defensively, clutching the fruit in his hand.
"O-of course, mi'lord…" the maid nodded along, fearful that she'd offended him.
Silently, as her gaze lingered on his handsome face, she noted that he actually looked rather cute when he was embarrassed, with the way he recoiled and his eyes widened in such an exaggerated way.
A few moments passed in silence while he examined the common fruit in his hand before he addressed her again.
"What is this thing?" he asked, shaking the fruit for emphasis.
She blinked. How could he not be familiar with… where was this man from?
As she processed the question, she finally actually stopped and looked at him. She'd initially assumed that he was Germanian, there were people there of a darker complexion compared to the rest of Halkeginian peoples, after all.
Though, considering it, she'd actually seen a few of those peoples during her brief time working at her uncle's Inn.
This man shared no features with them. Or any other of the peoples of Halkeginia she knew of.
His beard, long well-kept hair, and eyes were a deep, rich brown. She'd initially waved his hair colour off as being dyed, which the subtle auburn highlights in his beard seemed to support, but now that she'd taken a good look at him… that was clearly his natural hair. And his eyes…
Such deep, dark colours did not occur in human beings. Siesta knew that. She'd learned it early in her life when she realised how much she stood out among her peers with her jet black hair, a shade which was, curiously, unheard of in people outside of her bloodline.
Of course, some nobles would dye their hair dark colours to draw attention to themselves, but black dye was an unparalleled luxury. Nobles that would waste it on their hair were rare indeed.
Yet there he was, a fantastically foreign noble with hair and eyes which rivalled the richest of life-giving soil in its hues. There was no magic which existed to change the colouration of one's eyes.
And his words did not match up with the movements of his mouth, an obvious tell-tale sign that he was speaking with her via the benefits of a translation spell.
Just then, Siesta took a good look at his clothes. They were… Vaguely familiar, yet utterly alien in their design. A curiously drab green jacket which seemed to be made of a sturdy fabric, featuring what seemed to be a strip of inexplicable bronze or brass teeth along with more familiar buttons that seemed to be made of some exotic shaped horn, a similar, if somewhat darker colour to his jacket.
Beneath was a subtly accented button-down shirt she could only describe as masterfully made, of a strange material, unlike anything she'd seen before.
His trousers were a deep black, a colour which only the wealthiest of nobles could afford to dye their clothing with, and was similarly sturdy in design.
And his shoes… Where to even begin? Their make was far more complicated and intricately designed than any footwear she'd ever seen before, an exotic composite of what seemed to be cloth, leather, and another strange material she couldn't even begin to identify on the sole, died as rich a black as his leggings.
All encased in a mantled, hooded cloak of the strangest, most alien midnight black fabric she'd ever seen.
His clothing, while understated and obviously designed with function first and foremost in mind, where undeniably of exceedingly high quality. Quality well above and beyond what could be afforded to commoners.
Where in the Founder's name was this man from?
"...Miss…?" The man's deep, gravelly voice broke her from her stupor, and she flushed upon realising he'd been just standing there, waiting for her to respond as she flagrantly gawked at him like a star-struck… Well, commoner.
"M-my apologies, mi'lord!" Siesta cried, praying she'd not earned his ire. "T-that is a crada fruit. Native to Tristain, they are sweet with a crisp texture, and commonly used in baked goods."
He looked at her, then at the snow-white fruit in his hand, then back at her.
"Are they edible raw?" He asked blithely. As if such a question wasn't preposterous for a noble to ask. What man of high station would ever consider eating a baking foodstuff raw?
"I… y-yes, mi'lord," she replied, attempting to hide her perplexion. "B-but…"
Such a curious man. Though he displayed some of the detachment one would expect from a noble… he was clearly unfamiliar with some Halkegenian norms.
Jessica would have jumped on the opportunity to curry favour with a highborn man. She wasn't about to let her cousin reprimand her for not at least trying to get in this noble's good graces. She knew how a commoner could benefit greatly from doing so, in time.
Bowing her head respectfully, she took a breath and decided to at least make an attempt at it. "...It would be utterly remiss of me to stand by and allow my better to eat in such an unrefined manner. Please, allow me to prepare a proper meal for you-"
She raised her eyes again, and they promptly became as wide as a pair of saucers when she noticed the giant noble grimacing in naked disgust.
Had she not been frozen to the tiled floor in fear, she'd have taken her chances with running on the spot.
But next, to her great surprise, following the man's expression shifting to one of shocked surprise for but a moment, he gave her a gentle, comforting smile.
"T-that would be fantastic, miss Siesta! Your sense of duty to your…" The man paused for a moment, seeming to take a moment to consider his words. "Betters," the word seemed to taste bitter on his tongue if his expression was anything to go by. "Is commendable."
The common girl didn't know what to think of the past few seconds right then. She was so certain that she'd infuriated him somehow, yet he quickly, almost apologetically, he did a veritable one-hundred-eighty-degree turn and looked unexpectedly thankful.
"...Y-you are too gracious, mi'lord, it is my pleasure to serve," she asserted with a respectful bow.
She didn't know what to think of the man, such as it was, beyond that he had… garnered her curiosity.
Idly, as she began gathering the materials for a quick, single serving of a simple meal, she couldn't help but hope that this strange noble would be a common sight around the academy for a while to come.
---
"So," Jophiel began as he stepped out of the kitchen with Siesta still in tow. "I sincerely appreciate the help, miss Siesta, but it's late and you really should be heading to bed. I imagine that you have to work in the morning, after all."
The girl's eyes had a curious glint to them, one which Jophiel could not read as she replied.
"Y-yes, mi'lord. It was a pleasure to serve you." She curtsied with practised grace. "May the Founder bless your dreams, sir."
With that, she departed, leaving Jophiel with a final, gentle, curious smile before she turned the corner down the hall.
He was alone in the lavish hallway again, though this time with his belly full, and a content smile on his face.
"Nothing like a nice, pretty girl to lighten one's heart after a heavy day…" he sighed while placing a hand on the back of his neck warily, recalling the earlier conversation he'd had with Louise and Colbert, about being her 'familiar.'
And Siesta referring to him as her 'better.' He couldn't help but grimace again at the thought of her saying, let alone believing that shit. But… he was in no position to disavow her of such notions, loathe as he was to admit it.
He didn't want to be outed as a commoner himself. Not when doing so could very well result in him being treated with no rights, for all he knew.
Beyond that, he also had to contend with his concerns that he was… Well, in another world. Sure, he'd not seen any magic being performed, but… the dragon and beholder left little room for interpretation. Glancing out a nearby window, he noticed that the sun had completely set, allowing the stars to reveal themselves in their entirety.
"There's one way to be sure, I suppose…" He breathed to himself as he proceeded down the hallway, in search of a door leading out into the courtyard…
---
It would have been easy to explain away the apparent lack of technological development around the academy, such as it was. Groups that shunned technology were far from unheard of in sparsely-populated regions of the United States like Montana.
Even the critters… could be elaborate mock-ups. Animatronics could be pretty damned convincing if one really wanted them to be.
But faking an alien sky, complete with two great spherical moons, a field of stars featuring no recognizable constellations, and what looked to be the Milky Way, or something like it, plainly visible high in the night sky?
"Toto, I've got a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore." Jophiel quietly muttered to himself as he gazed upwards from the grassy walled courtyard of the academy; feasting his eyes upon the fantastical sky above as he lay upon his cloak like some sort of crinkly blanket.
The two moons glowed upon the earth, the larger in blue, the smaller in red. Almost taunting the Canadian with their haunting, unfamiliar presence. They were nothing like the Earth's stalwart white companion, large and attention-grabbing even in the comparatively busy void of this world's space…
[I'm far from home,] Jophiel thought to himself, eerily calm despite the weight of his situation bearing down upon him from a eldritch heaven. [Farther than I'd ever thought I'd be.]
He remained there, silent, allowing the harsh reality to press upon him with no resistance.
[Colbert said that there's no magic for sending summons back home,] he exhaled silently into the chilly night air, his eyes not breaking contact with the alien moons. [No warning, no time to prepare… I didn't even get to say goodbye…]
He'd always, in some way, wished for a fresh start. A clean break from his life, such as it was. Free of the baggage he'd been saddled with since his childhood, baggage which stuck to him even now in his twenty-first year of life. Free to just… begin again.
But… not like this.
In his wishes, he was in a familiar land, surrounded by his countrymen. And there was always another presence nearby, a familiar, stalwart figure he'd grown so accustomed to, that he wasn't sure how he'd live without its comforting company.
"Rose…" He whispered with a shuddering, pained breath. "Sorry I didn't get to say goodbye, Love…"
After a few moments, he pushed himself up onto his rear and quickly wiped at his eyes before taking a deep breath and letting out a long sigh.
"Eyes forward, Joe," he said to himself, his hands balling into tight fists. "The past is in the past, keep walking ever onward, just as you always have. Life never kept you down before… And I'll be damned if I'm gonna let it start now," he declared as he stood up, taking a hold of his cloak as he did so. "If I did…" he breathed, wrapping the outer layer around his person, "Rose would find a way to kick my ass across time and space."
At that, he chuckled to himself before about-facing and heading back to Louise's room. His best friend was many things. A hardass that would never forgive him if he'd let her absence break him being chief among them.
"Alright, life. Time for round five-thousand," he growled in defiance, directing one last, glowering gaze at the fantastical sky above before giving his eyes another quick wipe. "Hit me with your best shot."
===
So on a scale of one-to-Bethesda, how badly am I shitting the bed with this reboot?
===
Chapter 02 - Boy Meets Girl
===
Shortly after departing to find an exit to the exterior of the… Castle? Mansion? Whatever kind of building it was, Jophiel's stomach began a-rumbling, and only then did he realise he'd not eaten at all the day previous before passing out.
A quick glance out a window confirmed that it was twilight out, with night likely fast approaching…
Having little else to do, he decided that focusing on attempting to find food took priority over going outside.
---
A few minutes of exploration led him to… Another fancifully decorated but otherwise nondescript hallway. Grunting in annoyance, Jophiel ran his hand through his long, loose hair; noting that it was gonna suck not having an elastic to tie it back.
After pausing a moment to take a calming breath, he released his hand, allowing it fall back to his side and proceeded down the hall again. With luck-
Just then, he noticed a sweet voice coming from down the finely decorated, high-class old European-style corridor. It seemed to be a woman's voice, humming a song.
Though he was normally not one to ask for directions, instead stubbornly wandering around until happening upon his destination, he was getting rather peckish and opted to seek out the humming person.
Stepping around the corner at the end of the corridor, he noted that the woman was standing just around it; and lo and behold, it seemed to be a maid by the look of her dress and the way she was dusting a painting.
"Excuse me-" Jophiel started, which startled the woman who evidently hadn't seen him, based on the way she 'eep'd,' spun around and jabbed her feather duster in his face.
Reacting too slow, he took the full brunt of the duster and inhaled a nose full of dust, causing a terrible sneezing and coughing fit.
It took him a few moments to regain his composure, and once he was once again in control of his faculties, Jophiel noticed that the girl was bowing and apologizing rather furiously. While he was annoyed, of course, she clearly hadn't meant to do that. So he'd decided to take a hold of her shoulder to stop her bowing and calm her.
"It's- Christ, it's okay, calm yourself!" The much taller man declared while using his free arm to wipe his face of dust.
She couldn't have been more than 5'2". Barely any taller than the already miniscule Louise.
After taking a moment make sure his face was clean, he finally really looked at the girl… And was promptly stunned by her beauty.
Flawless silky smooth bobbed raven locks adorned with a cute, ruffled headdress framed her exotic, pale angelic face free of blemishes. An oriental twist to a nordic visage made her a sight to behold as glistening pupils ringed in hazel of emerald and chestnut gazed back at him in naked concern.
Her ample, heaving bosom was emphasized by her slate grey uniform, trimmed in white lace and a white, ruffled apron which seemed custom designed and fit to cling to her shapely form, the plain fabric distressing in protest as she heavily panted, her panicked attempt at begging forgiveness having left her breathless.
Her thin waist implied an hourglass figure; a curvy, exotic woman whose beauty all but demanded the eyes of any who laid their gaze upon her flawless form.
She was absolutely stunning.
Realizing that he was staring, Jophiel cleared his throat and relented his grip on her slight shoulder. "I-it's fine, really, don't worry about it," His voice almost cracked in embarrassment. Almost.
She seemed to relax ever-so-slightly, though didn't let her guard down entirely.
"Um…" The exotic beauty started nervously, fidgeting in place ever so slightly as she made a point to cast her eyes downwards; tearing her vision away from his face. "Is… is there anything I can help you with, mi'lord?"
[Mi'lord…? Ah, right, cloaked noble… Guess I'd better keep that misinformation spreading, huh?] Jophiel thought to himself with an internal shrug as he cleared his throat and straightened his back. "Yes, actually. I'm new to the academy and am searching for the kitchens, as I've yet to eat today." The much taller man declared politely.
Keeping her eyes downcast, she nodded stiffly.
"The kitchens are not far from here, I can escort mi'lord there if need be," she quietly replied, seeming to make a deliberate attempt to make herself seem even smaller than she already was compared to him.
"That would be very much appreciated." Jophiel kindly said with a small, disarming smile.
Just because he was masquerading as a noble, didn't mean he intended to be a dick about it.
"V-very well, please follow me, if it pleases mi'lord," the gorgeous girl quietly quavered as she motioned down the hallway to her back, before meekly starting down it at a middling, yet still gracefully practised pace.
As he quietly sidled up beside her, Jophiel noted with some annoyance that he didn't like how on-edge the girl seemed to be. Were the local nobles really that bad, to have her so obviously concerned by encountering one on her lonesome?
Suppressing a grimace, he stomached it. He shouldn't be drawing attention to himself by treating the local commoners as being no different from himself, regardless of how true it was.
Still…
"If I am distracting you from your work and you are chastised for it, inform your lords to seek out Jophiel Pholus van Cazonium," he began, deciding to throw the girl a bone regardless. It wasn't in his nature to be an asshole, even it the situation likely called for it. "I will sort out any issues quickly."
"A-ah..." the pretty maid stumbled, not seeming to know how immediately reply. "Y-you are most gracious, mi'lord, but that shouldn't be necessary. I am simply doing busy work, such as it was."
Jophiel nodded. "Very well, if so say so."
The two proceeded to the kitchens from then on without any further exchange of words.
---
"S-so, um… here we are, mi'lord, though it seems as the staff have left for the night. I apologize, but-" The beautiful girl of mixed ethnicity paused with some surprise to see the big foreign noble start pulling the tops of barrels and opening cupboards with nary a hint of noble pride without missing a beat.
It took her a moment to gather her wits after bearing witness to such a strange sight.
"...Mi'lord…?" She began questioningly, perplexed as she was.
She was half-expecting him to order her to prepare food for him, once it was clear the kitchen staff were gone. Not to… rifle through raw food stores himself like a hungry commoner.
He hummed inquisitively, turning around to face her from a tall cupboard with an oblong white fruit in his hand.
She just stared for a few moments, before he seemed to realise what he was doing with widened eyes and an embarrassed grimace.
"A-ah, I-I am very hungry, and it isn't as though there are any cooks around to call upon at this hour!" he asserted defensively, clutching the fruit in his hand.
"O-of course, mi'lord…" the maid nodded along, fearful that she'd offended him.
Silently, as her gaze lingered on his handsome face, she noted that he actually looked rather cute when he was embarrassed, with the way he recoiled and his eyes widened in such an exaggerated way.
A few moments passed in silence while he examined the common fruit in his hand before he addressed her again.
"What is this thing?" he asked, shaking the fruit for emphasis.
She blinked. How could he not be familiar with… where was this man from?
As she processed the question, she finally actually stopped and looked at him. She'd initially assumed that he was Germanian, there were people there of a darker complexion compared to the rest of Halkeginian peoples, after all.
Though, considering it, she'd actually seen a few of those peoples during her brief time working at her uncle's Inn.
This man shared no features with them. Or any other of the peoples of Halkeginia she knew of.
His beard, long well-kept hair, and eyes were a deep, rich brown. She'd initially waved his hair colour off as being dyed, which the subtle auburn highlights in his beard seemed to support, but now that she'd taken a good look at him… that was clearly his natural hair. And his eyes…
Such deep, dark colours did not occur in human beings. Siesta knew that. She'd learned it early in her life when she realised how much she stood out among her peers with her jet black hair, a shade which was, curiously, unheard of in people outside of her bloodline.
Of course, some nobles would dye their hair dark colours to draw attention to themselves, but black dye was an unparalleled luxury. Nobles that would waste it on their hair were rare indeed.
Yet there he was, a fantastically foreign noble with hair and eyes which rivalled the richest of life-giving soil in its hues. There was no magic which existed to change the colouration of one's eyes.
And his words did not match up with the movements of his mouth, an obvious tell-tale sign that he was speaking with her via the benefits of a translation spell.
Just then, Siesta took a good look at his clothes. They were… Vaguely familiar, yet utterly alien in their design. A curiously drab green jacket which seemed to be made of a sturdy fabric, featuring what seemed to be a strip of inexplicable bronze or brass teeth along with more familiar buttons that seemed to be made of some exotic shaped horn, a similar, if somewhat darker colour to his jacket.
Beneath was a subtly accented button-down shirt she could only describe as masterfully made, of a strange material, unlike anything she'd seen before.
His trousers were a deep black, a colour which only the wealthiest of nobles could afford to dye their clothing with, and was similarly sturdy in design.
And his shoes… Where to even begin? Their make was far more complicated and intricately designed than any footwear she'd ever seen before, an exotic composite of what seemed to be cloth, leather, and another strange material she couldn't even begin to identify on the sole, died as rich a black as his leggings.
All encased in a mantled, hooded cloak of the strangest, most alien midnight black fabric she'd ever seen.
His clothing, while understated and obviously designed with function first and foremost in mind, where undeniably of exceedingly high quality. Quality well above and beyond what could be afforded to commoners.
Where in the Founder's name was this man from?
"...Miss…?" The man's deep, gravelly voice broke her from her stupor, and she flushed upon realising he'd been just standing there, waiting for her to respond as she flagrantly gawked at him like a star-struck… Well, commoner.
"M-my apologies, mi'lord!" Siesta cried, praying she'd not earned his ire. "T-that is a crada fruit. Native to Tristain, they are sweet with a crisp texture, and commonly used in baked goods."
He looked at her, then at the snow-white fruit in his hand, then back at her.
"Are they edible raw?" He asked blithely. As if such a question wasn't preposterous for a noble to ask. What man of high station would ever consider eating a baking foodstuff raw?
"I… y-yes, mi'lord," she replied, attempting to hide her perplexion. "B-but…"
Such a curious man. Though he displayed some of the detachment one would expect from a noble… he was clearly unfamiliar with some Halkegenian norms.
Jessica would have jumped on the opportunity to curry favour with a highborn man. She wasn't about to let her cousin reprimand her for not at least trying to get in this noble's good graces. She knew how a commoner could benefit greatly from doing so, in time.
Bowing her head respectfully, she took a breath and decided to at least make an attempt at it. "...It would be utterly remiss of me to stand by and allow my better to eat in such an unrefined manner. Please, allow me to prepare a proper meal for you-"
She raised her eyes again, and they promptly became as wide as a pair of saucers when she noticed the giant noble grimacing in naked disgust.
Had she not been frozen to the tiled floor in fear, she'd have taken her chances with running on the spot.
But next, to her great surprise, following the man's expression shifting to one of shocked surprise for but a moment, he gave her a gentle, comforting smile.
"T-that would be fantastic, miss Siesta! Your sense of duty to your…" The man paused for a moment, seeming to take a moment to consider his words. "Betters," the word seemed to taste bitter on his tongue if his expression was anything to go by. "Is commendable."
The common girl didn't know what to think of the past few seconds right then. She was so certain that she'd infuriated him somehow, yet he quickly, almost apologetically, he did a veritable one-hundred-eighty-degree turn and looked unexpectedly thankful.
"...Y-you are too gracious, mi'lord, it is my pleasure to serve," she asserted with a respectful bow.
She didn't know what to think of the man, such as it was, beyond that he had… garnered her curiosity.
Idly, as she began gathering the materials for a quick, single serving of a simple meal, she couldn't help but hope that this strange noble would be a common sight around the academy for a while to come.
---
"So," Jophiel began as he stepped out of the kitchen with Siesta still in tow. "I sincerely appreciate the help, miss Siesta, but it's late and you really should be heading to bed. I imagine that you have to work in the morning, after all."
The girl's eyes had a curious glint to them, one which Jophiel could not read as she replied.
"Y-yes, mi'lord. It was a pleasure to serve you." She curtsied with practised grace. "May the Founder bless your dreams, sir."
With that, she departed, leaving Jophiel with a final, gentle, curious smile before she turned the corner down the hall.
He was alone in the lavish hallway again, though this time with his belly full, and a content smile on his face.
"Nothing like a nice, pretty girl to lighten one's heart after a heavy day…" he sighed while placing a hand on the back of his neck warily, recalling the earlier conversation he'd had with Louise and Colbert, about being her 'familiar.'
And Siesta referring to him as her 'better.' He couldn't help but grimace again at the thought of her saying, let alone believing that shit. But… he was in no position to disavow her of such notions, loathe as he was to admit it.
He didn't want to be outed as a commoner himself. Not when doing so could very well result in him being treated with no rights, for all he knew.
Beyond that, he also had to contend with his concerns that he was… Well, in another world. Sure, he'd not seen any magic being performed, but… the dragon and beholder left little room for interpretation. Glancing out a nearby window, he noticed that the sun had completely set, allowing the stars to reveal themselves in their entirety.
"There's one way to be sure, I suppose…" He breathed to himself as he proceeded down the hallway, in search of a door leading out into the courtyard…
---
It would have been easy to explain away the apparent lack of technological development around the academy, such as it was. Groups that shunned technology were far from unheard of in sparsely-populated regions of the United States like Montana.
Even the critters… could be elaborate mock-ups. Animatronics could be pretty damned convincing if one really wanted them to be.
But faking an alien sky, complete with two great spherical moons, a field of stars featuring no recognizable constellations, and what looked to be the Milky Way, or something like it, plainly visible high in the night sky?
"Toto, I've got a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore." Jophiel quietly muttered to himself as he gazed upwards from the grassy walled courtyard of the academy; feasting his eyes upon the fantastical sky above as he lay upon his cloak like some sort of crinkly blanket.
The two moons glowed upon the earth, the larger in blue, the smaller in red. Almost taunting the Canadian with their haunting, unfamiliar presence. They were nothing like the Earth's stalwart white companion, large and attention-grabbing even in the comparatively busy void of this world's space…
[I'm far from home,] Jophiel thought to himself, eerily calm despite the weight of his situation bearing down upon him from a eldritch heaven. [Farther than I'd ever thought I'd be.]
He remained there, silent, allowing the harsh reality to press upon him with no resistance.
[Colbert said that there's no magic for sending summons back home,] he exhaled silently into the chilly night air, his eyes not breaking contact with the alien moons. [No warning, no time to prepare… I didn't even get to say goodbye…]
He'd always, in some way, wished for a fresh start. A clean break from his life, such as it was. Free of the baggage he'd been saddled with since his childhood, baggage which stuck to him even now in his twenty-first year of life. Free to just… begin again.
But… not like this.
In his wishes, he was in a familiar land, surrounded by his countrymen. And there was always another presence nearby, a familiar, stalwart figure he'd grown so accustomed to, that he wasn't sure how he'd live without its comforting company.
"Rose…" He whispered with a shuddering, pained breath. "Sorry I didn't get to say goodbye, Love…"
After a few moments, he pushed himself up onto his rear and quickly wiped at his eyes before taking a deep breath and letting out a long sigh.
"Eyes forward, Joe," he said to himself, his hands balling into tight fists. "The past is in the past, keep walking ever onward, just as you always have. Life never kept you down before… And I'll be damned if I'm gonna let it start now," he declared as he stood up, taking a hold of his cloak as he did so. "If I did…" he breathed, wrapping the outer layer around his person, "Rose would find a way to kick my ass across time and space."
At that, he chuckled to himself before about-facing and heading back to Louise's room. His best friend was many things. A hardass that would never forgive him if he'd let her absence break him being chief among them.
"Alright, life. Time for round five-thousand," he growled in defiance, directing one last, glowering gaze at the fantastical sky above before giving his eyes another quick wipe. "Hit me with your best shot."
===
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Vol. 1 Chapter 03 - Acceptance
BakaSmurf
My journey has been one of remarkable floundering
- Location
- Canada
Pre-Story Notes:
A feeling of obligation to one's readers is a hell of a stimulant, as it turns out.
===
Chapter 03 - Acceptance
===
With a sigh, Jophiel stepped out of the tiny blonde's room to preserve her modesty.
Louise's couch was indeed on the smaller side, and it was softer than was good for sleeping on, but it got the job done; and was less 'humiliating' for a 'noble' than sleeping on the floor.
The fact that sleeping on the floor probably wouldn't have resulted in as sore of a back was kind of beside the point.
Leaning back on the wall next to her door, the canuck was left to wait for her to get dressed and prepared for her school day. They had to figure out what the deal was before she headed off for classes, after all.
Scarcely a few moments passed before the room opposite the blonde's gracefully swung open, and out stepped what Jophiel could only describe as a gorgeous Arabic beauty.
She was tall, nearly the same height as him; likely about 5'9". Flawless dusky skin, enticing chestnut eyes, and long, parrot red hair styled to cover her right eye, like a classic seductress. He'd have said it was likely dyed, but her eyebrows had the same bright red colouration to them.
Such an exotic colour on a human… Just another clear sign that he wasn't on Earth anymore.
She was dressed similarly to Louise, though she wore her top in a much more revealing manner and seemed to hug her form more closely than the blonde's. The top buttons undone to show a generous amount of her ample cleavage, her chest framed by her cloak's clasp on top of that. Not to mention her thigh-high leather boots which called attention to her skirt which was… A good deal shorter than Louise's.
Simply put, she was quite a looker, and wanted everyone to know it.
The woman stopped in her tracks once she noticed Jophiel standing opposite of her in the hallway, blinking in surprise for a moment before her eyes lit up with inexplicable recognition.
"Ah," she started, a mischievous smile forming on her delicately painted lips. "You… are the man Louise summoned yesterday, aren't you?"
For his part, Jophiel had to take a moment to allow his brain to catch up, taken off-guard by the apparently Middle Eastern beauty as he was.
"I- yes, I am," he affirmed as he stepped away from the wall, standing tall and with his chest held forward pridefully. He wanted to project an image of noble confidence, after all. "Jophiel Pholus van Cazonium, a pleasure to make your acquaintance, milady," he finished with a polite head bow as he suppressed the urge to cringe at unironically referring to a woman as 'milady.'
Different world, different cultural norms. He was just being polite here, he desperately asserted to himself.
The woman regarded him for a few moments, humming appraisingly to herself as she did so.
"I didn't get the chance to get a good look at you yesterday, what with you needing to be rushed off to the infirmary so soon after popping out of the summoning portal… I'm glad to see that the Zero at least managed to bring in a handsome foreigner," she purred while playing with her silken locks.
Jophiel, once again, had to stop to process that. It always caught him off guard being referred to as 'handsome,' especially when it was a pretty woman doing it.
"I…" he hesitated, then stopped once he noted how she'd referred to Louise. "What did you just refer to Miss Vallière as?" He asked, immediately wondering if he was about to start disliking the woman right out of the gate.
"Oh? You haven't heard?" She asked mock-innocently as she looked aside with a sigh, as if the topic bored her. "Louise the Zero. Zero magical successes, zero spells, zero talent. She's notorious in the academy for being an utter failure of a mage, incapable of casting even a single spell."
Jophiel felt his jaw automatically clench once it was clear that was a derisive nickname, one which Louise definitely wasn't fond of. Meaning this woman was probably not a friend to the girl.
"...Though, considering you're standing here now," the redhead continued, "that nickname is hardly deserved at this point, I think."
Jophiel, once again, blinked as his jaw went slack again.
"I'm sure that there are plenty of other students that'll cling to the childish insult despite clear evidence that she has a familiar, if a rather unorthodox one. Buuuuuut…" she drawled, a satisfied smile appearing on her face. "I promised that I'd stop calling her it once she successfully cast a spell. And while I am many things, a liar is not one of them. I'll not bring shame to the Augusta name in such a manner."
She preened in a rather self-congratulatory manner.
[...Well, she could be worse, I guess,] Jophiel dryly thought to himself.
Also, "Augusta?" He inquired.
The redhead gave him a confused glance, then tisked, to herself, by the look of it.
"How boorish of me. Kirche Frederica Augusta von Anhalt-Zerbst," she began with a well-practiced bow, which… only called further attention to her ample bosom. Which she was certainly aware of. "At your…" she peered up at him from her lowered position with a lecherous grin on her face, "Service."
[...Well, at least she doesn't beat around the bush,] Jophiel internally sighed.
"I'm looking forward to seeing you around the school, Jophiel," she purred his name. "Do be sure that your cute little Master keeps up her attendance! My expectations for her just leapt a couple dozen stories, and we wouldn't want her to fall behind in her studies now!" She asserted as she started sashaying off down the hall, only to pause a few steps away from her door. "Flame! Come now my little darling! Momma has classes to attend!"
A few quiet moments passed, and through her still open bedroom door, from which wafted rich, inviting aromatic scents, a padded and clawed scurrying could be heard approaching.
Jophiel's jaw dropped. He'd been expecting a dog or cat to come sauntering out of the room…
Not a fucking Charmander!
Of course, it was a good deal more real than a 'Mon from the games. Scales and a more animalistic appearance compared to the more kid-friendly design made it honestly look more badass than cute, like a miniature dinosaur rather than a wide-eyed smooth-skinned walking plush toy, but the distinctive "Char!" it produced as it walked by on two legs was unmistakable.
Not even pausing to acknowledge Jophiel, flaming tail excitedly waving behind it, the fucking Pokémon quickly padded up to Kirche, who squatted down and gave the critter an affectionate rub on the head.
"See you later, Jophiel," she said again as she stood and started walking away again, drawing what looked to be a wand from her cloak, waving it over her shoulder at her still open door…
Which promptly, and rather smoothly shut itself, as if pulled inward by a practiced attendant.
It took Jophiel another few moments to realise that he'd just witnessed legitimate fucking telekinesis, on top of seeing a real-life Charmander casually stroll on by.
The past few minutes were, understandably, a bit much for him to process, and he had to lean back against the wall to let his mind catch up to what was going on around him.
Something told him that stopping to process things was going to be a regular occurance in his life from there on out, such as it was.
---
A few minutes after Kirche departed, Louise finally emerged from her room. 'Like a grumpy cave troll,' Jophiel would have thought if he were meaner. Mornings were clearly not the tiny blonde's forté.
Her clothes and hair were all in order, but she was grumbling up a storm as she rubbed her eyes in great annoyance.
"...Morn'..." She eventually managed before cutting herself off with a yawn.
"Good morning," Jophiel repeated to her, despite them having already exchanged greetings before he left her room ten or so minutes prior. "...So, I just met your classmate, a Miss Kirche Fred-"
"What!?" Louise immediately snarled. Clearly, that woke her up right quick. "What did that shameless pervert say- do to you!?"
[...Right. Definitely not friends,] Jophiel noted to himself. He opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off by the girl immediately pressing on in a heated tone.
"Augusta does not represent the general student body at all! You hear me!?" The miniature woman declared, no small amount of annoyance in her voice. "You stay away from that harlot, Jophiel! She only wants one thing from men, and it's disgusting!"
He blinked.
[Did she just-] he shook his head, [no, no, coincidence, obviously.]
That aside…
"Whoa, whoa! Calm down, Miss Vallière! It's too early in the morning to be getting so worked up over anything!" He asserted, raising his hands in a placating gesture.
She was a-huffin and a-puffin, learning forward and staring up at Jophiel dead in the eyes with her delicate brow furrowed in clear frustration, before she huffed one final time and returned to her full, utterly unimpressive height.
"You're right, Augusta isn't worth getting worked up over at this hour," she grumbled, her high-pitched voice full of combative fire.
[...Not quite what I said, but whatever,] the significantly taller man shrugged.
"Okay, Augusta aside… What's the plan, ma'am?" He asked, casually placing his hands in his pants pockets.
Before responding, she glanced down at his midsection, frowned, and looked back up at him. "I wouldn't recommend doing that often," she stated.
That apparent non-sequitur caught him a little off guard.
"...Doing what?" he asked, unsure of what social faux paux he was seemingly committing at the moment.
"Hiding your hands," she replied. "It'll make people wonder why you're keeping them tucked away like that."
A few moments passed as Jophiel processed this new information.
[FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUCCCCCKKK!] He internally screamed. Of course, that made sense for what was obviously a pre-modern society based off of what he had seen of it. Not leaving one's hands in plain view tended to give people the impression that one was trying to hide something. Like a weapon. But…
He liked tucking his hands into his pockets! It was a habit he'd had since he was just a kid, and to try breaking it now…
He was not looking forward to having to fight with his instincts to jam his hands in his pants at every opportunity from then on.
"...Understood, ma'am," the canuck replied, withdrawing his hands from his pockets and letting them hang uselessly for a few moments, before immediately crossing them over his chest instead. It just felt wrong letting them just hang like slabs of dead meat!
Though she quirked an eyebrow at the display, Louise seemed satisfied with his cooperation regardless.
"That aside… if… if you've had enough time to think, it would be wise to return to Professor Colbert," she quietly answered, shifting her gaze to the lavishly decorated wall opposite them.
Jophiel couldn't help but notice how nervous she sounded when she said that, for obvious reasons, of course.
"…I… actually have a few questions about that," he asked, now a little nervous himself. "About what… well, all of this is."
Louise glanced back up, seeming to consider his words for a few moments before sighing.
"Let's discuss this somewhere more open, and where we'll be less likely to be interrupted by waking students," she stated as she turned and proceeded down the hall in the direction Kirche had departed not a few minutes earlier.
Seeing little reason to protest, Jophiel proceeded after her, hoping that nobody would get close enough to him to notice that he didn't have spare clothes to change into that morning.
---
"There are remarkably few people around," Jophiel said after he claimed a seat which was only slightly undersized for him across from Louise at a nicely decorated patio table and chair set in the academy courtyard among many other identical sets.
Indeed, there were very few non-servants going about from the looks of things.
"The day after the Springtime Familiar Summoning Ritual, second-form students are given the day off to bond with their new familiars," the blonde explained while adjusting her position in her seat. "Most, unsurprisingly, take their time getting out of bed on such occasions."
"Ah… Yeah, that'll explain it," the comparatively massive Canadian nodded, glancing around the wide-open, grassy green courtyard, as well-kept as the finest upscale lawns in well-to-do parts of modern Earth towns and peppered with the occasional small building, likely groundskeeper's shacks.
The academy, it seemed, was something of a converted fortress, with a towering central building surrounded on all sides by great, polished marble walls. At a glance, Jophiel estimated them to be about three, maybe four stories tall. Periodically, there were steps leading up to the battlements which were actually patrolled by what seemed to be armoured soldiers.
Armoured, as in metal armour. Bronze armour, at that. None of them were close enough to notice any specifics of the appearance of their kit beyond that they had similarly bronze halberds.
As interested as he was in the appearance of men armed with fucking bronze weapons, Jophiel shook his head and redirected his attention back to the uncertain blonde sitting across from him.
"...So," he began, which seemed to cause the girl to tense up a fair amount. "We should probably get started then, huh?"
---
By the time they'd finished their discussion, the courtyard had filled out a good deal more. Not only with people, but with all sorts of fantastical creatures. Things that wouldn't have been out of place an RPGs and JRPGs both. Jophiel wasn't sure where to begin with them, and so had chosen to focus entirely on his discussion with Louise.
What he'd learned was… Interesting.
Louise, as Kirche had oh so gracefully stated earlier, had something of a reputation. Before summoning him, she'd never once successfully cast a magic spell in her life. Which was… well, about to get her expelled from the academy.
The summoning ritual was her last chance. If she'd failed, she'd be sent back home a failure, an idea which very clearly weighed on the poor girl quite heavily.
If nothing else, it certainly explained both her desperation to complete the ritual using him, and that professor, Colbert's insistence that Jophiel was indeed officially her familiar. It also explained why the professor was so quick to appease the two of them with more of a formalized contract once it was clear Louise was having none of it after she had a moment to reconsider her actions.
Colbert was actually Louise's favorite teacher, and was uniquely supportive of her throughout her years of schooling at the academy. He didn't want her to be expelled for not recognizing Jophiel as her familiar.
And, of course, there was a religious significance behind the ritual, and attempting another summoning was out of the question as a matter of course.
Beyond that, Jophiel had asked about the land they were in. Louise informed him that they were in the Monarchy of Tristain, on the continent of Halkeginia, and the name of the world itself was Alfheim.
Curious, that the world shared a name with the world of elves, as according to historical Norse mythology.
As if he needed further confirmation that he wasn't on Earth anymore.
"...So…" Louise started, quietly, with a clear resigned tone to her voice. "I… wouldn't ask for such a… commitment, of you, especially when I effectively stole you away from your homeland, without your consent."
It had also become very clear that she didn't expect him to agree to being her familiar, despite the numerous benefits she'd promised him, among which was being recognized as being under the protection of the le Blanc family, having all his needs and wants tended to, and, of course, her eternal gratitude.
All because she was certain he'd want to go back home rather than swearing himself to a foreign noble girl he'd never met before.
...She wasn't wrong about that, of course, but…
He glanced back up at the now blue spring sky, wispy white clouds flowing across it ever-so-gently. Picturesque, indistinguishable from the sky he'd been born under twenty-one years previously.
Masking an entirely alien universe.
He wasn't going home.
"...I agree to your terms, Miss Vallière," he replied tonelessly.
"I understand," she replied with a shaky, dejected voice. "I'll speak to the Headmaster about finding you a way back to your homeland-" she very visibly stopped, as if struck, when she realised what he'd said, and slowly turned her gaze from the table up to the larger man sitting across from her. "W-wait, what!?" She cried out, disbelieving.
An understandable reaction, to say the least.
"I accept the terms of your contract. I'll be your familiar," he idly repeated.
Over the course of his… difficult life, Jophiel had learned one thing above all else; when life has kicked you in the balls and mugged you, leaving you with no bus fare in an unfamiliar place with no friends or family to rely upon… you'd god damn well better learn to roll with the punches, and firmly take hold of any and every advantage you could get.
In this world, what better advantage could he ask for than being tied to a prestigious noble family?
She openly gaped at him like a fish out of water, clearly struggling to process his words.
"...B-but…" She began, shaking her head, disbelief thick in her voice. "...Why?"
He couldn't just go and tell her that he was from another world. That'd be absurd, she'd think he was insane. It would be better to just… deflect.
"My people have a saying, Miss Vallière. 'Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.' I've agreed to your contract, that's all that matters right now," he declared with little emotion.
For a few moments she continued to look dubious of his words, then, gradually, her expression shifted into one of confusion. Which Jophiel would quickly return in kind.
"...What's a 'horse?'" The tiny blonde eventually asked.
---
"...And with that," the bespectacled professor said, setting down the quill after signing the legal document he'd taken the time to write up over the night, and amended within the hour once Louise made the extent of the contract's terms clear to him. "The contract is done. Almost, I mean. The Headmaster still has to approve of it, and he's rather busy as of late, though I can assure you, this is as good as sealed."
Colbert had been very visibly relieved when Jophiel and Louise had approached him with the good news, and was quick to get everything started as quickly as possible.
Once the professor was finished, Louise gently took a hold of the vellum sheet featuring her, Jophiel, and Colbert's signatures, lifting it to her face and closely examining it again.
Looking down at the sheet himself, Jophiel couldn't help but note, again, how much his English script stuck out compared to the very Nordic-looking runes the other two had been writing with.
A few moments of silence passed as Louise seemed to be absorbed in reading the document.
"...Of course," Colbert started again. "I shall make the importance of this contract known to Osmand, so rest assured he'll get to it as quickly as he can-"
He was cut off by a loud screech, which, notably, didn't come from the real, living Bald Eagle resting on a perch atop his desk, not that real Bald Eagles did screech to begin with, but rather, it came from Louise.
She leapt at Jophiel, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, squealing in apparently uncontrolled joy.
"Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!" She cried out, hanging from his neck as he reflexively wrapped his arms around her mid-section to keep her from falling. "Thank you!" she cried out one final time, followed by her joyful cries turning into what Jophiel figured were tears and hiccups of joy.
He should probably have been more annoyed than anything at her just jumping on him like that, but… this was extremely important to her. He likely just completely altered the course of her life, and from her perspective, at his own expense, just… because he could? He hadn't really given her a reason, had he?
"I swear, I swear on the Founder, on my family's honour, on the Old Gods and all that is good in the world, you will live all the rest of your days wanting for nothing!" She tearfully asserted into his shoulder, still being held up by him, as taken aback by her over-the-top reaction as he was.
"H-hey now, okay, calm down Louise, you're getting a bit melodramatic here…!" The brunette asserted with a nervous chuckle. He was just glad she was happy-crying. He did not handle sad crying girls well at all.
Jophiel couldn't help but notice the contented smile Colbert had on his face at the sight of the two from across his desk.
"I-I-I-" Louise began, sniffling, and eventually loosening her grip on the significantly larger man's shoulders, to which he responded by gently setting her down.
It was the first time he'd seen the girl smile since he'd arrived, he idly realised.
"I apologize," she eventually managed after setting the document back down and taking a moment to wipe her eyes with her sleeves. "I just… you don't understand what this means to me…"
[Evidently not!] Jophiel thought to himself, finding her reaction to be a bit much.
"R-right…" he started, rubbing the back of his neck with some trepidation, glancing up at the ceiling to break the tension he was feeling a tad. "So, with that out of the way, this means I'm getting a room of my own, right?"
Louise nodded with a firm look of conviction, casting a sideways stare Colbert's way. "That was part of the terms, yes," she asserted.
Colbert sighed somewhat in response. "Yes, yes, I will make arrangements for you to be assigned a room in the guest's quarters for now. It will certainly be less scandalous than you sleeping in the girl's dorm, if nothing else."
Jophiel blinked, then looked back down at Colbert, then Louise.
[...Well, figures the student's dorms wouldn't be unisex,] which also made the blonde's decision to let him board with her for the night that much more significant.
"With all that aside," Colbert began, "I believe that our business here is concluded for now. Miss Vallière, you shall be allowed to return to classes tomorrow, and Mister Pholus… I suppose you two can discuss what you'll do between yourselves."
Louise nodded, shifting her gaze back to Jophiel. "Right. Jophiel…" She began, presenting her tiny hand to him. "I'm looking forward to working with you!"
Taking a moment to sigh in relief, Jophiel took a hold of her hand and gave it a firm shake. "Same, Miss Vallière."
"Louise," she corrected him.
[Ah, so forward!] he snarked internally.
"Louise," he cheerfully amended his statement.
===
A feeling of obligation to one's readers is a hell of a stimulant, as it turns out.
===
Chapter 03 - Acceptance
===
With a sigh, Jophiel stepped out of the tiny blonde's room to preserve her modesty.
Louise's couch was indeed on the smaller side, and it was softer than was good for sleeping on, but it got the job done; and was less 'humiliating' for a 'noble' than sleeping on the floor.
The fact that sleeping on the floor probably wouldn't have resulted in as sore of a back was kind of beside the point.
Leaning back on the wall next to her door, the canuck was left to wait for her to get dressed and prepared for her school day. They had to figure out what the deal was before she headed off for classes, after all.
Scarcely a few moments passed before the room opposite the blonde's gracefully swung open, and out stepped what Jophiel could only describe as a gorgeous Arabic beauty.
She was tall, nearly the same height as him; likely about 5'9". Flawless dusky skin, enticing chestnut eyes, and long, parrot red hair styled to cover her right eye, like a classic seductress. He'd have said it was likely dyed, but her eyebrows had the same bright red colouration to them.
Such an exotic colour on a human… Just another clear sign that he wasn't on Earth anymore.
She was dressed similarly to Louise, though she wore her top in a much more revealing manner and seemed to hug her form more closely than the blonde's. The top buttons undone to show a generous amount of her ample cleavage, her chest framed by her cloak's clasp on top of that. Not to mention her thigh-high leather boots which called attention to her skirt which was… A good deal shorter than Louise's.
Simply put, she was quite a looker, and wanted everyone to know it.
The woman stopped in her tracks once she noticed Jophiel standing opposite of her in the hallway, blinking in surprise for a moment before her eyes lit up with inexplicable recognition.
"Ah," she started, a mischievous smile forming on her delicately painted lips. "You… are the man Louise summoned yesterday, aren't you?"
For his part, Jophiel had to take a moment to allow his brain to catch up, taken off-guard by the apparently Middle Eastern beauty as he was.
"I- yes, I am," he affirmed as he stepped away from the wall, standing tall and with his chest held forward pridefully. He wanted to project an image of noble confidence, after all. "Jophiel Pholus van Cazonium, a pleasure to make your acquaintance, milady," he finished with a polite head bow as he suppressed the urge to cringe at unironically referring to a woman as 'milady.'
Different world, different cultural norms. He was just being polite here, he desperately asserted to himself.
The woman regarded him for a few moments, humming appraisingly to herself as she did so.
"I didn't get the chance to get a good look at you yesterday, what with you needing to be rushed off to the infirmary so soon after popping out of the summoning portal… I'm glad to see that the Zero at least managed to bring in a handsome foreigner," she purred while playing with her silken locks.
Jophiel, once again, had to stop to process that. It always caught him off guard being referred to as 'handsome,' especially when it was a pretty woman doing it.
"I…" he hesitated, then stopped once he noted how she'd referred to Louise. "What did you just refer to Miss Vallière as?" He asked, immediately wondering if he was about to start disliking the woman right out of the gate.
"Oh? You haven't heard?" She asked mock-innocently as she looked aside with a sigh, as if the topic bored her. "Louise the Zero. Zero magical successes, zero spells, zero talent. She's notorious in the academy for being an utter failure of a mage, incapable of casting even a single spell."
Jophiel felt his jaw automatically clench once it was clear that was a derisive nickname, one which Louise definitely wasn't fond of. Meaning this woman was probably not a friend to the girl.
"...Though, considering you're standing here now," the redhead continued, "that nickname is hardly deserved at this point, I think."
Jophiel, once again, blinked as his jaw went slack again.
"I'm sure that there are plenty of other students that'll cling to the childish insult despite clear evidence that she has a familiar, if a rather unorthodox one. Buuuuuut…" she drawled, a satisfied smile appearing on her face. "I promised that I'd stop calling her it once she successfully cast a spell. And while I am many things, a liar is not one of them. I'll not bring shame to the Augusta name in such a manner."
She preened in a rather self-congratulatory manner.
[...Well, she could be worse, I guess,] Jophiel dryly thought to himself.
Also, "Augusta?" He inquired.
The redhead gave him a confused glance, then tisked, to herself, by the look of it.
"How boorish of me. Kirche Frederica Augusta von Anhalt-Zerbst," she began with a well-practiced bow, which… only called further attention to her ample bosom. Which she was certainly aware of. "At your…" she peered up at him from her lowered position with a lecherous grin on her face, "Service."
[...Well, at least she doesn't beat around the bush,] Jophiel internally sighed.
"I'm looking forward to seeing you around the school, Jophiel," she purred his name. "Do be sure that your cute little Master keeps up her attendance! My expectations for her just leapt a couple dozen stories, and we wouldn't want her to fall behind in her studies now!" She asserted as she started sashaying off down the hall, only to pause a few steps away from her door. "Flame! Come now my little darling! Momma has classes to attend!"
A few quiet moments passed, and through her still open bedroom door, from which wafted rich, inviting aromatic scents, a padded and clawed scurrying could be heard approaching.
Jophiel's jaw dropped. He'd been expecting a dog or cat to come sauntering out of the room…
Not a fucking Charmander!
Of course, it was a good deal more real than a 'Mon from the games. Scales and a more animalistic appearance compared to the more kid-friendly design made it honestly look more badass than cute, like a miniature dinosaur rather than a wide-eyed smooth-skinned walking plush toy, but the distinctive "Char!" it produced as it walked by on two legs was unmistakable.
Not even pausing to acknowledge Jophiel, flaming tail excitedly waving behind it, the fucking Pokémon quickly padded up to Kirche, who squatted down and gave the critter an affectionate rub on the head.
"See you later, Jophiel," she said again as she stood and started walking away again, drawing what looked to be a wand from her cloak, waving it over her shoulder at her still open door…
Which promptly, and rather smoothly shut itself, as if pulled inward by a practiced attendant.
It took Jophiel another few moments to realise that he'd just witnessed legitimate fucking telekinesis, on top of seeing a real-life Charmander casually stroll on by.
The past few minutes were, understandably, a bit much for him to process, and he had to lean back against the wall to let his mind catch up to what was going on around him.
Something told him that stopping to process things was going to be a regular occurance in his life from there on out, such as it was.
---
A few minutes after Kirche departed, Louise finally emerged from her room. 'Like a grumpy cave troll,' Jophiel would have thought if he were meaner. Mornings were clearly not the tiny blonde's forté.
Her clothes and hair were all in order, but she was grumbling up a storm as she rubbed her eyes in great annoyance.
"...Morn'..." She eventually managed before cutting herself off with a yawn.
"Good morning," Jophiel repeated to her, despite them having already exchanged greetings before he left her room ten or so minutes prior. "...So, I just met your classmate, a Miss Kirche Fred-"
"What!?" Louise immediately snarled. Clearly, that woke her up right quick. "What did that shameless pervert say- do to you!?"
[...Right. Definitely not friends,] Jophiel noted to himself. He opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off by the girl immediately pressing on in a heated tone.
"Augusta does not represent the general student body at all! You hear me!?" The miniature woman declared, no small amount of annoyance in her voice. "You stay away from that harlot, Jophiel! She only wants one thing from men, and it's disgusting!"
He blinked.
[Did she just-] he shook his head, [no, no, coincidence, obviously.]
That aside…
"Whoa, whoa! Calm down, Miss Vallière! It's too early in the morning to be getting so worked up over anything!" He asserted, raising his hands in a placating gesture.
She was a-huffin and a-puffin, learning forward and staring up at Jophiel dead in the eyes with her delicate brow furrowed in clear frustration, before she huffed one final time and returned to her full, utterly unimpressive height.
"You're right, Augusta isn't worth getting worked up over at this hour," she grumbled, her high-pitched voice full of combative fire.
[...Not quite what I said, but whatever,] the significantly taller man shrugged.
"Okay, Augusta aside… What's the plan, ma'am?" He asked, casually placing his hands in his pants pockets.
Before responding, she glanced down at his midsection, frowned, and looked back up at him. "I wouldn't recommend doing that often," she stated.
That apparent non-sequitur caught him a little off guard.
"...Doing what?" he asked, unsure of what social faux paux he was seemingly committing at the moment.
"Hiding your hands," she replied. "It'll make people wonder why you're keeping them tucked away like that."
A few moments passed as Jophiel processed this new information.
[FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUCCCCCKKK!] He internally screamed. Of course, that made sense for what was obviously a pre-modern society based off of what he had seen of it. Not leaving one's hands in plain view tended to give people the impression that one was trying to hide something. Like a weapon. But…
He liked tucking his hands into his pockets! It was a habit he'd had since he was just a kid, and to try breaking it now…
He was not looking forward to having to fight with his instincts to jam his hands in his pants at every opportunity from then on.
"...Understood, ma'am," the canuck replied, withdrawing his hands from his pockets and letting them hang uselessly for a few moments, before immediately crossing them over his chest instead. It just felt wrong letting them just hang like slabs of dead meat!
Though she quirked an eyebrow at the display, Louise seemed satisfied with his cooperation regardless.
"That aside… if… if you've had enough time to think, it would be wise to return to Professor Colbert," she quietly answered, shifting her gaze to the lavishly decorated wall opposite them.
Jophiel couldn't help but notice how nervous she sounded when she said that, for obvious reasons, of course.
"…I… actually have a few questions about that," he asked, now a little nervous himself. "About what… well, all of this is."
Louise glanced back up, seeming to consider his words for a few moments before sighing.
"Let's discuss this somewhere more open, and where we'll be less likely to be interrupted by waking students," she stated as she turned and proceeded down the hall in the direction Kirche had departed not a few minutes earlier.
Seeing little reason to protest, Jophiel proceeded after her, hoping that nobody would get close enough to him to notice that he didn't have spare clothes to change into that morning.
---
"There are remarkably few people around," Jophiel said after he claimed a seat which was only slightly undersized for him across from Louise at a nicely decorated patio table and chair set in the academy courtyard among many other identical sets.
Indeed, there were very few non-servants going about from the looks of things.
"The day after the Springtime Familiar Summoning Ritual, second-form students are given the day off to bond with their new familiars," the blonde explained while adjusting her position in her seat. "Most, unsurprisingly, take their time getting out of bed on such occasions."
"Ah… Yeah, that'll explain it," the comparatively massive Canadian nodded, glancing around the wide-open, grassy green courtyard, as well-kept as the finest upscale lawns in well-to-do parts of modern Earth towns and peppered with the occasional small building, likely groundskeeper's shacks.
The academy, it seemed, was something of a converted fortress, with a towering central building surrounded on all sides by great, polished marble walls. At a glance, Jophiel estimated them to be about three, maybe four stories tall. Periodically, there were steps leading up to the battlements which were actually patrolled by what seemed to be armoured soldiers.
Armoured, as in metal armour. Bronze armour, at that. None of them were close enough to notice any specifics of the appearance of their kit beyond that they had similarly bronze halberds.
As interested as he was in the appearance of men armed with fucking bronze weapons, Jophiel shook his head and redirected his attention back to the uncertain blonde sitting across from him.
"...So," he began, which seemed to cause the girl to tense up a fair amount. "We should probably get started then, huh?"
---
By the time they'd finished their discussion, the courtyard had filled out a good deal more. Not only with people, but with all sorts of fantastical creatures. Things that wouldn't have been out of place an RPGs and JRPGs both. Jophiel wasn't sure where to begin with them, and so had chosen to focus entirely on his discussion with Louise.
What he'd learned was… Interesting.
Louise, as Kirche had oh so gracefully stated earlier, had something of a reputation. Before summoning him, she'd never once successfully cast a magic spell in her life. Which was… well, about to get her expelled from the academy.
The summoning ritual was her last chance. If she'd failed, she'd be sent back home a failure, an idea which very clearly weighed on the poor girl quite heavily.
If nothing else, it certainly explained both her desperation to complete the ritual using him, and that professor, Colbert's insistence that Jophiel was indeed officially her familiar. It also explained why the professor was so quick to appease the two of them with more of a formalized contract once it was clear Louise was having none of it after she had a moment to reconsider her actions.
Colbert was actually Louise's favorite teacher, and was uniquely supportive of her throughout her years of schooling at the academy. He didn't want her to be expelled for not recognizing Jophiel as her familiar.
And, of course, there was a religious significance behind the ritual, and attempting another summoning was out of the question as a matter of course.
Beyond that, Jophiel had asked about the land they were in. Louise informed him that they were in the Monarchy of Tristain, on the continent of Halkeginia, and the name of the world itself was Alfheim.
Curious, that the world shared a name with the world of elves, as according to historical Norse mythology.
As if he needed further confirmation that he wasn't on Earth anymore.
"...So…" Louise started, quietly, with a clear resigned tone to her voice. "I… wouldn't ask for such a… commitment, of you, especially when I effectively stole you away from your homeland, without your consent."
It had also become very clear that she didn't expect him to agree to being her familiar, despite the numerous benefits she'd promised him, among which was being recognized as being under the protection of the le Blanc family, having all his needs and wants tended to, and, of course, her eternal gratitude.
All because she was certain he'd want to go back home rather than swearing himself to a foreign noble girl he'd never met before.
...She wasn't wrong about that, of course, but…
He glanced back up at the now blue spring sky, wispy white clouds flowing across it ever-so-gently. Picturesque, indistinguishable from the sky he'd been born under twenty-one years previously.
Masking an entirely alien universe.
He wasn't going home.
"...I agree to your terms, Miss Vallière," he replied tonelessly.
"I understand," she replied with a shaky, dejected voice. "I'll speak to the Headmaster about finding you a way back to your homeland-" she very visibly stopped, as if struck, when she realised what he'd said, and slowly turned her gaze from the table up to the larger man sitting across from her. "W-wait, what!?" She cried out, disbelieving.
An understandable reaction, to say the least.
"I accept the terms of your contract. I'll be your familiar," he idly repeated.
Over the course of his… difficult life, Jophiel had learned one thing above all else; when life has kicked you in the balls and mugged you, leaving you with no bus fare in an unfamiliar place with no friends or family to rely upon… you'd god damn well better learn to roll with the punches, and firmly take hold of any and every advantage you could get.
In this world, what better advantage could he ask for than being tied to a prestigious noble family?
She openly gaped at him like a fish out of water, clearly struggling to process his words.
"...B-but…" She began, shaking her head, disbelief thick in her voice. "...Why?"
He couldn't just go and tell her that he was from another world. That'd be absurd, she'd think he was insane. It would be better to just… deflect.
"My people have a saying, Miss Vallière. 'Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.' I've agreed to your contract, that's all that matters right now," he declared with little emotion.
For a few moments she continued to look dubious of his words, then, gradually, her expression shifted into one of confusion. Which Jophiel would quickly return in kind.
"...What's a 'horse?'" The tiny blonde eventually asked.
---
"...And with that," the bespectacled professor said, setting down the quill after signing the legal document he'd taken the time to write up over the night, and amended within the hour once Louise made the extent of the contract's terms clear to him. "The contract is done. Almost, I mean. The Headmaster still has to approve of it, and he's rather busy as of late, though I can assure you, this is as good as sealed."
Colbert had been very visibly relieved when Jophiel and Louise had approached him with the good news, and was quick to get everything started as quickly as possible.
Once the professor was finished, Louise gently took a hold of the vellum sheet featuring her, Jophiel, and Colbert's signatures, lifting it to her face and closely examining it again.
Looking down at the sheet himself, Jophiel couldn't help but note, again, how much his English script stuck out compared to the very Nordic-looking runes the other two had been writing with.
A few moments of silence passed as Louise seemed to be absorbed in reading the document.
"...Of course," Colbert started again. "I shall make the importance of this contract known to Osmand, so rest assured he'll get to it as quickly as he can-"
He was cut off by a loud screech, which, notably, didn't come from the real, living Bald Eagle resting on a perch atop his desk, not that real Bald Eagles did screech to begin with, but rather, it came from Louise.
She leapt at Jophiel, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, squealing in apparently uncontrolled joy.
"Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!" She cried out, hanging from his neck as he reflexively wrapped his arms around her mid-section to keep her from falling. "Thank you!" she cried out one final time, followed by her joyful cries turning into what Jophiel figured were tears and hiccups of joy.
He should probably have been more annoyed than anything at her just jumping on him like that, but… this was extremely important to her. He likely just completely altered the course of her life, and from her perspective, at his own expense, just… because he could? He hadn't really given her a reason, had he?
"I swear, I swear on the Founder, on my family's honour, on the Old Gods and all that is good in the world, you will live all the rest of your days wanting for nothing!" She tearfully asserted into his shoulder, still being held up by him, as taken aback by her over-the-top reaction as he was.
"H-hey now, okay, calm down Louise, you're getting a bit melodramatic here…!" The brunette asserted with a nervous chuckle. He was just glad she was happy-crying. He did not handle sad crying girls well at all.
Jophiel couldn't help but notice the contented smile Colbert had on his face at the sight of the two from across his desk.
"I-I-I-" Louise began, sniffling, and eventually loosening her grip on the significantly larger man's shoulders, to which he responded by gently setting her down.
It was the first time he'd seen the girl smile since he'd arrived, he idly realised.
"I apologize," she eventually managed after setting the document back down and taking a moment to wipe her eyes with her sleeves. "I just… you don't understand what this means to me…"
[Evidently not!] Jophiel thought to himself, finding her reaction to be a bit much.
"R-right…" he started, rubbing the back of his neck with some trepidation, glancing up at the ceiling to break the tension he was feeling a tad. "So, with that out of the way, this means I'm getting a room of my own, right?"
Louise nodded with a firm look of conviction, casting a sideways stare Colbert's way. "That was part of the terms, yes," she asserted.
Colbert sighed somewhat in response. "Yes, yes, I will make arrangements for you to be assigned a room in the guest's quarters for now. It will certainly be less scandalous than you sleeping in the girl's dorm, if nothing else."
Jophiel blinked, then looked back down at Colbert, then Louise.
[...Well, figures the student's dorms wouldn't be unisex,] which also made the blonde's decision to let him board with her for the night that much more significant.
"With all that aside," Colbert began, "I believe that our business here is concluded for now. Miss Vallière, you shall be allowed to return to classes tomorrow, and Mister Pholus… I suppose you two can discuss what you'll do between yourselves."
Louise nodded, shifting her gaze back to Jophiel. "Right. Jophiel…" She began, presenting her tiny hand to him. "I'm looking forward to working with you!"
Taking a moment to sigh in relief, Jophiel took a hold of her hand and gave it a firm shake. "Same, Miss Vallière."
"Louise," she corrected him.
[Ah, so forward!] he snarked internally.
"Louise," he cheerfully amended his statement.
===
Vol. 1 Chapter 04 - Blindsided
BakaSmurf
My journey has been one of remarkable floundering
- Location
- Canada
Pre-Story Notes:
Can't stop me mother fuckers!
===
Chapter 04 - Blindsided
===
Jophiel had slept well. The bed was comfortable, the room nice and well-ventilated, not to mention lavishly decorated, and he'd gotten the recommended number of hours without interruptions…
So he didn't understand why he felt so pissy that morning.
He still felt kind of bad about snapping at that servant the way he had. The poor guy didn't do anything to deserve being growled at by a guy nearly a head taller than him first thing in the morning for doing his job and asking if Jophiel needed anything taken care of, especially after bringing him a clean change of clothes…
Shaking his head, and adjusting the modified Academy uniform he'd been provided, a simple white button-down and grey trousers, Jophiel continued to make his way for the woman's dorms regardless.
Not much had occurred the day previous, just Louise showing him around the academy so he could familiarize himself with the layout, following by him exploring on his own once she decided that she'd need to retreat to her room to study for the next day's classes.
She'd been absolutely giddy the entire time, and while she hadn't had the time to intimate him with everything in the fortress walls, he probably wouldn't get lost now, if nothing else.
As he was walking, the canuck couldn't help but notice that, much like the previous day, he was… attracting a lot of stares, from both the servants and students, and even most of the adults around the campus.
He'd also noticed that, Siesta aside, he seemed to be the only one in the entire school that had dark hair or eyes.
He'd seen a few young people with white hair, some of which almost looked like they had the vaguest hint of blue if he squinted his eyes just right, and varying shades of ginger ranging up to Kirche's eye-catching parrot red.
There were plenty of brunettes, but not a single lock of dark hair that hadn't come off of his own or Siesta's head.
He'd also not really had a chance to parse it previously, but… there were a fair amount of people with violet, and red eyes.
He shrugged it off in Louise's case because purple was extremely rare, but not unheard of for human eye colours. It seemed to be merely on the uncommon side in Tristain, though.
The red, on the other hand, was rather throwing him for a loop. He had a friend with ocular albinism back home, but in her case, her eyes had a distinctive… look to them when she wasn't wearing corrective contact lenses. The people he was seeing around here simply had varying shades of red eyes with properly developed irises and such.
But again, not a single hint of another set of dark eyes that weren't in his own sockets.
Not to mention that the people all had a distinctively Nordic look to them, with Kirche and Siesta being the only apparent exceptions.
Just more checks to add to the 'not on Earth' list, at this point.
"Ah, Jophiel," came a recognizable high-pitched voice from the hall, pulling the comparatively large man out of his own little world.
Louise had left her room early, by the looks of it. She also seemed… rather relieved to see him.
Jophiel himself was a little surprised at how he himself almost felt a weight lifted from his shoulders at the sight of her.
"Good morning, Louise. Did you sleep well?" he asked as she stepped past him, and he sidled up beside her.
She grimaced lightly. "I… have had better nights. Yourself?"
"Same," he shrugged.
"Was the bedding not to your liking?" She pressed, concern visibly knitting her brows.
"What? No, no… well, I mean the mattress wasn't quite as nice as my own back home, but it was hardly bad," indeed, while it looked fancy as all get-out, the mattress he'd slept on just wasn't as comfortable as his own Earth-made bed.
[Funny what one takes for granted in the modern world…] he idly thought to himself.
"I just kind of… felt bad, until just now, as a matter of fact," he asserted as he realised that he actually was feeling better already, for whatever reason.
"Ah, you too?" Louise cheerfully chirped. "Well, whatever the reason, that's good. We'd hardly want to look downcast for most of the day."
"Agreed," Jophiel said as the two continued to make small talk while she led him to the dining hall.
---
Referring to the dining hall as 'magnificent' would be doing it a grave injustice, Jophiel noted as he glanced up at the luxuriously decorated walls, hell, the floors- fuck, everything.
Jophiel had previously only seen such luxury and opulence in movies and video games set in the Early Modern era, where nobility was still a thing… Honestly, he'd been half expecting it to look like the Great Hall from Hogwarts, not a majestic court fit for the likes of Napoléon Bonaparte!
Shifting his gaze back to eye level, Jophiel instead found his eyes taken in by the beautiful, yet sturdily made great tables and chairs everyone was seated at.
Which he couldn't help but notice were slightly shorter than what he'd come to expect from his home. Much like… well, everything. The people included.
Louise, fun-sized beauty as she was, was turning out to only be a little below average in height compared to her peers. And the men weren't much bigger, maybe 5'4"?
Tristainians were smol, with Kirche being something of an amazonian outlier, by the looks of things.
That aside…
"Are you enjoying your meal, Jophiel?" Louise asked from the seat next to Jophiel.
"Ah, yes, it is fantastic, the stew is to die for," he replied, making a concerted effort to not acknowledge the looks he was getting from the blonde's classmates. He never liked being the centre of attention… Not that it would be wise to let that show. Nobles were the type to preen, after all.
"Fantastic," Louise began. "I was concerned that it may not suit your foreign palette-"
"What is the meaning of this, Guiche!?" Only to be cut off by a very angry sounding girl from somewhere behind them.
Turning in his seat to see what the commotion was, Jophiel noticed a young fop with golden blonde hair being accosted by a pair of girls, one with platinum blonde hair drills, and another with a simple chestnut brown ponytail. Both blondes were wearing grey cloak like Louise's, while the brunette was garbed in brown.
"You lecherous, treacherous, unfaithful-!" The blonde drillgirl heatedly began, which was followed by Jophiel promptly losing interest in the event and turning back to focus on his stew.
"Looks like Guiche finally got caught…" Louise began, still looking back behind her. She flinched when the distinctive sound of a pair of slaps resounded from the background, followed by the cries of one girl and the indignant shouts of another, and a man desperately attempting to salvage a bad situation. "He's lucky to get off with just being slapped, shameless git that he is."
The Canadian just shrugged, not caring much. [Not any of my business.]
After that, nothing of real note occurred during breakfast, and the day was a relatively uneventful one. Something that Jophiel sincerely hoped would be a regular occurance.
---
The next few days were calm. Louise continued to attend her classes, and Jophiel was left mostly to wander the academy grounds as he saw fit for the majority of the day.
The two would spend time together whenever she had time off, which she seemed to enjoy in particular. Jophiel quickly came to determine that Louise, depressingly, didn't actually have any friends to speak of at the academy. Seemed that her inability to cast magic made her something of a social pariah, her rather high status as the daughter of a Duke and a Duchess be damned.
Curiously, as Jophiel would come to find out, nobility wasn't tied exclusively to one's birth station, but rather, more importantly, their ability to use magic.
It seemed that on Alfheim, magic was genetic. You were either born able to use magic, or not. There was no inbetween, and commoners couldn't learn how to spellcast unless they just so happened to have noble blood.
That, unsurprisingly, greatly concerned Jophiel for obvious reasons. Though… it simply didn't come up. Nobody ever asked him to demonstrate that he was capable of magic, they seemed to just assume that he could, for some reason.
Not being one to look a gift horse in the mouth, he saw little reason to press the issue himself.
That aside, he had noticed Siesta a few times, and even made small talk with her on occasion. She seemed to be rather smart for a peasant girl, and was good at providing information on the simpler side of human life in Tristan.
Nobles, more often than not, actually took their duties rather seriously. Those duties being protecting the peasantry from the likes of monsters like orcs, treants and… whatever 'banderscatches' were. He swore that he almost recognized the name, but Jophiel shrugged it off when he couldn't place his finger on it.
Nobles were also typically not unkind towards peasants, apparently. Just… overbearing, but fair.
Siesta continued to be… unpleasantly aware of her station, so to speak, but was for the most part nice to talk to.
That aside, Jophiel and Louise both had, rather unfortunately and inexplicably, found that they'd both wake up feeling constantly miserable until convening for breakfast.
Something they'd decided to bring up to Colbert and the Headmaster on Jophiel's fifth day in the academy.
---
Jophiel stood in awkward silence for longer than he'd have liked as the Dumbledore knock-off of a Headmaster held his hand and stared at the runes on the back of his palm, as if doing so would cause them to reveal their secrets to the nobles gathered in the highest room at the academy, at the peak of the central tower.
"...Yeah, I've got nothing," the wizened old man dubbed Osmand eventually said has he released the bigger guy's hand from across his desk, upon which was a small black mouse resting on a tiny, specially-made mouse bed with a small water and food pail, and slouched back in his seat.
Louise quietly growled in frustration at that.
As it turned out, there were multiple different kinds of 'familiar runes' which appeared on the creature being bonded to a mage, and all known runes were pretty well documented by then.
It only figured that Jophiel's runes were completely unaccounted for, and on top of that, had the unique effect of being blindingly painful when they appeared. That was something that had never happened to a familiar before either.
[A mystery wrapped in an enigma enshrouded by secrets…] Jophiel internally grumbled at the situation, such as it was.
"Is there really no evidence of this rune's prior existence, sirs?" Louise asked from her seat next to the canuck, who had quietly sat back down once he no longer needed to be leaning across the headmaster's desk.
"I assure you, Miss Vallière, I pored over every known record we have, which is all of them, considering the Academy's station, and Lord Pholus' runes are one-hundred percent unique and indecipherable," Colbert asserted tiredly. "Whatever kind of familiar he is… it seems that his abilities will only reveal themselves to us in time," he declared, glancing at Jophiel's hand from the Headmaster's side.
Louise, again, huffed in annoyance.
"Now now Miss Vallière, you have your entire lives ahead of you to determine what the young sir's abilities are, both of you are in no rush to figure things out, I assure you," the elderly mage asserted.
His words didn't seem to comfort Louise all that much.
"Well, that aside, tell me, how have you both been faring since the summoning ritual? Notice anything out of the ordinary?" He continued regardless.
Jophiel shared a look with Louise before responding. "We've both been feeling absolutely miserable in the mornings since the day after I arrived, I guess."
Louise nodded in affirmation.
"The day after, you say?" Osmand reached up and began stroking his beard contemplatively. "Did anything change compared to your first night spent here?"
Colbert interjected, "Miss Vallière boarded Lord Pholus in her room with her on the first night, and afterwards he was moved to the guest quarters."
The beard stroking intensified as the old man contemplatively hummed to himself, and a few moments passed in silence.
"Well, the answer to what ails you seems clear to me," Osmand asserted.
"I'm all ears," Jophiel said while Louise leaned in, eager to be rid of unpleasant mornings.
"In order to feel good in the mornings, you two must sleep together!" The old man declared.
…
[Wait, what.]
"W-w-w-what!?" Louise cried out in outrage as she all but leapt from her seat. "Y-y-y-you- how d-d-dare- I am en-engaged-!"
Jophiel blinked. That was news to him. Though also unsurprising considering her noble standing...
"What the Headmaster means, Miss Vallière," Colbert interjected before the girl got more heated. "Is that the Familiar Bond seems to affect you both in spite of Lord Pholus being human, and that sleeping so far apart is likely what's causing such foul moods in the mornings. It is a well-documented fact that Masters and Familiars do not take well to being separated at night so soon after being bonded."
"Spoilsport," the elderly man pouted from his seat.
Louise, after a few moments, turned as red as a beet and dropped herself back into her chair, clearly quite embarrassed.
"Oh," she quietly intoned.
"So… considering that, I'd propose that you and Lord Pholus share a room again tonight, and if you both feel well in the morning, we'll know it worked and that keeping you separated while sleeping is a poor idea," Colbert continued.
"Why?" Jophiel piped up.
"Well," Osmand interjected. "Assuming the Familiar Bond is the cause of your irritable states upon waking, if you two are kept separate for enough consecutive nights in a row, you will both grow more and more unreasonably angry in the mornings until you start getting violent."
That caught Jophiel off guard. "Seriously? So you're saying that we're going to have to sleep next to each other for the rest of our lives or become violent loons?"
"No no," Colbert waved his hand dismissively. "Just until the Familiar Bond has had the chance to fully form and you both share a mental connection that will sustain itself across great distances. Making you both uncomfortable when apart for too long in the early stages of a Master-Familiar pairing is just to incentivise you to remain close enough for the bond to solidify itself."
"Meaning that we should just need to sleep in relatively close proximity to each other for a while, then we can sleep entirely separately," Louise elucidated. "It's purely a distance thing, so sleeping on opposite sides of a wall shouldn't count as being apart, but-"
"Let's just keep it simple tonight, Miss Vallière. Lord Pholus will bunk in your room again, and if you both awaken happy, we'll know it worked," Osmand cut her off in his high, raspy voice.
Jophiel sighed. It was really more of an annoyance than anything, he was no out of control hormonal teenager, but he'd just rather have his own damned room to himself.
"Understood, sir," the largest of the men in the room replied.
"Good, so, with that settled-" Osmand began.
"W-wait! What about our contract?" Only to be cut off by Louise.
Colbert sighed. "We still have yet to hear back from your parents on the matter, Miss Vallière. Regardless, I assure you we'll have it formalized and finalized in due time. For now, you just focus on your studies and practising your magic."
Louise looked put off by that, but nodded in affirmation.
Jophiel hadn't considered what Louise's family would think of their arrangement before then.
[Mother of fucking Christ, her parents are going to want me castrated, aren't they…?] He internally screamed.
"So, for now, I believe we're done here," Colbert declared. "I would suggest you spend the rest of the day practising, Miss Vallière."
Louise nodded. "That would be wise, yes."
At that, she rose from her seat, and Jophiel followed suit.
"I'd recommend you accompany her for the rest of the day, Lord Pholus," Osmand began. "You two should spend more time in each other's company, as most Masters and Familiars do."
Not having had any other plans for the rest of the day anyways, Jophiel nodded in agreement.
"May the Founder watch over your studies, Miss Vallière," Osmand stated.
"May the Mind expand your knowledge and keep your wisdom, sirs," Louise said back and slightly bowed before about-facing and heading for the door to the spiral staircase.
Giving the two men a nod, Jophiel set off after her. He'd heard that saying used a lot as a farewell lately, and figured it had something to do with their religion, but… wasn't feeling up to dipping his toes in that particular boiling pot yet.
With a shrug, he continued to follow Louise without much comment.
---
"Okay…" The tiny blonde began, holding her metallic wand in front of her, directed at a pail of water in the middle of her room.
"So… what're you trying to do here?" Jophiel asked from her side before she got started.
"Oh, uh, levitation practise. I'm going to try to lift the water out of the bucket, suspend it in the air for as long as I can, and return it without spilling anything," she explained simply enough.
"Well, alright, don't let me distract you from it," Jophiel nodded while gesturing towards the copper bucket.
He'd seen quite a few examples of magic in action since he'd arrived, and even the simplest of spells were a sight to behold.
Not that he could let it show, of course.
Louise refocused on the water, furrowed her brow, lifted her wand above her head, and thrust it downwards towards the bucket.
"Levitate!"
It took Jophiel a few moments to process what just happened as he was disoriented by a great, nearly painfully loud CRACK that rebounded off the walls of the room, and he was suddenly soaking wet, along with everything else.
He blinked owlishly as Louise remained in her place, water rapidly running down her clothes and pooling at her feet as she started trembling in place.
"...What just happened?" He eventually managed to ask through his stupification as his hair and clothes were weighed down and clung to his body unpleasantly. Because he just had to pick that day to not wear his waterproof rain cloak, right?
"The Zero failed to cast another cantrip-class spell! That's what!" The tiny blonde screeched as she threw her wand across the room, causing a distinctive metallic cling as it bounced off the wall and came to a clattering halt on the ground.
She remained still, her shoulders quaking as she clutched her fists hard enough that Jophiel was concerned that she might draw blood.
"Damn it… Damn it!" She cried stepping forward and kicking the bucket across the room and into her dresser, causing a terrible ruckus and sending what little water remained in it spilling all over the floor.
"W-whoa, Louise calm down-" Jophiel started in a half-panic, uncertainly placing his hand on her shoulder-
"No!" She shouted, slapping away his appendage and stomping her foot on the fine wood panelled floor, causing a pitiful splash of water as she did so. "It- it was supposed to be different! I- I was supposed to stop being a failure!"
[Fucking hell… this isn't how I was expecting this to go…!] Jophiel internally groused, completely caught off guard by the critically failed spell and Louise's resulting outburst.
"I did it! I summoned a familiar! I cast a spell! For the first time in my life, when I needed it the most, the Founder smiled on me, let me succeed!" She was shouting as her entire body was so tense she trembled from head to toe, not at Jophiel, just… letting a dam he hadn't realised was in place break open. "Why… Why!? My pedigree is without flaw! My siblings are natural triangles! I try! I try so hard! I practise night and day! I try so much harder than anyone else! And I'm mocked for it!"
Not knowing what else to do, being as overwhelmed as he was, Jophiel grabbed Louise and pulled her into a tight hug, hoping that holding her would stop her from lashing out again, if nothing else.
"I… I just want to make my family proud… For everyone to stop mocking me, looking at me like a misshapen dog…" She'd stopped yelling, and began quietly hiccuping and sobbing, trembling in Jophiel's grasp. "W-what did I do? W-why do the Founder and the Allfather punish me so? I'm devout, I adhere to their teachings, I do not abuse my authority… Why do they torment me, why tantalize me with success, only to snatch it away…?"
Jophiel had to shift his grip down to support the girl from the small of her back, as she started to go limp.
"Please… tell me why…" she whimpered as Jophiel quickly become the only thing supporting her.
He didn't know what to think. She'd been a little overly emotional since he'd met her, but for the most part seemed to have an even head from what he'd seen of her the past few days. He was not expecting her to just blow up the way she had, to just break down so suddenly.
Of course, he had noticed that she didn't seem to have any friends. None of her peers really acknowledged her despite her high station, called her 'the Zero' behind her back…
He hadn't realised it was so bad, though.
"...Hey, I'm here, aren't I? I'm not going anywhere, understand?" Jophiel quietly offered in an attempt at a soothing voice.
She weakly replied in a shaky voice. "Only because I stole you-"
"You stop with that," he cut her off, firmly yet gently. "Nobody is making me stay, I want to be here, I want to help you. Got it?"
That... wasn't entirely true, but calming and reassuring the girl took priority right then and there.
She was quiet for a few moments, and eventually, he felt her small arms tightly wrap themselves around his waist.
"...T-thank you… Jophiel…" She managed to choke out. "Thank you…"
===
Can't stop me mother fuckers!
===
Chapter 04 - Blindsided
===
Jophiel had slept well. The bed was comfortable, the room nice and well-ventilated, not to mention lavishly decorated, and he'd gotten the recommended number of hours without interruptions…
So he didn't understand why he felt so pissy that morning.
He still felt kind of bad about snapping at that servant the way he had. The poor guy didn't do anything to deserve being growled at by a guy nearly a head taller than him first thing in the morning for doing his job and asking if Jophiel needed anything taken care of, especially after bringing him a clean change of clothes…
Shaking his head, and adjusting the modified Academy uniform he'd been provided, a simple white button-down and grey trousers, Jophiel continued to make his way for the woman's dorms regardless.
Not much had occurred the day previous, just Louise showing him around the academy so he could familiarize himself with the layout, following by him exploring on his own once she decided that she'd need to retreat to her room to study for the next day's classes.
She'd been absolutely giddy the entire time, and while she hadn't had the time to intimate him with everything in the fortress walls, he probably wouldn't get lost now, if nothing else.
As he was walking, the canuck couldn't help but notice that, much like the previous day, he was… attracting a lot of stares, from both the servants and students, and even most of the adults around the campus.
He'd also noticed that, Siesta aside, he seemed to be the only one in the entire school that had dark hair or eyes.
He'd seen a few young people with white hair, some of which almost looked like they had the vaguest hint of blue if he squinted his eyes just right, and varying shades of ginger ranging up to Kirche's eye-catching parrot red.
There were plenty of brunettes, but not a single lock of dark hair that hadn't come off of his own or Siesta's head.
He'd also not really had a chance to parse it previously, but… there were a fair amount of people with violet, and red eyes.
He shrugged it off in Louise's case because purple was extremely rare, but not unheard of for human eye colours. It seemed to be merely on the uncommon side in Tristain, though.
The red, on the other hand, was rather throwing him for a loop. He had a friend with ocular albinism back home, but in her case, her eyes had a distinctive… look to them when she wasn't wearing corrective contact lenses. The people he was seeing around here simply had varying shades of red eyes with properly developed irises and such.
But again, not a single hint of another set of dark eyes that weren't in his own sockets.
Not to mention that the people all had a distinctively Nordic look to them, with Kirche and Siesta being the only apparent exceptions.
Just more checks to add to the 'not on Earth' list, at this point.
"Ah, Jophiel," came a recognizable high-pitched voice from the hall, pulling the comparatively large man out of his own little world.
Louise had left her room early, by the looks of it. She also seemed… rather relieved to see him.
Jophiel himself was a little surprised at how he himself almost felt a weight lifted from his shoulders at the sight of her.
"Good morning, Louise. Did you sleep well?" he asked as she stepped past him, and he sidled up beside her.
She grimaced lightly. "I… have had better nights. Yourself?"
"Same," he shrugged.
"Was the bedding not to your liking?" She pressed, concern visibly knitting her brows.
"What? No, no… well, I mean the mattress wasn't quite as nice as my own back home, but it was hardly bad," indeed, while it looked fancy as all get-out, the mattress he'd slept on just wasn't as comfortable as his own Earth-made bed.
[Funny what one takes for granted in the modern world…] he idly thought to himself.
"I just kind of… felt bad, until just now, as a matter of fact," he asserted as he realised that he actually was feeling better already, for whatever reason.
"Ah, you too?" Louise cheerfully chirped. "Well, whatever the reason, that's good. We'd hardly want to look downcast for most of the day."
"Agreed," Jophiel said as the two continued to make small talk while she led him to the dining hall.
---
Referring to the dining hall as 'magnificent' would be doing it a grave injustice, Jophiel noted as he glanced up at the luxuriously decorated walls, hell, the floors- fuck, everything.
Jophiel had previously only seen such luxury and opulence in movies and video games set in the Early Modern era, where nobility was still a thing… Honestly, he'd been half expecting it to look like the Great Hall from Hogwarts, not a majestic court fit for the likes of Napoléon Bonaparte!
Shifting his gaze back to eye level, Jophiel instead found his eyes taken in by the beautiful, yet sturdily made great tables and chairs everyone was seated at.
Which he couldn't help but notice were slightly shorter than what he'd come to expect from his home. Much like… well, everything. The people included.
Louise, fun-sized beauty as she was, was turning out to only be a little below average in height compared to her peers. And the men weren't much bigger, maybe 5'4"?
Tristainians were smol, with Kirche being something of an amazonian outlier, by the looks of things.
That aside…
"Are you enjoying your meal, Jophiel?" Louise asked from the seat next to Jophiel.
"Ah, yes, it is fantastic, the stew is to die for," he replied, making a concerted effort to not acknowledge the looks he was getting from the blonde's classmates. He never liked being the centre of attention… Not that it would be wise to let that show. Nobles were the type to preen, after all.
"Fantastic," Louise began. "I was concerned that it may not suit your foreign palette-"
"What is the meaning of this, Guiche!?" Only to be cut off by a very angry sounding girl from somewhere behind them.
Turning in his seat to see what the commotion was, Jophiel noticed a young fop with golden blonde hair being accosted by a pair of girls, one with platinum blonde hair drills, and another with a simple chestnut brown ponytail. Both blondes were wearing grey cloak like Louise's, while the brunette was garbed in brown.
"You lecherous, treacherous, unfaithful-!" The blonde drillgirl heatedly began, which was followed by Jophiel promptly losing interest in the event and turning back to focus on his stew.
"Looks like Guiche finally got caught…" Louise began, still looking back behind her. She flinched when the distinctive sound of a pair of slaps resounded from the background, followed by the cries of one girl and the indignant shouts of another, and a man desperately attempting to salvage a bad situation. "He's lucky to get off with just being slapped, shameless git that he is."
The Canadian just shrugged, not caring much. [Not any of my business.]
After that, nothing of real note occurred during breakfast, and the day was a relatively uneventful one. Something that Jophiel sincerely hoped would be a regular occurance.
---
The next few days were calm. Louise continued to attend her classes, and Jophiel was left mostly to wander the academy grounds as he saw fit for the majority of the day.
The two would spend time together whenever she had time off, which she seemed to enjoy in particular. Jophiel quickly came to determine that Louise, depressingly, didn't actually have any friends to speak of at the academy. Seemed that her inability to cast magic made her something of a social pariah, her rather high status as the daughter of a Duke and a Duchess be damned.
Curiously, as Jophiel would come to find out, nobility wasn't tied exclusively to one's birth station, but rather, more importantly, their ability to use magic.
It seemed that on Alfheim, magic was genetic. You were either born able to use magic, or not. There was no inbetween, and commoners couldn't learn how to spellcast unless they just so happened to have noble blood.
That, unsurprisingly, greatly concerned Jophiel for obvious reasons. Though… it simply didn't come up. Nobody ever asked him to demonstrate that he was capable of magic, they seemed to just assume that he could, for some reason.
Not being one to look a gift horse in the mouth, he saw little reason to press the issue himself.
That aside, he had noticed Siesta a few times, and even made small talk with her on occasion. She seemed to be rather smart for a peasant girl, and was good at providing information on the simpler side of human life in Tristan.
Nobles, more often than not, actually took their duties rather seriously. Those duties being protecting the peasantry from the likes of monsters like orcs, treants and… whatever 'banderscatches' were. He swore that he almost recognized the name, but Jophiel shrugged it off when he couldn't place his finger on it.
Nobles were also typically not unkind towards peasants, apparently. Just… overbearing, but fair.
Siesta continued to be… unpleasantly aware of her station, so to speak, but was for the most part nice to talk to.
That aside, Jophiel and Louise both had, rather unfortunately and inexplicably, found that they'd both wake up feeling constantly miserable until convening for breakfast.
Something they'd decided to bring up to Colbert and the Headmaster on Jophiel's fifth day in the academy.
---
Jophiel stood in awkward silence for longer than he'd have liked as the Dumbledore knock-off of a Headmaster held his hand and stared at the runes on the back of his palm, as if doing so would cause them to reveal their secrets to the nobles gathered in the highest room at the academy, at the peak of the central tower.
"...Yeah, I've got nothing," the wizened old man dubbed Osmand eventually said has he released the bigger guy's hand from across his desk, upon which was a small black mouse resting on a tiny, specially-made mouse bed with a small water and food pail, and slouched back in his seat.
Louise quietly growled in frustration at that.
As it turned out, there were multiple different kinds of 'familiar runes' which appeared on the creature being bonded to a mage, and all known runes were pretty well documented by then.
It only figured that Jophiel's runes were completely unaccounted for, and on top of that, had the unique effect of being blindingly painful when they appeared. That was something that had never happened to a familiar before either.
[A mystery wrapped in an enigma enshrouded by secrets…] Jophiel internally grumbled at the situation, such as it was.
"Is there really no evidence of this rune's prior existence, sirs?" Louise asked from her seat next to the canuck, who had quietly sat back down once he no longer needed to be leaning across the headmaster's desk.
"I assure you, Miss Vallière, I pored over every known record we have, which is all of them, considering the Academy's station, and Lord Pholus' runes are one-hundred percent unique and indecipherable," Colbert asserted tiredly. "Whatever kind of familiar he is… it seems that his abilities will only reveal themselves to us in time," he declared, glancing at Jophiel's hand from the Headmaster's side.
Louise, again, huffed in annoyance.
"Now now Miss Vallière, you have your entire lives ahead of you to determine what the young sir's abilities are, both of you are in no rush to figure things out, I assure you," the elderly mage asserted.
His words didn't seem to comfort Louise all that much.
"Well, that aside, tell me, how have you both been faring since the summoning ritual? Notice anything out of the ordinary?" He continued regardless.
Jophiel shared a look with Louise before responding. "We've both been feeling absolutely miserable in the mornings since the day after I arrived, I guess."
Louise nodded in affirmation.
"The day after, you say?" Osmand reached up and began stroking his beard contemplatively. "Did anything change compared to your first night spent here?"
Colbert interjected, "Miss Vallière boarded Lord Pholus in her room with her on the first night, and afterwards he was moved to the guest quarters."
The beard stroking intensified as the old man contemplatively hummed to himself, and a few moments passed in silence.
"Well, the answer to what ails you seems clear to me," Osmand asserted.
"I'm all ears," Jophiel said while Louise leaned in, eager to be rid of unpleasant mornings.
"In order to feel good in the mornings, you two must sleep together!" The old man declared.
…
[Wait, what.]
"W-w-w-what!?" Louise cried out in outrage as she all but leapt from her seat. "Y-y-y-you- how d-d-dare- I am en-engaged-!"
Jophiel blinked. That was news to him. Though also unsurprising considering her noble standing...
"What the Headmaster means, Miss Vallière," Colbert interjected before the girl got more heated. "Is that the Familiar Bond seems to affect you both in spite of Lord Pholus being human, and that sleeping so far apart is likely what's causing such foul moods in the mornings. It is a well-documented fact that Masters and Familiars do not take well to being separated at night so soon after being bonded."
"Spoilsport," the elderly man pouted from his seat.
Louise, after a few moments, turned as red as a beet and dropped herself back into her chair, clearly quite embarrassed.
"Oh," she quietly intoned.
"So… considering that, I'd propose that you and Lord Pholus share a room again tonight, and if you both feel well in the morning, we'll know it worked and that keeping you separated while sleeping is a poor idea," Colbert continued.
"Why?" Jophiel piped up.
"Well," Osmand interjected. "Assuming the Familiar Bond is the cause of your irritable states upon waking, if you two are kept separate for enough consecutive nights in a row, you will both grow more and more unreasonably angry in the mornings until you start getting violent."
That caught Jophiel off guard. "Seriously? So you're saying that we're going to have to sleep next to each other for the rest of our lives or become violent loons?"
"No no," Colbert waved his hand dismissively. "Just until the Familiar Bond has had the chance to fully form and you both share a mental connection that will sustain itself across great distances. Making you both uncomfortable when apart for too long in the early stages of a Master-Familiar pairing is just to incentivise you to remain close enough for the bond to solidify itself."
"Meaning that we should just need to sleep in relatively close proximity to each other for a while, then we can sleep entirely separately," Louise elucidated. "It's purely a distance thing, so sleeping on opposite sides of a wall shouldn't count as being apart, but-"
"Let's just keep it simple tonight, Miss Vallière. Lord Pholus will bunk in your room again, and if you both awaken happy, we'll know it worked," Osmand cut her off in his high, raspy voice.
Jophiel sighed. It was really more of an annoyance than anything, he was no out of control hormonal teenager, but he'd just rather have his own damned room to himself.
"Understood, sir," the largest of the men in the room replied.
"Good, so, with that settled-" Osmand began.
"W-wait! What about our contract?" Only to be cut off by Louise.
Colbert sighed. "We still have yet to hear back from your parents on the matter, Miss Vallière. Regardless, I assure you we'll have it formalized and finalized in due time. For now, you just focus on your studies and practising your magic."
Louise looked put off by that, but nodded in affirmation.
Jophiel hadn't considered what Louise's family would think of their arrangement before then.
[Mother of fucking Christ, her parents are going to want me castrated, aren't they…?] He internally screamed.
"So, for now, I believe we're done here," Colbert declared. "I would suggest you spend the rest of the day practising, Miss Vallière."
Louise nodded. "That would be wise, yes."
At that, she rose from her seat, and Jophiel followed suit.
"I'd recommend you accompany her for the rest of the day, Lord Pholus," Osmand began. "You two should spend more time in each other's company, as most Masters and Familiars do."
Not having had any other plans for the rest of the day anyways, Jophiel nodded in agreement.
"May the Founder watch over your studies, Miss Vallière," Osmand stated.
"May the Mind expand your knowledge and keep your wisdom, sirs," Louise said back and slightly bowed before about-facing and heading for the door to the spiral staircase.
Giving the two men a nod, Jophiel set off after her. He'd heard that saying used a lot as a farewell lately, and figured it had something to do with their religion, but… wasn't feeling up to dipping his toes in that particular boiling pot yet.
With a shrug, he continued to follow Louise without much comment.
---
"Okay…" The tiny blonde began, holding her metallic wand in front of her, directed at a pail of water in the middle of her room.
"So… what're you trying to do here?" Jophiel asked from her side before she got started.
"Oh, uh, levitation practise. I'm going to try to lift the water out of the bucket, suspend it in the air for as long as I can, and return it without spilling anything," she explained simply enough.
"Well, alright, don't let me distract you from it," Jophiel nodded while gesturing towards the copper bucket.
He'd seen quite a few examples of magic in action since he'd arrived, and even the simplest of spells were a sight to behold.
Not that he could let it show, of course.
Louise refocused on the water, furrowed her brow, lifted her wand above her head, and thrust it downwards towards the bucket.
"Levitate!"
It took Jophiel a few moments to process what just happened as he was disoriented by a great, nearly painfully loud CRACK that rebounded off the walls of the room, and he was suddenly soaking wet, along with everything else.
He blinked owlishly as Louise remained in her place, water rapidly running down her clothes and pooling at her feet as she started trembling in place.
"...What just happened?" He eventually managed to ask through his stupification as his hair and clothes were weighed down and clung to his body unpleasantly. Because he just had to pick that day to not wear his waterproof rain cloak, right?
"The Zero failed to cast another cantrip-class spell! That's what!" The tiny blonde screeched as she threw her wand across the room, causing a distinctive metallic cling as it bounced off the wall and came to a clattering halt on the ground.
She remained still, her shoulders quaking as she clutched her fists hard enough that Jophiel was concerned that she might draw blood.
"Damn it… Damn it!" She cried stepping forward and kicking the bucket across the room and into her dresser, causing a terrible ruckus and sending what little water remained in it spilling all over the floor.
"W-whoa, Louise calm down-" Jophiel started in a half-panic, uncertainly placing his hand on her shoulder-
"No!" She shouted, slapping away his appendage and stomping her foot on the fine wood panelled floor, causing a pitiful splash of water as she did so. "It- it was supposed to be different! I- I was supposed to stop being a failure!"
[Fucking hell… this isn't how I was expecting this to go…!] Jophiel internally groused, completely caught off guard by the critically failed spell and Louise's resulting outburst.
"I did it! I summoned a familiar! I cast a spell! For the first time in my life, when I needed it the most, the Founder smiled on me, let me succeed!" She was shouting as her entire body was so tense she trembled from head to toe, not at Jophiel, just… letting a dam he hadn't realised was in place break open. "Why… Why!? My pedigree is without flaw! My siblings are natural triangles! I try! I try so hard! I practise night and day! I try so much harder than anyone else! And I'm mocked for it!"
Not knowing what else to do, being as overwhelmed as he was, Jophiel grabbed Louise and pulled her into a tight hug, hoping that holding her would stop her from lashing out again, if nothing else.
"I… I just want to make my family proud… For everyone to stop mocking me, looking at me like a misshapen dog…" She'd stopped yelling, and began quietly hiccuping and sobbing, trembling in Jophiel's grasp. "W-what did I do? W-why do the Founder and the Allfather punish me so? I'm devout, I adhere to their teachings, I do not abuse my authority… Why do they torment me, why tantalize me with success, only to snatch it away…?"
Jophiel had to shift his grip down to support the girl from the small of her back, as she started to go limp.
"Please… tell me why…" she whimpered as Jophiel quickly become the only thing supporting her.
He didn't know what to think. She'd been a little overly emotional since he'd met her, but for the most part seemed to have an even head from what he'd seen of her the past few days. He was not expecting her to just blow up the way she had, to just break down so suddenly.
Of course, he had noticed that she didn't seem to have any friends. None of her peers really acknowledged her despite her high station, called her 'the Zero' behind her back…
He hadn't realised it was so bad, though.
"...Hey, I'm here, aren't I? I'm not going anywhere, understand?" Jophiel quietly offered in an attempt at a soothing voice.
She weakly replied in a shaky voice. "Only because I stole you-"
"You stop with that," he cut her off, firmly yet gently. "Nobody is making me stay, I want to be here, I want to help you. Got it?"
That... wasn't entirely true, but calming and reassuring the girl took priority right then and there.
She was quiet for a few moments, and eventually, he felt her small arms tightly wrap themselves around his waist.
"...T-thank you… Jophiel…" She managed to choke out. "Thank you…"
===
Vol. 1 Chapter 05 - Forgotten Truths
BakaSmurf
My journey has been one of remarkable floundering
- Location
- Canada
Pre-Story Notes:
This shorter chapter is what I get for playing Resident Evil 7 instead of starting the chapter last night. Feckin' hell, I'm killing myself here.
===
Chapter 05 - Forgotten Truths
===
His body was unresponsive, his breath thick, his arms stiff and pallid as a corpse, his armour heavy like lead, his underclothes clung to his body wet with strength-sapping icy rain. He wanted nothing more than to stop. To drop to his knees, collapse into a pile, and sleep for an eternity.
But gazing outward at them, the ever-encroaching crimson tide threatening to engulf and consume all, he stood tall with grim determination, ignoring the mud in his boots, his hurting feet, his stinging eyes, his burning soul.
What were once his comrades were charging, as they ever did, unceasingly, unerringly, mindlessly; their unbreaking shields protecting them against the mightiest of magics, casting aside pyroclasms to turn volcanoes to ash, brushing off tornadoes to rend mountains to dust, jeering at floods to tear great terrible gouges into the sturdiest of bedrock, sneering upon quakes to render the very foundations of the earth itself.
Nothing would stop them. Nothing could stop them.
Save for, perhaps...
Looking to his right, his Spear was in place, runes on his right hand shimmering with eldritch light. The once gentle gaze of the large man locked forward and simmering with pity and hate at the sight of the endless horde, only briefly broke to refocus on him. For but a moment, and with one affirming, resolute nod, one he'd come to be so familiar with, so dependant on, he'd felt his resolve return tenfold.
Looking to his left, his Shield braced firm. Ready to lay down everything in defense of the greater good. Her sapphire eyes broke free from the seemingly endless horde advancing on them, turning to lock with his own. She removed her marked left hand, runes aglow with power from the hilt of her terrible great sword, reaching between them and caressing his gruff, bearded cheek with a gentle, beatific smile that stretched between her elongated ears.
No words were exchanged, none needed to be said. She was his, and he was hers, and they would be together, in life, or in death.
He felt his resolve return a thousandfold.
Looking to his back, his Mind, runes upon his brow glimmering with a fae radiance, in spite of his diminutive form he stood tall among his warriors- his people, his family. Clutching in his hands the book which held the secrets they could only hope would lead to their victory, he nodded once back at him.
Tall and mighty, stout and rugged, lithe and fair. No matter their shape or background, his people were his life's blood, and they stood united against this threat; his Mind commanding them, directing them far greater than he could have ever hoped to.
They were ready.
Stepping forth, holding his staff aloft, he opened his third eye, peering into the endless eternity of the beyond, into realms in which not even the gods dared tread.
There, it saw him.
Beginning the fel chant, he would protect those he cherished…
It reached out to him.
...Against all threats, all horrors from beyond the scope of mortal ken, he focused his soul, he saw beyond the limits of reality…
The Void touched him.
...He would break them. No matter the cost.
The Void empowered him.
He cried the antediluvian words at the behest of the great, eldritch existence. Words alien, foreign to the tongues of man and gods as they were.
The Void chose him.
He understood them as if they were his mother tongue.
"Great Dispel!" Ţ̕h҉̸͢͞e̕͞҉͘ ̴͠V͏̢̛ǫ͝i̴̴̧͟d́̀͜͡ ̵̢͘̕b́͜͡e͢͠c̵̨͘͠a̷̢͡͏m̕͜͞e̵̸͝ ̡͜͏h̡͝i̶̵͟͝͠m͘̕͞҉͟.́͡
And the tide was broken, their unyielding shields of the purest magic collapsed like walls built upon sand, their hold on the desecrated dead was severed.
Their charge was halted.
Moments passed in disbelieving silence, the sound of rain hitting the wet, porous mud being the only audible noise for miles, as if the entire army had collectively held their breath at once.
Then, the first great fire serpents tore across the corrupted battlefield, burning away the devoured earth beneath them as they crashed into the once unstoppable legions of the damned, searing, boiling, purifying flesh.
Then, great water jets formed from the rain itself, so focused that they carved through the hordes like a blade through the air, releasing their comrades from their torment.
Then, countless spears of wind lanced across the field, punching through their lines like great ballistae bolts, pulping their mass, leaving no form to be puppeteered.
Then, the earth itself roiled, swallowing up entire battalions, returning them to the world which birthed them, to their final resting place, as the gods intended.
The power of the gods, coupled with power beyond the gods.
They had found their salvation.
He turned to his people.
For the first time in a long time, Brimir smiled. H̛͘͠è̶̷̛҉ ̴̀͘̕b̶̛́e͘͟c̷̸̡̨͜a͏͜͏̡m̧͟ę̵̢͟ ̢́͘͞t̵̛͏͘h̷͢͠͏é̛͝҉ ͡V҉̴̡҉ó͘į̸́͘͠d̛̛͜͜.̵̛͜͞
---
He blinked. For a moment, panic overtook him. His men were gone, his family nowhere to be seen, replaced by a strange environment he'd never-
Louise blinked again.
She was sitting upright in her bed, in her room. All was quiet, all was well, yet her heart pounded in her chest like an orcish war drum.
The dream, it had been so real. Like she was actually there, fighting them, the Varyag. It was so real that she almost thought she was still the man upon waking.
That man…
"Brimir…" she quietly intoned.
She could remember every little detail, every drop of rain, every pang of unspeakable terror at the horrific sights before her, the awakening, truest sense of hope she'd ever felt when…
When she'd cast a Void spell.
The blonde was still, silent, unsure of what to think.
She could recall the words she'd spoken in the dream as clear as day, almost felt an urge to reach for her wand on her nightstand, to…
She shook her head violently, causing her soft, silken wavy hair to fling about messily. She wouldn't entertain such sacrilegious thoughts. In the dream, she was the Founder himself, and she- he… loved an elf!?
She was legitimately tempted to take the riding crop her sister Eleanore had provided for her in the off-chance that she summon an unruly familiar, absurd as the very idea was, and use it on herself as repentance. Such fantasies were disgusting, blasphemous in the extreme! The Founder, looking upon one of the enemy of mankind with such genuine love and longing? An elf looking upon him the same way!?
The dwarves… the dwarves she could understand! They were mankind's most stalwart of allies in ages past, but elves!?
She would need to visit the shrine to the gods and pray for repentance before classes began, even if doing do caused her to miss breakfast.
Shaking her head again, though far more gently this time, Louise sighed. What could have spurred such an absurd dream?
The thought bothered her greatly, though she forced it to the back of her mind. She had more immediate concerns to tend to.
She glanced aside, to the couch that had been pushed up against her bed the night prior.
To her familiar.
Jophiel was sleeping, so still and soundless that the subtle motion of his rising and falling chest being the only sign that he wasn't a fresh corpse.
She still wasn't sure what to think of him.
She'd kidnapped him outright, taken him from his own home without his consent… that much was clear, and yet he did not seem to resent her for it.
In fact, he had embraced her the night previous, supported her both figuratively and literally when she'd nearly broken down for the fourth time that month, asserted that he was there willingly and had no intention of leaving her side.
Was he truly so selfless? Or was he merely attempting to make the best of a bad situation? She could just ask him outright, though… that would be akin to spitting on his face. One should not question gifts. Least of all from the being given to them by the Founder himself.
Either way, his kindly nature reminded her a great deal of her gentler sister, Cattleya. So quick to soothe her aches despite her own numerous hardships…
She leaned closer to him, to peer at his alien visage. He did not look like any of the peoples of Halkegenia. Louise had seen all sorts in her time as the daughter of a family only one step down from royalty, and his features were utterly foreign to the realm of man.
Could it be that in ages past, the expeditions Brimir had sent across the sea in search of a land free of the oppressive elves, yet never returned had found a new world? Could he be a descendant of theirs? From a society that had over two-thousand years to diverge entirely from her own?
It was possible. Though he did not casually use magic as many of her peers did, to the point that she suspected most of them would not know how to handle a spoon without a wand, he did have magic.
That was made very clear when Professor Colbert cast a spell of magic detection on him in the infirmary, and only further affirmed when he came to later in the day, speaking with everyone with nary a hitch using translation magic so powerful that it worked flawlessly in real time, both ways.
Not to mention the quality of his clothing. Only a noble could afford such finely fitted, sewed, and closely-knit clothes. And the exotic and expensive materials and dyes…
His demeanour was somewhat off from what one would expect of a local noble, but… he did little to disavow anyone of notions towards his apparent nobility, so he must be one. Right?
Looking over his form again, Louise's eyes drifted over his left hand, resting across his chest, bearing his strange familiar runes.
Her eyes widened considerably. Though they were not alight, they looked just like the runes that had been on the left hand of the elf, the Founder's Shield…
She shook her head again. It was just a stupid dream, nothing she should take seriously.
Pressing such thoughts out of her mind, she glanced up and out the window. She'd awakened somewhat early, by the looks of things.
Glancing back down at Jophiel… that dream aside, she was feeling fine that morning.
The Headmaster and Professor Colbert must have been right, then.
Scooting over to the other side of the bed, she hopped out, and while the man was still sleeping, quickly climbed out of her nightgown and changed into a clean uniform. She'd visit the shrine to the old gods and return before he'd awaken. Then they'd go to see Osmand and Colbert afterwards.
After that… well, Jophiel would have a lot of time to kill while she was attending classes, as per usual.
---
"Well, that settles it then," Osmand began, tapping on the arm of his fine office chair. "Lord Pholus, you'll be using the unclaimed room next to Miss Vallière's from here on out, and your beds shall be arranged to rest on opposite sides of the same wall, to fulfill the proximity requirements of the bond."
Indeed, Jophiel had felt great upon waking, and Louise, despite having obviously been up and about before him had asserted that she was fine herself and just woke earlier than usual.
Unfortunately, Louise, being a high-ranking noble living on-site, simply could not be assigned one of the spare guest's rooms, so he'd have to board in the girl's dorms.
The thought was annoying, but he'd grunt and bear with it. It couldn't really be helped. At least, not until the bond was properly formed and he could be moved to the men's dorms without disrupting it, at least.
"Incidentally, Miss Vallière…" Osmand began straightening up in his seat. "We heard back from your parents this morning.
The girl visibly stiffened, concerningly enough.
"They approve of the terms laid out in the contract. Lord Pholus is now, officially, your guardian familiar."
The elderly man turned to the canuck.
"I trust you understand the gravity of this arrangement, young sir?"
"Absolutely," Jophiel said back. "I'll do my best to not screw this up, you have my word."
That seemed to content the man, who leaned back lazily in his chair again.
"Well, there you go young Miss. You can relax now," he asserted to the tiny blonde.
"R-right…" She exhaled deeply. "Okay, I… Believe that is all, yes?"
"Unless either of you has something else to ask or add, I believe so," Colbert replied.
Osmand turned to the smaller desk to the right of his own. "You're noting all of this, yes, Miss Longueville?"
"Dutifully," the long-haired bespectacled brunette dryly asserted. "Everything has been recorded for posterity, sir."
Osmand's secretary seemed to be a humourless sort, and had apparently been busy with something else on campus the last time they'd been there. Otherwise, she was fairly unremarkable. Pretty librarian type, just kind of there for the most part.
"Good, good… well, with that out of the way, I believe you three can go tend to your business for the rest of the day, whatever it may be."
Jophiel and Louise nodded as they rose to their feet.
"Your key shall be delivered to you at some point today, Lord Pholus. Just as soon as the requisite paperwork is fulfilled," Longueville declared from her desk.
"Thank you, ma'am," Jophiel said in turn.
After exchanging farewells, Jophiel and Louise departed from Osmand's tower ahead of Colbert, the latter concerned about the great weight on her shoulders which refused to leave in spite of the good news.
That dream refused to cease eating away at her.
===
This shorter chapter is what I get for playing Resident Evil 7 instead of starting the chapter last night. Feckin' hell, I'm killing myself here.
===
Chapter 05 - Forgotten Truths
===
His body was unresponsive, his breath thick, his arms stiff and pallid as a corpse, his armour heavy like lead, his underclothes clung to his body wet with strength-sapping icy rain. He wanted nothing more than to stop. To drop to his knees, collapse into a pile, and sleep for an eternity.
But gazing outward at them, the ever-encroaching crimson tide threatening to engulf and consume all, he stood tall with grim determination, ignoring the mud in his boots, his hurting feet, his stinging eyes, his burning soul.
What were once his comrades were charging, as they ever did, unceasingly, unerringly, mindlessly; their unbreaking shields protecting them against the mightiest of magics, casting aside pyroclasms to turn volcanoes to ash, brushing off tornadoes to rend mountains to dust, jeering at floods to tear great terrible gouges into the sturdiest of bedrock, sneering upon quakes to render the very foundations of the earth itself.
Nothing would stop them. Nothing could stop them.
Save for, perhaps...
Looking to his right, his Spear was in place, runes on his right hand shimmering with eldritch light. The once gentle gaze of the large man locked forward and simmering with pity and hate at the sight of the endless horde, only briefly broke to refocus on him. For but a moment, and with one affirming, resolute nod, one he'd come to be so familiar with, so dependant on, he'd felt his resolve return tenfold.
Looking to his left, his Shield braced firm. Ready to lay down everything in defense of the greater good. Her sapphire eyes broke free from the seemingly endless horde advancing on them, turning to lock with his own. She removed her marked left hand, runes aglow with power from the hilt of her terrible great sword, reaching between them and caressing his gruff, bearded cheek with a gentle, beatific smile that stretched between her elongated ears.
No words were exchanged, none needed to be said. She was his, and he was hers, and they would be together, in life, or in death.
He felt his resolve return a thousandfold.
Looking to his back, his Mind, runes upon his brow glimmering with a fae radiance, in spite of his diminutive form he stood tall among his warriors- his people, his family. Clutching in his hands the book which held the secrets they could only hope would lead to their victory, he nodded once back at him.
Tall and mighty, stout and rugged, lithe and fair. No matter their shape or background, his people were his life's blood, and they stood united against this threat; his Mind commanding them, directing them far greater than he could have ever hoped to.
They were ready.
Stepping forth, holding his staff aloft, he opened his third eye, peering into the endless eternity of the beyond, into realms in which not even the gods dared tread.
There, it saw him.
Beginning the fel chant, he would protect those he cherished…
It reached out to him.
...Against all threats, all horrors from beyond the scope of mortal ken, he focused his soul, he saw beyond the limits of reality…
The Void touched him.
...He would break them. No matter the cost.
The Void empowered him.
He cried the antediluvian words at the behest of the great, eldritch existence. Words alien, foreign to the tongues of man and gods as they were.
The Void chose him.
He understood them as if they were his mother tongue.
"Great Dispel!" Ţ̕h҉̸͢͞e̕͞҉͘ ̴͠V͏̢̛ǫ͝i̴̴̧͟d́̀͜͡ ̵̢͘̕b́͜͡e͢͠c̵̨͘͠a̷̢͡͏m̕͜͞e̵̸͝ ̡͜͏h̡͝i̶̵͟͝͠m͘̕͞҉͟.́͡
And the tide was broken, their unyielding shields of the purest magic collapsed like walls built upon sand, their hold on the desecrated dead was severed.
Their charge was halted.
Moments passed in disbelieving silence, the sound of rain hitting the wet, porous mud being the only audible noise for miles, as if the entire army had collectively held their breath at once.
Then, the first great fire serpents tore across the corrupted battlefield, burning away the devoured earth beneath them as they crashed into the once unstoppable legions of the damned, searing, boiling, purifying flesh.
Then, great water jets formed from the rain itself, so focused that they carved through the hordes like a blade through the air, releasing their comrades from their torment.
Then, countless spears of wind lanced across the field, punching through their lines like great ballistae bolts, pulping their mass, leaving no form to be puppeteered.
Then, the earth itself roiled, swallowing up entire battalions, returning them to the world which birthed them, to their final resting place, as the gods intended.
The power of the gods, coupled with power beyond the gods.
They had found their salvation.
He turned to his people.
For the first time in a long time, Brimir smiled. H̛͘͠è̶̷̛҉ ̴̀͘̕b̶̛́e͘͟c̷̸̡̨͜a͏͜͏̡m̧͟ę̵̢͟ ̢́͘͞t̵̛͏͘h̷͢͠͏é̛͝҉ ͡V҉̴̡҉ó͘į̸́͘͠d̛̛͜͜.̵̛͜͞
---
He blinked. For a moment, panic overtook him. His men were gone, his family nowhere to be seen, replaced by a strange environment he'd never-
Louise blinked again.
She was sitting upright in her bed, in her room. All was quiet, all was well, yet her heart pounded in her chest like an orcish war drum.
The dream, it had been so real. Like she was actually there, fighting them, the Varyag. It was so real that she almost thought she was still the man upon waking.
That man…
"Brimir…" she quietly intoned.
She could remember every little detail, every drop of rain, every pang of unspeakable terror at the horrific sights before her, the awakening, truest sense of hope she'd ever felt when…
When she'd cast a Void spell.
The blonde was still, silent, unsure of what to think.
She could recall the words she'd spoken in the dream as clear as day, almost felt an urge to reach for her wand on her nightstand, to…
She shook her head violently, causing her soft, silken wavy hair to fling about messily. She wouldn't entertain such sacrilegious thoughts. In the dream, she was the Founder himself, and she- he… loved an elf!?
She was legitimately tempted to take the riding crop her sister Eleanore had provided for her in the off-chance that she summon an unruly familiar, absurd as the very idea was, and use it on herself as repentance. Such fantasies were disgusting, blasphemous in the extreme! The Founder, looking upon one of the enemy of mankind with such genuine love and longing? An elf looking upon him the same way!?
The dwarves… the dwarves she could understand! They were mankind's most stalwart of allies in ages past, but elves!?
She would need to visit the shrine to the gods and pray for repentance before classes began, even if doing do caused her to miss breakfast.
Shaking her head again, though far more gently this time, Louise sighed. What could have spurred such an absurd dream?
The thought bothered her greatly, though she forced it to the back of her mind. She had more immediate concerns to tend to.
She glanced aside, to the couch that had been pushed up against her bed the night prior.
To her familiar.
Jophiel was sleeping, so still and soundless that the subtle motion of his rising and falling chest being the only sign that he wasn't a fresh corpse.
She still wasn't sure what to think of him.
She'd kidnapped him outright, taken him from his own home without his consent… that much was clear, and yet he did not seem to resent her for it.
In fact, he had embraced her the night previous, supported her both figuratively and literally when she'd nearly broken down for the fourth time that month, asserted that he was there willingly and had no intention of leaving her side.
Was he truly so selfless? Or was he merely attempting to make the best of a bad situation? She could just ask him outright, though… that would be akin to spitting on his face. One should not question gifts. Least of all from the being given to them by the Founder himself.
Either way, his kindly nature reminded her a great deal of her gentler sister, Cattleya. So quick to soothe her aches despite her own numerous hardships…
She leaned closer to him, to peer at his alien visage. He did not look like any of the peoples of Halkegenia. Louise had seen all sorts in her time as the daughter of a family only one step down from royalty, and his features were utterly foreign to the realm of man.
Could it be that in ages past, the expeditions Brimir had sent across the sea in search of a land free of the oppressive elves, yet never returned had found a new world? Could he be a descendant of theirs? From a society that had over two-thousand years to diverge entirely from her own?
It was possible. Though he did not casually use magic as many of her peers did, to the point that she suspected most of them would not know how to handle a spoon without a wand, he did have magic.
That was made very clear when Professor Colbert cast a spell of magic detection on him in the infirmary, and only further affirmed when he came to later in the day, speaking with everyone with nary a hitch using translation magic so powerful that it worked flawlessly in real time, both ways.
Not to mention the quality of his clothing. Only a noble could afford such finely fitted, sewed, and closely-knit clothes. And the exotic and expensive materials and dyes…
His demeanour was somewhat off from what one would expect of a local noble, but… he did little to disavow anyone of notions towards his apparent nobility, so he must be one. Right?
Looking over his form again, Louise's eyes drifted over his left hand, resting across his chest, bearing his strange familiar runes.
Her eyes widened considerably. Though they were not alight, they looked just like the runes that had been on the left hand of the elf, the Founder's Shield…
She shook her head again. It was just a stupid dream, nothing she should take seriously.
Pressing such thoughts out of her mind, she glanced up and out the window. She'd awakened somewhat early, by the looks of things.
Glancing back down at Jophiel… that dream aside, she was feeling fine that morning.
The Headmaster and Professor Colbert must have been right, then.
Scooting over to the other side of the bed, she hopped out, and while the man was still sleeping, quickly climbed out of her nightgown and changed into a clean uniform. She'd visit the shrine to the old gods and return before he'd awaken. Then they'd go to see Osmand and Colbert afterwards.
After that… well, Jophiel would have a lot of time to kill while she was attending classes, as per usual.
---
"Well, that settles it then," Osmand began, tapping on the arm of his fine office chair. "Lord Pholus, you'll be using the unclaimed room next to Miss Vallière's from here on out, and your beds shall be arranged to rest on opposite sides of the same wall, to fulfill the proximity requirements of the bond."
Indeed, Jophiel had felt great upon waking, and Louise, despite having obviously been up and about before him had asserted that she was fine herself and just woke earlier than usual.
Unfortunately, Louise, being a high-ranking noble living on-site, simply could not be assigned one of the spare guest's rooms, so he'd have to board in the girl's dorms.
The thought was annoying, but he'd grunt and bear with it. It couldn't really be helped. At least, not until the bond was properly formed and he could be moved to the men's dorms without disrupting it, at least.
"Incidentally, Miss Vallière…" Osmand began straightening up in his seat. "We heard back from your parents this morning.
The girl visibly stiffened, concerningly enough.
"They approve of the terms laid out in the contract. Lord Pholus is now, officially, your guardian familiar."
The elderly man turned to the canuck.
"I trust you understand the gravity of this arrangement, young sir?"
"Absolutely," Jophiel said back. "I'll do my best to not screw this up, you have my word."
That seemed to content the man, who leaned back lazily in his chair again.
"Well, there you go young Miss. You can relax now," he asserted to the tiny blonde.
"R-right…" She exhaled deeply. "Okay, I… Believe that is all, yes?"
"Unless either of you has something else to ask or add, I believe so," Colbert replied.
Osmand turned to the smaller desk to the right of his own. "You're noting all of this, yes, Miss Longueville?"
"Dutifully," the long-haired bespectacled brunette dryly asserted. "Everything has been recorded for posterity, sir."
Osmand's secretary seemed to be a humourless sort, and had apparently been busy with something else on campus the last time they'd been there. Otherwise, she was fairly unremarkable. Pretty librarian type, just kind of there for the most part.
"Good, good… well, with that out of the way, I believe you three can go tend to your business for the rest of the day, whatever it may be."
Jophiel and Louise nodded as they rose to their feet.
"Your key shall be delivered to you at some point today, Lord Pholus. Just as soon as the requisite paperwork is fulfilled," Longueville declared from her desk.
"Thank you, ma'am," Jophiel said in turn.
After exchanging farewells, Jophiel and Louise departed from Osmand's tower ahead of Colbert, the latter concerned about the great weight on her shoulders which refused to leave in spite of the good news.
That dream refused to cease eating away at her.
===
SpatialGaming
Scifi Tech and Magic Theorist
- Location
- United States of America
This could be interesting, good sir, I will be keeping track of this story.
- Location
- United Kingdom
Oh this is the rewrite of that other one. Cool. Remind us if you would why you stopped the other one?
BakaSmurf
My journey has been one of remarkable floundering
- Location
- Canada
Because it was shit.
Shit pacing. Shit character development. Shit handling of Louise which resulted in straight-up neutering her as a character. Shit chapter length. Shit foreshadowing. Shit world building. Shit first-person perspective which made it impossible to include any perspectives aside from Jophiel's in main chapters without it feeling weird.
It was so bad that it got to the point that new updates were getting next to no feedback on Spacebattles, the story's primary hosting site.
RotN was my first piece of fan fiction, and holy shit does it show. I've learned a lot since then, and feel like I can do much better now. Continuing RotN wasn't really an option by the time I cancelled it and felt nothing but shame when looking back on earlier chapters.
...Incidentally, I totally forgot to upload chapter 6 here. Should probably go ahead and do that now.
Last edited:
Vol. 1 Chapter 06 - Cloak and Dagger
BakaSmurf
My journey has been one of remarkable floundering
- Location
- Canada
Pre-Story Notes:
*Forgets to update SV cross-post thread, remembers that nobody reads it there so it's not that big of a deal anyways and shrugs apathetically*
===
Chapter 06 - Cloak and Dagger
===
With Louise gone to attend her classes for the day, Jophiel was left with little to do. Again.
Wandering off to explore the courtyard, again, he decided to go and poke around one of the buildings he'd still not stuck his head into yet. A fairly sizable stone structure which he could only describe as Franco-Greco-Nordic, which was every bit as awesome as it sounded.
There was little- rather, no real visible traffic around the place.
His curiosity peaked, Jophiel approached.
As he got closer, he began to smell the faint scent of soap. So a bathhouse, likely.
Stepping through the wide open archways, the smell grew all the stronger, and he further confirmed that it seemed as though the place was empty, lit by skylights in the ceiling.
Venturing further in, if only because he legitimately had nothing better to do, he prepared to regail himself with the washing methods of another world.
---
Or so he thought he would, until he heard a familiar, pleasant humming coming from deeper within the building.
Jophiel would not mind talking to Siesta right then at all.
Following the voice, he quickly found the maid in question all by her lonesome on the far side of what seemed to be the laundry room, kneeling over a bucket and doing laundry by the looks of things. Her back was to the entrance, so she'd not seen him come in.
Bored as he was, a mischievous grin appeared on his face. Jophiel began to slowly creep up on her, as quietly as he could, calling upon his hunting experience to sneak upon the girl silently.
In a deceptively short amount of time, he was across the room and leaning over juuuuuuust right, so that when she reached over to grab another item from the pile of dirty clothes she was working on, she'd see his face grinning at her with a slasher smile out of the corner of her vision.
But a few moments passed before she turned, her melodic hum catching in her throat for but an instant before being replaced by a high-pitched squeal.
And she reflexively thrust the full bucket in her hand outwards at him.
A few moments passed in tense silence as Jophiel remained completely still, soapy water running off of him to pool on the stone tiled floor and causing his clothes to, again, cling unpleasantly to his body, as well as his hair to be weighed down heavily. Because it just happened to be another day where he'd forgoed his waterproof rain cloak.
Siesta's eyes were as wide as dinner plates and her skin lost all its colour as she began to process what just happened, and she realised that she'd just threw a bucket's worth of dirty water on a noble's face.
Worse yet, it was Jophiel she'd just humiliated.
Stunned into silence, too fearful to move or even speak, Siesta could bring herself to do nothing. The gentle trickle of running water being the only noise in the room.
Then, a loud, uncouth, orc-like snort broke the silence in the otherwise empty washhouse.
Jophiel was doubled over, chortling and wheezing uproariously like a drunken peasant.
He kept that up for a good half minute before calming down, as the petrified maid struggled to process this new information.
"G-good to see that karma works fast in this world!" Jophiel chuckled, falling back onto his rump with a highly amused smile stretching across his face.
It was the first time she'd seen him smile so broadly.
He looked at her for a moment, then started wheezing and sputtering again.
Now, with him sitting in front of her on the floor of a room most nobles would never think to enter, soaked head-to-toe and seemingly enjoying his humiliation…
Well, humour is infectious.
Siesta placed her free hand over her mouth, attempting to stifle her own building giggling, but to no avail as he just didn't let up despite the sorry condition he was in.
Eventually, she was barely keeping from snorting aloud herself. Of all the situations she'd ever expected to find herself in, this wasn't one of them.
"I-I-I…" She eventually managed to begin, noting that despite his amusement over the ordeal, he was still a noble… "I beg your forgiveness, mi-"
He waved his hand dismissively, leaning on the other from his spot on the floor right in front of her.
"Nah nah, come on, I had that coming! You have nothing to apologize for Siesta," he giggled out as his laughter finally began to die down.
Such a strange, strange man. The more time she spent around him… the more down-to-earth and approachable he seemed. He just wasn't like other nobles, not taking himself anywhere near as seriously as others did in private, reserved, appreciative, being humble and of good humour…
She was finding it harder and harder to deny that Jophiel was actually enjoyable to be around.
"S-so…" He began, wiping his face with his free hand. "I'm sorry, I just made your job harder for you, didn't?"
And how could she forget considerate?
"I-it is fine, Sir. I need only fetch more water from the heated reservoir, and soap is plentiful in the academy," the girl asserted with an increasingly shy smile.
"And where is this reservoir?" He asked with a good-natured smile.
"Oh, um, it is just back there, on the other side of the room, the stream in that open pipe…" she started, pointing back at the object of concern.
Then stopped and was stunned into silence again when Jophiel stood, reached over, took the now empty bucket from her hand and traipsed over to the heated stream, dunking the bucket into it and returning with fresh water for her.
"There we go, recompense for frightening you," he stated as he set the pail down before stepping back and leaning on one of the room's many working tables.
Siesta really wasn't sure what to think of Jophiel.
He was so different from other nobles.
It was almost like he wasn't one of them at all.
She glanced down at the bucket he'd placed before her. Perhaps his people had a different relationship with commoners… regardless, she was beginning to feel glad that he was so unlike them.
And even gladder when he chose to remain there with her for a few more hours while she tended to her duties.
---
Waving off the pretty half-Asian girl as he stepped out of the washhouse, now garbed in a clean set of clothes courtesy of her, Jophiel contentedly sighed.
He just couldn't help himself after she splashed him like that. All the tension in his body dissolved in an instant, and he couldn't bring himself to keep up the stuffy noble facade.
It was downright liberating after six days of pomping around like a total git.
[I'm gonna have to try talking to that girl alone more often,] he thought to himself as he started wandering off to kill time until sundown again.
As he did so, he couldn't help but reflect on the conversation he'd had with her.
It seemed that her family was going through some tough times financially, and she was kind of working overtime and sending everything she didn't need to feed herself back to them… He was starting to like Siesta, and didn't enjoy the thought of her having to work herself to the bone just to make ends meet.
Grimacing, he only wished that he'd grabbed something of value on his way out of his room back on Earth, not a bag holding several pounds of fucking aluminum cans-
Jophiel stopped dead in his tracks as he recalled something very significant about pre-modern society.
Aluminum only became a throw-away metal after the 1850's.
It was worth more than gold prior to that.
He had several pounds of refined aluminum in a bag in Louise's room. The handle scales on his fucking sword were made from pure aluminum.
Jophiel took a moment to place his hands on his head, and breath.
It took all of his will to not tear off his shirt and dance around the courtyard joyfully screaming about how rich he'd just realised he was.
A wide smile stretched across his face at the revelation.
[Looks like Siesta's financial woes are going to become a thing of the past in short order here…] he chuckled mirthfully as he started walking along again, then, he caught himself as a sobering thought jammed itself into his mind. [...What if they can magically refine aluminum here already?]
Louise couldn't get out of classes soon enough.
---
"THAT BAG IS FULL OF WHAT!?" The fun-sized blonde screamed at Jophiel when he brought up the question of aluminum's worth to her.
Turned out that yes, Halkegenia was aware of aluminium, and no, they did not have a method to refine it in any significant quantities, making it still very much a precious metal in their society.
"This- Jophiel! Do you realise how wealthy you are!?" Louise cried out again.
His bag of trash was, in fact, worth a fair bit more than its weight in gold.
He was practically vibrating with excitement.
"Come!" She declared, rushing to for her door.
"W-wait, for what?" He asked, surprised by her sudden command.
"To Professor Colbert's office! I know for a fact he has a scale there, we need to determine just how wealthy you are now!"
He was literally vibrating with excitement.
---
The next day was a rather enjoyable one, all things considered. Louise had dragged Jophiel to the Professor's office, and after a brief explanation to the man, they'd measured out the combined weight of the cans.
Jophiel's net worth?
A fair amount.
So he could not help but float about on cloud nine after he'd climbed out of bed, and had a very pleasant day spent with Siesta and Louise both. Nothing of particular note occured on that day, beyond a brief discussion between Louise and himself on the nature of her magic.
There were four elements, and all mages had a natural affinity for one over the others. Earth, Fire, Wind, and Water. Louise… could not manage to utilize any of them, nor even entry-level elementless magic like levitate. This confused Jophiel to no small amount, and he'd pressed about what she'd thought her element could be.
Strangely, she'd grown extremely quiet and clammed up at the question, refusing to continue the discussion further.
Not feeling up to pissing her off, Jophiel decided that he'd look into doing research into the elements on his own later. With luck, he'd stumble his way onto something that would help her out. Though he wasn't going to be holding his breath.
---
Later that day, Jophiel had happened upon Siesta after she was done work for the day, and after explaining his plans to her, she revealed that she actually knew how to read.
That was rather convenient for him, given that the translation magic still affecting him didn't seem to extend to written language.
Spending a few hours in the rather opulent library, Jophiel was peering over Siesta's shoulder as she flipped through page upon page of textbooks and reading aloud to him on the nature of the elements and spellcasting, revealing… rather little.
He learned that mages were divided into classes, Dot being the lowest class, Line the second up, Triangle the third, and Square the most powerful.
Otherwise...
It was all quite dry, and Jophiel, while a curious sort, wasn't the type to revel in academic prose. Not to mention that he himself was not of Alfheim, and wouldn't be able to apply any of this knowledge to himself to begin with.
The only thing that he could suspect after doing as much reading as he did with Siesta, was that Louise might represent an entirely new element. The blonde clearly had magical talent of some sort, else she'd not have been able to affect anything at all with her attempts, let alone successfully summon a familiar. The trick in this case simply seemed to be discovering what her particular quirk was.
Something he'd have to nudge her into experimenting with, if her earlier reluctance to discuss the issue was any indication.
"Well, thank you for your help, Siesta. I didn't really expect much to come of this, but it was worth a shot," he sighed.
The maid nodded somewhat ruefully. "Unfortunately, yes, Lady Vallière has spent much time here herself doing much the same kind of research, though… the effort is what matters though, I think."
He nodded along himself, and out of the corner of his eye, noted a familiar face skulking about.
Colbert, who seemed to be almost hiding away in an disused corner of the room, curiously enough.
It was odd, but hardly any of his business what the teacher did in his free time, so he shrugged his shoulders and decided that he and Siesta were done there.
"We might as well get going now. Not much point to sticking around at this point," Jophiel noted while taking the tome the girl had been reading, and putting it back on a nearby shelf.
She didn't protest as they set off for the afternoon.
---
Colbert sighed in relief as Pholus departed with the exotic little maid. He'd almost suspected that the young man had noticed and might draw attention to him, though the Founder was feeling merciful, by the looks of things.
Yes, he was there for a reason, to see how long-
"Ah, Mister Stephen! What a happy coincidence, happening upon you here!"
-it would take Longueville to track him down. Or rather, how long it would take Fouquet to track him down.
"A happy coincidence indeed, Miss Longueville, how may I help you tonight?"
The older Fire Magics teacher was initially furious when Sam returned from a flight a few days prior to find a smaller messenger pigeon in his talons, but once he'd actually read the attached note to determine who it belonged to…
The master thief was certainly a sly one, he had to give her that. Though she'd screwed up to no small degree by not properly sealing or enchanting her letter to her employers to self-combust if handled without being properly disenchanted. But not only that, she hadn't even used a moderately effective cypher to hide the contents of the letter!
Breaking into the academy vault to get to the Staff of Destruction. Such a tall, and dangerous order. To get inside, she'd need to have intimate knowledge on how to overcome the enchantments protecting it from uninvited ingress.
"Well, I was simply curious…" She started playing with her long, brunette locks, a light blush playing across her delicate features as she gazed up at him through her long, captivating eyelashes. "Have you given consideration to my request?"
Knowledge which he, an utterly unassuming, bumbling fool of a teacher could surely be tricked into revealing by a pretty young woman batting her eyelashes at him over a nice dinner, yes?
The note alone would have been enough to have her detained and investigated, and surely arrested shortly afterwards. Fouquet the Decaying Earth was a venomously hated criminal, one who had earned a well-deserved reputation among the nobles of Halkegenia.
So why had he brought the note to the messenger cages, tied it to another bird's leg, and sent it on its way again?
"As a matter of fact, I have," the older man stated with a kindly smile. "I think I have spare time right now, as a matter of fact…
Well, what would be the fun in allowing the proper authorities to be the ones to capture the wayward Square class?
The brunette smiled beautifully at the older man. "Ah, I'm so glad! I was thinking of this fine little spot near the apple groves…"
In the time it had been since he'd set down his sword, he'd come to realise… he missed the thrill of a good game, of a dangerous duel. Yes… it had been too long since the Serpent of Undulating Flame had tested his might against an equal.
He'd grown bored resting on his laurels. She would commit to her scheme, and when she enacted it, he would be there. Ready to challenge a fellow Square class for the first time in a long time.
Yes...
This glory would be his.
===
*Forgets to update SV cross-post thread, remembers that nobody reads it there so it's not that big of a deal anyways and shrugs apathetically*
===
Chapter 06 - Cloak and Dagger
===
With Louise gone to attend her classes for the day, Jophiel was left with little to do. Again.
Wandering off to explore the courtyard, again, he decided to go and poke around one of the buildings he'd still not stuck his head into yet. A fairly sizable stone structure which he could only describe as Franco-Greco-Nordic, which was every bit as awesome as it sounded.
There was little- rather, no real visible traffic around the place.
His curiosity peaked, Jophiel approached.
As he got closer, he began to smell the faint scent of soap. So a bathhouse, likely.
Stepping through the wide open archways, the smell grew all the stronger, and he further confirmed that it seemed as though the place was empty, lit by skylights in the ceiling.
Venturing further in, if only because he legitimately had nothing better to do, he prepared to regail himself with the washing methods of another world.
---
Or so he thought he would, until he heard a familiar, pleasant humming coming from deeper within the building.
Jophiel would not mind talking to Siesta right then at all.
Following the voice, he quickly found the maid in question all by her lonesome on the far side of what seemed to be the laundry room, kneeling over a bucket and doing laundry by the looks of things. Her back was to the entrance, so she'd not seen him come in.
Bored as he was, a mischievous grin appeared on his face. Jophiel began to slowly creep up on her, as quietly as he could, calling upon his hunting experience to sneak upon the girl silently.
In a deceptively short amount of time, he was across the room and leaning over juuuuuuust right, so that when she reached over to grab another item from the pile of dirty clothes she was working on, she'd see his face grinning at her with a slasher smile out of the corner of her vision.
But a few moments passed before she turned, her melodic hum catching in her throat for but an instant before being replaced by a high-pitched squeal.
And she reflexively thrust the full bucket in her hand outwards at him.
A few moments passed in tense silence as Jophiel remained completely still, soapy water running off of him to pool on the stone tiled floor and causing his clothes to, again, cling unpleasantly to his body, as well as his hair to be weighed down heavily. Because it just happened to be another day where he'd forgoed his waterproof rain cloak.
Siesta's eyes were as wide as dinner plates and her skin lost all its colour as she began to process what just happened, and she realised that she'd just threw a bucket's worth of dirty water on a noble's face.
Worse yet, it was Jophiel she'd just humiliated.
Stunned into silence, too fearful to move or even speak, Siesta could bring herself to do nothing. The gentle trickle of running water being the only noise in the room.
Then, a loud, uncouth, orc-like snort broke the silence in the otherwise empty washhouse.
Jophiel was doubled over, chortling and wheezing uproariously like a drunken peasant.
He kept that up for a good half minute before calming down, as the petrified maid struggled to process this new information.
"G-good to see that karma works fast in this world!" Jophiel chuckled, falling back onto his rump with a highly amused smile stretching across his face.
It was the first time she'd seen him smile so broadly.
He looked at her for a moment, then started wheezing and sputtering again.
Now, with him sitting in front of her on the floor of a room most nobles would never think to enter, soaked head-to-toe and seemingly enjoying his humiliation…
Well, humour is infectious.
Siesta placed her free hand over her mouth, attempting to stifle her own building giggling, but to no avail as he just didn't let up despite the sorry condition he was in.
Eventually, she was barely keeping from snorting aloud herself. Of all the situations she'd ever expected to find herself in, this wasn't one of them.
"I-I-I…" She eventually managed to begin, noting that despite his amusement over the ordeal, he was still a noble… "I beg your forgiveness, mi-"
He waved his hand dismissively, leaning on the other from his spot on the floor right in front of her.
"Nah nah, come on, I had that coming! You have nothing to apologize for Siesta," he giggled out as his laughter finally began to die down.
Such a strange, strange man. The more time she spent around him… the more down-to-earth and approachable he seemed. He just wasn't like other nobles, not taking himself anywhere near as seriously as others did in private, reserved, appreciative, being humble and of good humour…
She was finding it harder and harder to deny that Jophiel was actually enjoyable to be around.
"S-so…" He began, wiping his face with his free hand. "I'm sorry, I just made your job harder for you, didn't?"
And how could she forget considerate?
"I-it is fine, Sir. I need only fetch more water from the heated reservoir, and soap is plentiful in the academy," the girl asserted with an increasingly shy smile.
"And where is this reservoir?" He asked with a good-natured smile.
"Oh, um, it is just back there, on the other side of the room, the stream in that open pipe…" she started, pointing back at the object of concern.
Then stopped and was stunned into silence again when Jophiel stood, reached over, took the now empty bucket from her hand and traipsed over to the heated stream, dunking the bucket into it and returning with fresh water for her.
"There we go, recompense for frightening you," he stated as he set the pail down before stepping back and leaning on one of the room's many working tables.
Siesta really wasn't sure what to think of Jophiel.
He was so different from other nobles.
It was almost like he wasn't one of them at all.
She glanced down at the bucket he'd placed before her. Perhaps his people had a different relationship with commoners… regardless, she was beginning to feel glad that he was so unlike them.
And even gladder when he chose to remain there with her for a few more hours while she tended to her duties.
---
Waving off the pretty half-Asian girl as he stepped out of the washhouse, now garbed in a clean set of clothes courtesy of her, Jophiel contentedly sighed.
He just couldn't help himself after she splashed him like that. All the tension in his body dissolved in an instant, and he couldn't bring himself to keep up the stuffy noble facade.
It was downright liberating after six days of pomping around like a total git.
[I'm gonna have to try talking to that girl alone more often,] he thought to himself as he started wandering off to kill time until sundown again.
As he did so, he couldn't help but reflect on the conversation he'd had with her.
It seemed that her family was going through some tough times financially, and she was kind of working overtime and sending everything she didn't need to feed herself back to them… He was starting to like Siesta, and didn't enjoy the thought of her having to work herself to the bone just to make ends meet.
Grimacing, he only wished that he'd grabbed something of value on his way out of his room back on Earth, not a bag holding several pounds of fucking aluminum cans-
Jophiel stopped dead in his tracks as he recalled something very significant about pre-modern society.
Aluminum only became a throw-away metal after the 1850's.
It was worth more than gold prior to that.
He had several pounds of refined aluminum in a bag in Louise's room. The handle scales on his fucking sword were made from pure aluminum.
Jophiel took a moment to place his hands on his head, and breath.
It took all of his will to not tear off his shirt and dance around the courtyard joyfully screaming about how rich he'd just realised he was.
A wide smile stretched across his face at the revelation.
[Looks like Siesta's financial woes are going to become a thing of the past in short order here…] he chuckled mirthfully as he started walking along again, then, he caught himself as a sobering thought jammed itself into his mind. [...What if they can magically refine aluminum here already?]
Louise couldn't get out of classes soon enough.
---
"THAT BAG IS FULL OF WHAT!?" The fun-sized blonde screamed at Jophiel when he brought up the question of aluminum's worth to her.
Turned out that yes, Halkegenia was aware of aluminium, and no, they did not have a method to refine it in any significant quantities, making it still very much a precious metal in their society.
"This- Jophiel! Do you realise how wealthy you are!?" Louise cried out again.
His bag of trash was, in fact, worth a fair bit more than its weight in gold.
He was practically vibrating with excitement.
"Come!" She declared, rushing to for her door.
"W-wait, for what?" He asked, surprised by her sudden command.
"To Professor Colbert's office! I know for a fact he has a scale there, we need to determine just how wealthy you are now!"
He was literally vibrating with excitement.
---
The next day was a rather enjoyable one, all things considered. Louise had dragged Jophiel to the Professor's office, and after a brief explanation to the man, they'd measured out the combined weight of the cans.
Jophiel's net worth?
A fair amount.
So he could not help but float about on cloud nine after he'd climbed out of bed, and had a very pleasant day spent with Siesta and Louise both. Nothing of particular note occured on that day, beyond a brief discussion between Louise and himself on the nature of her magic.
There were four elements, and all mages had a natural affinity for one over the others. Earth, Fire, Wind, and Water. Louise… could not manage to utilize any of them, nor even entry-level elementless magic like levitate. This confused Jophiel to no small amount, and he'd pressed about what she'd thought her element could be.
Strangely, she'd grown extremely quiet and clammed up at the question, refusing to continue the discussion further.
Not feeling up to pissing her off, Jophiel decided that he'd look into doing research into the elements on his own later. With luck, he'd stumble his way onto something that would help her out. Though he wasn't going to be holding his breath.
---
Later that day, Jophiel had happened upon Siesta after she was done work for the day, and after explaining his plans to her, she revealed that she actually knew how to read.
That was rather convenient for him, given that the translation magic still affecting him didn't seem to extend to written language.
Spending a few hours in the rather opulent library, Jophiel was peering over Siesta's shoulder as she flipped through page upon page of textbooks and reading aloud to him on the nature of the elements and spellcasting, revealing… rather little.
He learned that mages were divided into classes, Dot being the lowest class, Line the second up, Triangle the third, and Square the most powerful.
Otherwise...
It was all quite dry, and Jophiel, while a curious sort, wasn't the type to revel in academic prose. Not to mention that he himself was not of Alfheim, and wouldn't be able to apply any of this knowledge to himself to begin with.
The only thing that he could suspect after doing as much reading as he did with Siesta, was that Louise might represent an entirely new element. The blonde clearly had magical talent of some sort, else she'd not have been able to affect anything at all with her attempts, let alone successfully summon a familiar. The trick in this case simply seemed to be discovering what her particular quirk was.
Something he'd have to nudge her into experimenting with, if her earlier reluctance to discuss the issue was any indication.
"Well, thank you for your help, Siesta. I didn't really expect much to come of this, but it was worth a shot," he sighed.
The maid nodded somewhat ruefully. "Unfortunately, yes, Lady Vallière has spent much time here herself doing much the same kind of research, though… the effort is what matters though, I think."
He nodded along himself, and out of the corner of his eye, noted a familiar face skulking about.
Colbert, who seemed to be almost hiding away in an disused corner of the room, curiously enough.
It was odd, but hardly any of his business what the teacher did in his free time, so he shrugged his shoulders and decided that he and Siesta were done there.
"We might as well get going now. Not much point to sticking around at this point," Jophiel noted while taking the tome the girl had been reading, and putting it back on a nearby shelf.
She didn't protest as they set off for the afternoon.
---
Colbert sighed in relief as Pholus departed with the exotic little maid. He'd almost suspected that the young man had noticed and might draw attention to him, though the Founder was feeling merciful, by the looks of things.
Yes, he was there for a reason, to see how long-
"Ah, Mister Stephen! What a happy coincidence, happening upon you here!"
-it would take Longueville to track him down. Or rather, how long it would take Fouquet to track him down.
"A happy coincidence indeed, Miss Longueville, how may I help you tonight?"
The older Fire Magics teacher was initially furious when Sam returned from a flight a few days prior to find a smaller messenger pigeon in his talons, but once he'd actually read the attached note to determine who it belonged to…
The master thief was certainly a sly one, he had to give her that. Though she'd screwed up to no small degree by not properly sealing or enchanting her letter to her employers to self-combust if handled without being properly disenchanted. But not only that, she hadn't even used a moderately effective cypher to hide the contents of the letter!
Breaking into the academy vault to get to the Staff of Destruction. Such a tall, and dangerous order. To get inside, she'd need to have intimate knowledge on how to overcome the enchantments protecting it from uninvited ingress.
"Well, I was simply curious…" She started playing with her long, brunette locks, a light blush playing across her delicate features as she gazed up at him through her long, captivating eyelashes. "Have you given consideration to my request?"
Knowledge which he, an utterly unassuming, bumbling fool of a teacher could surely be tricked into revealing by a pretty young woman batting her eyelashes at him over a nice dinner, yes?
The note alone would have been enough to have her detained and investigated, and surely arrested shortly afterwards. Fouquet the Decaying Earth was a venomously hated criminal, one who had earned a well-deserved reputation among the nobles of Halkegenia.
So why had he brought the note to the messenger cages, tied it to another bird's leg, and sent it on its way again?
"As a matter of fact, I have," the older man stated with a kindly smile. "I think I have spare time right now, as a matter of fact…
Well, what would be the fun in allowing the proper authorities to be the ones to capture the wayward Square class?
The brunette smiled beautifully at the older man. "Ah, I'm so glad! I was thinking of this fine little spot near the apple groves…"
In the time it had been since he'd set down his sword, he'd come to realise… he missed the thrill of a good game, of a dangerous duel. Yes… it had been too long since the Serpent of Undulating Flame had tested his might against an equal.
He'd grown bored resting on his laurels. She would commit to her scheme, and when she enacted it, he would be there. Ready to challenge a fellow Square class for the first time in a long time.
Yes...
This glory would be his.
===
Last edited:
Orion Zete
[verify weaboo]
- Location
- Malaysia
Just because we SV don't comments
It don't mean we are not around.
It don't mean we are not around.
Love the story, keep going please
- Location
- United Kingdom
Certainly there isn't the readership here but the feedback tends to be of higher quality. I read Ranger on ff.net, and I suppose indeed it was a rather confused.
RexLapisCultist
She who thirsts for Morax
- Location
- Yilong Wharf
- Pronouns
- She/Her
The characters feel so much fuller and dimensional than canon.
Riha
Literally best girl
- Location
- New York
- Pronouns
- She/Her
This basically sums up my reaction so far. Though I am definitely curious as to where our intend to go with all the AU elements.
Bakkasama
There is always a greater fool
- Location
- Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Pronouns
- He/his
The pacing does fit better than in RotN. I mean, I liked the worldbuilding there but it also had too many crossovers. Some are fine and they don't bother me that much since Joe seems aware something weird is going on what with Flame being a charmander but it shouldn't get out of hand.
Vol. 1 Chapter 07 - Thicc Woofers
BakaSmurf
My journey has been one of remarkable floundering
- Location
- Canada
Pre-Story Notes:
FINALLY. My muse can be such an uncooperative bitch!
===
Chapter 07 - Thicc Woofers
===
"You all ready to go? We'll need to leave right away if we're to arrive before the sun sets." Louise asked as Jophiel stepped out of the girl's dorm to meet her on the landing.
The next day was 'The Founder's Day,' a holiday, so Louise decided that it was as good a time as any for a shopping trip to the nearby capital of Tristain, the city of Bruxelles, pronounced identically to 'Brussels.' Both so she could stock up on her own things, and so Jophiel could offload his aluminum to a source with connections to her family for the best deal possible
Remembering that Siesta's family was struggling with money, he wasn't about to complain about getting hard currency to gift to her.
He'd also made a point to remove all the tabs from the cans before packing them up for resale. He was going to make aluminum tab necklaces, which would surely go for a fair amount with the artful method he'd use to weave them together. He'd left them back in his room, was already nearly done with the first, and would finish it upon getting back from their trip.
All that time spent making aluminum tab jewellery during that two week stint without power in a fire lookout tower wasn't wasted after all!
"Yup," Jophiel replied, bag of detabbed cans in hand.
She nodded. "Let's get going then."
---
Jophiel was rooted to the spot, eyes wide, staring forward in naked awe.
He recalled Louise not knowing what horses were, which confused him, but didn't follow up on it on account of the more immediately pressing issues at the time, and he'd forgotten about the point once things had calmed down.
So he was caught off guard when Louise stepped out of what he'd figured was a stable, and started saddling up a pair of giant doggos.
They were massive, the larger between them had to be 5'5" at the shoulder! It was large enough that it could rest its chin on the top of Louise's head! The smaller was about 5'0" at the shoulder. Noticeably smaller, but still the size of a large fucking bear.
The bigger one looked like a monstrously overgrown Saint Bernard, the smaller a massive Irish Wolfhound.
Each one had to be at least 1000 pounds, if not more.
The tiny, five-foot-nothing blonde was ushering them both along like a pair of sheep.
Jophiel had to take a moment to process what he was seeing.
Louise approached him, the two immense woofers padding along after her, their sheer size becoming all the more apparent as they got closer.
The Dire Bernard's legs were built like tree trunks!
"Alright, you're a fair bit bigger than most, so to be on the safe you're gonna ride Sleppy with me while Cu packs our purchases for us," she stated as she reached up and scratched the chin of the Bernard. "Oh, and this is Sleipnir, by the way. He's my droog, Mother bred him specifically for me. Isn't he magnificent?"
Indeed, his poofy fur was rather majestically billowing in the wind.
"Y-yeah…" Jophiel haltingly replied.
"Alright," Louise began, giving the mighty beast a hearty chin rub. "You have your gear? We'd best get going then!"
---
Jophiel had ridden horses before, so the idea of spending several hours on the back of a big-ass steed wasn't entirely alien to him.
Riding a droog, however, was… rather different.
Firstly, Sleipnir seemed to be a good deal smarter than the average horse. Louise would give concise verbal commands, and the dire dog would accurately obey without missing a beat, right down to ordering him to lay on his belly so the two could easily mount and dismount him for pit stops.
Secondly, the beast just moved differently compared to a horse. That made sense given that canids had inherently different locomotion compared to equines, but still. It kind of threw Jophiel for a loop.
The fact that Halkegenian saddles were, rather curiously, extremely primitive compared to those used on Earth, being little more than a padded sheet buckled onto the beast's back, lacking even stirrups didn't help matters much.
After a few hours, he got used to the rhythm of the hound's breathing and panting between his legs, and stopped focusing so hard on the idea that he was riding a giant dog.
At that point, he quickly got bored. Halkegenia was surprisingly… mundane, for a fantasy world. Occasionally, he'd spot a strange piece of flora which clearly didn't have a direct equivalent on Earth, but otherwise… It just felt like he was going for a ride on an old rural European road.
It didn't help that Louise seemed… content to ride in silence.
Aside from passing a few carriages coming to and from the academy, the ride to the town the girl had mentioned earlier was overall a fairly quiet one, all things considered.
---
Cresting over the hill atop the mighty canine, their pack hound dutifully padding up behind them, Jophiel was taken aback by the sight before him.
The city of Bruxelles had tall walls, perhaps three or so stories high all around the settlement boundaries. Hewn from the same white marble as the academy's fortress walls. Outside the walls were mostly farmlands, with some fenced-off areas near the entry gates that the man assumed were guard outposts. Blues seemed to be a popular tone for roof tiling, giving the town a fairly calm vibe from a distance.
There was a fair amount of traffic operating around the area. Serfs, merchants, soldiers, all sorts of characters. Beyond the farm lands were forests and fields that wouldn't look out of place in Europe.
The great fantasy castle and arena which overlooked the city were just the icing on the cake.
"Majestic, isn't it?" The fun-sized blonde asked from in front of the much bigger canuck.
It was, by modern standards, rather on the small side, however. Jophiel estimated a population of 40,000, at most.
"Yeah…" Was all he could say in response at that moment.
The girl nodded. "Well, we made good time. The sun's going to set soon, so let's see about finding an inn before it's too late."
Jophiel nodded despite Louise not being able to see him doing so from behind her, and they were quickly moving down towards the city proper.
---
Stepping out of the bank a while later, Jophiel was still having trouble processing that he was legitimately rich now. And personally invested in a respected bank in a nation's capital city at that.
"Well, with that out of the way, we'd best go find an inn to stay at, yes?" Louise propositioned as she glanced both ways down the fine, well-paved road of the Noble district the two had been walked down to get there.
"Yeah, the bank teller suggested the 'Charming Faeries Inn' just fifteen or so minutes down the street that way, right?" Jophiel spoke up himself, pointing down the street opposite the way they'd came. "It's supposed to be pretty close to the market as well."
"Sounds perfect!" Louise chirped. "Well, let's get going then!"
Jophiel nodded and fell into step beside the pretty blonde… and did his best to ignore the looks he was getting from the locals.
Turned out that he very much was exotic as fuck in Halkegenia. He'd seen a few people of a darker complexion than himself with middle eastern features and red hair like Kirche, but there was nobody that resembled Jophiel at all. He saw one noble girl with dark brown hair tips, but Louise was quick to point out that her hair was obviously dyed that way, and her white tone was her natural colour.
Damn near everyone was also considerably shorter than him. He had to have six inches on the average full-grown man. Even Louise seemed to be only slightly below average in height, and he had a full head over her...
Needless to say, Jophiel stuck out like a sore thumb in Tristain.
He really wasn't used to being the centre of attention by virtue of simply being there and looking different.
He ignored it and assured himself that he'd get used to it.
---
"Seems quant," Jophiel suggested as the pair looked over the nicely maintained, but fairly simple blue-roofed and white-painted two-story building marked by a cheerful-looking sign, which Louise noted identified it as the inn in question.
"It will do," Louise asserted while giving the building a critical once-over. "So long as the bedding is suitable for a noble, which it should be, given that we're still technically in the noble district, if on the outskirts."
Jophiel nodded and looked about the area. The street was wider than he'd been expecting, damn near on par with the mega streets he was used to as a native to the Americas with their giant-ass pick-em-up trucks and military assault vehicles being driven by soccer moms. He was sure that changed once one left the main street where all the nobles were, but still.
It was a lot nicer, though. The cobblestone pavement was remarkably even and smooth, and much easier on the eyes than asphalt. The small trees lining the sides of the street were a nice touch as well.
Bruxelles was just nice to look at thus far. At least what he'd seen of it was. The slums were probably a total hole.
"Well, enough faffing about, let's get to it!" Louise declared after glancing up at the reddening sky. "We'll spend the night here, and do our shopping tomorrow before returning to the academy."
"Ma'am yes ma'am," Jophiel dutifully complied as he followed her into the building proper.
As the two stepped into the building, Jophiel couldn't help but note how sparsely decorated it was. The tables and chairs were nice enough, but were far from decorative, and the walls were pretty darned early modern, with criss-crossing support beams being plainly visible on them.
The building had a fairly rustic feel to it as a result.
Jophiel liked it well enough, but Louise seemed a little underwhelmed.
More importantly, though, was the girl standing at what seemed to be the front counter and bar. A gorgeous, long-haired beauty that bore a noticeable resemblance to Siesta, silken black hair and all.
That rather surprised Jophiel, to put it mildly.
And upon further thought, he remembered Siesta mentioning that one of her cousins ran an inn in the city at one point…
Small world.
A few moments passed in awkward silence as the desk girl seemed rather preoccupied with trying to get a mug to stand on its corner. Evidently, she'd not noticed the two of them come in.
Eventually, Louise seemed to get tired of being ignored, and not-so-subtly coughed to get the girl's attention.
The Siesta look-alike jumped at the sudden noise, and looked like a deer-in-headlights for split second before she seemed to catch herself and wheeled around the counter with a surprising quickness and grace, a wide smile blessing her gorgeous features.
Once she was around the corner, Jophiel couldn't help but notice that the girl was wearing a sturdy emerald green dress with an apron tied around her waist. What was more eye-catching, however, was the generously low-cut chest window that showed off a lot of her ample cleavage.
If Siesta was the nice girl next door, this was probably her racier elder cousin.
"Hello Masters-" the girl cheerfully began before suddenly halting momentarily once she actually set her eyes on Jophiel, her eyes widening in apparent recognition for but a split second before she kept moving.
Jophiel was pretty sure she was related to Siesta and in active communication with her now.
"-My name is Jessica, welcome to the Charming Faeries Inn! How may I serve you this evening?" she asked melodically with a girlish curtsy.
Louise spoke up, and down her nose before Jophiel could politely introduce himself back. "We'll be requiring rooms for the night, we'll take your finest beds, girl."
He just managed to avoid wincing at how rude Louise was being, not that Siesta's probable relative seemed to outwardly mind.
"Excellent milady! The noble suites just so happen to be vacant tonight! Will the noble lord and lady be requiring a morning wake-up and breakfast as well?" The long-haired ravenette cheerfully asked.
Louise nodded once. "Yes, we shall."
"Very well, if you'll both kindly accompany me to the front counter, we'll get your payment sorted out and provide you your keys for the night." Jophiel couldn't help noting how she was just taking Louise's domineering attitude in stride.
[...Is this how Louise treats all commoners?] Jophiel wondered as he glanced over at the tiny blonde while they followed the part-Japanese girl to the counter. Now that he considered it, he actually hadn't seen Louise interact with many, if any commoners in his time at the academy at all…
Perhaps it really was for the best that she thought he was a fellow noble then.
---
After Louise payed for their rooms (she insisted that she pay for both their accommodations), the two got their room keys and Jophiel quickly found himself standing alone in his own separate room on the second floor of the building. They were close enough that he and Louise shouldn't suffer familiar bond-induced separation anxiety, which he was grateful for. He really preferred having a room to himself.
She'd asserted that she was going to spend her free time studying, as she'd brought her textbook with her, and he didn't feel up to intruding on her attempts to figure out her magic, leaving him with not much to do until it got too dark to see.
Stepping out to the window, he gazed out at the rapidly darkening street below, lit only by pretty okay streetlamps.
He'd had some time to get used to the idea, but still… being in a fantasy world was something else, to put it mildly. He'd not seen anything too over-the-top yet, but, of course, that was bound to change sooner or later…
Stepping back away from the window, Jophiel quietly wondered what he was going to do to pass the time until he went to bed. He'd had his Playstation Vita on him when he'd been summoned, but the battery on the damned thing had already died before he got isekai'd and was good for precisely jack and fuck-all unless he just so happened to find a way to charge it despite this world not having electricity yet.
So, obviously, he'd opted to leave it at the academy in his drawer.
He couldn't read the local language either, so there was little point in packing away a book as Louise had.
Glancing down at his hip, he quietly regarded his sword, and decided that he'd hone her edge and re-oil her just to pass the time.
Not like he had anything better to do that night.
---
About fifteen or so minutes into working the edge of his blade, a soft knock at the door caught Jophiel's attention.
He was quick to set the blade aside and stand from the simple desk that came with the room, and popped the door open, expecting to see Louise.
He was a tad surprising to find the Siesta look-alike beaming up at him from the hallway instead. She even seemed to be about Siesta's height, 5'2", maybe 2½.
"Hello, sir!" She cheerfully chirped. "Would you mind if I come in?"
He wasn't expecting that, but… it also was actually not bad. He probably should have thought of seeking out the girl himself, if only to find out if she was actually related to the familiar maid from the school after all.
She seemed to be friendly enough as well.
"No, not at all," Jophiel stated with an attempt at a disarming smile of his own as he stepped aside.
She was quick to traipse in like she owned the place… which wasn't actually untrue, probably.
"Pardon me though, miss," he said as he shut the door behind her. "But, you wouldn't happen to be related to Siesta, would you-"
"I knew it!" The black-haired woman forcefully interjected, getting all up in Jophiel's personal space as she did so. "You're Jophiel! The one little Si-Si has been going on about in her letters lately!"
Jophiel took a moment to regain his footing as he'd staggered back at her sudden advance on him.
"I, uh…" the much larger man stammered for a moment. "I must say, you have me at a bit of a disadvantage, miss…"
"Mmm, just the way I like it~" She purred- wait, what?
Jophiel was caught even further off-guard by that, and wasn't sure how to respond. After a few moments, the girl started chuckled musically.
"Aha, I'm sorry, but I couldn't resist after Siesta went on at length about how different you are from other nobles. Sometimes you just gotta test the waters, y'know?" She asked, apparently rhetorically. "Jessica, milord."
Taking a moment to recover, Jophiel eventually nodded. "Right, Jessica… pleased to meet you. Jophiel Pholus van Cazonium, at your service."
"At my service, you say? What kind of service, I wonder~?" she replied with a mischievous cat like grin as she leaned forward, giving a very generous view down her already generously revealing blouse, once again, catching Jophiel off guard.
She, once again, broke out into a giggle fit.
"Oh my, you really aren't like most nobles, are you?" She stood back up and took a step back. "Sorry, sorry, I just can't help myself when I see an opportunity to step out of bounds and make a noble sweat a bit… not that you mind, right?" She asked as she gave him big wide puppy-dog eyes and batted her long eyelashes at him.
[Oh lord, this girl is gonna be trouble, ain't she?] Jophiel could not help but wonder as he was idly reminded of Kirche, who, in fairness, was a good deal more forward than Jessica. The Arabic-looking girl was probably more serious about her teasing as well.
"Oh, don't make that face… okay, okay, I'll stop," the ravenette pouted as she gave Jophiel ample personal space.
She really was being remarkably brazen for a commoner girl. Though, considering that she'd been in contact with Siesta, it made sense that she'd know he was remarkably laid-back for a noble.
Not to say that he didn't enjoy the teasing, it just caught him off guard, is all.
"Um," Jophiel cleared his throat before responding. "Thank you… anyways, was there something you needed, Jessica?"
"Aside from wanting to meet the curiously kind noble my little cousin has been raving about?" She innocently asked with a wide smile. "I was just thinking you might be bored, since Si-Si mentioned that you can't read our language, so you wouldn't exactly have a book to help pass the time, right?"
...She wasn't incorrect.
"So why don't you come downstairs? Business is really slow today, and it's already dark out so we're unlikely to get any more customers," she gave him puppy dog eyes again. "Please? I could really use the company…"
[Trouble indeed,] Jophiel silently intoned.
"Well… I suppose I don't have much else going on…" He allowed.
"Fantastic!" The long-haired beauty beamed as she took him by the hand and pulled him towards the door. "You can tell me all about your homeland and how different it is from Tristain!"
"Aw jeez," Jophiel groused as he could not resist a girl much smaller than him, as per usual. "Why am I always so powerless before such small girls?"
"Ooh, can't say no to a pretty face, huh?" Jessica started as she turned to give him another cat like grin. "Just the way I like 'em."
"Aw jeez," Jophiel groused again once he realised that she'd be teasing him the entire night.
===
FINALLY. My muse can be such an uncooperative bitch!
===
Chapter 07 - Thicc Woofers
===
"You all ready to go? We'll need to leave right away if we're to arrive before the sun sets." Louise asked as Jophiel stepped out of the girl's dorm to meet her on the landing.
The next day was 'The Founder's Day,' a holiday, so Louise decided that it was as good a time as any for a shopping trip to the nearby capital of Tristain, the city of Bruxelles, pronounced identically to 'Brussels.' Both so she could stock up on her own things, and so Jophiel could offload his aluminum to a source with connections to her family for the best deal possible
Remembering that Siesta's family was struggling with money, he wasn't about to complain about getting hard currency to gift to her.
He'd also made a point to remove all the tabs from the cans before packing them up for resale. He was going to make aluminum tab necklaces, which would surely go for a fair amount with the artful method he'd use to weave them together. He'd left them back in his room, was already nearly done with the first, and would finish it upon getting back from their trip.
All that time spent making aluminum tab jewellery during that two week stint without power in a fire lookout tower wasn't wasted after all!
"Yup," Jophiel replied, bag of detabbed cans in hand.
She nodded. "Let's get going then."
---
Jophiel was rooted to the spot, eyes wide, staring forward in naked awe.
He recalled Louise not knowing what horses were, which confused him, but didn't follow up on it on account of the more immediately pressing issues at the time, and he'd forgotten about the point once things had calmed down.
So he was caught off guard when Louise stepped out of what he'd figured was a stable, and started saddling up a pair of giant doggos.
They were massive, the larger between them had to be 5'5" at the shoulder! It was large enough that it could rest its chin on the top of Louise's head! The smaller was about 5'0" at the shoulder. Noticeably smaller, but still the size of a large fucking bear.
The bigger one looked like a monstrously overgrown Saint Bernard, the smaller a massive Irish Wolfhound.
Each one had to be at least 1000 pounds, if not more.
The tiny, five-foot-nothing blonde was ushering them both along like a pair of sheep.
Jophiel had to take a moment to process what he was seeing.
Louise approached him, the two immense woofers padding along after her, their sheer size becoming all the more apparent as they got closer.
The Dire Bernard's legs were built like tree trunks!
"Alright, you're a fair bit bigger than most, so to be on the safe you're gonna ride Sleppy with me while Cu packs our purchases for us," she stated as she reached up and scratched the chin of the Bernard. "Oh, and this is Sleipnir, by the way. He's my droog, Mother bred him specifically for me. Isn't he magnificent?"
Indeed, his poofy fur was rather majestically billowing in the wind.
"Y-yeah…" Jophiel haltingly replied.
"Alright," Louise began, giving the mighty beast a hearty chin rub. "You have your gear? We'd best get going then!"
---
Jophiel had ridden horses before, so the idea of spending several hours on the back of a big-ass steed wasn't entirely alien to him.
Riding a droog, however, was… rather different.
Firstly, Sleipnir seemed to be a good deal smarter than the average horse. Louise would give concise verbal commands, and the dire dog would accurately obey without missing a beat, right down to ordering him to lay on his belly so the two could easily mount and dismount him for pit stops.
Secondly, the beast just moved differently compared to a horse. That made sense given that canids had inherently different locomotion compared to equines, but still. It kind of threw Jophiel for a loop.
The fact that Halkegenian saddles were, rather curiously, extremely primitive compared to those used on Earth, being little more than a padded sheet buckled onto the beast's back, lacking even stirrups didn't help matters much.
After a few hours, he got used to the rhythm of the hound's breathing and panting between his legs, and stopped focusing so hard on the idea that he was riding a giant dog.
At that point, he quickly got bored. Halkegenia was surprisingly… mundane, for a fantasy world. Occasionally, he'd spot a strange piece of flora which clearly didn't have a direct equivalent on Earth, but otherwise… It just felt like he was going for a ride on an old rural European road.
It didn't help that Louise seemed… content to ride in silence.
Aside from passing a few carriages coming to and from the academy, the ride to the town the girl had mentioned earlier was overall a fairly quiet one, all things considered.
---
Cresting over the hill atop the mighty canine, their pack hound dutifully padding up behind them, Jophiel was taken aback by the sight before him.
The city of Bruxelles had tall walls, perhaps three or so stories high all around the settlement boundaries. Hewn from the same white marble as the academy's fortress walls. Outside the walls were mostly farmlands, with some fenced-off areas near the entry gates that the man assumed were guard outposts. Blues seemed to be a popular tone for roof tiling, giving the town a fairly calm vibe from a distance.
There was a fair amount of traffic operating around the area. Serfs, merchants, soldiers, all sorts of characters. Beyond the farm lands were forests and fields that wouldn't look out of place in Europe.
The great fantasy castle and arena which overlooked the city were just the icing on the cake.
"Majestic, isn't it?" The fun-sized blonde asked from in front of the much bigger canuck.
It was, by modern standards, rather on the small side, however. Jophiel estimated a population of 40,000, at most.
"Yeah…" Was all he could say in response at that moment.
The girl nodded. "Well, we made good time. The sun's going to set soon, so let's see about finding an inn before it's too late."
Jophiel nodded despite Louise not being able to see him doing so from behind her, and they were quickly moving down towards the city proper.
---
Stepping out of the bank a while later, Jophiel was still having trouble processing that he was legitimately rich now. And personally invested in a respected bank in a nation's capital city at that.
"Well, with that out of the way, we'd best go find an inn to stay at, yes?" Louise propositioned as she glanced both ways down the fine, well-paved road of the Noble district the two had been walked down to get there.
"Yeah, the bank teller suggested the 'Charming Faeries Inn' just fifteen or so minutes down the street that way, right?" Jophiel spoke up himself, pointing down the street opposite the way they'd came. "It's supposed to be pretty close to the market as well."
"Sounds perfect!" Louise chirped. "Well, let's get going then!"
Jophiel nodded and fell into step beside the pretty blonde… and did his best to ignore the looks he was getting from the locals.
Turned out that he very much was exotic as fuck in Halkegenia. He'd seen a few people of a darker complexion than himself with middle eastern features and red hair like Kirche, but there was nobody that resembled Jophiel at all. He saw one noble girl with dark brown hair tips, but Louise was quick to point out that her hair was obviously dyed that way, and her white tone was her natural colour.
Damn near everyone was also considerably shorter than him. He had to have six inches on the average full-grown man. Even Louise seemed to be only slightly below average in height, and he had a full head over her...
Needless to say, Jophiel stuck out like a sore thumb in Tristain.
He really wasn't used to being the centre of attention by virtue of simply being there and looking different.
He ignored it and assured himself that he'd get used to it.
---
"Seems quant," Jophiel suggested as the pair looked over the nicely maintained, but fairly simple blue-roofed and white-painted two-story building marked by a cheerful-looking sign, which Louise noted identified it as the inn in question.
"It will do," Louise asserted while giving the building a critical once-over. "So long as the bedding is suitable for a noble, which it should be, given that we're still technically in the noble district, if on the outskirts."
Jophiel nodded and looked about the area. The street was wider than he'd been expecting, damn near on par with the mega streets he was used to as a native to the Americas with their giant-ass pick-em-up trucks and military assault vehicles being driven by soccer moms. He was sure that changed once one left the main street where all the nobles were, but still.
It was a lot nicer, though. The cobblestone pavement was remarkably even and smooth, and much easier on the eyes than asphalt. The small trees lining the sides of the street were a nice touch as well.
Bruxelles was just nice to look at thus far. At least what he'd seen of it was. The slums were probably a total hole.
"Well, enough faffing about, let's get to it!" Louise declared after glancing up at the reddening sky. "We'll spend the night here, and do our shopping tomorrow before returning to the academy."
"Ma'am yes ma'am," Jophiel dutifully complied as he followed her into the building proper.
As the two stepped into the building, Jophiel couldn't help but note how sparsely decorated it was. The tables and chairs were nice enough, but were far from decorative, and the walls were pretty darned early modern, with criss-crossing support beams being plainly visible on them.
The building had a fairly rustic feel to it as a result.
Jophiel liked it well enough, but Louise seemed a little underwhelmed.
More importantly, though, was the girl standing at what seemed to be the front counter and bar. A gorgeous, long-haired beauty that bore a noticeable resemblance to Siesta, silken black hair and all.
That rather surprised Jophiel, to put it mildly.
And upon further thought, he remembered Siesta mentioning that one of her cousins ran an inn in the city at one point…
Small world.
A few moments passed in awkward silence as the desk girl seemed rather preoccupied with trying to get a mug to stand on its corner. Evidently, she'd not noticed the two of them come in.
Eventually, Louise seemed to get tired of being ignored, and not-so-subtly coughed to get the girl's attention.
The Siesta look-alike jumped at the sudden noise, and looked like a deer-in-headlights for split second before she seemed to catch herself and wheeled around the counter with a surprising quickness and grace, a wide smile blessing her gorgeous features.
Once she was around the corner, Jophiel couldn't help but notice that the girl was wearing a sturdy emerald green dress with an apron tied around her waist. What was more eye-catching, however, was the generously low-cut chest window that showed off a lot of her ample cleavage.
If Siesta was the nice girl next door, this was probably her racier elder cousin.
"Hello Masters-" the girl cheerfully began before suddenly halting momentarily once she actually set her eyes on Jophiel, her eyes widening in apparent recognition for but a split second before she kept moving.
Jophiel was pretty sure she was related to Siesta and in active communication with her now.
"-My name is Jessica, welcome to the Charming Faeries Inn! How may I serve you this evening?" she asked melodically with a girlish curtsy.
Louise spoke up, and down her nose before Jophiel could politely introduce himself back. "We'll be requiring rooms for the night, we'll take your finest beds, girl."
He just managed to avoid wincing at how rude Louise was being, not that Siesta's probable relative seemed to outwardly mind.
"Excellent milady! The noble suites just so happen to be vacant tonight! Will the noble lord and lady be requiring a morning wake-up and breakfast as well?" The long-haired ravenette cheerfully asked.
Louise nodded once. "Yes, we shall."
"Very well, if you'll both kindly accompany me to the front counter, we'll get your payment sorted out and provide you your keys for the night." Jophiel couldn't help noting how she was just taking Louise's domineering attitude in stride.
[...Is this how Louise treats all commoners?] Jophiel wondered as he glanced over at the tiny blonde while they followed the part-Japanese girl to the counter. Now that he considered it, he actually hadn't seen Louise interact with many, if any commoners in his time at the academy at all…
Perhaps it really was for the best that she thought he was a fellow noble then.
---
After Louise payed for their rooms (she insisted that she pay for both their accommodations), the two got their room keys and Jophiel quickly found himself standing alone in his own separate room on the second floor of the building. They were close enough that he and Louise shouldn't suffer familiar bond-induced separation anxiety, which he was grateful for. He really preferred having a room to himself.
She'd asserted that she was going to spend her free time studying, as she'd brought her textbook with her, and he didn't feel up to intruding on her attempts to figure out her magic, leaving him with not much to do until it got too dark to see.
Stepping out to the window, he gazed out at the rapidly darkening street below, lit only by pretty okay streetlamps.
He'd had some time to get used to the idea, but still… being in a fantasy world was something else, to put it mildly. He'd not seen anything too over-the-top yet, but, of course, that was bound to change sooner or later…
Stepping back away from the window, Jophiel quietly wondered what he was going to do to pass the time until he went to bed. He'd had his Playstation Vita on him when he'd been summoned, but the battery on the damned thing had already died before he got isekai'd and was good for precisely jack and fuck-all unless he just so happened to find a way to charge it despite this world not having electricity yet.
So, obviously, he'd opted to leave it at the academy in his drawer.
He couldn't read the local language either, so there was little point in packing away a book as Louise had.
Glancing down at his hip, he quietly regarded his sword, and decided that he'd hone her edge and re-oil her just to pass the time.
Not like he had anything better to do that night.
---
About fifteen or so minutes into working the edge of his blade, a soft knock at the door caught Jophiel's attention.
He was quick to set the blade aside and stand from the simple desk that came with the room, and popped the door open, expecting to see Louise.
He was a tad surprising to find the Siesta look-alike beaming up at him from the hallway instead. She even seemed to be about Siesta's height, 5'2", maybe 2½.
"Hello, sir!" She cheerfully chirped. "Would you mind if I come in?"
He wasn't expecting that, but… it also was actually not bad. He probably should have thought of seeking out the girl himself, if only to find out if she was actually related to the familiar maid from the school after all.
She seemed to be friendly enough as well.
"No, not at all," Jophiel stated with an attempt at a disarming smile of his own as he stepped aside.
She was quick to traipse in like she owned the place… which wasn't actually untrue, probably.
"Pardon me though, miss," he said as he shut the door behind her. "But, you wouldn't happen to be related to Siesta, would you-"
"I knew it!" The black-haired woman forcefully interjected, getting all up in Jophiel's personal space as she did so. "You're Jophiel! The one little Si-Si has been going on about in her letters lately!"
Jophiel took a moment to regain his footing as he'd staggered back at her sudden advance on him.
"I, uh…" the much larger man stammered for a moment. "I must say, you have me at a bit of a disadvantage, miss…"
"Mmm, just the way I like it~" She purred- wait, what?
Jophiel was caught even further off-guard by that, and wasn't sure how to respond. After a few moments, the girl started chuckled musically.
"Aha, I'm sorry, but I couldn't resist after Siesta went on at length about how different you are from other nobles. Sometimes you just gotta test the waters, y'know?" She asked, apparently rhetorically. "Jessica, milord."
Taking a moment to recover, Jophiel eventually nodded. "Right, Jessica… pleased to meet you. Jophiel Pholus van Cazonium, at your service."
"At my service, you say? What kind of service, I wonder~?" she replied with a mischievous cat like grin as she leaned forward, giving a very generous view down her already generously revealing blouse, once again, catching Jophiel off guard.
She, once again, broke out into a giggle fit.
"Oh my, you really aren't like most nobles, are you?" She stood back up and took a step back. "Sorry, sorry, I just can't help myself when I see an opportunity to step out of bounds and make a noble sweat a bit… not that you mind, right?" She asked as she gave him big wide puppy-dog eyes and batted her long eyelashes at him.
[Oh lord, this girl is gonna be trouble, ain't she?] Jophiel could not help but wonder as he was idly reminded of Kirche, who, in fairness, was a good deal more forward than Jessica. The Arabic-looking girl was probably more serious about her teasing as well.
"Oh, don't make that face… okay, okay, I'll stop," the ravenette pouted as she gave Jophiel ample personal space.
She really was being remarkably brazen for a commoner girl. Though, considering that she'd been in contact with Siesta, it made sense that she'd know he was remarkably laid-back for a noble.
Not to say that he didn't enjoy the teasing, it just caught him off guard, is all.
"Um," Jophiel cleared his throat before responding. "Thank you… anyways, was there something you needed, Jessica?"
"Aside from wanting to meet the curiously kind noble my little cousin has been raving about?" She innocently asked with a wide smile. "I was just thinking you might be bored, since Si-Si mentioned that you can't read our language, so you wouldn't exactly have a book to help pass the time, right?"
...She wasn't incorrect.
"So why don't you come downstairs? Business is really slow today, and it's already dark out so we're unlikely to get any more customers," she gave him puppy dog eyes again. "Please? I could really use the company…"
[Trouble indeed,] Jophiel silently intoned.
"Well… I suppose I don't have much else going on…" He allowed.
"Fantastic!" The long-haired beauty beamed as she took him by the hand and pulled him towards the door. "You can tell me all about your homeland and how different it is from Tristain!"
"Aw jeez," Jophiel groused as he could not resist a girl much smaller than him, as per usual. "Why am I always so powerless before such small girls?"
"Ooh, can't say no to a pretty face, huh?" Jessica started as she turned to give him another cat like grin. "Just the way I like 'em."
"Aw jeez," Jophiel groused again once he realised that she'd be teasing him the entire night.
===
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"Aww jeez."
Hello Morty, I feel your pain
Hello Morty, I feel your pain
Czlyydwr Llrngwl
"Sell ya a door Learn gull," Czly/Celly for short
- Location
- Where the Beef is
- Pronouns
- Any
I don't have anything particularly constructive to say but I am definitely enjoying the fic. Will you be using the anime-only Count Mott incident? As someone who legitimately possesses some significant wealth but no political influence beyond a connection to the (youngest, slightly scandalous and scorned) daughter of a house he's not too fond of, Joe might draw the eye of an unscrupulous tax collector without even the white-knighting-for-Siesta aspect. (Of course, I haven't read the original this is a rewrite of, but with as significant a rewrite as it apparently is from the other comments how you proceeded then wouldn't be a guarantee either.)
Man, even now I can't get over what is Stephen Colbert doing on that cover. Could we finally get an explanation for that in this rewrite?
BakaSmurf
My journey has been one of remarkable floundering
- Location
- Canada
Nope.
Because that's what Colbert looks like in the story?