As the chair and table were burning, Louise stood up slowly. It was a pitiful sight. Her clothes were scorched and her clear complexion was covered in soot. Totally ignoring the chaos within the classroom, she grabbed Mr. Colbert’s arm and whispered, “Mr. Colbert. That machine of yours breaks quite easily.”
Mr Colbert didn’t reply, feeling faint headed. The students replied for him, “It’s you who broke it! You Zero! Louise the Zero!”
“Never mind that, there’s a fire! Someone put it out!”
Montmorency stood up and recited a spell. It was the water spell ‘Water Shield’. The barrier of water extinguished the fire and the students applauded Montmorency. Montmorency, as if she had triumphed, said to Louise, “I wonder if that was unnecessary. After all, you’re such a skilled mage and that was such a weak fire.”
Angry, Louise bit her lip.
It was night by the time the classroom was cleaned up. Tidying up the chairs and desks and wiping the floor was a big task. Exhausted, Louise and Saito returned to their room. Saito collapsed on his haystack. Louise sat down on her bed. It was almost time for bed. Out of habit, Saito went to the closet to get Louise’s clothes. Louise, however, suddenly stood up.
“W-What are you doing?”
Louise blushed and did not reply. Her hands gripped the sheets and she started hanging them from her bedposts. The sheets acted as a curtain and hid her bed. Watching Saito out of the corner of her eyes, she went to the closet, found her clothes, and returned to bed. Saito could hear the ruffling of clothes as she changed behind the curtain. Depressed, Saito returned to his haystack.
She doesn’t want to be seen by someone like me. Even if I see you, I won’t do anything strange. I won’t even look anymore. I’m not the hungry wolf you think I am … I’m a mole. Well, you were kissed by a mole, but that was when I got carried away, I made a mistake. I won’t ever do it again, Louise. I’ll watch over you properly. This homely mole will watch over you from this haystack.
Saito endlessly tortured himself with these thoughts. The curtain was taken down. Wearing a negligee, Louise was bathed in moonlight, her hair flowing smoothly. The brilliant moonlight accentuated her divine beauty. After combing her hair with her hands, she lay down and switched off the lamp on her bedside table with a flick of her wand. It was a magic lamp that would switch off at the signal of its master. It wasn’t exactly special, but it seemed like something expensive. With the moonlight bathing the room, the atmosphere felt ethereal.
Just as Saito was about to fall asleep, Louise sat up and called out, “Hey, Saito.”
“Yes?”
“Always sleeping on the floor is a bit extreme …you can, er, sleep on the bed if you want.”
Saito’s body stiffened, “W-What?”
“Don’t get the wrong idea! I’ll hit you if you do anything strange.”
Saito was overwhelmed. “Ah, Louise you really are kind, aren’t you. It’s like you’ve changed completely. That harsh experience really did change you…You’re even becoming kind to a disgusting mole like me.” With every inch closer to the bed, his pulse seemed to double. Louise faced the window, wrapped up in the blanket on the edge of the bed.
“Is it… ok? Even for me? A mole?”
“Yes, it’s ok, don’t make me say the same thing. What do you mean a mole?”
Saito slipped into the bed and covered himself with the blanket.
“Sorry.”
He had to apologize for getting carried away and kissing her. He felt he had to. Saito whispered, “Sorry … for kissing you like that.”
Louise didn’t reply.
Saito thought she was sleeping, but it didn’t sound like it. Saito continued, “I've … decided before then that I would protect you as I had promised Prince Wales.”
“Not only from enemies, but also from my own desires as well. I can’t say I’ve done a good job of protecting you so far, so, I’m sorry.” said Saito, who was now clearly voicing his thoughts.
Louise replied in a small voice, “It’s fine, don’t worry about it.”
Saito grasped the blanket and whispered, “I won’t do it again.”
“Of course.” replied Louise.
She started to talk, as if determined to tell Saito something.
“...but, I too have to apologize. Sorry, for just summoning you.”
“That’s ok. It’s not good, but it’s alright.”
“I’ll find a way for you to return home. I don’t know how, but I will. I've never heard of another world before.”
“Thanks,” Saito felt relieved.
Squirming a bit, Louise asked Saito, “Your world … there aren’t any mages there right?”
“Nope.”
“There’s only one moon?”
“Only one.”
“That’s weird.”
“No it’s not, it’s this world that’s weird, mages and stuff.”
“What were you doing in that world?”
“I was a high school student.”
“High school student?”
“Well it’s not much different from being a student here, I guess. Studying is kind of your job.”
“What do people do when they grow up?”
Louise started to bombard Saito with questions. While wondering why, Saito replied, “Hmm, a company employee perhaps, that’s the most common.”
“What’s a company employee?”
He became slightly irritated, but replied, “You work and you earn money.”
“I don’t really understand … but is that what you want to become?”
Saito remained silent. He hadn’t thought of what he wanted to do in the future. He spent his days doing what he liked. His future was neither bright nor dark. Thinking this state of affairs would last forever, he just absentmindedly attended school. Saito was a bit troubled by his reply, “I dunno. I haven’t really thought about it.”
“Wardes said you were a legendary familiar. Those runes on the back of your hand are apparently the mark of Gandálfr.”
“I don’t really understand, but it seems that Gandálfr is meant to use the sword Derflinger.”
“I wonder if that’s true…”
“Well it has to be, I couldn’t use a sword like Derflinger normally.”
“Then, why can’t I use magic? You’re a legendary familiar, yet I’m Louise the Zero. Ugh.”
“I don’t know.”
Louise remained silent for a while. Then she spoke in a serious tone, “You know, I want to become a great mage. I don’t mean a very powerful mage. I just want to be able to cast spells properly. I don’t want to fail every spell I cast and not even know which branch of magic I’m good at.”
Saito remembered the class they had earlier. As usual, Louise had failed.
“Ever since I was small, I was told I was hopeless. My father and mother didn’t expect anything of me. I was always treated like an idiot, always called Zero … I really don’t have any skill. There isn’t a branch of magic that I’m good at. I’m even clumsy at reciting incantations. I get it. My teachers, mother and sisters have said it. When you recite an incantation for a spell in your branch of magic, something within your body responds and it circulates within your body. When that rhythm is at a climax, it means that the spell is completed. I have never felt that before.”
Louise’s voice became smaller, “But, I want to at least be able to do things like everyone else. Otherwise, I get the feeling I won’t be content with myself.”
Louise became silent once more. Saito did not know what to say to comfort her. Some time passed before Saito began to speak.
“Even if you can’t use magic … you’re normal. Not just normal … you’re cute. And you’ve been so kind recently as well. You have your own qualities. Even if you can’t use magic, you’re a great person…”