This will be a one-shot about an idea to make a crossover between Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei and Zero no Tsukaima. If someone wants to use this premise to start their own story feel free to do it, just send me a PM so I can follow the story.
I may continue this story in the future when I am done with my ongoing Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei and Fate/Stay Night fan-fiction, and may start a Naruto story that I've been planning to write after that. Which will take some time of course.
Quick thanks to ChristmasForJuan, the beta-reader for the first four chapters of my other story "Unlimited Rettousei", for pretty much writing this one-shot for me as well. Even though he disagreed with many of my decisions, he was still willing to do this for me.
Yet another ordinary day had come to a close. A bustling mass of students emerged from the gates of First-High's expansive campus, some heading towards their home, while others made preparations for their respective clubs. Hiraga Saito belonged to the latter group.
For Saito, the Magical Engineering Club he belonged to held special meaning. Growing up in a rural town that had been solely inhabited by non-magicians for multiple generations, Saito was the first magicians born to his family. His gift was discovered during his later half of elementary-school, though as opposed to enriching his life, it was more accurate to say that his new classification invited unexpected troubles. As mentioned before, the town he grew up in had been devoid of magicians for several centuries, and while it's inhabitants were obviously aware of their existence, it was inevitable for them to alienate individuals they deemed foreign. Especially so in the case of magicians whom the uneducated masses often labeled as genetically modified androids … an accusation that sadly wasn't too far from the truth in the case of the 28 Families. That being said, Saito's family eventually decided to abandon their rural lifestyle and move to the city, enrolling Saito in a public middle-school which offered magic clubs to embrace their child's newly discovered talent.
However, despite their best attempts to hide it, Saito was painfully aware that his disposition had caused his parents unneeded difficulties, and therefore decided to make use of the gift his parents had tried their best to nurture to provide for his family in the future. Sheerly due to the benefits associated with it, Saito initially considered to become a military magician, an occupation surpassingly popular with the youths in his class. This line thought was immediately abandoned once Saito realized that he simply wasn't fit for indiscriminate slaughter at the command of officials he knew little about.
Instead, he chose the second most popular occupation in the field of magic, the profession of Magic Engineering. Dedicating the remainder of his time in middle-school on familiarizing himself as much as he could with his newly acquired interest, Saito was greeted with an unforgettable spectacle during his last year.
Much like most middle-schools in the past organized excursions to cultural centers in Japan, middle-schools in the modern age would occasionally allow their students to witness the Nine Schools Competition. Out of sheer coincidence, the year that Saito and his class attended the Nine Schools Competition was the year that a certain memorable pair of siblings made their debut on a public stage. In a word, Saito was blown away. While the performance of the players was undoubtedly spectacular, it was obvious to anyone with a basic knowledge of magic that the true victory had belonged to the engineer supporting the players from the shadows. From inventing original magics from scratch, to knowing the Activation Sequences of high-tier magics such as "Phonon Maser", "Niflheim", and "Inferno", the engineer behind First-High's Newcomers Team stunned the audience with an unforgettable performance. Yet, it was the Boy's Monolith Code Event for the Newcomers Division that left it's greatest mark on Saito.
Third-High's Team, headed by Ichijou Masaki himself, had previously been the obvious candidate for victory. While First-High's Engineer caused an entertaining commotion with his feats, in the end he was just that, an exceptional Engineer. Putting someone like that on the field against magicians that already counted as celebrities, most expected the unforeseen winning streak of First-High's hastily created replacement team to be extinguished by the "Crimson Prince". Contrary to their beliefs, Ichijou Masaki, along with the entirety of Third High's Newcomers Team, was defeated by the Second Course Students that served as their opposition.
Shock. Surprise. Excitement. Saito's heart was struck by a myriad of emotional burst at once, but above all, the sensation that lingered was that of "inspiration". The defeat of Ichijou Masaki, counted amongst the most lethal magicians of the new generation, by a nameless student without any previous family history served as an inspiration to the youth who had been born to a family of non-magicians himself. It was from that point on that Saito decided to become like "him".
It went without question that Saito chose to apply to First-High as opposed to Fourth-High, which placed a heavy emphasis on the theoretical aspect of magic highly important in the field of Magic Engineering. Accepted as a First Course Student, Saito immediately sought out the Magic Engineering Club that Tatsuya was the President of, and continued to be a part of it ever since.
Magic.
As opposed to a science meant to be studied, it could just as likely be worshiped as a religion. Such was the case in the fantasy-like world of Halkeginia. Gathered in the courtyard of an ancient medieval castle, a group of robed students were currently engrossed in a traditional ritual serving as their rite of passage. The summoning of one's personal familiar held such importance for the nobles of Halkeginia.
However, a certain pink haired magician seemed especially eager to summon her familiar on that destined day. Rather than to complete this rite for the sake of summoning a life-long companion, this particular girl cared little for the familiar itself, but rather the qualities associated with it. She eagerly awaited the ritual not for the summoning, but in order to prove to her classmates, her family, and most importantly, to herself that she wasn't the laughable failure she had been ridiculed as. That she was not, and will never be, Louise the Zero.
"Now, was that everyone?", a hairless teacher asked the colorful mix of students and familiars before him.
"No, we still have Miss Vallière to go"
"Louise the Zero!"
"What will she summon?"
"There's no way she can summon anything!"
"We'll just have another explosion, nothing else!"
"After all that boasting, you'll summon something more amazing than this little guy, right Louise?"
"Of course!", Louse shouted in response to the last provocation, made by a voluptuous red-haired girl, while trying her best to control the shaking of her arms.
She was nervous, and rightfully so. Not once had she succeeded in even the simplest of magics, so why would this summon ritual be any different? Desperately clinging to a prayer deep within her heart, Louise the Zero raised her wand and focused her magic.
The members of the Magic Engineering club were currently performing the usual maintenance of the CADs kept stored in their clubroom. With this year's Nine Schools Competition over, the busiest period of their year had come and gone and they now had the freedom to focus on their regular activities again. Carrying a suitcase in each hand, one a storage for several spare CADs and the other a Portable Maintenance Kit, Saito currently made his way back to the clubroom after retrieving the two suitcases from the main building. However, just as he entered the familiar clubroom, he immediately noticed the emergence of a mirror-like membrane appearing out of thin air. Hovering in the middle of the room, it remained inactive for the time being.
"What is that thing?", were the mutterings of more than one student in the room.
"Everybody stay away from it!", Tatsuya's order immediately resounded within the confines of the room.
"Senpai, do you know what it is?" asked Saito.
"I have never seen something like that before. In any case, there's little time for asking question. Activate any and all recording devices we have and train them on this phenomena. We have yet to find out what it is, so whatever data we can gather is highly valuable."
Saito comprehended the orders and instinctively moved to carry them out. However, a strange noise halted his body. Rather than the machine-like humming of the numerous recording device being erected around him, it was a human-like cry for help. A plea. Most significantly of all, it was the feeble voice of a girl.
"Did somebody hear that?", Saito asked the busy stream of club members by his side.
"Hear what?"
"That voice…", Saito murmured, turning to Tatsuya for help, "…do you think something is trying to communicate with us?"
"There's no way to know for sure until we've gathered the necessary amount to information. Stay away from it just in case however, we can't be too sure that this isn't the result of hostile Ancient Magicians", Tatsuya replied in a monotone voice, his eyes focused on the cascading string of numbers displayed on multiple monitors.
Yet for Saito, the urging voice he now realized to be reverberating within his mind, grew more intense with each passing second. Though painless, his body was struck by a sensation of numbness. Resisting this temptation … was impossible. Unbeknownst to himself and the other students in the room, Saito's outstretched hand was swallowed by the colorless orb. A flash of light and an audible burst of noise was all that remained, the strange phenomena had left but the scrolling blocks of data captured by the recording devices as the only proof of it's irregular existence.
"Where is Saito?", asked one of the students in the room.
"That idiot. Why he disobey senpai's orders?"
"He said that he heard a voice. Is that in any way connected to this?"
"Now is not the time for speculation. We need to find out what happened as soon as we can!"
Back in the fantastical land of Halkeginia, a commotion no less animated than the one at First-High's Magic Engineering Clubroom currently unfolded.
"Louise, what were you thinking, calling a commoner with 'Summon Servant'?", mocked a student after he got up after the expected explosion had subsided to reveal the figure of a young male.
"I... I just made a little mistake!", the pink-haired girl standing in front of Saito shouted in a refined voice that carried like a bell.
"What mistake are you talking about? Nothing unusual happened."
"Of course! After all, she's Louise the Zero!" someone else said, and the crowd burst into laughter again.
"Mr. Colbert!", the girl, apparently sick of the distasteful jeers, turned to the man seemingly responsible for the class of students.
"What is it that you want from me, Miss Vallière?"
"Please! Let me try the summoning one more time!"
As if pitying the expected plea of the small girl before him, the man by the name of Colbert dejectedly shook his head, "I cannot allow that, Miss Vallière."
"Why not?"
"It is strictly forbidden. When you are promoted to a second year student, you must summon a familiar, which is what you just did. Your elemental specialty is decided by the familiar that you summon. It enables you to advance to the appropriate courses for that element. You cannot change the familiar once you have summoned it because the 'Springtime Familiar Summoning' is a sacred rite. Whether you like it or not, you have no choice but to take him."
"But... I've never heard of having a commoner as a familiar!"
As if rekindled by Louise's desperate voice, crowded laughter became more audible this time.
"This is a tradition, Miss Vallière. I cannot allow any exceptions. He…", Colbert intentionally paused as he pointed towards Saito with his fingers, "…he may be a commoner, but as long as he was summoned by you, he must be your familiar. Never in history has a human been summoned as a familiar, but the Springtime Familiar Summoning takes precedence over every rule. In other words, there is no other way around it; he must become your familiar."
"You have got to be joking…" Louise drooped her shoulders in disappointment.
"Well then, continue with the ceremony."
"With him?"
"Yes, with him. Hurry. The next class will begin any minute. How much more time is this summoning going to take? After mistake upon mistake, you have finally managed to summon him. Hurry and form a contract."
Though not congruent with Louise's expectations, she had at least succeeded the summoning ritual which meant that her position as a noble was secured for now. Regardless of how small, a tiny speck of relief soothed her humiliated pride. Walking towards the boy whose demeanor implied that he had not a single idea what exactly had happened to him, Louise boldly ceased his squirming by grasping his collar and sealed the contract with a kiss. At a moments notice, a scalding sensation assaulted Saito's whole body as a side effect of Louise magically imprinting her presence into the body of her summoned familiar. As proof of this process, a series of foreign runes painfully engraved themselves into the back of Saito's left hand. Saito, who had never experienced pain before, blanked out before the procedure ended. Colbert confirmed Louise's success and promptly levitated Saito and his belongings to Louise's quarters after assuring his student that he would regain his consciousness if he was allowed to rest for the night.
Rest he sadly did not receive.
Waking up to the shock of ice water being poured over his face, Saito immediately took in the view of the same pink haired girl from the day before towering before him, bucket in hand. Whatever words she uttered were incomprehensible to him, but seeing how her and the other students from yesterday had seemed rather calm in response to his sudden appearance, he figured that they might have methods of understanding him instead.
"Sorry, but I do not understand you. Can you tell me what this place is and how I got here?"
Much like Saito expected, the little girl replied in a foreign language once again, only this time seeming a bit more frustrated.
"As I said, I have no idea what you are saying. Can you understand Japanese at all?"
This time the girl gave up on communication and merely walked towards a cupboard close to her to retrieve a small wooden wand. As she went on to mutter a few words, Saito only looked at her silly movement in confusion before instantly eating a painful explosion with his face.
"What was that for?!", Saito shouted, each word coughing up a cloud of charred smoke.
"Oh I can understand you now! That is strange … that spell was supposed to silence you though…"
"What?! Why would you do something like that?"
"Because there is no need for a dog to talk."
"Dog you said!?"
"Yes you are my dog and you should feel honored as such. After all, you will be serving none other but Louise Françoise Le Blanc de La Vallière as a familiar."
"Dog? Familiar?", Saito spat out, each word resounding with less composure.
"Yes, the Vallière family is a rather important family in this country, so you should thankful for the opportunity to serve this household."
A declaration haughtily stated as if it were a matter of fact, Louise simply started to undress herself in a manner too nonchalant for Saito to comprehend. Should a girl really be behaving like this in front of a similarly aged boy?
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
"I need to get ready for the day"
"With me still in the room?! You are alright with showing your naked body to any random stranger walking into your room?!"
"What? Didn't you listen to me? You are not a man, you are nothing but a mere dog. Now stop this nonsense and help me get dressed. You better hurry up too, considering that you still have to wash my clothes as well."
It was precisely that moment when Saito decided that he had enough.
"You know what? You can fuck yourself."
"What did you just say?"
"Did you not hear me or do I need to spell it out for you?", said Saito with defiance.
"YOU DOG NEED TO BE PUNISHED!", cried Louise as she raised her wand in preparation for yet another spell.
However, before she could even get started on her chant, Saito had already rushed in in an attempt to restrain her petite body.
"RELEASE ME YOU DIRTY DOG!"
Applying a bit more strength to her wrists, Saito manage to wrestle her wand out of her hold and watched it roll off into the far corner of the bedroom. Freeing herself, Louise immediately chased after her magic medium only to realize that her familiar, along with the two suitcases that presumably belonged to him, had long since vanished.
"YOU DIRTY DOG. WHEN I FIND YOU, YOU WILL NOT HAVE FOOD FOR A MONTH!"
Still within earshot of his pink haired "master", Saito swiftly rushed down the corridor with his belongings in hand. Spotting an empty window, he momentarily halted his movement before leaping outside and using Speed-Type Magic to cushion his fall. Though it was merely the use of Simple Systematic Magic with a single process, Saito wore a visible frown as he was once again reminded of the difference between invoking Magic with and without a CAD. Regardless, his first priority was to analyze the current situation.
"OK, I am in a strange world with a completely different way of using Magic. This doesn't seem to be an illusion and I don't think I've been kidnapped either. In the conventional sense at least.", Saito ruminated before deciding to inspect the contents of the suitcases he brought with him.
"Luckily I brought my own bracelet-type generalized CAD, but there also seem to be two pistol-shaped specialized CADs, a belt-type flying device, and a katana-shaped weaponized CAD optimized for 'Sonic Blade'. Speaking of which, that was supposed to be a training device meant for Kirihara-senpai…"
Using the Portable Maintenance Kit present in the second suitcase to adjust all available CADs to his personal Psion Signature, Saito exchanged his standard belt for the flying device, stored the two pistol-shaped CADs in his uniform jacket, and equipped the sheath for the weaponized CAD on his back.
"Excuse me", out of nowhere, the presence of a girl appeared out of nowhere.
Jumping to his feat in a heartbeat, Saito scanned the surroundings to find a black haired maid regarding him with a curious stare.
"Are you by any chance the one who became Miss Vallière's familiar…?", asked the girl.
"Not if I have a say in that," Saito asserted with a firm tone, "that girl actually thinks that she can take me from my home and still believe that I would feel honored to serve under her."
"I guess … by the way my name is Siesta."
"Nice to meet you Siesta, my name is Saito Hiraga."
Coinciding with his self-introduction, Saito's stomach began to growl before he was done talking.
"I am sorry. I didn't expect to come here so I didn't have the chance to eat anything before all this happened."
"In that case follow me, I'm sure that I can get you something at least."
"Thanks, you're a life saver."
And just like that, without giving it any thought whatsoever, Saito enjoyed his first meal in the foreign world he found himself in.
"Thanks a lot Siesta, you saved me."
"Anybody would have helped you out really."
"Still, judging by how I've been treated this far, I really appreciate your kindness."
"What will you do now?"
"Find a way to go home."
"What about your contract with your master?"
"Like I care about that girl. I'm nobody's slave."
"In that case I wish you good luck."
"Thanks. I better leave or else you'll also be targeted by that pink demon of mine", Saito joked, eliciting a timid laugh from the maid called Siesta.
Exploring the grounds of the massive castle once more, Saito spotted a group of students apparently involved in an argument, or more accurately, two girls collectively accusing a blonde boy of unchaste behavior. While that alone spurred on Saito's unwarranted dislike of that man, he decided to at least hold up standard decorum after noticing a discarded perfume bottle on the ground next to the accused. Going by his eccentric and borderline narcissistic demeanor, Saito naturally thought it to belong to him.
"You dropped this", Saito casually placed the lone perfume bottle on the table in front of the blonde boy and resumed his tour of the castle without giving his actions too much thought.
However.
"Stop right there you plebeian!", the blonde stopped him after Saito had barely taken a single step away from him.
"Do you want something?"
"You plebeian, how do you plan to make up for damaging the reputation of those innocents maidens?"
"Excuse me, but this is your fault for being a a two-timer."
"HAHA, he is right Guiche!", a distasteful jeer, reminiscent of those Saito heard the day before, rang out in agreement to Saito's response.
Yet, the gathering commotion only served to worsen the blonde's mood.
"You should go ahead and fall on your knees to beg these two maidens for forgiveness!"
"I do not kneel before anyone", Saito retorted once again, this whole situation starting to get on his nerves.
"In that case I will have to teach you a lesson. I Guiche de Grammont challenge you to a duel!"
"Wait a second!", a familiar voice called out from the other side of the crowd, a voice Saito unfortunately knew very well.
"You cannot fight him since duels are forbidden."
"Only when they are between nobles, this commoner doesn't count. Besides if you can't teach him manners, I will have to discipline him for you", turning to Saito, the boy named Guiche haughty looked down on him, "I will wait for you in the main courtyard in five minutes. Don't be late commoner."
Dropping his last provocation, Guiche and his friends promptly left.
"You stupid dog, you must go and beg for forgiveness!"
"That will not happen."
"You must do as I say! I am your master!"
"Between you and me, you are the only one that believe that."
"I summoned you here, so you must follow my orders!"
"So it is your fault that I am here. OK, when I am done with that idiot you and I will have a serious conversation then."
Unwilling to continue the pointless conversation with Louise, Saito left for the main courtyard he had passed earlier with Siesta.
"I see that you didn't run. I must say that you are quite brave for a commoner", boasted Guiche.
"Let's just get this over with", stated Saito.
"You are in a hurry to die? Ok, then I shall grant you your wish. I would offer you a sword but I see that you already have one", preparing himself for the fight, Guiche continued, "I am Guiche de Grammont also known as Guiche the Bronze, son of General Grammont."
"I am .."
"Only nobles are allowed to introduce themselves in duels, and since you are just a commoner this will be more a punishment than a duel anyway" Guiche explained as he used the petals of a rose to casually summon five bronze golems.
"These beautiful creations are the reason why I am known as 'The Bronze', and they will be more than enough to teach you a lesson. If you don't want to get hurt you better start begging now."
"You talk too much you idiot", Saito replied as he studied his enemy.
"Are those creatures illusions or battle avatars like the ones used by the GAA? In any case, that idiot does not look like a close combat type."
Activating his personal bracelet-shaped CAD, Saito performed an act the surrounding crowd had thought impossible of him. Raising his hand to point at the space above him, Saito caused a rain of ice spears to rain down on and destroy each and every one of Guiche's golems.
Everybody was taken aback. Silence dominated the battlefield. To think that the Zero's familiar would be capable of using a type of magic that had never before been witnessed was simply that much of a shock. To think that the Zero's familiar had been a noble all along?
"No this isn't happening … it must be a trick!", Guiche tried to make sense of the revelation as he continued to summon more golems.
This time Saito returned his bracelet-type CAD to standby mode and took hold of his katana-shaped CAD worn on his back. Unsheathing it and activating the incorporated Activation Sequence within the device, Saito's residual psion light coated the sword in a dull light.
"A magic sword!", someone exclaimed.
Dashing forward with unprecedented swiftness, Saito's weaponized CAD destroyed the new batch of golems before finding it's way to Guiche's throat.
"Do you want me to continue?" asked Saito with a dangerous tone.
"I give up! I give up!"
"Good choice" Saito boasted with a smile, never once noticing the faint glow on his left hand.
"As I was saying before, my name is Saito Hiraga, first year student at First Magic High-School of Japan and I…", Saito shouted as he made his way to Louise, "…want my answers now!"
"Now you", Saito said as he pointed the tip of his sword at Louise, "better had a good explanation for this situation, and a way to send me home. If not there might be some trouble."
"WAIT!"
The voice of a man suddenly called out from behind Saito, and he immediately recognized him to be the teacher from the day before.
"I cannot allow you to hurt one of our students."
"Then we will have a problem if this girl doesn't give me my answers", Saito threatened, his sword still pointed straight at the pink haired girl.
"I am sure we can understand each other if we talk this out in private."
"So far none of you magicians have left me with a good impression, and I have no reason to believe that you will be any better."
"At least allow us the opportunity to explain the situation", insisted Colbert.
"You want a chance? Fine! I will tell you what we will do. I will ask the questions and you will answer. No exceptions or I'll get mad", emphasizing the point, Saito further reduced the distance between his sword and Louise's neck.
"First question, what is this place?"
Aware of how serious the situation had gotten, Colbert decided to answer the crazed boy in an attempt to calm him. Seeing how he was capable of using unfamiliar magic, it would be too dangerous to challenge him with this many students around.
"This is the Tristain Academy of Magic."
"And where the hell is that?"
"On Tristan of course."
"And where is that?"
"On Halkeginia."
"Never hear of it."
"You have never heard of Halkeginia?"
"Never heard that name in my entire life. Next question. Why did you bring me here?"
"Yesterday we were performing a ceremony for summoning familiars, and in response to Miss Vallière's calling you appeared."
"Familiar? That is what you expect me to be?! Well sorry to destroy your little dream, but that will never happen. I don't know these things are handled in your country, but back in my world kidnappings are a pretty big deal. Once I get out of here you can be assured that you'll be punished appropriately."
"We know and we are sorry for any inconveniences, but I am sure that if we take this to the principal we will be able to find a solution."
Saito briefly considered the new offer before nodding, "Ok, but don't expect me to be this girl's servant", Saito said as he finally removed the blade from Louise's neck.
"We understand and will not force you into this. Miss Vallière, it will better if you come with us to explain this situation to Mr. Osmond."
Once the situation was resolved, Saito, Louise, and Osmond headed towards the principal's office, leaving the confused mass of students behind to ponder what they had just been a witness to.
Confusion dominated the campus of First High, it's origin being the headquarters for the Magic Engineering Club. Students and adults alike darted back in forth in an overwhelming mass of bodies, each trying to unveil the mysterious phenomena that had occurred but a few hours ago.
"Any idea how this happened?", one of the adults asked the president of the affected club, Tatsuya.
"No, we still have no idea how or even what had happened before it was too late."
"Could this have been an consequence of any experiments performed during that time?"
"No. Neither us, nor any other clubs were scheduled to perform any experiments today. However, we were able to gather a little bit of data before the phenomena disappeared."
"Any idea what it was?"
"I am not sure, but seeing how not a trace of our club member's body was left, we have reason to believe it was some sort of transportation method."
"Transportation? Meaning Teleportation? That is absurd."
"I am aware of that, but that is the only explanation we have thus far. We have already sent a proposal to FLT in hopes of involving Taurus Silver in this project. Whehter or not this phenomena is absurd, a method of instant and complete teleportation would be immensely beneficial for the development of yet undiscovered scientific advancements. I believe that alone would be enough to garner the interest of scientists all around Japan."
"Taurus Silver… then what are we going to do next."
"Analyzing and replacing the phenomena comes first. After that, the only thing left would be entering the tunnel … what comes after, even I don't know."