33Chapter 4
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"I'm… gonna… die… ugh." Huffing like a steam engine Saito dropped to the ground with an audible thud.
"Don't be such a drama queen, it was only 6 laps around the academy. You need to work on your cardio, and fast." Izuku replied from nearby. In contrast to his fellow familiar who was sweating like crazy and struggling to breathe, the green haired hero didn't have the slightest problem with his condition.
"I'm not… a freaking super human... like you…" The raven haired teen replied in between his gasps for air.
"Maybe, but a normal human body is capable of running for more than twenty four minutes. Don't worry, I'm just trying to gauge where you stand right now so I could create an optimal training plan for you. The real deal will be much more painful." Deku replied nonchalantly while going through the cooldowns after the run, more from the habit and boredom than anything else.
"You're joking, right?" At last managing to calm down his breathing Saito asked while lifting himself into a sitting position.
"Not really, but I need to ask Lady Louise first. I can't leave you half dead at the end of all future training sessions, you are acting as her familiar right now." The greenette replied, going through the splits.
"I was meaning to ask, are you really okay with this whole business? Yesterday you acted like a butler for that girl, what are you planning?" Deciding that doing some stretches after a workout was a good idea, Saito asked while trying to mimic what his new friend was doing.
"Hmm… I didn't lie when I said that I need to go home. But at the same time it's not like I'm so irreplaceable that everything will collapse without me. You could say that I'm treating this whole thing like one big vacation from all of my duties and worries." Izuku replied while performing a handstand and starting to do push-ups in that position after seeing his companion struggle to keep up.
"Ugh… showoff…"
"It's easier to enjoy things when you go with the flow, you know? I'm acting this way because I read a few novels with characters like this. One of my classmates really liked such books. She always seemed to be so engrossed in them, sitting in an armchair with a cup of tea. Oh, and this really helps too!" Not stopping his handstand push-ups he switched to using only one hand while using his quirk to summon a book. He threw it to his companion who barely managed to catch it before it fell to the ground.
"Time traveler guide for dummies : How to not lose your head in renaissance France... Are you shitting me?!" The black haired teen exclaimed after reading the title.
"Don't look at me like that… I like to read in my down time and this series of books is at the same time humorous and educational. You don't need to read the whole thing, the most important stuff is in chapters nine to thirteen. It's about noble conduct, social cues and other things like that. Take it with a grain of salt though, it's a book about social hierarchy from more than 500 years ago in another world." Izuku replied while standing back on his feet.
"What happened yesterday was a fluke, something that we shouldn't try to count on in the future. You acted too rash and without thinking, if I would be late and that blondie would start the duel it could have ended really nasty for you." The greenette continued while looking at the sky. "Louise calls you her dog, and whether we like it or not that analogy does fit. In the light of their law we are a property of the mage that summoned us. What do you think would happen back home if your dog would attack a passerby?" He asked while slowly starting to go back to the academy entrance.
"It depends… but in the worst cases the dog would be put down and the owner penalized." Saito replied while following after him.
"I think there is no need for further explanation here right? I'm not too worried about my own safety, but you need to be more careful about how you go about doing things. I'm going to help you in any way I can but I'm only one person, I can only be in one place at a time." Izuku said in a stern voice, his eyes casted down.
"Yeah… thanks for that. So what do you suggest? Do I go full butler like you?" Saito asked back, a bit resigned.
"Hahaha, goodness no. We both know that you wouldn't be able to pull off something like that without fucking up." The greenette laughed heartily.
"Geez, thanks for the confidence…"
"Hmm… taking into consideration your new abilities maybe something more in line with what a bodyguard would do? A warrior protecting a noble lady, how does that sound? You should ask her to provide you with a weapon, probably a sword." Deku replied while stroking his chin in thought.
"You are having way too much fun with all this…" Saito mumbled to himself.
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"I still think that we should let them ride with us…" Montmorency commented for the sixth time from their departure, her sister only scoffing at the notion.
"You heard your familiar, Saito needs to exercise so he is exercising. It's not my fault that Deku decided to accompany him." Louise replied nonchalantly.
They were traveling to a town that was nearest to the Academy in search for a smithy or a weapon shop. Hearing that her familiar needs a weapon to use his abilities the pink haired mage immediately decided that she will acquire one for him, rather happy that her servant could prove to not be as useless as she thought in the beginning.
They were traveling for more than forty minutes now and would for around another hour, causing the ravenette to be a bit nervous about the state of their familiars.
"Mister Saito was a bit tired already after their morning exercises, maybe it would be a good idea to let him rest for now?"
"Hmph, if he can't run for a few kilometers then it's not my fault." The pinkette replied, but leaned to the driver's window to signal him to stop anyway. "But I think that letting him rest a bit is a good idea, I'm not going to carry his new weapon or worse, Saito himself." She continued, the carriage coming to a gentle stop.
Montmorency was about to open the doors but they opened from the outside by themselves. To her relief Izuku stood just to the side, already offering his hand to help her step out. The form of the other familiar slung around his broad shoulders like a sack of potatoes gave her a bit of a pause, the black haired man looking as if his soul was about to leave his body.
"Is there a reason for this stop, Lady Montmorency? I thought that we would go directly to the town?" The green haired hero asked with a polite smile, not even a bead of sweat on his face. The beautiful military-like uniform that he wore was as immaculate as before the start of their journey. He offered his hand to the other girl too, just after his master disembarked the carriage.
"We thought that it would be good to let you two rest before we reach the town, but it looks like only this weak dog of mine needs it…" Louise commented after seeing the state of her familiar.
"Ah, that would be good for Saito here. I fear that we made him push the limits a bit too much for the first time, he fainted around twenty minutes ago." Izuku replied while shifting the barely conscious man so he would rest in his arms instead.
"Wait, y-you were carrying him for this whole t-time? I-I know that you are powerful but to carry a-another person and keep up with a carriage for so long? Why didn't you tell us e-earlier?" Momo asked while trying to wrap her mind around that. It's not that such feats were impossible, but her familiar did it while keeping his clothes clean and presentable, not to mention that he didn't look tired at all.
"After assessing that my companion here just passed out I decided to use the opportunity to stretch my legs a bit. It was much easier than I thought it would be… Saito is surprisingly light." Izuku replied with a small smile. His long patrols took so much time that he rarely had any to properly sleep, not to mention go to a gym and workout. This jog through a vast forest and now a grassy field was even relaxing.
After a short stop to rest, the four of them got inside the carriage. Izuku and Saito sat opposite to their masters, with the green haired hero needing to squeeze in a bit because of his height.
"It's the first time for me to drive such a vehicle, it's surprisingly shaky." Izuku commented after a while, his bigger than normal frame making it a bit awkward but he didn't seem to mind.
"Aren't you supposedly one of the strongest warriors in your country? To not even be able to afford a carriage… that's ridiculous." Louise replied while sending a glare to her barely conscious familiar.
"Ah, it's a bit more complicated than that, Lady Louise. The usage of vehicles pulled by animals was practically abandoned in favor of using machines, we call them cars or automobiles. I don't believe I even saw a real horse before today, they are a heavily endangered species back home." He explained, the two girls looking at him as if they couldn't imagine such a thing.
"You surely jest. The amount of magic needed to move a carriage without a horse or a dragon would be too high, not to mention that any noble that you would ask to do that would decline immediately." The pinkette scoffed a bit, her eyes searching his face for any signs of deception.
"Didn't I tell you already my Lady that where I come from there is no magic? We are using science instead, understanding the laws of nature to bend it a little to our will." He tried to explain again, relaxing into the too small seat.
"I don't believe you." Louise said with a huff.
Montmorency looked between the two, clearly nervous from the interaction between them. She too had a few doubts about the stories her familiar told but telling him that in such a way like her sister just did would be really rude.
"I can show you, Lady Louise." Izuku said after a few more moments passed, a strange rectangular box materialized in his hand. It was heavily worn out in blue, red and gold colors with a black plane of glass on one side that lighted up in brilliant colors. He tapped a few times on the strange thing to the confusion of both girls but when he turned it around the two of them just stared in disbelief at it.
A city reaching the skies, large towers made of glass that sparked in the orange setting sun on the horizon.
Then with a swipe of a finger from the green giant it changes into a picture of a giant H shaped building, also made of glass and from the perspective it was shown it was clear that it has to be massive.
Izuku showed them a few more pictures, a few of the city and a couple others. He showed them a short movie he took while flying around the city on a patrol. The sight of small metal carriages with large windows moving by themselves was rather strange but proved that the greenette wasn't laying.
Time flew by quite quickly, with the two girls asking questions and the green haired hero answering them. Just before they arrived in the city Saito woke up, extremely tired but somewhat able to function. Izuku felt a bit of a connection with his fellow familiar, remembering the early days when he started training under All Might. The long sessions of hauling trash followed by calisthenics and weight training didn't allow him to really feel rested at first, his muscles screaming for help with no one to hear.
Feeling the carriage stop, the green haired teen opened the doors and stepped out, offering his hand to his 'master' in a slight bow. The raven haired girl accepted the gesture with a slight blush, stepping out of the vehicle with his help. Izuku did the same to Louise, who only sent an annoyed glare to her own familiar who looked a bit dumbfounded by the situation.
They were in the front of a beautifully decorated building with large windows and a sign probably stating its name. The problem was that Izuku couldn't read what was on it, something that he didn't really expect.
"Lady Montmorency, could you tell me what the name of this establishment is for future reference?" He asked, still trying to decipher the strange letters.
"It's called the White Rose. It's one of the academy estates in the surrounding towns for students or teachers to stay in if they can't make it back before nightfall." The ravenette replied, observing how her familiar scrunched his brow a bit.
"Hmm… It seems that the spell that allows us to speak and understand Tristainian doesn't extend to written text." He said back, giving her a small smile.
"Well… I could try to teach you in my free time?" She proposed shyly.
"Thank you my Lady, that would be an honor."
"Okay, me and Saito are going to the shopping district to find some weapons for him. What are you two going to do?" Louise asked, looking with displeasure at her familiar that looked ready to fall over.
"I think that we could accompany you, what do you think Sir Deku?" Momo asked.
"I would be delighted. The technology and architecture used in this area is foreign to me, it's intriguing." He replied with another small bow.
"See that you dog? Why can't you be like him?" The petit pink haired girl grumbled, sending a glare at her family who just sighed.
"Sorry for not being a super powered, hero, butler wannabe…" Saito mumbled back under his breath, starting to follow his master.
With his own master falling in step after them, Izuku started to follow on her flank, half a step behind.
Looking around, the green haired hero couldn't help but compare the city to some kind of extremely realistic, medieval theme park. Most of the buildings were made out of wood, some didn't even have any glass in the windows. Only a few buildings had tiled roofs, nearly all of them were made of thatch. Funnily enough, it would cost a fortune to build something like this back home. Maybe if one would use a quirk like Kamui Wood's Arbor it could be done cheaper but concrete and steel were much easier to work with. Not to mention that a lot of the populace had enough power to destroy a building like that, probably by accident too.
The four of them continued down a wide street, getting the attention of all the people they passed. Being more than used to that, Izuku smiled gently at the crowds while keeping an eye out for any problems. There were a few people with weapons like swords, axes or maces but nobody was even paying attention to them.
"There are a lot of armed people milling around, is there a reason for that?" Saito asked what was on the greenette's mind.
"Those are the members of the kingdom's mercenary guild, they can be identified by the circular medal they wear somewhere on their person. They work as guards for hire or other such menial tasks." Louise explained with a huff.
And just like she said, there were circular metal medals fastened to the armors or belts of those people with what Izuku could recognize as the kingdom's crest on it with some text on the rim.
After another fifteen minutes they found themselves in a large wooden building, a sign with two swords crossed over a shield hanging beside the doors. From the entrance one could see row after row of weapons and armors in all sizes and forms.
"Welcome! Welcome! What can I help you with?" The voice of the shopkeeper greeted them from behind the counter after hearing the doorbell that rang with them entering. A barrel chested man showed up from the backroom shortly after, clad in an apron covered slightly in oil and dirt. Seeing the four of them his face immediately lit up, probably counting on a rather large purchase from them.
"I need a sword for my servant." Luise immediately ordered with authority, raising her head high and puffing out her chest.
"Of course, my Lady. Recently I received a shipment straight from Germania, the works of many famous weaponsmiths!" The shopkeeper exclaimed, walking off to get the merchandise.
"This is really impressive, I never saw so many medieval weapons in one place." Izuku commented, walking closer to an armor stand. A full plate armor stood there in all its glory, even if clearly second hand. A few places had small dents out scratches but otherwise it looked to still be a solid piece of protective gear.
"You never went to a museum?" His fellow familiar asked from the other side of the room, scanning through the large, two handed swords that were displayed on a wall rack.
"On the contrary, I really like to visit whenever I have the time. It's just that after the third world war and the consecutive quirk wars there's really not that much left from so long ago." The greenette replied while moving his attention to a barrel of swords, quite a few of them in disrepair.
"Here we go!" The shopkeeper exclaimed, getting back their attention. With a small grunt the older man carried in quite a large crate and started presenting his wares.
"This here is the best sword my shop received in years. It was made by a renowned smith, Sir Heinz Doofershmirtz himself! Such a weapon would certainly be one worthy to be used by your esteemed servant my Lady!" Saying that, he presented a beautifully decorated golden blade, a few finely polished precious gems decorated its pommel and handguard.
"Then I take it!" Not even thinking for a second the pinkette agreed, clearly enamored by the beautiful luster.
"Of course! I'm a bit reluctant to part with such a masterpiece, but for a measly two thousand and five hundred gold coins! My loss, but at least this fine blade will be put to good use in defending such an esteemed Lady!" To his words the pink haired girl grimaced a bit, looking back to Momo who was just observing from beside her own familiar.
"Lady Louise, if I may?" Izuku interjected.
"Yes?"
"I believe that this weapon wouldn't suit Saito. It's clearly a decorative piece while we need something that he could learn swordsmanship with." The green hero said, gesturing to the barrel of swords he was standing by.
"Young man, as a swordmaster myself, I can guarantee that this sword would be ideal for learning swordsmanship." The shopkeeper replied with a small frown directed at the medling greenette but didn't try to push. The green haired giant in a military uniform wasn't looking like someone he could try to mess with.
"I.. I think that Sir Deku is right. We don't have such a large budget to spend on a single item either." Momo shyly agreed.
"... Fine! What do you suggest?" Ignoring the shopkeeper, Louise asked her sister's familiar.
"Hmm… taking into consideration Saito's height and muscle mass…" Mumbling slightly to himself, Izuku looked over the available options with his fellow familiar joining in.
"You know lad, you seem awfully familiar… I can't place it from where, though…" A male voice suddenly resounded from the barrel beside the one Izuku was rummaging through.
Looking over to the source, he saw a one and a half handed sword that seemed to be slightly different. It was covered with rust and grime but his instincts were telling him that this blade was unlike any other.
"And who might you be?" He asked, carefully taking the sword out from between the rest.
"That's Derflinger, a talking sword. It's just annoying, probably some mage's experiment gone wrong." The shopkeeper explained with an angry huff.
"I'll take it!" Saito happily announced, taking the blade from Izuku. His runes immediately started to glow faintly as if in acceptance of his choice.
"Well then… take good care of me, partner!" The blade cackled slightly, making a soft clinking noise.
Scrunching her face a bit, Louise reluctantly agreed to buy Derflinger for her familiar even though she was already rapidly starting to regret it as the two of them started to talk like old friends.
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"Too slow, again!" Flinching slightly from how hard her sister's familiar fell to the ground, Momo observed how her own didn't even seem to have a single bead of sweat on his forehead.
"Oh my… I could watch this all day~." Her Germanian friend sighed dreamily, devouring the green haired familiar with her eyes.
With a progressively growing blush on her face, the raven haired girl could agree with that statement. The skin tight, dark green shirt he was wearing right now didn't leave anything to the imagination.
After returning from their trip, Sir Deku immediately wanted to start their training, which Louise agreed on. Now they were sitting under an umbrella that provided a bit of shade from the afternoon sun that Sir Deku set up for them, he even asked a maid for help, the same one that Saito fought in defense of.
A metallic clang resounded through the courtyard as Saito once more clashed his blade against a metal pole that Izuku manifested with one of those strange spells of his. The exchange started anew, the greenette being on defense while his opponent was trying to push with offense. That was until Izuku sidestepped one of the slashes and tripped his opponent by pushing away one of his legs to make him fall.
"Don't extend yourself so much while attacking. You are creating openings such as this, more experienced enemies can capitalize on it." He instructed, extending a helping hand to the heavily breathing Saito.
"How… how are you… so good at this…" The sword wielding boy rasped out in between his breaths, wiping his forehead into his shirt.
"I have combat training as well as experience in fighting against powerful opponent's. Don't worry, it's just a lot of practice." The greenette replied. "Let's end for today. You still need to fulfill your duties as a familiar."
"Ugh…" Saito groaned, remembering that he still needed to listen to his 'master' with anger issues.
"Try to get some sleep, we will start with another training session after breakfast." Izuku chuckled at his new friend's defeated expression, reminiscing how hard it was for him at the very start of All Might's 'American Dream Plan'.
Walking back to his 'master', Deku dismissed his training weapon that disappeared into green particles. He could feel the eyes of the red headed girl on him, looking him over like a piece of fine meat. The blue haired girl that was also a part of that group sat silently, reading a book while gently rubbing her dragon familiar on the side of its head as it looked to be asleep just beside her.
"Thank you for your help, Siesta-san. Could I ask you to escort Saito to his master's room? He had quite a tiring day." Izuku asked after he saw that the maid he asked for help was looking after the slowly walking away Saito.
"Of course My Lord. Excuse me." Bowing to him and the three noble ladies she quickly followed after the black haired boy, falling in step with him just before both of them disappeared beyond a corner.
"You are quite impressive, Sir Deku~." The dark skinned beauty started in a sultry voice, not hiding her intentions at all.
"Thank you, Lady Kirche. I take pride in my abilities." He replied with a small smile.
"I can't wait to see what will you do for the familiar exhibition." The red head continued, scratching her own salamander that let out a purr that sounded like a distant chainsaw.
"Familiar exhibition?" He repeated, clearly not knowing about the event.
"Ah… I… I forgot to tell you…" The still slightly blushing Momo seemed to just remember about that too.
"Well… It's a traditional event in this school, happens just after the summoning ceremony. It's something like a talent contest, a place to showcase your summoned familiar to the whole school." Kirche explained.
"Y-you don't need to participate if you d-don't want to, Sir Deku." Momo shyly added, taking a sip of the now lukewarm tea.
"It's quite alright. I don't see any issue with participating. Did you have anything in mind, Lady Montmorency?" He asked with a smile.
"M-maybe a sparring match with Saito?" She asked a bit unsure. "I mean… it was quite spectacular to watch you two train j-just now…" She continued, trying to explain her idea.
"We should ask Lady Louise, but otherwise I think it's a solid idea." He agreed, getting a small smile from his 'master '.
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Yawning widely, Izuku stored the novel he was reading into his quirk. The last few days flew by rather quickly, between accompanying his summoner to classes until dinner and training Saito the whole afternoon. He even managed to meet up with professor Colbert a few times, sadly the peaceful scholar still didn't find anything that could help the two summoned teens in returning to their respective worlds.
Checking the time, he saw it was about an hour since his roommate went out. In the last week that he spent with this girl, it was the first time for her to go out so late. She informed him that Kirche organized those 'Lady Nights' sometimes and that it would be disrespectful not to attend when invited by her friend.
Changing into lighter clothes, he lay down on his bed. Tomorrow was going to be interesting, there were even rumors that the crown princess was going to attend it. Maybe he should really give a bit of a show, his 'master' could certainly use a bit of prestige.
Well… Maybe it was because of the fact that Montmorency was nearly identical to Yaoyorozu, but he did want to help the girl. She clearly suffered quite a bit of bullying from her peers, her confidence was nearly non-existent. It was painfully obvious to him that she could use some assistance, he was in the same place not so long ago after all.
Suddenly the creaking of the doors to the room took him out of his thoughts, making him wonder if maybe his summoner returned already. It was strange though, as she would normally use a spell to light up the room slightly or at least ask him if he was asleep. The other strange thing was the fact that he could clearly distinguish two sets of footsteps, too light to be anything other than an attempt at sneaking.
Using Float to not make any sound, he moved to the side of the divider that separated his small sleeping space from the rest of the room. In the dim light of the twin moons he could clearly make out two figures clad in long robes with large hoods, one of them walking slowly to the empty bed while the other side still and only looked around the room.
Sneaking up to the second person, Izuku landed silently just behind. "What can I help you with, dear trespassers?" He asked with a calm but firm tone, causing them both to immediately react in two different ways.
"Eeeep!" The person that was just beside the bed let out a clearly feminine shout of surprise, turning back to him and moving away.
The second one that he was just beside twirled in place while drawing out a long and thin sword that was immediately slashed at him in a wide arc.
His hand moved much faster, catching the weapon by the blade before it could do any damage. His assailant tried to rip it back from his grip but after a few seconds decided to abandon it and moved back to cover the second trespasser.
To Izuku's surprise, the one that decided to fight whipped out something that looked like a black powder pistol, taking aim at him immediately.
"Agnes, wait!" The one that was on back called out, taking off her hood to reveal a young woman with shoulder length purple hair and teal blue eyes. On her head rested a silver diadem with three blue gems, accentuating her beauty.
"We don't mean any harm." She said, placing a hand on her companion's arm. Only after that gesture the now named Agnes lowered the weapon, not holstering it though.
"Identify yourself!" The armed woman ordered, only gaining a raised brow from the greenette.
"Breaking and entering, trespassing, attacking a civilian with a deadly weapon, and now you are demanding to know my name, not even giving me your own first?" He asked, causing the purple haired girl to wince.
"You mongrel! You are in the presence of her Highness, Henrietta de Tristan!" The second trespasser took down her own hood, revealing a young woman with short, strawberry blonde hair and dark brown eyes. Her face was contorted into an angry scowl, one that would certainly frighten any lesser men.
Flaring his quirk, Izuku glared back at the woman who flinched away from the sudden green lightning coursing across his body. She raised her pistol back up, but a bead of sweat rolled down her cheek when this strange man didn't even seem moved by that fact.
"I'm Izuku 'Deku' Midoriya and you are trespassing in the room of my master. Lay down your weapon and state your business or I'll be forced to restrain you and inform the academy's security force about this incident." Narrowing his eyes he didn't back down, on the contrary he seemed to loom over the two with his towing height and suffocating presence.
Watching the standoff between her personal bodyguard and this mysterious man, Henrietta felt a cold sweat going down her back. Being a mage she was much more sensitive to the arcane forces, the way that this man was practically flooding the room with his willpower was terrifying to her.
At this time she could think only one thing.
'What in the world is happening?!'
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Author's Note: Hello! It's so good to be able to write something! Now back to work, see you in three months! :P