First Lesson: The Basics

[A/N: I'm sure by now many of you have noticed that Zero herself hasn't really been the focus of the POV's so far, and this chapter will show the reason for that. Zero's thought processes are very...simple at the moment and in my opinion not very suited to portraying the world and story. In this first volume, Zero is much more of a reactionary character and doesn't make a lot of decisions on her own. There is an in story reason for this and it probably won't be changing till towards the middle to end of this first volume. I'll be using that time to flesh out the other important characters so you get an idea of what they're like in this story before things really start to kick off.

Basically, I just want everyone to understand that first and foremost Zero is a character with her own story and origins, not a self insert or transmigrator. Which means she will grow as a character as the story progresses. Personally, I don't even really see her as the main character of this story (I'd probably give that to Louise). She's just the primary catalyst for change in this world. There actually was a version of this story where she had all of her memories from the start but it was pretty boring since, quite frankly, Zero is a monster at her full potential and could literally hand wave away most of the problems they'd ever face. I look forward to getting to that point eventually and slowly revealing her past. Who knows, I might actually post that other version of events as an Omake or bonus chapter at some point.]

-_-_-_-

Room of Louise de la Vallière, Tristan Academy for Magic

Zero sipped on her soup while watching her master pace back and forth around the room, occasionally stopping to glance in her direction before carrying on.

Through their bond she could feel her master's anxiety, doubt, frustration, fear, a little bit of pride and…hope?

She wasn't entirely sure what was wrong with what she said but she was sure whatever problem her master currently faced was one of her own making, leaving her a bit despondent.

Her master was very kind, warm, and made her feel many strange and pleasant things even though they've only just met. She even went out of her way to call another maid to bring them a meal after Siesta, the pretty black haired one suddenly fainted. Her quick analysis showed it was most probably from the stress on her recently opened gate. So she just picked her up and laid her down on the bed so her master wouldn't have to. She was getting really good at doing that.

When she asked her master if she should remove her clothes as well she just looked at her strangely but told her no. Her master clearly knew what she was doing so she complied and waited on her meal.

She didn't want to be a burden but she couldn't help her master if she didn't understand what was wrong. So while enjoying the warm soup and bread loaf she had been given, she thought back on all the questions her master had asked her before going silent.

-_-_-_-

"What did you just say?" Louise asked for confirmation.

"Mn. His name is Brimir?" Zero responded this time more as a question.

"YOUUUUU! YOU CAN'T JUST SAY THAT!" Louise shouted, much to Zero's confusion.

"Okay." Zero agreed. Louise was her master, so she had to know best.

"I-You-Do you even know what that name means? Who it belongs to?" Louise asked her another question. So she answered.

"Mn. My brother." Zero answered truthfully with a nod.

"NO! It belongs to the holy founder! The inventor of magic! The first and only mage that could use the lost element of Void!" Louise incorrectly explained, to her confusion. Which she showed by tilting her head to the side.

Louise was her master, so she had to be right, but her records show that magic was not invented by brother Brimir. Perhaps she was misinformed? If that was the case, was it not her duty as a familiar to correct that misunderstanding?

"That is incorrect, Master. Brother Brimir did not create magic nor was he the first and only void affinity mage. I was the one to create the system known as magic. While you definitely have the void affinity as well as I do." Zero helpfully explained, causing her master to blanch and the maid to start looking towards the window and shaking for some reason. Was she perhaps cold? Should she close them?

"You will cease with these lies at once, Familiar! That is an order!" Louise shouted at her causing the contract seals on her hand to begin glowing in accordance to her words, forcing her to comply. Well, forced is a strong word. It compelled her to comply using her master's willpower vs her own. She didn't want her master to suffer a backlash by fighting against her strangely weak but potent willpower so she just accepted.

"Of course, Master. I shall tell no lies." Zero accepted with a bow. The maid had taught her how to do so briefly a few minutes ago and she memorized the form easily enough.

"Wha-? But-! Arghhh!" Louise yelled once again after looking at the seal. Zero could feel her probing the connection once more. Indeed, her master was very clever. She already knew how to use the connection to determine truth from lies. As expected of her master.

"...I don't understand," Her master muttered deflated. Her eyes darted back and forth around the room. She appeared to be distressed.

"What would you like for me to explain?" Zero asked. It wouldn't do for her master to have a misunderstanding. Unfortunately her master didn't seem to have an immediate answer for her. Thankfully the maid chimed in to give her a starting point.

"P-Perhaps you should go over the basics?" She stuttered while looking like she wanted to leave for some reason.

"Yes! That! That should prove you're lying!" Her master suddenly jumped in…excitement? No…desperation? Was she that interested in confirming her knowledge?

"Very well. Would it be best to start from the six elements, Master?" Zero asked.

"Stop right here! HA! I knew you were lying! There are only five elements! Fire, Water, Wind, Earth and VOID!" Her master confirmed with a smug smile that caused Zero to smile as well. Her master really was smart. Although she did seem to be misunderstanding something again.

No. Perhaps she had been taught incorrectly? Zero suddenly felt a new emotion appear in her heart. Anger. Was someone purposely sabotaging her master's studies? She couldn't have that. She would deal with it soon, but for now she had to correct her master's small misunderstanding.

"Mn. You are both correct and incorrect, Master. The four basic elements are indeed: Water, Fire, Earth and Wind. The element of Void however is slightly different. It is the only element that is a combination of two different elements: Light and Dark. Or at least that is how they used to be called. In truth the elements of Light and Dark are a bit strange and far more esoteric than the other elements." Zero explained, causing her master to stop cheering and listen with a dumbfounded face.

"Before coming up with the theory of Void, I had discovered that Light and Dark were far more conceptual than the other elements. I realized this due to most people having some kind of affinity with one or the other in some capacity. They encapsulated many things in their fold such as: Positive and Negative, Physical and Mental, Buff and Debuff, and even Hot and Cold, something typically exclusive to the fire element. The terms eventually agreed to use were Yin and Yang for Dark and Light, respectively. Void is the fusion of these two contrasting elements in complete harmony with each other." Zero said, noticing nervous sweat trickling down her master's brow.

Was she upset over her improper education? Hopefully she didn't think it was her fault. Zero thought it best to smother those worries by giving her a probable cause for her miseducation.

"I suspect the reason you were taught that brother Brimir was the only one to use the element of Void is that it is actually impossible for someone to naturally be able to use the complete element. The two elements completely contradict each other and…should not be able to exist…in a single person…or at least…that's what I believed…" Zero had to pause in consideration. Her knowledge wasn't adding up. It should be impossible to hold both elements of void in one body. That's what her library said. Yet, as she had previously analyzed, her master was a pure void mage like herself. Like herself? Yes, her analysis showed traces of both Yin and Yang in her core. But how? When? Why had she not noticed? And why was the Yin so….small? Why was her master's Yang-

"B-But you said you didn't remember anything about yourself!?" Her master asked and any previous consideration was suddenly lost to her. She barely even remembered what she was thinking about now. Oh well must not have been important.

"Mn. That is correct Master. But knowledge of magic is automatically recorded in the eternal library thanks to my eyes. It is a spell previously developed by the one now known as, Zero." Zero said before waving her hand and materializing a book out of thin air. Her master and the maid both gasped as she opened the book and countless magic circles, pictures, runes, letters and symbols seemed to pop off the page.

"The library only records the facts as they are. They hold nothing about the personality or life of the person involved with the casting of the spell or the inventor of it. At best it might record the reason for development if deemed important or the thought process behind doing so if that information was provided. Simply objective truths. The person now known as Zero invented the system commonly referred to as Magic. The person now known as Zero theorized the element of Void. The person now known as Zero cast the first void spell "__" to…hmm?" Zero paused again this time with furrowed brows.

"It's missing." She said after a moment, her head suddenly pounding in her skull.

"H-Huh? W-What is?" Her master asked, voice tinted with…fear? Why? No, she asked a question first.

"The record on the first void spell. It's missing. No. It's been damaged in some way." Zero answered and pondered. Head still pounding. Yin drained quickly.

"C-Can, I see it?" Her master requested.

"Of course." She complied. Unfortunately the state of her head made her forget to give a warning to the maid who stepped closer as well.

"Kyah!" She screamed and recoiled as if struck by lightning.

"Siesta!" Her master shouted as the book suddenly dematerialized.

'Oh her name was Siesta.' "Forgive me master, I should have warned her not to look. The influx of mana on an unopened gate could have certain effects on a person."

"Like what!? Is she dead!?"

"No, but it appears that her gate has been forced open which can be a bit painful at first." Zero determined after preforming a simple scan on the maid with her eyes.

"And what does that mean?" Her master asked subdued.

"It means she'll need to learn to circulate the excess mana or she might get sick. Would you like me to teach her how to cast a novice spell?"

That question unfortunately caused her master to freeze up entirely. So wanting to be helpful she decided to pick up Siesta and place her in the bed like she had done for her master the night before. It was easy enough, the Yang in her body was abnormally potent as well. Channeling some of that through her body got a strange reaction out of the runes engraved on her hand but the buff was applied all the same.

Still that left her with a conundrum. She knew just how uncomfortable clothes were and her master had put her to bed after she fell unconscious previously without any clothes. Her master was always right, especially since she also had to remove her master's clothes as well before taking her to bed the previous night. Her master even appeared to have woken up much happier because of that. But her master seemed to be displeased after having her clothes removed as well?

"Master, should I remove her clothes as well?" Well, when in doubt, it was better to just ask.

"...no" Her master just looked at her with a strange expression on her face for a while before eventually telling her no. Indeed, it was better to ask.

After ensuring the maid was comfortable, she stopped the flow of Yang through her body and the runes on her hand ceased to glow. Unfortunately that small exertion left her far more hungry than she was earlier which was confirmed by the grumbling of her stomach once more.

"...haah. Stay here." Her master sighed before stepping out for a moment after confirming she had received the order.

After she returned she remained silent for a while until there was another knock on the door and a blonde maid wheeled a cart into the room with various trays of food on it. At which point she began to eat her meal and her master began pacing the room.

-_-_-

Those were the events as Zero recalled them. Unfortunately even going over them again left her confused as to where she erred.

She had only corrected her master's misunderstandings concerning magic and she didn't see what kind of problems would arise from that, so the fault must lie somewhere else.

Thinking for a moment longer she remembered when her master finally went silent. It was once the maid, Siesta, had been accidentally harmed by her!

Yes, that must be it. Her master was a very kind hearted woman that valued the safety and wellbeing of the maid, extremely so even. Zero had obviously made a mistake by not informing her of the potential ramifications of reading one of her tomes.

Zero nodded to herself having finally figured out the reason for her master's worry. She vowed that she would strive to ensure the wellbeing of Siesta right after her master's own.

"Don't worry, Siesta. I promise I won't let you out of my sight." Zero promised to the girl that had groggily sat up moments ago. Unfortunately after her solemn promise, Siesta promptly fell unconscious again.

Must have been tired.

-_-_-

Tristain Magic Academy Library, Tristain Academy

Mister Colbert, a teacher who had dedicated twenty years to Tristain Magic Academy, was by now a mainstay figure.

His Runic name was "Colbert the Flame Snake," and, naturally, he was a mage specializing in fire magic.

Since the Springtime Familiar Summoning, he'd been concerned about the girl that Louise had summoned. Or more precisely, he'd been concerned with nothing but the runes that had appeared on that girl's left hand. They were rare runes indeed, so since last night, he'd confined himself to the library and had been researching various texts.

Tristain Magic Academy's library was located in the same tower as the dining hall. The bookshelves were unbelievably tall, about thirty feet in height, and the way they were lined up against the walls was a spectacle to behold. And rightly so, since this place was crammed with the history of everything following the creation of the new world in Halkaginia by the Founder Brimir.

Colbert was now in a section called "Fenrir's Library" that only teachers were allowed entry to.

The ordinary bookshelves, to which students had free access, didn't hold any answers that could satisfy him.

He Levitated up to an out-of-reach shelf and scanned it intently for a particular book. His efforts were rewarded as his gaze fell upon the title of the book. It was a very old text which held descriptions of the familiars that had been used by the Founder Brimir.

His attention was focused on one particular paragraph written in it, and as he read on in fascination, his eyes grew wide. He compared the book with the sketch he'd made of the runes on the girl's left hand.

"Ah!" he gasped in surprise. At that moment, he lost the concentration necessary for maintaining his Levitation and almost fell to the floor.

Holding the book in his arms, he hurriedly descended to the floor and ran out of the library.

His destination was the Headmaster's Office.