Familiar of Zero, Tristaine
The young girl with bright pink hair stepped toward Adrian with pride shining in her eyes. A balding person in dark robes stood nearby, adjusting his glasses while he studied Adrian's reptilian form. The man stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"I've never seen a creature quite like this one before," he said, gripping his wooden staff. "What an unusual familiar you've summoned, Miss Vallière."
The other students whispered among themselves. A tall red-haired girl snickered. "Who would have thought Louise the Zero could actually summon anything at all? But I suppose even a broken clock is right twice a day..."
Adrian was still suppressing the adaptation that allowed him to function in Minecraft. The dimensional jump had left him disoriented, and now he found himself surrounded by teenagers in black cloaks. None of their words made sense to him, they spoke in a language he'd never heard before.
The man nodded to the pink-haired girl. "Well, go ahead with the ceremony, Miss Vallière. Complete the contract."
"Shut up Kirche!" Louise snapped at the red-haired girl. "My familiar looks way cooler than your stupid salamander!"
Kirche rolled her eyes. "At least my familiar isn't just lying there like a confused lizard."
Louise stepped forward with determination on her face. She raised her wand toward Adrian, who watched the small human with mild curiosity. The girl took a deep breath and spoke in a clear voice.
"My name is Louise Françoise Le Blanc de La Vallière. Pentagon of the five elemental powers; bless this humble being, and make him my familiar."
She leaned down and planted a quick kiss on Adrian's snout. He blinked in surprise at the contact but remained still, his body still adjusting from the cubic nature of Minecraft.
He could feel something odd in his mind. Something was probing his memories, searching deeper and deeper. The force seemed disappointed, ready to reject him, when it discovered the memories of the original Adrian - the human he had consumed on Zerus.
Bright light shone from Adrian's scales. His entire body lifted off the ground as the magic reshaped him. Bones shifted and reformed while his muscles redistributed themselves. His perspective rose higher and higher until he towered over the students and even who he guessed was their teacher.
Steam rose from his newly formed human skin. His adaptations remained, but changed to fit in his new body. He could feel his spines beneath his wrists, his strength now contained in human muscles. Different, but still deadly.
A burning sensation stabbed into his right hand. Adrian lifted it to examine the strange symbols carving themselves into his flesh. He had experienced far worse pain during his hunts on Zerus.
Louise's triumphant laughter cut off abruptly. Her face turned bright red as she stared up at his naked body.
"I want a handsome familiar too!" Kirche complained. "Why does Zero get such a tall drink of water?"
The teacher cleared his throat. "Miss Vallière, please get your familiar some proper clothes. You're fortunate to have summoned such a unique magical creature, but you must take care of it appropriately." He moved closer to study the runes on Adrian's hand for a moment before waving his staff. The man rose into the air and flew toward the castle in the distance.
Louise grabbed Adrian's hand, her small fingers barely wrapping around some of his hand. "Come on," she mumbled, face still flushed. The other students raised their wands and took to the sky.
Adrian followed the pink-haired girl, trying to make sense of what had happened. The ability to transform between forms rested in the back of his mind like a switch waiting to be flipped. At least he hadn't lost his true body, this was simply another kind of adaptation.
"Can you understand me?" he asked in English. "What just happened?"
Louise turned around and, still blushing bright-red, scowled at him. The small girl raised her wand with an annoyed expression. "Comply to my order by silence!"
Adrian tensed at the pointed wand. His instincts proved correct as an explosion blew up the air right in front of him. The blast wasn't particularly strong, but the surprise made him react. He darted through the smoke and grabbed Louise by her throat, lifting her into the air.
"Put me down this instant!" Louise screamed, kicking her legs. "How dare you manhandle your master!"
Adrian slowly loosened his grip, but frowned immediately. He hadn't decided to let her go, so why were his fingers relaxing? Was his new human body affecting him? Wait.
…a grassy field, a small pink-haired girl, magical runes... The original Adrian's remnant memories had him recall an anime called Familiar of Zero. A Japanese boy summoned to serve as a familiar, bound by runes that allowed him to master any weapon he held.
Louise continued to flail in his grasp. "I said put me down, you stupid familiar!"
Were the runes already affecting him? He wasn't clear whether they had any such influence over the mind, but he needed to counter this quickly just in case. His free hand moved and a distinctly cubic bucket of milk that he had looted from Bloodychibi spawned from the Crystalline Minecraft Pearl. The bucket vanished as he held it towards his mouth, hopefully nullifying whatever influencing magic was tied to the runes. It should work, considering a bucket of milk could dispel negative status effects.
Then, he paid attention to the gasping Louise, and stared at her with narrowed eyes. Her words made perfect sense now. Had she cast a translation spell that involved an explosion? The original Adrian's memories came in handy again, and they reminded him that she could only cast explosions, something about being a void mage.
He lowered Louise back to the ground. "Don't cast explosions at me again. I don't appreciate being attacked."
Louise rubbed her throat and glared up at him. "How dare you speak to me like that! I am a noble, and you are my familiar! You should be grateful I summoned you!"
"Grateful for being blown up?" Adrian crossed his arms.
"That was... that was an accident!" Louise stomped her foot, mumbling under her breath, "It was supposed to be a silence spell..." She raised her voice again. "And you can understand me now, can't you? See? I can cast spells!"
"You blew up my face."
"W-well..." Louise turned away, face reddening. "We need to get you clothes first. Come on, the servants should have something that fits."
Adrian glanced at the massive stone castle. Students flew through the air on their way back, some pointing and whispering about him. The original Adrian's memories suggested this was some kind of magic academy, but the details were fuzzy.
"You haven't told me your name yet," Louise mumbled as they walked. She kept her eyes firmly ahead, refusing to look at him.
"Adrian."
"That's... actually a proper name." Louise sounded surprised. "I thought you'd have some weird beast name. What kind of creature are you anyway? And how did you turn human?"
"You don't need to know my species," Adrian watched a group of students land near the castle entrance. "Your spell changed my form, but I can switch back whenever I want."
Louise spun around to face him, and then accidentally glanced down before quickly turning away again with bright red cheeks. "You can transform at will? Show me!"
"After I get clothes." Adrian eyed the castle walls. The stone blocks reminded him of Minecraft, but these were carved with actual detail rather than simple cubes. "I'd rather not be naked in human form."
"R-right." Louise hurried toward a side entrance. "The servant quarters are this way. We'll find something that fits you."
They passed through wooden doors into cool stone corridors lit by torches. A few maids carrying baskets of laundry stopped to stare at them. One dropped her basket, scattering clothes across the floor.
"Don't just stand there gawking!" Louise snapped at the maids. "My familiar needs clothes immediately!"
A black-haired maid rushed forward with a bundle of fabric. "Here, these belonged to a guard who left last month. They should fit..."
Adrian accepted the clothes – simple brown trousers, a white shirt, and leather boots. The maid kept her eyes firmly on the floor as she handed them over.
"What's your name?" Adrian asked while pulling on the trousers.
"S-Siesta, my lord." The maid bowed slightly.
"I'm not a lord. Just call me Adrian."
"Stop wasting time with servants!" Louise grabbed his arm and pulled him away from the maids. Her lacking strength struggled to budge him until he allowed himself to be led through the castle corridors.
She dragged him up several flights of stairs to what seemed to be student quarters. The room she brought him to was small but well-furnished, with a large bed taking up most of the space.
"This is my room," Louise released his arm. "You'll sleep there." She pointed to a pile of hay in the corner.
Adrian didn't really care about that, and sat down on a wooden chair near a small table. "Tell me about the world. Where are we?"
Louise perched on the edge of her bed and straightened her back proudly. "This is the Tristain Academy of Magic in the kingdom of Tristain. We nobles are blessed by the Founder Brimir with magical abilities..."
The next hour passed as Louise explained the basics about the five elements of magic (Wind, Fire, Earth, Water and the sacred Void), the social structure between nobles and commoners, and the surrounding nations. She seemed very eager to emphasize the importance of nobility, specifically her own family.
"And what about familiars?" Adrian interrupted her explanation about the current royal family. "What purpose do they serve?"
"Familiars are a mage's lifelong companion!" Louise closed her eyes and raised a finger in a lecturing pose. "They protect and serve their masters, helping them with magic and daily tasks. The familiar ritual is a sacred tradition that goes back 6000 years-"
Adrian stood up from the chair and walked toward her. Louise opened her eyes and squeaked when she found him inches from her, but he moved past her to the mirror mounted on the wall.
The reflection showed a six-foot-four man in his early twenties. Dark auburn hair fell around a face that looked similar to the original Adrian, yet different in subtle ways. The blue eyes remained the same, but the jawline was sharper, the nose slightly different. The athletic build stretched the borrowed white shirt across broad shoulders.
"Is something wrong?" Louise asked from behind him.
"No." Adrian touched the mirror. The fair-skinned human face copied his movement. "Just checking what I look like."
Louise continued explaining about familiars and nobles behind him, but Adrian focused on his next moves. Playing along as her familiar could work well. The academy would provide shelter and information while he learned about this world. He could always return to Minecraft if needed, but leaving now would mean abandoning this dimension unless he randomly teleported back here again.
Magic interested him most. The problem was acquiring it, because consuming random humans felt wrong now. The original Adrian's remnant memories made him hesitate at the thought. Enemies were one thing, but eating innocent humans for their Essence left a bad taste in his mouth. Still, if he remembered correctly, the academy would face attacks soon enough. Those enemies would make perfect targets.
The sun had begun to set outside the window. Louise walked to the closet next to the mirror and removed her black cloak, hanging it inside. She closed the closet door, turned around, and let her black skirt drop to the floor. Her fingers moved to the buttons of her uniform, undoing them one by one before letting that fall as well.
Adrian raised his eyebrows. Humans usually cared about nudity - that was why Louise had rushed to get him clothes earlier. But now she undressed right in front of him wearing only a very thin and see-through shirt. Did this world have different customs than Earth?
His new human body reacted strangely, a large bulge growing in his borrowed trousers. He had never experienced anything like this before. Was this human arousal?
Louise gathered up her discarded clothes and threw them at him. He caught them easily.
"Wash these," she ordered.
Louise pulled off her thin shirt and panties, tossing them on top of the pile in his hands. She stood there completely naked, apparently unconcerned.
Adrian dropped the clothes back on the floor. "I'm not doing your laundry."
"What?" Louise stomped her foot. "You have to! Familiars serve their masters!"
"I'll protect you if needed. But I won't act as your servant."
Louise puffed up her cheeks. "Fine! Then you won't get any food!"
"I can find my own food." Adrian turned toward the door.
"Wait!" Louise scampered to the side of her bed and pulled out something. She held up a metal collar attached to a chain bolted into the wall. "Come here and lean down."
Adrian stared at the collar. "You actually think I'll let you chain me up?"
"But... but familiars are supposed to be obedient!" Louise waved the collar. "How else will I train you?"
Adrian rolled his eyes. "I'm not going to act like a slave. I'll protect you if needed, but that's it."
"You have to obey me! I'm your master!"
"Am I a normal familiar?" Adrian crossed his arms. "You said yourself that familiars with human forms are extremely rare. I'm not some mindless animal you can order around."
Louise opened her mouth to argue, but her eyes dropped lower and widened at the obvious bulge in his pants. She squeaked and covered her face with both hands, dropping the collar. "F-familiars shouldn't do that!"
"Then get dressed, or call another servant to wash your clothes." Adrian stepped toward the door. "I'm going to explore the academy."
"Wait!" Louise peeked through her fingers. "You can't just leave!"
"Watch me." Adrian pulled open the door.
"At least tell me where you're going!"
"To find food." Adrian stepped into the hallway. "And don't try exploding me again."
The door closed behind him, leaving a frustrated and very red-faced Louise alone in her room.