I Became the Familiar of a Chuunibyou Gloomy Girl

Incantation is an auxiliary to magical formulas.

Magic phenomena cannot occur just by incantation alone.

Incantation without a formula is like making the gesture of pulling a trigger without a gun, so casting magic with just incantation is quite difficult even for the imperial palace’s grand magicians who forcibly extend their lives through magic.

Let alone causing such an event with a simple arrangement of words, casually thrown here and there, without even taking the form of an incantation?

It’s like a gun being created out of thin air and firing bullets at an enemy without even making the gesture of pulling a trigger.

This is a miracle that only beings like gods or dragons, the most perfect life forms, can perform.

One of the many conditions that can bring about this miracle is belief without the slightest doubt.

One must completely hypnotize oneself into believing that the words one utters, such utterly outlandish sentences, will definitely happen in reality.

Like Ariel when she speaks chuunibyou-like words.

“…”

The venue instantly becomes quiet.

Though no one was saying anything, just by looking at those expressions, one can tell what everyone was trying to say.

Tap—

Grin—

‘She did it.’

Ariel, having created a black rose in her hand, holds the rose at an angle, brings it to her chin, and then smiles faintly.

The scene is like a painting, and everyone witnessing this scene will be captivated by Ariel’s beauty without exception. In fact, they already are.

Even her finger movements are full of dignity; Ariel, who literally fits the description of a well-bred young lady, has captured the attention of everyone present.

Looking at that dignified posture, no one would doubt that Ariel is the lady of the Cielnoir family, one of the empire’s top noble families.

Since Ariel’s posture is so perfect even to fellow nobles, everyone here is convinced that Ariel has received extreme etiquette education since childhood.

Or perhaps she naturally possesses such grace befitting her noble birth.

[Fufufu… like this? Or like this? Smile… about this much…]

‘In reality, she just admired herself in front of a mirror.’

Of course, that’s not the truth at all.

The reason Ariel can take such a perfect posture and expression is simply because she played with a pen in front of a mirror for a long time, posing, regardless of etiquette education or talent.

‘When I saw Ariel tilting her head this way and that with a pen in front of a mirror, I thought she might have gone crazy, but it was for this.’

Come to think of it, girls are the same here too.

If Ariel had a smartphone in her hand, she would have taken a ton of photos posing.

“It’s not a magic circle… it’s not a magic formula… it’s not an incantation… this… this…!”

In the quiet classroom, a voice beyond stupid, a dazed voice, echoes. The owner of that voice is Felix, who was teaching the students just a moment ago.

If a teacher takes this attitude, it would be perfect for being “eaten alive” by noble students, but since no student is paying attention to Felix now, it doesn’t really matter.

No, to be precise, it’s not that they’re not paying attention, but that they cannot pay attention.

Since the classroom was so quiet, Felix’s voice echoed loudly like an echo in the classroom, but the black rose that bloomed from thin air has made all the students here deaf.

“Is this a sufficient answer to the question about word-command?”

“…”

Except for one, Ariel.

Ariel, elegantly holding the black rose and wearing a subtle smile on her face, speaks to Felix, overtly showing the rose as if saying “hurry and be amazed.”

To me, who knows Ariel’s true nature, it just seems cute, like a child showing off her treasure, but apparently not to others, including Felix.

Where’s that girl Estelle… ah, good. She’s making a good expression.

Honestly, I didn’t like how she seemed to be trying to pick a fight with Ariel at every opportunity. Though Ariel doesn’t seem to notice it.

……….

“Kyaaaaaaa—!!!”

Thump thump thump thump—

Returning to the room, Ariel immediately collapses onto the bed and then starts kicking her legs up and down, hitting the bed. It’s as if she’s swimming on land.

From Ariel’s voice comes a scream of joy like a dolphin’s cry, something I’ve never heard before. It makes me thankful for the excellent soundproofing of the dormitory room.

“Did you see!? You saw too, right!? Right!! Did you see the kids’ expressions!!!”

Squeeze—

Hugging a pillow with all her might as if it might burst, Ariel speaks with a smile.

Until yesterday, Ariel’s expression when looking at me was like that of a child looking at an interesting toy, like a puppy, but not now.

Should I say it’s like a shepherd looking at a trusted family member, a sheepdog?

At least the dog part hasn’t changed.

Anyway, it’s good to see.

All the smiles I’ve seen from Ariel until now were all fabricated, fake smiles, but the smile Ariel is making now is a naturally occurring smile from pure joy.

Seeing this, I can clearly understand what emotion I felt while watching Ariel posing with her chuunibyou poses.

‘…I was disgusted by Ariel.’

While I thought Ariel’s behavior and appearance were cute when I looked at her, on the other hand, it seems I had an aversion to Ariel who smiled falsely.

This isn’t an emotion that I, that is, the original me, have.

It’s the undead instinct forcibly planted in my head due to becoming this body.

I would probably feel a similar emotion even when watching an actor pretending to smile.

…It’s very… very unpleasant.

Wouldn’t an artificial intelligence that gained human-level intelligence feel this way if it were forced to act through commands?

“Is this a sufficient answer… hee, heehee… uheehee…”

Ariel’s smile when looking in the mirror or in front of others is truly like a masterpiece painting, a too beautiful and noble smile, but the laughter of Ariel happening in front of my eyes now is so vulgar that it’s hard to believe it’s the same person.

But that’s fine.

I like this side better. It’s very pleasing to see.

“The teacher’s stupid expression… uhuhu… I was just quietly listening to the class well, but he picked a fight and look at his face…”

But why does she keep muttering to herself with a giggle?

I can acknowledge some level of “that was really satisfying” since the teacher did provoke a bit, but this is a bit excessive.

If I don’t intervene, she’ll probably be talking to herself all day until she goes to sleep.

“Tomorrow, how should I look cool again—”

Flutter—

“—uh, huh?”

I hold out a paper in front of Ariel, who is muttering all sorts of things to herself, and Ariel stops her fantasizing as the pure white paper suddenly fills her vision.

“Weiss, why are you… ah.”

Seeing the paper held right in front of her nose, Ariel instantly understands my intention.

Tomorrow is the day of the combat practice class.

It’s a class that all nobles, including Ariel, no, not just nobles, but commoners and teachers as well, consider extremely important.

It’s also the first moment that academy students, who have been taking classes divided into various subjects like magic and swordsmanship, gather in one place, except for the entrance ceremony.

‘So let’s prepare well. Since you did such a thing this afternoon, all kinds of crazy people will come at you thinking you’re strong, so we need to quickly think of countermeasures—’

“Kukuku… I gratefully accept thy counsel. I should spread my elegance widely in combat practice as well. Hmm… what kind of magic should I use to capture the crowd’s eyes…”

‘—Shit.’

And most naturally, Ariel betrays my expectations.

For Ariel, it seems more important how others will see her in combat practice than crazy people coming at her in combat practice.

“Since combat practice is divided into attacking targets and dueling between students… I should show some mercy in student duels, but target attacks won’t matter. Kuk kuk… kuhehe… uhehe… ahem, hmhm.”

No, regardless of whether you use magic or not, you can only use word-command, which just causes simple phenomena.

Before I handed you a separate magic book, you couldn’t even use simple magic properly and were only thorough in theory, so what magic are you talking about?

“…But come to think of it, my magic doesn’t take the vulgar form of violence that mortals value most. Then it wouldn’t be very suitable for combat…”

Oh… fortunately, she knows it herself.

No matter how much she fantasizes, she can still recognize reality to some extent, so that’s at least a relief—

“Well… that’s fine. I have Weiss, after all.”

“—…?”

But what is this now?

Weiss? Me?

I should go out and fight?

“Why are you tilting your head? Isn’t it natural that a familiar’s power is recognized as its master’s power?”

Ariel firmly believes without a doubt that I will do something incredible for her.

Having gone so far as to teach her magical knowledge that allows her to use word-command, in Ariel’s eyes, I seem to appear not as a simple skeleton but as an ancient lich adorned with all sorts of magical ornaments.

…Huh?

I don’t know how to fight? Theory and practice are different!

Huh?