"Ahhh~!" Amid the screams, a golden, glowing object streaked across the sky and crashed into a clearing by a river in the forest, leaving a crater.
"Ow, ow~ That hurts!" Zorn cried, grimacing and frowning in pain. After rubbing his aching body with his hands, he pushed himself to his feet in the crater and looked around in confusion.
Trees surrounded him, with only a river flowing slowly through them. Apart from the rustling of leaves, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. A breeze swept past, and a leaf landed on Zorn's face, finally bringing him somewhat to his senses.
"What the hell? Where is this? Wasn't I supposed to be in my rented room, watching that Adventure King anime? And where the hell am I anyway? Damn it~"
That day, after getting off work, Zorn had been watching anime on the computer at his desk, which stood diagonally opposite the window. He had been slurping down a bowl of river snail rice noodles, his eyes fixed on the screen as he watched the sleazy uncle moving at the speed of light to arrest the protagonist's group. But he hadn't noticed the bolt of lightning that had struck his room at tremendous speed with a thunderous boom. ⚡
That was how Zorn learned that souls really did exist. He felt himself slowly floating upward, surrounded by warmth. In his daze, he felt a finger, warm and smooth as jade, touch his forehead. His body then plummeted backward at an uncontrollable speed, while a gentle, ethereal voice echoed in his ears: "I am the Goddess of Light. I'm sorry I accidentally harmed you. To make it up to you, I'll give you a golden finger. Go and live a good life in another world!"
A little figure in Zorn's mind was jumping and shouting in furious frustration, but Zorn himself had already walked to the river, where he finally got a clear look at what he looked like in this world.
Zorn touched his face. His skin was smooth and tender, and his short, tousled golden hair, bright eyes, and straight nose undeniably gave him a vibrant handsomeness. He looked to be only about thirteen, though.
"What the heck is going on? My body got smaller, and what kind of world is this, anyway? The goddess didn't even give me an instruction manual, and there's no golden finger either. How am I supposed to live like this?!"
Although Zorn was still grumbling inwardly about how unreliable the goddess was, he had already gotten moving. Following the river, he ran toward the conspicuous open area in the distance. A gust of wind ruffled his clothes, and the calls of vendors rose and fell in his ears. Children chased and played with one another through the alleys between the houses, while merchants drove horse-drawn carts loaded with neatly arranged goods in and out of town.
Zorn looked at the bustling town and patted himself down. He had nothing left but his clothes. Gritting his teeth, he looked toward the road leading into town and ran over to it. He also made up his mind to make a fresh start in this world and live life as himself.
Zorn looked at the flag hanging from the towering building across the street: the Fairy Tail flag. After half a month on the road, his journey had finally paid off. Looking at the Fairy Tail flag, Zorn broke into a delighted, toothy grin.
This was his favorite world—Earth-land, a world full of magic.
Half a month ago, after a merchant told Zorn that he was in an ordinary town in the Kingdom of Fiore, he had finally realized he had come to the world of Fairy Tail.
Along the way, he had traveled with several groups of merchants, helping them in exchange for food. His persistence had finally paid off, and he had arrived in Magnolia.
Just as Zorn reached the guild entrance, a blast of ice shot out from inside and froze him solid before he could react.
"I'm sorry. I know I was wrong. I didn't mean to freeze you."
A black-haired kid with a conspicuous bump on his head from being hit stood shirtless, his face full of apology as he apologized to Zorn. Zorn, meanwhile, was wrapped in a blanket and drinking hot tea. Fortunately, Gray had made the ice while playing around, and he was still young, so it hadn't been very cold and hadn't caused much damage.
"Hahaha, Gray, you're so dumb! Still trying to look cool? Hahaha, Erza beat you up, didn't she? Hahaha!" A group of laughing guild members were noisily teasing Gray.
"It's okay. Your name's Gray, right? Hi, I'm Zorn. Where I come from, there's a saying: 'You don't get to know someone until you've fought them.' So now we've met. Don't worry about it."
Zorn took a hand out from under the blanket and gently placed it on Gray's shoulder, smiling as he spoke to the little boy, who still looked a little guilty.
"Mm-hmm!" Gray replied quietly. He still looked rather downcast and paid no attention even to the teasing around him.
As they were talking, a large hand suddenly landed on Gray's little head and gently ruffled his hair.
"All right, kid, go play. Let Grandpa here have a chat with this young man."
A short old man withdrew his giant magic as he spoke, then hopped up onto the table to face Zorn. Sitting cross-legged, he leisurely drank his liquor.
Zorn looked at the little old man in front of him, who was a head shorter than he was, with a shiny bald crown and hair only at the sides and back of his head. He was all too familiar—wasn't this Fairy Tail's third guild master, Makarov Dreyar?
"Are you here to post a job, or do you want to join the guild?"
"I want to join Fairy Tail. I want to become the strongest mage! I heard there's a very powerful mage in Fairy Tail who uses Crush Magic, and I want to become as strong as him. So please let me join the guild, Grandpa Guild Master." When Zorn finished, he looked at the guild master before him with firm confidence and a hint of hope in his eyes.
Makarov looked at the cheerful, confident boy before him. Although he wanted to agree right away, he still had to be responsible and make sure the boy could use magic.
After all, the guild's jobs all involved some degree of danger. They weren't something an ordinary person without magic power could complete, so he had to make sure before he could rest easy.
"Come on, release your magic power. Only mages with magic power can join the guild."
A gentle, ethereal voice sounded in Zorn's mind: "Magic: Holy Light Magic. Little one, your golden finger is that you have all the abilities of that sleazy uncle you were watching. They've just been converted into magic in this world. You can discover the rest for yourself."
"Goddess of Light, are you there?"
"All right, it looks like she just left a voice message. I can't talk to her." After receiving no response, Zorn reflected for a moment, then calmed his mind and felt for the warm presence inside his body.
The moment his mind connected with that ball of light, Zorn understood everything. He really did have all the abilities of that sleazy uncle from Adventure King, though he could currently use only about thirty percent of them. Fortunately, another twenty percent would unlock automatically each year, which put his mind at ease.
As Zorn sensed the ball of light, however, he failed to notice the warm, holy radiance shining from his body, inside and out, bright as a light that dispelled all darkness.
Zorn's magic filled every corner of the guild hall. Some members who had been hurt on jobs noticed that one another's serious injuries were improving, while those with minor injuries found that some of their wounds had already scabbed over.
The resulting clamor and cries of amazement drew Zorn's attention back. The light from his magic gradually faded, and he looked in bewilderment at the cheering, jubilant members around him.
"He has this much magic power at such a young age? And it's light magic with a holy attribute and healing effects! Hahaha, you can join the guild." Makarov felt that Zorn's magic was warm and powerful, much like the guild's Three Great Magics.
"Come on, what color do you want your mark, and where do you want it?" Makarov held the stamp in one hand and a wine cup in the other, gesturing for Zorn to think carefully.
"Golden yellow, on the back of my right hand."
"All right, hold out your hand." After hearing Zorn's answer, Makarov's stamp flashed, and with a smack, a bright Fairy Tail mark appeared on the back of Zorn's hand.
Excited to see a new companion join, Gray was about to leap at Zorn, but a punch smashed him into the floor. Gray kept rubbing his head and crying out in pain.
"Put your clothes on first, you bastard!" Erza roared at Gray, her fist clenched tight.
"Hello, let me introduce myself. Erza, Requip Magic. Welcome to the guild."
Zorn stared blankly at Erza, who had punched Gray into the floor, then quickly changed her expression and posture to smile and introduce herself. This guild really is extraordinary, he thought.
Gray climbed up and quickly used Maker Magic to create an ice track, sliding into their conversation and asking Zorn for a duel. Erza's face darkened, and her hands clenched tightly as she teetered on the verge of exploding. Gray, seemingly oblivious, took his clothes off again without realizing it and hopped around, using magic recklessly in an attempt to get Zorn's attention.
Zorn stood in front of Gray, waving both hands as he smiled nervously and tried to talk Erza down, while also reminding Gray to mind his behavior from time to time.
The people around them were also watching with interest, silently waiting to see Erza lose her temper.
Makarov was delighted by the lively scene before him. He raised his cup. "Everyone, let's celebrate our new family member joining us! Let's have a drink together!" Without waiting for anyone's response, he gulped down all the liquor in his cup.
"Oh~ Hooray!" everyone shouted back. They clinked cups in pairs, slung arms around shoulders and backs, and played around. The place was full of merriment.
Makarov drank his liquor in great, hearty gulps, watching the lively scene before him out of the corner of his eye. This is family! Hehe, he thought.