"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!"
Drake rubbed his arm as he stood up from the ground. The fall from the time-space rift had been quite a hard one.
If it weren't for his increasingly strong body thanks to his Dragon Slayer magic training, this fall alone would have caused serious injury.
Drake never imagined an accident would happen while traveling through the Eclipse Gate.
Just moments ago, after stepping into the Eclipse Gate opened by Anna, a magic circle inexplicably appeared around him.
At first, he thought it was a normal reaction to passing through the gate, but then he saw the panic on Anna's face.
That's when Drake realized something was wrong. Without thinking, he tossed Natsu behind him to Anna, and was swallowed by the magic circle.
When Drake could see light again, he was falling from the air, finally crashing heavily to the ground. After a long while, he regained consciousness and stood up, surveying his surroundings.
"Hopefully, I haven't deviated too far from Natsu's time. A century or two difference would give me a headache…!"
Drake's words trailed off. His eyes fixed on a spot, as if he had seen something unbelievable.
It was a gigantic skull, the size of a small hill. Its shape was also peculiar. Besides the normal two eye sockets, there was a circular depression on the forehead, as if an eye had once been there.
In addition, there were two huge curved horns on either side of the skull. This couldn't possibly be the skull of a normal creature; it looked more like the skull of a demon god.
Drake pinched himself. He thought the Eclipse Gate malfunction would only send him to a different point in time, but it had brought him to another world entirely.
The striking landmark made Drake recognize it instantly. He had left the Fairy Tail world and entered another magical world.
This was the world of the black… three, four, five, or countless clover leaves!
While, like the Fairy Tail world, it was a world of magic, the magic here was completely different.
In this world, the amount of magic power each person possessed was innate; magic wasn't learned but a birthright. True potential is unlocked at age fifteen, upon receiving one's Grimoire.
Indeed, in this world, Grimoires were the most important things.
The size, thickness, and appearance of Grimoires varied from person to person. Grimoires chose their owners, which was the first test of one's magical talent.
There were four kingdoms in this world, and the core patterns on the Grimoires received in each kingdom differed.
The main setting of the story… the Clover Kingdom, granted Grimoires with a cloverleaf pattern.
The number of leaves on the cloverleaf represented the holder's magical talent.
Drake was currently on the border of the Clover Kingdom, in Hage Village, the hometown of Asta, the protagonist.
Drake sighed, his face full of worry. This unexpected turn of events was completely outside his plans. Even with his mature mind, he felt a bit lost.
He raised his hands and slapped his face forcefully, encouraging himself. "No! It's too early to give up. Don't forget my promise with Igneel. Natsu is still waiting!"
Drake quickly adjusted his mindset. He understood from his past life that all difficulties stemmed from insufficient ability.
This was a world of magic, and magic represented the power of miracles. Even crossing worlds wasn't impossible.
Didn't the magic circle that appeared around him when he arrived in this world prove that?
"Grrr… grrr…"
Drake, who had just been invigorated, instantly deflated, feeling weak.
He hadn't eaten anything since yesterday. Since learning Dragon Slayer magic, his body, transformed by dragon power, had become stronger, but his nutritional needs had also greatly increased.
While not like Luffy from "One Piece", who would become a dried-up corpse after missing a few meals, Drake felt quite weak when hungry.
Touching his empty stomach, Drake dragged his heavy feet toward the demon god's skull.
Drake had read the original story in his past life, but he didn't know the specific terrain. He knew Hage Village was near the demon god's skull, but he couldn't find the village.
He could only approach the demon god's skull, hoping to meet someone and get some food.
The demon god's skull was even larger than Drake imagined, so even though he could see it, he hadn't gotten much closer after walking for a long time.
It was a case of "the mountain looks closer than it is." His strength was almost gone.
Drake's body was only ten years old, and even though his Dragon Slayer constitution exceeded that of ordinary people, he was starting to give out.
He chose a tree to lean against, lamenting his bad luck. In a daze, he wanted to fall asleep.
Suddenly, a sweet smell wafted over, and Drake sniffed, his eyes snapping open. He grabbed the food someone offered and stuffed it into his mouth.
It was something similar to a sweet potato, but the taste was far inferior to the improved varieties Drake had eaten in his past life. It was dry and quite hard to swallow due to its high fiber content.
But for Drake, who was starving, it was a delicious treat.
While wolfing it down, Drake looked up at his savior.
The person was short, seemingly the same age as Drake but half a head shorter.
He wore coarse clothes, a headband, and short gray hair, with a big smile on his face.
"Your stomach was rumbling, you must be starving!"
Drake instantly recognized him! Asta, the main protagonist of this world. The hot-blooded youth known as the "Roaring Emperor" by countless netizens.
In this magic-centric world, he possessed no magic. Yet, he never gave up on his dream of becoming the Wizard King, a boy who embodied perseverance.
He once said that never giving up was his magic! Therefore, he was also a character Drake had always liked.
After swallowing the food, though far from full, Drake finally regained some strength.
Drake jumped up, saying, "You're a lifesaver! I'm Drake, Drake Gildorme. Nice to meet you!"
Asta, equally energetic, replied, "I'm Asta from Hage Village! Pleased to meet you too!"
Drake couldn't help but marvel at the loud voice, even at such a young age.
Asta said, "Drake, where are you from? I've never seen you before."
Drake replied, "I'm from a faraway place! This is my first time here."
Asta's eyes sparkled. "Drake, you're traveling alone at such a young age! That's amazing!"
Asta thought Drake was a lone traveler, and Drake didn't correct him. A traveler was more believable than a time traveler.
So Drake said, "Well, I plan to stay here. Please take care of me!"
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