Caesar, who was both physically and mentally exhausted, trudged through the devastated village, carefully searching every corner.
Maybe it was truly a blessing from the gods. In a crumbling, dilapidated house, a large piece of bread lay quietly on the ground. It was clearly damaged and soaked by rain, but for Caesar—who was starving—it was nothing short of a lifesaver.
He didn't hesitate. Like a starving wolf, he lunged at the bread, scooping it up from the muddy ground and devouring it like a ravenous beast. There was no time to chew; he swallowed it with the rainwater still clinging to it.
As food slowly filled the emptiness inside him, Caesar finally felt a spark of life return. With a deep, relieved sigh, he muttered, "Finally… I'm alive again."
He waited out the rain in the half-collapsed house. After the rain left he found a few more moldy pieces of bread hidden among the debris, as well as some books and damaged record boards filled with written text.
Although the language was unfamiliar, Caesar could understand its meaning—something he attributed to the body's original function or perhaps his Gold Finger.
From the records, Caesar pieced together some basic information.
First, the village he was in was called Rosemary Village.
Second, this world had magic.
And finally—
Caesar glanced at a somewhat-intact magic book he'd found, hidden away and preserved. It contained methods for learning Take Over magic. At that moment, Caesar realized where he had landed.
"This is… the Fairy Tail world," he muttered, stunned by the implications.
"Rosemary Village, Fairy Tail... Tch, this is the village where Erza and Kagura lived as children."
Looking around at the ruins, it wasn't hard for Caesar to guess what had happened. Rosemary Village had likely already been attacked the dark guild, with most of the villagers captured to help build the R-System in the Tower of Heaven.
In the original story, only the hidden Kagura survived. Erza and Simon were among those taken.
Now, there was one more survivor—Caesar.
He sighed bitterly. If he hadn't transmigrated, the original owner of this body would likely be dead. Hiding in a dry well that deep? The child would have died from the fall—or, if not from the fall, from starvation. No one would've known he was even there.
"If that's the case, then there's only one path for me."
Caesar wrapped the salvaged bread in a scrap of cloth.
He had to join Fairy Tail.
This world was too dangerous, and even with a white card, he was barely stronger than an average child. Without protection or guidance, he'd likely die quickly.
Of course, other magic guilds were an option too, but Caesar knew the main storyline revolved around Fairy Tail. Missing out on that would feel like missing the point.
Besides, Fairy Tail had plenty of iconic female characters. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't a little motivated by that.
"It's a shame. If I had met Erza and Kagura earlier, maybe I could've built a connection with them. First come, first served, right?" He chuckled bitterly.
"But now, Erza's at the Tower of Heaven, and Kagura's probably already on her way to Mermaid Heel… My chances are gone."
As he left the ruined village along the muddy path, Caesar joked to himself: "If Erza and Kagura are gone, there's still Mirajane, Lisanna, Cana, Wendy, Lucy, Evergreen…"
After a moment of teasing himself, he sighed again.
Dreams were nice, but reality was harsh.
Right now, he didn't even know where Fairy Tail's guild hall was—only that it was in Magnolia, a port city in the Kingdom of Fiore.
So his first step was to find the sea. Rosemary Village was relatively close to the coast. If he could reach a seaside town, maybe he could find a boat to Magnolia.
After walking for an entire day, Caesar's feet were covered in blisters, and still no town was in sight.
The good news? He hadn't encountered any dangerous creatures.
The bad news? His last piece of bread was nearly gone—and the "free single draw" never appeared again the next day.
For Caesar, that was a devastating blow.
He'd hoped to draw a free card every day. With some luck, he could fill all six card slots in five days. Even if they were just white cards, the attribute boosts alone would be worth it.
But now that dream was gone.
In desperation, Caesar turned to the magic book—the one that taught Take Over magic.
In the original story, Mirajane awakened her Take Over ability, while Elfman and Lisanna learned theirs through study.
Caesar didn't have the luxury of awakening anything, so he had to rely on study.
So, while traveling, he read the book every chance he got, hoping to grasp the magic.
Surprisingly, as soon as he began studying, a new notification appeared in his character interface:[Skill: Take Over Magic (1%)]
And as Caesar continued reading, the percentage steadily increased.
This discovery motivated him immensely.
"Maybe my Gold Finger isn't so worthless after all," Caesar thought. "Maybe I really can learn other types of magic through this!"
Inspired, he flipped through the book more quickly, determined to master it.
By the end of the day, after reading every page, the progress bar hit 100%.
In the next moment, a surge of knowledge rushed into his mind, clear and powerful—as if he had practiced for years.
"Take Over Magic: Heroic Soul."
Caesar digested the information easily and understood how to cast it.
But his excitement quickly faded.
Because this Take Over magic was directly linked to his Gold Finger.
In other words—he could only take over the souls of his own cards. These so-called "Heroic Spirits" were the only targets for possession.
On one hand, this made things much safer—he wouldn't risk losing control like Elfman with the Beast Soul.
On the other hand, without strong cards, his Take Over ability would be completely useless.
It was both a blessing and a curse.