But…
Even knowing this was the world of Fairy Tail, Ankh's mood didn't change in the slightest.
After all, his mental state had been unstable for years, and many of his memories from his past life had become hazy.
Makarov looked at the tense Ankh, casually raised a hand, and greeted him without any airs.
"Yo, hello there!"
Ankh didn't lower his hands.
His red eyes stared intently at Makarov while he remain silent.
His incredibly dark experiences made Ankh deeply distrustful of anyone other than Seram.
Seeing no response, Makarov scratched his head awkwardly, then asked with genuine curiosity.
"Um, are you a boy or a girl?"
A vein bulged on Ankh's forehead.
Without another word, he lunged, trying to grab Makarov.
However, although Makarov was startled by his action, he nimbly jumped to the side, dodging the pounce.
"What's the big deal? Don't be so aggressive!" he said.
Ankh glared at Makarov.
In his mind, Seram seemed to have discovered something very bad and speak with an urgent tone.
[That old man feels no fear towards you at all. Terror cannot be activated!]
Alright, Ankh had expected as much.
After all, if the members of Demon of Destruction hadn't seen him "rise from the dead," they wouldn't have felt fear towards Ankh either.
As a guild master, it was even more unlikely for Makarov to feel fear towards a skinny child for no reason.
Makarov looked at Ankh seriously and speak in a deep voice.
"Child, let me ask you, did you kill the people from the Dark Guild at the entrance?"
Ankh admitted it without hesitation, speaking in a low voice, "Of course I did. They deserved to die!"
"Is that so…"
Makarov's expression remained unchanged.
He looked at Ankh's youthful face and said, "With so many souls weighing on your hands, your heart will not be at peace…"
Ankh couldn't help but scoff.
"Don't preach your chicken soup nonsense if you haven't been through what others have."
Makarov's old face broke into a smile, and he rubbed his bald head.
"Alright, then… child, are you interested in joining my guild?"
Ankh froze.
Join Fairy Tail?
Makarov had extended an olive branch so easily.
Wasn't he being a little too much of a goody-two-shoes?
Although Ankh knew to some extent that this Fairy Tail guild master was very tolerant of children, inviting a stranger to join his guild just like that seemed far too rash.
Ankh's pretty little face was cold as he said indifferently, "I'm not interested in your guild."
'This kid has a face so beautiful that will make women jealous, but he sure is very cautious' Makarov grumbled to himself.
Originally, Makarov had just returned from a meeting of guild masters.
Before he even entered the town, he had sensed a terrifying fluctuation of magic power.
It was a special kind of magic power Makarov had never seen before, but its type felt very similar to one of his guild's Three Great Magics—Fairy Law.
And this kid, he had clearly used a magic similar to a Super Magic, so why did he look like he hadn't expended any energy at all? Were all the corpses at the entrance killed by his Super Magic curse…
Despite the many questions in his mind, when Makarov saw Ankh's miserable, blood-stained appearance, he couldn't help but try to persuade him.
"But… you're all alone now. You won't be able to survive."
"Tch…"
Ankh's bright eyes flickered, his gaze changing slightly.
He secretly asked Seram, 'What do you think? Are there any other combat spells?'
[You don't have much magic power in your body. Only 'Terror' is inherently our magic, which is why you could learn and use it instantly and freely.]
So, Seram would indeed teach him other magic, but his current physical condition was too poor to learn it yet...
Ankh lowered his fist, looked calmly at Makarov, and said in a low voice, "I need a place to rest."
[Wait, are you really going to join this old human's guild?]
Meeting Makarov's surprised gaze, Ankh calmly replied in his mind.
'The best course of action is to find a place to settle down first.'
Ankh, who had grown up in hazy chaos, and Seram, who knew nothing about the outside world, couldn't survive in this world on their own.
[...I'll listen to you. After all, your body is so bad it's practically useless for combat. You're a disgrace to us.]
At Seram's words, Ankh couldn't help but blush, his delicate features becoming even more captivating, which made Makarov stare in a daze.
[Fine... You go solve the problem of your human body's food and warmth. I'll think about what other secret arts we have...]
After some dawdling, Ankh, a stranger in a strange land, had inexplicably found his first home in this world.
Leaving Demon of Destruction behind, Makarov led the way towards fairy tail.
Ankh kept his distance from the old man, following him step by step.
In the forest on the outskirts of town, a lively yet cautious breeze blew, and leaves danced and swayed in the wind.
Walking on the soft earth, the weight in Ankh's heart lightened.
For all these years, he had felt nothing for the outside world.
Only now, after being liberated, did he understand that simply being alive was such a happy thing...
Makarov, leading the way, turned his head to look at the child following far behind him, and a smile couldn't help but appear on his old face.
Perhaps he was getting old, easily moved to pity by the sight of a poor child.
As a guild master, he really should be more cautious...
Ankh, with a mix of curiosity and caution, observed his surroundings.
[Ankh... the human body is a bit troublesome.]
Seram, who had been silent for a while, suddenly spoke.
'What's wrong?' Ankh asked quizzically in his mind.
[The human bodies of this world have a growth limit for each age... I was thinking of raising your constitution all at once...]
Ankh couldn't help but smile, comforting it, 'It's okay, we can take our time. I'm free now, anyway. With your help, I can still become strong.'
Seram fell silent again.
Ankh tilted his head but didn't disturb it.
Ankh looked at the short figure leading the way ahead.
A thought suddenly struck him, and he opened his mouth to speak.
"You..."
"The name's Makarov, you know."
Ankh paused, then continued to ask, "Master Makarov, what year is it?"
Makarov was taken aback for a moment. "The year? It's X778."
'Alright, I don't remember that at all.'
Ankh only remembered the year X777, which was repeatedly mentioned in the original story—the year the dragons who raised Natsu and Wendy disappeared.
As Ankh was deep in thought, the two of them had unknowingly walked out of the forest.
In the distance, the city of Magnolia gradually came into view.
As one of the foremost magical cities in the Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia currently had only one official wizard guild.
And that was Fairy Tail, the guild with the greatest reputation in Fiore today and rumoured to be the strongest of them all!