1 Getting Lost on the Way to the Kitchen

After waking up in the middle of the night and taking a piss, a not-so-young man with a young heart headed to his kitchen for a snack and some coffee. He had only gotten around three hours of sleep, but that was par for the course for a seasoned gamer and Otaku.

Feeling the temperature suddenly drop, the grizzled and somewhat unkempt man opened his eyes wide, muttering, "What the hell? This isn't my kitchen..." as he looked around at a hemispherical space filled with an unfathomable amount of displays. He tried focusing on a few, but the way they moved about resembled the patterns seen in a kaleidoscope, making it impossible to keep track of any single screen.

Interrupting the not-so-young man's thoughts, a remarkably deep voice mused, "Ho~? It's unusual for me to have guests, much less those I have not invited into my domain. How curious..."

Following the sound of the voice, the brown-haired, brown-eyed man was shocked to discover an old, aristocratic-looking man seated atop what he could only describe as a throne. The ancient figure had silvery-white hair that flowed away from his scalp, transitioning into a beard that framed his aged face. He also had piercing red eyes that gleamed vibrantly, but even they didn't stand out against his most prominent feature...

Voicing his thoughts aloud, the brown-haired man stated, "You look like someone straight out of a CGI movie..."

"Hmmm..."

Caressing his beard, the ruby-eyed man eyed his markedly more youthful interloper with interest. He possessed an ability that allowed him to peer into the past, present, and future of all timelines he actively viewed, so he was currently sneaking a peek at the fate of the man that had strolled into his dimension wearing a simple t-shirt and boxer shorts...

After realizing that the man had accidentally entered his realm, something that should have been impossible, the elderly figure adopted a somewhat vicious smile before bursting out laughing.

Before the brown-haired man could ask what was so funny, he received his answer as the elderly figure mused, "To think you 'stumbled' into my realm while making your way to the kitchen for snacks. Congratulations, Thomas, you've managed to pique this old man's interest."

Feeling more than a little creeped out, the brown-haired man, Thomas, looked behind him to find the exit. Instead, he found a disorienting swirl of images and absolutely no trace of a path.

Thinking he must have been in a dream, Thomas gave himself a pinch, brows furrowing due to the pain. At the same time, the elderly man said, "This is no dream, boy. And no, you are not dead. At the very least, not presently..."

Rising to his feet, the old man manifested a ruby-tipped cane out of thin air, tapping it on the ground as he slumped over slightly and remarked, "However, while you might not be dead, I 'can' grant you that which your heart desires. Transmigration? Wealth, fame, and power beyond measure? Everything can be yours, so long as you agree to aid me with something of little consequence. What that is, I can only reveal to you 'after' you've completed your journey..."

Though he had the distinct impression he was standing in front of the Devil himself, Thomas's throat tightened as he asked, "You're seriously allowing me to transmigrate to a world of my choosing with some kind of cheat? And I can choose 'any' world...?"

Nodding his head, the old man adopted another vicious smile as he said, "Indeed. However, I don't believe in granting people power arbitrarily. I will provide you the means to get stronger and mighty Servants to protect you. Everything else will depend on your efforts..."

Hearing the fierce-looking man's words, Thomas's heart began beating so powerfully that he could feel it in his ears. He had, on several occasions, joked about selling his soul to the Devil in exchange for the opportunity to visit some of his favorite anime worlds. Now, even if this was just a 'really' lucid dream, he was willing to gamble everything for the opportunity to do so...

Adopting what he imagined to be a resolute look, Thomas replied, "I'll do it. If you can grant my wish, I don't care what you ask of me in return. The world I came from was basically going to Hell in a handbasket, so I don't mind if I spend an eternity in the actual thing."

Narrowing his eyes slightly, the elderly man adopted a grim expression as he stated, "The contract has been established. Now, tell me, Thomas Dale Jansen. Where would you like to begin your 'adventure'...?"

Though he imagined there were better and safer options, Thomas didn't hesitate to reply, "One Piece." He had recently read chapter 1053 of the Manga, and had binge-watched a bunch of Grandline Review videos on Youtube. It was one of the few Anime and Manga that still had a touch of mystery to it, so, as interesting as it would be to transmigrate to a world like Hunter x Hunter, Dragon Ball, or even My Hero Academia, he decided on One Piece.

As he had already peered into Thomas's future, the old man nodded his head before extending his left hand to manifest what appeared to be an apple formed of rainbow-hued crystal. He then made a gesture with his hand, causing the apple to float over to Thomas as he explained, "That is the Mana-Mana-no-Mi, a Special Paramecia I created that will allow you to produce and emit Mana. You are currently just an ordinary human, so this will allow you to utilize the other gifts I have prepared for you..."

Manifesting what appeared to be a leather-bound ship's log with several bookmarks, the old man added, "As you are, you wouldn't last more than five days in a world such as One Piece. To keep you safe and prepare you for the task I have in mind, I will provide you with the means to acquire a crew without having to scout them directly..."

Pulling out one of the tabs, the elderly man revealed it to be a tarot-like card with a humanoid figure and the word 'Captain' written on the bottom, explaining, "Once you reach your destination, ingest that Devil Fruit and do your best to channel as much Mana as you can into this card. So long as you do it seriously, you should be able to summon the entity contained within before you die of thirst or starvation..."

"Wait, wha-"

Before Thomas could ask any questions, one of the displays behind him, depicting a pristine white beach against the backdrop of a verdant jungle, abruptly expanded to the size of a door. In less than a second, it passed through where he was standing, depositing the extremely confused and barefoot man onto the beach. The sudden change caused him to fall onto his ass while the elderly figure casually tossed the book and card through the portal, musing, "By the way...my name is Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg. Yes, the very same Zelretch that has just appeared in your mind. With that said, good luck, Thomas D. Jensen..."

After dropping the bombshell of his identity, Zelretch abruptly closed the portal, stranding Thomas on one of the many islands that populated the world of One Piece...

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With the sun shining on him from above, the salt-kissed breeze from the sea hitting his face, and the sand beneath him burning his ass, Thomas looked down at his hands and body to find they had changed drastically. He was still wearing the same t-shirt and boxer shorts, but they looked like they had been run through an extremely advanced cel-shaded filter. As for his body...

Out of curiosity and concern, Thomas pulled at the band of his boxers to see what his dick looked like. The size and shape were roughly the same as he remembered, but it was like someone had made a cartoony version of himself and uploaded it to VR Chat, one that would get him banned on just about any server...

Shaking away his wayward thoughts, Thomas grabbed the Captain's log, card, and the small satchel that had appeared next to his feet and made his way to the shade. He also had the Mana-Mana-no-Mi, but instead of eating it immediately, he opened the satchel to find it was filled with fruit, a canteen of water, paper notes which he assumed were Belly, and a pair of open-toed sandals. Not Thomas's first choice, but as he was currently barefoot, they would have to do.

After donning the pair of leathery sandals, Thomas stared at the unique Devil Fruit that Zelretch had given him. He imagined he wouldn't be able to do much without the power it vested, so, after steeling himself as much as possible, he bit into the rainbow-hued fruit to find that it tasted...like a perfectly ordinary apple.

Feeling no different, even after consuming the entire apple, Thomas took a moment to consider his next course of action before abruptly thrusting out his right hand, palm facing outward. He was hoping to first off some kind of energy blast. Instead, he felt a tingling sensation at the tips of his fingers, like the feeling you would get when you stretched your arm as far as possible but without hyper extending.

"Hmmm..."

Closing his eyes, Thomas focused his mind and imagined he was shaping his Mana into a sphere of energy atop his palm. He could feel 'something' happening, but when he opened his eyes, the only thing he found was an empty hand.

Accepting that he had no clue what he was doing, Thomas looked around before sitting beneath a palm tree and opening the logbook that had been tossed into his face. He expected it to be an instruction manual, but the only thing he found inside were eight additional cards and empty pages, the only exception being the very first page which recorded the date and a line reminding him to channel Mana into the Captain's Card if he wanted to survive...

Speculating that the logbook might be Zelretch's way of communicating with him, Thomas picked up the attached pen and wrote down a line of text asking if the man could read it. When nothing happened, even after several minutes, he snapped the log shut and picked up the nine tarot-like cards he had found inside. Along with the Captain's Card, there were tarot cards denoting the positions of First Mate, Second Mate Cook, Navigator, Doctor, Shipwright, Sniper, and Musician.

While he wasn't too familiar with the nautical hierarchy, Thomas had a basic idea of what each position represented in the world of One Piece. The First and Second Mates were part of the primary combat forces of a pirate crew, while the other positions were pretty much self-explanatory. What bothered him was the fact that there was a Captain's Card among the set. By all rights, shouldn't he be the Captain...?

With such thoughts in mind, Thomas briefly considered using every other card 'but' the Captain. In the end, however, self-preservation won out, so, after staring at the buccaneer-like figure on the card for several minutes, he attempted channeling Mana into it. He had no idea how to do so, but it apparently didn't matter as a pale-blue pattern immediately lit up around the card's border as particles of blue light rose from its surface. That was the 'only' thing that happened, even after an entire hour, but it was better than nothing...

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(A/N: For those that don't know, Zelretch is one of the most powerful entities in Type-Moon, the metaverse within which Fate and its many derivative works take place.)