Returning North

'This is so dumb.'

Edol wanted to bend down and massage his sore legs, but his new traveling companion had clearly already grown tired with his slow pace.

'Urg… curse you, Pepper, for not having a larger back!'

Edol looked balefully at the horse walking beside him, but tried to keep his eyes from veering to the horse's back. After meeting the girl- who had introduced herself as Willow and her horse as Pepper, the crew began wandering back northwards as Edol tried to recall what way they'd walked.

Unfortunately, Edol wasn't a character from a video game, walking or running all day without pausing for so much as a drink. Even after arriving in this world and gaining a more fit body, walking at a consistent pace for hours on end was sure to grow tiring.

His legs weren't even the most annoying thing about the journey, though.

"Yo, how's it goin down there, Edol? Enjoying the walk?"

After hearing Edol's sob story about 'Nibbles', Willow had quickly taken a liking to the massive predatory bird. How she could genuinely think the giant talons were cute was beyond Edol, but it had led to Ghost changing his ride.

Ghost, never wanting to miss an opportunity to mess with Edol, quickly morphed to fit the character of a happy yet poorly raised bird.

Even now, he lightly pecked at Willow's hand as she stroked his feathers, showing his affection.

'Well, at least that's a weight off my shoulder. Having that fat bird on me would make this walk all the worse!'

Perhaps Willow was a mind reader and wanted to ruin Edol's day, because she soon came up with a torturous idea. She patted Ghost's head, then smiled as she decided to be the mother Ghost never had.

"Nibbles, let's teach you how to fly! I'm sure you can do it with some practice!"

It wasn't even a bad proposition, considering how useful it would be for Ghost to be able to fly. They wouldn't even need Willow's help in finding a town or traveling south, and hunting for food would become a breeze.

"Alright, Nibbles! We'll start with learning to land. Try jumping down to Edol's shoulder as he walks!"

Before Edol could even react, a heavy weight dropped onto his right shoulder, nearly causing him to fall.

'Damn, I think this bird gained five pounds!'

Edol tried to keep a straight face as he ignored Willow's excited cheering, glancing over and making eye contact with Pepper.

The look in the horse's eyes… it was the first time Edol felt truly understood. Ghost hadn't been sitting on Willow- sparing her from the full horror of the giant talons on her shoulder. Instead, it had been Pepper's neck that Ghost was standing on.

"Alright, Nibbles! Try jumping back up onto Pepper! Good bird!"

A bit more annoyance seeped into Pepper's eyes as Ghost jumped back up, while the bird's actions elicited more cheers from Willow.

"Hey, Willow. Nibbles is actually pretty smart… maybe about half as smart as your average human? He's probably trying to take advantage of you."

Willow quickly shook her head, snatching a piece of jerky from one of the bags on Pepper's back and inserting it into Ghost's waiting beak.

"He's a good bird! If he was smart enough to trick me, he'd be flying already. It's ok, Nibbles! It's ok if your intelligence is a little lacking! With hard work, I'm sure you'll be able to fly!"

An irritated voice broke into Edol's mind, annoyed with the repeated insults to his intelligence.

"We might need to add this girl to the game, she's a menace with words!"

After being summoned, Edol and Ghost had chosen a new medium of battle to increase their so-called scores.

Verbal warfare.

If the other combatant was unable to come up with an acceptable response to an insult, the victor could add a point to their score.

This was a good part of the reason the two were constantly giving each other shit.

For the remaining two hours the group spent traveling back to the destroyed village, Ghost continuously hopped back and forth between Pepper's neck and Edol's shoulder. By the time they finally arrived, Edol felt that he'd gained a new brother in the horse, and gained a new pain in his shoulder.

'Finally! While she's exploring the village, I should look for a chance to take Pepper and run. Ghost and Willow are perfect for each other, they can find their own way back! Banditry isn't so bad if you're stealing from someone who's a worse person than you!"

Deciding to take a break before enacting his plan, Edol walked to the remains of the shrine before taking a seat on one of the fallen wooden beams. Willow was walking around the village, chopping through the budding underbrush with a machete-looking knife, despair mounting on her face as she recognized more and more of the village's layout.

Edol turned his attention away from the girl and began examining the chunks of marble he'd seen scattered on the ground a few days ago when he was here. It looked to have once been a statue of a young woman with long flowing hair and kind eyes.

"You said you wanted to make incredible spells someday, right? Even though she's only known to have made a single spell and died young, Danu still managed to go down in history as one of a select few world-changing legendary mages- the most recent one, too."

Ghost's voice interrupted Edol's thoughts, and after a moment's pause, the bird continued talking.

"I- I'll do my best. To make you a legendary mage, too. That psychotic goblin emperor fashions himself as the next one, even claiming to be the greatest one of all. Even if he was to die tomorrow, he'd probably still go down in history as a legend, even if it was just for taking control of Glory from his start as a commoner. "

Edol looked over at his friend, wondering how his own goal to research magic could impact the emperor's fame.

"If someone outshines him, though… his name could be washed from history. That murderous bastard should spend an eternity in hell for how many lives he's ended. He doesn't deserve to be remembered. If you could become a legendary mage… that would definitely help."

After listening to Ghost's words, Edol decided to abandon his plan of running away with Pepper. Sure, the bird was annoying most of the time, but even he had a soft side.

"It'll be hard, though, with your intelligence. Bah, you as a legendary mage? It'll only be because of me carrying you through enough relic tombs that you won't be able to fail no matter how hard you try to!"

Cancel that, Ghost was annoying all the time. At least, though, Edol knew he'd found a trustworthy friend.