Chapter 19: 2/10 Experience, Wouldn't Isekai Again

The dull red wasteland vanished from the duo's vision as the summoning spell activated, and a greenish red aura surrounded the duo. Their bodies that had been respawning without fail finally disappeared from the hellish realm.

'What's going on?!'

Edol felt a pulling force try to rip Ghost away from him, and the blonde desperately held on to his frenemy.

Well… held on?

Both of their bodies had disappeared, leaving two round balls of light. Within one ball was a tiny, swirling brown orb; within the other lay a cluster of larger balls: Brown, green, blue, orange… and hidden between the other four was a light yellow core.

Without arms, Edol couldn't physically grab onto Ghost, but he could somehow instinctively still control himself to stick to the demon.

The red magic circle beneath the duo surged, and suddenly the duo's surroundings changed.

"I see trees of green, red roses, too,

I see them bloom, for me and you

And I think to myse-"

"... Squawk?"

Seeing how wonderful the new surroundings were, Edol couldn't help but break out into song, but was interrupted by the sound of a confused bird.

Edol's frenemy was no longer wearing heavy demonic armor, and his signature wavy maroon hair was no where to be found.

"... Ghost?"

The large bird of prey turned to look at Edol, panic surfacing in its eyes.

A voice echoed out in Edol's mind, and Edol felt some sort of connection with the bird.

"Bro, wtf is going on?! How can I be a bird? I'm the most handsome Suvian…"

Edol looked around, taking in the beautiful scenery (A destroyed town being reconquered by nature) while ignoring his panicking bird counterpart.

"Finally! We're out of that damn red hell!"

"Squawk! No! My beautiful armor! I don't have my armor!"

"Hush, bird. I'm taking in the scenery."

Ghost turned and began pecking at Edol, eliciting a shout of pain from the boy. Standing right next to Edol, the bird's head reached all the way up to the boy's waist. Ghost was grey in color, with a small tuft of maroon-ish brown feathers sticking up on the top of his head. With a slightly curved beak and fearsome talons made for hunting, paired with the feather tuft atop his head, Ghost's new appearance reminded Edol of a certain bird back on Earth.

The majestic animal known as…

"Oi asshole, stop trying to eat me!"

The angry harpy eagle-looking bird continued its assault on the boy, shouting out into his mind all the meanwhile.

"My precious armor! And my swords!! I- I can't live without them!"

"You got turned into a bird, and you're still worried about your stupid armor? You can't even wear your armor as a bird."

Ghost stopped in shock, a lost expression on his feathered face.

"My… my opposable thumbs…"

Edol glanced down at the widowmakers that were Ghost's new feet before backing away to a safe distance.

"Opposable thumbs? You've got opposable knives now! Look at the size of those bad boys!"

Ghost flexed his talons a few times before deciding that maybe his new arsenal wasn't so bad. Somehow reinvigorated by his new grabbers, Ghost instantly forgot about the loss of his precious armor and turned to Edol.

"Oi. Goblin. I'm just as beautiful as I was before, no?"

The boy glanced down at the talons, which were flexing threateningly.

"Y- yes… much more so, actually."

Perhaps Edol would have to add scary talons to his list of fears- they forced him to miss an opportunity to mess with his frenenemy, forcing him to tell the truth. Compared the the cringy armor and overly flamboyant maroon hairstyle of the past, bird Ghost looked much better. He even got to keep his maroon hair/featherstyle, but now it looked much more natural.

"Hrmph. I guess I'll be a bird for now."

Now that Ghost had calmed down, Edol was finally able to examine the new environment. The trees were similar to ones he'd seen in forests near Bristol.

Shade was cast over the budding undergrowth by an ancient-looking oak tree, standing just behind the ruins of what appeared to be a shrine. Chunks of marble littered the ground beneath Edol's feet- he could just make out the shape of an eye from within the shattered fragments.

A few scorch marks scarred a fallen wooden pillar to the side, accompanied by cuts from an axe, the blade having dug deep into the once beautiful wood.

In the opposite direction of the towering oak were two patches of budding undergrowth, split in two by an uneven paved pathway. Ten meters from the shrine, the paving of the pathway ended, but dirt packed by countless footsteps still held out against nature's reclaiming grasp.

Edol looked around in amazement.

'No buildings… Didn't elves in most stories live out in the wild? Perhaps this is one of their villages! A destroyed shrine, and a road surrounded by nothing but nature. It's a shame my little sis isn't here, I'm sure she'd love to explore this place!'

Edol stepped down from the remains of the shrine, peering his head into the undergrowth to the side of the path. Among the shrubs and weeds were signs of the ravages of a fire. The ashes of buildings that had once stood tall now fueled the quick growth of the forest, allowing the woods to quickly retake the land.

'Looks like this might not be an elf village, just a destroyed regular one. Awesome! Sorry to the folks who lived here, but this place is a hell of a lot better than, well, hell!'

Edol turned back, returning to the shrine where Ghost was strutting around pompously.

"Goblin. Bow before me and I shall grace you with knowledge and power fitting for a king!"

Ghost raised his head nearly vertically, attempting to look down at Edol. Unfortunately from the bird, he was now less than half Edol's height, and he looked more like a puppy begging for a snack.

"You want a treat? Sit! Be a good boy and roll over!"

Ghost's face turned ugly as he quickly retracted his neck.

"Go choke on a potato, Goblin!"

"Ah, potatoes, your favorite food! You know, I'm pretty sure eagles can't eat potatoes. Ah, what a tragedy. First you've lost your precious armor and sword, but now you are even without the comfort of your precious potatoes! I truly pity you, Ghost."

A mixture of despair and anger flooded over Ghost's face.

"Not potatoes too… Asshole goblin, you must've stolen my body! I bet you're supposed to be the bird, while I conquer hearts and countries as the world's most handsome man, v2!"

Edol's mocking laughter sounded out, drawing even more anger from Ghost.

"W- well then, if you think it's so funny, let's see how you do on your own! My genius has already discovered where we are, while you are walking around like an idiot! You'll probably die in minutes, but I won't be there to watch. It's time for me to take to the skies! Later, loser!"