Noroi stared at him hopelessly, then lowered his gaze and rubbed his forehead with his right hand before letting it drop to his side.

  He turned away, saying coldly.

  "Do whatever you want."

  As soon as Noroi walked off, the bird fluttered down and quickly perched on Haruki's shoulder, rubbing its pink-feathered head affectionately against his cheek in gratitude for sparing its life.

  Haruki laughed joyfully at the bird's adorable behavior, raising a finger to gently pet it as it chirped happily.

  "Wahaha, you're so cute!"

  He set his bow on the ground, then cupped the little bird in his hands, stroking its head softly while it sang in contentment, feeling safe between his palms.

  Looking toward Yamka and Noroi with a bright, hopeful smile, Haruki asked in an excited, childlike tone , as if pleading to keep a stray kitten he'd fallen in love with.

  "Can I keep it?"

  Noroi's eyes turned to the weak, helpless, useless creature in Haruki's hands; it looked like a tiny pink ball with two large black pupils.

  Noroi redirected his gaze to Haruki, who was looking at him with wide, pleading eyes that shone like a begging puppy, but those eyes would have no effect on Noroi.

  Without giving it much thought, he replied to Haruki's request.

  "No, we already have an animal."

  Noroi said this while pointing over his shoulder with his thumb toward Yamka, who was standing directly behind him, arms crossed below her chest, nodding steadily in agreement with him. ‘She didn't realize the insult was hers’.

  Haruki pushed out his lower lip in a pitiful, exaggerated way, adding more insistence, while the bird in his hands mirrored his pleading expressions.

  Haruki spoke at length, his voice full of entreaty and urgency, trying to convince Noroi to let them keep the little pink bird on their journey.

  "Pleeeease!"

  Noroi squinted his eyes against the illusory light coming from Haruki's expression and the bird, wanting to get rid of it quickly before his eyes, accustomed to dim lighting, were affected.

  So he hurriedly agreed just to get rid of them, saying in a rushed tone.

  "Ugh… fine, just stop doing whatever you're doing. Damn, that hurts."

  Haruki jumped with joy as if he had won the grand prize when Noroi agreed to let them keep the bird, shouting in celebration.

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  "Yay!! I got a new friend!"

  Haruki looked at his hands and saw the bird dancing happily on his palm, flapping its wings back and forth while its tail moved in a circular motion.

  Haruki's eyes sparkled at the bird's joyful dance, and he shook his head, exclaiming loudly, amazed by the bird's actions.

  "Wow, this bird has talents!"

  On the other side, Yamka moved from her spot toward Noroi, watching him rub his eyes with his fingers, his right with his thumb, his left with his index finger,his expression carrying a hint of annoyance.

  She waited until he finished, then asked with curiosity.

  "What now?"

  Noroi threw up his hand dramatically, complaining as he replied to her question.

  "That fool is irresponsible. I bet that bird will stick with him until this evening."

  Yamka's eyebrows furrowed at Noroi's completely unrelated response to her question.

  Her finger rose to scratch the corner of her forehead for a moment in confusion before she burst out at him, saying.

  "Who cares about that bird! I'm asking about our trip, where are we going now?"

  "Oh, right."

  Noroi tilted his bag to the side to open it, then pulled out a paper map before returning the bag to settle back on his shoulders.

  He unfolded the map, revealing detailed illustrations of the entire world of Malvora, and his eyes moved downward, focusing specifically on the Gaia region.

  He analyzed the map carefully, pinpointing their exact location, before saying.

  "That transparent hag said we need to head to the Ash Fort, which lies to the west of Zalkarth's markets. We exited from the eastern gate."

  Yamka raised her left eyebrow with a confused expression but hummed, pretending to understand what he was saying.

  Noroi continued, pointing toward their path.

  "We should move in this direction."

  He rolled the map back up before starting to walk, holding it in his hand, while Mini hovered behind him, following wherever he went.

  Yamka took a few steps after him, then stopped and glanced over her shoulder at Haruki and his bird, asking.

  "Aren't you coming?"

  Haruki lifted his gaze from the little bird to her and smiled in response.

  "I'm coming."

  He placed the pink bird on his shoulder and rushed after them, walking side by side with Yamka.

  And as the two of them advanced together step by step behind Noroi.

  Yamka cast a glance toward the pink-feathered bird standing proudly on Haruki's shoulder as if it were some kind of falcon , even though its size was closer to that of a fluff ball.

  She broke the silence with her question.

  "What did you name it?"

  Haruki stopped in his place for a few moments, as if his brain had stopped working, so Yamka stopped too, her expression turning mocking as she said.

  "You're calling it your -new friend- and you haven't even given it a name yet?"

  Haruki placed the elbow of his right arm over his left arm to scratch his chin in thought before replying with a deeply contemplative expression.

  "I haven't thought about it."

  Yamka let out a mocking laugh at Haruki and his expression before turning her back to him and striding off after Noroi.

  Haruki narrowed his eyes, trying to gather every brain cell he had together, and suddenly, a name lit up in his head like a light bulb.

  He lowered his shoulder slightly, encouraging the bird to return and perch on his hands, and the bird didn't disappoint him, it obediently moved onto his palms, looking up at Haruki with its big black eyes.

  Haruki spoke to it with a wide smile.

  "How about Tomoi! Because you're my favorite friend now!"

  The bird chirped happily, pleased with the name Haruki had chosen for it.

  -Tomoi means friend or companion, and can also mean angel.-