The Guildmaster slowly shook his head.

“No. It’s another business building, where the troublemaking trio they were raising caused a commotion.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Their personalities are so nasty… they fought severely with each other and damaged property.”

“Oh dear. Are they Minky’s friends?”

“Yes. They’re like dogs.”

It seems they’re raising about three more puppies like Minky.

Another dog besides Minky, and even a white parrot.

This person. Just how many animals is he raising?

Perhaps the Guildmaster is truly a person who loves animals.

They say there are no bad people among those who love animals.

I stared at the Guildmaster intently.

‘This person. Could he not be a bad person?’

“Can I see Honey’s other animals next time?”

The Guildmaster answered firmly.

“Absolutely not for those three dog-like troublemakers.”

It seems they must be puppies he’s raising in secret.

I nodded and didn’t ask any further. Seeing his pets wasn’t an important matter.

“By the way, I don’t see the pet bird today?”

The Guildmaster finally noticed the absence of the invisible Bless.

“That one…”

I recalled what happened this morning.

The one who woke up earlier than me and even went for a walk said it would go out today.

“…Where are you going?”

When I asked, it answered like this.

—Kyuu kyuu.

‘To meet a friend.’

I remembered the ten birds I saw the other day. Those cunning birds that resembled Bless.

As soon as I recalled those cute birds, I found myself pleading before I knew it.

“Can’t you take me with you?”

I like cute birds, you know!

A place with ten cute ones… Wouldn’t that be heaven?

Bless, who seemed like it would agree to anything I said, even if it meant risking its life, gave an unexpected answer.

—Kyuu kyuu.

It says, ‘No way.’

It was the most resolute answer I’d ever heard from Bless.

“Why on earth not?”

Bless replied with a deliberately serious face.

—Kyuu kyuu kyuu kyuu.

I recalled its reply and said,

“…It went out for a species meeting that can’t be revealed to humans.”

I said this and burst out laughing, “Pff.”

It wasn’t that I was disrespecting Bless at all.

It was just too cute to imagine those small birds gathering closely for a secret meeting.

What would be the agenda for their secret meeting?

World domination?

Are they planning to conquer with cuteness? Oh, you little ones.

If it’s that kind of conquest, I’m willing to accept it.

Please conquer me.

And I was already conquered by Bless’s cuteness. Complete surrender.

“So Bless said it would return in the afternoon.”

“Bless?”

“Ah! That’s the pet bird’s name. Honey, you can call it that too.”

“I see. Bless. It’s a good name.”

Ahem, of course, it is. Who do you think named it!

“And speaking of Bless…”

I recalled the incident of falling off the cliff.

The memory that made my back shiver just by recalling it unfolded before my eyes.

But the moment Bless transformed into an adult form to save me wasn’t a bad memory.

Should I say it was Bless’s heroic act that overlaid the bad memory?

“As Honey said, Bless was able to become an adult form.”

A small exclamation escaped through the Guildmaster’s slightly parted lips.

“The problem is, we have no idea what the activation conditions are.”

Bless… Did it transform by exerting superhuman strength when I was in danger?

But even that wasn’t a perfect awakening.

I also remembered that cute bird’s strange way of speaking.

What would Bless look like when it fully awakens? I suddenly became curious.

“My lord. Could I hear more details about that matter?”

I nodded.

“By all means.”

***

Meanwhile, Bless was flying over the Pandora Forest.

Bless, in full flight, looked down somewhere with its black bean-like eyes.

‘That’s where I first talked with Yerena.’

In fact, Bless hadn’t first met Yerena that day.

About half a year had passed since it came to the Eldora Empire through a gate from another world.

During that time, Bless observed various humans hiding in forests or city buildings.

As the leader of its species, it was to find a human who could realize the ‘final plan’ of its kind.

That’s when it discovered Yerena.

Yerena, who never avoided the vicious monsters that even the spirited Bless had never dared to confront.

Her strong demeanor, never dying despite facing several near-death situations.

‘What an impressive human.’

Yerena was the most impressive of all the humans Bless had observed so far.

Although she had nothing, it felt like everything would work out well if it was with her.

That’s why Bless wanted to be with Yerena.

Of course, it wasn’t just Yerena’s strong demeanor that made Bless approach her.

After hovering around her for days without her knowing…

‘Other humans. Aren’t they bullying Yerena too much?’

…was the conclusion it came to.

It seemed Yerena had no one on her side.

So Bless wanted to be on her side.

It had painfully experienced being disregarded by others for being a weak existence.

Without asking her, it could guess how upset and difficult it must be for her.

Bless felt a sense of kinship with her.

Deciding to be on her side was its own decision, separate from the grand plan of the monstrous birds.

The opportunity to reveal its existence to Yerena came soon.

Yerena was abandoned by her heartless companion.

Bless stayed by Yerena’s side all night as she was abandoned in the forest. Then, just as Yerena was about to wake up in the morning, it made its presence known.

Of course, it never dreamed she would understand its words.

It knew that there were some humans in this world with various abilities.

But it didn’t expect there to be a human who could interpret the words of a monstrous bird like itself.

‘Is this what they call fate?’

Bless, reminiscing about the past, picked up speed.

The black gate it frequented was right in front of it.

Soon, Bless landed in front of the black gate and shook its white belly.

It was a gesture of satisfaction with its smooth flight.

Bless muttered lowly towards the gate.

—Kyuu kyuu kyuu!

‘Everyone come out!’

Trident-like legs started popping out of the gate one by one.

Soon, there were ten birds standing in front of the gate. They were Bless’s friends that Yerena had witnessed the other day.

—Kyuu kyuu kyuu!

‘Line up in single file!’

The ten birds formed a regular formation with a “Kyuu kyuu!” chant.

Among them, the second-in-command bird addressed Bless.

‘White-haired-single-feather. How is our plan progressing?’

Among the species, Bless was called ‘White-haired-single-feather’.

This was because Bless had a single feather sticking up on its round head as if it had sprouted.

‘Brown-feathered-wing. Good question. It’s progressing smoothly. Kuk. Kuk. Kuk.’

Brown-feathered-wing. That was the name of the second-in-command.

That bird had brown feathers scattered here and there on its white wings.

Brown-feathered-wing made a worried chirping sound.

‘Aren’t you trusting that human woman too much?’

‘That woman is trustworthy. Don’t underestimate my judgment!’

Bless flew over and pecked the head of Brown-feathered-wing who had expressed doubt.

‘Aaah! Stop! Then provide evidence to prove White-haired-single-feather’s judgment!’

Bless, stopping its pecking, flew to the top seat and puffed out its belly.

‘Very well. Just wait a little longer.’

Yerena was about to start her own business, escaping her abandoned life.

This was a favorable point for Bless. It would help with the ‘final plan’ plotted with the monstrous birds.

Bless chuckled softly, covering its beak with its wing. It was cute but somehow seemed sinister.

Eventually, Bless brought one wing to its face as if saluting.

‘I will now go to meet that woman!’

The monstrous birds also brought one wing to their faces towards Bless. The sharp angle was a bonus.

Bless’s wings cut through the sky.

There was no hesitation in its wing beats, hoping for good fortune.