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The four of them seemed perplexed by my proposal.

Their gazes turned toward the Long-tailed Tit, their expressions seeming to ask, “Even though you have a Spirit God on your side?”

I could understand their doubt—wasn’t our combat strength already sufficient?

“It shouldn’t be a bad deal, though.”
“That’s true. But why do you want our help…?”
“It’s a nuisance for me, too, to have them blocking our way home. There’s no reason for us to tackle the same goal separately.”
“…I see.”

They seemed to relax a little. Judging by their reaction, it seems adventurers tend to think of this as a competition for prey.

Now that you mention it, both Sufi and Noche were the type to be quite particular about that sort of thing.

Of course, once they reach that level, they’re too much for us to handle on our own, and judging by how they usually act, they understand the priorities well enough not to do anything reckless.

Of course, if they had enough combat power to spare, they’d probably try to handle it on their own… Ah, right—from these people’s perspective, we’re “mysterious strangers who could easily defeat them but, for some reason, are offering to split the spoils.”

That is certainly unsettling.

“I have my own circumstances, so I won’t force the issue,”
“…No, if you’re willing to lend us your strength, I’d find that very reassuring.”

Rimona was speaking on their behalf, but I glanced over to see if the leader was okay with the idea. The two weak rear guards were working together to choke Geist, and his menacing face has turned pale for reasons other than the cold.

It seems best to wrap this up quickly before an unfortunate accident happens.

“We’ll come back once we’re ready.”
“Y-yes.”

Using Alchemy, I enlarged the snow hut a little more and solidified it. Magically, it hasn’t changed, but thanks to my equipment making my physical discomfort much better, the spell is easier to cast.

Using the long-tailed tit’s feathers for support, I stood up and shook my body lightly to shake off the snow.

“You lot had better finish your preparations too.”
“Understood.”

Mainly, I need to discuss things with my companions and align our opinions. Adventurers who actively venture into unexplored territories probably don’t need me to share my supplies with them.

If it were just me, that would be one thing, but this is to keep Sufi and the others from going hungry. I don’t intend to hand them out lightly.

Before anything could go wrong, I scrambled onto the long-tailed tit’s back and took off into the blizzard-filled sky, leaving Rimona and the others looking up at me.

Sigh, I’m exhausted.

■■■■■

The long-tailed tit was flying through the blizzard-filled sky with me on its back. It wasn’t that cold, but flying through a blizzard felt a little strange.

After flying for a while, for some reason, we landed quite a distance from the door.

All around us was a snowfield with nothing but snow; in the blizzard, everything was pure white as far as a few meters ahead.

“Can you take down that big, long thing and that lizard-like thing out there?”

Since it had gone quiet, I asked the person—or rather, the bird—about something that had been on my mind, and got a somewhat ambiguous response.

“Jurururu…”

This little guy is the type to stand tall when it’s confident. That said, it’s not one to put on airs, so it’ll honestly admit when it can’t do something.

Tilting its head with that indecisive look…

“Is defeating them no problem for you?”
“Cheep-cheep.”

It nodded without hesitation.

“……Hmm, am I just getting in the way?”
“Jururi.”

Apparently not.

“Hmm, well then……”

After going back and forth with questions and answers, I sort of got the gist of what it was trying to say.

“…You can’t even get out of here in the first place?”
“Cheep.”

It nodded matter-of-factly. I don’t know why, but it seems this little one can’t leave the underground snowfield. For some reason, my chest tightened.

With the sound of snow crunching under its feet, the long-tailed tit approached. I sensed a strong will in its round, steady gaze.

“Cheep.”

As it let out a single call, a shimmering snowflake emerged from its fluffy white feathers. The flake floated gently toward me, emitting a beautiful blue light unlike anything I’d ever seen.

“What’s this?”
“Jururu.”

I reached out and touched the crystal. Even through my gloves, it felt as cold as ice, yet I also felt warmth. I thought I heard something.

……I let down my guard and strained my ears and heart to listen. Then, rather than a sound or words, a feeling was conveyed to me as a sensation. That this was its core. Something akin to this child’s soul.

That it was a fairy born from the snow, formed by the collective longing for birds and humans that share the same shape. An otherworldly being that, while taking the same form, is incompatible with both humans and birds.

That, when it met me on Earth, it thought it’d finally found a companion. After being cast into this world “that day,” it decided to keep waiting in this underground ice cave, believing that I, too, would visit someday.

That it was so happy that we’d finally met and that it’d been able to confirm its feelings. That it wanted us to stay together forever.

Before I knew it, I was kneeling in the snow.

“I’m sorry.” The words of apology just slipped out. I couldn’t think of anything else to say. “I’m sorry. I always thought of you as a friend, but I wasn’t ready to accept that. I was afraid that if we got close, you’d disappear just like Kuro did.”

Kuro wasn’t human, but for me—who’d been all alone ever since I can remember—he was an irreplaceable friend who was always by my side.

Yet, just as I’d settled in under the protection of the Pandora Institution and was finally beginning to understand what it meant to have a friend, he disappeared. One day, out of the blue, he vanished without a trace.

Then I realized that Kuro and the other kids who showed me kindness were, at their core, the same kind of being. I got scared. I was afraid that if I became friends with them, they’d disappear as well.

Sufi and the others are human. So I didn’t worry about them. We might part ways, or we might grow apart. But they wouldn’t suddenly vanish. I think I was unconsciously drawing that distinction in my mind.

Back then, I didn’t have the courage to cross that line. I wasn’t prepared to become “one of them,” nor did I have the courage to accept them as a human.

The face of the crouching long-tailed tit loomed right before my eyes; its fluffy feathers brushed against my cheek.

The crystal told me, “There’s nothing to apologize for.” The way it was showing me its affection with all its might made me feel a little tickled.

What should I do? What’s the right way to respond? As someone who’s terrible at socializing, I still don’t know. But when I looked deep into my own heart, the words I wanted to say have been here all along.

“This time, I’ll say it properly.”

I can’t say anything clever anyway—I’m just not capable of it. So I have no choice but to be straightforward.

“Will you be my friend?”
“Cheep.”

Feeling relieved by this child’s predictable answer, I hugged my round, fluffy friend tightly.

――As if in response, the lantern leapt out from inside my clothes, ignoring my will.

“Ah!”

While I stood there dumbfounded, the snow crystal was sucked into the lantern’s flame. A fierce blaze erupted, burning away all the surrounding snow.

“W-wait!”

In my hand, the long-tailed tit, still wearing its gentle expression, vanished into the flames. Leaving me behind, unable to do anything but stare in shock, the pale blue flames swallowed everything whole.

Before I knew it, the blizzard had stopped, the surrounding snow had completely vanished, and the bare rock of the cave was now visible.

A lantern floated gently down before my eyes, its design intertwined with patterns resembling snow and ice. Had it absorbed it? Swallowed it? Like a magic stone?

My thoughts and emotions couldn’t keep up.

With trembling hands, I reached for the lantern. Flames flared up again, spewing out not just shadows but a massive amount of snow as well.

The snow swirled, gradually forming a single round mass… and when it grew much taller than I was, the long-tailed tit—looking exactly the same as before—emerged from within, spreading its wings as it blew the snow away.

“Cheep?”

“What’s wrong?” The long-tailed tit tilted its head, and I could sense its thoughts much more clearly than before.

Helpfully, a shadow appeared at the same time, forming words. After a brief explanation that Wire Man had made a small adjustment when he threw the magic stone in, he explained that a space for the long-tailed tit had been created inside the lantern by incorporating its snow crystal.

This is a special contract with a spirit in a ritual sense. The long-tailed tit’s usable power is greatly restricted, but at the same time, it can now move freely with me.

Then came a follow-up: “Please don’t misunderstand me—this was something the bird did of its own free will.”

Finally, Wire Man explained at length that since mental interference doesn’t work on me, he can’t communicate directly to me; so whenever any changes occur in the lantern from now on, he will let me know in the form of text.

For the time being, I’d managed to process the situation. Pressing my hand against my chest to calm my heart, which had suddenly started pounding, I buried myself in the Long-tailed Tit’s feathers.

“……T-that gave me a fright.”
“Cheep.”

I almost started crying…!

***

#Author’s Note:#
A case of being forced into a contract