Extra’s Rebirth: I Will Create A Good Ending For The Heroines

'So I think the main question is how I'm going to find a familiar?' Azel thought with a long sigh as he trudged through the forest, brushing aside another curtain of blue-leaved ferns that slapped against his face.

The goddess blade was in his right hand, glowing faintly in the filtered light, while his left hovered just above the shrubs in case Plaides had some ridiculous, unwritten rule about not disturbing the plants.

Honestly, Azel wouldn't put it past him.

Plaides really seemed like the type who'd pull rules straight out of his ass and act as though they'd been carved into cosmic law since the dawn of time.

You could hear it from his condescending tone.

That was only half the problem, though.

The real issue was this: he needed to make a Familiar want him.

Not scare it into obeying, not capture it by force — no, it had to willingly accept him as its partner.

Which, as far as Azel was concerned, was about as realistic as winning the lottery while being struck by lightning… twice.

If this were Earth, he mused, it would probably play out like in all those cheesy novels he used to read.

Someone would stumble upon a bunch of greedy poachers transporting some rare beast, swoop in to save it, and bam!

Instant lifelong loyalty.

Poachers were practically contract-delivery machines in those stories.

Reinhardt even got his familiar that way, if Azel remembered correctly. Too bad it hadn't ended well for the poor guy.

The familiar died before the fifth calamity.

He sighed again, pushing through another cluster of glowing bushes. Each branch released little motes of silver light, like fireflies scattering in every direction.

The Familiar Zone really was beautiful — annoyingly so.

Everywhere he looked, there were magical creatures doing their own thing, as though parading in front of him like a buffet he couldn't touch.

Up above, perched in the higher branches of a crystal-barked tree, a tiny humanoid familiar in a frilly dress was singing.

A dwarf? No, not quite. Her skin shimmered with faint markings, her voice a melody that wrapped around the air itself.

Her notes made the leaves quiver as if clapping for her performance.

On the ground, fluffy dog-like creatures with glowing tails frolicked in pairs, rolling in the grass and chasing firefly motes like excitable puppies.

Azel crouched down and scooped one into his arms, pressing its tiny body against his chest.

"So damn cute," he muttered, unable to resist nuzzling the little thing as it wagged its luminous tail.

The warmth of its fur seeped pleasantly into his skin, and it made him calmer.

But reality set back in quickly enough.

He extended his senses, feeling for the creature's mana.

It barely had mana.

His heart sank.

"Figures," he muttered, setting the pup back down gently. It yipped happily before scampering off toward its pack, leaving Azel alone again.

He wanted something strong — something that could actually help him face whatever ridiculous battles awaited him later on.

A stay-at-home dog wasn't going to cut it. Cute as hell, sure.

But useless in a fight.

His eyes flicked back toward the singing dwarf-like familiar.

Even she radiated more mana than the pup, though he doubted her usefulness in battle was high either, unless he wanted to sing his opponents to death.

That was when the music stopped abruptly. The notes faded into silence, replaced by the sharp squawk of a bird.

Azel turned his head, brows raising. A small shape descended from the canopy, wings flapping weakly.

The moment he laid eyes on it, his expression shifted.

'That mana… from something so small?'

The bird landed on a nearby branch. Its feathers gleamed with a faint iridescence, a shimmer of blues and whites that seemed to ripple like water whenever it moved.

Yet despite the raw magical energy it exuded, it wasn't flying properly. Its body trembled with each beat of its wings, and its chest heaved as though every breath was a struggle.

That was when Azel noticed the collar.

A dull, metallic band clasped tightly around its neck, engraved with runes that glowed faintly purple.

It was like that thing was suppressing the bird's magic.

'Is there something going on?' Azel frowned, scanning the area. None of the other familiars seemed interested.

The dwarf familiar tucked her voice away and vanished into the treetops. The puppies scattered without hesitation.

Even the glowing motes dimmed, floating away to safer branches.

The bird squawked again, a pitiful, desperate sound.

But the forest ignored it.

Until only Azel remained, standing there with his blade in one hand and an increasingly uneasy feeling in his gut.

The bird hopped off the branch and landed directly on his shoulder. Its talons pricked lightly through his shirt, and it squawked again, tilting its head to look him directly in the eye.

For a few seconds, Azel just stared back, He didn't know why, but the damn thing felt… intelligent.

Finally, he reached up with his free hand, gripped the collar, and pulled.

The runes sparked against his skin, biting into his fingers with a jolt of resistance but Azel gritted his teeth and yanked harder.

With a crack, the collar split in half and fell to the ground.

The change was immediate.

'Ah! Finally! I can talk again!'

The voice rang directly inside his head, startling him enough that he almost dropped his sword.

His eyes snapped to the bird, whose wings now spread wide with renewed vigor.

It spun into the air, darting through the branches with fluid speed before looping back and hovering in front of his face.

'And I can fly properly too!'

Azel blinked. "...Wait. Did you just—"

'Yes, human. Or should I say Divine Apprentice? Doesn't matter.' The bird twirled again, clearly relishing its newfound freedom.

Its feathers shimmered even brighter now, scattering radiant sparks into the forest.

'Listen, you must help me. My friend — she's been captured. We need to rescue her before it's too late.'

Azel rubbed at his temple. "Of course. Of course there's a quest attached. Can't anything ever be simple?"

'This is serious!' the bird insisted, flapping closer until it was practically pecking at his nose. 'She's in danger. If they keep her, she'll be lost forever.'

"Can't you just, I don't know… call Plaides?" Azel asked flatly.

The bird froze.

'The watcher? I don't know how, but they've blocked his sight. The whole area. He can't see us. He can't hear us. As for the other familiars, they just aren't interested.'

Azel frowned, skeptical.

"Blocked Plaides? In his own domain? That's—" He stopped himself, then muttered, "... actually, yeah, no, it does sound like something that would happen here."

Just to be sure, he straightened and called out: "Plaides!"

Silence.

"Great." Azel pinched the bridge of his nose. "So even if I managed to get a familiar, I wouldn't have been able to summon him to seal the contract anyway?"

'Please, Apprentice!' the bird pressed, circling around his head frantically.

Its eyes glimmered with what looked almost like tears. 'I've begged countless others. None would listen. They only saw the collar. They thought I was cursed. But you freed me. You gave me my voice back.'

It landed back on his shoulder, pressing its small head against his cheek. 'I might not be much… but if you help me save her, I'll offer myself under a Contract. I swear it.'

Azel groaned.

He could almost hear the novel cliché bells ringing in the back of his mind.

But when he glanced at the bird again, watching it flutter nervously against his neck, its tiny body trembling with urgency, he knew he wasn't about to walk away.

Besides how hard could a few poachers be?

"Fine," he muttered, tightening the grip he had on his sword and rolling his shoulders. "Lead the way."

The bird chirped in relief, wings spreading wide. Then it darted ahead, weaving between the glowing trees.

Azel sighed once more before breaking into a run after it.

Their destination was clear now: the mysterious friend, and the people who were trying to harm her.