"Oh, come on." Daryl rolled his eyes and scoffed. "I've never heard of an owl having that kind of function. That's a homing pigeon's job."
Despite his words, the tension at the corners of his mouth clearly relaxed a lot.
However, after the brief excitement, Louis looked at the cage, his expression turning conflicted again.
He had just been happy, but now that he had calmed down and thought about it, an apocalyptic environment wasn't really suitable for keeping a pet.
"But while I really want to keep an owl, I..."
Louis looked at Daryl and said, "Daryl, you know our situation is very special right now."
"We might not have extra supplies or energy to take care of a pet. And what if its calls attract Walkers?"
"Pfft."
Daryl snorted disdainfully, looking indifferent:
"It's not as much trouble as you think. This thing only needs a little minced meat in the beginning. Once its wings are strong, there are enough mice in these woods to keep it stuffed to death. You won't have to worry about it at all."
He paused, seeing Louis's hesitant eyes, and added:
"As for the noise, if it dares to hoot randomly, you just slaughter it for stew and get a more obedient one. What's the big deal?"
"And..."
A mischievous grin curled Daryl's lips as he pointed to Merle, who was arguing with Hershel not far away.
"If anyone doesn't like it, just tell them Merle insisted you keep it. Let them take it up with my brother."
"Cough, cough!"
Louis almost choked on his own saliva.
That was entirely unnecessary!
After all, given his current status in everyone's hearts, if he really wanted to keep a pet, most would probably agree. Someone might even help him catch bugs.
But if he pinned it on Merle... Louis glanced at Merle, who was still rambling over there.
Although everyone had gradually accepted him as a member of the team after the battle at the factory, his foul mouth and wild behavior ensured he remained the unpopular one in the camp.
"I'd better discuss it with the others myself. I think everyone will understand."
Louis lowered his head, his gaze falling on the little fellow in the cage.
Speaking of which, before he transmigrated, his nominal parents were very generous to him—even willing to buy expensive items like an invisibility cloak—but they were exceptionally firm when it came to "keeping pets."
No matter how much he pleaded, they wouldn't agree to let him bring any pet to Hogwarts, not even a toad.
He had felt it was a pity back then, but thinking back now, Louis felt lucky instead.
After all, no matter what he had kept before, if he had brought it with him when he transmigrated, it probably would have become emergency rations for the Walkers long ago in this environment.
And now... Louis tentatively reached his finger into the cage.
Perhaps because of his special constitution, the originally startled owl didn't peck him. Instead, it leaned in docilely, rubbing its fluffy little head against his fingertip and letting out a few soft "coos."
"It seems we're destined."
Louis laughed, the last trace of worry in his heart dissipating.
"Well? Do you want it or not?" Daryl urged impatiently when he saw Louis wasn't speaking. "If not, I'm making stew for Carol."
"Cough, cough, I want it, I want it." Louis coughed twice and moved the cage back a bit.
A hint of a smile flashed in Daryl's eyes. "Since you've decided to keep it, you need to give it a name."
"What do you want to call her?"
Louis looked at its clever large eyes, and countless names flashed through his mind.
What would be a good name?
His gaze subconsciously drifted toward the distance.
There, Glenn, T-Dog, and the others were busy helping everyone move supplies; Shane and Morales were on patrol; Carol and Lori were skillfully preparing breakfast... Finally, Louis's gaze returned to Daryl.
"Let's call it 'Robin'," Louis said, stroking his chin.
"Robin?" Daryl raised an eyebrow, looking disgusted. "Like those red-breasted stupid birds that are everywhere?"
"No," Louis looked up and said meaningfully, "like the one in the comics, the sidekick who always follows the superhero and is protected by the Dark Knight."
Daryl was stunned for a moment, then seemed to understand something. He adjusted the position of the crossbow on his shoulder, muttered "Whatever you want," and turned to stride away... Peaceful days always fly by.
In the blink of an eye, a month quietly passed amidst the sunrises and sunsets of the farm.
In the original timeline, this should have been a very depressing period for Ricks Team—
To find the missing Sophia, they had been running around the forest like headless flies, not only gaining nothing but also later encountering Carl's life-threatening injury, Shane's risk to get medicine, and even the terrible incident of him killing a companion.
But now, because of the flapping wings of Louis, this little butterfly, they were all safe and sound.
Although there were still a few missing companions in the group, such as Ed and a few other survivors, the nature of it was completely different.
Those people were adults who had chosen to actively flee during a crisis, and they might even have weapons in their hands.
Regarding their safety, although everyone would still frequently drive out to search and feel worried, it was more out of moral duty than panic.
Therefore, the atmosphere in the camp was not desperate.
On the contrary, with the addition of strong new members like Guillermo and Felipe, plus the presence of Shane, Merle, and other combat forces, the farm's safety factor had skyrocketed.
There was no devastating herd of Walkers drawn by accidental gunfire, and the group didn't have to flee in panic like in the original work; instead, they were able to stay here steadily to rest and recuperate.
Fortifying defenses, clearing surrounding Walkers, gathering supplies... everything was proceeding in an orderly fashion. Everyone even rarely experienced a sliver of peace that shouldn't exist in the apocalypse.
Of course, everyone knew this was only temporary.
On the farm's open ground, Shane's harsh shouting and the crisp sound of gunfire rang out every day.
This was a special training session involving everyone.
Whether they were office workers who only used to handle documents or housewives who hadn't even dared to kill a chicken before, they all had to grip the cold gun handles now and learn how to quickly load, aim, and fire.
Even the children were starting to learn how to use short knives and handguns under the supervision of adults.
Seeing the children holding weapons, mothers like Lori and Carol had concerns, worrying that this would strip them of their childhood innocence too early.
But as soon as they recalled the helpless eyes of the children when they were pushed to the brink in the Factory Settlement, they hardened their hearts and chose to support it.
After all, in this world, survival is the prerequisite for everything.
And Louis, naturally, didn't fall behind.
Or rather, he was probably the busiest of them all.
He specifically asked Glenn to bring back a pile of books on emergency medicine and mechanical repair while searching for supplies, and then he pored over them every day.
Regarding medicine, he would occasionally take his books to consult Dr. Jenner.
This was both to fulfill his lie of being a "medical genius" and to actually learn more; after all, even if he was putting on an act, he had to have some real knowledge.
As for mechanical repair, it was to lay the groundwork for the Reparo Charm that he still hadn't mastered. Although he hadn't learned it yet, what if he suddenly had an epiphany one day?
With his current experience of "diligent study," his teammates wouldn't find it too abrupt when he eventually fixed something.
Of course, all this cover was for his most important lesson: practicing magic.