"What the--!" he cried out, ducking and dodging as the tiny bird tried to peck at him with its beak. "Why you little--"
Damien tried to swat the bird away, but it was surprisingly quick and nimble, dodging his attempts to grab it. The crow was determined to defend itself and its pride, even if it was just a small, helpless creature.
"Okay, okay, I get it!" Damien said, throwing his hands up in surrender. "I won't laugh at you anymore, I promise!"
The crow seemed to calm down at this, its wings slowly settling back against its sides as it eyed Damien warily. It let out a few caws, as if warning Damien to keep his distance, before hopping away and disappearing into the underbrush.
Damien shook his head in disbelief, still reeling from the unexpected attack. "Well, that was certainly... interesting," he muttered to himself, trying to catch his breath.
As Damien was making his way through the dark cave, he heard a rustling noise behind him. He turned around and saw the baby crow perched on a rock, watching him intently.
"Ugh, what do you want now?" he muttered, rolling his eyes.
The crow cawed and fluttered its wings, as if trying to communicate with him. Damien couldn't understand what the bird was saying, but he got the feeling that it wanted something from him.
He resumed walking, but he could hear the sound of tiny feet following him. Every time he turned around, he caught the crow quickly darting behind a rock or a stalagmite, trying to hide.
Damien felt like he had a tiny stalker, but he couldn't help but chuckle at the absurdity of the situation. He couldn't shake off the baby crow, and it seemed like it was determined to follow him no matter what.
It continued to follow him, hopping from rock to rock, and occasionally flying a few feet to catch up.
Damien eventually found a small pool of water in the cave and decided to take a bath. Though there doesn't have a river in the mountains, that doesn't mean there wasn't any water. It rained almost every two or three days a week, so he wasn't that desperate seeing a small pond.
He was really surprised his ice arm was holding itself despite being in the water. He wondered if it will still hold out if he were to run out of mana.
As he was soaking himself in the water, he noticed the crow perched on a nearby rock, staring at him.
"What are you looking at?" he asked the bird.
The crow cawed in response, and Damien shook his head. "You're such a weird little thing."
As he was drying off, the crow suddenly flew towards him and landed on his head. Damien let out a startled cry and tried to shake the bird off.
"Get off me, you stupid bird!" he yelled.
But the crow didn't budge. It perched on his head like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Damien sighed and decided to ignore it. He continued his journey through the cave, with the crow still perched on his head. The bird would occasionally caw in his ear, making him jump and curse.
As Damien walked through the cave, he suddenly felt something crawling on his head. He reached up to brush it away, but his hand met a squishy, wriggling sensation. He recoiled in disgust, realizing that the baby crow had perched itself on his head and was picking up worms from the cave floor.
"Get off me, you little pest!" he grumbled, trying to shake the bird off.
But the crow just cawed in response, seemingly unbothered by his annoyance. It continued to pick up worms and other small insects from the cave floor, occasionally dropping them onto Damien's head.
As he walked, Damien could feel the wriggling and squirming of the worms and bugs, and it made him feel itchy all over. He tried to brush them off, but the baby crow just hopped to another spot on his head and continued its feast.
"Ugh, this is disgusting," he muttered to himself, feeling like he was becoming a mobile buffet for the bird.
But as he looked at the baby crow's chubby little body and big, innocent eyes, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of affection. Despite its annoying habits, the bird was undeniably cute.
Damien found another small underground stream, he decided to take a quick break to wash his face and hands. The baby crow hopped off his head and fluttered around, watching curiously as he splashed water on his face.
"Hey, don't drink that water!" Damien warned as the crow pecked at the stream.
But the crow just cawed in response and took a long drink, smacking its beak contentedly. Damien rolled his eyes but couldn't help but smile at the bird's antics.
"Come on, let's keep moving," he said, as he got up to continue their journey through the cave. The baby crow hopped up onto his shoulder, seeming to enjoy the ride.
As they walked deeper into the cave, Damien couldn't help but feel like he was on an absurd adventure, with a baby crow as his unlikely companion. He had no idea where the cave would lead him, but he knew one thing for sure: he was going to have a good story to tell when he got out.
But just as his stomach growled again, it has been more than two days since he had eaten anything and the hunger was catching up.
Though he can survive for a few days without hunger, like he had at the beginning of this arduous journey, the hunger he was feeling then was something else.
The baby crow had also seemed to hear the grumble, as it tilted its head and looked curiously at his stomach.
Damien's eyes lit up seeing the baby crow in front of him, like he had been ignorant all the while. There was actually something to eat here. He might not feel filled, but anything is better than all, right?