Atelier Rorona: The Alchemist of Arland

In Year 1, 11/10, Astrid will initially ask Rorona, if she ever wanted a sibling, would she prefer a sister more or a brother more. Your answer will determine the gender of Hom. This is mainly just a cosmetic preference so to speak, it has no effect on the trophy. You will be introduced to Hom as a party member in Year 2, 1/11.

So who is Hom? Basically, he/she will serve as your helper. You can send him/her to gather materials for you (at the expense of lower quality) or have him/her synthesize items for you. Doing either, will level him/her up. I highly recommend using him/her to gather items only; you're better off synthesizing the items yourself. The higher level dungeon you send him/her to, the faster it'll gain levels.

Hom will be your main source in making money anyways, especially when you work towards earning your 1,000,000 Cole for the Rich Ending (refer to Rich Ending for more details). You will most likely get this easily. Make sure you constantly keep Hom busy by sending him/her out to gather ingredients, and it'll reach Lv.50 in no time.