Hermes is a Brough Superior motorrad (a two-wheeled vehicle that cannot fly but moves in the direction it's pointed - in other words, a motorcycle) who travels around with Kino. Hermes provides the speed that allows them to go anywhere they wish. Aside from his speed and capacity for toting about large amounts of luggage (Kino never seems to travel light), Hermes doesn't really have many other qualities except for constantly mixing up quotes and complaining. He is also rather gullible, trusting Kino absolutely even when Kino is teasing him, which leads him to grumble and complain some more. Perhaps his most famous line is "I'm bored". The motorrad is in many ways naive and innocent, and acts very child-like, which tends to be a sharp contrast to Kino's more mature and worldly bearing. Still, Hermes is quite reliable and makes a good companion for long trips.

In the Gakuen Kino offshot series, he takes the form of a cell phone strap instead.

(Source: kino.ming-ling.net)