The pungent smell of cigarettes pierced my nostrils.
Freit Gunner continued his report, looking at his superior, whose thoughts were unreadable.
“…Next is a report regarding Miss Prim.”
Johannes’ gaze, which had been fixed on the documents the whole time, finally shifted calmly.
In the darkness, his blue eyes shone like stars.
Those eyes were always intimidating.
Freit Gunner, who lowered his head, began his report on Edith Prim after a brief moment of silence.
“The attitudes of the servants towards Miss Prim have improved significantly. It would have been good if you had explained it in detail earlier.”
Freit subtly mocked Johannes. However, Johannes simply nodded without much reaction.
It was a signal to continue the report.
Perhaps due to the long time they had spent together, as long as the conversation didn’t veer off-topic, Johannes was quite lenient.
“And you asked if the master wanted to dismiss her.”
Normally, Freit Gunner had a curiosity about everything. This time was no different.
“She seemed more anxious than usual. Although she said she was fine, her eyes were subtly trembling.”
“The reason?”
His head tilted slightly.
“I think it might be for financial reasons. She asked me for a servant certificate. I speculate that it might not be for a loan.”
“A loan? Is her salary insufficient?”
Freit Gunner quickly replied.
“No, it’s not. Her salary is twice as high as servants in other noble households. I think we need to investigate further to find out where she intends to use it.”
“How long will it take?”
“It should be finished within two days at the latest.”
It seemed to be a satisfactory answer. Johannes clicked his tongue.
“Adaptation, huh?”
A faint sense of frustration flickered across Freit’s face. He clenched his throat as if he were frustrated.
“What if you ask her now? You’ve just started talking with the servants, so you’ll adapt soon… There aren’t any significant issues in terms of work.”
Johannes regained his relaxed expression.
“Yeah.”
It was a concise acknowledgment.
Freit Gunner lowered his head again and made his final report to Johannes.
“You also mentioned that you would prefer all conversations to be kept as secret as possible, so I feel quite uncomfortable reporting like this.”
Johannes chuckled.
* * *
The joy of receiving the servant certificate was short-lived.
Even the bank I trusted didn’t help me.
“I apologize for not being able to assist you, but the policy has changed. Only employees who have worked for more than three months are eligible for loans.”
The expression on his face indicated that inquiries like this were a daily occurrence.
Why does it always feel like an uphill battle?
I stood in front of the bank, staring at the torn servant certificate in my hands.
“Should I just pretend to be crazy and ask for help? No, I’ve already received all the assistance I can get as an employee.”
I didn’t want to be seen as someone who didn’t know how to manage their finances and risk getting fired.
But what should I do when the repayment deadline is tomorrow?
For now, I can only hope that the loan shark will come and negotiate with them.
On this particular day, the cold air felt even colder.
* * *
“Are you Edith Prim?”
Someone blocked my way as I was leaving my house to go to the Duke’s office.
He had neatly combed his dark brown hair and was wearing a tidy suit. Beside him, a scruffy-looking man glared at me.
“Who are you…?”
The man soon took out a business card from his pocket and handed it to me with a courteous gesture.
“I’m from Bannux. My name is Finn Schneider, and I’m a director. You can call me whatever you’re comfortable with.”
“Ah…”
Bannux. It was a familiar name.
A debt collection agency that was engraved in the debt repayment agreement.
Not knowing what to do, the man standing next to Finn Schneider pushed his body forward threateningly. A nauseating smell pierced my nostrils.
“Hey, if you borrowed money, you should repay it on time. Isn’t having good credit important for a person?”
“Enough. You’re scaring the lady.”
Finn Schneider raised his hand to stop him. However, the burly man continued to mutter defiantly despite his objections.
Blocking the doorway with his arms, he continued to threaten me.
“If we lent you such a large sum of money out of goodwill, you should repay it accordingly. How can you go for three years without paying a cent? Where’s your audacity?”
Although I was terrified, I tried not to show it and spoke calmly.
“I’m sorry, but I have to go to work. Can we talk later this evening?”
Despite my polite question, the burly man remained stubborn.
“What if you try to run away? What’s your plan then? We lent you money so you better have a plan to repay it. Where’s your guts?”
Feeling intimidated, I responded as calmly as possible.
“I’m sorry, but I have to go to work. Can we talk later this evening?”
Even so, the burly man was relentless and held onto me with nonsensical excuses.
In the end, he grabbed my wrist and prevented me from moving.
“Ah…!”
“Favide, please stop. Our company’s reputation is at stake. We’ll be laughed at by our competitors.”
“But we’re also busy people. We’ve dedicated precious working hours to come and collect the money.”
“Still, this isn’t the way.”
I was relieved that there was someone like Finn Schneider.
Anyway, Favide warned me not to even think about running away and glared at me.
“If you had thought of escaping, you would have left Mussen by the time you received this.”
I calmly presented the debt repayment agreement and spoke.
“First of all, I sincerely apologize for not being able to repay the money. I had no knowledge about my father’s debts.”
“I see. You must have been truly surprised.”
Favide insisted that not knowing was not an excuse, and we had only come to collect the money, but Finn Schneider casually dismissed him.
“Tsk! You’ve learned well. Very impressive!”
Favide, who had been constantly ignored by Finn Schneider, shook his head. Even at that moment, Finn Schneider did not hide his smile.
“Still, I would appreciate a clear answer.”
I checked the clock on the building across the street.
There wasn’t much time left until work hours…
However, these people would never let me leave until a conclusion was reached.
Even if Finn Schneider showed some flexibility, the man named Favide would block me.
But neither of them seemed to have any expectation that I could repay such a large sum of money.
“Ms. Prim, if it’s not too much trouble, can we discuss the repayment amount? Of course, we’re not demanding the money right away, as we have to report to our superiors…”
Finn Schneider raised a faint smile, requesting my understanding.
The tension eased slightly.
“Then, first, I’d like to see the loan agreement.”
“Are you calling us swindlers?”
Favide snickered. Then, with a displeased expression, he pushed my shoulder.
“Please don’t.”
An instinctive fear surged within me.
Taking a step back, I looked around.
It was early in the morning, and there weren’t many people on the street. They quickly pretended not to see and hurriedly disappeared.
But would anything change just because it was crowded?
That would be unlikely.
It would be a relief if someone reported it to the police. However, the police and loan sharks had their own connections.
Considering that incidents like this happened occasionally and they faced no restraints, it seemed they were allowed to get away with it to some extent.
“Favide, please stop. This is why I don’t want to work with you.”
“Ugh! How can I work when you go easy on them…?”
Fortunately, Finn Schneider intervened, and I could straighten my back and continue speaking.
“When has it ever been the case that you demand money without showing the loan agreement?”
Favide grimaced. His already rugged face became even more intimidating.
“Of course, if you’re not a swindler, you can show it.”
“…Naturally.”
He soon pulled his arm back and took out an old, worn-out piece of paper from his pocket. It was heavily aged and faded.
As I took the loan agreement in my hand, I involuntarily narrowed my eyes.
“Is this how you manage your records?”
Below it were the date, amount, and repayment deadline for the day my father borrowed the money.
It was a loan agreement with a considerable amount of transactions. Even if I sold everything I had, it wouldn’t be enough.
“Can you really manage records like this? And to make matters worse…”
I looked up at Finn Schneider.
“Why are you coming now? The repayment deadline was already three years ago.”
His expression, which had been filled with a gentle smile, suddenly turned cold.
Then, like someone with a hidden agenda, he exchanged glances with Favide.
“I apologize. It was due to one employee’s negligence. We’ve only recently discovered it, and you can imagine how surprised we were.”
“Ah…”
That explained why they had been hesitant. They were partly responsible as well.
With Finn Schneider present, it shouldn’t be impossible to have a conversation. Perhaps I could also discuss the responsibility for the interest that had accumulated…
Facing the men who had completely opposite expressions, I calmly opened my mouth.
“I’m short on time. Would you like to come inside first?”
—————————————————————
Translator Note:
This chapter was translated by Bree.
If you like my work please support us in Patreon. Next post will be released on September, 27.Want to read more?
