"Well, well, if it isn't Branch Manager Tochiliano of the Mimina Trading Company."

Hmm? Mimina Trading Company…? Oh yeah, there was a skinny guy when we visited before. So he was the branch manager?

He’s glaring at us pretty hard, but did we do something to him?

"Ah, Caligil. Perfect timing. I came to tell you something."

"Yes, what is it?"

Store manager Caligil glanced at us briefly. Maybe he was wondering if this was something to be discussed in front of customers.

"It won’t take long. I’ll get straight to the point—our company has decided to cut off your funding."

"—What?"

Wait, what? That sounds like something we really shouldn’t be hearing. Cutting off funding means this store might not be able to stay in business, right?

Luckily, no other customers were around, but if word spread, this could turn into a big problem.

"Apologies, but we have our own circumstances to consider."

"Wh-what do you mean?"

Tochiliano glanced at us meaningfully before continuing.

"It’s simple. Our trading company is facing financial difficulties. Someone—though I don’t know who—destroyed our storage facility, and now we must focus on restoration efforts."

Hmm…? A destroyed storage facility? That sounds oddly familiar.

I turned to look at Nir, who was sitting by the entrance, looking bored. He let out a big yawn.

"I see…"

"Yes. We are victims in this as well. I believe you receive funding from other trading companies, so I hope you can manage somehow."

"I-I understand."

"Then I’ll be taking my leave."

Tochiliano turned to go but suddenly stopped in front of us.

"By the way, I’ve been asking around various adventurers. May I ask you a question?"

His thin eyes widened as he leaned in toward us.

"What is it?"

"Do you happen to know who destroyed our storage facility?"

As expected. I steadied my nerves to avoid showing any reaction.

"I heard at the guild that a giant Silver Wolf was spotted in the forest and was taken down. Could that have been the culprit?"

"No, I believe the real culprit is someone else."

Tochiliano stared at us with a piercing gaze. A cold sweat trickled down my back.

Now that I think about it, when Nir first appeared before us, he had completely demolished a storage facility. I didn’t realize at the time that it belonged to Mimina Trading Company. I also hadn’t considered how cutting off funding to other stores might have ripple effects.

"I see. That sounds terrible."

"Indeed. So, if you happen to know the culprit, could you tell me?"

"Sorry, but I have no idea."

"Hmm… I see."

Tochiliano was right—the culprit wasn’t the Silver Wolf that was hunted down. It was Nir. But that happened before Nir became my tamed beast, so technically, it wasn’t my fault. Even the guild had assured me that it wasn’t an issue.

Still, the fact remains that I led Nir into town. That part left me with a lingering sense of guilt.

"Understood. Thank you for your time."

"Not at all, don’t worry about it."

"Well then, I must be off. I have more pressing matters—next, I need to visit Beldran Workshop to collect their debts."

The moment he mentioned Beldran Workshop, I immediately thought of Clay. He had looked so happy riding on Nir’s back the other day.

Beldran Workshop did incredible work, but were they in debt to Mimina Trading Company? They never showed any signs of struggling, but I guess that’s just part of running a business. If they went around telling customers they were in financial trouble, it would only hurt their sales further.

"Speaking of which, that workshop has a young boy living there, doesn’t it? I do hope he isn’t sold off due to unpaid debts…"

"—What?"

"What?"

Rio and I spoke at the same time. Sold off? Did he just say that the boy might be sold?

"Oh my, you didn’t know? If a debt cannot be repaid, sometimes a family member is sold to a slave trader to cover the amount."

He explained it in a deliberate manner, as if to make sure we understood.

Clay… sold into slavery because of unpaid debt? No way, that can’t be—

"Well then."

Tochiliano walked away. I wanted to stop him, but I couldn’t find the words.

"…What does this mean?"

Rio muttered, but I had no answer.

"F-for now, let’s go to Beldran Workshop—"

"—And do what?"

Rio’s sharp question cut through my thoughts. What exactly was I planning to do?

"Well…"

The words caught in my throat. Was I going to barge in and say, ‘Hold it right there, debt collector!’?

Even if we wanted to help by paying the debt, they’d surely ask, ‘Why would you do that?’

Did Tochiliano suspect that Nir was the real culprit? Or was he just trying to frame us?

Either way, I couldn’t just stand by while innocent people suffered because of Nir’s actions. We had to do something.