"Didn't I say I'd pay for it? I'll be able to buy the Sheriff formula soon. Once I advance to Sequence Eight, the remaining debt will be much smaller!"
After leaving Sno's house, Xio kept muttering in Fors's ear. Fors, however, returned to her usual lazy demeanor and said in a somewhat languid tone:
"Because using my debt for this is better."
"Why?" Xio asked in surprise, not expecting Fors to say that.
"Because this is a debt." Fors's lips curled slightly. Xio actually saw a hint of slyness there as Fors narrowed her eyes and said as if it were only natural:
"The debtor has to stay alive to repay the money, right? If you pay the bill, he won't care much whether I live or die. But if I pay it, he has to consider whether I'll be able to repay the debt. After all, this is a debt with a minimum guarantee of one thousand gold pounds. No one would just let that go down the drain, would they?"
The look in Xio's eyes changed abruptly. She looked at this close friend she had lived with for quite some time, as if she were discovering for the first time that Fors had such a clever side.
After a long while, she finally blurted out—
"Fors, you're so cunning."
"Hehe! My protagonist is a smart person, after all!" Fors smiled a little sheepishly, and Xio relaxed after hearing that.
But then Fors suddenly brought up something that made Xio rather nervous—
"By the way, you still haven't told me what price you paid to buy information about the Full Moon Whisper."
"Ah, that... it came as a free gift with the information about my father. It didn't cost anything!" Xio tilted her head slightly and replied stiffly.
Fors