"...And then? What did you do with Miss Toyokawa's father?"
"That's a rather unpleasant way to put it."
Duanmu Huai sat on the sofa and curled his lip at Kurokawa Akane.
"I merely sent him to work at a construction site."
"A construction site?"
"That's right. Loan sharks send people who can't repay their debts to work at construction sites, then take a portion of their referral fees and wages as repayment. It's already the best possible solution."
"Is... is that so?"
"Of course. It's legal and not dangerous. Besides, he didn't owe that much. He should be able to pay it off in about six months."
"Huh? Didn't he borrow fifty thousand? Why would it take six months to repay?"
"Because of the interest. The daily interest is fifteen thousand. Did you think the money would be that easy to repay? Don't worry. I've already spoken to them. Those guys won't pull anything behind his back. This is already the best possible outcome. If I hadn't stepped in, they wouldn't have let him off so easily. In the worst case, they would have saddled Toyokawa Sachiko's father with a huge debt, had him sign an insurance policy, and then made him get hit by a car."
"...Loan sharks are terrifying."
"Of course. Fortunately, Toyokawa Sachiko's father only borrowed money to drink and didn't gamble, so he can still be saved. If he were a gambling addict, I'd turn around and leave. I definitely wouldn't get involved."
Duanmu Huai shook his head as he spoke.
Gambling addicts and drug addicts were beyond saving. Once they got hooked, there was only one path left: death. If Toyokawa Sachiko's father had borrowed money to play pachinko or small pinball, then even if Toyokawa Sachiko knelt before Duanmu Huai and said she was