"Good morning, Mr. Tani." Coco greeted the pink haired man when she walked through the doorway of the pub.
"Oh, Coco." Joachim blinked, not expecting to see her to be up so early— the sun wasn’t even up yet and the sky was still dark so seeing her fresh out of the bath with a towel over her shoulders was a surprise.
"I have been looking for you since last night." Coco said, grabbing a wooden chair and dragging it over to Joachim’s spot by the end of pub’s counter.
"You have?" The man raised an eyebrow and turned to her, "I was already at ho by seven, but If you told that you needed , then I would have stayed a bit longer.. Maybe until eight or nine."
"Ah, no, no, I was looking for you because I wanted to pay half of my debt." Coco waved a hand and shook her head, "I have my pouch ready, if you would like to receive it now?"
"Right now?" Joachim asked, looking around the pub and observing the way a couple of people littered around the place, minding their business as they either ate or drank to their heart’s content.
"Yes, sir." Coco nodded her head and smiled, "If you’re not available right now, then I can look for you after I get back. I don’t mind."
Joachim scratched the back of his head and pondered about it for a mont before sighing. "No, why don’t you co with at the back? I have my note back there."
"What? I could just wait right here." Coco indirectly refused the offer and laughed nervously.
There’s no telling what she may see at the staff room of the Red Horse Inn and she didn’t want to stick around to find out— she had been strict with Joachim that they are rely a debtor and a lender, she didn’t even let herself call him by his na in hopes that it would solidify the line.
So far, from what she had observed, Joachim would ask the person who was indebted to him to wait for him on the counter by the pub and would let the process of paynt happen right there.
So, why would Joachim ask Coco to go with him at the back? Only the rchant and the staff have the right to go there! She’s not a staff nor a rchant.
She may have been overthinking things, but overthinking is her hobby! She’s quite good at it, too!
"Are you serious?" Joachim mumbled under his breath as he frowned, "It’s not like I’m asking sothing difficult of you, right? You just have to co with to the back so I can give you privacy while you’re paying."
"Oh." Coco blinked owlishly and nodded her head in understanding slowly, "But I’m completely fine to do it over here. I think everyone knows that I have a debt that I have to pay anyway."
The frown on Joachim’s face deepened and he made it clear that he was upset with her stubbornness, but he didn’t push it further.
"Suit yourself." The pink haired man said with a huff before turning in his heels and going inside of the kitchen.
"There must be a way from the kitchen to the other staff rooms." Coco humd out, her mind racing in wonder at the thought of the inn’s interior design.
Wordlessly, Coco slipped her hand inside of her robe and tucked her hand inside the pocket in it before she withdrew a total amount of three hundred gold coins from her personal bank.
Just in ti for Joachim to co out of the kitchen with a small case and a notebook.
He eyed the pouch of money that Coco bought out from her robe, a look of disappointnt and sadness crossing his features as he approached Coco’s spot.
He placed everything he was holding on the table and let out a huff.
"Half of your debt, right?" Joachim asked, pulling the chair out and taking a seat before grabbing the chair and pushing himself forward.
"Yes, sir." Coco nodded her head and smiled, pleased that she would be able to lessen her debt in half in one go.
"Understood." Joachim muttered and opened the notebook, flipping the page a few tis before settling on one page that was almost in the middle, "You have paid off twenty gold coins a week ago. How much are you planning to pay this ti?"
"Three hundred gold coins." Coco answered as she dropped the pouch filled with gold coins in front of Joachim, "I know I suggested the installnt for the paynt, but I can already pay this much."
"As long as you’ll be able to pay your debt." Joachim sighed out and grabbed the pouch, "I trust that these gold coins are exactly the amount you told ?"
"Yes? Why would I lie?" Coco raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms.
"I didn’t say that, I said that because I trust you enough to trust your words." Joachim tutted out, opening the case and putting the pouch inside of it before closing it, securing it inside.
"You trust ? What an honor." Coco laughed half-heartedly and shot him a thankful glance, "So, I only need to pay a hundred and eighty gold coins next ti, then will my debt be completely paid off?"
"Yes." Joachim answered and scribbled sothing on the notebook, "Though, knowing you, I have a feeling that you’ll be able to pay it off before the end of the month."
"You never know." Coco humd out and stood up, "I’ll be going now. Thank you for your ti."
"Don’t thank . I was just doing my job." The man refused the gratitude quite firmly with a shake of his head before he stood up from his seat, "Have a good day, Coco."
"You, too!" Coco wished him well and exited the pub.
Joachim sighed. "It’s hard to befriend her.. Her defenses are too tough to beat."
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