"Hahaha~ Do I even need to say it, my old pal Cyclone~"

Cabellus, who calls himself a troublesome poet, besides his eccentric attire, basically shares a bond of life and death with Cyclone. Though it may feel somewhat one-sided, there is no resistance towards this friend Cyclone. After all, they only got to know each other through adversity, and out of gratitude for the help they received, Cyclone accepted this friendship.

"Come on~ Let's talk inside."

With Cabellus in tow, Cyclone entered the passage behind the counter. In front of the stairs leading to the upper floor, just before the end of the corridor, there was a small room. It was a tiny meeting room, also serving as Eileen's office, a small room for both meetings and work. From the window sill in the room, the situation at the counter could be seen, making it seem like a backstage area. Ignoring the desk in the corner, Cyclone invited Cabellus to the table in the center. One chose a sofa, and they both sat down.

"Didn't expect it~ You're not playing hero anymore, but a boss now?"

"Oh, no~ The one truly running things is her~" Cyclone pointed outside to Eileen. On seeing Cyclone gesturing towards her like that, Eileen tilted her head to the side. Cyclone waved his hand, indicating it was nothing, and continued talking to Cabellus.

"She's the one who made this shop what it is~"

"She is..."

"My wife!"

"..."

"..."

The two fell silent for a moment.

"D*mn!! You little rascal, you're faster than me?!"

"Any complaints?"

"Hahaha~"

"Hahahahaha~"

After a hearty laugh, Cyclone resumed speaking.

"And you? What's up lately?"

Facing Cyclone's concern, Cabellus shook his head helplessly.

"Same old, same old. But my personal preparations are done, now I'm looking for investors~"

"Oh, so you came to find me for that?"

"Strictly speaking, it's to find the owner of Theodore's Trading Post."

Cabellus pointed outside to Eileen and rubbed his chin.

"When I first heard that name, I immediately thought of you. After all, among the people I know, you're the only one with the last name 'Theodore'."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah~ And I've been having trouble finding investors down in Allen City~"

Cyclone smiled.

"Is it that your sales pitch is weak? Or maybe your project just doesn't attract others~"

"What about you? Weren't you thinking about it with me?"

"Oh! Was I?!"

"Duel, duel!! Don't play dumb like you really don't know?"

Cabellus and Cyclone chuckled together in a comical manner. Cyclone pondered for a moment, realizing where he had heard it before.

"Hey hey hey! You're a member of our Excitement Guild!!!"

"Tsk!! I remember, so what?"

"Hmph~ So what? It's obviously this!!!!"

Cabellus took out a small box from his bag and held it up high.

"What's this?"

Upon hearing Cyclone's question, Cabellus slammed the item he was holding up onto the table.

"This is a 'duel card'!"

"Duel card?"

Cyclone clapped his hands and smiled at Cabellus.

"Yes, it's the completed trial version of the duel card!"

Looking at Cyclone staring at him like that, Cabellus not only didn't flinch, but instead confidently took out another item from his bag.

"These are the game rules and instructions, come, take a look!"

"..."

Holding the little notebook given by Cabellus, although it only had four pages, one could still see the effort put in by the person who edited the book.

"Hmm..."

"Wait a minute! Weren't you illiterate, punk?"

Cabellus suddenly recalled his impressions of Cyclone, but Cyclone threw the manual back at Cabellus.

"Darn it! I've learned already!"

"What? You actually learned?!!"

Cabellus pushed the small box towards Cyclone and smirked.

"Haha~ Having a wife changes everything, huh~"

Cyclone chuckled, and Cabellus took out another box himself.

Once both small boxes were placed on the table, Cabellus said,

"Wanna give it a try?"

***