[Amano Land Subdivision Club] Is this really all there is?

"Is this really all there is?"

Inside the crumpled brown envelope handed over by trembling hands were six 10,000-yen bills.
I checked twice, but it was 60,000 yen.

"Y-yes..."

He is a pathetic man.
Sitting seiza-style on the worn-out wooden floor, he doesn't even try to meet my eyes as I look down at him from the entryway.
From this angle, his thinning crown is clearly visible.
By now, even that has become a familiar sight.

"Really? Is this all there is?"

I ask with more menace in my voice than before.

"Oh, no, um..."
"There is more, isn't there? It's for your own good to bring it all out."

As if jolted by my pressing words, the man stands up, rushes into the back room with a momentum that almost makes him tumble, and then returns.
In a posture like a dogeza, he holds out another crumpled brown envelope.

I snatch it away roughly and check the contents.
30,000 yen.
When I let out an exaggerated sigh, the man flinches again.
His reaction is far too earnest.

"I'll ask one more time, and this is the last time. Really, is this all there is?"
"Uh, ugh, ye..."

He can't even form words anymore.
From the chest pocket of his work clothes, which are as crumpled as the brown envelope from earlier, he fumbles through his front pants pockets, and finally, his hand stops at his right back pocket.

In the hand he offers again, a neatly folded 10,000-yen bill is clutched.

"Good grief... Please have it all ready from the start. It's such a hassle."
"Oh, s-sorry, I'm sorry..."
"Right. So, 100,000 yen exactly for this month as well. Received, as they say."

Two crumpled brown envelopes and a loose 10,000-yen bill.
I shove them all into my briefcase.

Damn it.
What am I doing?
I didn't become a lawyer to do things like this.

"Ah, yes... I'm sorry for the trouble. Please, I beg of you for next month as well..."

Good grief.
Without knowing how I feel, he throws out words that rub me the wrong way at the most exquisite timing.
As he says this, he actually raises his eyes to peek at me.

Our gazes meet.

It's a disgusting expression.
Fawning, obsequious.
A strange smile that seems to be gauging my mood.

"Let's just end this here, shall we? This kind of thing..."
Suddenly, everything felt meaningless, and my mouth uttered those words on its own.
It was a childish voice that even surprised me.

A brief silence.

"Don't say that!!! Dad, I look forward to this every month!"

He stood up vigorously and shook both of my shoulders.

"Give me a break, I'm not free either. You can handle online payments for vintage records yourself, right?"
"No way, no way~ You know I'm bad at that kind of stuff, right?"
"Ask your secretary, Ms. Tachibana, or something."
"If I did that, she'd get mad at me for mixing business with pleasure!"

It's funny how he sounds like an executive of a listed company when it comes to things like that.

"And anyway, what's with that work uniform?"
There was even the embroidered name of a construction company I'd heard of on the chest pocket.

"It adds to the atmosphere, doesn't it? The president of a construction company I'm acquainted with gave me this one that was scheduled to be thrown away!"
He spun around with a beaming smile, looking so happy.

"Please, don't wear that outside. If something happens, it could be considered fraud."
"I wouldn't do that! If you were wearing another company's uniform, you'd get sued for breach of trust, wouldn't you!!"

In that case, please make sure to find some other lawyer.

This time, I tried taking on this prompt challenge.
It was fun!