“Hold it, now. I’m under no illusions about who you work for.”
Badger seems a little annoyed.
“I’m being paid by Mr. Flame, it’s true, but I’m not a part of his organization. He pays me for my expertise, nothing more.”
“And where does this Mr. Spade fit into that?” you ask. “Are you going to tell me he’s not in the Guild?”
“As far as tonight goes, he’s responsible for my security. Because it seems what I’ve been looking into has been inconvenient for at least one rival faction. I’d imagine the same one that was guarding a wheelbarrow full of mana roots.”
Hmm. It does seem your interests line up. But you still haven’t gotten to the main question.
“I don’t want Flame having a pile of mana roots either. What guarantee can you give me he won’t get them?”
Badger looks at you very seriously.
“You have my word. But I imagine you would prefer something more concrete than that.”
“It would make it a lot easier, yeah.”
“I thought it might come to this,” he sighs. “I knew I’d have to settle my debt with Matilda sooner or later, even if she died first.”
Now that’s something you weren’t expecting.
“What exactly do you mean by that?”
Suggestions:
Do you mean she funded your research, or what? Or did you copy out of her leechbook?