"Man is Wolf to Man"
I love this expression.
I work at a bank as a loan officer. It's a shit job I listen to my clients' complaints, and then I either give them a loan or I don't.
Maybe that's just an excuse for how I behave. Though who has it easy these days? After NATO declared war on Russia in 1979 and they started lobbing bombs at each other, our country lost its supply of Russian gas and oil. Then China hit us with sanctions. The result sixteen years of hunger, cold, and poverty wages. And our country isn't even involved in the war.
God, why am I Wan Lao Sirius Sven Wan Val Varagor ,still alive? And why do my parents have such a fetish for long names?
*Beep - Beep - Beep*
Wan Sirius Varagorn slapped the alarm clock and jolted out of bed. The apartment looked worn to the bone white paint flaking from the walls, the floor groaning under every step. Sirius splashed cold water on his face from a rusted faucet, dressed in stiff formal clothes, and walked to the Central Bank.
At the bank I sat behind my desk. People came and went each one with a story, each one with a reason I should hand them money. "My daughter is sick." "My father is sick." "My mother is sick." And then you open their file, and right there in black and white: decent salary, no medical history worth mentioning.
So I developed a formula. Total number of loans issued, multiplied by the probability of default, multiplied by the average cost of debt collection plus the outstanding principal and what you get is projected losses. Clean. Simple. Honest.
"Wan Lao Sirius Sven!" a colleague called out across the floor, then muttered under his breath, "God, why do his parents have such a fetish for long names?"
"What?" said Sirius.
"Can you take this deadbeat off my hands? Some scheduling glitch gave me two appointments at the same time," he said, sliding a file across the desk.
"Sure. What's his deal why deadbeat?" said Sirius, picking up the folder.
"He's been here ten times already. Claims his daughter is dying of radiation poisoning up north."
"Ten times," Sirius said. "So this is practically an anniversary."
Both colleagues allowed themselves a small laugh.
The large white room had been carved into six narrow compartments by thin makeshift partitions. Each cramped cell held two chairs divided by a table. Sirius took one side; across from him sat a gaunt man.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Loenard Shnyukov," said Sirius, eyes on the file.
"Good afternoon," said Loenard.
"What brings you in today?"
"I'd like to apply for a large loan," said Loenard, wiping sweat from his brow.
"And the purpose of the loan?"
"I have a daughter." Loenard's voice softened. "She's small pale skin, like an angel's. A bright girl. Straight A's all through school..." He broke off and wept, quietly and quickly, then wiped his face with the back of his hand. "She was ..."
"Let's keep to the matter at hand, Mr. Shnyukov," said Sirius, watching the man's trembling hands.
"Of course," said Loenard, steadying himself.
"I won't give you false hope. A large loan isn't possible. You still haven't settled the interest on prior debts from another institution and that's before we even address the fact that your income falls below the threshold."
"What? The last officer never mentioned that."
"It's not a requirement to disclose. He probably decided it wasn't his place," said Sirius.
Loenard stood, pulled on an old sheepskin coat, and left without another word.
Sirius returned to his spreadsheets until the end of the day. After work he buttoned up his worn overcoat wooden buttons, all of them and stepped outside. The sky above was cold and overcast, the buildings around him like stone boxes stacked against the grey. Every step came with the crunch of snow underfoot. Children were building a snowman somewhere nearby. The air was dry and still.
He took the metro home. Finding an empty seat, he pulled out his phone and opened his reading app, navigating to his bookmarks.
Crimson Prince - one of the longest-running titles in the genre. Games, books, comics the whole franchise. The original story followed Ivan Bastard, a man who struck a deal with a demon and became a sorcerer, ultimately forging peace between elves and mankind.
Today, the same author had released something new: "Keeper of Ash."
Sirius opened the first chapter.