Final Fantasy 16 is home to a plethora of unique and interesting side quests for players to pursue alongside the main story. Progressing the main quest leads to more side quests becoming available, but not all of them are initiated by speaking to NPCs. The Payback side quest is an example of this, as the only way to start it is to examine the Reading Table in Clive's Chambers and accept it from there.
Final Fantasy 16's Payback side quest becomes available once Clive completes all three Letting Off Steam sub-objectives as part of the Out of the Shadow main quest. Completing the Payback side quest rewards Clive with a Curiosity, a unique item needed to unlock the For the Hoard trophy.
How To Start Payback In Final Fantasy 16
To start the Payback side quest in Final Fantasy 16, Clive should interact with his Reading Table and select the "Off the Record" option. Doing so will open a letter from Gaute, in which he requests Clive's immediate assistance regarding some ledgers. Accepting the quest, Clive can head to The Mess to speak with him in person.
Interacting with Gaute, he informs Clive that, due to an oversight, The Hideaway now owes Martha, Isabelle, and Charon five million Gil each. Thankfully, Otto has a solution; he provides Clive with two Star Rubies and tasks him with delivering one to Martha and the other to Isabelle, leaving Gaute to bring the third one to Charon.
Deliver The Star Ruby To Martha
To deliver a Star Ruby to Martha, Clive must fast-travel to Martha's Rest and enter The Golden Stables; inside, Martha can be seen standing behind the bar, and Clive can interact with her to give her a Star Ruby.
Martha refuses to accept it, however, as she believes its value is worth far more than what she lent to The Hideaway. When the conversation ends, the quest's "Deliver the Star Ruby to Martha" objective will fade, marking its completion.
Deliver The Star Ruby To Isabelle
To deliver the second Star Ruby, Clive can fast-travel to Northreach, head north through the castle's gates, and follow the road northeast to The Veil, outside of which Isabelle is standing. Interacting with her, she initially refuses the Star Ruby, but she accepts it after Clive mentions Cid.
How To Complete Payback In Final Fantasy 16
Fast-traveling back to The Hideaway, Clive can return to The Mess to inform Gaute of what happened. Learning that Charon refused to take the Star Ruby from Gaute, Clive decides to give it to her himself.
Backtracking to the Boarding Deck and heading north into the Main Deck, Clive can find Charon standing in the stall to the right of The Black Hammer. Upon interacting with her, she tries to refuse Clive's offer but eventually accepts when he persists. Once the scene ends, Clive is transported back to The Mess, where Otto commends him for delivering the Star Rubies.
After a pretty emotional cutscene regarding Cid and Otto's friendship, Clive will receive 25 Wyrrite, 50 Sharp Fangs, and 1 Meteorite, all of which can be used to craft and upgrade gear. He also receives Cid's Goblet, a Curiosity that can be examined at The Wall of Memories in Clive's Chambers.
Final Fantasy 16 is available exclusively for PlayStation 5.
