“Geez, kid.” Akki points to him when the waitress hands him his drink. “Mou ippai, hayaku,” he repeats. She nods in compliance and runs off for the second time. “Relax. I ain’t had a night out in Osaka for ages. You know, if you’re so concerned about makin’ the woman wait, you can do her yourself. I don’t mind. Unless she’s real hot. Is she? I don’t remember.”

Zaniel wipes his brow. Once again, the yokai’s memory — and concept of time — has shown its fickle nature. “Well, I guess it depends on what you mean —”

“You know what I mean. How hot was she for me?”

“Well, she was kinda —”

Akki does not wait for the rest. “Ah, forget it. I don’t feel like gettin’ up right now, anyway. If she ain’t rarin’ for me, there’s no point. Speakin’ of which, I ran into a whole batch of humans at this conbini. They were definitely feelin’ the samurai vibe, beggin’ me with their eyes to fuck ’em. Anyway, I want one of ’em for later. I haven’t decided which one yet. No, don’t take off now. They can wait! Have a seat. Order somethin’. Don’t be so wound up. They got some pretty relaxin’ music here, too, don’t they, Hino?”

Zaniel slowly slides into the booth next to her, as if sitting down too fast will trigger an explosion. “But … Akki-sama … I can’t eat food in this realm. If you recall, I’d —”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, don’t remind me. You’ll explode. Or whatever it is you humans do. Blah, blah, blah. Always the same shit with you. Anyway, while I have you here. The chicks you’ve been bringin’ up to the house have fuckin’ sucked lately, you know that?”

Zaniel is surprised, but not at the fact that he is being blamed. “I’m sorry, Akki-sama. All I can tell is who desires you. I’m afraid I have no control over their personalities.” Zaniel does not add that it is Akki’s own choices that have brought such disappointment. Pointing out his own flaws would be the utmost disrespect.

“Yeah, well … you should! Save me the trouble! Isn’t that what I’m payin’ you for?”

“You pay him?” Hino interrupts. “Since when?”

“I, well … I pay him in protection. And whose side are you on?”

“Same side I’m always on,” Hino murmurs to herself.

“Thank you,” Akki says curtly, having not heard her. He sighs and massages his furry temples. “The point is, boy, if you still want my help in this world, you’re gonna have to step it up. I don’t want any more chatterboxes who lie there like dead fish. I need somethin’ worth the effort, y’hear? This bullshit is gettin’ really exhaustin’. Unless you want things to go back to the way they were. I mean, hey. Maybe I have no idea what I’m talkin’ about. Maybe you’ll be perfectly safe without my protection. Hmmm. You’ve been workin’ longer hours in the real world lately, haven’t you? A hafu in your position needs all the sleep he can get if you ask me.” He snickers at his own joke.