One guest — a man — arrives alone. He strides right past the long line, ignoring the inquisitive looks of the wait staff who do not have the courage to question him. At first glance he looks like a normal person, but his eyes stop them. They watch him weave through the tables straight to the window seat with the giant yokai and the demon posing as a high school student. He has the look of someone who has already put in several hours but still has a long night of work ahead of him. His black suit and blue dress shirt are dishevelled. Hino is not surprised to see something else on his face: a look of dismay masked with the commitment and duty the country has drummed into so many young people she has seen over the centuries. Hino sees his disappointment, his bottled rage, his broken heart. She also notices how puffy his eyes are. Akki, as usual, notices nothing.

“Hey, whaddya know? Zaniel-kun. Fancy seein’ you here! Glad to see you’re still alive!”

The young man stops at their table and bows low, panting. “Akki-sama … I’m sorry. It took ages to get down from the mountains and … Are you glowing? Sorry. I mean … you look different.”

“Like it?” Akki beams at him in all his fiery-green glory, his grin so wide Zaniel could count all sixteen of his upper teeth were he not staring at Akki’s broad naked chest, upon which a large tattooed dragon appears to sleep. It opens one yellow, glistening eye, hisses at Zaniel, and rolls over so its back is turned. Zaniel snaps back to attention again when Akki answers: “Kinda nice, right? I finally found a place outside the mountains where I can let myself go. No shirt, no shoes, no problem.”

“Uh …” Speechless, Zaniel turns to Hino, who rolls her eyes behind her shades.

Akki tilts his head back to gulp down the last of his drink and belches. “Yup, the other yokai weren’t kiddin’ about this place. Glad they talk so loud when they’re walkin’ by the house, or I never would’ve heard about it! Only issue is all the humans you gotta go through to get here.”

“I see.” Zaniel remains stoic. He starts to speak again but is caught off guard by the array of empty plates and whiskey glasses scattered all over the table. “Um … Akki-sama, how long —”

“You ain’t said nothin’ to Hino, by the way.”

Zaniel catches his tongue and steels himself before bowing again. “Hino-sama,” he says. “Greetings. I apologize for my rudeness.” The girl continues to look out the window, ignoring them both. “Akki-sama —”