Niko remained at the host’s booth while a crowd of content customers dined, socialized, and swapped stories. He mindlessly tapped his pen over the stand, his other finger flicking the black phone cord dangling over the ledge. He leaned up and straightened out a little pile of menus, sighing. “Workin’ here sure is boring. It’s like school, but I’m standin’ the entire time.” He glanced over his shoulder to the rear of the restaurant, and met eyes with Mr. Norasi in the kitchen. The hairy man grinned at him and winked. Niko awkwardly waved his hand, then turned back to the busy dining area. He picked up a loose coin that an earlier customer gave him as a tip and gently flipped it in the air. “Something about those guys is makin’ me nervous. Do they know that girl Alia? Somethin’s not addin’ up here.”

Mr. Jirani suddenly tapped Niko’s shoulder. “Would you help run some food for us, Mr. Niko?”

“Oh, sure.”

Mr. Jirani stepped back around the bar to tend some guests while Niko entered the kitchen. While he collected some empty plates and glasses, Niko pushed through the kitchen with a few trays of food. Amid the busy little restaurant, Niko drifted between tables, gathering trash and empty plates. The glasses clinked softly in his hands as he set them at the end of the bar.

“Ah, good work, Mr. Niko. We are pretty busy tonight!” Mr. Jirani said, wiping a bar glass.

Niko chuckled. “You said it. Hey, can I have a soda?”

Mr. Jirani grabbed a clean glass and held it under the soda gun. “Of course, Mr. Niko. You’re doing a good job so far.”

Niko took a drink and made another lap around the dining room before checking back in the kitchen. Momentarily Mr. Norasi walked out of the kitchen for a breather, and joined Mr. Jirani by the bar. “How is the boy doing out here?”

“He is dense, but works hard. Still, I sense he’s hiding something from us,” Mr. Jirani replied.

“You really think the minister’s daughter is in Higonji?” Mr. Norasi asked.

“I am certain. Our search is over.” Mr. Jirani hushed his friend, and excused himself to tend to a couple of patrons at the bar. “How did you like your beverage?”

A couple in their twenties shared a plate of beef satay. “The drinks were good, but this beef is a bit overdone,” the woman said.

Mr. Jirani took the plate and examined her entree. “Ah, I see. May I offer you a new plate?”

“I’m good. Wasn’t bad though,” the guy said.

“Could you maybe take this off the bill? I wanted it medium, but it probably sat back there too long,” she said, looking down her nose.

Mr. Jirani emptied the plate into a bus tub. “Of course. My apologies. Tell me if you desire anything else.”

“Two more drinks.”

“Very good.” He walked back through the bar, looking among the other guests and rejoined Mr. Norasi. “Keep quiet for now.”

“How did you find out?” asked Mr. Norasi.

“I saw him when I went to the bank. Someone gave him my great grandfather’s hat—a token of friendship I gave to the minister!” Mr. Jirani whispered, his finger roughly tapping the counter.

“So there’s no mistake.”

“Yes, Alia is here in Senigot.”

“But only the boy knows—how do we find out for certain?”

Mr. Jirani pulled a bottle of liquor from beneath the bar and poured a generous amount into Niko’s cup. “Simple. We raise our trust, and lower his defense.” They chuckled maliciously as Niko and another server came from the kitchen with more plates of steaming hot food. While passing the bar, Niko took a quick swig from his soda glass and hurried after his coworker. “You see that?” Mr. Jirani said. “He is oblivious!”

Mr. Norasi stroked his goatee, chortling. “Niko must have, how you say, a high pain tolerance.”

“Perhaps he’s too dumb to feel it,” Mr. Jirani replied with a snicker.

Niko staggered out of the dining room, banging his knee on a nearby table and startling some guests. “Whoops, sorry ‘bout that!” He chuckled, his teeth grinding as he stumbled towards the bar.

“Ah, Niko, how goes it?” Mr. Norasi said.

Niko rubbed his knee. “Eh, not bad. Just tripped back there.”

“Ah, no worries. Only another hour until we close. Here, you look thirsty,” Mr. Jirani said, shoving the glass towards him.

“Good idea, can’t let the well go dry.” Niko took another chug and trudged over to the kitchen.

Mr. Norasi nudged Mr. Jirani. “Now watch,” he said. “Niko?”

“Yeah?”

Mr. Norasi stepped alongside the bar, grinning. “I hear my friend Alia likes you!”

Niko’s head drooped aside, his eyes woozily squinting. “Hey, that’s her name! I thought I heard y’all talkin’ ‘bout her…the rest was gibberish.” Niko smiled goofily, his body swaying into Mr. Norasi. “Girls are pretty hot where y’all come from!”

“Our land has much natural beauty!” Mr. Norasi said, elbowing Niko’s side.

“I would’t mind goin’ exploring, you know what I’m sayin’?” Niko said, his brows rising.

The men laughed at the drunken boy’s dwindling coherence while he schlepped his bus tub back to the kitchen.

“Simple problems have simple solutions,” Mr. Norasi said.

“We’ll give him some time and see if he will tell us more,” Mr. Jirani replied.

Niko returned with a tray of food and two beverages. “Hey, Mr. uh, Mr. Giraffi, could I havva soda? I don’ know whatcha put in it, but dang it’s tasty!”

The night dragged on while Niko cleared tables and waved off the last few guests as they stepped through the doors, the chimes softly ringing as the doors closed. He climbed out of a small booth, his arms held up to balance his shaky steps. After wiping the last table, he flung the rag over his shoulder and grabbed a broom from the storage closet. “Man, climbin’ that mountain was easier than this.”

From the kitchen, Mr. Jirani and his comrades inconspicuously watched Niko sweeping the wooden floors.

“What do you think, Gino?”

Mr. Jirani’s lip tweaked. “He gets under my skin, Duy. I cannot tell what he’s thinking. Tch, not even he knows!”

“He has great endurance, yet acts so goofy,” Mr. Norasi said, resting a hand on his hip.

“I’m curious where he came from,” Mr. Jirani said.

“Do you think young Niko is strong?” Mr. Shigoh asked.

Mr. Jirani wiped the expo counter. “If he is, he hides it well—his idiocy is a mask.”

“Don’t forget, he has seen the minister’s daughter. We must find out where she is,” Mr. Norasi said.

Mr. Shigoh rifled through Niko’s bag and dumped its contents along the counter.

“He has nothing valuable, just cheap trinkets,” Mr. Norasi said, sucking his teeth. He moved one of Niko’s old shirts and discovered the bag of dried meat. “Ah, look at this.” He handed the bag to Mr. Jirani.

“Hmm? ‘Bentuki FoodPack Company’? That’s in Negashi.”

Mr. Shigoh's pudgy hand slid over the pile of knick-knacks, among them being colorful toy figurines, a bamboo pen, wooden sliding puzzles, rings, and a few prints of ancient Arugian art. He flicked the random items away and picked up the hat beneath the mess.

“She gave him this hat, which was in my family for three generations. She disregards me and my family,” Mr. Jirani said scornfully.

“Gino, we still don’t know Alia’s whereabouts. Perhaps we should get all the facts first,” Mr. Norasi said.

“The facts are in,” replied Mr. Jirani.

“What are you going to do?”

“We must finish our assignment. The minister of Negashi wants his daughter back, but I want Niko out of the way.” Mr. Jirani stepped out of the kitchen and approached Niko, resting at a nearby table. With a malicious grin, he tapped Niko’s shoulder, making him flinch.

“Huh? Oh, Mr. Jirani, I finished cleanin’ the restaurant.”

“Hmm, very good work, Mr. Niko. Great job for your first day.”

“You think so?”

Mr. Jirani walked over to a little safe built into the wall. He entered the combination and retrieved a small black lock box, then carried it over to him.

“What’s that?” Niko said.

“This is payment for a job well done.”

“Really? But I only been here a day.”

“True, but I was young once. To travel and fight was the way of the land. I respect your ambition, so take this, two hundred Dinara.” He handed Niko several stacks of thin, bluish-green paper bills.

“Thanks Mr. Jirani, this is great! How can I thank you?”

“You need not worry about that. I trust you will make good use of your reward.”

“So you fought a lot, too?” Niko said, leaning up excitedly.

Mr. Jirani folded his arms across his back, his eyes drifting up to the ceiling. “Many years, yes, my boy. Arugians have respect for old dueling traditions. Back in my country it is a lifestyle for many.”

“Sounds like a cool place,” Niko said.

“Ah, it’s a beautiful country.”

Niko slowly stood up and set the rag and spray bottle back in the host station. “So you’re sure you want me to leave so soon?”

“Of course. Many things await you out there. You should visit Gundul Island, on the southern sea,” Mr. Jirani said.

“What’s out there?”

“Ah, much history lies there! That, and fortune,” Mr. Jirani replied, twiddling his mustache.

Niko quickly stood up, anxiously gripping his fists. “Fortune? You mean like money?”

Mr. Jirani nodded slowly. “Many places there are unexplored—I once saw the ancient ruins where many people died searching for its treasures.”

“Kinda sounds like a tall tale…but that’s pretty cool!”

“Oh, it is no story. Once a year, a contest is held to honor the ancient people. He who survives is granted vast wealth,” Mr. Jirani said, waving his hands.

“Oh, man—is it too late to go?” Niko said.

“I attended the last festival, which was November 2714. It’s only September now.”

Niko folded his arms. “You think I can make it there in time?”

Mr. Jirani walked aimlessly around the dining area, flicking his fingernails. “Probably. If you were to take a boat from Marburg, it would only take a day or so.”

If I win that money, I could travel all I want, Niko thought while digging a coin from his pocket.

“You should leave tomorrow,” said Mr. Jirani said as he stepped around the bar, picking up random bits of trash.

“Tomorrow? What about my job?”

“Ah, Mr. Niko, this is a rare opportunity for you! I’m sure we’ll see you again.”

“Thanks, Mr. Jirani. I really appreciate this.” Niko shoved the money in his pocket. “Hey, I think what’s-her-name said she was tryin’ to catch a boat, too.”

“Who is that?”

Niko scratched his head, his finger suddenly snapping. “That girl Alia. Maybe I can track her down—be cool to have someone to hang with!”

Mr. Jirani’s eyes bulged, his hands tightly gripping behind his back. “I see…well, best you find her before someone else does!” He chuckled through his teeth, quietly stepping away from Niko.

Niko slowly removed his vest and set it over the host booth before approaching the main door. “Yeah…well if y’all are sure ‘bout this, I’m gonna head out.”

Mr. Jirani nodded stiffly, his back turned to Niko. “Best of luck, young man.”

With a brief spasm, Niko pushed the door open and walked through the quiet underground plaza. Mr. Jirani hunched by the kitchen door, his tense eyes practically burning a hole in the floor. Mr. Norasi and Mr. Shigoh momentarily exited the kitchen and joined him.

“So, it is done?” Mr. Norasi said.

“Yes,” replied Mr. Jirani.

“What is it?”

“What did he say?” Mr. Shigoh asked.

“He’s off to Gundul Island.”

“What do you mean?” Mr. Norasi said. “Gino?”

“He intends to bring Alia with him!”

“What?” Mr. Shigoh said.

“That idiot…he was supposed to leave on his own! Now he’s interfering with everything!” Mr. Jirani hostilely kicked a chair across the room.

“Gino, if he takes Alia away—” Mr. Shigoh said.

Mr. Jirani banged his fist on a table. “Damn it! If the emperor finds out, we will lose more than our jobs!”

* * * * *