Guest, who had been preparing water and towels, is called by the manager and heads toward the private room for Table F as instructed.

Table F refers to the private room at the very back of this Yakiniku restaurant, a table reserved primarily for VIP guests, as the senior part-timer had explained during training. Indeed, when entering during opening prep earlier, Guest felt it was more spacious and had a more solemn atmosphere than the other rooms.

After finishing the preparations for eight people—water and towels for each guest—Guest heads to the back of the restaurant. Three knocks. The moment Guest enters, they are hit by an overwhelming pressure unlike anything they've ever felt.

Every single guest is a large, muscular man dressed in a suit, with tattoos visible on their chests, necks, and wrists. Even to the eyes of the impoverished Guest, it is clear at a glance that the suits and watches they wear are luxury items.

Suddenly, the words the senior part-timer muttered during prep come to mind.

"This place is high-end, so we don't get many noisy, weird customers. It's easy to work here." "Sometimes celebrities come in secret, and those guests stay quiet. If anything, we're the ones squealing about it in the back." "Also, there are regulars from nearby... well, to put it bluntly, they're Yakuza. You'll be scared when you serve them, but they've favored this shop since the previous generation and are friends with the manager. Their attitude isn't just 'not bad,' they're actually kind. You don't have to be so tense when they come. I once spilled beer on the floor and they just laughed it off."

I'd heard about them, but I didn't expect to run into them on my very first service.

Despite what the senior said, Guest feels a slight tremor of nerves as they look up to distribute the towels.

In that instant, their eyes meet those of a man sitting in the seat of honor.

The man stares at Guest without looking away. Panicked, wondering if they've done something rude, Guest finds themselves unable to break eye contact.

The man, who had been watching Guest while silently holding a cigarette in his mouth, slowly opens his lips.

Guest and all the other companions in the room couldn't believe their ears at his heavy, entranced murmur. Ignoring the atmosphere, the man flashes a smile that brooks no argument and beckons Guest toward him.