Night at Daimon Yokocho

A’ight, lookie here. How much cash d’ya think I got in this bag? Tah-daaaaah! 3 million yen! Straight from m’company’s bank account!

Hey, put that away, dumbass! Don’t tempt me!

Why don’t we find a nice and legal way to divide it among everyone here instead?

Oh, that’s a lovely idea! Agreed!

……

Gimme another lemon sour, missus!

Oh, alright. But you’re already quite drunk as it is. Don’t you have work tomorrow?

Or are you thinking of taking that 3 million yen and catching a flight out of the country? Ahaha!

Tch. Always yappin’ like a buncha idiots in here.

Eyepatch Boy, would you like some more soused mackerel?

…Stop callin’ me that. Fine.

Thought so. You never order anything else when you come in here.

Well, this place does serve the best mackerel around!

Seen you around these parts pretty often lately, Eyepatch Boy. Didja move here from somewhere?!

…No. I ain’t in this city ’cuz I wanna be.

Ohohh! Hey, lemme get what you’re havin’, kid! As a lil’ toast to our friendship!

It’s just a drop of sake in a glass of water. Not even alcohol at that point!

Daaamn, y’sure make a profit offa that, missus.

A single drop?! What, you put it in there with an eye dropper or somethin’?!

Gahahaha! Damn, that’s a good one! Gahaha!

I’ll fuckin’ kill you…

Hey now, don’t be mean! I’m sorry about them, Eyepatch Boy. I’ll get you a drink on the house.

Tch.

You came here from pretty far, didn’t you?

Yeah.

Tell us about it. C’mon, none of us know each other’s names or anything. What happens here stays here.

Y’look like you got the whole weight of the world on your shoulders. Let us know what’s goin’ on.

…I ran away from home. To save Toi⁠— My little brother.

What about your parents?

My old man’s dead. And my brother’s prolly gonna die in the same way. I bet the old hag’s just gonna let it happen.

What…? Is your brother sick?

I’ll do somethin’ about it. That’s why I came all the way here.

Well, damn… That’s pretty rough, kid. You keep in contact with your brother?

Nah. If I heard his voice, I’d get thrown off and run to go see him.

So I put my foot down and decided to cut off all contact with him until I figured somethin’ out.

(I know I put him in a tough spot, but this is all for his sake. So I…)

……

BUHGH…!

Oh, well aren’t you just the cutest? What’s wrong? Are you lost?

Do you have space for six?

…!

Six… Well, the place is already pretty small… But I suppose we can squeeze you in…

(I don’t think he saw me yet, but he’s in that mode…?!)

You three. Did you hear that? There will be enough space if you squeeze in.

…Move.

Ohhhh…! His face says he’s innocent, but his gaze says he’s a sadist! I’ve never felt somethin’ like this before!

Damn, what a blessing…! Alright, we can move for ya! Give us a sec!

Over here, guys! Crush yourselves flat if you gotta!

(H-Hey! Don’t go over here, you fuckin’…! I was just about to make a run for it… W-Woah!)

Alright, there’s space for ya now, Angel Kid!

Hmph.

This is Daimon Yokocho! The streets here are lined with all sorts of bars where you can enjoy not only fine dining, but Hakodate’s local cuisine and sake as well!

The atmosphere here is lovely. I can see why so many people consider it one of Hakodate’s premium attractions.

Yeah, s’always nice to unwind and do some bar hoppin’ in places like this.

So hungryyyy. I crave an extra-large serving of fried chicken.

Shio ramen… That sounds so good.

They got crab here too. Now nothin’ beats sippin’ some sake out of a perfectly roasted crab shell, if y’ask me.

Daniel-san, do you ever stop thinking about alcohol…? Hm?

What do you think this means?

I have no idea.

It’s hard to imagine.

(Some foreign travelers… It looks like they don’t know how to read the restaurant signs.)

…We gonna help ‘em?

Of course!

Phew! Looks like they made it to where they wanted to go. That’s good.

Good work. We can always count on your skills. By the way…

I don’t see Toi anywhere… He must’ve gotten separated from us.

Oh no… You’re right! We have to look for h⁠—

I am here.

WAH…! Oh, thank god… I’m glad you didn’t get lost…

Where were you just now?

I have found a restaurant for us.

Yippiiiee!

Let the banquet begin.

Mm… Th-This is delicious! It’s just an appetizer, but it’s so amazing! Hokkaido doesn’t disappoint!

The scallop tofu is so tasty…

I made it myself! I have to say, I’m quite proud of it!

This place is pretty crowded. You sure it’s okay for us to be here?

I already ate all of my tofu… Do they have any fried chicken?

Ohh… This sake is locally brewed. It’s quite dry, but it has a clean taste, so it goes down easy.

It would be the perfect complement to Hakodate’s local seafood.

Oh, I’m surprised you can tell so much. I always recommend it to my female customers.

Is that so? It does have a hint of fruitiness in it. I can see why women would enjoy it.

Would you like some too, miss? My treat. “Blooming Winter Beauty”… Even the name suits you quite well.

Oh, you! I don’t think I’m that beautiful at my old age! Let me get you some fresh salmon jerky, on the house!

Hey, come oooon! Nothin’ free for your loyal regulars?

Ask me again after you learn how to be a bit more handsome.

Wow, this salmon jerky is so soft! I always imagined it to be more tough.

*munch munch…* How very salty-sweet-licious! I would like another serving.

I want to fill my pockets with it and keep it for a snack on the go.

These’re probably made in-house too. Damn, this salmon’s so good, it could gill me.

Daniel-san, that was awful. Are you already drunk?

You guys are a fun bunch! Hope you enjoy your stay in Hakodate!

A toast to our newfound friendship! Cheers!

Yeaaah! Cheers!

(The regulars are all so kind here! I really love this place…)

(I wish we had the time to stop by again before we went back home… Hm?)

……

(There’s someone stuck between the wall and the other regulars. He looks pretty smashed… Not drunk, I mean literally smashed… Is he okay?)

……

(Hm? I can’t really get a good look at him, but he kinda reminds me of…)

(Don’t you fuckin’ dare talk to me, shithead.)

(Ah… He’s glaring daggers at me.)

(And I kinda feel like he just insulted me in his head. Maybe I’m overthinking things.)

(I don’t wanna cause any trouble while we’re all having fun, so I’ll just ignore him for now…)

Delicious food and amazing local sake…

This is too much happiness. An unprecedented wave of misfortune might be on the horizon…

Gii, what are you muttering about? Do not worry about trivial matters and just drink instead!

I won’t let you refuse this drink from me. Here you are.

Th-The happiness…

It’ll be alright! I’ll take as many flowers as you need once we get back!

Oh…okay. Then… *gulp, gulp…*

Ah…! *gulp, gulp…*

Woaaahh, nice one, brother! Respect.

‘Kay… Buchi-san, you’re next. Drink.

Damn straight, I will. I can handle three times what you had!

That is way too much!

Shit…

(I just gotta stick it out for another hour or two…)

(There ain’t any other options for now…)