World of Taroo
Page 15
Well there, he learnt that Gon indeed came in and had already got the permission to open his restaurant. Jay went down to the part of the city he was told to go and found the street. From the street, he saw Senji walking across the road and called her name. They walked together, and Senji showed the house that was standing in front of a big boulder that could be mistaken for a very small mountain and the outdoor area that Gon bought. Very strange, thought Jay, that the kingdom would not have removed the big boulder. Gon was nowhere to be found, but after 15 minutes, he showed up with some people he hired to help clean and repair. They talked, and Jay told them what happened and about Kane.
After lunch, Jay went to sign in at the guard house to try out for the guard job. He arrived at the gates of the guard headquarters and saw Kane already waiting for his results sitting on a bench. Kane told him about a strength test and fighting skills. He had done well, he thought and was hopping for the horse riders. Jay walked in to the office and got to sign his wish list for position. He wrote that he was applying for castle guard and gave the list back to the man holding the proceedings. After 20 minutes, a man came out and asked Jay to join him. They walked out to a testing ground, and the man gave instructions on how the test would proceed. Jay was given a horse and had to ride down a course and tried to hit multiple targets with a sword and if possible, catch things at the same time.
Jay did the course with little problem, and the man was writing his comments. Jay then had to get into a tall building and the guard told him to get himself out, and bring as many coins as possible that was somewhere in the big and tall building. He had to try to not be visible to the guards inside. The building had multiple entries and as soon as he entered, the light completely vanished. The only light source came from fire sticks on the walls. The building had windows, but there were wooden frames covering them. Jay was careful and tried to sneak past the guards anyway he could and used the shadows and wooden boxes to his advantage. So far so good, he told himself, but stayed silent for a while to try and locate where everyone was.
The coins were placed so that the guards could not see them being taken but stood at various locations to sometimes move around. He managed to get many but didn’t know how many coins were actually in there. Very peculiar coins with the face of a soldier on them with double the size as a normal one. When he believed he had done enough, he decided to leave by opening a window and jumped to another one not far from. A dangerous move not only because of being outside and possibly falling down, but also because the light that came as he opened one of the wooden frames. He was, however, careful with waiting until the guards that were walking around, had all left to another room.
The building was quite large and he wondered, as he climbed outside, if the building was once something else considering its size. He had to wait while a guard moved away further below because he also opened the window. It was not to look for him but to spit something out. As soon as the guard closed the wooden frames in front of the windows again, he grabbed a rope that was hanging from the roof to climb down. When he walked up to the guard and gave him the coins, he thought he had been able to not be discovered. The guard didn’t look too impressed and simply told him to wait while he had a look. He had to stay while the guard walked in and talked to the men inside the house.
The last test was a match with swords, and Jay was given a soldier sword that was not sharp at all but felt the weight in it. He only got a light armour which he didn’t mind since he could move well in it. He got put against a fully protected soldier holding a wooden sword, and the guard told them to start. The soldier attacked fast, and Jay had to move to the side to not get hit by the light wooden sword. He tried to strike back but the sword was heavy and the blow became less. The soldier was continuing to advance with many strikes following. Jay quickly blocked the strikes but got a kick in the chest and fell back. The soldier told him he had to do better if he was to make it. Jay was fast up by kicking up his legs and landing on them in one move to immediately attack again. As he ran towards the soldier, who became surprised he recovered so quickly, he told him not to underestimate him. The soldier was ready to block the strike he believed was coming from Jay but instead saw his opponent glide underneath him.
Jay was soon behind and kicked him hard so his opponent fell forward after he lost his balance. He could correct himself, but within seconds, the next hit came. When he turned around, he just saw Jay who was on the way to hit the soldier after jumping towards him. Before he could block with the wooden sword, he got a hit to the helmet with the shaft of the blunt sword. Jay then kicked himself away from the soldier hitting his chest plate. The soldier fell onto the back after the kick proved too strong for him. As he tried to get up, he met Jay who was holding his sword aimed towards him. The guard watching everything while taking notes said enough and told Jay to come with him. He told him to go and sit down to be called in, and Jay walked to the bench where he met Kane earlier. Kane was still there and was very happy. He had gotten the position he wanted and was leaving to train with the others soon. He just wanted to thank Jay again, and they would see each other in the training grounds.
Jay sat and waited for his outcome and could not stop thinking about what if he failed some of the test. After about 30 minutes, another man came out and told Jay to come with him. Jay walked quietly behind and got let in a room with a board in front. The man asked Jay about how he thought it went. Jay said he hoped he did well enough to offer his services to the king. The man looked through the test scores again. The man rose and pointed to the wall. It had a battlefield on it and there were pieces that were able to be moved around. He asked Jay to put himself on the battlefield and how he would act. Jay took a piece that the man was holding and looked at the board. He saw valleys and mountains and there were many forests and a desert. The army he needed to go past was everywhere across a border, and it would be hard to hide from them.
The man said the army was attacking and what would he do. Jay looked at the board and moved the army defending and as he did, the attacking army moved as well. Every time he did a move, the other pieces changed their position depending on what the previous one was. An impressive board with incredible mechanics, Jay thought to himself. He moved them around and believed he saw a pattern. He put his piece representing himself in the middle alone and moved all the defending army to the sides. The attacking army moved closer to the defending but left Jay alone. He then proceeded to move his piece forward and only a few other movements were made. Jay placed himself close to the attacking army but in a forest. All the attacking pieces went back to the battlefield closer to the defending army again. Jay them moved his piece over the other line and said to the man that sometimes you win battles alone unnoticed rather than loud and open.
The man wrote in the test sheet and asked Jay to walk outside again. Jay wondered if all the tests were like this and was his strategy well-placed in there. He waited for another 20 minutes, and finally, a man came out and said to Jay he would be given the results and was welcomed inside. Jay sat nervously and looked upon the three men looking through his test sheets. One of the men asked Jay why he wanted to be a castle guard, and Jay told him about his friends living there then, and how he thought he could be a good protector of the Grasoll kingdom. The men talked and the same man said that if they failed him, what he would do for work. Just hearing those words made Jay uneasy and he said he hopes they would let him try again, but he was sure he had done a good job.
A door opened up and Jay could hear the footsteps coming closer. When he raised his head, he saw a familiar face. It was Hillmer who said they were currently not looking for a castle guard, and Jay’s heart sank to the ground. Hillmer brought out a paper and slid it upside down closer to Jay. He told Jay there was another opening but it was not in the castle. He had, however, qualified for something else that they had recently started. Jay sat confused and wondered what it was, and Hillmer asked how well he thought he did in the test. Jay said he hoped he g
ot almost all of the coins but wasn’t sure whether he was seen. Hillmer told him Jay did excellent in the test and got full points because all the coins were gone, and the guards still thought he was inside when the assessing guard came in.
Jay, however, did not do great on the horse but still good enough to advance in to the role because of the comments he was given in total. And they were happy with the strategy board in the room and the fight was very quick thinking and well done even if it wasn’t perfect. Jay asked the men what the role was and Hillmer told him to flip the paper. Jay took the paper and read it and could not believe what it said. The role was for the secret security guards that got to go around the country and investigate major crimes and specialised fighting. They also were in charge of putting the worst of the criminals to face court. Hillmer said Jay would have to train with the others in a secluded part of the castle and would have a lot of pressure to perform these duties.
Jay did not hesitate and said yes before Hillmer was finished talking. Hillmer smiled and welcomed Jay to the force and asked him to follow them out the back way. Jay was led to a house that had a lot of equipment and got a lot of gear that was fitted to him particularly. He then was presented to the main trainer by Hillmer who also told him about Jay winning in the arena and Jay get welcomed by the other security forces.
A mix of already skilled and new recruits were also there. Jay joined right away with the others on the training ground. The training went on for several hours and it was very hard work. The night came and Jay was able to go home since the security forces did not stay in the barracks like the army and had to move around a lot. He could see the light from the restaurant, and when he knocked on the door, he could hear people still inside. The restaurant looked different and was looking great. The walls had even been painted and when Jay entered the main room, he was greeted by Gon who was paying for furniture he had earlier ordered on the day that they had arrived.
Senji was upstairs but came down as soon as she heard Jay. He was tired but helped with putting out the furniture. Gon sent everybody home as the tasks around finished and paid them. The three friends did the last part of furniture moving, and Jay told of what happened during the day. They were so happy for him, and Gon said he could now stand security outside the restaurant if he got tired of the castle while laughing. Jay was shown to his bedroom that had been cleaned by Senji but that had no bed yet. They would have to purchase it the next day so when Jay came back, he could sleep in the bed.
Senji talked to Jay about how they first came to the gates. They had travelled to the judge’s house and Mr Pan’s friend was there and welcomed them. Gon had purchased the old restaurant for 40,000 credits and was given the right to open the business right away because the judge was so impressed by the fight. When they arrived, they noticed how much they had to do and started to fix it up immediately. There were many workers in the city, and Gon had paid a group of them to help and was very pleased with them. While Jay was at the castle, there was a man who had gotten the address from Mr Pan and offered to sell them cheap furniture. Gon had left briefly and returned after purchasing some of it. The plan tomorrow was to finish the last and buy the rest and then hopefully open within a week.
When Jay asked about the boulder, Gon informed him it actually was sold with the house and the previous owner had never wanted to remove it. The rock apparently had been in his family for generations and since it stood on the land they owned, the kingdom could do little to force him to remove it. Jay fell asleep after Senji walked out and Gon stood in the kitchen and thought about what to get. Senji told him to come to bed and reminded him he would work better if he was rested. Gon could not argue against that, and they fell asleep together in the other room. The next day came, and Jay walked off towards the castle for another day of training, and Gon and Senji walked to the market and during the day, spent a lot of time buying equipment for the kitchen and ordering fabric for the tables.
The fabric they bought was a brand-new type that was easy to clean and the equipment was the best possible quality, and they also picked out some furniture for their bedroom and Jay’s. Last thing of the day was the food, and Gon managed to be lucky because the man who ran the butchery was so happy to see Gon. He had also seen the fight and was in the audience during the first day. Gon got a better price because the man had bet on him and had won a lot. ‘It seems your win would bring good fortune even after we have left Shetana,’ said Senji. They made sure they had everything then went home. Well at home, Senji continued to clean but noticed a door that she hadn’t seen before. Before, there were a bunch of old boxes stacked so they never saw it as they were inspecting the place at the beginning. Now that the workers had cleared everything, she saw the door. She told Gon who was receiving the furniture and when he came, he looked curiously upon a lock on the door.
The door was facing the rock formation outside so why would there be a door there? Gon took out his staff and smashed the lock easily and it fell to the ground. The door was strangely opening towards the rock and even stranger was that there were stairs going down to a room further down. They walked down, and Gon brought his staff just in case. But when they came down, it was only an empty room under and inside the rock. Gon said he thought the previous owner must have built it before he left and didn’t want to get in trouble for building it so probably never told anybody. It was not finished and it was quite cold as well.
Gon had an idea and told Senji if the judge approved the room then he could keep the meat down in the room. At first, he wondered if they should even say anything but then he figured he better since he didn’t want to be accused of trying to build without permission. Gon was an honest man and would never lie to risk his business and let Senji organise the furniture who told the people where to put them. Gon got what he wanted without problem from the judge who gave him permission to continue with the hidden room. Before he headed back, he asked the same people to come and work for a couple of hours which they did. They cleared out the small room and made it look great. They smoothed the sides of the stone and removed any rocks that broke down.
After a few hours, the room was ready and the men informed Gon who was busy with sorting the kitchen. He was happy and paid the men for their hard work. Senji was telling Gon about how she wanted to clean up the dirty room of any debris and she would get him when she was finished. Gon went back to the kitchen and was able to receive the fabric before Senji came back to get him. The room that was fairly cold since it was under the rock was a perfect place for the food to be stored. Senji had made the room look amazingly clean, and Gon hanged the meat hocks up and they headed upstairs. Jay walked in the door and when he saw the room, he was very impressed. He also saw the new furniture, and the rooms now looked very different with beds and drawers.
The night came, and Gon lay awake too excited to sleep. He tried to figure out the best way of introducing his restaurant to the people. The next day, Gon tried out the kitchen, and Senji finished the last bit of cleaning. She saw some people look at the restaurant and could tell they were curious. The smell from the kitchen was spreading and a woman came up and asked when they would open. In four days the big opening was to take place and Senji asked the woman to please come to support the restaurant that still had no name sign. More and more people came up and Senji got an idea. She brought a tray and took some food from the kitchen where Gon wondered what she was going to do with them. When she said why, he smiled and brought more food out. The people got to try the food, and they seemed very pleased.
Gon was only testing the kitchen but was already happy with the setup and joined Senji outside with more food for the people to try. Jay came back as the people were leaving, and the three friends walked inside for dinner. Gon was very happy, and while they ate, a knock on the door came. It was the sign maker and he had the sign ready for them. He got paid, and the sign got put on the floor still under a cloth. It would take some time, but as the days passed, more things were placed in the right pla
ce.
Grand Opening
It was the day of the opening, and Gon was more nervous than he had ever been before. ‘It is even tenser than the final fight in the arena,’ he said to Senji, and she did her best to calm him down. The whole morning had been busy with preparing the last of the restaurant, and Gon had not hired anyone. He liked and would try to keep up himself. The food preparation was all done, and the pots were boiling for full. The restaurant was only open half day the first day to make sure everything worked, and for the last two days, Senji had been going around the city and putting up signs. The big sign in the front of the restaurant was still blocked by a sheet that would be pulled off as soon as the time was right. With only minutes left, a lot of people were gathered outside. There were many people interested in the man who won the fighting tournament and his ability to cook food that they hoped to be as good.
There were some of the friends of Mr Pan there as well. Gon was a little nervous but mustered up some strength and walked out. He looked around, and there were a fair bit of people. He greeted everyone and talked a little about the journey to fulfil his dream. He didn’t wish to talk for long because of him being so nervous. He took a deep breath and then said it was time to open. Gon pulled the cord and the sign was shown. The restaurant sign had his own name on it which he was proud to look at. He always wanted his own restaurant and now he had one named after himself. He welcomed the people in, and everyone outside hoped to try the food. The restaurant was busy all the time through the half day, and Gon was working harder than ever. The dishes piled up and soon, it would be short of plates.