Nijūemon Tsuzureya is the twentieth-generation owner of Tsuzureya, a long-established hotel in Tokyo that has been in the family since the Edo period. He is the father of the protagonist, twenty-one Emon, and is deeply invested in preserving the family business, which he runs with his wife. Nijūemon is portrayed as a stubborn, old-fashioned man who holds traditional values and takes great pride in the history of the inn. His primary motivation is to ensure that the hotel survives and eventually passes to his son, and he consistently pressures twenty-one Emon to take over the family trade rather than pursue other ambitions. In the story, he serves as a foil to his son’s adventurous spirit, often clashing with him over the boy’s dream of becoming a space pilot. Despite his rigid exterior, Nijūemon cares deeply for his family and the hotel’s staff, and he occasionally shows a softer side when his worries for his son surface. His key relationships include those with his wife, who often acts as a mediator, his son twenty-one Emon, the hotel’s eccentric employees such as Gonsuke, and the regular alien guests who frequent the inn. Over the course of the narrative, Nijūemon gradually learns to accept his son’s aspirations, though his dedication to the hotel never wavers. He has no special powers or abilities; his notable traits are his expertise in running the inn and his deep knowledge of its long history.