With his hands raised in a gesture of surrender, Hojou Kyousuke did his best to appear harmless.
At the sa ti, he flashed a smile—the kind that Celty had described as "magical."
'So unfair...'
Looking into those eyes, no one could possibly bring themselves to hurt him.
Celty, who had originally planned to conjure black mist to tie Kyousuke up first and ask questions later, hesitated.
The swirling black fog that had filled the living room slowly retreated into her body.
"You're really not working with that person?" Celty cautiously held out her tablet toward Kyousuke.
"Of course not. I'm the leader of a biker gang—why would a traffic cop ask for help?"
As he spoke, Kyousuke pulled out his phone and found the photos Sakura had taken of him street racing on the Tokyo Loop.
He handed it to Celty.
Celty lowered her head, glancing at the images—Kyousuke, dressed in a special attack jacket, astride a massive motorcycle, surrounded by a gang of delinquents.
Then, she looked up at him again—at that incredibly gentle smile.
Then back down at the photos.
Then back up at him.
"...I don't see it."
She didn't specify what she couldn't see, but Kyousuke understood anyway.
"Haha, well, I've only been a delinquent for less than a week."
"But it looks fun," Celty said, pointing at a photo of the gang riding together along the highway.
"It really is. Riding with friends is a blast. The guy next to is Makki Hojou—he's pretty famous in Tokyo's biker scene."
"Ah! I've heard of him! Makki Hojou, the guy who rides the Crimson ZII!"
Seeing how excited Celty was as she shoved her tablet closer to him, Kyousuke could practically hear the enthusiasm in her voice.
What followed was an endless stream of questions about biker gangs.
Celty was genuinely interested, and Kyousuke, despite being a rookie leader, did his best to sound knowledgeable.
He pieced together bits of information he'd heard here and there, spinning them into a compelling story.
"Want to co ride with us next ti?" he offered.
"Sure!" Celty imdiately typed.
Then, she hesitated and pulled the tablet back.
"But... you know, right? I'm..."
"You're what?"
Celty clutched the tablet against her chest as if steeling herself for sothing.
Then, she turned her body slightly, as if sneaking a glance at Kyousuke.
Slowly, she reached up and removed her cat-shaped helt.
The alluring figure before him should have had an equally beautiful face.
But where her head should have been—there was nothing.
An empty space.
Dark mist billowed endlessly from her neck, rising like flas from the depths of the underworld.
"I'm a Dullahan!"
The exclamation mark at the end of her sentence made it easy for Kyousuke to imagine what her expression might have been if she had a face—probably sothing adorably fierce.
"Hahahaha! Celty, you're way too cute!"
"What?!" Celty hurriedly shoved her tablet toward him, as if making sure he read it properly, then just as quickly pulled it back, suddenly embarrassed.
'What's with this guy?'
He saw my true form, and instead of being scared, he thinks I'm... cute?!
Celty couldn't understand.
Kyousuke wasn't like Shinra—he didn't have so weird obsession with non-human beings.
So... does he actually think I, as a person, am cute?
Dark mist began to rise from her neck even faster.
"You're... not afraid of ?" she asked hesitantly, typing out the words and holding her tablet close, her fingers gripping it tightly as she waited for his answer.
"Afraid?"
Kyousuke stroked his chin, looking her up and down.
Seeing his thoughtful expression, Celty tensed up, straightening her posture.
'Afraid? More like... damn.'
"Why would I be afraid? Are you going to hurt ?" he asked with a smile.
"Of course not!" Celty frantically waved her hands.
"Then there's nothing to be scared of. If you won't harm , that makes you a good person."
"A... good person? You think I'm a good person?"
Celty typed quickly, then gestured at the empty space where her head should be, waving her hand as if to emphasize her not-human-ness.
"Hahahaha! Celty, what are you even doing? That's way too cute!" Kyousuke burst into laughter.
"I don't even have a head! Can I really be considered a person?" Celty typed.
She had been searching for her head for so long.
She had traveled from city to city, slowly integrating into human society.
Now, with no leads on her missing head, her purpose seed to be shifting.
She worked harder than most humans, never taking a day off.
She followed the law, feared traffic cops, enjoyed ani, loved small animals.
She helped girls in trouble and assisted elderly people who fell on the street.
Could soone like that still be considered non-human?
Lately, she had even noticed a growing affection for the person who let her live here.
Was that love?
Or just gratitude?
She wasn't sure.
She only knew that he—the one who claid to love her—was obsessed with the fact that she wasn't human. It didn't matter that she was a Dullahan.
As long as she was non-human, it was enough for him.
It was frustrating.
Confusing.
Difficult to understand.
But now, sitting across from her was this man, Hojou Kyousuke.
She had shown him her true form, yet he still called her cute and said she was a good person.
Celty could tell—this man wasn't like Shinra.
Yes, even though Shinra loved her, she knew deep down that his fascination with non-humans—his willingness to dissect her with his father as a child—made him a little... off.
But Kyousuke—he was different.
He really saw her as a person.
And she needed to know why.
There was sothing deeply ironic about a non-human being wanting to be seen as human.
"Of course!" Kyousuke nodded firmly.
"Humans are not so easily defined—ah, wait, wrong reference."
He chuckled awkwardly before continuing with a more serious tone.
"Celty, just now, when I said you were cute, you blushed, right?"
"Huh? Well... if soone says that, of course I'd blush!"
She even reached up to where her face should be, fanning the air as if trying to cool her imaginary blush.
"Ah... wait, I don't have a face!"
"Hahaha! I could see you getting embarrassed, so don't sweat the details."
"But... what does blushing have to do with whether I'm human or not?"
Celty asked quickly, feeling like she was on the verge of an answer she had been seeking for a long ti.
"It has everything to do with it. Humans are the only creatures that blush. Have you ever seen an animal do it?"
Kyousuke was bending logic, but it didn't matter.
The line between human and non-human wasn't sothing he could define—it only mattered that Celty believed it.
"Wait... you're right!"
Celty typed rapidly, the mist around her neck swirling with excitent.
"See? That ans you're undeniably human!" Kyousuke declared.
'Blushing... that's all it takes?'
Celty put her tablet down and leaned back against the couch, gazing at Kyousuke again.
His eyes were so warm—warr than anything she had ever felt.
'No one has ever treated this way before...'
People either scread "monster" and ran, or stared at her like she was a curiosity.
Even those who accepted her only saw her as a friendly non-human.
No one had ever looked at her and treated her like a person.
Staring into those warm eyes, Celty felt herself blushing again.
"So, Celty... want to go for a ride?"
Kyousuke asked once more.
Before she could answer, the door opened.
"Celty, I'm ho."
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