Reze's safe house was located on the third floor of an aging apartment building.
When Kuroto stepped inside, he instinctively glanced around.
The room was extremely bare.
The walls were plain grey-white without decoration.
The furniture consisted of only a bed, a table, and a single chair.
The curtains were drawn tightly shut, blocking even daylight.
It was spotless.
Neat.
And unbearably empty.
There were no photographs.
No personal belongings.
Not even a stray decoration.
This wasn't a home.
It was a temporary storage space for a weapon.
"Sit."
Reze gestured toward the bed.
There was only one chair, and she had already placed the first-aid kit on it for convenience.
So Kuroto sat down on the bed.
The springs creaked softly.
The blanket was folded perfectly.
The pillow had no indentation at all.
Does she even sleep here?
Or does she stay alert all night like a soldier?
Reze opened the medical kit and took out iodine and gauze.
Then she knelt in front of him and began treating the wounds on his arm.
Three claw marks still bled faintly.
The adrenaline had faded, and the pain was slowly returning.
Her movements were extremely professional.
Clean.
Disinfect.
Wrap.
Every step was practiced.
She had clearly treated injuries countless times.
But most of those wounds must have been her own.
"Does it hurt?"
She asked without looking up.
"It's okay."
"Tell me the truth."
"It's really o—ouch!"
She deliberately pressed the iodine-soaked cotton harder.
Kuroto gasped.
"And now?"
She looked up at him expressionlessly.
"…It hurts."
"You should have said so earlier."
Her movements immediately softened.
The cotton barely touched the wound now.
Kuroto looked down at the top of her head.
A few strands of hair stuck up slightly.
From this distance he could smell her shampoo.
Not perfume.
Just the ordinary scent of cheap supermarket shampoo.
Yet mixed with something uniquely hers.
"You…"
He hesitated.
"That moment in the alley…"
"Don't say it."
Reze cut him off immediately.
"I know what you want to say."
She continued wrapping the bandage.
"You saw it."
"My arm changed."
"Right?"
Kuroto remained silent for a moment.
Pretending ignorance now would insult her intelligence.
"Yes."
Reze stopped briefly.
But she still didn't look up.
"Aren't you afraid?"
"No."
"Do you understand what that means?"
"I think so."
Finally she raised her head.
Her expression was complicated.
There was tension.
Expectation.
And the quiet fear of rejection.
This answer mattered to her.
Far more than any mission.
"You're a devil, right?"
Kuroto said calmly.
"A hybrid."
Reze corrected immediately.
"Not a devil."
"A hybrid."
"Half human. Half devil."
"What difference does it make?"
"…The difference is that I still have a human side."
Her voice trembled slightly.
That "human side" was the last thing she clung to.
As long as that part existed—
She wasn't a monster.
Kuroto felt his chest tighten.
"Then that's enough."
"The human side is human."
"And you're still you."
"Who cares whether you're a hybrid?"
Reze's eyes reddened suddenly.
Only for a moment.
She quickly lowered her head and continued wrapping the gauze.
But her fingers trembled.
She failed to tie the knot twice before finally finishing it.
"You…"
Her voice sounded muffled.
"Aren't you afraid of anything?"
"Yes."
"I'm afraid of many things."
"Like what?"
"I'm afraid you'll stop giving me Mont Blanc."
Reze raised her hand and smacked him lightly on the head.
Harder than before.
"Be serious."
"Okay, okay."
Kuroto paused.
Then he looked directly into her eyes.
"I'm afraid you'll disappear."
Reze's pupils shrank.
The room fell silent.
They stayed like that for a long time.
Eventually Reze stood up and walked toward the window.
She didn't open the curtains.
She simply stood there with her back facing him.
"You shouldn't say things like that to me."
"Why?"
"Because…"
She hesitated.
"Because I'm not a good person."
"I'm here on a mission."
"The coffee shop. That identity."
"It's all fake."
She was confessing.
Under these circumstances—
She chose to tell the truth.
Not because her hybrid identity had been exposed.
She could have killed him.
Silenced him.
Or simply left.
But she didn't want to lie to him anymore.
Kuroto inhaled slowly.
"I know."
Reze turned sharply.
"What?"
"I said I know."
"Not everything."
"But I had a feeling."
"You're not an ordinary café worker."
"You came to that café for another purpose."
Reze's expression sharpened immediately.
Dangerous.
"When did you realize?"
"A long time ago."
"How long?"
"…The first day."
The air turned cold.
Her right hand trembled slightly.
A sign of impending transformation.
Her instincts screamed:
This person knew from the beginning.
He could be an enemy.
But she didn't transform.
Because another voice resisted that instinct.
A softer voice.
He knew.
And yet—
He still brought her Mont Blanc every day.
"You knew I wasn't normal."
"You knew I had a mission."
"You knew danger surrounded me…"
Reze's voice trembled.
"And you still stayed there?"
"You still brought me snacks every day?"
"You talked with me?"
"You shared an umbrella with me?"
"What were you thinking?!"
"I was thinking about how to keep you alive."
Reze froze.
"I don't care about your mission."
"I don't care that you're a hybrid."
"I don't care how many people are hunting you."
Kuroto stood up and walked toward her.
"I only know one thing."
"You deserve to live."
"Not as a weapon."
"But as Reze."
"Re — like a flower bud."
"Ze — filled with good fortune."
He returned her name to her.
Reze stepped back.
Her back hit the windowsill.
Her eyes reddened again.
But she refused to cry.
"You're insane."
"You're just an ordinary human…"
"You're insane…"
"Maybe."
"My mission target isn't you."
"You don't need to—"
"I know."
Kuroto interrupted gently.
"Your mission target is Chainsaw Man."
"Denji."
Reze froze completely.
This time—
There was genuine fear in her eyes.
She looked at him as if he were something impossible.
"Who… are you?"
Kuroto closed his eyes briefly.
Then opened them.
"I'm not your enemy."
"I'm not Public Safety."
"I'm not a spy from any country."
"I'm just an ordinary person who knows too many things."
"I can't explain how right now."
"But I can tell you one thing."
"If you follow the original plan…"
"You will die."
Reze's face went pale.
"You won't die fighting Chainsaw Man."
"You won't die because your mission fails."
"You'll die at the hands of the red-haired woman who visited the café."
"…Makima."
Reze spoke the name through clenched teeth.
"Yes."
"The Control Devil."
"She's already watching you."
"Every step of your mission is part of her calculation."
Reze's body trembled.
Not from fear.
From anger.
"So you approached me from the beginning…"
"…just to change my mission?"
"No."
Kuroto shook his head.
"I approached you because of you."
"Not the mission."
"Not the Bomb Devil."
"Not Chainsaw Man."
"Because of you."
His voice was quiet but firm.
"A girl who was never cared for."
"A girl who didn't even get to choose her own name."
"I want her to know someone cares."
"Not because she's a weapon."
"But because she's herself."
Reze bit her lip hard.
Almost drawing blood.
She didn't speak.
A tear slid down from her left eye.
It fell silently onto the floor.
But to Kuroto—
That single tear sounded louder than any explosion.
The silence lasted a long time.
Finally Reze spoke.
She wiped her face and took a deep breath.
Her expression returned to calm.
But something in her eyes had changed.
Something had disappeared.
And something new had appeared.
"I don't know whether I should believe you."
"But if you're telling the truth…"
"And Makima really is watching me…"
"Then staying near me is suicide."
"Didn't you just save me?"
"I might not be able to save you next time."
"Then I'll bet I can."
Reze stared at him speechlessly.
"Are you out of your mind?"
"Probably."
Another few seconds of silence passed.
Reze walked to the door and opened it.
"You're not allowed to tell anyone what I said today."
"Of course."
"Tomorrow…"
She hesitated.
"I'll bring dorayaki."
Kuroto stepped into the corridor.
Before the door closed, he saw her expression.
Not cold.
Not wary.
It was complicated.
Struggling.
Careful.
A fragile attempt to believe in something.
The door closed.
Kuroto leaned against the wall and slowly crouched down.
His arm still throbbed faintly.
But he smiled.
She cried.
Reze—
The girl who never shed tears in the original story—
Cried.
She was starting to live again.
System Notification
[Fate Deviation Value: 20%]
[Bomb Devil — Fate Compensation Fragment unlocked (20%)]
[Compensation unavailable until fate is completely rewritten]
[Warning: Fate correction is increasing]
[High-level threat predicted within three days]
Three days.
Only three days remained in the safety window.