“Yeah. We’re dealing with a tough customer.” The oni nodded. “Because of that, my investigation was delayed. At least I’ve pinpointed its pattern. Its activity seems to be concentrated along the train lines. It makes sense. It could enter the local homes with little trouble, but think of it from its perspective. If it did that, it’d have fewer marks to choose between. We know that it’s after the faces of its victims.” Oni tapped her chin thoughtfully.

“What do you mean?” I stared at Oni as though she’d sprouted horns from her head.

“Hmmm... let me get the case files. I wonder if you’ll start thinking like me.” She gestured, expecting obedience.

I hesitated, but I followed her. She led me to her low table and then she gestured to an unoccupied zabuton for me to take a seat. I moved to do so, but first I peered down to notice a few articles of clothing which were dropped across it. Lifting them first, I gently set them aside. Despite how neat she was, she still left clothes in a few places. I couldn’t blame her for it, because I'd been doing that for the last month or more. Because this was an office, keeping a guest’s seat clear and ready to use makes more sense.

At the bottom of the pile, lay a pair of panties. I recoiled violently, flushing as I seated myself on the floor instead. I pointedly avoided staring at her panties.

“Oh, my... A noh-face with a tomato for a head.” Oni tapped her lips. “What’s wrong? Normally, your kind are bloodless. Yet, it seems that you still have plenty of blood since you’re not pale.”

“This means there must be a grace period after being victimized. I’d guess that the more time passes since the incident, the more you’ll change to become a noh-face. Ummm..." she mused, muttering as she was digging through her files. Finally, she slapped a set of files down and as she did, they spilled out.

“Move closer, noh-nuts. Look at these.” She pointed, separating them to make it easier. I skittered around the zabuton and peered down. Expecting data, instead I got a catalogue of pictures of people. They were... “W-Wait! I thought we were past this point?” I stared back at Oni. The baleful glare I shot at her was ineffective. If I was normal, then she’d have been stunned by it.

“Your testing is far from done.” She grinned at me. “Anyhow, let’s get to the point again. Tell me. What do these faces have in common?”

I grumbled under my breath as I looked closer at all the faces. “Well... they’re... I don’t know... maybe their noses are big?” I suggested. “Does that mean, my nose was huge?”

“W-What?” She surged to her feet and stomped. “ Big noses!? Did you look at them at all? What kind of lazy thinking is that, noh-brains?!”

I winced and backed away from her. My eyes shifted to the metal bat resting next to her. Thankfully, she wasn’t looking at it. Instead, she looked at her feet and she continued, “What else could it be?”

I shivered, returning my gaze to the pictures. “Well, they’re both men and women. They’re all young!” I exclaimed. My noh-eyes widened.

“Good point.” Oni nodded. “It’s true, but there’s something far more compelling connecting these faces. Do I really need to tell you?”

“All the victims..." I muttered, quickly moving my fingers over the pictures. I noh-gulped. The sound echoed around me, but I doubted my throat moved.