Yvonne's home

"Uh, yeah, I'm moving out. I don't even know what's going on," Leo told his parents, who gave him thumbs up.

Leo's mother whispered, "Go, son! Claim that beauty!"

Leo's father tightly grasped Leo's shoulder. "Don't you dare return home without her!"

Although they tried to speak quietly, Zeke heard them clearly. Veins popped on his temple, and he looked like a beast ready to skin humans.

Yvonne was not only his superior, but also a rare talent in North America. She was twenty-six years old and already had many achievements, including taking down a notorious vampire household in Europe that terrorized the continent for more than a decade.

On top of her feats and strength, she was a beautiful, black-haired woman with eyes darker than the abyss itself. Anyone could lose themselves in her silent stare.

Zeke was one of those people, and he admired Yvonne. Hearing Leo's parents talk that way, and recalling that Yvonne had told Leo he would live in her apartment, made Zeke turn red with anger and jealousy.

Yvonne walked past them and approached Leo's parents. "Leave Leo to me. He'll work under me and be away from home for a while, but I promise to take good care of him."

"Of course! Take everything of him!" Leo's mother said, and her husband nodded. Their reactions made Yvonne smile faintly.

At last, the three of them left Leo's apartment. They drove to Yvonne's place.

On the way, Yvonne dropped Zeke near his home and bid him farewell. Leo stayed silent, only glancing at Zeke for a moment before the car left him behind.

Soon after, Yvonne parked beneath a skyscraper. One look at the building told Leo he would probably never afford an apartment here. They rode an elevator for a while, then arrived at a spacious apartment that seemed to occupy the entire floor.

Its modern furnishings made Leo feel like he had traveled a few years into the future. The view of the metropolis from such a height only reinforced that impression.

"I'm really going to live here?" Leo blurted out.

Yvonne replied, "Yes. It will be house arrest for a week first. Only if it turns out you don't need a human head will I allow you to become stronger and leave."

"Oh, well, sure," Leo said with a nod.

He was often nonchalant about his life choices. If not for his parents, he would not have cared much about studying.

He also realized he might not need a degree now. If he could not exist without his own head, he might as well kill himself. It already felt odd.

If he could live as a dullahan and still be himself, he would grow stronger and work under Yvonne's surveillance as a hunter. He imagined that might pay a lot.

With those thoughts in mind, Leo followed Yvonne around as she showed him his room, bathroom, and everything else. She even had a small gym.

As someone who rarely exercised, Leo was not impressed by it, but that would soon change.

-

Leo woke up in an unfamiliar bed. He had struggled to fall asleep in this new environment, but eventually he drifted off.

Sunlight peeked through the shades, hinting at a new day. He got out of bed and went to the window, pulling the shades aside.

The view of the metropolis amazed him again. Then he heard a knock on the door.

"I'm up!" Leo shouted.

Yvonne stepped in and looked at him. "Go through a quick morning routine, then join me in the gym."

Leo did not reply because he was staring at her gym outfit. She wore a sports bra that held her large breasts in place and exposed the rest of her upper body.

Her toned muscles looked appealing, and her slim waist with visible abs was damn sexy. Below that, her thick thighs and slight thigh gap made Leo's gaze freeze.

By the time he realized he was gawking, Yvonne was gone. She might have been disgusted, but Leo could not help himself.

He shrugged it off, went to the bathroom, then joined Yvonne. She told him to warm up with her, then showed him how to use the gym equipment.

During the workout, Leo noticed he was stronger than he used to be. He would have enjoyed this more if he had not been turned into a dullahan.

He knew dullahans were naturally stronger, so he could not credit his genes. Still, he felt a bit proud at the thought of developing himself further.

"Will I become stronger as a dullahan this way?" Leo asked.

"Yes," Yvonne replied.

"Nice. Then it'll feel rewarding. I don't even know why I became a dullahan. Any ideas?"

Yvonne did not mind talking while exercising. She explained that little was known about dullahans, even though they were infamous.

She said people sometimes awakened powers or turned into monsters. In the latter cases, they often lost themselves in their new urges, so Leo should not be alone.

"Honestly, if I die or lose myself in some weird desires, please kill me and tell my parents I died by truck-kun," Leo said. "I don't want them to know I was such a lame dullahan."

Yvonne chuckled. "Truck-kun? You want them to think you reincarnated into another world?"

Leo blinked, surprised she was smiling like that. "Wait, you read light novels too?"

"Yes. I like escaping to worlds where everything goes my way. I am more of a self-insert reader than a normal reader."

"Me too!" Leo said with a smile.