Character Arc
Hajime Kudo is Reiko Kujirai's older colleague at the real-estate office and the central object of her affection. He is calm, capable and a little reserved, carrying himself with a quiet steadiness that makes him both reassuring and slightly difficult to read. Much of the show's romantic tension comes from the gap between his composed exterior and the feelings he keeps mostly to himself.
As the mystery deepens, Kudo proves to be more closely entangled with the secrets of Kowloon than his easy demeanour first suggests. His past, his attachments and his understanding of the city all feed into the larger questions the series raises about memory and identity. The slow revelation of what he knows, and what he has chosen not to say, reframes earlier scenes between him and Reiko.
Kudo's arc is defined by restraint and eventual openness. The series gradually peels back his guardedness to show the loyalty and tenderness underneath, and his relationship with Reiko becomes a quiet act of holding on amid uncertainty. By the conclusion he stands as both a romantic lead and a key figure in resolving the show's central enigma.