OJTTEG-Chapter 15: What? I'm the Boss

"What happened? Did the church not pay this month's salary, or are you out of cigarettes?" Haunter asks.

"It's a bit better than that. It doesn't affect my personal interests," Sister Ernest says, clutching the cross on her chest. "The holy water used for offerings in the church has been stolen, and it's incredibly valuable."

"Oh no, that's terrible! We should catch the thief as soon as possible."

"Unfortunately, we don't have much information. To maintain the church's 'antique charm,' we haven't even installed surveillance cameras."

"That's really unfortunate," Haunter says apologetically. "I'll help you look for the culprit when I have some free time."

"Thank you so much. If we don't find it soon, I'll have to resort to rob... seeking sponsorship from certain individuals," Sister Ernest says, pulling a cigarette from her robe and heading to the back of the church.

"Sponsorship?"

"Yes, sponsorship."

Did you almost reveal something you shouldn't have just now?

After bidding farewell to Sister Ernest, Haunter quickens his pace, heading not to school but to the city library nearby. Situated next to the center of Doraine City, the library is well-heated, so he casually pulls down his scarf. After a brief greeting with the doorman, he uses his student ID to access the university library section and begins his search.

This library is quite unique; it serves as both the city library and the internal library of St. Delrick University. It has two entrances and two separate areas. Once the school opens, you can enter the campus directly from the other side of the library. For Haunter, who wants to get into the school area early, this is incredibly convenient.

Before the school gates open, he often comes here to look for books—more specifically, books related to the mysterious. Of course, there aren't any serious books on mystical creatures, so he has to rely on folklore and storybooks to glean some clues.

The presence of a vampire nearby is a constant shadow over him. Without fully understanding her, he fears he might be caught off guard someday. Although he managed to intimidate her three years ago, who knows how long that will last?

The power imbalance is clear; if she ever decides to take action while he's asleep, it would be over for him. These past three years have been filled with anxiety.

"Great, it looks like I've made some progress today," Haunter mutters to himself as he finds the book he’s been looking for. He snaps a picture of it with his phone and saves it to his private album.

While he does check out books from the library, those are just a cover for the ones he truly needs, which he secretly photographs. This way, he minimizes the risk of An discovering his investigation into vampire-related matters.

If she found out, with her sharp mind, she’d likely realize he’s been deceiving her. Haunter has led An to believe he’s a resurrected being with a wealth of bizarre, esoteric knowledge. He’s even convinced her that his life is linked with Ormond’s—if he dies, Ormond does too.

Someone like that, who’s still scouring the library for mysterious knowledge, would surely be seen as a fraud.

"Alright, I'll borrow these books for today," Haunter decides. He checks the time on his phone and sees the school gates are about to open, signaling the end of today's search.

……

"Damn, that's Haunter, the so-called 'Testicular Fighter.'"

"He looks like an easy target... Wait, why is he called the ' Testicular Fighter'?"

"No, he's not someone to mess with. Stay away from him unless you want to be dragged into the washroom and end up covered in... stuff. Worse yet, you might get your testes kicked."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm saying, if you want to get dunked in a toilet, go ahead and provoke him."

"I think he's kind of handsome."

"Are you into guys?"

"But I'm curious about what it feels like to get your testes busted."

Nearby, whispers float through the air, tinged with a mix of fear and curiosity... probably.

It's actually quite normal. At the start of the school year, some strangers would often come to bother him, likely instigated by An. This kind of behavior wasn't great, so Haunter decided to drag anyone who came looking for trouble into the washroom for a good beating, then ran crying to the principal's office, claiming he was being bullied.

The incident blew up, with almost everyone witnessing Haunter's tearful complaint as he stormed into the principal's office. It was impossible to pretend it didn't happen.

The school decided to take it seriously. They issued a campus-wide announcement, severely reprimanding the bullies who ended up looking like they'd been through a meat grinder.

The incident quickly spread throughout the campus, and everyone became familiar with the story. After Haunter used a mop to plug the toilet, he fought off a crowd single-handedly by the mop, ensuring no one dared come within two meters of him. In the end, he dunked the leading bullies headfirst into the toilet, delivering a swift kick between their legs.

"He’s like a war god!" people exclaimed.

Unexpectedly, Haunter gained a group of supporters at school. These admirers compiled his battle tactics into theories and engaged in numerous fights against other bullies, employing the mop-in-toilet technique and delivering kicks at opportune moments. This led to a significant decrease in violent incidents. The supporters banded together to form a self-defense club, dedicated to maintaining a harmonious campus environment, aligning themselves with Haunter's ideals.

Inadvertently, Haunter became the hidden boss of St. Delrick University. Though, the nickname " Testicular Fighter" was somewhat vexing.

Teachers approached Ormond to discuss the situation. Upon hearing that Haunter had taken down nearly all the strong students, Ormond was initially shocked. Fortunately, after learning the full story, he decided not to send Haunter back to the orphanage. He advised Haunter to avoid causing such incidents in the future.

"Busting someone’s testes is a terrifying thing. Please don’t let me hear such rumors again."

To prevent Ormond from disliking him, Haunter made sure to have a thorough conversation with his homeroom teacher, bringing along his pink-painted Glock Pistols. He trusted that the teacher wouldn’t discuss anything further with Ormond.

Well, all of that is in the past now. Despite fighting classmates and intimidating teachers, Haunter is still a good student overall.

Settling into his seat, Haunter takes out the breakfast he brought from home.