Jin’s POV
   This is getting tiring. First the demon Estyshana, and now the police knows about Jin. He’s so tired of all this he rather go back to Ifezan. He wanted to go back there. Unfortunately, Vault is the only teleportation magic he could ever master. Until someone summons him again, he’s stuck here for good.

   Everyday at school was a drag to begin with, and it kept on getting worse ever since Estyshana transferred to his class. She still insists on her lies that they were some sort of separated star-crossed lovers. The rumor has spread to the entire school and now Jin is pretty much public enemy number 1. Every morning, his indoor shoes are filled to the brim with tacks. He gets murderous glares from boys and girls alike. Some, boys mostly, even tried to injure him by bumping into his shoulder really hard. Needless to say, they were the ones to get injured instead.

   “Ow ow ow, I think my shoulder got dislocated~!” one of them whines really dramatically when they didn’t even bump into each other that hard.

   “How are you going to take responsibility, huh?” his friends yells at Jin’s face.

   All Jin did was shrug.

   “You could tell the teachers.” he suggests.

   “Huh? You think I’m joking here?”

   “I don’t. And neither am I. Heck, get the police involved. Our parents too. I’m pretty sure that mine will be more than happy to pay him compensation. They’re already thinking lowly of me anyway. Their opinion on me wouldn’t get any worse with this extra incident.”

   Both the boy who faked his injury and his friend are staring stupidly at Jin. Or maybe that’s how they always looked.

   “Well? Are you going to do something or not?” he asks them.

   “Um, no.”

   “Does that mean I can go now?”

   “Sure…”

   Jin walks past them like nothing had happened and continues to go to his classroom.

   Bully victims usually have their desks being vandalized. A case full of flowers. Scribbles. Those sort of things. Jin’s guess is that Wakaba was always there to prevent that from happening. The kind girl is the only one who never treated him with disdain.

   “Please tell me if you ever need my help.” she even told him once.

   “Well, I’ll just take up your offer on that. Can you make sure that Von Mantus will stop clinging to me?” he requested.

   “Of course. Leave it to me!” she assured him with a determined expression.

   “Thank you very much.”

   “That said, are you sure you want me to do that? I’ve always thought that you and Esty are a couple.”

   He groaned at that.

   “Not you too! We’re really not in that kind of relationship. Really.”

   “But the two of you know each other.”

   “We had some, shall we say history, with each other. However, we definitely don’t have anything going between us, especially not something romantic. She’s acting like there is just to mess with me.”

   “Well, if you’re denying it that strongly, I’ll just take your word for it. Just leave Esty to me.”

   Estyshana gets up from her seat the moment Jin comes into the classroom.

   “Jin, I’ve missed you-”

   “Sit down, Esty.” Wakaba interrupts and instructs the demon.

   “But-”

   “We’re having apple pie tonight. I won’t give you my share if you misbehave.” she threatens with a sweet smile.

   Estyshana sits back down meekly without a single protest.

   That’s how Wakaba had been keeping her under control. Jin is absolutely surprised that she’s actually listening to her. He was keep on expecting her to use her Bloodline Magic on her. That’s probably how she managed to mingle with the Wakaba family.

   Speaking of the Wakaba, the female detective that spoke with Jin last night was most probably related to the younger Wakaba. Their facial structure are somewhat similar, after all. However, there’s one body part which makes Jin doubt his theory. He won’t mention which part, though.

   Even with the younger Wakaba’s minor assistance, Jin finds it more and more difficult to stay at school. The lessons are pointless, the gym classes do nothing to benefit him, and the cold treatment he constantly got from most of the students are getting unbearable. He sometimes saw news on the television about school shooters at America. A lot of them were students. He started to understand how they feel. One of these days, it would be his turn to snap. When that happens, he just hopes that he won’t end up hurting Wakaba.

   The source of his stress isn’t only from school. Kawajira Kioshi, the incompetent yet demanding manager who’s in his forties, is finally back from his paid leave. It was the seventh one he took this year alone. Not that anyone cares enough to do something about it.

   “Minase-kun, can you come here for a minute?”

   “Right away, manager.”

   Jin immediately steps outside from the counter and go towards where Kajiwara is. He’s standing in front of the snacks session where different brands of potato chips are being put on display.

   “What’s with this mess?” Kajiwara demands.

   Jin looks at the rack. The bags of potato chips were tossed all over the place. Barely any of them are at the rack where they’re supposed to be. Two of them are even at the floor.

   “I’m sorry, manager. I’ll tidy them up right away.”

   “Why can’t you be more diligent? You’ve been here for-”

   Jin shuts down the rest of the things his unlikable manager said. He’s not in the mood the listen at his nagging. And as far as Jin remembers, Kajiwara was the one who made this mess. He was trying to find out about the remaining stock of the potato chips, and this is the aftermath of his investigation. He had conveniently forgotten about it.

   Kajiwara nags at Jin some more before finally leaving. A few seconds later, Jin hears his annoying voice again.

   “Where did all the ballpoint pens go, Minase-kun?”

   “They’re inside the drawer marked as utilities, manager.”

   “Why did you leave it there? You’re supposed to put them inside the drawer marked as stationery! Do you know how long I had spent to try and find them?”

   Again, Kajiwara was the one who put them there in the first place. He’s already suffering from dementia even though he’s only in his forties. The poor thing. For the hundredth time, Jin wonders how Kajiwara got promoted to be a manager in the first place.

   Jin doesn’t know a lot about Kawajira. What little things he does know, he had heard it from Amenori who was around long enough to grab hold of majority of the juicy gossips and politics around the main executives of the franchise.

   According to Amenori, Kajiwara is the nephew of the owner. That would explains a lot. Jin isn’t exactly a model employee, but Kajiwara is even worse than he is. He often orders the wrong amount of products, he can’t even type out a sales report without someone standing right next to him and tells him what to write, and he takes paid leave all the time. And the worst part is, he never claims responsibility for any of his mistakes. He always blame others even though it was his signature that’s on the document, and he was the one who ordered them to do something which turned out to be a mistake.

   Generally, he’s more harm than help. Any sane boss would have kicked him out long ago. But no. The owner refuse to fire one of his family member. All he did was transferring Kajiwara from branches to branches, and the branch Jin is working at is his latest stop.

   “Well, I’m off Minase-kun. Take care of the store after I’m gone.” Kajiwara says after only clocking in for two hours.

   “I will.”

   Jin didn’t even bother to say “thank you for your hard work”. Kajiwara didn’t do any hard work.

   While he’s all alone inside the store, he wonders how did the talk between Sergeant Wakaba and her superior(s) went. Are they going to be willing to pay him? Or will he be put under a wanted list?

   An hour later, his phone vibrated twice, indicating that someone has just sent him a text. Normally, he would just wait until the shift’s over before checking it out. But he has a strong urge to break the rules tonight.

   First, he comes out of the counter slowly while acting like he’s making a round to check out the conditions of the products. He then walk to a spot considered to be the blind spot for all the surveillance cameras installed in this store. He then takes out his phone, which is a really outdated flip phone that he got from a second-hand shop.

   “Sergeant Wakaba here. I will head over to your apartment to pick you up tomorrow evening. Is it okay for you?” the message wrote.

   “May I know where are we going?” he writes back.

   The reply came almost instantly.

   “Let’s just say that you’ll head to a place and negotiate about your compensation.”

   …What’s with the mystery?

   “Fair enough. I have an off day tomorrow, so I have the time.”

   Again with an instant reply.

   “That’s good to hear. You don’t have to dress really formally, but at least wear something decent.”

   Now he’s really curious. He wonder who will it be.

   “Understood. I’ll just wear my school uniform.”

   “Good enough. See you tomorrow.”

   On the next day, Sergeant Wakaba was already waiting for him at the car park right outside the apartment. She’s apparently all alone, and that pesky Date isn’t around. Good. Self-righteous idiots like that guy makes Jin sick.

   “Good evening, Minase-kun. Are you ready to depart right away, or do you need some time to get prepared?” she asks Jin once she sees him approach.

   “Please let me put away my school bag first.”

   “No problem. I’ll just wait here.”

   Jin gets inside the seat right next to Sergeant Wakaba’s after his bag is safely inside his room, and they depart to their destination right after she starts the engine.

   Neither of them spoke throughout the entire journey. Jin has next to no experience in speaking with women, and he could tell that she’s scared of him. A lot. No big deal. Jin already got used to being feared. Eventually, they reach a building that’s four storeys tall. It’s a pretty plain building, to be honest. However, it’s surrounded by concrete walls, and there’s a guard house right next to the gate. There are also some flag poles with some flags on each of them right next to the entrance of the building.

   “Where are we?” Jin asks as they get down.

   “The office of our Prime Minister.” Sergeant Wakaba answers.

   “Wow, never thought I would ever get a chance to talk to the Prime Minister.”

   “Didn’t you mention that you’ve met the king of the humans back at Ifezan? Where was it again? The Ustadel Kingdom? I’m sure that a PM pales in comparison to a king.”

   “I guess. Still, I’ve never met the PM here before, so I don’t know how I should act.”

   “Just try to be polite and you’ll be fine.”

   “Got it.”

   Sergeant Wakaba shows her ID to the guards on duty. They first announced their arrival to a walkie-talkie, then they opened up the gate without a fuss, even though she didn’t say a thing about Jin. It was then that he noticed that the guards are sneaking a glance at him with fear in their eyes. Looks like his existence has already been alerted all over the place.

   A woman in her mid-thirties is standing at the entrance waiting for them. She bows at both of them.

   “Detective Sergeant Wakaba Chinatsu-sama and Minase Jin-sama, correct?” she asks.

   The two of them nods.

   “My name is Yutani Kano. I am the Prime Minister’s secretary. He is waiting for you inside his office. Please follow me.”

   Jin has seen the PM of Japan several times in the television. Yoshimori Daisuke is a man almost in his fifties this year. This is his second term of his office. Jin doesn’t remember everything else about the man as politics give him headaches.

   The PM’s office is bigger than Jin’s entire apartment room. He’s sitting behind an expensive looking office table. His secretary that guided them just now is standing right behind him. He also has two rows of twenty soldiers wearing bulletproof vest, camo shirt and pants. Each of them also carries an assault rifle.

   Jin looks at the scene in front of him disapprovingly . As if a few soldiers like them can stop him if he ever decides to go on a rampage. The PM is just adding unnecessary body counts.

   “Thank you for coming here.” the man himself tells them.

   Sergeant Wakaba gives him a respectful salute.

   “I have brought Minase Jin as you requested, sir.”

   “Yes. Thank you Sergeant.”

   He looks at Jin.

   “Greetings, Minase Jin-kun. I am Yoshimori Daisuke. I am the Prime Minister of Japan.”

   “Nice to meet you, sir. May I know to what honors do I own for you to summon me here?”

   “Hostile, otherworldly creatures had been terrorizing Tokyo and the nearby cities for a while now. In fact, I believe you have battled some of them yourself.” the PM begins.

   “Indeed I have.” Jin confesses.

   “We have tried to kept their existence hidden. Unfortunately, that is impossible to do in this day and age, what with the vast information network in the internet and all. Naturally, the people doesn’t feel safe. I have a, let’s say an experienced personnel in his field, to research about more efficient ways to eliminate them. Until then, I have decided to take up on your offer and hire you.”

   Jin bows at him. “I am more than happy to work for you. For a right price.”

   “Let’s get down to it then. What exactly is your price?”

   Jin looks at Sergeant Wakaba.

   “How much do you earn per month, Sergeant Wakaba?” he asks her.

   She told him. Jin is impressed. That’s at least five times more than what he’s making. Then again, he’s just a part-timer at a convenience store. Not much surprise there.

   “I would like a monthly salary of five times that amount. Also, I want to be paid at the end of each week.” he requests from the PM.

   The PM nods.

   “Deal. Anything else? A new accommodation perhaps?”

   Jin shakes his head. “No, thank you. The place I’m living right now is pretty small, but it’s good enough. Most importantly, it’s near my school. I would, however, like to talk about my identity.”

   “Ah, yes. I would like to discuss that with you as well. If possible, I would like to keep your identity a secret as you’re out there hunting the creatures.”

   “I agree with you on that, sir. The last thing I want is publicity. I prefer to do my job quietly while maintaining a double life.”

   “I’m glad that you see things my way. On that note, we would have to come up with a way so that you could even leave your classroom while you’re having lessons.”

   “Actually, I have a solution for that.”

   “Oh? What is it?”

   Jin mutters a few words under his breath. A split image of him appears immediately at his left. Everyone inside the room looks at the second Jin in surprise.

   “I’ve made this clone of mine with ice. I can even remote control it no matter how far I am. I can even see through its eyes and speaks through it. I also made sure that it radiates normal body heat so that no one will ever suspect that it’s not real.” Jin explains.

   “How very convenient. I guess my worry was for nothing.”

   “Is there anything else?”

   “Um, this might be a little difficult for me to bring up.” the PM continues.

   Jin raises his eyebrow. How unusual. Throughout the whole time they were talking, the PM didn’t show any sign of nervousness nor fear even though he prepared all these bodyguards. All of a sudden, he’s looking and acting a little nervous.

   “What is it, sir?” Jin prompts.

   “I have a scientist who’s researching on the creatures his team managed to capture, you see…”

   Jin notices that Sergeant Wakaba’s body twitched slightly at that. She probably know who the PM is talking about.

   “He’s very interested in your, ah, abilities to do the things you could. Therefore, he would like to conduct a few experiments with some of your blood.” the PM continues.

   “I would have to refuse.” Jin declines firmly. “To be completely honest with you, I’m not going to trust someone who doesn’t even bother to make the request himself.”

   “Well, he said that he would love to come here himself-”

   “-but he was too busy with his work.” Jin ends the sentence for him.

   The PM could only look sheepishly at Jin.

   “In any case, I would have declined him anyway. Please tell him that the next time you see him.”

   “Understood. I’ll be sure to tell him. Before I dismiss you, I have one last question for you, Minase-kun.”

   “Yes?”

   All of a sudden, the PM is looking at Jin with a very serious expression.

   “Are you our ally, or are you our enemy?” he asks Jin with a quiet voice.

   The atmosphere of the entire room has become tense in a single second. It’s not just the Prime Minister. The secretary who’s standing behind him, the soldiers lined up on his two sides, even Sergeant Wakaba who’s been standing right next to Jin without saying anything for a while. All of them are nervously awaiting for his answer. Not Jin. He has no reason to be nervous or scared.

   Jin merely shrugs at the question.

   “I’m your ally for now. Does my answer satisfy you?”

   “...Yes.”

   The PM’s worried expression tells Jin otherwise. He probably shouldn’t have said “for now”. Then again, he doesn’t want to lie. Who knows. Maybe someone will give him a better offer one day.

   “Sergeant Wakaba here already has my phone number. Please tell her to contact me if you need my help.”

   “Understood.”

   “Now then, can I go now? I still have some business to take care of.”

   “Of course. Thank you for your time.”

   “Likewise. Oh, before I forget, can someone write down my bank account number? I want my pay to be transferred directly to it.”

   The secretary copied down the number, and she promises Jin that it will be taken care of.

   “May I borrow a computer?” Jin requests next.

   “Certainly. You can use mine.”

   Jin types out his resignation letter and had it printed out.

   “Thank you for letting me borrow your computer.” he says while bowing at the secretary.

   “You’re welcome.”

   Now to hand this over to Kajiwara. Finally, he can get out of the lousy job, if he can even call it that. There’s still the two-weeks notice thing, but this is a start.

   “So, do you want me to drop you straight at the convenience store you work?” Sergeant Wakaba asks Jin as got outside.

   “Yes please.”

   “Understood.”

   Again, neither of them said anything on the way back. At this point, Jin just felt like having a conversation.

   “Why wasn’t Detective Date with you today?” he asks her.

   “I figured that you wouldn’t want to see him as he clashed with you last night.” she replies.

   “I see.”

   “Please don’t take his words to heart. He’s still new to all this. I know that’s not an excuse, but still.” she pleads.

   “Don’t worry, sergeant. Just because I can do it, it doesn’t mean that I will.” he assures her.

   “I’m sorry that you have to say that out loud.” she says apologetically.

   “No, it’s fine. I know why all of you are afraid of me. My hands were beyond stained when I was at Ifezan.”

   Jin looks at both his hands thoughtfully. Necessary or no, he had killed thousands and thousands of humans and creatures alike. Now, whenever he looks at his hands, all he sees are imaginary bloodstains. He’s actually surprised that he didn’t go insane. Or it’s just that he already was and doesn’t realize it.

   The two of them didn’t say anything after this. He should have picked a better conversation than this.

   As promised, Sergeant Wakaba drops off Jin at the convenience store.

   “Thank you for the ride. May we see each other next time.” he tells her as a way of farewell.

   “This is not going to take long, right? I’ll wait until you’re done and drops you off at your apartment.”

   “There’s no need for that. I’ll just walk.”

   Jin could tell that Sergeant Wakaba is relieved. Once again, he doesn’t blame her.

   Amenori was the only one inside the store when Jin goes inside.

   “Let me guess. He left early again.” he predicts.

   Amenori nods. “He didn’t even bother to give me an excuse this time. He just went up and left.”

   Jin hands him the resignation letter. “At least I won’t be seeing him soon.”

   “Oh. Did you find a better job?”

   “You can say that.” Jin replies vaguely. “I do feel bad about leaving you and Akayashi-san to be pushed around by you-know-who, but I can’t stand this place. It’s plain terrible.”

   “Well, you can fell less guilty then. I’m leaving soon as well. I’ll graduate soon, and I found a full-time job at company that creates softwares.”

   “You did? Good for you, senpai.”

   “Thanks. Let’s just hope they can someone to replace us soon, or Akayashi-san will suffer.”

   “Yup. He’s a decent man. He deserves better.”

   Neither of them mentioned Kajiwara. He was that insignificant.

   “Well, I’ll be leaving. See you tomorrow.”

   “See you. Let’s hope our two-weeks comes soon.”