I Possessed a Broken Academy Instructor - Chapter 69



Chapter 69

Finding Dokgo Ran and Hino Kanae was not difficult.

No, to be precise, it was while opening one of the few intact containers amidst the ruins of collapsed buildings that they were discovered.

‘Lucky me.’

The Dokgo clan and the Hino clan were of a fundamentally different caliber than the Chans Marbre family.

If they were to die here or fall into the hands of the Red Hand, it would be a disaster like no other.

And if there were even testimonies that an instructor was present at the scene… how horrifying.

As Jin Crow thought this, a sudden pain coursed through his spine, causing his brow to furrow.

‘It’s getting close to my limit.’

He had long surpassed the appropriate dosage.

Damn old man.

Nutritional supplements, my ass.

What kind of supplement causes this kind of pain just for exceeding the recommended dosage a bit?

‘Still, I suppose I should be grateful it’s more bearable than Pentacle.’

He bit his lip, feeling cold sweat flow like water beneath his coat, and let out a bitter chuckle without thinking.

How should one express this?

When he had taken Pentacle and felt its side effects, his heart pounded like a mad engine, and his hands and feet trembled uncontrollably; but the Hanasarang brand supplement had a more subdued, numbing effect on his body.

If one were to ask which was more painful, it would be no contest—the former. But if asked which felt worse overall, he would choose the latter without hesitation.

“Hey.”

Did Hino Kanae, following behind, sense his subtle discomfort?

She quietly called out to him, replacing the absent-minded humming of Dokgo Ran, but Jin Crow had no mental space to respond to her words.

“Stay quiet and follow me. Tsk.”

“…Yes.”

“Ugh, so prickly.”

“Ran, be quiet.”

‘At least Hino Kanae has some sense,’ Jin Crow thought.

If they had both been blissfully unaware and utterly oblivious, they might have inadvertently buried themselves alongside the creature.

“Cough!”

“Instructor?”

“It’s nothing. …Just a lot of dust.”

At his words, Hino Kana felt a twinge of something and found herself once again at a loss for words.

It was no wonder; the interior of the building was nearly devoid of light, save for the occasional flicker of a red emergency light, as if it were a dying ember.

Forget about securing a clear view; only the pale face of Jin Crow, clad in a black coat, and the ruins of the building barely emerged from the shadows.

And when he mentioned dust, it was as if the very ceiling responded, sending a shower of particles cascading down, leaving her with no choice but to remain silent.

Of course, it wasn’t truly dust that had made him cough.

‘What a timing.’

Jin Crow brushed off the dust that had become a rather convenient excuse, glancing up at the ceiling with an expression that suggested disbelief.

He made no effort to reveal the unpleasant liquid clutched in his gloved hand, thick with the scent of blood.

Yet, if there was anything he felt, it was a sense of disillusionment that came from narrowly escaping death once again.

‘Even so, thirty phone calls was excessive.’

Excluding the ones Baek Hwi-young had taken in a frenzy, they were still hovering around the mid-twenties.

Had he not gambled on collapsing more of the building in the middle of their hunt, perhaps they would have never found those two.

Even if they had, it might have already been too late.

How long had they wandered through the desolate corridors?

Eventually, upon discovering a half-collapsed emergency exit, he spoke, his gaze unwavering as he peered down.

“The path is treacherous. Don’t lose sight of me; follow closely.”

“Yes.”

“Understood.”

If they couldn’t even manage a response.

He muttered this absentmindedly, and they leapt over the debris of the crumbling emergency stairs, reaching the surface with relative ease.

However, upon reaching the ground, a rather trivial problem presented itself: the entrance to the emergency exit was blocked by a massive slab of concrete.

“…”

Jin Crow narrowed his eyes at the sight.

It wasn’t irritation or displeasure that he felt.

To be precise, it was more akin to his body refusing to obey him, the pain intensifying, forcing him to bite down on his lips in frustration.

And then it happened.

His gaze met that of Hino Kanae, who had been watching him closely, and only then did she make an expression of realization, as if some resolve had taken hold of her, nodding with a determined glint in her eyes.

“Help me?”

“Forget it.”

Dokkoran asked her, and Hino Kanae shook her head before striding toward the massive concrete debris that blocked the entrance.

With a deep breath, she slowly fixed her gaze upon the concrete, then, with a quiet determination, she thrust her fist into it.

Thud.

A brief yet intense resonance echoed.

And soon, the concrete began to crack and crumble away. Dokkoran, witnessing this, felt an unexpected admiration in his serious eyes.

“… Neat, isn’t it? Quiet and clean.”

“True safety must be both silent and passionate.”

“What does that even mean…?”

Jin Crow, leaving behind Hino Kanae, who had slightly raised her shoulders, and Dokkoran, who looked at her with a hint of disdain, stepped forward and exited the factory, soon followed by the two who had regained their senses.

They briefly pondered the worry of whether everyone had already left, as time had passed more than they expected, but such concerns were rendered moot as they stepped outside to find everyone waiting.

“Lan!”

“Kanae!”

The first to spot them and rush over were Miel Ambert, nearly exhausted after tending to the injured, and Beatus, his head wrapped in bandages.

However, as they approached the man standing before them, their pace gradually slowed to a halt.

“… Th-th-thank you.”

From noble mtl dot com

“I’m sorry. Just… just let me live.”

At their sudden reactions, Dokkoran and Hino Kanae, a step behind, tilted their heads in confusion, glancing at Jin Crow’s expression.

Soon, they too found themselves frozen, bowing their heads in unison.

“…”

The expression on his face as he stepped out of the factory was neither twisted nor that of someone writhing in pain.

So why were the cadets so frightened?

The reason was simple.

Even if the blood dripping from his coat was secondary, the emotions reflected in his utterly expressionless eyes spoke volumes, revealing clearly what he wished to convey without uttering a single word.

—I have much to say. But I can’t even begin to fathom where to start, you damn fools.

What could it be?

This feeling of understanding without a word spoken.

‘Famiu, you cunning…’

Beatus, his head wrapped in bandages, sweated coldly as he pondered why Pamiu and Baek Hwi-young were absent from this very place, letting out a derisive chuckle as if the absurdity of it all struck him.

So, what was it again?

They said Baek Hwi-young was in poor condition, and that he had accompanied her to the safe house of some mafia lord or boss, acting as her protector.

Well, was that truly the purpose?

‘Perhaps it was more about avoiding the instructor, even if just for a moment.’

It was then.

“You’ve made it this far? Enough with the punishment for the cadets; you need to get treated first.”

With a weary face, Tita Genolua approached him, her cheeks still smeared with dark streaks of dust.

Yet, the look in her eyes was peculiar.

Of course, it was to be expected.

After having spoken freely, as if he were merely a mercenary, how could he gauge the feelings of someone who was a special instructor at the Central Military Academy?

But right now, her feelings were not the issue at hand.

Thud—.

Jin Crow took a step forward.

With each footfall, a liquid—whether human blood or that of some creature—soaked into the earth from his boots, but he paid it no mind.

As he drew closer to her, he took a brief breath and whispered softly.

“……I want to rest.”

“Right, you should rest.”

Did she grasp the true meaning behind his words?

Or was it simply her genuine thought?

With a rather unbothered expression, she nodded and wrapped her arm around his.

“……?”

Blood seeped into Tita Genolua’s fine suit, and the hem of her shirt bore the same stain.

At her sudden, impulsive action, the cadets exchanged glances, their expressions akin to those watching a morning drama, while Jin Crow narrowed his brow slightly, about to inquire.

But then.

A voice, barely audible to just the two of them, brushed against his ear.

“You can hardly walk right now. This isn’t a game, so just follow me. Unless you want to collapse in front of the cadets.”

Surprisingly, it was true.

Because of that, Jin Crow looked down at her, who was a head shorter than him, and silently boarded the black sedan that had been parked nearby, soon setting off for the safe house.

“……Wow.”

“……The world.”

As they gazed at that retreating figure, Dokoran and Hino Kana exchanged glances, their eyes locking in a moment of shared understanding.

But that was not all.

“Wow… *hic!*”

Miel’s eyes sparkled as if she had just witnessed a fairy tale romance, her hiccups punctuating her awe, while Beatus murmured in admiration, his voice low.

“I wondered why you were helping with the mafia business, but to think your lover is the mafia boss… I sensed something unusual about her, but this is a bit…”

Yet, beneath the calmness with which he assessed the situation, was there a hint of strange envy and a man’s reverence? Was that merely a trick of the mind?

Meanwhile, at that very moment.

Satra, half-watched by the sudden influx of rival factions, observed the scene unfold. She brushed a strand of violet hair from her cheek and took a sip from her hip flask, murmuring softly.

“The madwoman of the colony, and now a man of the mafia.”

Was there a peculiar delight woven into her voice, or was that just an illusion?

*

“……”

Jin Crow fell asleep the moment he got into the car.

Or could it be said he was merely resting?

Tita Zenolua commanded her subordinate to drive as slowly as possible, her gaze drifting to Jin Crow, who was dozing beside her.

“……”

His raven-black hair and lashes evoked the image of a crow, while his cheekbones, slightly sunken, framed a face that could be deemed handsome by any objective measure, accentuated by the dark circles beneath his eyes.

And those subtly curling locks only added to the allure.

‘He is handsome, but no matter how I look at it, he’s from our department.’

It was not just his looks or demeanor.

It was an instinct, perhaps, that only those who dwell in the shadows could feel.

The initial assumption that he was merely a mercenary, without a shred of doubt, was not entirely baseless.

Yet, when the cards were laid bare, what a surprise it was.

While she had suspected he was anything but ordinary, the thought that he might be an instructor from the Central Special Operations Academy had never crossed her mind.

“……Hmm.”

She briefly considered poking his cheek but decided against it, instead pulling a cigarette from her pocket and placing it between her lips as she spoke toward the driver’s seat.

“Drive even slower. Don’t wake Jin.”

“Yes, Consigliere.”

The subordinate gripping the steering wheel drove slowly, yet with a readiness for any unforeseen ambush, into the territory where she still projected her influence.

In that tranquil silence, Tita Zenolua gazed out the window at the rain cascading down, her breath forming a soft cloud as she murmured to herself.

“Jin Crow.”

Indeed, it was certain he was a man fraught with danger in many ways.