I Possessed a Broken Academy Instructor - Chapter 70



Chapter 70

A body stiffened by fatigue stirred the foggy mind awake.

Forcing open eyelids that felt as heavy as stones, a gentle glow soon filled his vision.

“Ugh.”

Jin Crow awoke as the night deepened into shadow.

With a throbbing head and a body that resisted movement, he twisted himself upright from the bed, soon noticing two cups being offered before him.

“Whiskey? Or water?”

A familiar hand.

Without hesitation, he accepted the whiskey, taking a sip that quickly sharpened his senses, and he surveyed the room.

What to say.

It was a room with a distinctly classic mansion feel.

On one side, a fireplace crackled, and the space was furnished with dark brown wooden pieces, evoking the essence of a secluded lodge.

Sizzle, hiss—

He pulled a cigarette from his pocket and lit it.

Whether Tita Zenolua had guessed his nature or simply showed consideration, there were no signs of his clothes being removed.

In other words, he lay in bed, stained with blood.

Yet, there was no time to dwell on that.

Thus, with the cigarette clenched between his teeth, he asked Tita Zenolua, “Where is this?”

“A safe house.”

Her explanation was succinct, hitting only the essential points.

The superhumans they had rescued had been moved to another safe house, and only those willing to participate in the endeavor were being selected for contracts.

Moreover, uncertain if the enemy had caught their scent, they were tightening their ranks while keeping an eye on movements from the Kwon family.

And finally…

“I brought all your cadets here.”

Tita Zenolua wore an inscrutable smile as she settled into a chair commonly referred to as a rocking chair, lighting her cigarette.

As Jin Crow pressed his fingers against his throbbing temples, he recalled the forgotten nuisances stirred by her words.

‘This has escalated far too much.’

What had begun as a simple quest for nectar, with the possibility of grabbing some stimulants if necessary, had snowballed into a tangled mess in just a week.

Had she sensed his tumultuous feelings?

Tita Genolua exhaled a sigh, the smoke curling around her like a wraith, and spoke.

“I wondered what you could be if not a mercenary, but I never imagined this. An instructor at the Central Special Operations Academy, Mr. Jin Crow.”

“I did not lie.”

“Of course, you wouldn’t.”

Her expression was neither one of betrayal nor did it carry an air of rejection towards him.

Perhaps it was this understanding that eased Jin Crow’s mind, allowing him to finish his cigarette before rising to address her.

“Do you have any spare clothes?”

He had brought some belongings, but those were left behind in the factory where she had dealt with the traitor within.

All he had packed in his small bag were the stimulants, which, truth be told, were the most crucial items.

Meanwhile, Tita Genolua seemed to have anticipated his question, nodding as she replied.

“I’ve arranged for a suit. The size is a rough estimate, but it’s made by a tailor who specializes in cutting-edge prosthetics, so it should fit.”

A reassuring statement, indeed.

He nodded at her words, then removed his coat and hung it on a rack.

As he unbuttoned the shirt stained dark with a mix of human and creature blood, he turned his gaze toward Tita Genolua, who remained seated in her rocking chair, still smoking.

“Are you not coming out?”

“What does it matter? If you’re shy, just undress in the bathroom. Or should I?”

With a calm demeanor, she unfastened the top button of her shirt, a sly smile creeping across her face that he found rather unappealing.

What a ridiculous temptation.

If that wasn’t a provocation, then what was?

With narrowed brows, he turned his head to speak.

No, he was about to.

Creeeak—.

“Um, Instructor….”

At that moment, the door swung open, and if he hadn’t locked eyes with Miel Ambert peeking in, he might have said something.

Miel gazed at him with a face as polite as she could muster, as if she had something to convey, but soon her eyes darted between the two of them, lost and stammering.

“…Hic! I-I’m so sorry!”

With her cheeks flushed a deep crimson, Miel slammed the door behind her, leaving Jin Crow in silence. He downed a shot of whiskey from the table and then retreated to the bathroom.

“Ha, ha, ha, ha!”

Tita Zenolua, who had been watching, laughed until tears streamed down her face, then took it upon herself to deny the rumors of a passionate affair that had spread among the cadets like gospel before he emerged from the washroom.

Yet, the cadets’ reactions were unexpected.

At first, when the story was told, it was as if they were nodding along with expressions that said, “We know Santa isn’t real, but since the adults use him as an excuse to give us gifts, we’ll just have to endure it.”

“Is it really true?”

“Yeah, I didn’t even know he was an instructor. I just wanted to repay a small favor, and somehow got caught up in this mess.”

“Well, …that doesn’t sound impossible.”

In the end, they managed to clear up the misunderstanding somehow.

They also emphasized that he was purely a victim caught up in their world.

To put it bluntly, it wasn’t entirely untrue.

However, it wouldn’t do to only speak well of Jin Crow; the math didn’t add up.

After all, she was a businesswoman.

If something goes out, something must come in, right?

“Well, that doesn’t mean there’s no chance for the instructor and future relations to develop.”

“Such grandiose nonsense you speak.”

And at that moment, as if he had just finished showering, Jin Crow emerged into the living room, water dripping from him instead of blood.

However, the cadets, along with Tita Zenolua, couldn’t help but cast surprised glances at his appearance.

Unlike his usual preference for black, this time he wore black dress pants and a white shirt, and somehow, it felt different.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t worn a shirt of another color before, but simply donning a single shirt made him seem somehow new.

Of course, Jin Crow had no intention of indulging in their musings.

“Everyone, stand.”

At his murmured command, as he sank into the sofa with a cigarette in his mouth, only Baek Hui-young remained seated, while Dokgo Ran, Famiyu Demezeiar, Hino Kanae, Beatus, and Miel rose simultaneously.

It was almost instinctual.

A defense mechanism born from the will to survive, as if to say, if they didn’t stand now, they’d be in deep trouble.

And their choice was undoubtedly wise.

Right now, Jin Crow was not feeling particularly well.

“Famiu, explain.”

He had chosen Famiu.

Normally, he would have asked Beatus without a second thought, but hadn’t he already been betrayed by expectation once?

Whether Famiu knew his thoughts or not, she wore an expression as if she had anticipated being called upon, and began to explain the situation swiftly and succinctly, as if she had prepared for it in advance.

“…That is all.”

“So.”

However, the explanation was a greater mess than he had anticipated, leaving Jin Crow with no choice but to look at the cadets with a bewildered expression.

He held his throbbing head for a moment, lit a cigarette, and after a short, deep breath, he spoke.

“They say there’s a leisure sport where Dokoran can catch creatures, so I followed along and encountered those presumed to be the Red Hands. The two were neatly kidnapped, and there I met those remnants of the rebellion. Is there any error in my words?”

“No.”

“…The cadets of the military academy these days are impressive. There’s no deviation like this.”

It was no wonder that Tita Zenolua, listening from the side, surveyed the cadets with an expression of disbelief.

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Yet, Jin Crow’s gaze did not linger long on the cadets. Instead, it shifted to a woman sitting in the corner, continuously smoking.

“…”

Purple hair and purple eyes.

She couldn’t be called an extraordinary beauty, but her once decent face had become quite worn in a short time.

Jin Crow glanced at the cadets for a moment, sighed softly, and then, gripping the longsword at his side, walked slowly toward Satra.

Soon, the original violet eyes and the peculiar gaze of the ocular prosthetic pierced into his face.

“…It’s been a while, Instructor Jin Crow.”

“It has been a while, Captain Satra.”

A long scar now ran down the bridge of her nose.

Jin Crow slowly scanned her face, then gradually drew the sword he held.

“Inst-Instructor!”

“…”

“Shouldn’t we stop this?”

Miel and Dokoran shouted urgently at the sight, but Beatus, Famiu, and Hino Kana remained silent, as if they had expected this.

Tita Zenolua, from the beginning, had little interest in what would become of Satra.

In that moment, a mix of worry and indifference swirling together, Jin Crow pressed the sharp blade against her nape and spoke.

“Level 2 Fugitive, Satra.”

The voice was endlessly flat, the smoke from the cigarette dangling from his lips swirling like a mirage, yet the weight of his words was anything but light.

It was only natural.

How many lives had been lost due to her trolling in the Atla Colony, and how much had the weakened human race suffered as a result?

Of course, in the grand scheme of the galaxy, it might seem trivial.

But when such trivial differences accumulate into defeat, what remains in the end is nothing but ruin.

“Though it is a holiday, as a soldier of the United Human Synthesis, I could execute you on the spot.”

Did he sense the atmosphere around him?

“Tell me why I should spare you.”

Satra gestured for those nearby, who were about to draw their weapons, to lower them, and without a care for the blade that had come to rest at his throat, he took another drag from his cigarette and replied.

“I have no reason.”

“How refreshingly clear.”

Jin Crow, rarely amused, let out a small laugh, and with that, he swung his sword.

The tip of the blade was filled with a genuine intent to kill.

Even the faintest trace of psionic energy could be felt in his hand, and the cadets closed their eyes, while Tita Xenolua calmly took a sip of whiskey, and the former rebels stared blankly at the scene, unable to act.

But just then.

KWAANG!

The door burst open, and a man flew in, throwing himself forward with outstretched hands.

A bizarre act that unfolded in the blink of an eye.

Kwadduk!

Blood splattered from Satra’s nape and the man’s palm, dripping down Jin Crow’s blade to the floor.

“…Hah. Hoo.”

Jin Crow slowly lowered his gaze, feeling the recoil from the sword.

What met his eyes was Baek Hwi-young, pale-faced and unable to pull out the IV, precariously standing with the blade in hand.

“…Instructor, you mustn’t.”

His eyes were somewhat dazed.

“She must not die yet.”

The words he uttered were strikingly clear.