I Possessed a Broken Academy Instructor

Chapter 57

‘A peculiar man.’

He had stood out since the moment he entered.

On a rainy day, how could one not notice a man in a long black coat with a pale face stepping inside?

But that was not all.

One would think he might sense the unusual atmosphere of this place, yet he calmly walked in and ordered an old, worn cocktail.

Gulp―.

As the bartender, Paul, served him coffee, it was impossible for her gaze to stray from him, despite the newspaper before her.

“I brought some tobacco and a bit of coin for a dying friend.”

And when he finally spoke, her interest swiftly twisted into suspicion and wariness.

“I’ve come to find Genolua’s consigliere.”

Such words could not be casually tossed about like bar snacks by a stranger.

Click―.

Paul, with a rigid expression, had already aimed a shotgun at him, and just as she was about to shift gears with nonchalance, a strange disquiet lingered in her mind.

‘Isn’t he tense?’

The shotgun Paul held seemed like a relic of a bygone era, a weapon that used gunpowder, but that was merely a deception.

In truth, it possessed enough firepower to crack even thick concrete with a single shot.

At a glance, it was clear he had been involved in the underworld for quite some time, so he must know what that shotgun could do.

Yet, he remained unfazed.

It was a confidence born from the belief that even a shot from such a weapon would not easily bring about his end.

“I am Genolua’s consigliere. Tita Genolua. And you are?”

Thus, after signaling Paul, who was ready to pull the trigger with his tense expression, to hold his position, she inquired again.

The immediate possibility that sprang to mind was, of course, that he was a hitman, but discerning who lay behind him was not so easily fathomed.

However, the words that eventually escaped the man’s lips were entirely unexpected.

“A victim caught up in your affairs.”

As if genuinely annoyed, he muttered this and placed a square object he had been holding squarely on the bar table.

Then, turning his gaze slightly, he fixed his eyes on her, whispering softly.

“I have come to file a claim for damages. The mafia.”

At the edge of Tita Genolua’s gaze, the man’s face finally came into focus.

The tension that had gripped her moments before faded, for the emotions etched upon his features were strikingly simple.

Boredom, fatigue, annoyance, irritation…

What mattered was that there was no life in that place, nowhere to be found.

‘What if this is all an act?’

Yet she could not easily shake off her doubts.

Ironically, for one who had inherited the Genolua name, she had far too many enemies.

And among them was a b*stard she had once called uncle not long ago.

In that instant, she forced herself to ignore the tightening of her face and managed a light laugh as she spoke to him.

“Now that I see, you’re not a guest, but a creditor.”

She always emphasized her calm demeanor.

The underworld and the political arena shared many similarities.

For instance, revealing emotions that served one’s interests rather than those genuinely felt.

If one did not maintain composure, there were plenty of hyenas ready to burrow into that unease, tearing and gnawing at it.

“I think we’ll need a more detailed conversation. Please, have a seat.”

She murmured this to the man who was watching her, then gestured to Paul, who was frozen with the shotgun in hand.

Paul hesitated for a moment, then lowered the weapon, moving his Manhattan and water to the table where she sat. The man, observing this, took a seat across from her without further protest.

“What’s your name?”

“Jin.”

Having already grasped the situation to some extent, their conversation progressed swiftly.

Swoosh—.

Jin Crow handed over a square chip, and as Tita Genolua accepted it, realization dawned upon her, and she let out a soft sigh.

“…Was there no way to save him?”

“The hospital was right in front, and if there had been military-grade life support, it might have been possible.”

“So you’re saying it was impossible.”

“I managed to pass on some stimulants and a cigarette.”

“Is that so?”

At his words, she chuckled softly, pulling out a cigarette and sliding it toward him. Jin Crow accepted it, placing it casually between his lips.

As if they had made a silent pact, both lit the ends of their cigarettes.

Soon, thick smoke swirled between them.

How long did that mournful silence linger?

The first to break it was Tita Zenolua, wetting her throat with coffee.

With her characteristic sharp gaze, she fixed her eyes on Jin Crow and asked,

“So, what do you desire?”

“Money, and information.”

She nodded.

Jin Crow. If he was entangled in the underworld, he must have known how perilous it was to get involved with this side.

Yet, the fact that he was betting meant she too would have to offer him a fair price.

For there is no kindness without a cost.

“I’ll make sure the money is substantial. But what about the information?”

She nodded and returned the question to him, just as Jin Crow was about to respond.

Buuum—.

A chilling, alien sound mixed with the soft music, and in that moment, both Jin Crow and Tita Zenolua felt an instinctive unease and turned their heads.

“Get down!”

“Pardon?”

At her sharp command, the bartender Paul turned, dumbfounded.

Kwaaang!

In an instant, the rear of a massive truck crashed through the pub’s wall, swallowing Paul whole.

“……Paul!”

A scream erupted, a blend of rage and despair.

Any flicker of hope extinguished beneath the swirling dust, as blood trickled down.

Yet, the anger could not linger long.

Jin Crow and Tita Zenolua’s gazes locked simultaneously, and without a word, each drew a dagger and a pistol, staring into the dust-choked truck.

At last, the dust began to settle.

Clatter—.

And in that moment, hearing the sound of a chamber being loaded, Jin Crow seized her black hair with a brutal grip and slammed her down to the floor.

“Ugh! Wh-what is this…!”

Naturally, pressed down by the sudden and forceful hand, she gritted her teeth and turned her head, but upon meeting Jin Crow’s face, she momentarily lost her words.

“……You will die.”

Can a human wear such a frigid expression?

She had lived her life in the shadows, yet in that moment, caught in an atmosphere she had never encountered before, she felt a sudden stiffness seize her.

Kaga-gaga-gaga-gang!

Above her, flashes rained down.

And it didn’t take long for her to realize that it was none other than the sound of a machine gun.

Naturally, Tita Zenolua’s face was flooded with horror.

‘Did you hear that? That?’

Of course, it was possible for a superhuman.

Yes, in theory.

She too was a superhuman with dual gears, yet amidst such chaos, she couldn’t even discern the sound of reloading amidst the cacophony.

Even if she could hear it, what could she do?

In contrast, the actions of this man were as if…

‘A soldier hardened by the battlefield.’

But her thoughts could not extend beyond that.

At last, the gunfire ceased, and as the sound of the truck’s rear door opening reached her ears, he asked in a dry voice.

“Is there an escape route?”

“The way to the restroom. There’s a door over there.”

Jin Crow nodded and checked for the exit.

But at that moment, Tita Zenolua grasped his arm, which was about to straighten, and said,

“Stop. You can’t go that way.”

“What do you mean…?”

Naturally, he furrowed his brow in response.

Yet she hadn’t seized him without reason.

She gathered her scattered emotions, shaken by the sudden death of her subordinate and the ambush, returning to a calmer, more composed demeanor as she spoke to him.

“You know, having rolled around in this world? The ones in that truck are the hunters, and the real threat will be at the back door.”

“……”

For some reason, the peculiar expression on his face made him seem a bit strange, but what mattered was not his expression, but the escape.

“I’ll draw their fire; you clear the way.”

After all, they both shared the understanding that escaping from this damned situation would be impossible if they didn’t work together.

Perhaps that was why.

He seemed suffocated, biting down on a slightly longer black cigarette than the ones he had smoked before, lighting it with a flick of his lighter.

Then, as he stared for a moment at the flickering lights of the room, as if the power had gone out the instant the truck crashed, he spoke.

“I’ll include this in the calculations.”

Before she could even nod in agreement, he threw himself forward, right into the line of fire of the machine gun.

“Are you insane?!”

In that reckless moment, as she rushed to support him, the sight of her rising with a revolver made her doubt her own eyes.

“What, what is happening?!”

The lights flickered again.

“Richard! Behind, behind you!”

From the back of the truck, a man descending with a submachine gun had his throat cut cleanly in the air.

“Ughhh!”

The lights flickered once more.

“Gaaah!”

The katana was now held in Jin Crow’s hand, and his dagger was lodged, swaying, in the enemy’s belly.

“Mon, monster bird—!”

And when the lights flickered again.

“……”

The five men who had been hunting them from the truck fell silent, one and all.

“Phew, phew……”

Gazing down at the corpses, Jin Crow looked at her with eyes deepened by dark circles and spoke.

“One hundred million dollars per head. Is that alright?”

“……Uh. What.”

Seeing him like that, she nodded absentmindedly, suddenly thinking.

……Couldn’t I have just gone out the back door?

At the same time, another thought crossed her mind.

‘I want it.’

It was a rather impulsive thought, but paradoxically, that made it feel all the more genuine.

Doubt?

Well, how many chances had this man had to take her life?

If the followers he had carefully selected fell like autumn leaves, then surely, he could easily dispose of her without needing to come in and make deals or proposals.

Then, there is but one conclusion.

‘A man truly swept away, cursed with wretched luck.’

In that case, the stakes are worth raising.

And… Tita Genolua was a woman who had possessed everything she ever desired.

*

Swoosh…

In the meantime, the rain intensified, and the two made their way to a nearby parking lot without an umbrella.

“You might have guessed it roughly, but, Jin. You’ve plunged into the internal strife of the Genolua family.”

This was the first thing I spat out as we stepped out of the dilapidated pub, where reconstruction was the only answer left, and settled into the shabby car.

“So you checked for bombs before getting in.”

“…That’s right. This ambush was unexpected, though.”

Despite having checked meticulously just moments ago, she seemed anxious, scanning the inside of the car again with a separate bomb detector before continuing.

“Now that they’ve killed the followers they handle, you’ve officially become a target of vendetta. Even if you want to back out, they won’t allow it. So, as the rightful heir of the Genolua family and a consigliere, I propose this.”

Instead of gripping the steering wheel, she reached into the glove compartment.

Soon, her hand grasped a bundle of cash that looked to be worth at least several million dollars.

Without hesitation, she handed it to Jin Crow, who sat in the passenger seat, and as he took it, he swiftly reached out to tug at his coat.

“…”

Jin Crow captured the proximity of her face in his gaze, and Tita Genolua mirrored the sentiment.

How long did they linger, studying each other’s faces?

At last, she broke into a refreshing smile and said,

“Be my man, Jin.”

“What?”

“I know someone like you well. Aren’t you getting tired of living as a mercenary for life?”

She was convinced that his ambiguous expression was one of conflict, and she whispered softly.

Inside the dimly lit car, the flickering neon sign of Sector 17 served as their only illumination.

The blue light danced upon her pale skin, and the cool energy swirling between them ignited into a heated breath.

“Become my man, help me ascend to the throne. Then I, too, will never abandon you for a lifetime.”

She gently gripped the nape of his neck, as if holding a leash.

In that moment, she had fastened a collar around the beast that was him.

“Money, honor, and me.”

No matter what vile deeds they committed, no matter how far they strayed from the path of humanity, such cold-heartedness could never touch him.

Thus, she soothed him.

Like tossing meat to a hungry wolf, she brushed her hand across his cheek, sweeping back his tousled hair.

“I can give you everything. For that, I need you.”

And when she felt the moment ripe, she slowly leaned toward his lips.

Of course, he did not move.

And at last, when her crimson lips met his cracked ones, the sensation was indeed hard…

“Hmm?”

“It seems you’re under some delusion.”

Jin Crow, with his calloused hand, blocked her lips as they murmured their way into his thoughts.

“I am no mercenary. And…”

He looked down at her, eyes wide with surprise, as if he had not expected this.

“Money is lacking.”

“What?”

He had taken down five men.

Yet, the spoils amounted to four.

Jin Crow confirmed his calculations were not wrong, then gently lifted her hand, which was staring at him in a foolish daze, and said,

“Honor and you are settled, so bring the money first.”