The Villain Professor's Second Chance

Draven entered his office and let the door close behind him with a soft click. The room was just as he liked it—spacious, meticulously arranged, and utterly silent. It was the one place in the Magic Tower University where the outside world, with all its chaos and noise, seemed to fade into nothingness.

He breathed in deeply, his sharp eyes surveying the room with the precision of someone who noticed even the smallest detail. Something felt off, and it didn't take long for him to pinpoint the source of his irritation: dust.

With a flick of his fingers, the air around him trembled, and a faint shimmer appeared as he activated his psychokinesis. Cleaning, for Draven, was not the laborious task it was for others. It was an art, a seamless integration of magic and will. His psychokinesis pen floated beside him, spinning gently in the air, awaiting his silent commands.

With a thought, the pen darted around the room, collecting specks of dust as if it had a mind of its own. Chairs slid back into perfect alignment, books re-organized themselves on the shelves, and papers that had shifted slightly returned to their rightful positions.

Draven detested anything out of place. He found disorganization to be an insult to efficiency. His eyes followed the psychokinesis pen as it did its work, leaving behind nothing but perfection. Even the smallest of items, like the quills on his desk, were adjusted with surgical precision.

He seated himself behind his large desk, a solid slab of polished black stone, and looked over the stack of reports waiting for him. The pile appeared daunting to anyone else, but to Draven, it was another exercise in control. With a simple motion of his hand, the reports floated into the air, organized themselves by importance, and began to rotate before him like planets around a sun.

He extended his fingers slightly, and the reports opened up, revealing their contents in neat, legible lines.

The first was a comprehensive overview of the university's current magical defenses and infrastructure. After the dungeonification incident, Draven had overseen much of the restoration, ensuring that the university was fortified against any similar attacks in the future. His cold eyes skimmed through the figures: barrier strength, mana reserves, structural integrity. All was as expected—perfect.

"Good," he murmured, as if speaking to himself.

Next, he turned his attention to the updates on his students. He found a measure of pride in seeing their progress, though he would never admit it aloud. His class was the most demanding in the entire university, and only those with extraordinary potential could keep up. He read through the names, noting those who had surpassed expectations and those who were struggling.

His sharp mind formulated strategies for the next lecture, pinpointing where to apply pressure, where to push them harder. Growth required discomfort, and Draven was a master at creating that discomfort.

As the reports continued to float around him, a rich aroma filled the air. His psychokinesis extended to the corner of the room, where a brewing pot of coffee stirred itself. The cup lifted from the table, hovering toward him, and with a fluid motion, it settled into his gloved hand. He took a sip, savoring the warmth that spread through him, though his expression remained as stoic as ever.

"Proceed with analysis," Draven said, his voice a quiet command. The magical reports responded to his voice, updating automatically.

"Student progress: Overall performance has increased by 7.5% since the last semester's lecture. Top performer: Elara Valen. Noted area of weakness: Group dynamics for certain students. Suggested lecture focus: Cooperative spells and group-based combat."n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Draven nodded to himself, making a mental note. Elara Valen, the prodigy, as expected. She had an innate talent that far surpassed most of her peers, but her focus was often solitary. He would need to address that in the next class, not by coddling her but by challenging her in ways that would push her limits.

He waved a hand, and the reports folded back into neat piles, lowering themselves gently onto his desk. His eyes moved to the corner, where a stack of journals awaited him—the Magician's Weekly Journal, filled with the latest research and developments in the magical community. As much as Draven valued his own brilliance, he knew that true mastery required constant learning.

He couldn't afford to be complacent, not when the world was always evolving.

"Journal updates," he said, and one of the journals floated toward him, its pages flipping open as it hovered just within reading distance.

"New research published: 'Mana Core Stability in Dungeonified Environments' by Professor Aelric from the Ecrion Institute. Controversial findings suggest dungeon cores can be temporarily stabilized using crystal arrays rather than complete destruction—raising debates across the continent."

Draven's eyes flickered with interest. This was new. Stabilizing dungeon cores rather than destroying them? It was a theory worth looking into. If the research held any merit, it could change the way they handled dungeonification crises in the future.

Another report floated in front of him. Stay connected with empire

"Publication: 'Mind-Weave and Its Applications in Psychokinetic Control' by Scholar Vireon of the Kaldan Academy. The technique of integrating cognitive patterns into psychokinesis spells has been gaining traction, particularly in the field of long-range manipulation."

Draven took another sip of his coffee, thinking. His psychokinesis was already leagues ahead of what the magical community could comprehend, but if there were new methods being developed to refine it further, it was worth his attention.

Just as he was about to dive deeper into the journal, there was a knock at the door. Draven's eyes narrowed slightly, his concentration broken, but his voice remained steady.

"Come in," he said, his tone cold and precise.

The door opened slowly, and a small figure hesitated in the doorway. Yuli, his assistant professor, stepped inside, her movements as jittery as ever. She was a capable magician, but in Draven's presence, her nerves always seemed to get the best of her. She stammered slightly, bowing awkwardly as she entered the room.

"P-Professor Draven, I… I hope I'm not interrupting," Yuli said, her voice barely above a whisper.

Draven looked at her, his gaze sharp but not unkind. "Yuli," he said, his voice cutting through the air like ice. "You're not interrupting. I'm glad to see you're safe after the incident."

Yuli's face flushed a deep red, her eyes widening at his words. "Th-thank you, Professor. I… I wasn't sure if you'd heard… but I was hiding during the dungeonification. I-I didn't help much, but—"

"It's enough that you survived," Draven interrupted, his tone final. "Have you had breakfast?"

Yuli blinked, startled by the sudden shift in his questioning. "Uh, y-yes, I have," she stammered, flustered.

Draven reached into his desk drawer, this time not using his psychokinesis. He withdrew an envelope, his gloved hand extending it toward Yuli with a rare gesture of personal interaction. The envelope was sealed with the emblem of the Drakhan family, and its contents were heavier than what she would have expected.

"This is for you," Draven said, his tone still cold but lacking the usual edge. "A bonus for your work and dedication."

Yuli's hands trembled as she accepted the envelope, her eyes welling up with tears. "P-professor," she whispered, her voice breaking slightly. "Am I… am I being fired?"

Draven, to her surprise, let out a soft chuckle. It was a sound so rare that it froze her in place, her heart pounding in her chest. "Fired?" he repeated, shaking his head slightly. "Of course not. In fact, I'll be counting on you even more from now on."

His words seemed to both comfort and confuse her. There was something in his tone—something that felt almost like a farewell, but before she could dwell on it, Draven's face returned to its usual cold expression.

"Now, Yuli," he said, his voice once again sharp and commanding, "give me the report."

Yuli straightened up, wiping her eyes quickly before shuffling through her papers. "Y-yes, of course. The next material for your lecture is ready. I followed your instructions and focused only on the main points for effectiveness. No scripts this time."

Draven gave a small nod of approval, his gaze fixed on her as she continued.

"And," she hesitated, glancing down at her notes, "there's also the matter of the new sponsorship we received. A student by the name of Amberine Polime. She's been awarded a sponsorship of… one hundred million Elnes."

Yuli looked up, clearly nervous about the amount. "Professor, is it… really alright to stay anonymous for something like this?"

Draven leaned back in his chair, his cold gaze softening just slightly as he answered. "It's fine. It was an obligation, nothing more."

Yuli nodded quickly, scribbling notes on her clipboard, but the weight of his words hung in the air. Obligation or not, she couldn't help but feel that something deeper was at play, though she didn't dare ask.

As she finished her report, the room fell into silence once more, and Draven returned to his papers, the brief moment of warmth gone as quickly as it had come.

Then after several minutes of silence.

"Yuli," Draven called as he put the papers. "Let's go,"

"Y-Yes, professor," Yuli replied as she still held the envelope in her hands while trembling.

"It's almost time for the lecture,"