The Villain Professor's Second Chance

The cold air clung to me like a second skin, sharp and biting against the remnants of residual heat from the Shadow Archive. I stood outside the Magic Tower University, the towering structure looming behind me, its countless wards woven into the very stone. The dagger sat heavy in my palm—an artifact, a message, a warning. The Gravekeeper's sigil gleamed faintly under the moonlight, etched deep into the steel. It pulsed with a residual energy, something not quite alive but not entirely dormant either.

Inside, the Tower's security was stirring. The layered enchantments—designed to detect unauthorized movement—had been slow to react, but the delay would not last forever. Someone would find the traces I left behind. The broken spells. The missing ledger. The faint echoes of combat that still hummed in the Archive's air. The moment a true investigator touched the scene, they'd know someone had slipped through, and considering the level of access required to enter such a place, the list of suspects wouldn't be long.

I would be on it.

I exhaled slowly, controlling the rhythm of my breath as I turned away from the Tower's grand structure, keeping my pace measured, my movements unhurried. To an untrained observer, I was simply a professor taking an early morning walk, nothing more. But beneath the layers of calm, my mind worked rapidly.

The dagger. The sigil. The confrontation.

The Council's letter had already set the game in motion, but the Gravekeepers had moved in parallel, possibly ahead of even the Council's reach. And the fact that they had intercepted me first meant something. A cold weight settled in my gut, more certainty than paranoia. If they were watching me, tracking my movements, then this was no ordinary oversight by the Tower. This was orchestrated.

Slipping into the archive was one thing. Getting caught leaving was another. A professor of my rank had no business lurking in the Tower's restricted depths at such an hour, and I had no interest in fabricating excuses to the Council. The Magic Tower played by its own rules, but even within its walls, scrutiny was deadly. I tightened my grip on the dagger before slipping it into my coat and stepped away from the shadowed perimeter, moving swiftly toward the outer courtyard.

The streets of Velithor stretched beyond the Tower's gates, a city that never quite slept. Even now, before the sun had fully risen, the streets were beginning to stir. The city moved in layers—the surface world of merchants, scholars, and nobility, and the undercurrent beneath it, the unspoken network of spies, informants, and quiet power plays happening in dark alleys and candle-lit parlors.

A vendor pushed a cart of fresh bread along the cobbled street, the scent wafting in sharp contrast to the iron tang still lingering in my memory from the assassin's blade. Somewhere down the road, a blacksmith's hammer rang against steel, steady and rhythmic, a reminder that life continued as usual for most of the capital's citizens.

For me, nothing was usual.

I walked with purpose but not haste. To run would be to draw attention, and I had no intention of making myself memorable. As I passed under the soft glow of enchanted street lanterns, I adjusted the collar of my coat, casting a casual glance toward a pair of city guards stationed near the main square. They were barely awake, shifting their weight in idle conversation, their eyes not truly scanning the crowd.

That was a mistake.

One I would never make.

The battle in the archive replayed in my mind, my eyes tracing the movements in memory. My opponent had been skilled—disciplined, silent, and methodical. No wasted movement. They hadn't relied on brute force, nor had they attempted to overwhelm me. Instead, their attacks had been precise, their footwork controlled. No hesitation. They had fought not just to kill but to subdue.

A capture mission.

That was what disturbed me the most.

Someone wanted me alive.

Not the Council. If the Magic Council had wanted me apprehended, they would not have sent a single assassin into the archive with a soul-binding dagger. They would have ordered an official inquiry, drawn out a formal summons, or set a dozen eyes on me through bureaucratic means.

This was different.

The Gravekeepers.

A name spoken in hushed tones, an order so deeply buried in history that even the Tower's restricted archives barely held records of them. They were not merely a faction. They were a doctrine, a force that did not concern itself with kingdoms or politics but with something deeper. Something older.

And they had interfered tonight.

I turned a corner onto a quieter street, the shadows growing longer as the sky began to lighten with the first touches of dawn. The lamps flickered, casting brief halos of light across the pavement, illuminating the glint of moisture on the stones from the previous night's rain. A stray cat slinked between two crates stacked near a closed shop, its green eyes catching mine for half a second before disappearing into the alleyway.

A rustle behind me.

Not loud. Barely audible.

But enough.

I didn't stop walking. I didn't turn my head. But I noted every detail—the weight of the footstep, the shift in the air. Someone was following me. Not a common pickpocket or street thief. Their presence was too controlled, too intentional.

I turned another corner, stepping onto a broader avenue where morning traders were beginning to set up their stalls. The foot traffic increased just enough that I could vanish if necessary.

A test.

I let my steps slow just slightly, a subtle change, giving them the opportunity to adjust. If they did, they were a professional. If they faltered, they were an amateur.

No hesitation. No disruption in their pace.

A professional.

Good. That meant they might be predictable.

My hand shifted, fingers brushing the hilt of a secondary blade beneath my coat. Not my usual weapon of choice, but something more discrete. If this turned into a confrontation, I needed to end it fast and without spectacle.

But my pursuer did not act.

They did not move closer.

They were waiting.

For what?

A second pursuer?

I made a quick calculation and turned down another street, this time stepping into the flow of foot traffic. A merchant's stall stacked with crates of imported fruits provided just enough cover for me to veer sharply to the left, stepping into a recessed doorway that led to an unused passage between two buildings. The stone was cold against my back as I pressed into the shadowed alcove.

And then I waited.

A handful of seconds.

Then—

A figure passed the alley entrance, scanning the crowd. Hooded, posture rigid, but not in a way that signified tension. Trained, controlled. Not Council. Not common thugs.

I watched them from the shadows. They hesitated for a fraction of a second, head tilting slightly as if listening. Then, just as quickly, they continued walking.

Still searching.

Still tracking me.

My heartbeat remained steady, my breath even. This was not the time to act.

Not yet.

I gave it another moment before stepping out of the alcove, back into the motion of the city, blending into the early morning bustle.

The Tower's security would soon realize something had gone wrong in the archive. The ledger was missing. The traces of combat couldn't be fully erased. Someone would investigate, and when they did, the ripples would spread.

But right now, I had other matters to attend to. Experience more content on My Virtual Library Empire

I let my hand rest briefly against my coat, feeling the weight of the Gravekeeper's dagger still tucked against my ribs.

A message.

A warning.

And a question.

How far did their reach extend?

And more importantly—what exactly did they think they needed me alive for?

Troubling.

A soft shuffle of boots on stone pulled me from my thoughts. Just ahead, near the city gates, a young mage in the Tower's deep blue uniform straightened at the sight of me. Recognition flickered in his expression. I knew him—one of the apprentices assigned to early patrol rotations. Barely past his first practical assignments, still eager, still uncertain. His posture was rigid, the kind of stiffness that came from wanting to appear more competent than he felt.

He squared his shoulders, forcing himself to stand at attention, though the flicker of hesitation in his stance betrayed his nerves. He wasn't sure how to act around me, whether to address me as an esteemed professor or a figure wrapped in too many whispers. My reputation preceded me, after all. Some feared it. Some envied it.

"Professor Draven," he greeted, dipping his head slightly in what was meant to be respect, but I caught the flicker of wariness beneath it. "You're out early."

I met his gaze, impassive, revealing nothing. "An old habit."

His brow furrowed just slightly, enough to suggest he wasn't entirely satisfied with the answer. His eyes flickered toward the towering silhouette of the university behind me, the faintest trace of uncertainty lining his features. He was young, but not a fool. Even an apprentice could recognize an inconsistency when it walked straight past him in the dead of night.

"Did you—" He stopped himself, rethinking his approach. Then, cautiously, he tried again. "There was an alarm triggered in one of the lower levels a few minutes ago. I thought you might have heard something on your way out."

I tilted my head just slightly, holding his gaze with measured stillness. "I didn't."

I saw the way his throat worked as he swallowed, a moment's indecision flashing through his expression. He was debating whether to ask more, whether to push just enough to satisfy the nagging suspicion that had settled in his gut. But I was already moving past him, my steps unhurried, my presence deliberate.

He didn't call after me.

He wouldn't.

A junior mage would think twice before pressing a professor, especially one with my reputation. The unspoken hierarchy of the Tower held its own weight, and for someone like him, still too green, still untested, challenging me outright was not an option.

Still, I could feel his lingering stare pressing into my back as I disappeared into the streets.