Academy’s Villain Professor

Chapter 48: Preparation

I rubbed my chin with a bent index finger.

“From association headquarters, not the Legal Department, huh.”

The Hero Association’s headquarters wasn’t particularly large.

Compared to subordinate divisions like the Legal or Finance Departments, its personnel and scale were maybe 20% of theirs.

Its duties focused on overseeing those divisions or coordinating with foreign heroes, so direct fieldwork was rare.

Even in my villain days, I could count on one hand the times I’d encountered headquarters personnel.

Yet their authority surpassed all subordinate divisions combined.

A team leader was practically an executive.

Their direct involvement was proof something had shifted drastically.

Dropping the hand from my chin, I asked?

“Even if it’s headquarters, sidelining an agent performing their duties feels like an abuse of power.”

“Given Han So-hee’s current condition, the higher-ups deemed her unfit for field duty.”

“…She was hurt that badly?”

I muttered, a hint of concern in my voice.

My last memory of So-hee was her in a state between serious and minor injuries.

For a civilian, it’d be serious, but for an awakened, it was moderately dangerous.

According to Ye-jin, So-hee hadn’t directly fought.

She’d evacuated students during the battle’s fallout and took a hit meant for Ye-jin, which tore her up.

I felt a pang of regret.

That’s why I kept telling her to build combat skills.

As I thought this, the headquarters agent added.

“More importantly, she’s currently handling a critical task within the association.”

He didn’t specify, but I could guess.

She was likely extracting info from the villains caught during the MT.

Her trait was far more useful than simple lie detection.

Despite limitations on range and frequency, its raw performance was impressive enough for even me to acknowledge.

No matter how tight-lipped a captured villain was, her trait rendered silence useless.

Still, a question lingered.

“Even so, headquarters sending someone instead of the Legal Department?”

Given my colorful record, it made sense for headquarters to step in.

But unless it was a national disaster or major villain incident, headquarters rarely showed up in the field.

For a C-rank villain like me, officially, to have headquarters oversight was suspicious—extremely so.

The team leader frowned, shaking his head.

“This incident spread too much information to too many people. Your public C-rank status has completely lost credibility.”

The info had gone far beyond what the Legal Department or academy could control.

“So, your villain rank stays C, but your threat level’s been raised to S-. That’s enough justification for a headquarters agent like me to be assigned without issue.”

I nodded, finally understanding.

By social convention, villain rank correlated with strength, but there were exceptions.

Raising the threat level provided ample excuse for heavy oversight despite a low rank.

“The oversight system’s structure and approach have been completely revamped too. Besides me, top-notch agents will be watching you.”

“Well, alright.”

Crossing my arms, I leaned against the hallway wall.

“No wonder the back of my neck’s been itching.”

On my way to work, I’d been unsure due to the students’ stares, but during the lecture, I was certain.

It wasn’t just students—another gaze was tracking me.

It was slightly distracting during class, but it was a duty-bound, emotionless surveillance, not unbearable.

I asked, half-joking.

“You’re not gonna invade my privacy too, right?”

“Long-range surveillance will be limited to when you’re out.”

They didn’t seem too concerned about my room, assuming the watch handled monitoring.

Such intense scrutiny was annoying, but what could I do?

From the start, my unfair contract with the association left me no veto power over their surveillance methods.

“Do whatever you want.”

Thinking about it, So-hee’s sloppy oversight aside, this was the treatment I deserved.

The team leader stepped closer, poking my chest with his index finger.

“You’d better stay sharp. I won’t be as soft as that girl.”

“Yeah, sure.”

I clicked my tongue, swatting his finger away.

A bad-tempered, nitpicky guy as my overseer?

My head was already pounding.

Back at my lodging, I changed and sat at my desk.

I organized today’s lecture, reviewed it, and evaluated it, preparing for the next one.

Halfway through, I propped my chin on my hand, dozing off.

Even with my iron stamina, the MT, interrogations, and investigations meant I’d barely slept two hours in the past week.

Exhaustion was catching up.

Soon, I was face-down on the desk, asleep.

* * *

Looking around, I scratched the back of my head.

“Another damn dream.”

A sigh escaped me.

It wasn’t just the tight schedule eating into my sleep. For the past week, every time I closed my eyes, this nightmare repeated, forcing me to stay awake.

It was the same mental attack from the MT.

The difference was, that was a hallucination induced by an attack, while this was a vivid memory replayed as a malicious nightmare.

The dream always followed the same pattern.

Waiting briefly, scattered light particles began to take shape.

The light faded.

A person stood there.

A familiar-faced woman, hands behind her back, gazed at me.

Her bright blonde hair swayed lightly, and her green eyes sparkled with mischief.

I laughed, dumbfounded.

Almost ten years, and I thought it’d fade, but it was still so vivid.

“Hi-hi!”

Her familiar voice, heard through red lips, was so real it made me forget this was a dream.

Seeing the person I most wanted to see every time could be a good dream.

But I called it a nightmare for a simple reason: there was only one way to wake up.

I slowly reached out, my hand closing around her slender neck.

Even as I grabbed it, she just smiled, staring into my eyes.

That made me feel even worse.

No matter what I did, I couldn’t wake up alone.

Maybe deep down, I wanted to repeat this forever.

But just before I tightened my grip.

I opened my eyes.

Without realizing I’d woken, I turned my head.

An unexpected guest stood blankly by my desk.

Another hallucination?

I frowned briefly, but this was definitely reality.

I asked Se-ah, standing there.

“What’s up?”

“Well…”

She scratched her cheek with an odd expression.

“I rang the doorbell a bunch, felt someone inside, but you didn’t open.”

Did I leave the door unlocked?

So-hee came and went so often it’d become a habit not to lock it.

“So I picked the lock.”

It was locked.

Running a hand through my hair, I leaned back in my chair.

“So, what’s the deal?”

“Before that…”

She looked me up and down, her tone slightly worried.

“You okay?”

When she’d picked the lock and entered, she’d seen me asleep and felt playful.

After all I’d put her through, she planned to mess with me.

But that urge faded quickly.

My sleeping state looked that bad.

“Apologizing in your sleep—what’d you do that’s so bad?”

“I did that?”

She nodded silently.

She had no reason to lie.

Given the dream’s content, sleep-talking like that wasn’t surprising, but it left a bad taste.

Clicking my tongue, I stood.

“Just a nightmare. No big deal.”

“Good, then.”

“So why’d you break into my place? Must be urgent.”

She looked up, startled, as if remembering.

“Right! Change and get ready! Suit up!”

“Why?”

“The union’s holding an event. You’re coming!”

I tilted my head, checking her outfit.

Aside from the cast on one arm, she was in a sharp suit.

“Why do I have to go?”

I was practically an outcast in the union.

Showing up would only earn me grief—why bother?

“No way. Everyone knows you’re not C-rank anymore! What’s a C-rank label when your threat level’s S-? No one can brush you off now.”

Just minutes ago, a new memo about me had circulated in the academy.

My villain rank remained C, but my S- threat level demanded caution.

Se-ah wasn’t surprised.

She’d already suspected I was an unofficial S-rank villain, downgraded to C through association manipulation.

My absurd strength, the association’s overblown response, and my oddly close ties with the dean all pointed to it.

Now that it was official, she planned to use it.

“An S- villain? Think of the propaganda and uses!”

“You’re saying you’ll use me right to my face?”

“I saved your neck from getting chopped! This is nothing!”

She stomped, urging me to hurry.

“I saved you too.”

Grumbling, I changed anyway.

She was one of the few at the academy friendly to me.

A request like this wasn’t worth refusing.

Especially after nearly getting axed, I didn’t need more allies, but I had to minimize enemies.

The union event dragged on for hours.

It was as dull as expected, but seeing those who’d once picked fights or glared at me change their tune was amusing.

Hero or villain, an official S-rank label carried that much weight.

Midway through playing scarecrow at the event, my phone buzzed loudly.

Checking the number, I moved to a secluded spot.

“Finally, the call I’ve been waiting for.”

Sitting by a fountain, I put the phone to my ear.

“So, how much did you dig up?”

[We confirmed what was suspected, but it’s not great news.]

The dean’s voice was calm, as if he’d anticipated it all.

[The association decided to keep quiet about you and the organization. Naturally, it’s been designated a new villain group.]

“Not a smart move.”

I muttered, disappointed.

The organization’s info was top-secret, known only to a few high-ranking association members.

Keeping it under wraps meant most operatives wouldn’t take the group seriously, leading to sloppy responses.

No famous villains were involved, and their activities were low-profile.

The first academy attack wasn’t linked, and the MT attack was a failed attempt, so they’d likely get an A-rank at best.

“What’s their goal?”

[Even high-ranking members don’t know for sure. They mentioned plans to attack hero-related facilities or groups. They’re still interrogating, so wait.]

“They’re not sharing that info either?”

[Apparently not.]

I clicked my tongue again.

Should’ve wiped out the association’s cowards before getting caught.

Ten years later, they haven’t improved.

[No choice. The association sees the chaos from leaking this info as a bigger issue. Some think that’s what they’re aiming for. Their plan spanned over six months, so the association plans to respond slowly.]

“No.”

I immediately contradicted the dean.

“If they’re really copying me, they didn’t manage it sloppily for that reason.”

[What do you mean?]

“If it were me…”

I paused, thinking.

What would I have done as a villain?

Not the option most beneficial to me, but the one most inconvenient and damaging to my enemies.

The conclusion was simple.

“The plan will change. If it was a six-month plan, they’ll compress it. One week.”

I stated firmly.

“They’ll move within a week.”

[Can you be sure?]

“If nothing happens in a week, that’s a relief. It means they lack the will, brains, or ability to emulate me. Then the association can take it slow.“

[I’ll pass this conversation to the association.]

“And we should prepare too.”

[Prepare?]

I turned my head.

Looking at the academy’s sunset, I muttered to myself.

“They’ve screwed us over this much. Isn’t it only fair to return the favor?”