Villain: After I died, all the heroines cried themselves to sleep.

The moment I heard Anjie's voice from outside the door.

Rod froze abruptly.

For some reason, I had a guilty feeling.

As the saying goes, if you have a clear conscience, you have nothing to fear.

Has he done anything wrong?

No.

That's right.

He calmed himself down, straightened his clothes, and made sure everything was perfect.

Then he casually opened the door.

"What's the matter?"

Rod said calmly.

Thanks to his "serious and unsmiling" personality still in effect, he was able to remain calm and not let others see through his thoughts.

At this moment, Anjie was wearing a pure white nightgown and stood gracefully at the door.

"Teacher, I forgot to tell you earlier."

A gentle smile graced her face.

"Good night."

"...Okay, goodnight."

Rhodes nodded.

But Anjie continued to ask.

"Teacher, I'm probably the last person to say goodnight to you, right?"

"Is this important?"

"Very important."

"...You are the last one."

"Then I'm relieved."

It felt like a weight had finally been lifted from my heart.

Ange gave Rod a slight bow and turned to leave.

"Wait a moment."

Suddenly, Rod called out to Ange.

"teacher?"

Anjie turned around in confusion.

Rod frowned and reached out towards Ange's body.

I straightened Anjie's nightgown.

"You came in a hurry; your clothes are a bit disheveled."

"..."

"alright."

Rod looked at the smoothed-out nightgown with satisfaction, finally feeling at ease.

It was as if a perfect work of art had been completed.

Go to bed early.

Rhodes nodded in acknowledgment and closed the door.

Sweaty.

……

The next morning, Rhodes changed into a professor's suit and returned to the Imperial Academy.

Three years have passed in the blink of an eye. The students of Imperial Academy have changed three times, and most of them no longer recognize Rhodes.

I'm just curious when this new professor came to the college.

The professors at the academy hadn't changed much, and they looked surprised when they saw Rhodes.

"Professor Rhodes? So you... are back?"

They all greeted Rod.

Even Rhodes' two arch-rivals from when he was the chief professor had somewhat complicated expressions on their faces.

Rhodes did not slow down because of this.

He walked at a steady pace and soon arrived at his research room.

The research room was largely maintained in the state it was in before he left, but unfortunately, it had been neglected for a long time and was covered with a thick layer of dust. The documents on the desk were also somewhat messy.

But this didn't stump Rhodes.

He went into the study and opened all the windows.

He immediately looked toward the research room and activated his Word of Power spell.

"Word magic - cleansing and purifying."

The next second, a gentle breeze swept through the room.

All the dust in the room was instantly swept up by the breeze and blown out the window.

The lab instantly felt much cleaner.

"You can organize the documents here first. I have some important business to discuss with the dean."

Rod gave instructions to Ange, who was beside him.

Anjie shook her head upon hearing this.

"I want to go with my teacher. She hasn't recovered yet and needs my protection."

"..."

The headmaster isn't going to eat me, is he?

Rod felt both amused and exasperated.

Fortunately, he was discussing serious matters with the dean, so it didn't matter whether Anjie came or not.

The two left the research lab and headed to the dean's office below the clock tower.

"Why did you bring your disciple along?"

The witch glanced at Ange next to Rhodes.

"I am the teacher's top student, and I plan to become the teacher's research assistant in the future, so I have the right to know about the teacher's research topics."

Anjie replied neither humbly nor arrogantly.

In Rhodes's opinion, Ange's sorcerer level was higher than his, and she could easily set up her own research lab. There was no need for her to stay by his side as an assistant.

Three years ago, Rhodes rejected Ange's application to become a research assistant.

He believed that with Anjie's talent, it would be a waste for her to stay by the side of a villain like him who was doomed to perish sooner or later.

He agreed now because, on the one hand, he was prepared to live, and on the other hand, he already knew that Anjie's feelings for him had changed, and he didn't intend to pretend to be oblivious.

However, the question remains.

Rhodes did not tell Ange that he came to the dean's place to help her complete her research project.

How did Anjie find out about this news?

"That's really interesting."

The witch gave Ange and Rod a meaningful look.

"Speaking of which, not long after Professor Rhodes disappeared three years ago, Ange also left the capital. Now you've reappeared together... Could it be that you've been together all these years?"

"That's right, the teacher has been with me the whole time."

Anjie readily admitted it.

As her voice faded, the atmosphere in the room became eerie.

The temperature seems to have dropped a few degrees.

"It's been years, and you've really become much bolder, daring to provoke me."

"I'm just stating a fact; my teacher has always been by my side."

"Always? I remember you have a talent for time and space, right? It's a pity that your concept of time is still too shallow. For a warlock, three years is less than one percent of a human life."

"That's because the academy has lived through such an ancient and long period of time."

"Time cannot directly affect the soul; my soul remains forever seventeen years old."

"Given enough time, the soul will eventually change."

"..."

What is this doing?

Rhodes watched the two men locked in a fierce confrontation.

My heart skipped a beat.

Suddenly, I had a feeling of regret for returning to this world.

As tensions rose, Rod had no choice but to step in and interrupt the argument.

"This is not the place for you to argue."

"..."

Ange and the witch looked over at the same time.

Both of them had smiles on their lips, but there was no smile in their eyes.

Is it too late to go home now?

Rod felt ashamed.

Despite this, he remained stern and cold.

"I'm here to inquire about the dean's research topics, don't waste my time."

"Okay, that's enough for now."

The witch stretched and casually ended the argument.

"Having a quarrel with someone occasionally is good for your physical and mental health."

Seeing the witch's demeanor, Rhodes immediately realized that she had been faking it all along.

The witch led Rod and Angel to her desk.

She casually took a stack of documents from the drawer and tossed them directly to Rod.

"Here, this is the topic I've been researching recently."

"That's what the witch said casually."

"Actually, I was already prepared to give up, but since Professor Rhodes is interested, I'll leave it to you."

"..."

Rhodes took the documents and glanced through them briefly.

His brow furrowed slightly.

"Is this research about the soul?"

"In terms of mystery alone, isn't the soul even more mysterious than spacetime? In all these years, no soul-related techniques have ever appeared. If someone could create a soul technique, it would definitely cause a sensation throughout the world."

The witch explained from the side.

However, Rhodes was not happy at all.

You could even say my heart sank.

Soul Technique.

Is this a research project that a normal person could complete?

The system must be out of its mind to assign itself to this kind of research project.

Even if Rhodes could complete it, it would take an unknown number of years.

The villain's return truly brings freedom.

Because there is no time limit for the return, there is also no time limit for the optional tasks.

That makes perfect sense.

"I'll go back and check on this topic."

Rod calmly accepted the task.

Since there's no penalty mechanism, I'll just take on the task first, and whether I complete it or not is another matter.

"As expected of Professor Rhodes, if it were you, you might actually be able to complete this project."

Suddenly, the witch seemed to remember something, and a meaningful smile appeared on her face.

"In that case, I'd like to trouble you to handle the investigation of the ghosts in the academy as well. Ghosts are generally considered to be wandering souls, and if we can catch one, it will definitely be helpful to your research."

"ghost?"

"You can discuss the specifics with the vice professor."

Rhodes listened to what the witch said.

I was speechless.

This is another trap.

Because the second-in-command is one of Rhodes's arch-rivals.