Villain Professor of Heroes – Chapter 15

—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
—————————————————————–

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

You had to become an S-Rank so I could complete the quest, and I had to complete the quest so I could…

Hmm.

What would happen to me once the quest was completed?

The reward, which should have appeared alongside the quest, hadn’t shown up.

No one knew what would happen after I made Han Min-ha an S-Rank.

Would my lung disease be cured?

Absolutely not. I didn’t need that.

Returning to my original world was the best outcome for me.

The problem was the worst-case scenario: another chained quest appearing after I finally made her an S-Rank.

No.

I wouldn’t think about that now.

I would simply focus on completing the quest I had been given to the best of my ability.

Like I told Han Min-ha, I would also survive.

“Student Han Min-ha.”

“Y-yes…?”

“Let’s survive this.”

Han Min-ha didn’t answer clearly and lowered her head.

Perhaps flushed from embarrassment, a strange scent emanated from her.

I wondered what it was, but it was just the smell of old clothes.

It seemed she didn’t use fabric softener, let alone perfume.

“Attend your afternoon classes. And think carefully, then let me know tomorrow. It requires your consent as well.”

“Um… Professor…”

“You were the one who said you had nothing to do after leaving the academy. I’ll be waiting.”

When Han Min-ha didn’t respond, I straightened and stood up.

“See you later.”

Han Min-ha remained seated on her bed, motionless, until I left the room.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

Teaching Assistant Bae Ye-bin, who had been anxiously waiting outside the dormitory, hurried over.

“How did it go? Did you talk to her? What did she say?”

“We agreed to talk again tomorrow, and she’ll probably attend her afternoon classes.”

“Is that so… That’s a relief…”

Teaching Assistant Bae Ye-bin sighed deeply.

“I was so surprised when she suddenly said she wanted to withdraw this morning… I don’t know how many times this has happened…”

The students under Teaching Assistant Bae’s care were all in the lower-level class.

Without assigned advisors, she had to manage everything from their daily lives to their studies.

It must have been incredibly difficult and frustrating for her as they began leaving one by one, realizing their limitations.

She must have submitted Han Min-ha’s withdrawal request to the administration office as a last resort after failing to persuade her.

There probably wasn’t anyone else she could turn to for help.

“If you hadn’t come, Professor Kyo, Min-ha would have definitely left the academy today. Her grades are poor, and there’s no real need for the academy to hold onto her…”

“You’ve worked hard, Teaching Assistant Bae.”

“Sigh… Thank you… I should go talk to Min-ha.”

After Teaching Assistant Bae bowed and entered the dormitory, I turned towards the lecture building.

As I walked, I looked up at the sky and saw a flash of golden light in the distance at the flight training grounds.

Looking closer, I saw someone soaring high, emitting a brilliant Aura, then rapidly descending.

A golden Aura… I had a feeling it was Yoo Hee-won.

As far as I knew, Professor Jin Se-young emitted a chestnut-colored trail similar to her hair color when she flew.

Even though she had fallen midway, it was remarkable that she could ascend so rapidly so soon after entering the academy.

She truly possessed extraordinary talent.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

[Professor! Min-ha attended her afternoon class~!]

I was in the classroom during my break after lunch when I received a message from Teaching Assistant Bae Ye-bin.

It seemed she had changed her mind.

Or perhaps, with a professor visiting her room, kneeling, and pleading with her, she couldn’t refuse due to her personality and simply went along with it.

Whether it was voluntary or involuntary, the important thing was that she remained at the academy.

Honestly, I didn’t have any personal feelings towards Han Min-ha.

It might be because of the Mental Barrier, but more importantly, I was clearly aware that I was a possessor.

The people around me weren’t real people, but characters in a novel.

In some novels, possessors became so immersed that they mistook themselves as part of the possessed world.

They went even further, assimilating or being consumed by the possessed person’s personality, identifying themselves completely with them.

But I used the Mental Barrier.

The Mental Barrier protected my mind from external shocks and helped me maintain a cold, rational perspective.

I still knew I was a possessor, and I considered the others to be characters in a failed, amateur academy web novel.

So, when I received a summons from the department head a little later, I wasn’t surprised at all.

“Professor Kyo, you wouldn’t know, but all hell has broken loose.”

“What kind of chaos are you referring to?”

“What else? Yoo Hee-won, of course.”

“Did Yoo Hee-won’s parents call the dean directly?”

A father who was a former S-Rank hero and the chairman of the Administration’s advisory committee.

And his only daughter who placed first in the entrance exam of Graford, considered the best hero academy.

A family with such an immense background that, with a single cough, they could halve the academy’s budget and subsidies.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call it “chaos” when they called the dean directly about a mere student assignment.

Twice, no less.

The previous call was probably just a request to take special care of Yoo Hee-won, but this time, the tone must have been much harsher.

“Assign Yoo Hee-won to you as your student immediately. That’s the order.”

“Department Head, as I said, I can’t handle Yoo Hee-won. Right now, assigning her to me might seem like a solution to appease the chairman, but in the long run, it will only harm the academy. I’m a professor of an unpopular subject with no experience in mentoring students. If I can’t meet Yoo Hee-won’s expectations, then compared to now…”

“My goodness.”

The department head sighed.

“We’ll think about that later. We need to put out the fire first. And frankly, Yoo Hee-won will become at least an A-Rank after graduation anyway. Just appease her and do as she wishes. What more can you teach someone who’s already so accomplished?”

I understood the department head’s perspective.

When someone capable of shaking the academy to its core was expressing displeasure, would they care about the stubbornness of a mere professor?

The only reason I didn’t want to take Yoo Hee-won as my student was Han Min-ha.

If I took both Han Min-ha and Yoo Hee-won as my students, Han Min-ha probably wouldn’t be able to handle it.

And Yoo Hee-won wouldn’t leave Han Min-ha alone either.

There were no other systemic issues or special restrictions.

Hmm…

In this situation, simply refusing Yoo Hee-won wasn’t a viable option.

If the department head and the dean were determined, I would have to accept her anyway.

I could refuse, but that would create significant difficulties in my career as a professor and ultimately hinder my efforts to make Han Min-ha an S-Rank.

Yoo Hee-won and Han Min-ha…

I would accept her for now and think about what to do next later.

“Alright, Department Head. I’ll accept Yoo Hee-won as my student. But I have one condition.”

“What is it?”

“It’s nothing special. There’s a student I had in mind, Han Min-ha. I’d like to mentor her as well. That shouldn’t be a problem, should it?”

“Han Min-ha? Who’s that?”

“A hero family bonus points recipient in the lower-level class…”

“Do as you please. There’s no limit to the number of students you can mentor.”

The department head waved his hand dismissively, as if he didn’t care as long as Yoo Hee-won got what she wanted.

“Thank you, Department Head. I’ll keep that in mind.”

And so, the top and bottom students of the freshman class became my students simultaneously.

The rumor spread like wildfire.

No one intentionally spread it.

It just naturally flowed until everyone in the academy knew.

A professor of an unpopular subject, who had never taken on a student before, suddenly declared he would accept students.

And not just any students, but Yoo Hee-won, the golden spoon among golden spoons, expected to graduate at the top of her class, and Han Min-ha, the slowpoke who fainted during the basic evaluation.

Even more surprising was that Yoo Hee-won had chosen Professor Hyun Kyo of Basic Defense Studies over Professor Yoo Hyun-joo of Comprehensive Offense.

How could this not become a hot topic?

The faculty was the most abuzz.

Everyone had hoped to be Yoo Hee-won’s advisor, so their disappointment was overwhelming.

Did I want to be Yoo Hee-won’s advisor?

But what could I do?

Yoo Hee-won had chosen me, and the dean and department head had pressured me to accept.

Even the most senior Professor Heo Tae-hyun couldn’t have avoided this.

The only fortunate thing was that I was able to include Han Min-ha as well.

For the dean and department head, the most important thing was to prevent Yoo Hee-won’s parents from making a fuss, no matter the cost.

In that process, a student like Han Min-ha wouldn’t even register on their radar.

Fortunately, the other professors seemed to understand the situation to some extent.

So, I avoided being accused of some sort of scheme to monopolize Yoo Hee-won.

However, the reason why Yoo Hee-won had chosen me remained a mystery.

I didn’t know the reason myself.

In the original story, the heroine was instantly smitten with Professor Hyun Kyo’s appearance and became obsessed, a rather flimsy premise…

But whether that was still true now, with everything changed by Han Min-ha’s appearance, well…

“I envy you, Professor Kyo.”

Professor Yoo Hyun-joo of Comprehensive Offense smiled at me.

“To be chosen by such an outstanding student, congratulations.”

“It’s nothing to be congratulated about, Professor Yoo. It’s more like I’m suffocating from the pressure.”

It was a lie, of course.

With the Mental Barrier in place, I felt no pressure.

I just hoped Yoo Hee-won wouldn’t do anything rash out of wounded pride at having a student like Han Min-ha as a fellow advisee.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇