Morning came too quickly.
Lucian woke to pale sunlight streaming through his window and the distant sound of the academy bell tolling.
First day of classes.
He sat up, rubbing his face, and immediately checked the system.
[MISSION PROGRESS]
Mission: "The Villain's First Step"
Do NOT challenge anyone to a duel for the first week.
Progress: Day 2 of 7
Mission: "The Ice Princess's Attention"
Elira Frostveil will notice you within three days. Make a positive first impression.
Time Remaining: 3 days
[FATE POINTS: 15]
Lucian got dressed in the academy's standard uniform—black coat with silver trim, white shirt, dark trousers. Simple. Functional.
In the mirror, he barely recognized himself.
The face was the same, but the eyes were different. Sharper. Focused.
I'm not the same person who arrived at this academy in the original story, he thought. And I need to make sure everyone knows it.
The Grand Lecture Hall was massive.
Tiered seating rose in a semicircle around a central platform where Professor Aldric—a stern man with silver hair and battle scars crossing his face—stood waiting.
"Introduction to Magical Theory," Lucian read from his schedule. "First period."
Students filed in, clustering in groups. The noble-born took the best seats near the front. Scholarship students and lesser houses scattered to the sides and back.
Lucian chose a seat in the middle—not hiding in the back like a coward, but not drawing attention by sitting front and center.
Strategic positioning.
As he sat down, he felt eyes on him.
Whispers started immediately.
"Is that the Valemont bastard?"
"I heard he used to be talented but lost it all."
"Poor thing. Must be humiliating."
Lucian ignored them, pulling out a notebook and quill.
The seat beside him remained conspicuously empty. No one wanted to sit next to the "fallen prodigy."
Fine by him.
Professor Aldric cleared his throat, and the hall fell silent.
"Welcome to Introduction to Magical Theory. I am Professor Aldric. I do not tolerate tardiness, laziness, or excuses. If you cannot meet my standards, you will fail. If you fail, you will leave this academy. Are we clear?"
A chorus of nervous "Yes, Professor" echoed through the hall.
Aldric's eyes swept the room, cold and assessing.
They paused on Lucian.
For just a moment, something flickered in the professor's expression. Recognition? Disappointment?
Then he moved on.
"Magic," Aldric began, his voice carrying easily through the space, "is not simply power. It is understanding. Control. Discipline. Any fool can channel mana. But a true mage shapes it. Bends it to their will with precision and purpose."
He raised his hand. A sphere of water materialized above his palm, perfectly smooth and contained.
"This is basic water conjuration. First-year level." The sphere shifted, becoming ice, then steam, then water again. "But mastery means transformation. Adaptation. Evolution."
Students watched, mesmerized.
Lucian took notes, but his mind was elsewhere.
In the original story, Lucian tried to show off in the first class. He answered questions he barely understood—and made a complete fool of himself.
Not this time.
He stayed quiet. Observed. Learned.
"Now then," Aldric said, dismissing his conjuration. "Let's see what you all know. Someone give me the three fundamental principles of mana circulation."
Hands shot up immediately.
Aldric's gaze swept the room and landed on a girl in the front row.
"Miss Frostveil."
Lucian's attention sharpened.
The girl stood gracefully. Silver-white hair fell past her shoulders like fresh snow. Ice-blue eyes, flawless features, and an aura of untouchable elegance.
Elira Frostveil.
The Ice Princess.
The girl who kills him in the original timeline.
"The three fundamental principles," Elira said, her voice cool and precise, "are Circulation, Condensation, and Manifestation. Mana must first be drawn from the environment or internal reserves, then condensed and shaped according to the caster's will, and finally manifested into physical or elemental form."
"Correct. Well done." Aldric nodded. "Be seated."
Elira sat down without a hint of pride or satisfaction. Like answering perfectly was simply expected.
[VILLAIN'S INSIGHT ACTIVATED]
Name: Elira Frostveil
Current Emotion: Bored
Affection Level: 0 (Still unaware of your existence)
Thoughts: "Another lecture I've already mastered. Why am I even here?"
Lucian studied her from his seat.
She sat alone, despite being surrounded by people. No one sat directly next to her. They kept a respectful—or fearful—distance.
The Ice Princess lived up to her title.
Class continued. Aldric lectured on mana theory, basic circulation techniques, and the dangers of improper channeling.
Lucian absorbed everything, cross-referencing with his memories of the novel.
In the original story, there were hidden details scattered through these early lectures—hints about advanced techniques, forgotten magic, dangerous secrets.
The protagonist had missed most of them, too busy flirting with heroines.
But Lucian caught them.
Professor Aldric mentioned 'ancient circulation methods' being lost to time, Lucian noted mentally. In the novel, that was foreshadowing for a hidden technique the protagonist discovers in the Forbidden Archives. If I can find it first...
He jotted down a reminder.
The lecture ended.
Students began filing out, chattering about their next classes.
Lucian gathered his things slowly, timing his exit.
As he stepped into the hallway, he pulled up the system's character tracker.
[ELIRA FROSTVEIL - CURRENT LOCATION: LIBRARY]
Of course she was.
In the original story, Elira spent every free moment in the library. She was obsessed with knowledge, constantly studying, always pushing herself to be better.
It was both her strength and her weakness.
She never let anyone close because she was too busy chasing perfection.
Time to change that, Lucian thought.
The academy library was a cathedral of knowledge.
Towering bookshelves stretched toward vaulted ceilings. Magical lights floated between the stacks, casting warm glows. The air smelled of old paper and leather bindings.
Students sat at long tables, studying or whispering in groups.
And there, in the farthest corner, sitting alone at a table stacked with advanced magical texts, was Elira Frostveil.
She read with intense focus, occasionally making notes in a leather journal.
Lucian approached carefully.
He didn't head straight for her—that would be too obvious. Instead, he went to a nearby shelf, browsing titles on intermediate magical theory.
He was three shelves away when it happened.
A book on the highest shelf caught his eye. "Forgotten Circulation Techniques of the Old Empire."
That was it. The book that contained the hidden technique.
In the original story, the protagonist found it by accident in month three.
Lucian could get it now.
He reached up, but the shelf was too high. His fingers brushed the spine but couldn't quite grasp it.
"Need help?"
He turned.
Elira stood behind him, expression neutral, one hand raised.
Ice crystallized in the air, forming a delicate step-ladder of frozen platforms.
"Use those," she said simply.
Lucian blinked. "Thank you."
He climbed the ice steps—perfectly stable, not even cold to the touch—and retrieved the book.
When he stepped down, the ice dissolved into mist.
She just casually created a staircase made of ice like she's ordering coffee. Meanwhile, I can barely summon a spark without my mana coughing like a dying engine. The power scaling in this world is absolutely ridiculous.