The Villain Professor's Second Chance

The plane around me was collapsing. The endless, chaotic void was losing its coherence, fragmenting into shards of darkness, twisting and turning as if even reality itself was being undone. But all of that was secondary to the sight before me. Tiamat's alter ego was ensnared, trapped within the interlocking magic circles I'd prepared. She struggled, the once-proud and overwhelming aura now faltering, flickering like a dying flame.

Her form wavered, the outlines of her body shimmering and breaking as the talismans drained her power, pulling every ounce of energy into the massive magic circles beneath us. I could feel the energy pulsing, raw and searing, as it began to surge into me. It wasn't just power—it was a primal force, dark, ancient, and insidious, clawing at me with a relentless hunger.

The moment the abyssal energy touched my core, I felt as if my body had been thrown into an inferno. It coursed through me, unbridled and violent, threatening to tear me apart from the inside. The sheer volume of it was more than my body was capable of handling, and every nerve felt like it was on fire. My muscles tensed, trembling as I struggled to contain the flood of darkness. My teeth ground together, my jaw aching from the pressure.

"You… truly believe you can absorb my power?" Tiamat's voice echoed, twisted with mockery. Her laughter filled the void, a harsh, cruel sound that made the very air vibrate. She was taunting me, even now, her eyes glinting with a hatred that burned deep.

Her laughter was like a knife in my ears, but I forced myself to stay focused. I ignored the shaking of my hands, ignored the way my vision blurred from the strain. This was not about whether I could handle it. It was about whether I could outlast her. Whether my will was stronger than hers.

"You're nothing!" she spat, her voice rising, desperation lacing her words despite the taunts. "A mere human trying to wield the power of a god. You will break, Draven! You will—"

I cut her off, my voice cold and steady. "Talk is cheap, Tiamat." I could barely force the words out through the searing pain, but I refused to let her see my weakness. I refused to give her that satisfaction. My hands clenched tighter, my nails biting into my palms until I felt the warm trickle of blood. Pain meant nothing now. There was no pain—only the goal, the purpose.

Her form flickered again, the edges blurring, her once-monstrous body now reduced to something frail and disjointed. The energy kept flowing, kept pouring into me, more and more, a never-ending torrent of dark power. It was suffocating, relentless, but I persisted. I held on, refusing to yield.

I could see her face change, the mocking grin giving way to confusion—and then to fear.

Real fear.

Her eyes widened as she realized what was happening.

That I wasn't faltering.

That I was enduring.

"What… who are you?" she whispered, her voice cracking, no longer filled with arrogance. There was something almost childlike in the way she said it, a desperation that made her seem small and vulnerable.

I looked her dead in the eyes, my voice as cold as the void surrounding us. Experience new stories on My Virtual Library Empire

"I'm a Drakhan."

The realization hit her, and her fear deepened. She had underestimated me. She had believed, even hoped, that I would break. But I wasn't like anyone she had faced before. I had been forged in fire, had endured countless loops, countless deaths, and failures. There was nothing left in me that could be broken.

Surrender is not the way of the Drakhans.

The energy continued to pour in, my body straining, veins bulging, skin almost glowing with the dark energy. My entire being felt like it was being consumed, like I was standing on the edge of oblivion—but I persisted. [Herculean Physique], the only blessing I had to handle such intense forces, kicked in, reinforcing me. But even it wasn't enough to ease the torment.

Tiamat screamed, her voice a mixture of rage and desperation. Her taunts had turned into terrified shrieks, her bravado crumbling as she realized she was losing. Her body flickered, her essence starting to come apart, fading, disintegrating.

Just as she began to dissipate, her soul started to drift from the broken shell of her alter ego. But I wasn't done. Not by a long shot. I took a step forward, my eyes narrowing as I focused on the faint, ethereal glow of her drifting soul.

My hand shot forward, fingers curling as I began the ritual—necromancy, a dark art, but one I had mastered long ago. The Ritual of Soul Absorption was not something to be taken lightly. It wasn't just about taking power—it was about consuming the very essence of another being, merging their soul with mine, their memories, their thoughts, their fears. It was an act that defied the natural order, that tore apart the boundary between life and death.

The moment I began, the pain intensified. If the earlier absorption had been like standing in a blazing inferno, this was like having my soul torn to pieces, shredded, and then forced back together. I felt Tiamat's essence, her memories, her very existence being pulled into me, merging with my own. It was like a thousand needles piercing my mind, each one carrying a piece of her, a fragment of her past.

The ritual was excruciating. My breath came in ragged gasps, my vision swimming, dark spots dancing in front of my eyes. The void around us seemed to pulse in time with the ritual, the dark energy swirling, growing more chaotic. I could feel Tiamat's memories flooding into me—visions of her past, of her rise to power, of her countless battles, her triumphs, her fears.

I saw her as she was, centuries ago, standing atop a mountain of bones, her power unmatched, her enemies groveling before her. I felt her arrogance, her belief in her own invincibility. I felt the darkness within her, the ambition, the greed, the hunger for power that had driven her to consume everything in her path.

I saw her in moments of vulnerability, too—moments she had buried deep, moments she had tried to forget. I saw her fear, her loneliness, the hollow emptiness that had driven her to seek more and more power, to fill the void that could never be filled. I saw her desperation, her realization that no amount of power could ever satisfy her.

Her voice echoed in my mind, not taunting now, not mocking. It was desperate, pleading. "Stop… please… let me go…"

But I couldn't stop. I wouldn't. I felt my own soul being torn apart, reshaped as hers was forced into me, the two becoming one, a chaotic mix of emotions, memories, power. My body trembled, my muscles spasming from the strain. Blood dripped from my nose, from the corners of my mouth, but I didn't falter. I couldn't afford to.

The void around us seemed to grow darker, the energy swirling, a storm of chaos, the fragments of the collapsing plane spinning wildly. Tiamat's form flickered, her screams growing weaker, fading as her essence was pulled into me, absorbed, consumed.

"You… you can't…" her voice was barely a whisper now, filled with disbelief, with fear. "No one can…"

I clenched my teeth, my vision blurring, the pain overwhelming. "I can," I hissed, my voice barely audible, my eyes locked onto hers. "And I will."

With a final surge, the ritual completed. The last remnants of Tiamat's soul were pulled into me, her essence merging with mine, her memories searing into my consciousness. I felt her power coursing through me, a dark, unrelenting force that threatened to consume me—but I held on. I forced it down, forced it to submit to my will.

The plane around me began to dissolve completely, the darkness giving way to nothingness, the void collapsing as Tiamat's essence faded, her power now mine. The pain was overwhelming, my entire body trembling, my mind screaming from the strain, but I refused to yield. I had come too far, fought too hard. I would not break now.

And then, suddenly, I was back. The collapsing plane disappeared, and I found myself standing in the cabin, the familiar walls around me, the flickering light of the fire casting shadows across the floor. The sudden change was jarring, disorienting, my head spinning, my knees buckling from the sheer force of it.

I stumbled, barely managing to catch myself on the edge of the table. My vision was blurry, my ears ringing, my body still trembling from the aftermath of the ritual. I could feel the dark energy within me, the power I had taken from Tiamat, pulsing, raging, trying to take control. I clenched my fists, forcing it down, forcing it to obey.

"Draven!" A voice cut through the haze, filled with panic. I blinked, my vision slowly clearing, and I saw Anastasia standing before me, her eyes wide with fear, her face pale. She looked disoriented, confused, as if she had just woken from a nightmare. "What happened? I… I couldn't control myself…"

I shook my head, my voice hoarse, strained. "Stay away," I managed to get out, my eyes locking onto hers, my expression hard. "I'm dangerous right now."

She took a step forward, her eyes filled with concern. "But—"

"Stay back!" I shouted, the force of my voice surprising even me. She flinched, her eyes widening, her hands trembling. I could see the fear in her eyes, the confusion, but I couldn't afford to care. Not now. Not with the abyssal power still raging within me, threatening to consume everything in its path.

The door to the cabin burst open, and I heard Aurelia's voice, sharp and filled with worry. "Draven! What the hell is going on?"

Lyan was right behind her, his eyes wide as he took in the scene. "We felt something… some kind of surge. What happened?"

I didn't look at them, my focus still on controlling the power within me, on keeping it from spilling over. My entire body was trembling, my vision blurring, but I couldn't let go. I had to stay in control.

"Draven…" Aurelia's voice was softer now, almost gentle. "Talk to us. What's happening to you?"

I clenched my jaw, my voice barely a whisper. "Tiamat… I absorbed her power. All of it. And now…"

The rest of my words were lost in the chaos within my mind, the darkness swirling, threatening to swallow me whole. I could feel the weight of Tiamat's soul, her memories, her power—all of it pressing down on me, trying to break free, to take control.

But I wouldn't let it. Not now. Not ever.

"Stay away from me for a while,"