The Villain Professor's Second Chance

"Ifrit," Amberine whispered urgently, her voice shaky as she felt the small, fiery familiar stir within her robe. "What the hell is going on?"

Ifrit growled softly, clearly agitated. "You humans always meddle with things you don't understand," he muttered, his voice a low rasp. "That idiot student just ripped a hole between the dimensions, and now we've got goblins crawling in. It seems like the university's magic tower has turned into an endless dungeon."

Amberine's eyes widened as the weight of Ifrit's words sank in. The tower—the center of magical learning for the entire kingdom—had somehow been transformed into an endless dungeon? It seemed impossible, but after everything she had witnessed in the past few minutes, she wasn't going to argue.

A snarl from the goblin brought her back to the present. The creature crouched, ready to pounce, its razor-sharp claws scraping the floor. Amberine's heart pounded, and without thinking, she shot a hand forward, calling on her fire mana. A burst of flame erupted from her palm, striking the goblin square in the chest.

It screeched in pain as the fire consumed it, the foul smell of burning flesh filling the air.

"Nice one," Ifrit remarked, his voice tinged with approval. "But don't get too cocky. There's more coming."

Amberine glanced at the doorway, where more goblins were emerging—three, no, four of them, their eyes gleaming with malevolent hunger. Her pulse quickened. She needed to get out of here, find Maris, Elara, anyone who could help before things got worse.

"Ifrit, we need to move," she hissed under her breath, feeling the familiar's warmth pressed against her skin as he hid deeper in her robe. "Stop hiding and help me out here!" Discover stories with m,v l'e|m-p| y r

"Help?" Ifrit scoffed, his voice muffled. "I'm not built for combat, girl. My job is to keep you from getting roasted alive. Maybe focus on not dying before you blame me."

Amberine clenched her teeth, frustration bubbling up alongside her fear. Even in the middle of a disaster, Ifrit couldn't help but argue. But there was no time for this now. She had to get control of the situation before the goblins overwhelmed her.

Taking a deep breath, Amberine stood and summoned her mana once more. Fire crackled around her fingers, but this time she held it back, watching as the goblins advanced. She had to conserve her energy—there was no telling how many more creatures were lurking in the tower.

One of the goblins lunged, and Amberine reacted on instinct, hurling a fireball at its face. It exploded in a burst of flames, sending the creature screeching back into the darkness. Two more charged at her, but she ducked, dodging their claws as they swiped at her. Her heart raced as she rolled to the side, slamming her palm to the ground and releasing a wave of heat.

The flames rippled outward, searing the goblins' feet and forcing them back.

"Amberine!" A familiar voice called from the doorway.

Relief washed over her as she looked up to see Maris rushing in, her face pale with shock but her eyes sharp with determination. Behind her, Elara followed, her blonde hair catching the light as she raised her hand, casting a protective shield around them. The translucent barrier shimmered, holding the goblins at bay.

As annoying as she is, at this kind of situation, she's the best person she could ever wish to have.

"Thank the gods you're here," Amberine gasped, stumbling toward them as the goblins snarled and scratched at the barrier. "This is bad. The tower's gone completely crazy."

"Yeah, I can see that," Maris replied, her voice tight with fear as she glanced at the creatures. "Goblins? In the tower? What the hell happened?"

"It's the Circle," Amberine said breathlessly. "They've been summoning demonic magic. The ritual backfired, and now the whole tower's turned into some kind of endless dungeon. We need to find a way to stop it, or it's only going to get worse."

Elara's eyes narrowed as she inspected the ruins of the magic circle on the floor, her expression grim. "The magic here is unstable. It's not just summoning creatures—it's warping the very structure of the tower. We need to shut down the source of the energy, or the whole place will collapse on itself."

"How do we even do that?" Maris asked, panic creeping into her voice. "This place is a maze of traps and monsters now!"

Before anyone could answer, a low rumble echoed through the tower, and the floor beneath them began to tremble. Cracks spider-webbed across the stone, and the walls shimmered as if the very fabric of reality was tearing apart. The magic wasn't just affecting the lower levels—it was spreading, corrupting the entire structure.

"We can't stay here," Elara said, her voice calm but urgent. "The longer we wait, the more unstable this place becomes. We need to find the central leyline and disrupt the magic flow."

Amberine nodded, her pulse still racing as the weight of their situation pressed down on her. If the tower had become an endless dungeon, then the only way out was to go deeper—to find the source of the corruption and shut it down before it consumed everything.

She glanced at the unconscious student lying on the floor. "We can't leave them behind."

Maris looked torn but finally nodded. "I'll carry them."

With the plan set, the group moved out of the room and into the hallway, the air thick with the oppressive magic that pulsed through the walls. The once-familiar corridors of the magic tower now seemed foreign, twisted by the dark energy that had taken root. The shadows seemed to stretch longer, the corners darker, and the very air crackled with tension.

As they moved through the winding hallways, Ifrit stirred again, his voice low and impatient. "You should've listened to me earlier, girl. If you had stopped that ritual, we wouldn't be in this mess."

Amberine scowled. "I didn't have a choice! Do you really think interrupting a demonic ritual mid-cast would've been a smart move?"

"You never listen," Ifrit grumbled. "You're lucky I'm here to keep you from getting fried."

"Ifrit, I swear—"

A sudden roar cut off her retort. The group froze as a massive, hulking creature emerged from the shadows at the end of the hallway. It was a goblin—but not like the ones they had faced before. This one was taller, more muscular, its skin a sickly green with veins of dark energy pulsing across its body.

Its eyes gleamed with malevolence, and in its hand, it wielded a jagged blade that crackled with dark magic.

"Great. Just what we needed," Maris muttered, her voice tight with fear.

The goblin let out a deafening roar and charged.

Amberine reacted immediately, raising her hands and summoning a wall of fire to block its path. The flames roared to life, but the goblin didn't slow—it plowed through the fire, its thick skin barely scorched by the attack.

"Damn it!" Amberine cursed, throwing herself to the side as the creature's blade cleaved through the air where she had just been standing.

Elara stepped forward, her eyes narrowing as she began to chant under her breath. Her hands moved in precise patterns, drawing intricate sigils in the air. A wave of energy pulsed outward, slamming into the goblin and slowing its movements, but the creature snarled, pushing through the spell with brute force.

Maris, still holding the unconscious student, raised her hand and cast an illusion, causing a phantom wall to appear between them and the goblin. For a moment, the creature hesitated, confused by the sudden appearance of a barrier, but it quickly realized the deception and roared in frustration.

"Ifrit, now would be a great time for that 'keeping me from getting fried' thing!" Amberine shouted as she dodged another swing from the goblin's blade.

With a growl, Ifrit responded, the air around Amberine heating up as the tiny familiar channeled his energy. A surge of fire mana coursed through her, amplifying her abilities. Her eyes blazed with newfound power as she raised both hands, summoning a massive pillar of fire that shot up from the ground, engulfing the goblin in flames.

The creature screamed, thrashing wildly as the fire consumed it. Amberine gritted her teeth, focusing all her energy on maintaining the spell. The heat was intense, even for her, and she could feel the strain of the mana coursing through her body.

Finally, with one last shriek, the goblin collapsed, its charred body crumbling to the ground.

Amberine staggered back, breathing heavily as the flames died down. Her vision blurred for a moment, the exhaustion hitting her all at once. But they couldn't stop. Not yet.

"Come on," she said, her voice hoarse. "We need to keep moving."