The next morning, I sat down at a long table in the faculty conference room, surrounded by a dozen professors and staff members. Some faces were familiar, old colleagues from my headmaster days, but most were new, young faces I had never met before.

  Sherry sat at the head of the table. “Thank you all for coming. As you know, my father, Archmage Aldric, is back with us. He’ll be teaching a few courses and offering guidance during the tournament preparations.”

  All eyes turned to me. I offered a casual nod. “It's a pleasure to be be back. I am Aldric, the previous headmaster of the academy. Some already know me, other only recognize my name. Since I don't like long and boring speeches, I will end my greeting with one sentence: I look forward to working with all of you."

  This earned me a few chuckles. At least I broke the ice, this would have been horrible if they looked at me with awe or intimidation.

  Sherry gestured to a tall and serious-looking bespectacled man seated a few chairs down. “This is Professor Callen. He’s been overseeing advanced combat magic since your retirement.”

  Callen adjusted his glasses and gave me a smile. “It’s an honor to meet you, Archmage. Your techniques have entered the curriculum.”

  “Glad to hear it,” I replied politely.

  “And this is Professor Elira. She specializes in mana theory and manipulation.” Sherry continued, motioning to a younger woman with vibrant green hair.

  “I am glad to meet you, Archmage Aldric. You are my idol. ” Elira said with a smile.

  Oops. Handling such straightforward admiration wasn't my forte.

  "Good to meet you as well, professor Elira." I answered with a wry smile.

  A boisterous laughter erupted, startling the new teachers.

  “Hi Aldric, didn’t think you would come back here,” said a familiar voice.

  “Hello, Carl. Long time no see.”

  The source of the voice was a broad-shouldered man with a graying beard, sitting near the middle of the table. His eyes twinkled with mischief as he looked at me, arms crossed. Carl Black—Head of Magical Artifacts and an old friend from my student and headmaster days.

  “I see that retirement didn’t do much to fix your dreadfully dull speeches.” He chuckled teasingly.

  “You’re still as insufferable as ever, Carl.” I shot-back with a grin.

  "Good to have you back, old friend. This place wasn't the same without you," said Carl with a smile.

  The introductions continued, and I made an effort to commit names and faces to memory. Most of the teachers seemed competent, though a few struck me as a bit too idealistic, or a tad too serious. Well there were all kind of people just like in the past.

  As the meeting progressed, the conversation shifted to tournament logistics. Sherry and the professors discussed everything from participant pairings to warding the dueling arenas. I listened quietly, only intervening when someone asked for my opinion, making myself as scarce as possible considering my identity.

  I have always dreaded those boring reunions. As the headmistress, Sherry must have had it hard. I though, feeling a tinge of guilt.

  When the meeting finally adjourned, Sherry pulled me aside. “Not bad for your first faculty meeting in decades.”

  I gave her a pointed look. “I won't do it again.”

  She grinned. “It's okay, I didn't expect you to. I need you for other things anyway, like the new-teachers course you have in the afternoon.”

  I groaned helplessly. "I totally forgot."

  Sherry’s grin widened. "I knew you would. That's why I am kindly reminding you. They need your insight."

  "Insight, huh?" I muttered, rubbing my temples. "More like a crash course in survival."

  "You’ll be fine, they are eager to learn from you," she said, patting my arm in mock reassurance.

  "This is the last time Sherry. I won't do - " I stopped my sentence midway upon noticing she had already escaped trough the door.

  She really took after her mother. Free like the wind and not abiding to common sense in the least.

  ***Later in the day***

  By the time I reached the designated classroom, I did my best to stay patient despite my growing desire to skip the class entirely. The room was filled with young and mid-career teachers, all chatting animatedly. A few glanced my way with anticipation as I entered, and the chatter died down right away.

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  "Good afternoon everyone." I said, closing the door behind me. "Today, I will answer any question related to teaching. "

  I made my way to the podium at the center of the room and picked up my speech where I had left off.

  "First, how many of you think teaching is just about helping your students understand and improve their magic?"

  A few hands went up, though not as many as I expected. Interesting.

  "This is not entirely right but not entirely wrong either," I said, nodding. "But if that’s all you’re doing, you’re missing the point. Our goal is to teach them how to conduct themselves properly in society, how to think, adapt, and make the right decisions."

  Most of the mid-careers and young teachers nodded in agreement, some youngster even took notes or started a magical recording with their orbs.

  They didn't even bother asking for permission. Such impolite behavior... I though irritated, but I held my tongue. At least they were willing to learn.

  Elira, the mana theory professor, raised her hand, going straight to the point. "How do you balance freedom and discipline?"

  "Good question," I replied. "The key is knowing your students. Your challenge is to recognize who needs what and when. For instance, unruly students who are a danger to themselves and others needs discipline first."

  As soon as my words left my lips, an exuberant laughter filled the room.

  I turned toward the source of the familiar voice. It was Carl again. He stood in the doorway, arms crossed, a wide grin on his face.

  Did he come to help me make the atmosphere lighter? I though with a smile.

  "Unruly students needing discipline, huh?" he said, stepping inside. "Is this advice based on your own rebellious streak back in the day, Aldric? Or am I the only one who remembers how many potions you set on fire during Alchemy Basics?"

  The room erupted in chuckles, and I couldn’t help but smirk. "If I recall correctly, Carl, you were the one egging me on half the time. And the other half, you were the one putting out the fires."

  "Right, we were the best team of the school." he said with a wink, finding an empty chair near the back.

  "I am glad you could join us. Though if you’re here to critique, feel free to grab a broom and demonstrate how to clean up a classroom full of magical chaos."

  More laughter followed our impromptu rambling jokes.

  I knew it would work. Our witty banter had earned our duo quite the reputation in our students days. We were more famous for our ingenious pranks and jokes than our magical abilities. One of our classmates even teasingly asked if we were planning to change carrier path to become actors.

  I put my toughs aside, turning back to the group. "As I was saying, discipline and freedom are tools. But it’s how you wield them that matters. Let’s make an example."

  I conjured an illusion of a classroom scene. The spectral students varied wildly: one was casting a spell that made their chair float, another was doodling animated stick figures in the margins of their textbook, and a third was glaring at what was left of his botched spell as if his own magic had personally betrayed them.

  "Here’s your scenario. This is a beginner’s class on elemental magic. Your task is to maintain order while also encouraging creativity. Who wants to go first?"

  Kana, the young artifact professor, was the first to volunteer, her confidence evident as she approached the illusory classroom. She addressed the floating-chair student first, redirecting their spell into a more controlled levitation exercise. She tasked the doodler she with creating a magical diagram relevant to the lesson. And for the sulking student, she crouched down, engaging them in a quiet, reassuring conversation.

  When she was done, I nodded in approval. "Good use of redirection and individualized attention. You kept their focus while allowing them to express themselves. What would you have done differently?"

  Kana considered for a moment. "I might have set clearer boundaries at the start to prevent the floating chair in the first place."

  "Excellent point. Anticipating chaos is just as important as managing it. Anyone else?"

  Carl, predictably, raised his hand. "Let me have a crack at it."

  His approach was more direct. He clapped his hands sharply, the illusionary students freezing mid-motion. "Alright, listen up!" he barked. "If you want to float chairs, do it after class. Right now, we’re focusing on elemental magic." He pointed to the doodler, "If you want to draw, you can make illustrations of what I am explaining in your notebook."

  By the end of his demonstration, the classroom illusion had transformed into a cohesive, albeit still lively, group.

  "Different approach, same result," I said. "Carl’s authority worked because he didn't shut his students down, but used their motivation and redirected it."

  After a few more volunteers and discussions, I dispelled the illusion. "Every class is different. They won't behave the same way, and your teaching style will need to adapt constantly."

  The room was quiet for a moment before the group erupted into applause. Even Carl joined in, nodding approvingly.

  When the teaching survival crash course ended, the teachers left the auditorium talking among themselves.

  Carl approached me with his usual outgoing demeanor.

  “So, how’s life been treating you, Aldric?”

  “Fine, Carl. Fine,” I replied, offering a faint smile. “I’ve made a significant breakthrough in my research.”

  “You know that’s not what I’m asking…” He said with concern. “You seem as sharp as ever, but something feels… off.”

  Even if he didn’t say it outright, I could read between the lines. He wanted to know if I was still stuck in the past, missing Sofia, my dear wife.

  “Still as brutally direct as always, huh?” I shook my head. “If you’re wondering whether I’m still obsessing over resurrecting Sofia like some madman… the answer is no.”

  Carl let out a breath he’d been holding. “Good. You had us all worried, Aldric. When you shut us out, we feared the worst.”

  I tilted my head, a smirk tugging at my lips. “So, you were worried about me, Carl? How touching.”

  He rolled his eyes, but I pressed on, my grin widening. “Tell me, then—have you finally settled down? Married? Kids?”

  For a moment, he seemed to drift somewhere far away. Then, with a shrug, he answered, “No, Aldric. Family’s not for me. I prefer being alone.”

  I raised a brow. “Strange. Weren’t you the one always telling me how lucky I was to have found Sofia?”

  "Well. We all change over time." He answered with a wry smile.

  I narrowed my eyes, unconvinced. “No family, huh?” It was unexpected, he used to joke about wanting to be a family man. “Well, at least you have your students to take care of you in your old age.”

  He frowned. “I wouldn’t count on it. Ungrateful brats, the lot of them. Ran off to the magical tower the moment they had the chance.”

  “Ouch. Sounds rough,” I winced. “Want to reminisce about the old days together?”

  He stared at me for a moment, then shook his head. “Not right now, Aldric. I have a lot of research on my hands.”

  I chuckled. “Ah, always the dedicated scholar. Some things never change.”

  Carl sighed, rubbing his temples. “Life can be tiring sometimes. I just hope all of this will end soon.”

  I blinked, my curiosity piqued. “What do you—”

  But before I could finish, he had already straightened up, his face settling into a carefully neutral mask—the kind that said don’t ask, I won’t answer.

  “See you around, Aldric,” he said, turning away. “I need to go.”

  And just like that, he was gone, leaving me with more questions than answers.