The Strongest Curse Master

"How about you keep it short and make it quick," Ace advised, his patience wearing thin.

Janice sighed, crossing her arms. "Fine. It's because of you. You stirred up a hornet's nest by putting the spotlight on the cult hiding under the C.I.B.'s incompetence. Do you really think it all ends with your little cosplaying friends taking down the mutant rust worm that possessed Sir Beyton?"

She scoffed, shaking her head. "Then you're sorely mistaken, my silly nephew. Do you even realize what you've done? You've set something in motion that could lead to the downfall of the entire C.I.B.—maybe even the whole damn country. And for what? Some petty revenge?"

Her words carried weight, but what irritated her most was the fact that Ace looked genuinely confused like he had no clue what she was talking about.

"What do you mean?" he asked, brows furrowing. For a brief moment, he considered the possibility that Janice was trying to escape bearing responsibility by shifting the blame onto him. But no—she wasn't that stupid.

Janice rolled her eyes and jabbed a finger in Matthews' direction, asking, "How do you think she managed to keep her job after everything that happened last night, genius?"

Ace narrowed his eyes. It's not like he hadn't really thought about it. He had asked Matthews herself about it but never got an answer, so he put it in the back of his mind. But now that Janice mentioned it...

Janice smirked. "Looks like your so-called 'information network' isn't as good as you claim." She then continued, "She still has her job because every single person who could've replaced her was reassigned—to hunt down the Samsara cult."

Ace shrugged. "As they should." He still didn't see how the C.I.B. doing its job somehow equated to him starting the apocalypse.

"Dumbass," Janice muttered in frustration, rubbing her temples. Then, shaking her head, she began explaining, "The Samsara Cult had infiltrated the C.I.B. for decades now. They know all of its top-secret operations and dirty laundry. And trust me, even a single one of those could get the C.I.B. into serious trouble with the Curse Council."

She let out a sigh before continuing, "After their loss at our local C.I.B. branch last night, they tried to do exactly that—expose everything. Lucky for us, the Wisemen assigned to our country by the Curse Council were reasonable. And by 'reasonable,' I mean they saw the Samsara Cult as a much bigger threat than the C.I.B.'s shady dealings."

Janice crossed her arms before continuing, "So, they cut a deal. The Wisemen agreed to overlook the C.I.B.'s... questionable activities, but only under one condition: they had to shut down every single one of their illicit operations immediately and wipe out the Samsara Cult before things got out of control."

She gave Ace a pointed look before revealing, "That's why, since last night, the strongest agents in the C.I.B.—along with some of the country's top curse users—have been hunting down the Samsara Cult together forgetting their petty differences. No pleas, No trial, just complete eradication."

As Janice spoke, it finally started to sink in for Ace. While he had been sleeping soundly, the entire curse community had been flipped on its head—so subtly that there wasn't even a single post about it on the Curse Web.

He believed that had to be the Wisemen's doing after them no one had such capabilities. They were probably making sure this incident didn't undermine the Curse Council's authority in the mortal world.

He knew the C.I.B. had engaged in some questionable activities under the guise of "controlling the unregistered curse-user problem." For instance, their secret surveillance at toll booths connected to properties owned by the Curse Council. And that alone, Ace realized, was enough for the Curse Council to send their Enforcers to wipe out the C.I.B. entirely.

However, the C.I.B. was the only thing standing between the Samsara Cult and total control of the country, so they got a lucky break. The Curse Council, despite its authority, wasn't willing to let the country collapse over the C.I.B.'s misdeeds—especially not when it was the most successful and progressive civilization they had seen since its founding. Letting it fall apart over some shady dealings would've been a waste, so they granted the C.I.B. a rare second chance.

It wasn't unheard of, but it was damn near close.

That's why, overnight, all most all major factions in the country had come together with a single goal: wipe out the Samsara Cult before they realized what hit them.

They say nothing unites people faster than hate. But fear of death? That works just as well. Still, nothing beats hate.

Ace finally pieced it together. "So, you're here to protect my family from any retaliation by the Samsara Cult... or whatever's left of them," he muttered, realizing that since the Cult's attempt to bring down the C.I.B. had failed, they would likely redirect their fury elsewhere. And the most obvious target? The kid who had set off the chain of events leading to their downfall—Ace Lander. After all, Sir Beyton had blamed him for the incident in the VIP dining hall, which ultimately led to the eradication of the Immortal Sect's remnants.

But Janice shook her head, correcting Ace, "No, I'm here to protect Mandy's family."

Ace frowned, but before he could question her, Janice's expression darkened as she warned, "And trust me, this won't end with the Samsara Cult's eradication. Thanks to the Samsara Cult our country's dirty laundry is out in the open. Now our enemies and allies alike know what we did to them. Fortunately, our country has enough manpower to protect itself from the threat of the Mortal world but it is you who should be worried as since last night you had the misfortune of carrying the curse of a slayer... just like Delores."

"Slayer's Curse?" Ace repeated, confused. His gaze shifted toward Delores, who hovered silently on her board above them with Evil Eyes at her side.

"Yes. Be prepared—people who you didn't even know existed will come looking for you now. Some to make a name for themselves, others to prove their worth to their families or sponsors. Which includes me," Janice's voice was serious, her expression unreadable. Then, without warning, she lunged at Ace, throwing a punch aimed straight at his pretty face.