The Strongest Curse Master

"Who dares to trespass on land guarded by the McSuile family?" Delores thundered as the curse array covering the Lander Estate suddenly rang out in alarm, alerting her to multiple intruders.

Just as she was preparing to take action, she heard Janice command, "Stand down, Delores. It's just a bunch of grumpy old guys."

Janice rushed out of her temporary workshop, having sensed multiple curse masters forcing their way past the McSuile family staff and into the curse array. Had it been the usual low-level representatives of the forces monitoring the Lander Estate, she would've used the curse array to make the land their final resting place. However, these were respected elders from their respective factions, so she restrained her instincts—though barely—and waited for them to give her a reason to unleash her wrath.

"Aurelian Eyes, is this how the McSuile family treats their guests?" a deep voice called out, clearly expressing the group's collective displeasure—not just at Janice's comment, but at the entire situation and her unwillingness to cooperate with them.

"No, this is how we, the McSuiles, treat pests," Janice shot back without even glancing in the direction of the voice. She was thoroughly displeased that these people who thought they could simply waltz into her cursed array like it was their own backyard, and still had the audacity to try to coerce her into doing their bidding.

"This was the Prince's idea. We all agreed to it because of his promises, but your actions are making the Prince look insincere," another voice added, clearly provoked by her tone.

"Then go find my uncle and stop interrupting my crafting," Janice snapped, her gaze lifting past the patio roof and into the sky. "Next time one of you old bastards dares to step into my array, I won't hesitate to kill you."

"Prince did warn us that you'd be difficult to work with on this one," said the voice from earlier, before stepping into view. He was a bald old man in his final years, his skin loose and sagging, with no muscle to give it form. He looked like he could drop dead at any second.

Janice and Delores both frowned as the old man flashed a golden badge adorned with an intricate pattern surrounding an icon of an eye.

Old man was an acquaintance—Aurelian Eyes had had many dealings with him and his guild, the Mars Guild. They were her regular customers. That made it all the more surprising to see an elder of the Mars Guild carrying a McSuile family order.

Their frowns soon twisted into disbelief as they realized what had happened: Prince had casually lent the McSuile order to a small-time elder.

The McSuile Order was a big deal in the mortal world's curse community. Possessing one meant having the McSuile family's seal of approval and trust. In a world where trust was hard to find and betrayal was common, the McSuile family's seal of approval and trust could open countless doors and opportunities.

Moreover, it allowed the bearer to request assistance from the McSuile family—provided the request wasn't illegal or against the family's interests and proper compensation was offered. Naturally, holders of the order also received significant discounts from the family's usual rates.

The Mars Guild was a recognized force within the country's curse community, but compared to the McSuile family and its deep-rooted legacy, they were still small-time—a relatively recent name that had gained some notoriety in recent years. Still, neither Janice nor Delores could think of a valid reason why a mere elder from that guild would be entrusted with a McSuile family order—especially by the Prince himself.

Given the rising tension among the other factions in the curse community over the Overlord's descendant, it was only a matter of time before they began questioning the intentions of the McSuile family. Because they proposed this plan, and they weren't being cooperative. Still, it wasn't the turn of the likes of a mere elder from the Mars Guild to question them. But the McSuile Family order said otherwise.

"Now, do I have your cooperation?" the Mars Guild elder asked Janice with a smug smile. The expressions on Janice and Delores' faces filled him with satisfaction. He had long wanted to teach the arrogant junior and the old temptress a lesson. Every time he visited them, they treated him with thinly veiled disdain, making him feel small, leaving him to wonder, What happened to the good old days when customers were treated like gods?

But today, he held the upper hand.

Janice glared at the smug old man coldly, while Delores reached out for the McSuile Order in his hand with an air of indifference, as if planning to verify its authenticity.

The old man passed the McSuile Order to Delores without hesitation, saying, "Check all you want. It's authentic. Prince personally gave it to me."

"Oh, I don't doubt that," Delores replied calmly. "You see, I'm not verifying it—I'm confiscating it, by the authority vested in me by Patriarch McSuile."

Without another word, she stored away the McSuile family order.

"No, you can't do that. Give it back—we earned it! Prince gave it to us in exchange for our services," the Mars Guild's elder exclaimed, reaching out for the McSuile family order in Delores's hand. But before he could even come close, she had swiftly stored it away and swatted his hand aside.

"It doesn't matter how you got it. What matters is how you planned to use it," she said firmly.

"What do you mean?" the elder asked, genuinely confused by Delores's accusation.

"I found that you intended to use the McSuile family order in a way that goes against the family's interests. So, I had to confiscate it," Delores repeated with a frown.

"How?" the Mars Guild elder asked, his tone now edged with desperation. He still couldn't understand what he had done wrong, giving Delores the reason to confiscate his prized McSuile family order.

"Ace Lander and his entire family are our clients. By asking us to cooperate with you in your plan to use him as a bait, you were essentially asking us to betray the trust of one of our clients in us. Which is strictly against our family's interests. So, I confiscated the order. If you want it back, take it up with Prince, since it belongs to him," Delores explained coolly, knowing full well that unless she spelled it out, the old man would never understand his mistake.

"Y-you…" the elder stared at her for a moment, then snorted in frustration. "Fine. Have it your way."

The Mars Guild elder was filled with resentment, knowing full well he would never recover the McSuile family order. They hadn't truly earned it—Prince had merely loaned it to them in hopes of using the McSuile family's influence to lure out the Overlords' descendant and capture him. In a way, they were offered the family order in exchange for their services to overlook this operation.

"We're done here. Leave the property, or I'll start killing you, starting with you," Janice warned the group of elders, deliberately singling out the Mars Guild's elder. If they thought they'd seen her tolerant side, now they would witness her petty side.

However, in her heart, Janice looked at the Mars Guild's elder as though he were a fool, only now realizing that Ace was never the bait for the Overlords' descendant. He was a distraction—meant to keep small-time players like the Mars Guild and illiterate Cult factions busy, while major players like her uncle, the C.I.B., and other bigshots tracked down the true target: the Overlords' descendant, who had proven too clever for the Samsara Guild's illiterate lots.

She didn't blame these elders; in fact, she sympathized with them. She, too, had been tricked by her uncle. He had used her to add legitimacy to his Samsara Slayer plan. But she didn't let that show on her face. Instead, she decided to play her role quietly in her uncle's game.

Just as the Mars Guild's elder was about to argue, another authoritative voice rang out, "Looks like I'm late."

The elder, Janice, and Delores turned to see EAD Matthews and Agent Sugarmite approaching. They looked furious. Not only had they made fools of themselves arriving at the wrong airport, but someone had also stolen their service car.

Meanwhile, Janice felt a bit better about herself, realizing she wasn't the only one who had been used—Matthews, too, had been a pawn in her uncle's game.

Noticing the pity in Janice's eyes, Matthews flared up, feeling like a complete clown. "What the heck? Call that dipshit Ace out right now. I want my Apache and my car back! Otherwise, I swear, I'll lock his ass up for rest of his life—even if it costs me my job." Her instincts screamed for her to confront the person responsible for the mess she was in.

"Yes, call him out now! We need to get things sorted out," the Mars Guild's elder chimed in, emboldened by Matthews' outburst. He signaled his colleagues to step forward, thinking that sheer numbers might pressure Janice into giving in.