The Strongest Curse Master

"So, it's decided then?" Delores asked, confirming their plan for Ace's clone to borrow her board and run his errand.

"Yeah," Ace agreed, summoning DD in his appearance, pretending to be his clone. And she held the cursed wooden cane.

The moment she appeared, Lilith, who had been playing with her zombie minions by the flowerbed, snapped her head toward her. Her gaze locked onto clone-Ace's, suspicion flickering in her eyes. Knowing she had figured it out, clone-Ace winked and brought a finger to his lips, silently asking her to keep the secret.

Lilith caught on and nodded but still ran over and wrapped her arms around clone-Ace's legs, demanding, "Come play with me."

Hearing Lilith call the clone to play with her when the real Ace was standing right there, Janice, Delores, and Elinor exchanged looks, their eyes narrowing in suspicion.

Delores sighed and shook her head in disappointment. "Kid, one of these days, your secrets are gonna be the reason you lose everything you hold dear," she warned.

She was disheartened to realize Ace had tricked her with a clone while the local C.I.B. headquarters was under attack by the cult. And she finally found the little interest to express it to Ace seeing him continue down that path again.

Yes, she was more upset with herself for not seeing through his trick, but what really stung was that Ace didn't trust her enough to include her in his plans. She had made it clear—she would help him with anything as long as it didn't involve the McSuile family.

The fact that he still didn't trust her? She saw that as a failure on her part. But more importantly, she saw it as Ace's greatest weakness.

"Delores, I didn't trick you because I don't trust you. I did it because you guys constantly underestimate me. If I had told you my plan, you would never have agreed to it—you would have done everything in your power to stop me last night. I didn't see any other way," Ace explained, meeting Delores's gaze. He could tell she was still upset after learning most of the truth about what had happened, but her thinking it was because he didn't trust her? That was a huge misunderstanding, and he needed to clear it up.

"You have to believe me when I say I trust you. Otherwise, I wouldn't have asked you to protect my family."

"Really? Then who's that?" Janice cut in, pointing at clone-Ace, who was now happily playing with Lilith while the adults argued.

"All I can share with you guys is that it's an extension of my abilities," Ace said vaguely. Then, looking at Janice, he added, "And thank you for not using your curse tools on it just to satisfy your curiosity."

He was sure Aurelian Eyes had a few tools that could expose the truth about DD, pretending to be his clone, but she hadn't used them. That meant a lot to him. She'd chosen to respect his privacy instead of prying just because she could.

Despite his explanation, the trio continued to stare at him, their gazes intense. Ace sighed, feeling cornered. "Get off my back. It's not like you guys don't have any secrets of your own."

"Ace, everyone has secrets, but not about these kinds of things. Take last night, for example—if you had just been honest with us about your abilities and what you're capable of, you wouldn't have had to worry about Delores underestimating you. Instead, she could have joined you or at least acted as your backup," Janice explained gently, making sure Ace didn't think she was just shifting the blame onto him.

"See? Your trust issues are your greatest weakness," Delores added, seizing the moment to rub an I told you so in Ace's face.

Janice suddenly snapped, "What is it with you strong men and psychological issues? Is it because your mommy or daddy didn't pay you enough attention when you were little?"

Ace blinked, caught off guard. "What?" Elinor and Delores also looked at Janice skeptically.

Janice's frustration wasn't really about Ace—it was about her brother. Crimson Eyes had been psychologically broken by their enemies, forcing him to drop out of the national asset program. If he had won, he could have taken over the family without resistance or objections, saving them both from the endless family drama that had plagued them for what felt like an eternity. Seeing Ace let his trust issues put him in danger dredged up all those old wounds for her.

Elinor had already noticed her cousin acting strangely for a while now, so she finally asked, "Cousin, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Janice replied, shrugging off their concerned gazes. She then turned to Ace and said, "Know this—secrets might add an extra barrier of protection against your enemies, but they also build a barrier of isolation between you and the people you care about. It can't go both ways. You have to decide for yourself whether you'll let your fear of getting hurt stop you from connecting with the rest of the world—especially with those you care about, in this world or, in our case, both worlds."

Ace was amazed at how well the trio had come to understand him in such a short time. At this point, he wouldn't be surprised if they had already drawn up a complete psychological profile on him. Apart from his Toy Summons, these three had him figured out. On one hand, he was glad he had found such capable security for his family, but on the other, he feared they would eventually uncover the truth—the real him.

An overweight, scared, and helpless teenager, unable to stand up to his bullies. Screaming for help. And yet, no one seemed to hear his cries.

"There, right there—what just flashed through your mind? Share it with us," Janice demanded, noticing the storm brewing in Ace's eyes as they spoke of his inner struggles.

"I'm done talking," Ace said flatly, signaling DD to get going.

Before leaving, the clone Ace promised Lilith he'd play with her again later. Then, with a final nod, he leaped onto Delores's board, which hovered just above the ground.

Receiving the ready signal from the clone, Ace instructed Delores, "Send her to the Weasly Winery."

While Janice shook her head, Delores glanced indifferently at her innate curse tool. Elinor, however, wasn't done. She advised Ace, "Whatever it is that's haunting you, you need to deal with it as soon as possible. Otherwise, it will continue to weigh on you, growing heavier and heavier until one day, it crushes you completely."

Ace knew the trio—and even his Toy Summons—were saying this for his own good. But he didn't know how to let go of his dark past. He believed it was the catalyst that had set off the chain reaction making him who he was today. At first, he thought getting revenge would be enough. But it wasn't.

It was like how doing good deeds couldn't erase the bad ones. Similarly, avenging himself hadn't erased the trauma of his bullied school life. Sure, it had felt good, and if given the chance, he'd do it all over again. But revenge hadn't been the solution to his mental struggles. It was like smashing the car that rear-ended yours—it wouldn't magically repair your own bumper.

"Thanks for the inspirational quotes, but I don't own a car to stick them on my rear window," Ace quipped, politely brushing off Elinor's unsolicited advice before turning to Delores. "Send them already. I don't have all day."

Delores nodded, and in an instant, her board vanished, carrying Ace's clone away at an astonishing speed.

"So, get this—Elinor promised our aunt that she'd let Lilith decide whether she wants to join the family school after a campus tour," Janice gossiped to Delores, even though Elinor was standing right next to her.

"Hey! At the time, it felt like a great idea," Elinor protested, trying to defend herself. In reality, she had been played like a flute by their aunt. She still could not fathom how it all happened. It felt surreal.

"That's a great idea. They'll ensure she grows up to be a valuable asset to the family and humankind. She will love it there," Delores replied, surprising both Janice and Elinor. Unlike them, Delores seemed to genuinely believe that their family's school would be a good place to mold Lilith into a responsible adult.

"What was I thinking?" Janice scolded herself, realizing her mistake. As one of the school's first alumni, of course Delores would think Lilith joining was a good thing. Times like this reminded her of the status difference between them.

"Why? Is something wrong?" Delores asked in confusion, noticing their expressions turn grim. In her mind, the McSuile Curse School had been a great institution—especially in its early days, when it was run by her senior brothers and sisters. To her, those years were some of her most cherished memories.