The Strongest Curse Master - Chapter 374

Chapter 374: Traditions & Customs
It was hard for Ace to ignore Sonia—the same woman who once swore to be the death of him—now shamelessly praising and hyping up his achievements to Ava, all while he sat right in front of them. He knew she was using his name to manipulate Ava, but he was still human and couldn’t help feeling embarrassed. Not proud—embarrassed. This was a new experience for him.

“I’ve transferred the amount. Check your wallet. There’s a little extra—enough to hire a nanny of your choice for 10,000 hours,” Ace said as he reached for the Jackpop. But to his surprise, Janice slapped his hand away. He looked at her in confusion, wondering if there was an issue with the payment. After all, this time they had gathered the funds from confirmed Curse Terrorist hidden accounts instead of online gambling sites.

A hundred billion dollars was no small sum. To amass such a huge amount, Dame Wasp had to drain multiple hidden accounts linked to online gambling operations. Overnight, the entire online gambling industry fell into chaos and panic. It didn’t take long for them to realize someone was targeting them specifically. The ones who managed to escape Dame Wasp’s reach quickly wised up and moved their assets into more secure locations.

As for those who lost big, they pooled resources to set up multiple traps, waiting for the hacker to make another move. Since the gambling sector had become too alert, Ace shifted their focus to Curse Terrorists. This time, he didn’t just have Dame Wasp extract the funds they needed—he had her clean them out entirely. He was still waiting on her final report to know the exact total they had collected.

“You can’t take the Jackpop with you. Your sister will have to undergo her awakening ceremony under my supervision. Don’t worry, this is included in the price of the curse item—you don’t have to pay a cent extra. Once Delores finishes the arrangements, we can get started,” Janice informed them. This was to ensure her customers’ stupidity wouldn’t end up damaging her brand reputation.

“Nope, not happening. The Lander family has its own secret awakening ceremony—just like your McSuile family’s. Adhering to your brand policy would go against our traditions and customs,” Ace lied smoothly to reject Janice’s condition.

Ace’s toy summons had proposed several methods to ensure his sister would safely awaken as a curse master and not die in the process. It was because of this that he no longer hesitated to introduce her to the World of Curses. However, he couldn’t use those methods if Janice supervised the ceremony with her signature ability, Aurelian Eyes. Ace trusted Janice—but some secrets were never meant to be shared.

“You’re kidding, right?” Janice asked, but the look on Ace’s face told her he was dead serious.

“Ace, you’re the first curse master in your entire bloodline. Where did these Lander family traditions and customs for the awakening ceremony suddenly come from?” she asked in disbelief. Despite his words and confidence, everyone present knew he was lying.

She couldn’t understand why Ace would reject her offer. Her clients typically loved the fact that Aurelian Eyes personally supervised their awakening ceremonies. But here was Ace—who not only didn’t appreciate it, but outright refused. She expected this kind of ignorance from Ava, not from Ace… unless he was hiding something.

“So what? As the torchbearer of the Lander family’s curse-user branch, it’s up to me to start our customs and traditions,” Ace replied coolly.

Seeing Ace not even bother to hide it and stand his ground resolutely, Janice sighed helplessly. Then she took out a contract and curtly informed him, “Sign this, stating that Aurelian Eyes will not be held responsible for your ignorance and stupidity.”

Ace signed the contract and took the Jackpop. As he effortlessly carried his unconscious sister in a princess carry, Janice added, “I’ve shared my family’s years of research on curse core awakening ceremonies to your email. Please read it thoroughly before you go through with your Lander family’s traditions and customs.”

“Thank you,” Ace replied, genuinely appreciative of Janice’s understanding and consideration, before sprinting back to the wood palace in his room.

After he left, Matthews sighed and asked Janice, “Do you think I should have sponsored him for the National Asset Trials?”

It had been less than a couple of months since Ace entered the World of Curses, and he was already preparing to establish the curse-user branch of his family—complete with their own awakening ceremony traditions and customs. Meanwhile, she—despite being a veteran with decades of experience—had to scavenge curse tools during her off hours just to prepare for her daughter’s awakening ceremony. Lately, she had started to question whether joining the C.I.B. had truly been the best decision of her life.

“He’s more trouble than you can afford. Just follow your original plan. She’s a little hot-headed and has a lot to learn, but she has more than enough gumption to make up for it,” Janice advised, eyeing Ava, who was fiddling with the Weeping Scoop without permission and had no idea they were talking about her.

Even if Ava knew, she wouldn’t have cared. She didn’t hold Janice in the same regard her mother and Sonia did—especially not after hearing the astronomical price being charged for the Weeping Scoop. Ava was the embodiment of the phrase, ‘A newborn calf isn’t afraid of a tiger.’

“Mmh,” Matthews nodded in agreement.

Ace was too eye-catching. He was bound to soar to great heights—perhaps even beyond the skies. There was no doubt about that. But one had to shine just as brightly to soar alongside him. Otherwise, they risked being blinded by his brilliance.

Janice had realized this when Cyclops took a particular interest in Ace—so much so that he stooped to playing petty tricks during their transaction. Cyclops was no longer a mere curse crafter, but a distinguished being in a league of his own. For someone like him to lower himself to try to trick a mortal spoke volumes about how highly he regarded Ace. And this was despite the fact that Janice herself, praised and respected by curse users from both worlds, was looked down upon by Cyclops.

That was life—there was always a bigger mountain somewhere out there.