The Strongest Curse Master

"Well, that's because she's been more of a parent to me than you ever were!" Elinor shouted, defending her decision to trust the unknown woman who visited her dreams over her father and the family elders.

"Wait, you don't really believe that, do you?" Prince asked, disheartened. Without realizing it, the distance between him and his daughter had grown far deeper and longer than he'd ever imagined.

Yes, the way Prince raised his daughter wasn't conventional, but he truly believed it wasn't wrong either.

It was about time Elinor understood that she wasn't ordinary, nor was he, and neither was the McSuile family. He couldn't give her a typical childhood like other kids had. From the moment she was born, she was anything but ordinary. If he, as her father, didn't prepare her to face their world from day one, he would have failed her. He truly believed he had done his duty as a parent, no matter what she thought.

"I used to," Elinor admitted, her tone softening. "But now that I've taken responsibility for Lilith, I've started to understand the difficult choices you had to make. Still, making me believe the entire family—even the staff—hated me? That was cold. That wasn't right. If it hadn't been for the Dreamlady and her teachings distracting me, I'd be way more messed up than I already am."

Wanting to give Lilith the normal childhood every kid deserves, Elinor had come to a harsh realization: "normal" was no longer an option for Lilith. That was when she finally began to see the world through the eyes of a parent—and gained a whole new perspective on her own childhood.

"You think I would let that happen to my lovely daughter? I had thought it all through. I believed slowly, but soon you would earn everyone's recognition and respect through your outstanding achievements in the family's curse arts.

But who could have predicted that once you awakened as a Curse Master, you would abandon the family's curse arts entirely and focus solely on curse spells, despite the elders' warnings and my strong opposition?

With the kind of reputation curse casters have, you should have known better than to openly practice curse spells in the family. Watching you recite those strange spells and perform those weird rituals day in and day out, the staff began to fear you and gradually distanced themselves from you.

Do you know, I had to triple the salary of the staff assigned to you because they were terrified to be around you? I tried to explain to them that curse casters weren't as bad as the rumors made them out to be, but even then, many chose to leave, some thinking I was going to use them as sacrifices to help you with your curse spells.

They preferred quitting over attending to you. And it wasn't just the staff—your aunts, uncles, and other relatives were afraid to let their children near you. They were always ready with complaints about you and never had anything good to say. Honestly, I doubt they could say one nice thing about you even if I paid them.

You have no idea what I've had to deal with because of your willfulness. It only became more difficult once you became a legal adult. I stalled as long as I could before handing you over to the C.I.B. I hoped that, at the very least, you'd find people there who understood you and a place where you could belong… I guess everything worked out in the end," Prince recounted with a proud smile on his face. Nothing said 'My dear daughter, I'm proud of you' better than that smile.

There was a significant difference between curse arts and curse spells. Curse arts involved circulating curse energy within one's body to achieve the desired effect, while curse spells relied on resonating one's curse energy with the world's mysteries to produce an effect.

Breathing techniques and body exercises were used to circulate curse energy in accordance with the curse art being practiced. In contrast, reciting incantations and performing rituals were methods used to resonate one's curse energy with the world's mysteries, as required by a given curse spell.

All curse masters could practice curse arts, but not all curse masters could practice curse spells. Only a select few who could glimpse into the world's mysteries were capable of practicing curse spells. As a result, regular curse masters often couldn't understand curse casters. And when people don't understand something, they begin to fear it—fear, in turn, leads people to do irrational things.

That's how bias against the curse casters began to spread throughout the mortal world's curse community. Their strange spells and bizarre rituals only added fuel to the fire, making them some of the most misunderstood and feared curse professionals in the entire curse community.

"Those bitches," Elinor cursed, "they all called to congratulate me, reminding me how they were 'always there for me' and that I shouldn't forget them or my cousins now that I've achieved something." She clenched her fists, realizing that if not for her father's timely reminder, she might have continued feeling gratitude toward those snakes.

Despite what they thought of young Elinor, no one dared to show it openly or speak ill of her to her face. After all, she was the direct descendant of Patriarch McSuile. Their very existence revolved around serving her. If they ever forgot that, they were as good as dead. Back then, little Elinor had mistaken their duty for familial care. But now she knew better.

"Language," Prince reminded sternly.

Ignoring the rebuke, Elinor said, "Since you're clearly not planning on telling me anything about my mother or the woman in my dreams, let's get to the point— the Void Core. Transfer the money to my account by tomorrow morning. If there's even a penny missing, you'll regret it."

Elinor had come to accept that her father wasn't going to share what he knew with her. Judging by his attitude, he was prepared to take his secrets to the grave. So, she didn't press further. Instead, she followed Ace's advice and demanded her rightful share of the Void Core. It was a bold move, but shy of what Ace had expected her to do, but if her father didn't hold up his end, she had no choice but to be heartless.

"What Void Core?" Prince asked, feigning ignorance as if he had no idea what she was talking about.