Janice, Lola, and Delores waited for Ace to answer Matthews, but Sonia had already made up her mind. To her, there was no doubt—Ace was the one who had informed the C.I.B. about her father's guild, leading to their downfall.
Through Matthews, she had long since learned that an anonymous message had been sent to the higher-ups in the C.I.B., exposing how the Everhart Guild had taken over the Weasly winery. The message detailed their use of a high-ranking curse array formation and their grim method of farming curse users who arrived to complete exorcism requests.
It didn't take much for Sonia to put the pieces together. Some rat had escaped their net and alerted the C.I.B., setting off the chain of events that led to the Everhart Guild's ruin. At first, she had suspected the Emi Nakamura cosplayer might have been the rat, but now she saw the truth—there hadn't been just one rat. There were at least two. Maybe more.
Fortunately for her, she ran into one of those rats. Her gaze locked onto Ace, cold and unwavering. In her mind, he was guilty. And she had already decided on his punishment—Death.
However, she wasn't reckless this time. Instead of charging at him head first, she decided to bid her time. She knew the others wouldn't let her do as she pleased, and after witnessing how effortlessly Ace had killed an Ocean-tier curse master and subdued a Sky-tier one, she had to acknowledge the brutal reality—he wasn't going down easy. Actually, she wasn't even sure she could win.
For now, she would endure. She would wait patiently monitoring him. It wouldn't be too late to kill him when she was certain about her success. Knowing Matthews's temperament, she only had one chance. If she were to screw it up, she wouldn't just be breaking her promise to her father and let him down. She would have failed all her fallen comrades. And that wasn't an option.
So, Sonia stayed still, her expression unreadable. But beneath the surface, she was a predator biding her time. Her self-control not to charge at Ace right now showed how much she truly hated him. Therefore, she was willing to wait as long as needed for the perfect moment to strike.
"It doesn't matter. Let's get to safety first," Ace ignored Matthews' question, his focus instead on getting everyone to safety.
Delores raised an eyebrow, taken aback. This was a whole new side of Ace. She had pegged him as a wimp, but now she saw the truth—he was a wolf in sheep's clothing. And she couldn't help but feel a newfound admiration for him, especially since he had saved her once before.
Even without him confirming it, she knew. It had been him. There was no mistaking that bullet—the streak of electricity and light trailing behind was unmistakable. Though the speed and power of the bullet were a lot lesser, she was certain they were one and the same.
"We're safe here," Matthews assured Ace with a steady voice before she murmured, "Dusk Dominion." Soon an enormous surge of curse energy poured out of her, flooding the room. The space around them warped, shifting into a breathtaking late-sunset landscape, they were no longer inside a room but standing on the horizon itself.
A faint glow outlined her figure as the cursed energy settled. "Now, nobody will disturb us. So, you can start—without worrying about any interference," Matthews's tone would not be more menacing.
Her meaning was clear: if Ace dared to undermine her again, there would be serious consequences that he would not like. Ace heard her loud and clear. However, before Ace could respond, Janice stepped in front of him, her eyes burning with intensity. Ace's expression softened, a gentle smile forming as he opened his mouth, ready to apologize—Smack!
The sharp sound echoed through the space as Janice's palm met his cheek with full force, leaving behind a red, stinging imprint.
"Don't you dare lie to me ever again," she warned, her voice firm, unwavering.
A second later, without warning, Ace slapped Janice hard. The impact sent her stumbling to the ground, her hair a tangled mess. A stunned silence filled the room, and everyone froze, their eyes wide with shock. Then, as if nothing had happened, Ace flashed a warm smile and extended a hand to her. With a calm but firm voice, he warned her, "Don't you dare prioritize a stupid ring over my life."
For a moment, Janice just stared at him. Then, surprisingly, she took his hand—though her other hand subtly brushed against her ear, pretending to fix her hair. In that instant, an emerald ring-shaped curse tool materialized on her middle finger. Without wasting a second, she pressed the ring against Ace's hand, which was in her other hand.
A sharp current surged from the emerald, sending a jolt of electricity through Ace's entire body. His muscles seized, his limbs went limp, and before he could react—thud—he collapsed face-first onto Janice. With a grunt of annoyance, she shoved his body off her and stood up. Then, without hesitation, she started kicking him mercilessly.
"You ungrateful bastard!" she yelled, punctuating each word with a brutal kick. "I was so worried about you, not only did you dare to lie to me but this is how you repay me? I can't believe Mandy is related to a dipshit like you!"
While Janice took out her frustration, Sonia saw her chance. Quietly, she inched toward Ace, her expression unreadable. But before she could get any closer—
"Oh, no, you don't," Lola stepped in, blocking Sonia's path. She had no idea what Ace had done to deserve Sonia's hatred, but one thing was clear—if Sonia got her hands on him, she'd kill him without hesitation. And right now, Ace couldn't defend himself so as his friend she decided to step up.
Sonia's eyes narrowed, but she didn't argue. Instead, with a deep 'Hawk' she gathered saliva in her mouth and, with a sharp 'Tuah,' spit on Ace's body. Then she sneered making venomous remark, "Mark my words—I am your death, Ace Lander."