The Strongest Curse Master-Chapter 294 : Fire!

'Why the fuck is it taking her so long?' Ace wondered, growing impatient as Matthews prepared to launch her attack on the Lansky house.

The Apaches hovered lower, their Chain Gun-type curse gadgets primed to level the entire house. The hum of the engines and the slow rotation of the guns created an ominous tension in the air.

Meanwhile, from the other side, Janice was making her own preparations. Just as the helicopters descended further, the curse barrier array surrounding the house—originally cylindrical with an open top—suddenly sealed itself shut, trapping the Apaches inside.

Ace's eyes widened as he mentally cursed, "Shit!"

The barrier was no joke—600 yards in radius, 200 yards high. The Apaches had space to maneuver, but they weren't getting out anytime soon.

Seeing both sides were prepared to go to war, Ace turned to Ava's mother in urgency and pleaded, "Mrs. Martins, please let me talk to them before you take extreme measures—"

But before he could finish, Matthews cut him off with a condescending voice, "You'd love that, wouldn't you?"

Ace clenched his jaw. He knew exactly why she was shutting him down. Matthews now believed Lilith was the key piece of evidence she needed to convict him, and she wasn't about to let him anywhere near the girl. Hell, she wouldn't even let him near the house, let alone negotiate with Janice on the C.I.B.'s behalf. Besides, he wasn't C.I.B.—who the hell did he think he was, interfering in her operation?

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She gave him a pointed look before turning her attention back to the Apaches, "Men, blow that house up."

She didn't even bother giving Ace a warning or a chance to get clear. But before the Apaches could unleash hell, something changed. The air inside the barrier began to shift. Three small dust storms formed within the enclosure, each one swirling aggressively around an Apache. The pilots quickly realized something was very wrong.

"Ma'am," one of them reported through comms, a hint of unease in his voice, "this cursed barrier array is more than it seems. It's completely sealed, trapping the air inside. There's no ventilation system to regulate the pressure."

After a brief pause he gave her the ultimate bad news, "For the safety of the machinery and its equipment, we're initiating an emergency landing."

Matthews narrowed her eyes as the Apaches slowly descended to the ground while Ace exhaled in relief thinking, 'Well… that changes things. Maybe I jumped the gun texting Ava too soon… Whatever. As long as she can get Matthews to leave, it'll be worth it.'

The Apaches—each one practically a half-curse gadget on its own—were loaded with enough cursed gadgets to level a city block. Each of these setups was worth billions. If Matthews lost even one, let alone all three, over a botched negotiation, she could kiss her dreams of getting called to the capital goodbye. Hell, if the president was feeling generous, she might barely manage to keep her current rank.

"Fine," Matthews snapped. "Land them in a way that keeps the house in firing range. I want that pain-in-the-ass curse tool gone, ASAP."

Ace exhaled sharply, cursing in his mind, 'Shit.' He had way overestimated Matthews' ability to back down. A minor setback wasn't going to stop her—she was committed.

Following her orders, the Apaches touched down, encircling the house with their laser-guidance systems locked on target. The once beautiful flower garden? Completely trashed. The ground was a mess of churned-up soil, trampled petals, and deep gashes from the landing gear.

Ace's stomach twisted at the sight. The flowers? Whatever. He could get Dr. Druid to regrow them—hell, probably even better than before. But if the house got blown up? How the fuck was he supposed to explain that to his parents?

Then it hit him, 'Wait. Why am I even worried about explaining this shit to them?'

It wasn't his responsibility. It was the C.I.B.'s mess. They were the ones leading this operation, and if things went south, they were the ones who'd have to clean it up.

Except… it was the C.I.B. A slow, inefficient, bureaucratic nightmare. If they screwed this up—if they dropped the ball like every other government agency—he'd still be the one stuck dealing with the fallout. And that was why he couldn't stop worrying.

A sudden barrage of machine-gun fire jolted Ace out of his thoughts. Before he could react, Matthews lunged in front of him as bullets ricocheted off the house's walls—some of them heading straight for him.

The gunfire continued for a solid five minutes. Yet, to their surprise, not a single bullet managed to break through the house's defenses.

Then again, maybe it wasn't so surprising. This house had already shrugged off an attack from a Sky-tier opponent and even turned the force against her. Compared to that, chain gun-type curse gadgets—while deadly to most—were nowhere near enough to crack it. These weapons could threaten a Sky-tier, sure, but the house was built differently. Its entire existence seemed to revolve around defense.

Unless they figured out the trick behind its protection, breaking through with this level of firepower was a pipe dream.

Matthews knew it. The Apache pilots knew it. So they didn't even bother continuing their attack after the curse gadgets reloaded.

"Uh… thanks, I guess," Ace muttered, glancing at Matthews. He wasn't entirely sure if he should be thanking her. After all, he was only in this shitshow because of her stubbornness.

Matthews ignored him. She was too busy relishing the moment, secretly thinking about how badass she must've looked, stepping in front of him before those ricocheting bullets could hit.

Ace would've agreed. But he also would've pointed out that it wouldn't have been necessary if she hadn't ordered her men to open fire, with a civilian in the vicinity, in the first place.

"Use the missiles," Matthews commanded, her voice sharp. But before the Apaches could launch, a priority alert came through her earpiece, "Ma'am, your daughter is here. She's making a scene, demanding to enter the lockdown zone. Permission to detain her?"