"Aside from the Dom family, the other Great families who want fewer competitors for Vaults, the Clear Path and the few others I've offended, who else is on there? Don't tell me, it's a girl I rejected in high school," said Nero with rolling eyes. How much more complicated could the situation get?
Edward smiled.
"As it turns out, for once, the source of all your great troubles is not yourself. Instead, it's your friend, Gabriel."
Nero raised an eyebrow, genuinely surprised. Someone was targeting him because of Gabriel? How did that make sense?
"While following up on the lead, I looked a little into your friend. I hope you do not mind. His situation is far from normal, by any standard. Both his parents have a terrible reputation within the family, so he has no real support. However, unlike his parents, Gabriel himself proved to be highly talented and highly hardworking, and his innate ability is strong as well.
That turned him into competition."
"What does that have to do with me?" Nero asked. "And are you really telling me that I was targeted by the Anzem family?"
"The Anzem family, or some other Great family close to them. What it has to do with you is that competition in Great families is tough. It's not just a matter of resources, but also position and power. Without his parents' support, Gabriel had no real protection so he left his home to get away from the competitive environment. For a time, it worked.
But he must have been noticed by someone when his name was entered into the draft.
"Targeting him would draw a greater inquiry into the matter. However, targeting you was just a way to remind him of his place, and to send him a message. When the assassination failed, and we forced the case to go to court, they offered some incentives to the Dom family in exchange for taking the fall.
"On the surface it looks like Jacob has gone and volunteered in a Cursed zone. Him targeting you also seems reasonable since he targeted Patrick before as well. In a year or so, when he exits, his time in the Cursed zone will drastically improve his service history, improving his career trajectory, while whoever is the real mastermind stays hidden."
"Seems like a lot of trouble for something as insignificant as sending Gabriel a message," Nero said doubtfully.
"Welcome to the dynamics between Great families. Don't worry, since I found out, I thought it would only be just to respond in kind. I've made sure Jacobs' service is going to be as real as he wanted to claim it was going to be, and although I'm not exactly certain who was behind it all, I've retaliated by helping that Gabriel kid out.
Since they were trying to put him down, seeing him rise would only hurt them.
"But kid, I can interfere this time, but I won't be able to do it every time. You and your friends need to anticipate it if someone is targeting you, and take care of it beforehand. Try your best to handle things as carefully as possible. But if you can't… well, don't be afraid to make a mess of things. Remember, you're from a Great family too."
"Old man, you really feel no shame that the Grant family is only Great because mom is a Mystic? I was thinking about it, and considering you have Radix Augmentation as well, shouldn't you be making progress on becoming a Mystic too?"
Edward smiled as grabbed Nero and put him in a headlock.
"Don't forget which one of us is the father, and which one is the kid. Focus on your own things."
Nero would have tried to fight the stranglehold, but it was pointless. No Neophyte could face an Arcanist in a fight of physical strength.
After a while, when Edward became bored from Nero's lack of reaction, he let him go.
"Kid, you interested in joining the Whisper Guard?" he asked.
"Not really," Nero said. "It's pretty powerful as far as I can tell, but all the power they wield is in secret. For the things I want to do, I want power and recognition that everyone knows about."
Edward nodded, as if that was a perfectly acceptable answer.
"For that, I recommend once you get into KMA, do your best to join the Valkon Legion. Each year, they only select one person at most to join, which means they might not even select one."
Nero frowned.
"Valkar Legion? I've never heard of it. What's that?"
Edward hummed for a moment, as he thought of how to answer.
"It's not an actual Legion or something like that. Instead, the Valkar Legion is a legion of the best officers that the academy produces. That's why it's not a commonly known term. I won't go into too much detail.
All you need to know is that to be selected, you need to pass academic tests, have excellent combat prowess, demonstrate excellent leadership qualities, have excellent aether aptitude, and pass a psychological profiling test. You also need to get recommended from one of your instructors.
"In there, Nero, I can't help you, and your mother can't help you. The KMA is notorious for resisting external influence, and they've even expelled kids from the Sage families without fear of persecution. You have to achieve everything on your own."
"KMA is still far away. I have six months of service for now. I'll think about that when I get there. When are you leaving?"
"It helps to plan ahead, but don't feel too attached to your plans. Be flexible enough to change if circumstances call for it. As for me… I'm already gone."
The illusionscape disappeared, and Nero discovered that in front of him, instead of his father, there was a white candle that had reached the end of its life.
The door behind him suddenly opened, and Marilyn walked in, and paused. The sight of the candle was all she needed to see to understand that Edward was gone, and sighed.
"Nero get in the van, we can't spend the night here. We need to leave."
"What's going on?" Nero asked, jumping to his feet, stuffing some rations in his mouth while he reached for their still packed bags.
"There's a cursed tide thirty kilometres (18.6 miles) from here. Although we're on the border of its range, it's best to leave as soon as possible."
Nero didn't ask any questions and quickly returned everything to their van before getting in. Marliyn got in the driver's seat and drove off. For once, the car was filled with silence and Nero didn't dare speak, lest he distract his mother during a critical moment.
A curse tide was not a literal tide, nor did it consist of a massive horde of cursed beasts attacking. Instead, it was the result of a cursed, airborne virus. It could spread with the wind, was invisible, almost impossible to detect and even harder to defend against.
Nero couldn't help but think of how he would be safe if he used Virtuous Moonlight, but not everyone else would be.
Curse tides were not common, but whenever they did occur, it required a Sage to eliminate them. It also usually resulted in mass casualties. The minimum level required to survive was the Arcanist level. Anyone weaker than that was very likely to quickly become sick, and then fall victim to the cursed virus.
But only a few minutes into their drive, they were confronted by the very reason why they normally didn't travel during the night.
From the darkness, as if jumping out from another dimension, like a nightmare given flesh, a hulking mass of twisted muscle and shadowed bone. Its hide was cracked and blackened as if burned from the inside, pulsed faintly with a dull crimson light, casting eerie reflections on the cursed ground beneath its feet.
A massive horn atop its head was jagged and crooked, weeping black ichor that sizzled in the air, while its eyes glowed a malevolent red, burning with an intelligence as dark as it was ancient. Plated obsidian spikes jutted out from its shoulders and legs, and beneath its feet, the very ground withered as if recoiling from the foul energy that oozed from its corrupted form.
There was a sense of something far more sinister lurking within, a power that bent the air with its presence, and in its terrible gaze, a void that threatened to consume anything it touched.
In the split second that it appeared, Nero recognised it as a cursed, thoroughly mutilated form of the animal known as a rhino.
But the creature never crashed into the van. Marilyn threw out a massive Snowflake, cutting through the windshield and cutting the monstrosity in half, freezing its body and then shattering it all before it could touch the van.
But the night was young, and the onslaught had just begun. Yet Marilyn seemed prepared. She pulled out a white candle, and a golden fire appeared on it. The van disappeared.