Buzz! Buzz!
Liam's phone buzzed repeatedly while fists pounded on the room door.
"Ahhh!"
He groaned, grabbing his throbbing skull with both hands. It felt like someone was swinging a baseball bat on him nonstop. Slowly, images of the wild night began burning into his memories.
After their dinner, they had left for the club only to find most of the clubs filled with women and a handful of men from prestigious families. With Ji Wei dead and war looming around the corner, the military had begun heavy recruitment. Men were afraid to be seen in public at times like this. No one wanted to be a part of a meat wall expected to stop a horde of creatures of different forms, shapes, and sizes with assault rifles and grenades.
Regardless of the unusual mood in the club, Liam and Lia made the best of it. They danced to their hearts' content, drank like this was the only chance they would ever get, and sang along. Men and women tried to approach their table but were promptly stopped and sent away, giving the pair a chance to enjoy each other's company to the fullest.
By the time they left, they were too drunk to drive and were taken back to the curse estate by security. The last thing Liam remembered was two soldiers complaining about his weight while carrying him up the stairs.
Even with the Kim Jun incident, the night outing was a complete success. Liam couldn't help but imagine what it would feel like to live that life every day.
"Eventually it will bore you," he concluded after giving the matter some thought.
Bam! Bam!
Bam! Bam!
"Master Wilfred, it's twenty-five minutes past the designated training time. Be informed this will be taken out of your free time," a deep yet calm voice came from the other side of the door.
Liam was pulled out of his reverie and quickly slapped his alarm clock quiet. He jumped to his feet, confused by what he'd just heard. He knew he was going to receive a physical trainer—he just didn't think it would happen this soon.
"This information was passed to you and Master Forman. Don't tell me you didn't check your messages?" the voice added amid his silence.
Last night!
Liam squeezed his face and facepalmed as he remembered seeing a message about the physical routine but ditching it for a wild night out.
"Give me a minute!" Liam finally responded with a bitter smile.
It was already horrible that he had to deal with a hangover, but it was even worse that he had to work out with a hangover.
After a quick shower, he put on his track clothes and bolted out of his room. Downstairs was a mountain of a man over six feet seven, with a bald head bearing a machete scar and a thick ginger mustache that made him look even more intimidating. The man's face carried a permanent frown, and based on the way he looked at Liam, it was clear he didn't have a good first impression.
"I am Sergeant Campbell, your fitness and combat instructor." Sgt. Campbell extended his hand, and Liam shook it without hesitation.
For a moment, it felt like he was holding onto a mountain. Deep down, he believed the sergeant could rip his hand off his body if he wanted.
"But he's just human, and I'm an ascendant. Why do I feel threatened by him?" Liam wondered silently.
The rune of murder on this man was strong, glowing fiercely with an intensity even greater than what he had sensed from Kim Jun. To make matters worse, he couldn't feel an ounce of regret linked to Campbell's sins—meaning the man had no remorse for his victims.
"As expected of a soldier in these apocalyptic times," Liam thought. He wasn't intimidated; he was genuinely impressed.
"I'm looking forward to learning from you!" Liam's shock was instantly replaced with childish enthusiasm as he shook the sergeant's hand with both hands.
The response caught the sergeant off guard, forcing a crack to appear on his poker face. Only after recovering did he pull his hand away. The hostility in his eyes dimmed considerably. Coming here, he had expected someone cocky or indifferent. He had expected a challenge to his authority. Not even the wielder of the Inquisitor curse had been completely cooperative during her physical training, so seeing something different from a boy who supposedly murdered his family was shocking.
If anyone was meant to give the most headache, it should have been Liam. That's what he believed.
"G-good," Sgt. Campbell stammered once but quickly regained composure. "As per procedure, your mornings will start with a jog from your home to the training center."
Campbell's voice was much more accommodating this time.
"Understood!" Liam yelled and saluted, causing the sergeant to flinch again.
Standing in a corner observing the interaction, Renginald couldn't take his eyes off Liam. Butlers were curse experts meant to guide ascendants, but they were also spies who gathered information on every ascendant—ranging from potential, capabilities, and many more details.
The government watched its investments through their eyes, and right now many eyes were on Liam. Everyone wanted to know what this pioneer curse meant for humanity. Would it give them hope? And how talented was Liam?
Once Liam and Sgt. Campbell left the house, the old man pulled out his phone and dialed a number.
"Minister…"
"I read the information regarding his curse. Is it really as it was written?" Minister William's voice carried a mix of fear and excitement.
Renginald nodded slowly. "I believe there is more to his curse that he has yet to discover, so I'll keep observing as ordered."
"Good… good. Keep up the good work," William agreed immediately.
Ascendants usually learned more about their curse as time passed, often revealing new aspects no one knew existed. It was foolish to expect Liam to understand a curse of origin after just one use.
"By the way, what do you think about the kid? A curse doesn't determine strength," William asked.
Renginald frowned. He remained silent for several seconds, thinking back on everything he had seen so far.
"He is hungry, energetic, and curious. His insight is deep, and he is quite manipulative. From what I've seen so far, I believe if he's groomed well, he may become the next Ji Wei," Renginald responded honestly.
"Ji Wei and not Alistar?" William sounded disappointed.
"Alistar was a different creature entirely." Renginald's face bloomed into a small smile as memories flooded his mind.
"On his first day as an ascendant, he secretly dabbled with mysticism and ended up stumbling on a dark entity."
William burst out laughing on the other side of the line as he remembered the event. He had just landed a job in the Ministry of Ascendant Affairs when he saw news about the new ascendant who secretly messed with mysticism and got possessed by a dark entity. He had been chained, and it took several ascendants from all provinces to cast the entity out of his body.
"I remember. That crazy fool got possessed for an entire month before regaining his freedom. Everyone thought he had learned his lesson, only to hear hours later that he had been possessed again—by the same entity—after attempting mysticism minutes after regaining control. The evil entity was smarter this time and didn't fight back. Instead, it tried to escape the city, and there was a manhunt for him that lasted three weeks before he was caught and saved again." William laughed, and Renginald joined him.
"Liam is similar, but he is not as reckless or as crazy as Alistar. Miss Lia alerted me of his request to be taught mysticism secretly. While he is impatient like Alistar, he is not reckless."
"And you believe recklessness was one of Alistar's most positive traits?" William cut in.
Reginald nodded without hesitation. "Alistar was reckless and had a crazy level of luck that allowed him to survive many near-death situations. But those situations are what made him the unstoppable monster that put our planet on the map decades ago. Liam will never experience those things due to his cautious nature. And even if he does, he may not be as lucky as Alistar to live through them."
There was a brief silence, followed by a deep sigh.
"Are you saying there can never be another Alistar White?" William asked in a low, demoralized voice.
"Unfortunately, I believe that is the case. Alistar is an anomaly that appears once in a lifetime. I doubt our generation will live long enough to see an Alistar reborn," Renginald said.
"I see…"
That was all Minister William could manage. Silence lingered for several seconds before Reginald finally asked:
"Will you allow Miss Lia to teach him?"
"Yes," William responded quickly. "If we can make a Ji Wei out of him, we've earned humanity a decade of peace. That should be our priority."