Seven Tiers Of Curse Energy Mastery

'...' Ace was without words listening to Dame Wasp suggest that he kill Gloria. It was not as if that thought had not crossed Ace's mind, but he ignored it as he was not a killer and sought to solve it as a regular high schooler would. 

Feeling that her master's mindset and outlook were not fit for the problem at hand, Dame Wasp narrated her experience to stir him in the right direction, 'Master, the original me kept running from the Roit corporation and never confronted them because she did not want violence and bloodshed. However, they never stopped coming for her. Anywhere she would find a place to call home or someone to call family, they would find her and destroy it all.'

'She had begun to think she was bad luck as destruction followed everywhere and everything she touched. But the truth was she was running from her problems and making things worse for herself. Only when she faced the Roit cooperation and uprooted them did she finally gain her freedom and get a new lease on her life—'

'Woah, Rose, I am going to stop you right there. I hate to be blunt, but that's a movie, and this is real life. I don't want to be a murderer,' Ace cut off Dame Wasp in the middle, as he felt that he should not let his fear dictate his actions. 

'What about the Curse Investigation Bureau that they keep mentioning in their group chat? If they are anything like regular authorities, I could reach out to them for help,' Ace proposed, brainstorming with Dame Wasp. 

'I was able to retrieve the deleted text of the group chat using the phone's auto backup and found that two people from the Curse Investigation Bureau are on the Steal Song society's payroll. I think you approaching the CIB will only hasten your demise,' Dame Wasp pointed out, doing her best to help her master. 

'Not everyone in CIB is corrupt, right? Damn it all,' Ace cursed in frustration finding that he could not trust anybody. He was all on his own.

'This isn't how it is supposed to be,' Ace muttered. A few days ago, he was a regular schoolboy planning to party hard in college. Now, he was at odds with the 9Ks and a target of the Steal Song society. His life seemed to spiral out of his control. 

Feeling the unrest of her master, Dame Wasp spoke, reminding him of his priorities, 'Master, I can't tell you what to do, but I can tell you that if your hesitation causes your family harm, you will never be able to forgive yourself.' 

Being reminded by Dame Wasp of what was at stake here, Ace pulled himself together. He chuckled, seeing that his animated toy was advising him. This whole thing was absurd. Just then, Ace realized he wasn't a regular high schooler anymore. So, he should stop trying to live as a regular high schooler. Didn't he resolve to protect his family's freedom with his newfound powers? Determined, Ace decided to take matters into his own hands. 

With firm eyes, Ace agreed with Dame Wasp, 'Yes, Rose. You are right. In the end, it's me or Gloria. I need to get rid of her for my family—no, to protect everything I hold dear.' 

In his entire life, Ace had never intentionally harmed a soul, yet once again, he found himself considering killing a person, as even if Ace chose to stay out of trouble, the trouble seemed to find him. 

The first person Ace contemplated killing was Mike, and now Gloria. Back then, Ace could not of a scenario where he could kill Mike without getting caught. He wasn't afraid of the jail time but the 9Ks, they would not only come for him but also for his family, so he did not give in to his intrusive thoughts. 

But in Gloria's case, it was different. Ace had to get rid of her before she came for him and his family. If she were to disappear, nobody would suspect him. Still, he would have to be careful of Steal Song society's investigation into Gloria's disappearance. However, all that was if he could kill Gloria. After all, Ace stood no chance in a head-on confrontation against her.

The Steal Soul Society's group chat was very informative to Ace about its members, their atrocities, the world of curses, and Curse masters in general. It was where Ace learned that Curse masters, based on their control over curse energy, could be categorized into seven tiers,

i) Mortal Tier: In this tier, Curse masters can control their curse energy to cause change to their mortal body. 

Ex: Curse reinforcement-I, augmenting physical prowess with curse energy. 

ii) Knight Tier: In this tier, Curse masters can control their curse energy to cause changes outside their mortal body to their surroundings. 

Ex: Curse reinforcement-II, augmenting the prowess of an object with curse energy.

iii) Hero Tier: In this tier, Curse masters can control their curse energy to cause changes in their dynamic surroundings.

Ex: Curse reinforcement-III, augmenting the prowess of a projectile with curse energy or shooting curse energy as projectiles. 

iv) Earth Tier: In this tier, Curse masters can control their curse energy to cause changes to Earth in their surroundings. 

Ex: Wall steps, using curse energy to walk on walls. 

v) Ocean Tier: In this tier, Curse masters can control their curse energy to cause changes to water in their surroundings. 

Ex: Water steps, using curse energy to walk on water. 

vi) Sky Tier: In this tier, Curse masters can control their curse energy to cause changes to the wind in their surroundings. 

Ex: Wind steps, using curse energy to walk on the wind. 

vii) Void Tier: In this tier, Curse masters can control their curse energy to cause changes to the space in their surroundings. 

Ex: Void steps, using curse energy to walk in the void. 

Ace, who had yet to master control over his curse energy, was not eligible for these tiers. Meanwhile, Gloria was a hero-tier curse master and had achieved curse reinforcement-III, which was how she could kill the huge wasp Curseling. 

So even if Ace wanted to kill Gloria, he could not, as they were leagues apart. Not to forget, these tiers did not account for the vast difference in their curse energy, stats, and skills.