Chapter 152: The Evil Agreement

Nian smiled and closed her eyes, her breathing slowing until Milo could barely tell she was breathing at all.

Milo didn’t dare move, didn’t dare make a single sound, watching the candlelight flicker and shift slightly across her still face as the silence stretched on.

Finally, her eyes opened again, dark and steady, fixed directly on him.

"First of all," she said, "you need to know that this curse is a deadly agreement between one of your relatives and the devil. It targeted your whole family. At the same time, this opened your ability to protect yourself."

Milo stared at her, trying to piece the words into something that made sense. "I... don’t understand. I don’t have any relatives."

"Yes, you have," Nian said patiently. "This kind of agreement with the devil is supposed to harm blood relatives and everyone around them. It could be from your father’s family or your mother’s."

Milo’s mind immediately went to his uncle, though the thought felt absurd the moment it surfaced. "Why?"

"Anyone can do anything," Nian said simply. "Jealousy, greed, money."

"But... I don’t understand..." Milo looked down at his own hands, trying to fit the pieces together, trying to make sense of the explanation.

Slowly, an old memory surfaced, one he hadn’t let himself look at directly in years. "I just remember that night. I saw my parents and my brother had something on their chests. Numbers that were glowing. Before their accident. I told them about it."

"The accident had already been written," Nian said. "You were supposed to die as well. But something protected you."

"Then..." Milo swallowed hard. "My uncle brought me to Nero."

"I can’t see if the uncle who brought you to Nero is the same one who set the curse on your family," Nian said carefully. "But if it was him, I’m sure he was scared. As if you stayed with him, then he would die. Because the devil, for sure, is not satisfied that you’re still alive. I’m sure he tried things to take your soul."

Milo felt a chill crawl up his spine. "H-how?"

"It’s how evil the devil is," Nian said, her voice low and even. "They will not let you go. If they couldn’t get your soul, then they would take whoever made the agreement. But whoever it is can’t kill you, or they’ll attract more problems."

Milo’s head had begun to pound, a dull, heavy ache settling behind his eyes.

"What I want to tell you is," Nian continued, "that this curse will haunt you all your life until the devil gets your soul. I can’t lift the deadly curse, because it means I have to use someone else to replace you. But you should not worry, as you have protection."

Milo looked up at her, something small and fragile in his expression. "Is it true that I bring bad luck?"

"Well, not at all," Nian said, and for the first time, something almost warm crossed her face. "Actually, if you use your protection well enough, it should give you many benefits. You have something in you. You just need to understand how it works and how it will help you."

She tilted her head slightly. "With this kind of ability, if you have low energy and you try to help people... like, for example, warning everyone you see is going to die... you might suffer from sickness or weakness."

Milo froze at that, a memory clicking into place immediately. Every time he’d mentioned it to Nero, to Salvatore, he’d ended up sick afterward, drained in a way that never quite made sense to him until now.

"It’s normal," Nian said, watching the realization settle over his face. "What you need to do is just try to make your energy stronger."

"But what else can I do?" Milo asked. "What benefits can I get?"

"Well, actually, it depends on how you use it," Nian said. "Many people try hard to have the same ability to make money. You know, people can sell their ability for as much money as they want."

"I don’t want money," Milo said quickly. "And I don’t want to see people die."

"Very well," Nian said, studying him for a long moment. "I can lift it. But then you might be in danger. Because it’s the one that’s protecting you now."

Milo hesitated, then asked the question that had been circling in his mind since the moment she’d started speaking. "How can I help them?"

Nian went quiet, watching him carefully, weighing something behind her calm expression before she finally spoke.

"It’s really dangerous advice," she said. "But I can feel your sincerity."

She rose smoothly from the mat and crossed to a wooden drawer set against the far wall, pulled out a thin black rope coiled neatly inside, and returned to sit across from him again.

"This rope is just a normal rope," she said, holding it out to him. "There’s nothing special about it. But if you touch it and tie your hand to someone else whom you see is going to die, their fate and destiny will be tied to yours."

Milo took the rope carefully, his eyes widening as he turned it over in his hands. It felt like nothing at all... just plain, ordinary cord. Impossible that something so simple could hold that kind of weight.

"Please tell me that I can use this for Roderick?"

"On whoever you want," Nian said. "But once you tie this, you can’t remove it before their time has passed."

"Then?" Milo asked. "What happens after that?"

"If their time passes, their soul will be tied to you," Nian said. "They will die on the same day you die. They will have a connection to you. It sounds magical, but not everyone wants to share that connection. So, use it wisely. And one very important thing... don’t tell them what you’re going to do with this rope, because then it won’t work."

"But how can I do it without telling them?" Milo asked, his brow furrowing. "They’ll think I’m crazy."

"Yes, actually, that’s the problem," Nian said. "You know, you should not even mention whoever dies in your vision. Nobody should know, because it will harm you."

Milo looked down at the rope again, turning the possibility over carefully in his mind. Maybe he could use it on Roderick. But then he’d have to keep it entirely secret, not tell Roderick, not tell Salvatore, not tell anyone at all.

Could he actually do that? Could he carry a secret that heavy, alone, for however long it took?

He looked back up at Nian. "Then, what happens if I die? Will the curse follow everyone around me?"

"Yes, sadly," Nian said. "You can replace yourself with the one who set the curse, if you want."

Milo’s stomach twisted. "But he will die?"

"Yes," Nian said simply. "But you will be free."

"Then I don’t need protection anymore."

"The protection is with you," Nian said. "You can remove it or live with it."

Milo swallowed hard, his hands tightening slightly around the rope in his lap. "How do I replace myself?"

"It’s a very dangerous ritual, and I need many things related to them," Nian said. "I need their hair and nails. It’s even stronger if you can get their blood as well."

Milo’s mind raced ahead, thinking fast. "Can I replace it with anyone?"