My refusal took Nova completely by surprise. She froze for a long time before slowly recovering, then laughed and said to Daphne, "Daphne, no wonder even you can't handle this man. I see why now."
Daphne pursed her lips with a disinterested look. "Don't get me wrong. Who wants to handle him? I'm not interested in him at all."
"Okay, stop passing me around like some object," I said. "You're all famous, first-class family women. I'm just a smelly tattoo artist - I don't deserve you. Getting a tattoo is simple - just pay for it."
Nova sat down and declared she wouldn't give up on me because of this. Then she explained that her family did have a strange problem, and she hoped my Tattoos of Gods and Ghosts could help.
While Nova's family is now in the jewelry business, they originally made their fortune not from gems, but from funerary objects - relics of the dead. Her family used to be netherworld merchants who specialized in selling the belongings of the deceased.
Objects connected to death often carry sinister energies. For example, a general's sword would emit clanging sounds of battle each night and would inexplicably unsheath itself. Once, a family member nearly had their head cut off by it while sleeping.
Another example was a pair of Republic-era embroidered shoes that caused whoever wore them to become possessed at night. The victim - man or woman - would sit before a mirror combing their hair and singing eerie ballads that chilled the blood.
Because this line of work was so dangerous, once the family earned enough, they washed their hands of it and switched to jewelry. Over the following decades, they prospered greatly and expanded their wealth and influence.
But then something strange occurred - Nova's family stopped producing male heirs. Only daughters were born. By Nova's generation, their large family had just one surviving male, still a young child. The other men had all died - some from illness, others suddenly.
Most terrifyingly, Nova had consulted a fortune-teller who predicted this last boy wouldn't live past eight years old. He was already seven. His death would mean no male heirs to continue the family line - an utterly pitiful fate.
It was indeed bizarre. How could such a prominent family only bear daughters? Was it a genetic issue? And why had all the men died so suddenly?
At this point, Nova hesitated before sharing something more private, leaning close to whisper in my ear.
Daphne grew visibly upset by this exclusion - given their relationship, why could I hear what she couldn't?
Yet after hearing Nova's confession, I found it even more unbelievable. The family's curse wasn't limited to males - the women had problems too.
Nova explained that the women in her family were all frigid - completely uninterested in physical intimacy. Medical examinations had proven useless; no one understood why.
This was hard to fathom. An entire family of women being cold in that aspect - was this some kind of hereditary condition?
I felt secretly relieved about refusing Nova earlier. If I had "married" into her family, wouldn't that have been equivalent to becoming a widower?
Nova continued her story. Before her grandfather died, he'd given her a jade pendant. He'd seemed about to say something important when suddenly he acted like something was choking him. He died without ever speaking his final words.
Even more bizarrely, when her grandmother saw the pendant, she went completely mad. Now the old woman screamed about ghosts whenever she saw people, behaving like someone possessed. They'd consulted many netherworld merchants, but none could help.
I asked Nova to show me the pendant - perhaps it was cursed?
Nova agreed, saying she'd fortunately brought it with her. From her bag she produced a flawless white jade pendant carved with the blurred face of a woman. Otherwise, it appeared completely normal.
Nova explained this heirloom had been passed down through generations, originally belonging to the dead. No one knew why their ancestors had preserved it.
In terms of value, the jade wasn't particularly expensive - maybe worth over $100,000 at most, far less than truly precious jade.
As for being cursed? Nova had carried it for years without incident. Only her grandparents had experienced anything strange.
Could this pendant be connected to her family's condition? Nova had consulted knowledgeable netherworld merchants, but all claimed the jade contained no dark energy.
I examined the pendant repeatedly but found nothing unusual - it seemed perfectly ordinary.
Nova's situation perplexed me. I couldn't determine which Tattoo of Gods and Ghosts might help, as her family's problems remained mysterious.
I suggested visiting her grandmother first. If the old woman was possessed, I could give her an Evil-Exorcising tattoo - but I'd need to identify what possessed her.
Nova agreed, though she noted many specialists had examined her grandmother to no avail, eventually recommending psychiatric treatment - implying simple madness.
"No one goes mad without reason," I insisted. "I need to see her for myself."
Daphne insisted on coming along, claiming she hadn't visited the old lady in a long time - though clearly she just wanted to watch the spectacle. She said that for Nova's sake today, she'd let me go for a while, since Antonio had beaten up all her people anyway.
Nova didn't refuse. We all got into the car - I brought Stein along while leaving Antonio to watch the shop. After all, he knew nothing about Yin-related magic and would be useless there.
We arrived at a grand mansion and were invited inside. Like Mr. Lam's residence, this place had protective spells and was staffed with numerous workers and nannies. Inside, I saw a pale, weak-looking boy about seven years old. His bloodless complexion and lethargic demeanor made him appear like someone suffering from chronic kidney deficiency - though at his age, how could that be possible?
Nova introduced him as Zephyr, the last male in her family.
Stein shook his head gravely. "This boy has no vitality - bloodless face, dark circles around his cheeks, slightly greenish lips. These are the signs of someone about to die. He likely won't live much longer."
When I asked why, Stein admitted he didn't know. "People destined to die soon all look like this. Only ghosts know the real cause."
Clearly Nova's family had serious problems. If we didn't find the root cause, their lineage would end - not just because the last male heir would die young, but also because the women's complete lack of interest in intimacy meant eventual extinction regardless.
I asked Nova to take me to see the grandmother. I refused to believe I couldn't uncover the source of this curse.
On the second floor, at the end of a corridor, Nova opened a door to reveal an old woman in a cloak hiding under the bed. When we entered, she stared at us with hollow, lifeless eyes. Before I could speak, she suddenly lunged forward, trying to bite me.
I dodged just in time as she scrambled back under the bed, covering her head and screaming, "Ghosts! Ghosts are coming! Ghosts!"