An Owl's Rise-Chapter 459 - Maeve’s Fate

She figured that if this was enough to make Maeve cave, then she was far too weak willed to stick around.

Yet, to her surprise, Maeve held her ground and glared back at Evelyn.

"I won't back down. I'm staying here. I'd rather stand with the last person that loves me and fail than run away again."

"I see. You truly are resolved. That makes what I'm about to do more difficult for both of us." Evelyn said, leaving Maeve wearing a confused expression.

An instant later she seemed to vanish and reappear right behind Maeve.

Before the young lady of the Taidale family could react, Evelyn brought her hand down in a quick chop on the back of her neck.

Multiple magic charms meant to protect Maeve activated at this clear sign of aggression, but Evelyn did not back off.

She intercepted the attacks coming for her with a wall of wind and pure magic energy and broke through the barriers around Maeve using her heavenly flame.

A loud thud echoed through the room as Evelyn's hand connected with her target, and without being able to do anything Maeve felt her consciousness fade.

"Hate me if you want, but I'm doing this for your own good." Evelyn whispered into the unconscious Maeve's ear.

During their time together Evelyn had found her to be annoying but was also sympathetic to the poor girl.

Maeve was not a bad person, and the betrayal of her family reminded Evelyn of her own misfortunes with her family during her first life.

Perhaps if Maeve had been born something other than a human, the two of them could have been genuine friends. As Evelyn was now, though, her disdain for humanity as a whole ran deep. She had experienced far too much of the dark side of humanity in both of her lives.

"This should do." Evelyn said, holding Maeve in princess carry.

At first, she was just going to Maeve's body over her should like a sack of potatoes but figured that this might make things more difficult. Vivienne was already likely to have something to say about the violent manner in which Evelyn was forcing her grandniece to come along with them.

Still, it had become apparent to Evelyn that Maeve was not going to leave by choice no matter what anyone said. When words failed, the only thing left to resort to was force.

With Maeve unconscious body in her arms, Evelyn made her way back to where her friends were getting ready.

Vivienne was with them, overseeing a inconspicuous carriage being prepared by subordinates that she trusted.

She glanced over at Evelyn and saw her niece's condition and froze in astonishment.

"I'm afraid that she refused to leave with us, so I had to resort to knocking her out. I promise that she's fine." Evelyn said before Vivienne questioned her.

"But, how? Maeve should be…"

Naturally Vivienne could not understand how Evelyn had managed to incapacitate her grandniece. Maeve was at the high tier of the mage rank while Evelyn was only at the low tier. Vivienne had also seen her niece outfitted with some powerful protective charms. It should not have been possible for her to lose to Evelyn.

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Fortunately, Evelyn had a cover story already prepared.

Among the many items she had brewed, one was a sleeping potion that was quite potent.

She showed it to Vivienne and told her that it was her trump card and that she had surprised Maeve with it.

"I see. This certainly is quite potent. Strong enough to knock even a peak mage unconscious and cause even weaker arcanists to grow drowsy." Vivienne commented after examining the potion.

Having been given a reasonable explanation, she did not push any further.

A few minutes later the carriage was ready to go, and Maeve was laid on a cushioned seat inside of it.

Vivienne tenderly stroked her grandniece's face as she said goodbye to her. Almost certainly she would have preferred for Maeve to be conscious for this, but it was better that she left peacefully rather than putting up a resistance.

"I don't see any of the personnel that she arrived with. Are they not coming with her?" Lucia asked Vivienne right before they were to depart.

"No, as much as I would like to, it would be more conspicuous to send them with all of you. As a core member of the Miris Sect, Maeve is not technically allowed to leave. With things as they are now, the leadership is doing everything it came to keep our organization from collapsing. This includes preventing high ranking members from fleeing. What I'm doing is likely to end up causing me a great deal of trouble, but I don't care. She's only been here a few weeks. My grandniece doesn't deserve to suffer for a place that could hardly be considered her home."

Lucia nodded in response and assured Vivienne that they would help Maeve out and do what they could to make sure that she was able to live a peaceful life going forward.

"Things probably won't be as glamorous for her as before, but I think that she will do well. She's smart and tough." Lucia said reassuringly.

With everything squared away, and Vivienne having finished up her goodbyes, Evelyn and her companions set out with Maeve along with them. They had accomplished their goals within the Miris Sect, and it was time for them to move on.