The Primal Hunter

Meira thought it was overdoing it… but Izil and Irin had both insisted this was necessary. Even Viridia had come by to insist that if Meira really wanted to break out of her shell and completely throw away all the burdens of who she had once been, she had to embrace her new identity fully. Teacher hadn’t seemed to care either way but had simply said:

“What you choose to do has nothing to do with me. You are now my Chosen, that is true, but I have no intent on limiting what you do, even if your actions are done through taking advantage of my position. If you feel that visiting or even taking charge of your old clan is what’s best, just go do that. No one will oppose you, and if they do, just tell me, alright? Can’t have any unnecessary conflicts delay you from fixing your personal issues and returning to doing alchemy. Ah, just don’t make any promises that I will do something or show up somewhere… because I won’t.”

While it didn’t sound like Teacher was overly supportive, Meira knew he cared. She even knew that should she ask him to come with her to visit her clan, he would. Not as himself but disguised as someone else to not attract unneeded attention, but he would come. She wouldn’t ask him, though. This was something she had to do without him… even if she did borrow his name and influence.

The problem was just that Meira had no idea how she would go about visiting. Should she disguise herself and go? No, that wouldn’t work, as she wanted to actually help her family there, and her only way to do that was to leverage her position somehow. She had considered for a long time how to do that, as Irin had made a suggestion… why didn’t she just take it over? Why didn’t she just declare that the entire Willowood Clan now belonged to her? No one would oppose that. Who would want to argue with the Chosen of the Grand Elder over some random small elven mining clan that only had a few C-grades in it? It was the type of faction where even if some A-grade from the Order destroyed it on accident, he wouldn’t even have to file any paperwork or be questioned for not reporting what had happened. In the grand scheme of things, the Willowood clan was that insignificant.

After some deliberation, Meira decided that was what she wanted to do. She would take over the clan and have that work as a shield of sorts. While no member of the Order would get in trouble for destroying a random C-grade clan, they would certainly want to avoid messing with somewhere of interest to the Chosen of the Grand Elder.

This was when the next problem arose. How exactly would Meira take it over? As in, what practical steps would she take? Well, luckily, she had people around her with ideas. People who knew far more than her and were more than willing to help. Some of them because they were her friends, but many because – as Izil put it – they wanted to earn her favor, as she had the ear of the Grand Elder. Some even wanted favor directly with Meira as they concluded she would become a far more influential figure in the future, even without relying on others.

It did still feel odd that people wanted her favor and not just the favor of others through her. But she wasn’t going to say no to help when offered.

So, in the end, Meira had just listened to what the people around her recommended as they laid a plan to claim the Willowood Clan for herself.

During this, Viridia had sent someone to help her. It was an A-grade peak administrator who worked closely with the Hall Master, sent solely to plan Meira’s trip to her old clan. It was her idea to get a newly evolved S-grade Malefic Dragonkin to come along to truly communicate the meaning of this visit, and it was her idea to make a spectacle of it all.

In her words, Meira needed an entrance worthy of the Grand Elder’s Chosen. She couldn’t just be teleported there with a few guards, or worse, with just some of her close personal friends. No, they needed to go all-out, especially considering this was her first public action as a Chosen. After all, she didn’t have some grand reveal, so many would also view this as her first public appearance.

Meira even had to step in and reduce some of the spectacles… having a bunch of dragons circling the platform combined with an army of more than ten thousand to flank her just seemed like too much, and it was only through struggle she managed to get this army reduced to “just” a few hundred enforcers. It was a compromise of having more powerful but fewer people to still show roughly the same level of prestige.

When the time came for the actual ceremony, Meira simply walked out of the massive gate as she tried to remember all the tips she had been given. She tried to remember how Jake had acted during his own Chosen ceremony, and while this was far more private and not a grand announcement in front of the whole Order, she still didn’t want to embarrass her Teacher.

of the crowd, it apparently still seemed intimidating. She knew a big reason for this was her Blessing

would say it was about a million elves total, with nearly every single one of them gathered below. It was a testament to just how big the mine was to keep them all employed… but she also remembered how her grandfather had talked about the clan once

more than counting her audience, she looked around for a few specific people. Meira had already made sure they were still around before coming, and after

her brothers – the youngest and one of the twins. She didn’t see her four other half-brothers anywhere. They were brothers from her father’s first and second wives, whom Meira had rarely interacted with, and she honestly didn’t care much for them.

when Meira let loose her presence. It was a face she recognized, if barely. The elf’s skin looked more sunken,

never did so at the expense of making her husband angry. Meira still remembered

how Meira had never questioned her mother’s words before after meeting Jake, so had her mother never questioned it either. Perhaps even her father was also a victim of circumstances… but Meira didn’t want to even think about that too much. He was dead, and Meira trying to make him out to just be a misunderstood man who wanted the best for his family wouldn’t help

her three full siblings, she didn’t feel any resentment at all. Instead, she had to hold back a small smile from seeing Tanyl and Sakala both looking nearly all grown up. They were still barely adults, being only twenty, and when she had left, they were still at an age where every year brought noticeable changes. Kythela also looked healthy and a bit older compared to a few years ago, but

clan hadn’t changed in the last

announcement from the Chosen would be appropriate,” the S-grade Malefic Dragonkin spoke to her telepathically, throwing her out of her thoughts. Probably for the

respectfully – something Meira was luckily getting more used to - she nodded and did

forward and tapping into the formation beneath her

of the Willowood Clan. Or should I say, we meet

effect on the crowd. Not of awe or surprise but sheer confusion. Like the fact she had once been a member of the clan wasn’t even possible. Nevertheless, she

only as the Chosen of the Grand Elder but as a former member of the Willowood clan. My name is Meira, a former healer in the miner’s barracks. Perhaps some of you recognize me… and perhaps you don’t.

saw a few family members, but that was it. Meira never had many friends or acquaintances. She had always been working and practicing the things her parents wanted, and when she wasn’t doing that, she was helping take

grueling training and being forced to evolve to a D-grade as a slave, I resigned myself to my fate. The day I was assigned as a slave to a new arrival from the newly initiated multiverse, I didn’t question anything but only hoped to survive. Yet when I met my new master, willing to do anything to gain his favor, he rejected me at every turn. He did not want me as his slave… but he allowed me to stay. Not with the objective of serving him but to learn how to find my own Path. Decide my own Path. At first, I resisted, but then I saw hope. Hope toward a life where I could make my own choices and determine my own future. My master,

Viridia, they settled on going ahead with it. Meira had very much wanted to give this speech… because she felt like if someone had given it to her while growing up, it could have changed many things for her. Maybe that was just wishful thinking, but she wanted

down and left with no choice but to choose what I wanted to do. The reason I am saying all this is not to brag or to prove how superior I am… but to tell you all that not even five years ago, I would have been one of you. I was given opportunities, and I grasped them. All the while, he supported me… until the day I was a slave no longer but a fully-fledged member of the Order of the Malefic Viper. I was made the

below, but Meira didn’t shush them. All the enforcers had also been explicitly ordered to never make any aggressive actions unless it was to

Willowood has been a clan that has lived in slavery in all but name. No contract may bind you, but your fates are not yours to control. Today, that changes. Call it my final gift to the Willowood tribe that put me into this world. You may

looked over at

more stepped forth, his voice booming. “Details as to how these desired changes of Mistress Dawnleaf will be implemented shall follow in the coming days. Rejoice, for not only was her fate