With the baton hurtling toward his head, Oliver was barely able to evade its velocity, spared only by sheer fortune as her strike missed its mark.
However, it crashed into his shoulder instead before splintering the door apart.
The young man gritted his teeth through the pain.
It had fractured his left shoulder.
He swiftly ducked away from her, fully aware that he stood no chance against her due to her Speed Hue.
In a blinding instant, she seized him by the collar from across the room and hurled him into the door, shattering it completely and sending him hurtling through the hallway.
'...Fuck. What did House Rothyl ever do to someone like her? I am aware they would have a multitude of enemies, that is only natural, but not to this extent. Also, what does she mean Joshua is dead!? That was never mentioned! Is that why nothing regarding Oliver finding his younger brother was ever addressed? But wait…
'Oliver did change abruptly after leaving the Garden of Death, but is that not expected after enduring hell itself? Bullshit! I do not have time to dwell on all that. I have to survive for now, but how...? This woman is as dangerous as the devil!'
The baton came for him again, though this time in a slower arc.
She did not appear to be using her Speed Hue or any Stitches this time, affording Oliver a brief window as he forced himself aside, shifting his body just enough to let the strike pass while the impact slammed into the wall behind him and scattered fragments across the hallway, the force reverberating through the floor beneath his feet as he stumbled forward, attempting to widen the distance between them.
Pain radiated from his fractured shoulder with every movement, forcing his body to stiffen.
He adjusted his footing and steadied himself, keeping his focus on the faint disturbances in the air around him while relying on his hearing to track her position rather than his sight, knowing well enough that attempting to follow her speed directly would only leave him exposed.
Oliver moved toward the shattered sections of the hallway, stepping across splintered wood and debris as he deliberately allowed his pace to falter slightly, creating a momentary imbalance that would appear natural to anyone observing closely while he kept his attention fixed on the slightest shift behind him.
Mara closed the distance immediately.
She appeared beside him and brought the baton down with lethal intent.
The speed of the attack left little room for reaction, so Oliver lowered his body at the final instant and avoided the strike by a narrow margin, and the weapon crashed into the floor.
"Ugh. You keep running like a damned rat, but it changes nothing," she said as she straightened and turned toward him, tightening her grip on the baton while her gaze locked onto him with unmistakable intent.
Oliver moved again without responding, forcing himself forward despite the strain as he stepped over a loose plank and kicked it upward in the same motion, sending it into her path while shifting his body to the side and slipping past her position before she could fully recover.
It did not stop her, but it disrupted her timing just enough.
He created distance again.
Her expression darkened as she turned to face him after smashing the plank aside.
"Do you remember me at all, Oliver Rothyl?"
Oliver halted briefly as his eyes met hers.
His expression remained impassive, considering it for a moment before answering with unvarnished honesty:
"No. I do not remember you."
Harsh to the ears yet undeniable, Oliver had no recollection of her in his memories, largely because he had not inherited any of the original Oliver's past.
Mara's eyes widened for a moment before her expression hardened into anger, eclipsing everything else.
"Of course you do not remember me, because your family never recognized anyone beneath them."
"I served your House since I was twelve, cleaning, working, doing everything without complaint while hoping that one day I would be acknowledged for it."
She advanced with mounting fury.
"When I reached the Age of Maturity, I begged them for help after everything I had done, and they abandoned me without hesitation, leaving me to die here as though I meant nothing. Well, it has been three years now, and I am still alive in this hell thanks to the Settlement."
Her movements accelerated once more as she closed the distance in an instant, swinging the baton toward him with heightened force, and Oliver reacted purely on instinct guided by sound, stepping back and turning his body just enough to avoid a direct hit while the strike grazed past him and slammed into the wall.
'Holy fuck, that was too close.'
Mara frowned.
"Perhaps you might call that normal, but I call it betrayal. The gods granted me a chance to survive, and now I will reclaim everything from House Rothyl."
Oliver's breathing grew heavier as he continued to move.
His body was nearing its limit, and the space around him constricted, leaving fewer avenues to evade her attacks.
She pressed him deeper into the corridor.
"Are you interested in knowing how your younger brother died?" she asked.
Oliver remained still for a brief moment as he looked at her.
His expression remained unchanged despite the situation.
"Well, yes, but as you can see, I am not interested in your words right now because I am trying not to die. Hello?"
Mara's movements sharpened further as she aimed directly for his head, closing the final distance between them.
Oliver had no space left to move.
His back met the wall, and his options vanished completely.
At that moment, a sword cleaved through the air from behind her, forcing her to divert her attention.
She turned slightly, adjusting her stance as the blade approached her position.
At the same time, another presence followed immediately behind it, closing the distance in a single motion and striking toward her before she could fully react, forcing her to redirect her attack and step away from Oliver as the situation shifted instantly.
Oliver caught sight of the figure, and his heart lurched in shock.
'Teresa? How the hell did she get here? This should not be the conflict that creates a rift between her and the Settlement… Oh no, the plot…'