Son of Tehrur knew nothing of what had transpired. He was weak for a man, most likely deliberately weakened so we could use him to our hearts' content.

The village head, Cycaria, passed her judgment: to restore peace in the village, Son of Tehrur needed to be expelled. I, Ann, didn't want that to happen. In fact, not a single soul in the village wished for that outcome. But Head Cycaria proceeded with her decision.

When the man called Son of Tehrur ascended into the village, chaos erupted. Cycaria was a hundred and twenty-five full moons younger than me, yet her talent far surpassed any of the witches among us, including myself. When the Son of Tehrur left, everyone returned to normal. The village began to function as it always had.

When time forced me to accept my situation, I revealed my child with Son of Tehrur to Cycaria. She took me to her home, a dwelling isolated from the village, close to the River Deathbed.

There was a river that carried down the bodies of war and peace. This river bestowed upon us a great amount of spiritual energy, but it came with consequences. The River Deathbed had a tendency to claim our men.

Cycaria, with a whisper of secret, led me to an underground structure in her home, where I found Son of Tehrur living peacefully. But his eyes held the vacant gaze of a dog that no longer wished to breathe. I was more than happy to see him. Cycaria then casually stated she was pregnant by "playing" with Son of Tehrur.

My heart ached for vengeance. How could the head, the most talented among our people, stoop so low? Treating her child's father like a dog. But I didn't retaliate then. I waited.

The number of people visiting the Village Head's home, and the frequency of their visits, began to increase. It was around this time that I gave birth to a beautiful boy with pale blue eyes. I named him Kirome.

One by one, every woman in the village began to get pregnant. Happiness flowed through the settlement; they said nature had heard their call. But I, Ann, didn't understand what they had done. I saw them as despicable, something to be cleansed.

My boy had passed three blue moons. He was smart for his age. Around this time, Cycaria became bedridden with her child. The firstborn of her family had always been powerful witches, but sometimes, it didn't work out.

I was given the job of aiding her. The village that had once considered Son of Tehrur an outcast was now enjoying his company. The act of secrecy was dead.

The future existence of our village relied on the village head. As the old ways foretold, a woman in power can be manipulated, and for any living being, this holds especially true at death's door. Cycaria was at both. I, Ann, proceeded in an unnatural way. I created a potion for immortality, intending to bestow both the head and Son of Tehrur with it. That was the plan. But I, Ann, had some deviations in mind.

A great amount of spiritual energy was indeed needed for my gift for Cycaria. There was no war being waged, no famine, so I resorted to my final trump card. I declared Cycaria's and Son of Tehrur's wedding. Everyone in the entire village rushed to the joyous occasion. Not my son; he knew nothing of this. Kirome was raised alone; I, Ann, made sure he didn't grow up like those normal worms. He was sent on an expedition outside the mountains.

The entire village held their feast at the River Deathbed. Only a few remained at home. Finally, nature heard my call. They started to fall, one after another. The few left behind, I, Ann, personally dealt with them.

The villagers only amounted to around 70. The women carried unborn children within them. My sanity did not allow me to spare even them. I mounted the corpses one by one in the river and burned them. For the first time in a thousand blue moons, the valley of death ignited. The Empire saw the light. They marched from the east to conquer the long-lost lineage of witches.

Thousands marched into the mountain valley. I, Ann, welcomed them with an apocalyptic village, blood flowing freely through its streets. The army halted their march at the River Deathbed. Civilization texts recorded that they never returned to the Empire. I, Ann, butchered the entire village and army for my own salvation, my own selfish desires. At least I felt no guilt.

Cycaria gave birth to a baby girl. I bound her child's blood and an old Alerce Tree that reigned over the village for the potion. I offered it to Son of Tehrur first; he was a loyal dog to the core, and he drank it all up. Cycaria was bedridden; she couldn't move an inch. She lay there, watching everything burn to the ground. The balance of the potion was mine. Cycaria died along with her newborn child. I stared at her. I, Ann, took the kindness to bury her. It was the least I could have done; after all, she was my younger sister.

Kirome didn't return to the village; he was taken by the Empire's reinforcement. At least I was perfect now, no longer human. I felt the magic leaving my soul and surging through my blood. I had this hunger for everything: affection, blood, vengeance. But it didn't take long for me to take control over it.

Son of Tehrur and I, Ann, fled the village to the Empire; it was time to take back my son. The village no longer existed. The sun cursed us. Time cursed us to wander with no home. When the three of us finally reunited, Son of Tehrur asked me something.

He asked, "What are we? Why do I feel like I'm dead?"

"You're a creature of the dead," I replied.

"But why do I feel pity towards you?" he asked.

"Because you're still harboring humanity inside you."

Son of Tehrur muttered, "I didn't find salvation, because wherever I went, humanity existed."

I felt impeached at that moment, after all I had done for him. Was it my selfish intent for love that created such hate in him? My selfish intent to preserve peace led me to the creation of a new species, but it only arose more wars. I, Ann, murdered millions of innocent humans. There were friends, family, my own villagers, people who believed in me – each and every single one I crushed. They didn't know what I wanted with their blood, nor did the benefactor, Son of Tehrur. Did I make a wrong choice, or was my creation a step forward for humanity?

The pages of the book were torn out. Emerald looked at Genna and inquired about it.

"It's one of the ancient pieces of work," Genna began, her voice filled with reverence. "Thus, it may lack perfection. Still, it answered your question. You asked me if the concept of vengeance works for us. Yes, it does. But we are smart enough to ignore it. Ann, the first vampire, killed her entire village over the fact they all voiced their opinions on her sister's crowning as the village head. She despised humans for the destruction they caused. But Son of Tehrur was different; he cursed individuality for mistakes, not the crowd. His existence marked the true meaning of vampires." Genna concluded her answer.