Cillian could understand Julie's thoughts, because most of the witches had gone through it. He stated, "No creature that walks on these lands is pure, who escapes darkness."

  A sigh escaped from Julie's lips, "What do you propose for a sacrifice?" An uncomfortable feeling coming to settle in her stomach.

  "An animal should do. One which is healthy," replied the Corvin.? With time being scarce, Cillian said to Roman, "I will go and get the sacrificial animal, and you can set the pentagons and the fire with Julie."

  Julie noticed how the ghosts had slowly started to move from their initial spots and started dispersing through the land in different directions, and if they didn't do it fast, the ghosts would enter the habitat of the living people. She didn't know that to be a full-fledged witch, she would voluntarily have to kill an innocent creature.

  Roman looked at Julie, noticing how she had trouble processing the word sacrifice. "Will you be able to do it?" He would have killed it for her, but as the potion was being created by her, she would have to kill the animal herself.

  Julie nodded her head before meeting Roman's red eyes, "I will do it."

  Though she had never killed anything until now, she did eat meat…… thought Julie in her mind.

  Roman placed his hand on her cheek, caressing it and he tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear, "Let us prepare the circle and the pentagon done." To this, Julie nodded her head.

  They brought a stick and started to draw the circle as well as the pentagons on the ground. working the lines inside it. Once it was done, Roman visited the houses to fetch the oil and the torches. Dipping the end of the torch in oil before placing it around the circle. He said, "I read that the drawings can be turned smaller with every use of magic by witches. Until the point where they will not need the diagrams to perform spells."

  Their conversation was interrupted when they heard another high pitch scream that refused to stop. The scream was shrill, and it made Julie wince.

  "It must be the agony that was left behind during their last moments here," stated Roman with a grim expression on his face.

  Cillian suddenly appeared near the circle, and from his cloak, he took out a rabbit that had white fur on it. Julie felt sudden dread enter her body, as she could already feel the pain that would come from the rabbit's suffering.

  "Follow my words which is the spell. Take the rabbit in your hand," instructed Cillian.

  Julie watched the little animal hop around before it came near her and sat near her leg. She asked him, "Couldn't you find something that was worse than picking the most innocent creature?"

  "More kindness and compassion you hold towards the sacrificial object, the better will be the results," informed Cillian, and Julie didn't like this one bit. It was as if nature itself wanted the witches to be bad, or maybe to not try making potions or spells, which would forever keep them to be pure. "Let us start."

  One of the ghosts had gone to the edge of the forest. It had led one of the guards of Veteris to catch sight of it. The guard had been appointed by Elder Luciano Sterling, and he walked towards the ghost and questioned,

  "What are you doing here? Don't you know this is the Veteris property and—" he stopped mid-sentence on noticing the person didn't seem normal.

  The ghost didn't respond and continued to walk.

  "You! Stop right there!" but the guard's order fell on deaf ears. When he came near, the guard's eyes widened. He moved his hand through the ghost's body, and he gasped over the cold sensation. The ghost didn't move and stools like a statue, frozen. It was the ghost of an old man with a beard around his jaw, and it was none other than Magnus La Fay.

  Being alert now, the guard quickly ran in the opposite direction, "Elder Luciano, there's a witch ghost in the property!" he shouted, on his way to inform the Elder vampire.

  Roman brought his hand up, and with multiple snaps of his fingers, the torches he had placed around them to catch fire. Once Julie started to recite every line that Cillian spoke, the flames grew larger. The ghosts who had drifted away from the place, their footsteps paused.

  There was a constant whispering in the wind that sounded like the chants were being murmured by people. She continued to repeat Cillian's words until he paused and said, "You should do it now." Her eyes fell on the innocent rabbit. Half-heartedly, Julie picked up the rabbit in her arms and pulled out the knife handed to her, moving to the centre of the circle. "Pour the blood at the center," he advised her.

  Julie looked down at the rabbit, watching the poor animal that had no idea what would happen to it. While bringing the knife towards the rabbit's neck, she felt the increase in her own heartbeat. Seconds passed, but she couldn't do it. She dropped her hand that held the knife and said,

  "I can't do it."

  She wasn't heartless to do something like that, and even if it was an animal and not a person, she just couldn't do it because it was wrong.

  The ghosts that had paused, standing like a statue, now began to move again. The Corvin stared at Julie and said, "You will again have to repeat the process if you let this one pass."

  "I cannot do such an act of cruelty. I cannot," Julie shook her head.

  Roman, who had been watching Julie outside the drawn circle on the ground, said, "Use me instead." Julie and the Corvin turned to look at where Roman stood. He stepped inside the circle, making his way straight to where she stood.

  He said, "You don't have to kill the animal if you don't want to. Replace the animal with me. If what the Corvin said is true about me not being able to die, it shouldn't be a problem. You will have to make a sacrifice."

  Julie wasn't fond of this idea. Moving from the rabbit to sacrifice Roman. In doubt, she turned to Cillian and asked, "Will this work?"

  "I am not sure, but it is worth a try," replied Cillian and hearing this, Roman took hold of the rabbit that Julie had been holding. Once he set the rabbit down, it hopped away from the circle.

  "So how are we doing this?" questioned Roman.

  "Whichever is the easiest way to be stabbed," said Cillian, and hearing this, Roman laid down on the ground.

  Julie clutched the knife tightly in her hand. She sat down next to Roman, readying herself by placing the knife above his chest.

  "Winters," Roman called to get Julie's attention, and her brown eyes quickly moved to meet his red eyes. "You can do it, don't doubt yourself and be quick when you do it. If you doubt, it will move the knife around and be painful. Push it as far as you can," he instructed her.

  Julie took a deep breath, readying herself before she pushed the knife straight into Roman's chest. The knife pierced through his flesh and then pierced through his beating heart.

  Roman grit his teeth because of the pain that came from the wound that Julie had given. Cillian sensed how the vampire's body started to emit light vapour like black fumes.

  "Do it again if it is taking time," said Cillian, but doing it just once had Julie's stomach drop to the ground. Stabbing Roman was the last thing she had on her mind. Instead of pulling it out, she pushed the knife further into his chest, feeling her hands turn wet and blood starting to drip on the ground.

  Roman's heart beat slowed until it turned non-existent, and his body went still. Julie stared at his body, where blood had dripped out from his mouth.

  "Complete the process, Julie," Cillian reminded her.

  Julie tore her gaze away from Roman. She pulled out the glass vial and recited the spells while her hand had stretched forward. Soon in a few seconds, the nearest souls started to be pulled towards the centre of the pentagon circle. The souls started to transfer themselves in the vial by turning into a drop of colourless liquid. And this happened until every single soul had been captured in the vial.

  With the screams and wailing of the ghosts gone, the place turned quiet once again. Julie put a lid on top of the vial and placed it in her pocket before trying to wake Roman up.

  "You should step away from him," said the Corvin, and Julie then noticed the black fumes. She quickly stepped away from Roman while the fumes continued to turn more intense until it looked as if the body had caught on fire, covering the entire body. "The black stone won't let him die. Somewhere it feels like it loves the boy and refuses to detach itself from him."

  When the black fumes cooled down, Roman was found standing on his feet, and he placed his hand on the ripped shirt, his skin had healed, and so did his heart. It felt like he had been reborn again.

  Julie smiled, running back to him and putting her arms around to hug him.

  "I am sorry about that," whispered Julie, and Roman placed his hand on the back of her head.

  "It was something that had to be done, and I am fine," Roman kissed the side of her head. "I think I will take Evans' words tomorrow as I am too damn thirsty to be satisfied with just three cans of blood."

  Julie nodded her head, and when she turned to speak to the Corvin, he had disappeared.

  "Huh? Where did he go?" asked Julie.

  Roman pulled Julie closer, his eyes slightly narrowing at the thought of the Corvin. Since the time the Corvin had shown in front of them, he always had a slight doubt on it. To think that it had to be an ancestor was the only thing that he hadn't expected. He knew that somewhere, the Corvin held affections towards Julie, affection involved with romantic feelings.

  "Must have gone to sit in a tree," deadpanned Roman before holding one of her hands and leaving the town of Willow Creek.

  Near the edge of the forest and near the road, the guard who had earlier caught sight of one of the ghosts moved his feet hurriedly while explaining,

  "I caught the ghost right there. Do you think it was a witch, Elder Luciano?"

  Luciano walked next to him with a straight back and his nose high. He said, "Nobody can turn into a ghost when they want you dimwit. Are you sure it wasn't a trespasser?"

  "No, sire. The ghost was leaving the forest, as if it was going to ask for a lift to a passing vehicle," replied the guard, and Luciano gave him a look. When they reached the spot, there was no ghost, and the guard looked front and back, left and right. "I saw the ghost standing right here and it didn't move!"

  Luciano, who had taken up the job of securing Veteris' ground, looked more than annoyed, and he glared at the guard. He rolled his eyes and said, "There's nothing like a ghost. Stop wasting my time and catch the intruders if they come here."

  "B-but-"

  "What?" snapped Luciano, and he sarcastically said, "The ghost must have got someone to pick him up and leave. I don't care if you find a ghost floating next time. Catch the living ones and do the job right……" Saying this, Luciano pushed the back of his cloak as he turned and walked away from there.