Dusk was falling when I awoke in agony.

The petrification from the Blood Blight felt like a million ants gnawing at my bones.

I had to swallow the last three high-concentration doses of poison, the only thing masking the fact that I was a dead woman walking.

I forced myself out of bed. There was a grand performance to put on tonight.

Lily's bright laughter echoed from the living room. I pushed myself to descend the spiral staircase and saw her nestled in Vivienne's arms, chattering away.

"Aunt Vivienne, this curse is so cool! I want to learn it!" Lily pointed excitedly at a page in the book, which illustrated a ritual for making a living person bleed in agony.

"Of course, my clever little Lily," Vivienne said, gently stroking her eternally youthful golden curls. Her eyes, however, held a trace of disgust for the "monster child," a look Lily was oblivious to.

The moment Lily saw me, the smile vanished from her face. She deliberately shrank deeper into Vivienne's embrace.

I tried to approach, wanting to see what she was reading.

"You smell... off," Lily wrinkled her small nose, pressing herself tighter against Vivienne. "Don't come any closer."

It was the stench of death. My body was decaying, but they thought it was just a side effect of medication.

"One moment, darling," Vivienne said, feigning concern as she looked at me. "Isolde probably has important matters to discuss."

"I don't want to hear it," Lily made a face at me. "You're boring."

I faltered.

To protect her, I had to constantly force her to control her bloodlust.

Vivienne, on the other hand, only encouraged her indulgence, teaching her cruel ways to amuse herself.

A child can't distinguish between indulgence and genuine affection; she only sees it as "love."

"It's all right. You two carry on," I managed a smile.

In the dining room, Miles was enjoying a glass of warm stag's blood, holding a holographic map of the clan's territories.

He barely glanced up as I entered.

"You look dreadful," he frowned, his tone holding no concern, only distaste. "Don't forget the Elder Council meets tonight."

"I need to talk to you." I sat down across from him.

"What is it now? More of your family rules?" He finally looked up, his impatience clear.

"It's about the Blood Covenant," I said, producing a parchment scroll. "I want to amend our prenuptial agreement."

Miles took the scroll, his red eyes widening. "Isolde, you're relinquishing control of all your territories?"

"Including the Progenitor's Ring." I removed the ancient, power-infused ring from my finger and placed it gently on the table.

"What?" He shot to his feet.

I watched him calmly. "I'm also transferring my entire art collection to Vivienne. Even the classical oil paintings passed down through the family."

"Even the fourteenth-century manuscript of The Kindred Origins?" Miles's voice trembled. "It's priceless!"

"She has a better appreciation for art than I do," I answered coolly. "Think of it as my early wedding gift to her."

The air went still, the only sound the crackling of the fire in the hearth.

Miles slowly sank back into his chair, his eyes a storm of conflicting emotions. "Isolde, what the hell are you playing at?"

"I'm not playing at anything," I said calmly. "I'm just ready to let go."

"You know, don't you?" He fell silent for a long moment, his expression turning wary.

"Miles, a vampire's sense of smell is very keen."

I pointed to his collar. "Your shirt smells of Midnight Orchid. The perfume I custom-blended for Vivienne two hundred years ago. It's one of a kind."

He was silent, a flash of embarrassment crossing his face at being caught.

"I don't blame you," I continued. "I've lived for hundreds of years. I'm too old-fashioned, I don't know how to enjoy the pleasures of modern life. Vivienne is passionate and uninhibited. She can give you a fire I can't."

"Isolde!" He slammed his hand on the table, cutting me off. "Stop talking like you're… done. Like you're leaving."

"I'm calling a clan meeting tomorrow," I said, rising to my feet. "I will officially transfer my shares in the tech empire to Vivienne. She will become the new chairwoman of the board."

"Tell Vivienne to prepare herself. Even as a newly turned fledgling, after tonight, she will be an incredibly wealthy woman."

"You're insane!" Miles leaped up, an inexplicable panic rising in his voice as he yelled, "You are Isolde Vance! You don't just hand over your empire! Fight me, dammit! Scream at me!"

"I'm not insane." I looked out the window. In the garden, Vivienne was doing donuts in the limited-edition sports car Miles had given her, with Lily shrieking in delight.

"I just want all of you to be happy."

The next day at midnight, at the clan headquarters.

The news spread like a plague. Isolde Vance had appeared at the Vampire Court with her adopted sister and announced a transfer of power on the spot.

"Isolde, what is this farce?" Grand Elder Marcus pressed his withered hand on the documents. "You're handing the flock over to a fox."

"I've never been more serious." I signed my name in blood-red ink on the transfer deed. "From this day forward, Vivienne will hold the Progenitor's Shares, which carry the ultimate power of veto."

Vivienne's body trembled with excitement, but she did her best to feign humility, tears clinging to her eyelashes. "Sister, I... how could I possibly be worthy? This honor should be yours."

"Save your tears," I said, pushing the heavy documents toward her. "Don't disappoint the clan."

In the limousine on the way back to the castle, the partition rose.

In the confines of the car, Vivienne finally dropped her mask of innocence.

"Isolde, why are you doing all this?" She swirled the Bloody Mary in her hand, her eyes full of mockery. "A guilty conscience? Or is there some other reason?"

"Because it's what you've always dreamed of, isn't it?" I leaned against the car window. "My husband, my power, my wealth... Vivienne, you've won."

"Hmph." She sneered. "Don't think this will make me grateful. You're the one who ruined my human life."

"I only ask one thing of you."

I cut her off. "In front of Lily, you will continue to play the doting mother. She is forever eight years old. She needs a perfect fairy tale, even if it's a lie."

Vivienne stared for a second, then shrugged dismissively. "As long as she doesn't bite me, I couldn't care less."

Late that night, I was alone in the study, clearing away the past.

Silas, the butler, walked in to find me tossing black crystals, one by one, into the spectral flames of the fireplace.

The memory crystals held evidence of the clan elders' corruption.

"My lady! What are you doing?" Silas cried out in horror, trying to smother the flames. "These are your leverage over the Elder Council! This is evidence of clan corruption you've spent years collecting!"

"Let it burn."

I blocked Silas, watching as the crystals cracked and turned to ash in the flames.

"If the clan falls, Lily loses her protection. I am preserving its stability for her, but that does not mean I am letting that bitch off the hook."

I coughed up a mouthful of black blood, my hand tightly clutching another, deeper red crystal.

It contained everything on Vivienne, all the proof of her secret dealings with dark sorcerers, her torture and murder of human servants, every act of treason against the clan.

Besides burning the secrets that could endanger the clan, I also signed a secret trust.

I placed all my personal jewelry and hidden overseas assets into an irrevocable fund, with Lily as the sole beneficiary.

Even if the worst came to pass, the money would be enough for her to live anonymously in the human world until the end of days.

On the eve of my final night, I could barely stand.

The Blood Blight had spread to my neck. With every breath, my lungs felt like they were being scraped by shards of glass.

I stared at my reflection in the mirror. Pale as paper, gaunt and haggard, with deeply sunken eyes.

"Twenty-four hours left," I whispered to myself.

Tonight was to be Miles and Vivienne's coronation. That's right. They couldn't even wait.

I put on a black, high-collared lace gown to hide the petrified marks covering my body and forced myself downstairs.

The grand hall had been redecorated. Vivienne, dressed in a champagne-colored evening gown, was directing servants to arrange blood-red roses.

I turned and saw the clan nobles arriving.

"Isolde, very well done. You've finally seen the light!" Grand Elder Marcus nodded slowly, though his eyes held a glint of suspicion. "Vivienne may be young, but she is gentle and obedient. Unlike you, who has always been so cold and arrogant. It seems you've finally learned to act like a proper elder sister."

I stared at their joyful expressions, my heart feeling like it was being torn apart.

From the moment I was turned, no matter how exceptional I was, in their eyes, I could never compare to the "obedient" Vivienne.

I turned and walked away, unable to bear another word.

The ceremony began at nine o'clock.

The ballroom was filled with guests, all prominent figures of the nocturnal world. Many were shocked to see me.

After all, attending the coronation of one's husband and his new partner required a certain kind of "magnanimity."

"Isolde, you actually came." Miles approached me.

He reached out as if to touch my arm, stopped mid-air, and clenched his hand into a fist.

"I said I would," I raised a glass of bloodwine. "Congratulations to you both."

"Isolde..." His voice was rough. "You're wearing the dress I gave you for our first anniversary. It… looks loose on you."

But Vivienne came over, linking her arm with his.

"Sister, thank you for being here," she simpered, the diamond ring on her left hand flashing brilliantly. It was the heirloom of the clan's mistresses, and it had once been mine.

"Distinguished guests," Miles raised his glass. "Thank you all for attending Vivienne's coronation. I especially want to thank my wife, Isolde, for her grace and her blessing."

"I am confident Vivienne will bring wonderful changes to our clan."

Thunderous applause erupted from the crowd. The same vampires who once bowed to me were now smiling fawningly at Vivienne.

Vivienne stood in the spotlight, her eyes glistening with tears. "I also want to thank my sister."

"She gave me everything. Family, care, and now, love. I am the luckiest person in the world."

Miles, Vivienne, and Lily embraced, a perfect family with no space left for me.

A night breeze swept past, and the numbness in my fingers intensified.

I stood in the shadows of the terrace, watching the three of them. It was all right. This was all about to end.

"Mother."

I looked down. Lily was standing in front of me.

She wore a small, gothic-style dress adorned with lace, looking like an exquisite porcelain doll. But her red eyes held no warmth.

"Aunt Vivienne sent me," she said, her tone icy, as if addressing a stranger. "It's time to cut the cake. It's made with the freshest Type A blood."

"Thank you for coming to tell me." I crouched down, trying to get a little closer to her.

She flinched, as if afraid of being contaminated. "Aunt Vivienne said you smell like a dead rat. You should stand farther away so you don't ruin everyone's appetite."

My heart clenched. This was the child I had defied the council to save, and now she was hurling the cruelest words at me.

"Lily," I reached out, my fingertips trembling as I tried to touch her golden curls.

"I'm sorry. For trapping you in this body that can never grow. But back then, I just wanted you to live..."

"I don't want to hear it!"

She shrieked, slapping my hand away. "I hate you! I hate being a monster who never gets to grow up! And you're always making Aunt Vivienne sad!"

With that, she turned and ran, shouting, "Aunt Vivienne! Aunt Vivienne!"

"Poor Isolde," a young vampire whispered nearby. "Even her own adopted daughter won't go near her."

"It's her own fault for being so cold and heartless. Vivienne is so gentle, always spending time with the child."

A bitter thought surfaced. Had I known it would come to this, perhaps I should have let her face her original fate.

I stood in the crowd, watching it all like an outsider. My husband, my daughter, my people, they all revolved around Vivienne. I was the one who was superfluous.

Even if I wanted to explain myself now, there was nothing to say. In their eyes, I would always be the one in the wrong.

After the party, I walked alone to the terrace of the highest tower.

"Silas." I called out to the loyal butler who had been hiding in the shadows.

"My lady." He knelt on one knee, his voice choked with emotion.

I pulled the deep red crystal from my bodice. "Tomorrow night, at moonrise, activate this and show it to Miles."

"My lady, are you certain..."

"Yes. It is, after all, the truth," I gave a weak smile. "Someone ought to hear a dead woman's last words."

I took out several sealed letters. "This one is for the Royal Court. This is for Lily. Don't give it to her until she is old enough to understand. By then, she will."

"My lady..." Silas's voice was trembling.

After arranging everything, I leaned against the railing, completely spent.

Fireworks lit up the distant sky, a celebration for Miles and Vivienne's coronation. How ironic. The last night of my life was spent celebrating their victory.

But strangely, the intense pain inside me was beginning to fade, replaced by a peculiar numbness.

"Just a few more minutes, Isolde," I told myself.

I knew that when the truth was revealed tomorrow, everything would change. But by then, I would already be ash.

This was my final, silent act of vengeance as a queen. I was betting my life that they would live forever in regret.

When the first ray of sunlight broke through the clouds and touched the back of my hand, I did not flinch.

I had removed the Daywalking Ring long ago, the Progenitor-blessed artifact that was the only one of its kind.

"Miles, Vivienne, and my dearest Lily."

A golden flame began to burn from my fingertips. There was no pain, only the warmth of release.

"May you, in your long, eternal lives, always remember the joy of tonight. Because starting tomorrow, the gates of hell will open for you."

At six in the morning, the first ray of sunlight broke through the clouds.

Isolde stood on the edge of the terrace, allowing the golden flames to consume her.

Her body disintegrated in the light, scattering into motes of starlight on the morning breeze.

Silas stood in the room, watching through the glass window, tears streaming down his face.

The once-proud queen met her end in the sun, a faint smile of release on her face.

At 8:00 a.m. sharp, he dialed Miles's private line.

Miles, asleep with Vivienne in his arms, suddenly shot awake.

An agonizing, soul-tearing pain pierced his chest without warning. The backlash from the severing of their blood bond had begun.

Before he could even process the wave of panic, the phone rang, its shrill sound piercing the air.

"Make it quick," Miles's voice was sharp, laced with a tremor he couldn't hide. "I'm busy."

"My lord, it is Silas."

The old butler's voice was terrifyingly calm.

"The lady... she has turned to ash."

"What are you talking about?" Miles's voice went shrill. "She was fine yesterday!"