The Ancestor's Love for Mircalla

Reveals the tragic romance between Baron Vordenburg's ancestor and the vampire Countess Mircalla, a love that persisted beyond death.

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A Youthful Passion

A Noble Love The Ancestor's Devotion Baron Vordenburg's ancestor, a young Styrian nobleman, fell passionately in love with the beautiful Mircalla, Countess Karnstein. Their romance was intense, and he was her favored lover. The ancestor's love was so deep that it shaped the rest of his life. A Tragic End Mircalla died young, and her death plunged the ancestor into inconsolable grief. He could not bear to lose her, and his love became a haunting obsession. This love would compel him to take extraordinary actions after her death.

The Discovery of Vampirism

A Horrifying Truth Mircalla Becomes a Vampire The ancestor soon discovered that Mircalla had become a vampire, likely after being visited by another vampire. He was horrified, but his love for her did not diminish. He could not bear the thought of her being destroyed by a posthumous execution. A Protective Decision He decided to hide her tomb, to prevent anyone from finding and destroying her. He also wrote a confession and made notes, hoping that a future descendant might understand his actions. His love drove him to protect the monster, even as he knew she was evil.

The Stratagem of the Tomb

A Deceptive Journey The Moravian Nobleman To hide the tomb, the ancestor staged a journey to Karnstein, pretending to be a Moravian nobleman. He removed the body and obliterated the monument, so that no one could find it. He also spread the legend of the vampire-killing nobleman, which was a cover for his own actions. A Guilty Secret As he aged, he began to feel remorse for what he had done. He had protected a vampire, allowing her to continue preying on the innocent. Before his death, he left a confession and the means to find the tomb again, hoping that his descendant would right his wrong.

The Descendant's Discovery

A Legacy Revealed The Baron's Inheritance Baron Vordenburg inherited his ancestor's papers and learned the truth. He spent his life studying vampirism, partly to understand his ancestor's actions and partly to find the means to destroy the vampire. The love story that began centuries ago now reaches its conclusion. The Final Act Using the ancestor's notes, the Baron locates the tomb and leads the commission to it. The vampire is destroyed, but the ancestor's love is acknowledged. The Baron's scholarly detachment does not hide the tragedy that underlies the vampire's existence.

around 1698, before Mircalla's death

after Mircalla's death, likely in the early 1700s

during the ancestor's lifetime

at the time of the story