Night. Mom is cooking something in the kitchen. It smells unpleasant, but the girl knows that's how it should be. Mom has many different herbs, each with its own special properties. Artemis snuggles deeper into her blanket and continues to silently observe. Mum bustles around the kitchen, constantly adding spices, dried rodents, and handfuls of colorful berries to the concoction. "Must be something healthy!" thinks the girl, closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep.

Her mother knew Artemis was watching so she patiently waited. As soon as the girl fell asleep, she went over to the bed and pricked the girl's finger with a needle and collected a few drops of blood. Her daughter didn't stir. Perfect! That extra herb in the evening tea had done its job. Sleep well, Artemis — big things are in store for you...

When the girl woke up, she ran straight outside. The faint rays of the morning sun barely managed to penetrate the thick forest surrounding their house. Mom didn't like sunlight much, so she usually slept during the day. But today, Artemis and her mother had an important task ahead of them: they would go to where the people live! Artemis had long asked her mother to introduce her to them. They rarely had guests at home, and those that came always left again almost immediately. Her mother strictly forbade her from leaving the forest. But finally, the time had come for Artemis to meet the other inhabitants! The girl packed her travel bag with her most precious belongings. Among them was an old crossbow that, according to her mother, had once belonged to her late father.

After a two-hour hike, they arrived at the outskirts of a small village. The mother boldly entered one of the houses, and after some hesitation, the daughter followed her in. But instead of a warm welcome she saw her mother plunge a slender blade into a villager's chest. Shaking with fear, Artemis ran out of the house, only to see other women, looking much like her mother, emerging from the other houses with blood-stained knives in hand. Each of them carried a bowl filled with some kind of brew to the center of the village. They held their blades over their bowls, allowing the blood to drip in. And the worst part was that all of them were smiling!

Artemis felt someone put their hand on her shoulder, and she recoiled as she saw her mother's face that scared her for the first time in her life. "You're not a little girl anymore," Artemis felt her mother's warm but firm grasp on her shoulder. "The time for your initiation has arrived! Your blood must be purified of any human traces in it, of the blood of your father!" As she went on, the other women, still smiling, nodded in agreement, and poured the contents of their bowls into a huge cauldron. Artemis understood that her mother and these women were witches, and that her father, like all village people, had been killed by them. And this ritual would turn her into a ruthless killer just like them.

She also realized that all those hours spent practicing with her father's crossbow at lunchtime while her mother slept had not been in vain. Artemis was not yet a witch — that's why the sunlight still brought her only joy. She had no intention of giving up that pleasure.

The girl drew her weapon and pierced a few witches with a single arrow. The others barely had time to realize what was happening before they, too, met their fate at Artemis's marksmanship. Within a matter of moments, her mother was the only witch left alive. "Now I know: I am the daughter of a witch hunter," Artemis said grimly, hesitating whether to kill her mother too. "So that was the blood you wanted to take from me. I will not kill you as you did my father, but know this: the end is nigh for you witches. I'll become the new hunter!"

With these words, the girl disappeared into the depths of the forest. After several months of solitary wandering, she was found by a group of seasoned Guardians who took her in. Within a short time, she became a full member of their team. Since then, the brave huntress has become an unparalleled master of the bow and accomplished numerous glorious feats.