Kel accompanies Conor to Conor’s first Dial Chamber meeting as presiding prince. Conor is annoyed by the white bandage on his injured hand, while Kel privately checks his concealed weapons and prepares to be ignored as Conor’s guard and double. In the chamber, the Charter Families gather with their companions, and Conor takes the Sun Chair with Mayesh Bensimon beside him.

The Council begins with routine disputes over trade tithes, including whether colored paper profits belong to House Roverge or House Raspail. Conor settles that dispute by dividing the tithe evenly. The discussion then turns to bandit attacks at the Narrow Pass, which threatens Castellane’s land trade route, and the nobles use the issue to argue over possible foreign alliances and Conor’s future marriage.

As various political matches are proposed—Sarthe, Valderan, Malgasi, and Kutani—King Markus unexpectedly enters with Master Fausten. Markus interrupts the meeting with talk of destiny, the stars, and a vision of Castellane’s ruin, including Marivent fallen and the Ruta Magna running with blood. Fausten, prompted by Conor, persuades Markus to leave by reminding him of the coming lunar eclipse. Kel tries to smooth over the scene by calling it a joke, but Conor’s control breaks when Lady Alleyne mentions the Solstice Ball; Conor throws a glass against the wall and storms out.

The focus shifts to Lin in the physick garden, where Chana Dorin finds Lin collecting foxglove for medicine. Chana asks Lin to help prepare sachets for the upcoming Goddess Festival, but the conversation becomes a confrontation about Mariam. Chana argues that Lin has begun treating Mariam only as a patient, not as a sister and friend, and urges Lin to attend the Festival because Mariam is making Lin a special dress and may fear it will be her last Festival.

Lin is shaken because Chana’s accusation touches Lin’s deepest fear: that Mariam might want comfort, companionship, or even acceptance of death more than another cure attempt. Lin notices that she has unconsciously taken out Petrov’s strange stone, whose shifting darkness calms and fascinates her. Alarmed by her attachment to it, Lin puts it away and resolves to return it before she begins to rely on it.

Kel later finds Conor in the Queen’s Garden, where Conor admits throwing the glass was a mistake and fears he failed to show authority before the Council. Conor then voices his terror that King Markus is mad and that Conor will inherit that madness, recalling the earlier Fire on the Sea incident in which Markus seemed willing to burn. Kel reassures Conor with loyalty and humor, making Conor genuinely laugh before Mayesh arrives to take Conor to the Queen’s post-meeting review. Conor dismisses Kel to enjoy Falconet’s gathering instead.