In the Great Room, Lyra watches the screen show the numeral 8, confirming that there are eight players in the game. Odette immediately identifies the final person in the room, Grayson Hawthorne, as the eighth player and tells him to search his tuxedo. Grayson finds a player pin, proving that Avery and his brothers have placed him in the game rather than behind it.

Lyra reacts with anger and alarm because the team phase requires every teammate to reach the north dock by sunrise or all of them will be eliminated. Grayson suggests that he could refuse to play, but Lyra confronts him, insisting that he cannot sabotage her chance to win. Lyra admits that she needs the prize, especially to secure Mile’s End, and resents Grayson’s suggestion that there are other ways to get money.

Odette observes the tension between Lyra and Grayson and remarks that she now sees Grayson’s resemblance to Tobias Hawthorne. When Grayson presses Odette about how she knew his grandfather, Odette refuses to answer unless Grayson helps the team reach the dock before sunrise, turning her knowledge into leverage.

Grayson finally points out a lever hidden under the screen, signaling that he will participate. Lyra demands a clear answer, and Grayson replies that he has little choice, lightly acknowledging Lyra’s temper. Lyra pulls the lever, opening a hidden compartment behind the screen.

Inside the compartment is a mahogany-and-gold chest engraved with the Latin phrase Et sic incipit. Grayson translates it as “And so it begins,” marking the start of Lyra, Odette, and Grayson’s escape-room challenge.