Quasar watches Carl and Donut’s chicken truck enter the stairwell and feels relieved that there is no last-minute disaster. He notes that 203 crawlers have reached the eleventh floor and that 172 have already accepted standardized post-floor deals for one season of indenture as game guides, with medical care, a stipend, and a gag order. Kiki, his longtime attorney friend, confirms the terms while drinking at the bar and reminds him that Carl could summon him at any moment.

As Quasar waits, the chapter briefly frames his history with Kiki. Quasar had to sue for access to law school because of prejudice against Nullians, while Kiki came from a notorious criminal family, and their shared outsider status made them close. Around them, other screens report a wider crisis: dungeon gods are appearing briefly near Plenty-built tunnel-node exits across the galaxy, causing panic even though casualties remain low. Kiki also receives a ruling about her remaining client, Daniel Bautista, learning that he has been disqualified rather than killed after the crawlers’ cleaner-bot escape attempt.

Quasar starts preparing for Carl’s expected call and reflects that, unlike many others, he is physically far from the unstable tunnel system. Before he can enter a tunnel booth, his tablet rings with a call from his niece, Tempest. Tempest is panicked and bloodied, and she says Taurins came looking for Quasar; when Quasar’s brother told them off, violence followed.

A Taurin seizes the screen and tells Quasar that he accepted a contract from Quasar’s client’s wife, offering to spare Quasar’s brother and Tempest if Quasar comes to him. Before the threat can continue, Tempest uses an illegal blaster that Quasar had given her and kills the Taurin, then kills a second attacker who rushes in. Quasar is shocked but immediately shifts into crisis management, shielding the call as an attorney communication and instructing Tempest to check on her father while he arranges help.

At that exact moment, Quasar receives Carl’s summons and realizes he cannot afford to lose Carl as a client. He brings Kiki into the call with a quick retainer payment and asks for both legal and practical help. Quasar understands that Princess Chandra, Donut’s lawyer and his opponent in an ongoing legal fight, is almost certainly behind the attack on his family. The chapter ends with Quasar enraged that Chandra has made the conflict personal and determined to respond on both fronts.