Aelin faces the freed king, whose shattered Valg ring has left him looking human and diminished. Dorian refuses to believe anything the king says, but Aelin questions him when he claims that everything he did was meant to protect Dorian from a greater evil.

The king reveals that, when he was young, he found a Wyrdkey and brought it to Morath. Beneath the Keep, Perrington showed him a forbidden crypt; when the king opened it, Erawan emerged, possessed Perrington, and allowed a Valg minion to possess the king. Aelin realizes that Erawan has been Duke Perrington all along, hidden so completely that neither he nor Aelin recognized each other during their past encounters.

The king explains that Erawan targeted the Galathynius and Havilliard lines because their magic made them dangerous to him. Aelin condemns the king for the slaughter of Terrasen and millions of others, but the king says he tried to stop the Valg by ordering the towers built and using a spell to banish magic. Because the spell used his blood, Dorian’s line remained able to wield magic, a mistake that failed to protect his son.

The king claims he came to Terrasen to find Aelin, hoping her fire could burn the demon out of him and end his torment. Instead, Aelin’s mother knocked Aelin unconscious before Aelin could kill him, and the demon became determined to wipe out Aelin’s bloodline so no wildfire could ever cleanse it.

As the king rapidly withers, he begs Aelin to end him and reveals that Chaol is alive, though broken, because a light around Chaol prevented the king from killing him. Dorian rejects the confession as lies and advances on his father with power gathering in his hands. Before Aelin can stop Dorian or learn more, Dorian roars, and the glass castle shatters.