Throne of Glass, #2
Crown of Midnight
by Sarah J. Maas
Contents
Chapter 1
Overview
The King's Champion silently enters Lord Nirall's manor during a violent storm to carry out an assassination ordered by the king. The chapter establishes the assassin's skill, secrecy, and conflict between duty and conscience, while making clear that obedience is tied to the assassin's promised freedom.
The mission reaches a tense turning point when Lord Nirall wakes just as the assassin is about to kill him.
Summary
During a storm near the sea, the King's Champion infiltrates Lord Nirall's darkened manor on the outskirts of Bellhaven. The noise of thunder and wind covers the assassin's climb over the garden wall, up a drainpipe, and through a second-floor window.
The King's Champion hides when a servant girl approaches to shut the open window. Once the servant leaves without noticing the wet footprints, the assassin recalls the manor layout learned over three days of surveillance and heads toward Lord Nirall's bedroom.
Inside the room, the King's Champion finds Lord Nirall asleep beside his wife. The assassin briefly wonders what Lord Nirall and his wife did to make the king want them dead, but reminds herself that obedience is required because freedom depends on completing the king's orders.
The King's Champion draws a sword and prepares to strike. As the assassin raises the blade over Lord Nirall's head, Lord Nirall suddenly opens his eyes.
Who Appears
- The King's ChampionMasked assassin infiltrating Lord Nirall's manor to obey the king and secure freedom.
- Lord NirallAssassination target asleep beside his wife until he wakes at the crucial moment.
- Lord Nirall's wifeSleeping beside Lord Nirall; also implied to be marked for death.
- Servant girlPasses through the hallway to shut the window, missing signs of the intruder.
- The kingOffstage authority who has ordered Lord Nirall and his wife killed.