At the oasis, Yrene notices that Chaol’s limp has worsened after the ride and insists on examining his back and legs before either of them joins the others. After stretches and massage, they pretend to take a modest walk rather than bathe, using the excuse to search the surrounding jungle for the cave or ruins Nousha had mentioned.

As Yrene and Chaol move deeper into the oasis jungle, Chaol speaks about his training in Anielle and Rifthold. The conversation turns painful when Chaol admits that the royal guards who served under him were tortured and killed after refusing to betray him, and Chaol blames himself for their deaths. Yrene tries to comfort him, but Chaol withdraws and pushes forward into the ruins.

Yrene and Chaol find fallen pillars, carvings, and a sealed structure that suggest the place is not a cave but an ancient necropolis. The carvings show Fae warriors fighting Valg, and the gates bear the Old Language, leading Chaol and Yrene to conclude that this was a Fae burial site predating the khaganate, the Torre, and Antica. Chaol theorizes that Fae once settled or hid something in the southern continent, and that their bloodlines may have produced the land’s unusually powerful healing magic.

Chaol and Yrene connect the discovery to the Torre’s ancient scrolls and to the threat stalking the healers. They suspect Morath may fear the healers because healing magic could be a weapon against the Valg. They decide to return quickly, show the scrolls to Hafiza if necessary, summon Nesryn back, and seek a way forward without waiting indefinitely for the khagan’s aid.

That evening, Yrene and Chaol attend Hasar’s elaborate birthday feast while concealing what they discovered. Hasar offers rare warmth to Yrene, but the conversation soon turns political. Chaol tells the royals that Aelin Galathynius is bound to Rowan Whitethorn, explaining Rowan’s strength and Aelin’s defiance of Maeve, which unsettles Arghun and draws the royals’ attention.

Hasar then suggests Yrene could be titled and married to Kashin as a political substitute for Aelin, forcing Yrene into an uncomfortable public choice that might affect the war effort. Chaol angrily rejects the idea but leaves Yrene room to answer for herself. Yrene deflects the proposal with humor, showing trust in Chaol rather than in the royals, but after more wine and taunting from Hasar, Yrene loses patience and shoves the princess, chair and all, into the oasis pool.