Poison

By a stream, Oro demonstrates effortless creation by blooming a rose and asks Isla to try. Isla’s attempt first succeeds, then withers, feeding her fear that her Nightshade nature will always corrupt her Wildling life-giving power. Overwhelmed by responsibility and self-doubt, she breaks down, saying she doesn’t want to rule and even urges Oro to use their bond to take her power.

Oro refuses and reframes Isla’s worth, crediting her with breaking curses and saving the realms. His conviction cuts through her despair; when Isla chooses to believe him, a rose blooms in her hands and holds, signaling emerging control.

At dawn, determined to stop sabotaging herself, Isla slips out of the palace and enters the forest barefoot to test her bond. She experiences an exhilarating, seamless communion: trees part, vines lift her, flowers erupt in her wake, and nature anticipates her needs. For the first time, the woods feel like home.

Then Isla spots Grim watching from below. The shock snaps her concentration, and the living pathway collapses. She crashes through branches, her powers failing to respond in time. Moments before impact, Avel catches her; Ciel arrives right after, revealing they had been shadowing her.

Escorted back to the palace, Isla thanks Avel and Ciel and anxiously scans for any sign of Grim. The episode cements that while Isla’s connection to the Wildling power is real, it remains fragile under emotional disruption—and external threats like Grim still destabilize her.