Violet and Xaden fly on Tairn and Sgaeyl toward the palace of King Courtlyn the Fourth of Deverelli to retrieve Prince Halden. Tairn reveals he is in pain from the absence of source magic on the isle, though Andarna appears unaffected. Tairn was ordered to stay behind for Andarna's safety. As they approach the palace, Violet observes its remarkable open-air architecture, carved into a hillside with a meadow clearing lit by glass orbs filled with bioluminescent Fallorinia moths.

Upon landing, Violet and Xaden are confronted by a platoon of guards bearing silver-tipped spears. The lead guard, identified by his blue sash, forbids them entry. Xaden introduces himself as the Duke of Tyrrendor and names Violet as his consort—without prior discussion—which grants her the status needed for entry. When a guard threatens Tairn with her spear, Tairn roars and shatters the nearby glass orbs, cowing the guards. They are escorted, weapons intact, through the open-air palace to the dining hall, where King Courtlyn sits at a raised dais with Halden and Tecarus.

Courtlyn, younger than expected, has already stabbed Halden's hand with a jeweled dagger—identified by Xaden as the Blade of Aretia, a stolen Tyrrendor heirloom. Courtlyn reveals that Halden's personal guard, Captain Anna Winshire, was caught stealing from the royal treasury with a list in Halden's handwriting, and has been executed—her remains served as meat to Courtlyn's three white panthers. Violet is horrified but maintains composure. Halden, enraged, insists the stolen items rightfully belong to Navarre, traded away under unfair terms over the past century. This revelation confirms Halden has long known about threats beyond Navarre's borders and has been involved in secret dealings.

Xaden attempts to salvage the situation by proposing a deal directly with Tyrrendor rather than Navarre, offering what appears to be an emerald-studded Aretian heirloom sword from his pack. Violet stops him, unwilling to let him sacrifice more, and prepares to offer something from her own pack instead. Halden furiously asserts that only he can speak for Navarre and denounces Xaden as the son of a traitor. The confrontation escalates until Courtlyn, declaring the situation tedious, orders that Tecarus be spared but everyone else killed.