In Dor, Paedyn spends her days trying to survive as an Ordinary among other Ordinaries. She haggles with a bread merchant named Francis, pretending to overpay while deliberately dropping a coin so she can steal two extra loaves when he bends down. Even as she steals, Paedyn wants genuine connection and hopes Francis might warm to her, which makes her guilt sharper when he finally laughs with her and gives her bread.

As Paedyn moves through the city, she studies Dor’s harsh climate and rough social rhythm, recognizing how different it feels from Ilya. The sense of belonging is fragile, because a wanted poster showing her face stops her cold. Seeing the image forces Paedyn to relive killing the king and the guard she killed in self-defense after reaching Dor, and she tears the poster down in distress. She recalls that on her first night in the city she hid on a rooftop, then stole a scarf at sunrise so she could cover her distinctive silver hair and become anonymous again.

Later, Paedyn takes shelter in a patch of shade and forces herself to eat Francis’s stale bread while avoiding both the sun and more posters. Her main problem becomes clear: she is running out of money, and without money she cannot secure food, shelter, or any stable reason to keep going. As evening cools the city, Paedyn heads back toward the rooftop where she sleeps, still fixated on finding a better way to survive.

On the way, Paedyn overhears two men discussing bets on an underground fight. Because gambling means money, she follows them to a hidden cellar and memorizes the knock needed for entry. Inside, the crowd is so dense that Paedyn cannot pickpocket effectively, but while watching the cage match she realizes a better option: instead of stealing from bettors, she might get paid to fight.

After the match, Paedyn approaches the man handling tickets and winnings, who turns out to be Rafael, the organizer of the illegal ring. Rafael dismisses her as a child who would be destroyed in the cage, so Paedyn escalates by threatening to expose his gambling operation and by projecting confidence in her own ability. Rafael, amused and intrigued by her nerve, agrees to give her a fight in an hour and warns her not to disappoint him. When he asks for her name, Paedyn chooses a new identity for this life in Dor: Shadow.