At the breach in the Wall, Feyre, Lucien, Jurian, and Hybern’s twins find three young Children of the Blessed who have come to Prythian as willing tribute. Brannagh and Dagdan immediately view the humans as prey, while Lucien denies that faeries accept such offerings. Realizing the mortals do not understand the danger, Feyre forces her magic painfully through the Wall’s resistance and alters their minds, making them see the fae as monsters and driving them to flee. She also plants a command to escape to the continent and warn other humans before the war begins.

Brannagh wants to pursue the fleeing humans, but Feyre stops her and makes clear there will be consequences if the princess crosses the border. Jurian quietly thanks Feyre for what she has done, showing that he understands her intervention even though she denies it. The twins spend the rest of the day examining the Wall without explaining their purpose, and the group camps again in the woods.

That night, Jurian speaks privately with Feyre by the fire. He condemns the human worshippers’ ignorance of the long history of human enslavement by the fae, then reveals that his alliance with Hybern is driven by old grievances and unfinished business tied to Miryam and Drakon. When Feyre challenges him, Jurian recounts that Rhysand once sacrificed his own legion trying to save Miryam during the War, arguing that Rhys’s reputation for cruelty was always partly calculated. Jurian then suggests Rhys has not truly lost Feyre at all, but has intentionally set her loose among Hybern’s allies.

The next morning, Lucien wakes Feyre to the smell of blood. Brannagh and Dagdan are gone, and Jurian tells Feyre she is too late. In the woods, Feyre and Lucien find the mutilated bodies of the three humans. Lucien concludes that the twins crossed the Wall during the night to hunt them down, and the brutal display confirms Hybern’s taste for torture and revenge.

Feyre and Lucien cover the bodies with their cloaks and assess what the murders mean. Lucien argues that the killings were not Feyre’s fault because the twins intended to make a point about their power, and Feyre realizes the royals were enraged by being denied and threatened enough to retaliate. When she asks whether they should bury the victims, Lucien warns that doing so would mean cleaning up Hybern’s mess. Feyre decides they should send a different message instead, signaling a new act of resistance.