Reina reflects on how richly the Society has rewarded her already, having accessed lost works by Circe, Democritus, and Anaximander in just three months. Her primary motivation going forward is simply to retain access, as she anticipates even greater treasures in the archives' deeper holdings on medieval and Enlightenment-era magical thought. She spends more time in the reading room than any of her fellow candidates, often testing which texts she can summon.

During one of these sessions, Reina meets Aiya Sato, a billionaire tech executive and initiated Society member from the class just before theirs—the same class as Dalton Ellery. Aiya expresses surprise that Dalton has remained at the Society as a researcher, revealing that Dalton is actually an animator capable of bringing inanimate and metaphysical things to life, and that legends exist in his Nordic village about a boy who could animate entire forests. Aiya also shares that Atlas Blakely was not originally the Caretaker but served in a role similar to Dalton's before being elevated, and that the previous Caretaker was an American who held the position for nearly half a century. When Reina asks about the elimination process, Aiya's composure briefly falters before she affirms it was worth it and departs abruptly.

As weeks pass, Reina observes growing tensions among her classmates. A fern in the painted room warns her of trouble. She notes the deepening alliance between Callum and Tristan, who are increasingly inseparable and engaged in private conversations. Parisa, meanwhile, appears distracted rather than wounded by the loss of Tristan's attention. During a lecture by Dalton on the transition from space to time, Reina catches the intensely loaded glance between Parisa and Dalton, realizing Parisa has set her sights on the researcher rather than mourning Tristan.

Reina confronts Parisa directly, demanding to know her purpose with Dalton. Parisa deflects, claiming boredom and attraction, but Reina presses further. Parisa reveals that Callum is not punishing her but trying to beat her, and warns Reina that if she knew what Parisa knows about Callum, she would side with Parisa. When Reina asks why Parisa won't share this information, Parisa refuses and instead delivers a pointed warning: Reina should not envy her but fear her. Reina recognizes that Parisa's telepathic ability is uniquely seamless and weightless, dissolving into thoughts rather than probing them, making her far more dangerous than any telepath Reina has encountered before.