Luzia enters La Casilla’s vast, candlelit ballroom, where Santángel warns her to treat the gathering like an arena full of rivals. Luzia panics when she realizes the first trial may begin immediately, but Santángel and Don Víctor insist no one knew; if the schedule has shifted, it is because Pérez controls the game. Luzia notices the centaur-in-a-labyrinth emblem above the stage and recalls Santángel’s outline of the three trials: earning the right to compete, proving purity under the vicar’s scrutiny, and—if she survives—presentation to the king at El Escorial.

Hualit tries to steady Luzia and gives her a rosary to wear, offering both the appearance of devotion and a pointed reminder to “play your part” carefully. Luzia accepts, reading the gift as both possible protection and warning. Don Víctor questions Luzia about La Casilla; Luzia answers with practiced deference, pleasing him, and Don Víctor takes Hualit away to be seen among the other patrons while keeping their association discreet.

As Santángel guides Luzia closer to the stage, Luzia’s fear loosens into sharp, defiant humor. They trade barbed jokes about luxury, baths, and what Luzia would do with wealth, and Santángel repeatedly cautions her about what is “seemly,” revealing both his protectiveness and his desire to keep her controlled. Luzia senses he is also deliberately distracting her from panic, and she resents—and appreciates—the effect.

Santángel explains Pérez’s emblem and points out other contenders: Teoda Halcón, the “Holy Child” said to speak to angels, and Fortún Donadei, the “Prince of Olives,” a sad-looking musician with a wealthy patroness and rumors of conjuring feats. Their talk turns dangerous when Santángel makes a blasphemous remark about God, and Luzia presses him on why he seems unafraid of the Inquisition, privately noting how unnatural his knowledge and healing seem.

A hush falls when Gracia de Valera, “the Beauty,” enters—radiant, diamond-bright in black velvet, rumored to work milagritos and speak with the dead, and requesting to perform first. Luzia feels plain and heavy beside such splendor, but Santángel keeps his focus on Luzia and insists her practiced miracle will outshine anyone. Tasting the pomegranate of her own ambition, Luzia steels herself to compete and refuses to go hungry again.