Tharion appears before the River Queen and learns she summoned him to rebuke him for asking her daughter on a date Above. Although Tharion says he meant to please the princess, the River Queen insists her daughter is too fragile for Lunathion and treats the invitation as a serious offense. She then turns to the matter that truly concerns her: Emile Renast. Tharion reports that Emile has likely arrived in the city, and the River Queen orders that the boy be brought to the Blue Court immediately, before Ophion or any of the other River Courts can claim him.

The River Queen reveals that rumors of Emile have spread through the waterways, making Tharion realize rival queens may also want the boy as a weapon. Tharion suspects his queen wants Emile because his power-draining gift could be used to dominate her sisters and expand the Blue Court's influence. This possibility, combined with the queen's constant manipulation, deepens Tharion's unease about his loyalty and his life Beneath. When the River Queen senses his restlessness, she pointedly asks whether he resents his time underwater.

Instead of dismissing him cleanly, the River Queen punishes Tharion by forcing him to witness the contempt surface-dwellers show those of the Beneath. An hour later, Tharion is collecting trash along the quay while people Above throw garbage and even bottles at him. Though he retaliates mildly by splashing one woman, the humiliation sharpens his anger at the River Queen's hypocrisy. By the end of the scene, Tharion is thinking not only that the world’s hierarchies are broken, but that something must change for him personally.

The chapter then shifts to Ruhn, who brings the Starsword to the Autumn King after the Reaper attack. Ruhn asks about the sword's origins and unusual reaction, and the Autumn King explains that it is an ancient blade from another world, forged from a fallen star and existing outside Midgard's ordinary laws. Ruhn withholds the full truth that the sword can kill Reapers, but the discussion turns to Bryce when the Autumn King warns that Bryce's Starborn power makes her dangerous. Father and son argue over Bryce's betrothal, her potential bond with Hunt, and the Autumn King's belief that Bryce's power must be politically controlled for the Fae. The exchange ends with Ruhn challenging the idea that the king's authority should be limitless, then leaving before the confrontation turns deadly.