In Jasnah’s bathing chamber, Shallan reads King Gavilar’s account of first contact with the self-sufficient Parshendi, noting Jasnah’s undertext that she refined his words and that Gavilar initially missed their significance. They discuss chasmfiend gemhearts, the treaty’s clauses, and Jasnah’s suspicion that Parshendi Shards—and even a near-summoning—spurred Gavilar’s push for an agreement.

Shallan considers swapping Jasnah’s Soulcaster with her broken decoy but loses her nerve when Jasnah praises her potential and proposes a “hands-on” philosophy lesson. They leave into Kharbranth’s night, Jasnah ignoring transport and leading Shallan down a notorious, unguarded alley where recent murders have occurred.

Four armed footpads close in. Jasnah unveils her Soulcaster and kills them: one becomes living fire at her touch, a second transforms into flawless quartz, and two more are struck at range and turned to smoke, cracking the smokestone. The women depart, leaving the crystalline corpse behind.

In a jolting palanquin ride, Shallan condemns the killings; Jasnah argues self-defense, public safety, and the failure of the watch, assigning Shallan a week to research the ethics. Back in their rooms, Jasnah remains composed, asserting she wanted those men gone, even without formal authority.

Still reeling yet desperate to save her family, Shallan seizes the moment. She removes the intact smokestone from her father’s broken Soulcaster to match Jasnah’s now-missing stone, executes the swap while assisting with dressing, and conceals the working fabrial. Jasnah locks away the decoy, unaware. Shallan leaves shaken—but undiscovered.