Five and a half years earlier, Kaladin rushes into Lirin’s surgery as Brightlord Rillir and Brightlord Roshone arrive mangled from a whitespine hunt. Amid blood and Laral’s panic, Lirin applies surgeon’s triage: Rillir’s abdominal wound is beyond saving, while Roshone’s leg can be treated. Lirin sedates the raging Roshone with dazewater and assigns Kaladin to assist.

Working on Roshone’s pierced thigh, Lirin extracts tusk shards and nearly faces a moment where a slip would sever the femoral artery. He steadies, removes the fragment safely, and begins stitching. Behind them, Rillir’s spasms cease; he dies. Lirin’s choice preserves Roshone’s life despite the man’s neglect of townsmen Alds and Milp and his previous abuses.

At dusk, after Roshone is returned to his estate and Rillir’s body is sent for Soulcasting, Lirin and Kaladin speak outside. Lirin explains his code: a surgeon must know when help is impossible, refuse to kill, and “start” by doing what is right so others can follow. He insists they must be better than the lighteyes who treat life cheaply.

Left to think, Kaladin tests his own convictions. He admits he would have let Roshone die, believing it would help his family and the town, and realizes—terrifyingly—that he is capable of killing if he deems it necessary. The reflection reframes his self-image and foreshadows the hardness he might embrace.