Royo returns to his cheap shack near the Sol with his hands numb from the cold, staying alert instead of warming them in his pockets. He checks for any sign of a break-in, unlocks three dead bolts, lights the oil lamps, and relights the furnace embers, wishing he had left the fire going for comfort.

As part of his nightly routine, Royo closes the drapes, shifts the bed aside, pries up a floor plank, and reveals a hidden cache of gold mun. He counts the fifteen coins in his purse—earned from beatings, collections, and gambling—then looks over his hoard: ten sacks of five thousand mun each, amassed over ten violent years, yet still only about half of what he believes he needs.

Royo adds his earnings to the smallest sack and recounts it to two hundred and five mun, savoring the sense of safety his money brings. He reseals the hideaway, washes, and prepares for bed while thinking about how he will refill his empty purse tomorrow—by whatever bloody work pays.

When Royo slips the coin purse into his jacket, he discovers a white card with gold edging addressed to him: an invitation to the Black Shoe Inn tonight from someone claiming to have a job. Shaken, Royo searches the shack with a blade in hand and realizes the note must have been planted while he was out—likely during the strange moment at Butcher & Ale—meaning someone got close enough to reach his inside pocket without him noticing.

Royo connects the message to the only person he knows staying at the Black Shoe Inn: the girl Yuri mentioned who has been looking for him. Although his instincts warn him to burn the card and forget it, Royo decides he has to learn how and why he was compromised; if someone could plant a note, they could have stabbed him. He puts on his jacket and heads back into the night toward the inn.