Sora storms outside Count Rune’s villa and grips the patio railing above the rushing river, overwhelmed by rage and humiliation. She thinks about suicide as an escape, but her thoughts snag on her sister, Daysum, and the responsibility Sora feels toward her.

Rune follows Sora onto the patio alone and challenges her disgust toward him, claiming the guard dog he killed was already rabid and would have suffered. He admits he poisoned Sora’s water to test whether she truly is the poison-immune “poison maiden,” and he confirms she passed without harm.

Rune then presses Sora about why Tiyung is accompanying her. He argues Tiyung was not sent to burn Sora’s indenture but to destroy Sora, likely on orders from the Count of Gain; Sora realizes Rune’s logic fits and fears she was manipulated into trusting Tiyung. Rune says he opposes wasting Sora’s value and would rather keep her alive—though he bluntly frames her as an illegal assassin whose “freedom” will always be conditional.

As Sora reels, she finally understands what Daysum whispered earlier: not “I think it’s time,” but “I think I’m dying.” Rune shifts to the broader plot and tells Sora that the King of Yusan is not a god: King Joon’s immortality comes from the etherum crown, one of five relics of the Dragon Lord. If the crown is removed, Joon becomes mortal, and that is the moment Sora is meant to strike; Rune says the spymaster has found someone who can remove it.

Rune escorts Sora back inside, urging her to “play the game” and, if necessary, silence Tiyung. Sora returns to dinner acting calm, privately electrified by the new information and by the possibility that stealing the crown could give her a way to save Daysum.