Vis leaves Suus feeling that his home is truly lost and returns to a bustling Academy that no longer feels welcoming. He meets Callidus in the library, where gossip about Vis and Emissa’s rescue has already spread via Senate connections. Catching up, Vis learns Callidus and Eidhin spent time together over the break, and he asks that Eidhin join Callidus for morning Common practice while Vis commits his evenings to running the Labyrinth with Emissa to satisfy Ulciscor’s ultimatum.

Eidhin arrives, bantering with Callidus and confirming the new morning routine. At dinner, students crowd Vis for stories of Suus; Emissa watches from another table and exchanges a rueful shrug with Vis about their separation at meals. Aequa is ostracized, and though Vis tries to include her, she remains isolated. The day ends with Vis buoyed by a productive Labyrinth session in which Emissa’s experience highlights tangible ways he can improve.

Late that night, Callidus draws Vis aside to the park and, with difficulty, admits a secret. Months before first trimester, a pre-Academy training group at Callidus’s villa—Belli, Iro, Axien, Sianus, and Callidus—bonded, and Callidus developed deep feelings for Belli. When Belli dismissed his warnings about Academy deaths, Callidus stole Will-sealed Governance documents from his father to prove it, expecting to return them quickly.

Belli kept the documents and has been blackmailing Callidus ever since: forcing him to drop to Class Seven and pressuring him for information, with the implicit threat of destroying his family’s standing and potentially consigning them to Sappers if the theft is exposed. Callidus believes the papers are likely hidden in the girls’ dormitory and that any attempt to retrieve them risks expulsion and exposure.

Vis, angry at Belli’s leverage yet mindful of the risk, promises to look for a solution rather than condemn Callidus’s past mistake. As classes resume and the window for promotions narrows ahead of the Iudicium, Vis resolves to advance to Class Three soon. Falling asleep, he considers a dangerous plan that could both secure his advancement and free Callidus from Belli’s control.