Vis wakes early in the dorm and, unable to settle, steps outside into a misty campus where Aequa approaches him. She questions how Vis knew the sewer route during the naumachia and why he seemed unafraid. Vis offers a plausible explanation—observations about the aqueducts and a long, fear-hardened past—framing his composure as familiarity with danger. The tension eases; they tour the grounds, but Aequa states she must keep her distance due to class expectations. Before leaving, she admits to nightmares, which Vis silently acknowledges.

At breakfast, Vis and Callidus sit separately and are ignored by the Sevenths; Iro Decimus in Class Three glowers, and an unidentified Praeceptor openly watches Vis. In Class Seven, Praeceptor Ferrea begins with the basics of Will. Vis deliberately answers advanced points, citing current scholarly distinctions and demonstrating depth to draw attention for reassessment. Ferrea’s questions sharpen toward him, and the rest of the class, content to be overlooked, relaxes.

Over lunch, Callidus joins Vis, cautiously reconciles, and they bond over difficult Will studies. Vis recounts how he engineered Eidhin’s Threefold Apology, prompting laughter and Eidhin’s bruised glare. Callidus suggests Principalis Veridius likely placed Vis near existing political animosity by pairing him with the Censor’s son, given recent Senate vetoes and the public rift with Vis’s father, implying the confrontation with upperclassmen was foreseeable.

In the afternoon, Ferrea distributes a class test but gives Vis a separate, tougher assessment to set a baseline. He completes it rapidly; Ferrea reviews it immediately while continuing the group exam. As the lesson ends, Ferrea directs Vis to begin his evening punishment in the stables under Septimus Ascenia.

Crossing the Curia Doctrina, Vis observes a Transvect’s approach and recalls that a dedicated shuttle will run to Agerus for the Festival of the Ancestors. He considers exploiting that route to reach the ruins Ulciscor mentioned, folding this into his broader plans as he heads to the stables.