At dawn, Vis wakes and spars with Lanistia above Ulciscor’s fields. She initially goes easy because Vis was recently unconscious, but after a brief exchange about Ulciscor revealing Caeror’s story, Lanistia resumes full intensity. Their wordless understanding grows as they train.

An unannounced carriage arrives. Sextus Gaius Valerius, a wiry stranger, claims authority from Magnus Tertius Servius to examine Vis. Lanistia verifies the old-form authorization using Ulciscor’s office—an unusual, discreet directive that even Ulciscor would have to accept—and instructs Vis to comply and observe carefully.

In the atrium, Gaius conducts an invasive examination while interrogating Vis about the naumachia and Melior’s abilities. He takes hair, nail, saliva, skin, and blood samples, deflecting questions about his tests by citing unknown effects of Melior’s new power. Vis maintains a careful, minimal account consistent with his prior statement to Ulciscor, offering no new specifics.

Gaius then reveals four precise sketches: silhouetted figures before a full moon, a sand-buried ruin with shattered glass pillars, a vast hall with a triangular aperture and unfamiliar script, and a black pyramid against towering waves. Vis inadvertently reacts to the last, which resembles what he saw before reaching Estevan; Gaius notices and presses, but Vis denies any real knowledge. Gaius departs, telling Vis to contact Tertius Servius with any memories in exchange for reward.

Afterward, Lanistia returns, advises Vis to speak with Kadmos during his upcoming lesson, and confronts him about why he returned to the Arena when Aequa said he could have escaped. Vis insists it was the right thing to do; Lanistia counters that self-sacrifice is strange for him and may not serve him at the Academy. She leaves, and Vis is left uneasy about the Senate’s interest and his own choices.