Paedyn walks through the city under heavy scrutiny, the silver dagger Kai gave her strapped to her thigh and the memory of his encouragement fresh in her mind. She travels in an Imperial-led procession with King Kitt beside her, aware that without his presence the crowd’s hostility would be louder. She notes their route heading east and flatly remarks she will be in the Scorches; Kitt answers, "Sort of," as the heat bears down on her.

At the city’s edge, Paedyn confronts the expanse of the Scorches, remembering how close she came to death the last time she crossed the desert. Kitt faces the crowd, with Tealah using her Amplifier ability to project his voice, and declares that Paedyn will be tested for bravery, the first of the three B’s his father used to rule. He announces the Trial: Paedyn must retrieve the first queen of Ilya’s crown from her crypt in the Sanctuary of Souls, a place long avoided even by bandits for unknown reasons.

Kitt explains that Paedyn must cut through the Scorches to reach the Sanctuary and that she will face many dangers, including fears conjured by her own mind. He sets the condition that if she returns with the crown before midnight, she passes; otherwise, she is unfit to be queen. The crowd watches Paedyn, whose anger rises at a Trial she believes does not measure her ability to rule but is imposed because she is an Ordinary.

Paedyn reflects on what Trials take from her—will, inner light, and loved ones—fearing this ordeal will carve away more of herself. With a brief nod from Kitt and a subtle, familiar expression from Kai, she steps into the desert. The heat and shifting sand immediately weigh on her, and the distance from the city dampens the voices but not the feeling of being watched.

As she moves diagonally across the Scorches, Paedyn battles exhaustion and memories: past crossings, the field of poppies beyond distant rocks, and a time when Kai chased her as an enemy even while they were closest. She spots Kai at the city’s edge, feeling the ache of their enforced distance and the impossibility of openly claiming him. She considers the different kinds of bravery—speaking love, loving from afar—and turns away, continuing alone toward the Sanctuary of Souls.