In a dim cellar, Paedyn drinks with King Kitt and Enforcer Kai, who toast her as the “Silver Savior.” The mood is loose from alcohol, and Paedyn basks in their rare camaraderie, even as she notes the shadows under Kitt’s kingship. Kitt and Kai ask how Paedyn publicly dismantled Commander Orson; she recounts how she read his injuries and tells to deduce he was a Crawler with a wooden right hand, and inferred his strained marriage to a Healer from details like a ring tan line and the wife’s self-healed glow.

Kai calls her method a dangerous gamble, and Paedyn admits her deductions are risk-laden but honed by a lifetime of observation. When Kitt invites her to read them, Paedyn answers flippantly that Kai was cocky and Kitt was a charming prince, but adds that Kitt has become hard to read. Kitt reminds her they have time, with the wedding set for three days, a timing that shocks both the court and Paedyn.

The looming marriage strains the trio. Kitt mentions a second ceremony on Loot, which Paedyn supports; Kai replies curtly and leaves, saying he has much to do before the ceremony. Paedyn tries to smooth the moment, but Kitt pointedly observes that Kai’s heart belongs to Paedyn. She answers that Kai also loves Kitt enough not to sabotage his plans, and they let the tension subside.

Paedyn changes the subject, saying she chose roses for the wedding. Kitt agrees, noting his mother liked them. He reveals he knows little of his mother because his father hid her memory and blames himself, saying he “killed her” by surviving his birth. Paedyn insists it was not his fault; Kitt, distant and weary, reflects that his father’s secrecy left him unworthy in the old king’s eyes.

As the night ends, Kitt composes himself, coughs, and says they should rest. He pledges not to be his father and vows that he and Paedyn are changing Ilya, closing with, “long live the queen who has helped make that happen.”