Balthazar and Baptiste trudge through war-damaged countryside toward the standing stones near Niksic. Balthazar bitterly complains about his boots, clothes, lice, food, and the whole journey, while Baptiste answers with dry patience and advises him to stop insisting on one perfect path and instead adapt like water. Balthazar briefly begins to see Baptiste differently and imagines a less resentful version of himself, but that moment ends when soldiers suddenly surround and capture them.

Imprisoned in a cellar cage, Balthazar tries to talk his way free with the local sergeant by claiming they are harmless travelers. His explanations only make matters worse, because the sergeant suspects druids or spies, and Baptiste unhelpfully volunteers that she once worked as a spy. When Countess Jovanka arrives with Father Ignatios, Balthazar again attempts to explain himself, but his nervous rambling about magicians, Venice, and Troy only deepens suspicion.

The situation changes when Baptiste steps forward and insults the countess instead of pleading. Jovanka recognizes her at once, has Baptiste unchained, and the two women greet each other warmly. Balthazar learns that Baptiste and Jovanka were once ladies-in-waiting to the Queen of Sicily, and Jovanka quickly shifts from suspicion to hospitality, while Balthazar is left embarrassed by how badly his own efforts failed.

Jovanka leads them up from the cellar and through her large military camp, where soldiers, supplies, animals, and siege equipment show that a serious campaign is underway. She explains that she is at war with Count Radosav after a long escalation of disputes and mutual provocation. Balthazar flatters her, hoping to stay in favor, while Baptiste questions the scale of the conflict.

At the edge of the camp, Jovanka points out the larger problem. Across a shallow valley lies Radosav's opposing army, and the standing stones that Balthazar and Baptiste need to reach sit directly in the no-man's-land between both forces. Their destination is therefore not merely nearby but at the center of an impending battle, turning the next stage of their journey into a far more dangerous obstacle.