Tané spends her final hours in Cape Hisan before departing for the capital as a new member of the High Sea Guard. She reflects on her separation from Ishari, her close friend who failed to be chosen and has been sent to Feather Island with the other scholars. Tané seeks out her friend Susa at an inn to discuss the outsider they previously encountered. Susa reports that sentinels searched Orisima after a pirate ship was sighted, but failed to find the outsider, who apparently remains hidden there. Tané and Susa decide not to report the outsider to the Governor, reasoning that he may pass as a legal settler or escape on a future ship. They agree that further involvement is too risky. The two friends share an emotional farewell, with Tané promising to protect Susa if the outsider situation ever threatens her.

Meanwhile, in the confined trading post of Orisima, the exiled Mentish alchemist Niclays Roos continues his futile attempts to create an elixir of life. His backstory is revealed: he once convinced Queen Sabran of Inys that he could brew an elixir removing her need for marriage or an heir, but after years of failed experiments funded by the crown, Sabran exiled him to Orisima rather than executing him. Niclays harbors deep resentment toward Sabran and dreams of completing the elixir to buy his way back to the West—and then deny it to Sabran out of spite. He believes Eastern dragons, which can live for millennia, may hold the key, but trade in dragon substances is punishable by death.

Niclays is shocked to find Triam Sulyard back in his house, soaked from hiding under a bridge during the sentinel search. Sulyard reveals his mission: he wants to persuade the Warlord of Seiiki to send Eastern dragons to help Virtudom fight the awakening Draconic beasts, forging an unprecedented alliance between East and West. Niclays mocks the plan as absurd, noting the Great Edict has stood for five centuries. Sulyard inadvertently reveals that his secret companion and wife is Truyde utt Zeedeur, Marchioness of Zeedeur, which stuns Niclays, who knew her grandfather. Sulyard also informs Niclays that Prince Leovart of Mentendon is dead, killed by a wyvern, and that Prince Aubrecht now rules.

Niclays urges Sulyard to stow away on the next Mentish ship and return home to Truyde, warning him he can accomplish nothing here but die. Sulyard refuses, insisting he must complete his mission. Niclays reluctantly accepts the young man's presence, hoping the sentinels stay away long enough for Sulyard to come to his senses before the next shipment arrives.