Shallan follows Shade into the Ghostblood safehouse beneath Narak and is struck by how much it resembles Mraize’s old lair. In a room of trophies from other worlds and hidden secrets, she briefly sees Sja-anat watching from a reflection, then vanishing with a knowing smile. Shallan enters the meeting chamber disguised as one of the masked offworld operatives and finds Mraize, Iyatil, and several Ghostblood agents already assembled. Although Iyatil’s presence nearly overwhelms her, Shallan uses Veil and Radiant’s advice to steady herself and keep the disguise intact.

Mraize delays the real meeting by demonstrating a heavy hand ballista, using it to lecture the group about technology that lets ordinary people challenge old martial elites. As Shallan watches, she realizes the performance is not random; Mraize is teaching a lesson about how warfare changes when new tools appear. Iyatil’s occasional glances nearly break Shallan’s nerve, but Shallan regains control by reminding herself that Mraize and Iyatil are not untouchable mysteries, only dangerous people who can still make mistakes.

The true purpose of the meeting emerges when Mraize opens a podium and uses a seon to project Felt’s face. Shallan is shocked to learn that Felt has been a Ghostblood agent all along and that the seon Ala has been helping him question Restares. Felt reports that Restares revealed Ba-Ado-Mishram’s prison is hidden in the Spiritual Realm. Mraize then explains that Cultivation pushed Dalinar toward Honor’s power, so Dalinar will soon enter the Spiritual Realm; Mraize and Iyatil intend to follow him there, and Zora will lead the local cell and report directly to Thaidakar while they are gone.

When Icy Tongue questions how this serves Thaidakar’s larger goal of moving Stormlight offworld, Mraize refuses to fully explain. Shallan, however, sees enough to understand one terrifying implication: the gemstone-tipped bolts for the hand ballista could become delivery systems for anti-Stormlight, turning the weapon into a way to kill Radiants and their spren at range. She secretly flashes a warning on the hidden spanreed strapped to her arm to signal her allies. Before she can act further, Iyatil crosses the room, crouches beside her, and speaks in an unknown language, abruptly threatening Shallan’s cover.

Elsewhere in Urithiru, Dalinar and Navani discuss the cost of the plan Cultivation has set before them. Navani fears that if Dalinar Ascends to take up Honor’s power, she may lose not his presence but his humanity. Wit joins them and explains that Dalinar and Navani can try to enter the Spiritual Realm, relive slices of the past through Connection, and compare what they see against Wit’s own memories to uncover the truth of Honor’s death and the Stormfather’s omissions. Dalinar insists he must take this risk because losing the contest would hand him to Odium as the Blackthorn, and Navani decides she will accompany him rather than let him face that realm alone. With Wit’s guidance, they agree to test the process in a lower part of the tower after informing Aladar and Sebarial.