Chapter 70

A bloodied protagonist wakes in Raeve's sparse cellar with a hatchling and investigates mysterious tapping sounds coming from a hidden trapdoor above. Upon forcing entry, they collide violently with a fierce, red-haired fae woman who holds a blade to their throat, believing them an intruder—until the smell of Raeve on them triggers a devastating realization that her friend thought dead may still be alive.

The protagonist awakens in Raeve's cell-like sleeping quarters with a dry heave and immediate regret over her empty flask. After tending to Gruffin, a hatchling resting in her cloak, she hears mysterious tapping from above a forbidden trapdoor. Despite Raeve's explicit warning not to enter, the protagonist fears for Gruffin's safety and investigates, pushing through creaking hinges into an upper suite. The space is luxurious—equipped with a black kitchenette, stacks of fresh loaves, Runi tools, and a comfortable stone seater—a stark contrast to her dungeon confinement. As she reaches for a striking red feather on a stone table, a figure leaps from behind a seater and tackles her violently to the ground, pinning her with a blade at her throat. The assailant is a striking fae woman with white skin, freckles, and masses of deep-red hair. When the protagonist mentions coming through the back entrance and smelling of vomit, the woman's demeanor fractures: she recognized the scent of Raeve on the protagonist and believed Raeve dead, fed to dragons by the king's Sabersythe. The protagonist reveals that Raeve survived execution and was carried north to Dhomm by Rygun. At this news, the fae woman's eyes roll back and she collapses; the protagonist catches her head before it strikes stone.