1-3: THE GLORY OF IGNORANCE

This chapter introduces the mysterious assassin-in-white who killed King of alethkar five years ago, now revealed as the powerless-seeming vagrant known to locals merely as "kurp." Living as a servant to various masters, now belonging to a drunkard named took, the chapter details the moment his ownership transfers when took is killed and footpads discover his true nature is defined by his oathstone.

The chapter opens with series of demonstrations of szeth's absolute obedience to his master took within a tavern in ironsway, bavland. The miners watching are amused and perplexed by the shin slave who speaks with refined language despite his wretched appearance. The narrative reveals that szeth is in fact a shardbearer and surgebinder—a windrunner—whose eyes would turn pale sapphire if he summoned his blade, yet he lives deliberately as a wasted, disposable servant. His current servitude is just the latest in a chain of masters since he became truthless seven years prior. The true cause of his status is disclosed: five years ago, szeth assassinated king gavilar of alethkar under mysterious orders to be seen and to leave witnesses—a deliberate contradiction to his usual secretive kills. When the parshendi fled kholinar that night, they discarded his oathstone, forcing him to retrieve it and stand naked by a road until a merchant named avado found him. The alethi authorities never pursued him, assuming he had retreated with the parshendi. That evening, took becomes drunk and stumbles into the street where footpads murder him with a knife. However, they discover szeth is shin and consider him harmless. While looting took's body, one footpad finds the oathstone—a simple stone with quartz crystals and iron—among took's belongings. When szeth quietly informs the footpad that he now possesses the oathstone and is therefore szeth's new master, the footpad's interest shifts from murder to understanding the power this strange ownership grants him.