Kingsley’s vision places him on the docks of his home village, where he witnesses Amara cruelly berating Winnifred. Amara threatens to turn the maid to stone, just as she did her mother. A disembodied voice offers Kingsley the chance to undo his frog curse and reclaim the 10 years he lost. Kingsley refuses the offer. When pressed for a reason, he confesses a long-held secret: He knew he would be turned into a frog that day because he had arranged for it to happen himself. The admission shatters the vision, and he is thrown back into reality.

Kingsley falls to the office floor, joining Blade and Clare. Shortly after, Becky and Tatianna are freed from the vines and awaken. Tatianna recounts her own test, explaining that the vision showed an alternate timeline in which Evie kept her powers and Trystan grew up as prince, and she was offered a choice to change the past, which would have resulted in her and Clare being married. She refused, saying it would not have been right and that she likes who they are now. Moira reappears and cryptically announces that not everyone passed her test. As she speaks, Becky collapses, unconscious.

As Becky lies dying, Moira confirms she failed the test but offers the group a single “grand favor.” Clare asks if it could save Rennedawn, but Blade insists they save Becky, vowing to save the kingdom himself if she is in it. Upon awakening, Becky is furious to learn she failed. She marches up to Moira, proudly declares her full name and titles, and insists that she does not fail. Moira, delighted, reveals that this defiant confrontation was a second test designed for Becky’s practical nature, which she has now passed. Becky then identifies the baby guvres as “Fate’s creatures,” and Moira confirms she created them.

Moira reveals her true identity as the personification of Fate. She explains that she did not need to test Lyssa, whom she considers a worthy storyteller. Fate recounts how she and Destiny began as the dearest of friends but ultimately grew apart because of the storybook prophecies they created together. While Destiny craved control over all creatures, Fate grew to regret their interference with free will. She confirms the prophecy must be fulfilled for magic to survive but stresses that their choices still matter. Before disappearing, Fate reveals that she and Destiny wrote their stories in The Villain’s office. The book of Rennedawn then floats through the air and lands on Trystan’s desk.

Trystan returns to find his team examining the book of Rennedawn. He recognizes a drawing of a stained-glass window that was in his office when he first discovered the manor. He admits he removed it because it was unsettling but now realizes its light shone directly on the spot where Evie always sat and where he fell in love with her. He reveals he sent the broken window pieces to Arthur with a note reading “This is all you’ll ever have. The broken pieces” (230). Clare adds an important detail: Arthur, believing Trystan was dead, buried the box of glass beneath a memorial tree in the sacred Garden of Rennedawn. Trystan proposes they use their father’s funeral to gain access to the burial grounds and retrieve the window.

Two days before the funeral, Evie finally reconciles with Lyssa, who admits she’s been acting distant to prove her independence, not out of anger towards her sister. During a tea party with Trystan, Lyssa gleefully reveals that Evie has chosen names for her and Trystan’s future children and that Trystan kept Evie’s scarf from their first meeting. Evie confesses she thinks about marrying him “all the time.” Their lighthearted moment is cut short by screams from the hall. Kingsley enters and announces the arrival of the adult guvres.

One day before the funeral, Blade and Becky remain at Massacre Manor to watch the guvres while the others depart. Lyssa also stays behind, using her starlight to keep the animals calm. Blade confides in Becky and Lyssa about his vision from Fate, including his father’s arrest by the Valiant Guard. He makes a negative comment about public service that upsets Becky because it conflicts with her future duties as head of the Fortis family. This leads them to discuss their future together, and Blade affirms that he wants a future with her. After they share an intimate moment, Blade reflects that his father’s defiance of the king means the real conflict has only just begun.

Trystan, Evie, Clare, Tatianna, and Alexander arrive at a shipping port to meet Tatianna’s father, Captain “Jellyfish” Jones. Trystan had arranged for them to travel on his ship, with Jones having also coaxed Amara into changing the burial plan, so they would hold a celebration-of-life dinner aboard before docking for the burial. The group boards the large, pink vessel but is met not by Captain Jones but by King Benedict and his Valiant Guard.

The ship’s ramp is raised, trapping the group. When Trystan and Evie attack, their magic is repelled back onto them. Captain Jones appears and explains that King Benedict threatened Tatianna’s life to force his cooperation. A magical specialist, Lord Charles, reveals he used Gideon’s magic to cast an enchantment over the ship, which rebounds any act of violence onto the attacker. Benedict then reveals that Amara invited him aboard, and Amara herself emerges from behind the crew. Benedict then introduces his new chancellor, who removes his helmet, revealing himself to be Evie’s father.