Carl approaches Chaco the Bard, a winged, wolf-headed man who once traveled with Mordecai’s party. A hunter named Zabit, a level-66 Atoll Beastmaster, compliments Carl for nearly provoking Vrah into breaking the seal. When Carl asks why Zabit hunts crawlers, Zabit explains that his people aren’t citizens and must pay for habitat and oxygen; without hunting income, they face indentured servitude.

Onstage, Theobold announces the pet show. Chaco warns that the dungeon eventually forces everyone to betray their allies, leaving them broken and alone.

Chaco informs Carl that he has 66 hunter hands—a form of currency—to spend. Carl surveys the holographic prize display and relays options to Mordecai. The most expensive items include Future Floor Boons for 30 hands—the Seventh-Floor Pole Position boon is already sold out, bought by Prepotente with his 33 hands. At 100 hands, there’s a memorial crystal. Mordecai urges Carl to acquire it, explaining that memorial crystals contain divine knowledge, but Carl is 34 hands short. Chaco reveals that it belonged to Queen Imogen and is part of the Butcher’s Masquerade spell requirements.

Carl purchases the shrink wand, the Eighth-Floor Book of Lore, the Song of Skedaddle, and cases of Feather Fall and healing potions.

Louis hypes Mongo’s entrance to Nicki Minaj’s song “Anaconda.” Donut triggers pyrotechnics, and Mongo moonwalks across the stage.

Carl checks in with Bomo, who is scavenging abandoned hunter gear in Zockau. Sledge reports that mantises are blocking the tunnel entrance, so he abandons that plan and will use the airship, the Twister, to enter from above.

Carl spots Vrah watching the disabled warning light. He explains that Diwata is still on the floor, continuously birthing mantis nymphs. Elle reveals that a hunter told her that Vrah’s people tricked his brother into serving as Diwata’s birthing vessel. Mordecai clarifies that Diwata exploits a loophole, remaining on the floor as long as her birth spell continues while unable to cast other spells.

The group sees Florin standing over a sobbing Lucia and moves to intervene, only to find Lucia embracing him. Lucia speaks briefly with a child’s accent, asking for her mother, before snapping back and threatening Florin.

In a private chat, Florin explains that Lucia’s consciousness houses multiple people, mostly children—including a 10-year-old Dutch girl. A dog is remotely controlling Lucia; capturing it will end its hold on her.

Ferdinand—Imogen’s cat familiar and Donut’s former friend—suddenly appears on Carl’s shoulder, mocking Florin. Carl uses the distraction to message Samantha to begin her infiltration mission.

Planning notes detail the team’s strategy to use secret, cat-sized tunnels throughout the castle to reach the security room. Ferdinand is a level-100 Province Boss and Queen Imogen’s familiar, wearing a ridiculously large golden turban. Katia’s Size Up potion reveals his stats, including a hat that grants a level-10 Lightning spell.

Samantha messages that she’s waiting for elf soldiers to pass before entering the tunnels. Donut begins charming Ferdinand, who becomes casual and flirtatious. He admits that the queen sent him to watch Signet and that he accidentally hit Donut with lightning while trying to kill Mongo. Meanwhile, Carl sees Eva conspiring with Vrah.

Carl assigns Firas to guide Samantha through the tunnels. Ferdinand announces that he’s entering the tunnels himself. Outside, 200 mounted elves have spotted the airship; Louis reports that mantises have taken over the Twister, forcing everyone to abandon ship. Sledge escapes to the castle roof with Bonnie, the bear cubs, and Prudence.

With two sentinel towers still armed, Sledge suggests crashing the Twister into them. Louis protests; Carl orders it done. Samantha messages that Ferdinand passed her without noticing. She’s above the security room—but reveals that she gave the sleeping potion to Cleiton because it was uncomfortable. She reports that the guards are already dead. Queen Imogen appears, and the room is sealed.

Planning notes detail the crawlers’ strategy to enslave Ferdinand using a Charm Animal potion made from Donut’s blood. Imogen enters with blood on her dress, having fought through the siege outside. She confronts Signet, warning that attacking her would break the seal and banish Signet and an ally to the Nothing.

Imogen magically drags Carl forward and accuses him of besieging her castle. Carl says the code phrase, “The sink is running” (625).

Two massive explosions rock the castle: The Twister has crashed into the guard turrets, destroying them. Imogen takes a seat and commands the show to proceed. Florin reassures Carl that the blood on Imogen’s dress belongs to her twin.

Samantha reports that two soul crystals were already pulled from the security room, disabling the hunter ballroom’s protections. The goodwill interface crystal was also removed but runs on a capacitor. The guards were killed by mantises—meaning that Diwata is inside the castle. Carl orders Samantha to replace the crystals, which will disable the hunters’ magic and draw Diwata to her. A Draconian hunter’s spell fizzles; Vrah glares at Carl.

Carl decides to kill Eva to break the seal and messages Donut that Plan A is a go. Signet approaches and tells Carl what she has recently learned: that her life is a game that the universe is watching for entertainment and that her own memories, including those of her murdered mother, aren’t real. A massive explosion shatters the floor tiles—Samantha detonated the soul crystals to stop Diwata. Signet consumes a white acorn, begins to glow, and reveals her plan: She will cast the Ink Marauder spell by acting as her own sacrifice, ending her life in the process. She asks Donut to cast the Torch spell to augment her power. Carl announces Escape Plan D.

Donut appears alone onstage. She messages Carl that the charm potion worked—Ferdinand is now her minion. She sings “All Eyes on Me,” a song her mother sang to her, which casts a charm spell focusing everyone’s attention on Donut’s chosen subject.

The spotlight shifts to Big Tina at center stage. Donut uses a scroll to recharge Tina’s magic wand; Tina casts Recital, a charm spell that leaves the audience enraptured. Vrah notices Signet glowing and shouts an alarm. Carl tells Sledge to begin casting.

The backdrop falls to reveal Mongo, Kiwi, and 30 raptors in sea-creature costumes, dancing. Signet sits beside Imogen, speaks briefly of her mother, and then slits her own throat. All the acorns fall from the ceiling tree, and the floor rips open. Signet is pulled into the Nothing. A voice from the void calls out for Psamathe. The hole closes, leaving only Signet’s swirling tattoos and a tornado of blood. A notification announces that the seal is broken and that the Butcher’s Masquerade has failed. Carl equips the Ring of Divine Suffering, marks Vrah, throws smoke curtains, and signals the attack.

Donut commands the raptors to attack the hunters. Mongo and Kiwi attack Vrah. Samantha drops from the ceiling on a wave of bug gore. Signet’s tattoos form Memory Golems that attack but can’t harm the incorporeal Imogen. The hunters are slaughtered while mantises block the exits. Imogen unleashes red lightning that damages everyone.

Carl approaches the dying Vrah; Mongo kills her. Carl finds the Memory Golems of Clint and Nadine and gives Clint a health potion, which works. The incomplete Flesh Golem of Signet’s mother, Princess Lunette, is also present. Nadine tells Carl that Signet wants Carl to take the golem to help Samantha and find a Pulpmancer; Carl stores it.

Imogen breaks free and shatters Carl’s arm. Ferdinand attacks her to free him. Donut has Kiwi crush a hidden potion ball onstage; the “I Take It All Back” potion transforms Kiwi from a raptor into a pregnant bear. Tina sees the transformation and regains speech, calling for her mother. The Recital quest completes.

Carl drinks a Feather Fall potion. The world freezes as the Zerzura spell activates.

The castle and its occupants are transferred to the ninth floor. The AI initiates a “Boss Battle! Cage Fight Extreme!” to AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” (650). Four teams are announced: the crawlers, the 75 remaining hunters, Queen Imogen (level-145 Country Boss), and Diwata (level-250 Immortal). Carl orders his team to focus blunt attacks on Imogen while his core group handles Diwata.

Everyone plummets into the deep basement beneath where the castle stood. Hunters die rapidly. Carl uses his Protective Shell to create a safe zone. The crawlers fight through mantis swarms toward Diwata. Imogen kills Dmitri and Maxim Popov.

Katia gives Carl her beanie containing a crowd-control spell and then returns to fight Imogen. Donut’s charisma-boosted Love Vampire skill works on the elves. Carl has Donut take Pawna’s Tears to boost her Laundry Day spell; she casts it, and Diwata’s divine form dissipates back to the Halls of the Ascendency. Circe Took is left defenseless and is immediately killed by her own mantis children.

Imogen’s next attack zeros out Donut’s health; her Cockroach skill saves her but renders her unconscious. The last hunter, Zabit, turns invisible; Carl detonates his own traps with Tripper, killing him. The crawlers coordinate a final assault on the nearly defeated Imogen. She prepares a lightning attack; Carl throws a disco ball while Britney summons butterflies. The lightning strikes the butterflies and explodes, knocking Carl and his friends unconscious. Prepotente leaps onto Imogen with potions and kills her.

Carl regains consciousness to pages of achievements. Donut informs him that the ceiling is still descending and that Prepotente and a crawler named Osvaldo are fighting over loot from Imogen’s body—Osvaldo looted the memorial crystal, which Prepotente claims was his. Casualties include Firas, Gwen, Horton, and the Popovs; Tran lost his legs, and Britney’s face is severely burned. Katia walks past with a second player-killer skull, having killed Eva.

Donut confesses that she doesn’t feel as sad as she should about her friends’ deaths and fears that she’s broken. Carl explains that she’s wearing a metaphorical mask to protect herself from trauma. He says that it’s a necessary defense for now, but one day, in safety, it will fall off, and she will cry for everyone they have lost. Donut begins to cry.

Carl uses Katia’s Find Crawler skill to locate two unconscious, naked baby ogres in the gore: the reborn Maxim and Dmitri. The word “Ineligible” appears above them, and they disappear. Zev confirms that children are not allowed; the Popovs have been transferred to a safe facility on the surface and are free. The crawlers celebrate.

Carl and Donut receive notification that they’re now Co-Warlords of the Princess Posse, a ninth-floor faction-wars team inherited from the defunct Burrowers. Carl delivers a speech to viewers, arguing that it’s unfair that only crawlers face real death and calling on citizens of three factions to vote to remove safety protocols for all sponsors. Zev mutes the broadcast.

Prepotente reveals that he needs the memorial crystal for a quest: It’s a memorial for the goddess Apito, implying that she’s dead—which should be impossible. Carl receives a related quest update from Emberus.

Carl, Donut, and Prepotente arrive on the seventh floor in a Pole Position Chamber, where incoming debuffs are immediately negated by the AI. Donut selects a new class: Viper Queen. Prepotente reveals that the floor is based on a fairy tale, knowledge gained from Miriam Dom’s magic boots. He uses a sponsor-provided potion and stick to create a weak point in the chamber wall, exits the party making Donut the leader, and taps the weak point with a hammer. The entire seventh floor shatters, sending all crawlers into the eighth-floor portals.

Carl and Donut land in a marble chamber with a holographic globe of Earth; Donut must choose their starting location. Carl suggests the Bahamas, where his Book of Lore applies. Donut agrees but accidentally clicks the Florida Panhandle.

In a flashback, Katia finds the unconscious Eva on the battlefield and, with Li Na’s help, disables her healing and kills her. As Eva dies, she triggers the “Crown of the Sepsis Whore” (687), which auto-equips onto Katia’s head and melds into her form, meaning that only Katia or Donut will be permitted to take the stairs from the ninth to the 10th floor, pitting the two close friends and allies against each other. The narrative reveals that Katia is addicted to blitz sticks, a drug that creates false memories she uses to imagine that she stopped Eva’s final act.

The bonus material introduces Willow Joy, a changeling on the 17th floor posing as a goblin named Spaghetti. Her mission from a rebel NPC named Grandma Llama is to drug an immortal gnoll named Gary and replace his magically created girlfriend, Jumping Jen-Jen, in order to recruit him for the rebels’ eventual move against Menerva, the floor’s administrator.

Willow was formerly a room attendant at Club Scolopendra on the 18th floor—a resort built inside the body of the sleeping behemoth—where she served the Abbess and her Priory priestesses, who each season sponsor the chaos goddess Eris during the Ascendency games. When the Valtay takeover caused a sponsorship dispute and the Priory left, Willow was reassigned to the sadistic Nurse Yugoslav. She fled into the dungeon’s service corridors, encountered a mysterious message from the system, and was eventually recruited to the 17th-floor backstage operation.

After Gary falls asleep, Willow tries to remove Jen-Jen—and discovers that she’s a shadow mimic. The mimic attacks, biting Willow’s neck. Multiple shadow mimics ambush her allies, revealing that Gary’s repeated attempts to create a gnoll girlfriend have instead been producing mimics who have been infiltrating the backstage population undetected. Willow is mortally wounded as the mimics close in.