The retinue reaches the village in the Fervent Peaks. Unlike in the Seacht, the roads here are made of dirt, and the fishermen’s houses are wooden. The only adornments in the village are oars carved into the doors of the houses. 

The group reaches a large basin of water with a waterfall, but it’s not the pool from Six’s dreams. Five figures from the Peaks’ noble families appear to begin the ceremony for Benji, one of whom is Hamelin’s mother. They chastise the king for arriving late and for receiving ill portents at Aisling. Six is the only Diviner seen lately in the Peaks, which worries her further.

The group approaches the basin of water for the ritual. Benji strips naked and enters the freezing water, wrapping himself in fishing nets to prostrate himself. When he’s in the water, Rory grabs his flagon of water from Aisling’s spring and tells Six that it’s time to set a trap for the Oarsman. While they sit hidden and wait, Rory thanks Six for saving Benji and tells her that she’s a better knight than most. 

As Rory turns more flirtatious and sensual, Six panics and asks if he’s married, as she recalls Four’s dalliance with a married knight. He says that he’s single. He asks her if she’s ever fancied someone, and she admits to dalliances, but she’s never climaxed with another person. Rory fantasizes about what it would be like, but before the conversation can escalate, sprites appear near the flagon. They watch as the Ardent Oarsman approaches.

The Ardent Oarsman takes the flagon and leaves, with Six and Rory in pursuit. The Oarsman lifts his oar and disappears into the waterfall. Rory and Six cannot get up the cliff to follow, so Six calls the gargoyle to fly them upward. The gargoyle gets them past the lip of the waterfall, and Six recognizes the basin from her dreams, the basin that feeds the waterfall. Six sees a castle nearby, and she and Rory sneak past rock sprites to approach the castle door. Rory knocks, and the Oarsman answers the door. Rory tells him that they seek to take up the mantle, and the Oarsman invites them inside.

The castle is cold and dark, with only a stone throne and piles of gold. The Oarsman asks Rory and Six if they left the Aisling water for him, and Six asks him where he got his gold. The Oarsman confesses that the Aisling gargoyles bring it to him. 

Rory reiterates that the king seeks to take up the mantle, and before Six realizes what’s happening, the Oarsman uses his oar to appear in front of her, grab her, and transport them both to his throne. The Oarsman can smell the spring water in Six’s blood, and he menacingly licks her neck. Six stabs him in the thigh with her chisel and runs back to Rory. 

The Oarsman laps up his own blood and promises to tell Six what happened to the other Diviners if she stays with him. Six stands up to him, saying that he’s not a god and that, without the Diviners, he would be nothing. Rory challenges the Oarsman to his craft of vigor to take his oar and find answers about the Diviners. The Oarsman accepts but tells him that the fight will be a fight to the death. Rory agrees and asks for three days to prepare. The Oarsman also agrees but insists that he will fight Six since she’s the one who wants information.

Six struggles to put on shoes for the first time in order to train for the fight. Her training session with Rory becomes emotionally charged, as her feelings about the missing Diviners become overwhelming; her need to best the Oarsman is personal. Rory tells her that it’s personal for him, too, because she’s important to him. They almost kiss before being interrupted by Maude and Benji, who advise that Six train with the coin as her weapon. The night before the battle, Six can’t sleep and goes looking for Rory.

Rory takes Six to a hot spring to relax. He disrobes as Six turns away and then turns around as Six also disrobes and enters the water. He massages her wrist, which is sore from flicking the coin during training. She asks him if he’s in pain, and he confesses that he always is around her. Six thinks of their similarities, as they both grew up under the cruelties of the Omens. 

Rory tries to grab Six’s foot to massage it, but she slips in the water, going under. He quickly pulls her up and apologizes for reminding her of drowning. He tries to leave, but Six doesn’t want to end on a sour note, so she asks him to massage her shoulder. Rory fantasizes about biting her skin, and Six admits that she’s thought about it. Six gives him her thumb, and he bites her gently. Six makes him promise to find a home for the gargoyle and to search for the Diviners if she dies. He does and then leaves her alone in the spring.

The next day, Maude makes the gargoyle Six’s squire and lends Six her armor. The group goes to the Oarsman’s lair and finds the Oarsman standing on a wooden platform in the middle of the water basin. Six must fight him without falling into the water since she cannot swim.

Six cannot use the coin as a weapon, as throwing it would risk losing it in the water—she must use her hammer and chisel. She asks Rory for a story, and he tells her about a knight who met a woman who gave him faith that the world could be better. He tells her that the story ends when all the Omens are dead and when Six kisses Rory.

Six takes a boat to the platform. The Oarsman beats Six viciously with his oar before pinning her down and biting her neck, drinking her blood. The Oarsman says that he receives a Diviner “utterly still” every 10 years and that the only spring water he’s given is their blood. 

The Oarsman knocks Six’s helmet and her shroud off, and the sight of her eyes is enough to distract him. Six launches at him, placing the chisel over his heart before hammering it in. As the Oarsman dies, he tells Six that the other Diviners are dead. Then, he uses his oar to destroy the platform, sending Six into the water.