Chapter Summaries

Ligo and the others came under attack as the building shook, and Buli broke free and seized Officer Silei’s gun. Buli fled without shooting Officer Silei, leaving her behind as Ligo continued fighting the unseen attacker.

• Ligo warned the group as the pipes vibrated and burst, shaking the building and freeing Buli from his chains.
• Buli panicked when he learned it was nearly the twentieth, then attacked Officer Silei and took her pistol.
• Buli aimed at Officer Silei and Hesta, but turned his gun toward the distant fight when he heard a crash.
• Buli weighed killing Officer Silei against needing the Quicksilver Needles’ protection and decided to run.
• Officer Silei let Buli escape and watched him flee in anger while Hesta looked at her sympathetically.

Hesta challenged Silei’s belief in procedural justice and revealed that she had awakened an Alecto. She attacked the Chelated Being and defeated it, leaving Ligo stunned as she told Ligo and Silei to search elsewhere.

• Hesta told Silei that her reluctance to harm civilians would make her gun ineffective, then accused her of running away from responsibility.
• Hesta put on a combat glove and explained how Robogriye’s words about the Ascetic Monks helped her understand the public’s support for assassins.
• Hesta revealed a silver ring around her irises and said that many sleeping Alectos trembled when one awakened.
• Hesta rushed at the Chelated Being and stabbed its eye after it recoiled from her exposed vital points.
• The Chelated Being retreated and collapsed, and Hesta told Ligo and Silei to search elsewhere while she handled the area.

Silei fled the engine-room fight, then found Buli trapped and suffocating inside the data center as its fire-suppression system drained the air. After midnight, Zero returned to Anna with her damaged body and admitted she had broken Hesta’s ribs, but Anna said Hesta would understand.

• Ligo sent Silei away so she would not be caught in the gunfire as he and Hesta fought the Chelated Being.
• Silei heard Buli firing and pounding on the data-center door, then found him trapped inside and struggling to breathe.
• Silei realized the room’s fire-suppression system was removing the air and urged Buli to find its switch, but he collapsed as the time reached midnight.
• Bernhard’s group arrived, and Silei called out that someone was trapped in the data center.
• Zero returned to Anna’s residence with her head detached and reported that Hesta had entered Bullet Time in poor condition.
• Zero told Anna she had broken two of Hesta’s ribs to keep her body from being captured, and Anna said Hesta would understand.

Hesta recovered in the infirmary after being injured, while Ligo and Chiba discussed her Bullet Time progress. Hesta then questioned Chiba about how much she trusted Anna.

• Ligo struggled to give Hesta water until the nurse showed her how to moisten Hesta's lips with a cotton ball.
• Hesta called someone a liar, and Ligo blamed herself for failing to capture it alive.
• Chiba arrived and told Gustav that Gopelin was waiting to speak with him; Gustav left despite Ligo's promise to keep him nearby.
• Chiba told Ligo to return to the usual place and exit Bullet Time, then assured her that Hesta would stay in the room.
• Chiba asked Hesta about her Bullet Time progress and what she had wanted to discuss, and Hesta asked whether Anna had threatened Chiba and whether Chiba trusted her.

Hesta questioned Chiba about her reduced medication and their relationship, then asked to go to the observation deck to see the sea’s twilight line. After Silei arrived and Chiba confronted her over the night’s events, Hesta still wanted to go outside and talk.

• Hesta realized her medication had been reduced and asked Chiba whether she or Anna had ordered it, and Chiba admitted it had been her idea.
• Chiba promised to explain the details the next day, but Silei rushed in after hearing Hesta had been injured.
• Chiba accused Silei of using Hesta and Ligo to do dangerous work while she stayed out of the fight, and Silei offered no defense.
• Hesta asked to go to the observation deck to wait for the sea’s twilight line, and Silei objected while Chiba agreed.
• Silei left to check on Gustav, and Hesta told Chiba she still wanted to go outside.

Hesta spoke with Miss Chiba on the Observation Deck about Anna's danger, her visions of Sophie, and the responsibility behind her choices. Ligo arrived furious that Miss Chiba had taken Hesta out of the ward, and Miss Chiba asked who had the golden key.

• Hesta asked Miss Chiba whether Gustav would survive and learned Anna was safe but remained in constant danger.
• Hesta told Miss Chiba she had seen Sophie when she stopped taking her medication, and reflected on choosing her own fate and accepting responsibility.
• Miss Chiba explained that doctors with combat experience had advised getting Hesta off her medication, and said she had trusted their judgment.
• Ligo found Hesta and Miss Chiba on the Observation Deck and chased Miss Chiba for breaking her promise to keep Hesta in the ward.
• Miss Chiba asked Hesta whether she or Ligo had the golden key.

Chiba pressed Hesta for the key, but an alarm interrupted them and Silei arrived with Gustav, asking to stay the night. As the group sheltered aboard the ship, Chiba reacted with disgust when Hesta recalled a kind shopkeeper from her childhood.

• Chiba tried to take the key from Hesta, but Ligo stopped her and Hesta could not find it among her belongings.
• An alarm sounded, and Silei appeared with Gustav and asked to stay with the group overnight.
• After the alarm stopped, Silei said Gopelin was gathering everyone at Bishop Restaurant, but she and Gustav stayed behind because it was safer.
• Gustav feared he would die, and Silei comforted him while Chiba and Ligo questioned her kindness toward a Thorn Monk.
• Hesta recalled a sundry shop owner who had cared for her in Duanming Alley, and Chiba abruptly said the memory made her think of something disgusting.

At dawn aboard the Ascending Bright, Hesta and the others watched the sunrise as Silei recounted how she had left District 14 for District 3 years earlier. Chiba refused to explain whether the ship could turn back, leaving Silei worried as Gustav began to cry.

• Hesta asked Silei about her move from District 14, and Silei said she had boarded a ship using identification documents and tickets she found in a bag.
• Silei recalled reaching District 3, getting rid of the documents, and finding help after the Victory Day amnesty.
• Ligo urged everyone to watch the sunrise, then spun Hesta's wheelchair so she could see the night sky and daylight together.
• Silei asked Chiba whether the Ascending Bright could turn back, and Chiba answered that more human lives were at stake.
• Chiba went to warn Ligo not to push Hesta too fast while Silei stayed behind and heard Gustav begin to cry.

After Silei nearly collapsed from exhaustion, Gustav reunited with the Thorn Monks and credited Hesta and Ligo with driving away the Chelated Being. Hesta learned that Gopelin had kept everyone confined to Bishop Restaurant overnight for a supposed Safety Inspection, while he sat apart with a document envelope.

• Silei suffered a sudden burst of pain and almost fell, but Chiba caught her; she insisted she only needed food and rest.
• Ligo and Hesta questioned Silei about whether she had slept, and Silei asked Gustav to follow her.
• Two Thorn Monks embraced Gustav and asked how he had survived; Gustav said Hesta and Ligo had driven the Chelated Being away.
• Silei drank water at the bar, then rested with her head on her arms while Hesta watched from a distance.
• Rene praised Hesta and Ligo and kept other passengers away from them at Hesta's request.
• Hesta asked Rene why everyone was in the restaurant, and he said Gopelin had ordered a Safety Inspection and made them stay there all night; Hesta noticed Gopelin sitting alone with a document envelope.

Chiba rescued Anna from a ventilation shaft, where Anna had been hiding after searching for her cat. Anna returned to the restaurant with Mantel as Bernhard's soldiers withdrew, while Hesta's chest pain remained untreated.

• Hesta asked Chiba for the painkillers she had left upstairs, but stayed in the restaurant to watch Gopelin's plans.
• Chiba heard Anna's voice in a ventilation shaft and climbed down to secure her with a rescue harness.
• Anna told Chiba she was not injured and had only said she was bleeding because she was menstruating, then thanked Chiba before being pulled out.
• The ship's doctor examined Anna and found her vital signs normal; Anna said she had been looking for her cat and asked for water and food.
• Mantel wheeled Anna toward the restaurant as Bernhard's soldiers withdrew, and Chiba followed them.
• Ligo asked Chiba for Hesta's painkillers, and Chiba admitted she had forgotten to fetch them and sent Ligo to get them instead.

Anna arrived at Bishop Restaurant and spoke with Hesta, who tried to discover why she had come. Anna said she had come to watch the show, then left Hesta wondering what she intended as Ligo reported Buli was recovering in the infirmary.

• Mantel served Anna breakfast and told her she had to stay in Bishop Restaurant until the Safety Inspection was over.
• Rene brought Hesta to Anna, and the two women exchanged guarded remarks while watching Chiba.
• Hesta asked Anna why she had come, and Anna said she wanted to watch the show before leaving to eat.
• Ligo told Hesta that Buli had triggered the database's low-oxygen fire suppression system and was still in the infirmary.
• Hesta noticed that Chiba was no longer where she had been standing.

Gobelin explained the rules governing the Arbiter and the deadly Night Banquet invitations, then announced that his term had ended and the passengers would choose his successor. Hesta realized the choice of the next Arbiter was the real show.

• Gobelin told the passengers that the Safety Inspection had ended, his term as Arbiter was over, and he was now safe from the Chelated Being.
• Gobelin explained that Night Banquet invitations triggered trials and that choosing an invalid guarantor could doom both the recipient and the person they named.
• Gobelin said the deaths would stop once every Thorn Monk had received an invitation, provided the new Arbiter fulfilled the duties in the Guide.
• Gobelin revealed that the next Arbiter could be appointed by him or elected by passengers holding Ship Cards, then set down the Recording Pen.
• Hesta understood that the selection of the next Arbiter was the real show.

Silei tried to open the Guide, but the passengers leaned toward following its rules and choosing a new Arbiter. Meanwhile, Chiba questioned Anna about Jane’s medication and Zero’s decision to hide Anna in a ventilation shaft, before disappearing from the staff dining room.

• Silei tried to take the Guide, but Bernhard and his subordinates wrested it away from her.
• Gopelin allowed Silei to open the Guide if she accepted the consequences, while Rene called for a vote and most passengers supported choosing the next Arbiter according to procedure.
• Rene argued that serving as Arbiter required courage and could cost the Arbiter their life, while Ligo and Hesta discussed whether he might win and how to see the Guide.
• Chiba asked Anna about Jane’s medication and criticized Zero for hiding Anna in a ventilation shaft; Anna defended Zero’s reasoning.
• A sugar cube struck Anna between the brows, and Chiba vanished before Mantel returned with wine and noticed sugar grains on Anna’s forehead.

At Bishop Restaurant, the passengers agreed that the Arbiter would be chosen by vote, and five candidates prepared to compete. Tasia proposed repeated anonymous voting after each speech, while Officer Silei supported her plan and warned that the Arbiter could retaliate against dissenters.

• Bernhard ended the argument by proposing that everyone could run for Arbiter and that the most-voted candidate would win.
• Tasia raised her hand to join the candidates, and Officer Silei insisted that Bernhard let her participate.
• Rene proposed drawing speaking order and holding one vote after all five speeches, but Tasia objected that the first and last speakers would have an advantage.
• Tasia suggested voting after each speech, allowing voters to support multiple candidates, and holding a runoff if there was a tie.
• Officer Silei backed anonymous voting and warned Rene that the Arbiter could use their authority to punish people who had not voted for them.

At a public forum, Silei delivered a tightly focused speech before Adams spoke for twenty-seven minutes, prompting Silei to doubt herself and Rene to demand more time for the remaining speakers. Bernhard accepted Rene's proposal to extend each speaker's limit to fifteen minutes and asked Gopelin for his view.

• Rene suspected Silei might be acting on Hesta's behalf, then dismissed the idea and complained about Silei cutting him off.
• The speakers followed Tasia's order, with listeners voting on each speech between turns.
• Silei spoke first, laying out concrete concerns and plans she had developed over sleepless days.
• Adams followed with an extended account of his childhood, survivalist training, and his father's lessons, speaking for twenty-seven minutes.
• As Adams spoke, Silei replayed her own speech in her mind and felt ashamed and overwhelmed.
• Rene objected to Adams's excessive speaking time and demanded a fifteen-minute limit for everyone; Bernhard agreed and asked Gopelin what he thought.

During a break in the speech session, Hesta spoke privately with Gobelin about the mysterious “guide” and the Chelated Being that had injured her. She suggested that she and Gobelin both knew who was manipulating events behind the scenes, leaving him visibly unsettled.

• Rene extended everyone’s speaking time to fifteen minutes, and Gobelin allowed Tasia a ten-minute break to revise her speech.
• Hesta asked Ligo to move her wheelchair toward Gobelin, then spoke with him while Rene and Bernhard listened nearby.
• Hesta questioned Gobelin’s plan to have everyone follow the “guide” and said the creature that fought her might not have been a Chelated Being.
• Gobelin said he believed the “guide” was trustworthy and urged Hesta to follow it despite being unable to explain why.
• Hesta told Gobelin that she thought she knew the person manipulating events, and Gobelin reacted with unease.

Hesta told Gobelin that she suspected Alecto was behind the voyage, while Tasia’s failed speech briefly lifted the mood in the hall. Anna then pointed out Silei as a solitary outsider and praised Hesta for staying out of the turmoil, leaving Hesta unimpressed.

• Hesta told Gobelin that she suspected Alecto was behind the events of the voyage.
• Tasia began addressing the crowd but lost control of her voice amid the others’ laughter and hurried to the restroom.
• Philip chased after Tasia with tissues, while Bernhard and Adams joked with the crowd.
• Anna asked Hesta to notice Silei’s silent, strained expression and described her as a noble person in the wrong place.
• Anna praised Hesta for knowing from the start not to join the commotion, and Hesta responded with a disgusted look.

As the election aboard the dangerous cruise ship continued, Hesta challenged Anna’s view of tragedy and unexpectedly entered the race to become adjudicator. She asked the candidates to hand the Guide to her and prepared to explain why, leaving Silei wary of her intentions.

• Hesta told Anna that people could appreciate tragedy only when someone else suffered, then asked whether Anna wanted Silei to become a tragic spectacle.
• Fionn finished his speech, and Bernhard called Rene Blomberg as the final candidate.
• Hesta arrived with Ligo and asked to use Rene’s remaining speaking time to propose that the Guide be handed to her after the five-person election round.
• Bernhard objected that Hesta could not join the election late, but Rene agreed to let her speak.
• Hesta looked at Silei, who wondered whether Hesta truly meant to save people, then promised to explain her reasons.

Hesta challenged Adams and Fionn’s motives for seeking the arbiter position, then urged everyone to pause the election and trust her to investigate the danger aboard the ship. Adams and Fionn withdrew, and Gustav publicly supported Hesta.

• Hesta questioned Adams’s concern for the group and argued that he had not helped with earlier disputes.
• Fionn and Adams accused Hesta of sowing suspicion, while Silei defended her role in rescuing Gustav.
• Hesta revealed that Gopelin suspected the events aboard the ship might stem from Yarek’s Test rather than a Chelated Being.
• Hesta asked the crowd to postpone the election and entrust her with the Guide so she could investigate and protect them.
• Adams and Fionn withdrew from the round, Silei and Rene raised no objections, and Gustav stood to support Hesta.

After the assembly, Hesta retrieved the Guide and heard Gobelin announce that everyone would survive the Arbiter’s replacement and that he would remain on the third deck. Later, Hesta met with Rene and then spoke privately with Tasia, asking why she had raised her hand during the assembly.

• Hesta took the Guide and the Arbiter’s fountain pen, then told Silei they would talk after returning.
• Gobelin announced that no one would die on the day the Arbiter was replaced and said he would stay on the third deck to help people.
• Hesta adjourned the meeting and privately promised Rene that three people he named would be guaranteed safety.
• Ligo questioned how Hesta could guarantee anyone’s safety, and Hesta said she had promised Rene a blank list without paying anything upfront.
• Tasia came to thank Hesta for buying her time during the assembly, and Hesta asked why she had raised her hand.