The King bids farewell to the men in his court who are going to fight for either Florence or Siena in the Florentine war, and the lords hope that the King has recovered by the time they return. Parolles stays behind, but he encourages the other men. Bertram cannot leave with them, as he is too young. Bertram suggests that he might run away to join the wars, and both Parolles and another lord encourage that choice. Lafew enters, lamenting the King’s illness, and he announces that Helen has arrived, bringing a possible cure.

Helen enters and tells the King that she is Gerard de Narbon’s daughter, and she brings with her a medicine from Gerard’s supply. She emphasizes that Gerard impressed on her that this is a valuable medicine, and she suggests that it will cure the King’s fistula. The King rejects her offer, saying that none of his physicians can find a cure, and he does not want to raise his own hope of a cure without sufficient evidence. He suggests that Helen lacks the necessary training and knowledge to help him, but Helen insists, reframing her offer as divine providence.