Dressed in a black hood and mask, Celaena Sardothien, the King of Adarlan’s assassin, climbs a manor’s exterior wall and enters the house through an open window. A servant passes her in the hallway, shuts the window, and disappears. When the hall is clear, Celaena moves to Lord Nirall’s bedroom, where he is sleeping next to his wife. Nirall opens his eyes as Celaena raises her sword.

Celaena walks down the hallway of Rifthold’s glass castle and enters the king’s council chamber with a bag in hand. She bows to the king, and when he tells her to stand, she pulls a severed head from the bag and throws it at his feet. The king says he doesn’t recognize the face, so Celaena pulls a severed hand with a seal ring from the bag. Chaol Westfall, the Captain of the Guard, takes the hand and gives it to the king, who inspects and recognizes Nirall’s ring. He asks Celaena about Nirall’s wife, and Celaena replies that she is chained to her husband's remains at the bottom of the ocean. She then pulls a woman’s hand with a gold wedding band from her bag.

Satisfied with Celaena’s report, the king tells her that there are rebels in Rifthold that seek to overthrow him and ruin his plans.