The burden of a terrible secret paints a target on the back of Chancellor Demos, and the fires for heretics flare up ever closer. On the other side of the continent, Baron Aldor is trying with all his might to protect his friend from the consequences of the acts he committed, and he himself risks falling into disgrace. The commander of the mercenary army, Artanna nar Toll, is obsessed with the thirst for revenge and is ready to do anything to return the taken home. They are all dancing on the scaffold. Everyone’s goal is to survive, and for this, the heroes enter into the most unexpected alliances. But in the world of politics, trust itself is a luxury, and the price for it is paid in blood.