Crown of Midnight

Celaena goes to Nehemia’s room and sees that someone has cleaned it. She packs the princess’s belongings into trunks; as she looks around the room, Celaena notices a book just like the one she found in Davis’s office, though this one is older and more damaged. She sees Do not trust— written in Wyrdmarks inside the front cover, and the same riddle from Davis’s office written on the back cover. Celaena realizes Nehemia knew Davis but lied about it. She touches the Eye of Elena, but figures out that it’s not the answer to the “eye” in the riddle.

Celaena returns to Elena’s tomb. Across the room from the hollowed-out eye in the wall is Damaris with its eye-shaped pommel. She takes the sword to the eye in the wall and sees a poem, another riddle. She writes the riddle down, and Mort tells her it identifies the hiding place of three powerful objects. He also says that Nehemia came to the tomb to look for the items in the riddle. Celaena leaves the tomb, questioning what else Nehemia hid from her.

As Celaena ascends the stairwell to her room, Elena appears. Celaena asks her what death was like, and she answers that it was easy and painless. Celaena says it wasn’t for Nehemia, but Elena reminds her that Nehemia’s pain is over and that she is safe. For the first time since the princess’s death, Celaena buries her face in her hands and weeps.

Celaena goes to the graveyard behind the royal mausoleum and finds Nehemia’s temporary grave, where her body waits for her family to take it home. Celaena stands over her friend’s grave and sings a mourning song in another language. Chaol follows her from the castle and watches, confused by the language. The song’s power and sorrow move Chaol. When she finishes, Celaena turns slightly toward Chaol. He calls her name but walks back to the castle when she doesn’t move or respond.

Dorian spends much of the night in the library searching for books on magic, but finds none. He hears footsteps and pretends to read as Celaena appears. He asks if he can help her find anything. She says she’s just out for a walk and gives him a genuine smile. He stares at Celaena, prompting her to apologize for not being herself lately. Dorian tells her he understands, and her eyes soften.

Chaol walks to the library, looking for information about the song Celaena was singing at Nehemia’s grave. He follows an apprentice down an aisle and hears Celaena and Dorian talking. Chaol is grateful Celaena is talking, even if it’s not to him. He sees the head librarian and asks if he knows of any of Terrasen’s songs sung in another language. The librarian says he has heard that when a Terrasen noble dies, they sing in the language of the Fae. He adds that this practice is sacred to the royal court, and no one else would know the songs unless they were of noble blood. Chaol realizes that Celaena must be part of the Terrasen nobility as he leaves the library, making her a significant threat.

Celaena crouches atop a townhouse next to Archer’s. She sees multiple people enter his townhouse and understands that they’re here for a meeting, not a social gathering. After a few hours, all but one of the guests leave. She sees Archer arguing with the last guest, the same man who guarded Chaol at the warehouse. Eventually, the man storms out, leaving Archer alone.

Celaena visits Dorian in his tower for the first time when he invites her to dine with him. His room is cozy but not elegant, as she expected. Dorian tells her that he doesn’t allow his servants to clean for him because he can’t find anything when they do. He adds that Roland has tried dressing him, as is customary for a prince, but that Roland has been suffering from headaches lately and stopped. Dorian asks why Celaena is willing to have dinner with him, and she responds that she has nowhere else to go. Dorian tells her she always has a place with him. They quietly eat their dinner, and Dorian sees the sorrow in her eyes.

The next day, Celaena returns to Elena’s tomb and struggles to understand the new riddle. She decides to find someone who knows magic to help her solve it.

The carnival hired for Prince Hollin is preparing to leave when Celaena comes looking for Baba Yellowlegs. She finds the witch at her wagon and offers her three gold coins to talk with her. Baba says Dorian paid her four. She says that for seven gold pieces, she will answer Celaena’s questions and tell her what Dorian’s questions were. Celaena offers six gold pieces for answers to her questions and the promise that Celaena won’t say anything to the castle guards about Baba selling the prince’s secrets. Baba accepts, and they enter her wagon. The wagon’s interior is gloomy and littered with junk, looking more extensive than the exterior. They walk through a forest of mirrors and reach a fireplace. Celaena is nervous because she knows what witches are capable of.

Celaena hands Baba the riddle, and Baba tells her it’s about the location of three Wyrdkeys. The Wyrdkeys open the Wyrdgate, which allows beings to move from one world to another. She explains that the Valg, demons from another planet, took three pieces of the Wyrdgate and made the keys, allowing them to open the gate at will and use its power for evil. Maeve, a Fae queen, found the keys but couldn’t put them back into the gate. So, she sent them to Brannon to hide in Erilea, preventing anyone from using that power again. Celaena realizes Nehemia was searching for the keys, and she suspects the king is, too. Baba confirms that the king already has at least one of the Wyrdkeys.

Baba, who had been shuffling around the mirrors as she spoke, suddenly stops, so Celaena draws her daggers. Baba accuses Celaena of wanting to kill her. Celaena will do anything to protect Dorian’s secrets. She weaves through the mirrors, which distort sight and sound, and sees the witch. She throws a dagger but only hits a mirror, shattering it. Celaena isn’t fast enough to dodge Baba’s heavy chain as she whips it across Celaena’s head.