Chapter Twenty-Nine: The Lift. The Spiral Staircase. Jeff. The Lord High. “The Queen of Empis Will Do Her Duty.”

Summary

• Chapter 29 sees the group ascending in a machine-controlled platform to the top of the palace spire. The ascent is highly stressful, with all of the characters squished together, barely fitting on the platform.
• Once they reach the top, they cross a narrow catwalk and then start descending down another spire using a spiral staircase. The group encounters various doors along the staircase that lead to different areas of the palace.
• In the middle of their descent, Charlie insists they venture to a certain set of rooms that he suspects are the quarters of the villainous Lord High. Leah, the guide, reluctantly leads them there.
• Upon opening the door to these quarters, they discover the Snab, a helpful creature from their past adventures, was waiting for them with an army of rats. The rats attack the Lord High, who was hiding there, resulting in his grotesque death.
• During this encounter, one of the group members, Iota, is poisoned by a knife that he had picked up earlier. His condition rapidly deteriorates and he dies after asking Leah, towards whom he shows loyalty and respect, to perform her duty when the time comes.

• A character has died from just a minor cut on his shin, despite being big and having been through tough situations.
• Leah closes the dead man's eyes and kisses his cheek, indicating a possible close relationship or feelings for him.
• Leah and the other characters leave the room, avoiding some rat corpses scattered on the floor.
• Before leaving the room, Leah appears to feel emotional, placing her hands on her neck.
• Iota makes a solemn vow, promising that the Queen of Empis will do her duty. This is a similar statement to what other characters, Falada and Snab, have said before.