Chapter XXXV

Summary

• The protagonist narrates his father's hatred for lies, citing that his father believed that even a hard truth was better than a comforting fiction. He ponders on what his father would think of him now, as he watches a chaotic event taking place below.
• The protagonist converses with a character named Eidhin, who comes to join him on the balcony. They are observing the failure of a running event, and this is the first time Eidhin comes near to the protagonist since an unspecified event the previous night.
• During their conversation, Eidhin asks the protagonist whether he had killed someone. The protagonist denies the allegation and reveals that it was his blood that was found the previous night. He tries to ease his discomfort and suspicion about Eidhin by revealing information about a deep cut he had suffered while climbing a wall.
• Eidhin responds to the protagonist's revelation with indifference, which resulted in confusion and unease. The conversation later shifts to the protagonist’s ability to speak in Cymrian, a language uncommon in their location, which he learned from his Cymrian tutor named Cullen.
• Throughout the chapter, the protagonist feels a growing urgency to reveal to Eidhin about an unusual excavation site filled with strange objects, including mutilated bodies with obsidian swords, glowing writings and a map. He wanted to share this secret due to the guilt of being involved with the 'Religion', a group suspected of using the site to search for a weapon.
• Eventually, Eidhin agreed to keep the protagonist's secret on a condition to learn his language. Also, the two mocked their supervisor, Dultatis, in the Cymrian language, something he could not comprehend. Despite Dultatis's suspicion, he could not prove that they were making fun of him.
• While leaving the location, Eidhin mentions that the day was not so bad and suggests they begin learning the common language after the protagonist's punishment of working in the stables every evening ends in a fortnight.