A patrol halts Chief Wilder's party at a hot boundary. Traders plead, "we're just doing normal trade. Please let us pass," but sentries refuse. A commander warns that anyone who crosses will die and a soldier snarls he'll shoot if they advance. Officers clash—one threatens purge while others beg for restraint. Justin reports, "Chief Wilder and the others are blockaded outside." The episode's key turn is Lord Aldric's explicit kill-order: crossing the line equals death. It ends with Wilder's group trapped at Aldric's line, forced into an immediate, dangerous decision.