While trapped inside the coffin, Padric is assaulted with visions of a time recently after arriving in Middara. He remembers expecting to work for years on all the royal orders of handmade firearms he’d accepted.
His friends from the Institute arrived—Shaylis, Tyrial, and Abigail. They try to convince him to go adventuring, but he refuses to leave.
Shayliss offers to get him out, by getting him a contract with the crown. He’s finally free of his workshop, and able to go out and see the world.