The monster asks Dover if he's dreaming, and Dover says that he is. Dover asks if there's anything wrong with him, and the monster says that it's because the woman has taken over his mind. He tells Dover that a week ago, he counted eleven people on the bluff, and now he doesn't know what to do. He asks if they're going to do the "Blessing" , which is a ritual that's supposed to be performed on a hero, or if they should do the blessing themselves. The monster is horrified at the idea, and says that even the "divine" has a price, because it thins the lines between worlds. He says that if he had refused the blessing, then he would have refused the hero, too. He's bloody, he says, because he refused the holy draught. He adds that even if the divine is holy, it'll only thin out the lines of communication between worlds, and even that has a cost. He thanks them for saving his life, and then he says that they need to do more to protect the open ground. He points out that once they tried to get to the clifftop, they were reviled as a worm, and that the beanstalk guards the open land. He realizes that this is a land that has always been giants, just stoking with meaning, and therefore stronger, than truth. He wants to know more, so he asks the monster to tell him a story.