In this chapter, we learn that Darnay's mother gave Darnay to a brothel owner, but the brothel owner refused to let Darnay ask for anything from her, and Darnay was forced to go back to the train station. As a result, Darnay and the other soldiers have been forced to walk to the next town, where they will meet the enemy. As they walk, they bump into each other, and the two men begin to banter. Darnay asks if he can use the holo as a nickname, but Darnay says he's only recently become ayanashi, or a member of the army, and he doesn't want to be associated with the military. The two men discuss the rumors that the enemy has come in from the south, and they begin to argue about whether or not the rumors are true.