This chapter opens with a flashback to the beginning of the novel, when the Governess is still a child. The Governess tells the girl that she has a "worthless body" and that she is a genius in her field. The girl, however, is shocked by this statement and asks how she can remove the poison from her body. She is also shocked by the fact that the girl does not know how to make a blood-contract with her body, since she is not a human being. She asks the girl to teach her how to do so, and the girl agrees to help her. She then goes on to say that the pond is the most spiritually powerful place in the world, and that taking a soak there will help her to increase her absorption and rejuvenate her skin.