Once Edric is gone and the Picts are busy with their war rituals, Conan and Flavius retreat to Velitrium and report the plot to their fellow captains Laodamas and Glyco. The four of them ambush Edric's party carrying the chest, capture the money and traitorous scout and make him confess. Even though Laodamas remains sceptical, Conan confronts and exposes Lucian, who flees. Taking command, Conan rallies his men and leads them into the wild against the encroaching Picts. After a skirmish, Conan tells his men to hold their position while he sneaks behind enemy lines. Although bitten by a snake, he takes Sagyetha by surprise, decapitates him, and takes the head back to his own lines to use it to demoralize the Pict warriors.
