Contains spoilers for this episode and earlier episodes.
Viserys's death is kept secret while Alicent tells Otto that the king wanted Aegon to succeed him. At the council meeting, she discovers that several members have already prepared to replace Rhaenyra. Lyman Beesbury protests, and Criston Cole kills him. Alicent opposes the plan to murder Rhaenyra and her children, while Harrold Westerling refuses to lead an attack on Dragonstone and leaves his post rather than serve Otto's orders.
Otto and Alicent send separate parties to find Aegon, who has vanished into the city. Erryk and Arryk Cargyll search for Otto, while Criston and Aemond search for the queen. Mysaria bargains over Aegon's location and asks for an end to the fighting pits that exploit children. Alicent's party eventually secures him. The reluctant prince asks to escape, but his mother insists that he must take the throne and hear her advice.
Rhaenys, held inside the Red Keep, rejects Alicent's attempt to win her support. Erryk helps her get away, but she is swept along with the crowd being taken to the Dragonpit for Aegon's coronation. She reaches Meleys below the ceremony and breaks through the floor on dragonback after Aegon receives his crown. Rhaenys confronts the new royal party without burning them, then flies from the city, leaving their public celebration in terror and confusion.