- When the snows melt, the prince returns and all the girls are summoned to the academy again.
- Miri and Britta get ready in the morning, and Miri realizes that her father and sister don't want a nice house in the lowlands—they want Miri to stay home with them in Mount Eskel.
- They to go the academy and the girls are told that the prince will attend to them in a few minutes. Britta exclaims that she can't do it and runs out of the room, so Miri goes and follows her.
- When she goes outside, Britta makes a huge confession: her parents aren't dead. In fact, her father's a nobleman from Asland, and Britta grew up with Prince Steffan and is in love with him.
- After the priests announced that the next bride would be from Mount Eskel, Britta's father sent her to the highlands so that she could be considered for the future princess. She says that she's been foolish and a liar, and that the prince probably won't even choose her.
- Miri tells Britta that she doesn't want to be princess, and that the new princess should be someone who actually loves Prince Steffan. That person is Britta. Then she drags Britta back into the academy so they can meet the prince again.
- When the prince comes in, he's visibly excited to see Britta and smiles—and Britta looks at him so adoringly that Miri knows that she's meant to be the princess.
- Just as they expected, the prince quickly chooses Britta as his bride. Then afterward, the prince announces that Mount Eskel is no longer just a territory—it is now the sixteenth province of Danland. The girls are all invited to the wedding in Asland, so they'll finally get to see the lowlands too.
- The other girls set home for the village, but Miri stays behind at Britta's request to hang out with her and Steffan.
- Steffan asks Britta why she wasn't at the ball and explains to Miri that he was so cold and distant because he was disappointed that she wasn't there—he knew about Britta coming up to Mount Eskel and was looking forward to seeing her.
- When Steffan leaves to attend to some business, Britta tells Miri that Mount Eskel will need a chief delegate at court, and that she wants Miri for the job.
- Miri says that she'd like to be home for a while though, and encourages Britta to ask Katar to be their delegate instead.
- Britta goes to ask Katar, and the older girl starts crying—she's so emotional to be finally getting a ticket out of the highlands. Britta embraces her and Miri knows that everything will be just fine.
- Before Tutor Olana leaves, Miri comes to her with a gold coin, hoping to buy some of her books. Tutor Olana lets her select six books to take home and the clay tablets from the academy.
- Then Tutor Olana confesses that the painting of the house that she showed them wasn't real; they were never going to give a house to the family of the girl who became princess. She apologizes and gives Miri the painting as a gift.
- After saying goodbye to Britta, Steffan, and Knut, Miri sets off for home with all of her nice new things.
- To her surprise, Peder meets her on the way. He has come to tell her that he's glad that she wasn't chosen, and to make sure she's okay with the fact that Britta is the new princess; she assures him that she's glad too.
- He tells her that his father has agreed to let him work on some stone carvings to try to sell to the traders. Miri laughs in relief and says that she's happy and can't wait for them both to go to Britta's wedding so that he can study with stone artisans and she can read all the books.
- She also tells him that she wants to open a school in the village, and that she's going to ask Esa to help her teach; she says that he can attend if he makes her a new linder hawk.
- Peder starts to ask her something, but instead he gives up on talking and reaches over to hold her hand. Aw…
- Even when they get to the village, they keep holding hands, and the other girls stare and tease them for it.
- Finally they get home and Peder tells her that he'd like to talk later or go for a walk.
- Miri goes inside and shows her father and sister all the neat things she's gotten. She's home and life is looking pretty darn good.