Blood of the Fold is the third book in Terry Goodkind's epic fantasy series The Sword of Truth.
Plot introduction
Prior to the start of Blood of the Fold, Richard comes to terms with his true identity as a War Wizard, a powerful wizard with both additive and subtractive magic. The New World, and all the freedom of humankind, is under threat from the Imperial Order after the barrier between the Old and New World was brought down. The Imperial Order has already sent delegations and armies into the New World. Richard's only option to stop the invasion is to claim his heritage and unite all free kingdoms and provinces under one rule and one command.
Plot summary
The story begins at the Palace of the Prophets where a funeral is being held for Nathan and Ann. Sister Verna and Warren, now freed from Rada'Han, are traveling with Richard to break down the barrier between the New and the Old World. Upon returning from the funeral, Sister Verna discovers that the ring of the Prelate is at the center of the large room, wrapped in a spell that does not allow any sister to retrieve it. The sisters invite Verna to make an attempt and she succeeds, becoming Ann's successor. Incredulous, Verna confides to Warren that she does not know what to do about the presence in the Palace of the Sisters of the Dark.
In the meantime, Richard suffers an attack by mriswiths at Aydindril but is saved by Gratch, who can sense the presence of the creatures. Realizing that they need allies, Richard decides to go to the embassy of D'Hara to claim the loyalty of the troops as the new Lord Rahl. On the way into town he gives a silver coin with the symbol of the Palace of the Prophets to a little girl who, with her grandmother, sells cakes with honey and is recognized by them as the Seeker. They promise not to reveal his identity. Shortly afterwards, Richard clashes with Blood of the Fold member Galtero, and is saved thanks to the intervention of four Mord-Sith: Cara, Raina, Berdine and Hally, and two personal guards of the Master Rahl, Ulic and Egan, who swear allegiance to him. Richard also learns from them the nature of the special bond that exists between Lord Rahl and all the D'Haran: a spell cast almost three thousand years ago by an ancestor of Richard, which involves a pact where the D'Haran protect Lord Rahl by force of arms and in return Lord Rahl protects all his subjects with the power of magic. The only requirement for the bond to work is that the D'Harans recognize the legitimacy of the title of Lord Rahl. Richard and his escort go to General Reibisch, the man in charge of the D'Haran army in Aydindril, in an effort to gain their loyalty. They succeed only through an attack of mriswith who burst into the room killing the Mord-Sith Hally, and several soldiers, which gives Richard the opportunity to kill the mriswith by dancing with the spirits, which convinces the D'Harans he is the real Lord Rahl. The general recognizes the authority of Lord Rahl, thus giving Richard control of the army.