Mat sneaks into the palace, discovers a plot to murder Egwene, Nynaeve, and Elayne, and delivers Elayne’s letter to Queen Morgase.
Mat unknowingly sneaks into the Palace the same way Rand did, but he gets extra points for style since he does it without a concussion. It’s astounding that Andoran royalty would have such lax security, and equally mind-blowing that they would employ guards who sleepwalk through their jobs. Mat is able to sneak around Metal Gear Solid-style. He doesn’t even need a cardboard box. You might say Mat has his supernatural luck to thank, but it’s easy to imagine a Gray Man slipping in just like him. It’s a miracle Queen Morgase is still alive.
As Mat skulks in the rosebushes near a palace window, he overhears a conversation between a man — Lord Comar — and a deep-voiced man he addresses as Great Master. They’re discussing the trip Egwene, Nynaeve, and Elayne are taking to Tear. Great Master talks of a man manipulating events in Tear, and he doesn’t want the Accepted to fall into this mystery man’s hands, so he orders their deaths. Yikes!
This gets Mat thinking that he has to play the hero and warn Morgase about the Evil Plot he just overheard, so he dispenses with the subterfuge. He shows Elayne’s letter to a guard named Tallanvor, and insists that he must give the letter to Morgase in person. Tallanvor reluctantly escorts Mat to a garden where Morgase sits with her new advisor, Gaebril.
Morgase is unmoved by the letter, but is impressed that Elayne has been raised to Accepted. Mat begins to speak about the plot he overheard, but Gaebril cuts him off with a command to be silent as he plucks the letter from Morgase’s hand. Mat’s mind reels from hearing Gaebril speak: he is the Great Master! And if you read closely, you can tell he’s manipulating Morgase with a compulsion weave.
Most people would be shitting their pants in this moment, but Mat is operating in full bullshit mode. He suavely introduces himself as Thom Grinwell from a village north of Baerlon. He had been in Tar Valon visiting his sister, Else, and wanted to see Caemlyn on his way home. He agreed to deliver the letter for Elayne, but he knows nothing about Elayne or what her plans were.
With that, Tallanvor escorts him out of the palace. As he walks back to the Queen’s Blessing, he reflects on a productive day. He has delivered the letter, discovered a conspiracy to murder his friends, and escaped from the man pulling the strings. Who ever said that a lifetime of lying and trickery doesn’t pay off?