Having already broken his vow of celibacy and committed the sin of sorcery, Ambrosio adds yet another depraved act to his growing list of misdeeds: murder. Ambrosio’s murder of Elvira demonstrates the lengths he is willing to go to in order to protect his reputation: he literally commits an additional sin to prevent his attempted rape of Antonia (and the sin of sorcery he committed to aid in that endeavor) from coming to light. In other words, he is willing to further corrupt his soul with additional sins if it means his reputation will remain intact. Still, this chapter ends with something of a cliffhanger, leaving Ambrosio’s fate uncertain: will he finally face the consequences for his many acts of depravity, or will he continue to evade detection?