In communication, metonyms reflect

In communication, metonyms reflect reality, since a metonym stands in for a thing by naming something really connected to it, such as the crown for the monarchy.

The link between the metonym and what it points to is one of genuine, existing association, so it anchors expression in the actual world.

Reading it as artificiality misses that the substitution rests on a real bond, not on something contrived.

Reading it as fantasy is wrong, since fantasy departs from reality whereas the metonym leans on it.

Treating it as hidden secrets overlays a mystery that the plain contiguity of a metonym does not carry.

This grounding in real connection is what separates metonymy from purely figurative flights.