Therion had done his best to shove his previous thought processes as far out of his mind as possible as he made his way to the front end of Noblecourt once again. He was going to have to start his search somewhere, and as far as he was concerned, the best place to kick it off would be the entrance of the town. If only it was that easy though; Therion could already tell this was going to be a pain in the ass.

"'A scholar in Noblecourt.' Thanks, Heathcote. Those are like a leaf a dozen here..." Therion muttered bitterly with a shake of his head. "I need something more to go on than that..." He began to wander around the stalls in the entrance square of Noblecourt, keeping his eyes and ears peeled for anything that could turn out to be a lead. He couldn't say for sure what was going to help him in the heat of the moment, but he at least had to start somewhere. Cursing Heathcote for the thousandth time wasn't going to do him any good, so he began to look at the wares of a fruit stand, itching for an apple to replace the one he had eaten on the way in.

The crowds of Noblecourt were just as frustratingly loud as always, but there was a pair of voices that managed to differentiate themselves just enough to become the subject of Therion's fascination. "I'm glad it's on the outskirts. I avoid it if I can," the first of the two people said, a voice with a somewhat high-pitched voice.

"That creepy old mansion on the northwest part of town?" the second man, this one with a slightly deeper voice, asked. His companion seemingly nodded, prompting the second man to continue. "I heard someone actually lives there."

The first man staggered in surprise. "Who?" he questioned in pure shock.

"A man named Orlick. They say he's some kind of scholar," his companion explained.

"What business would a scholar have living there?" the first man inquired.

"Research. Apparently, he spends all his time locked up in his study looking at some shiny red stone," the second man said, his voice sinking into a cadence that was reserved exclusively for gossip. "His men won't let anyone in to see him."

Therion's eyes flickered open, and he glanced over his shoulder at the two young men. Neither one of them had noticed him on account of the crowd, but they were talking loudly enough that it was more than easy enough for Therion to pick out their voices, and he latched onto what they were saying with everything he had as the first man continued to speak. "If you ask me, it sounds like he's hiding something."

"He may very well be, but I'm fine letting him keep his secrets," the second man commented with a sigh and matching shake of his head. "I don't want anything to do with that place."

The two men departed from there, off into the heat of the crowd. Therion didn't bother to follow them, knowing they had already communicated all they had to for him to understand. It was impressive just how easy he had been able to figure out where the dragonstone was; he had expected to have to hit the tavern and wait until somebody with loose enough lips drank enough mead to let the secret slip. It seemed people in Noblecourt were just as gullible as they always had been, discussing such heavy subjects without a care in the world. That was more than fine with Therion; it certainly made his job easier, and given the circumstances, that was all he could have asked for.

As far as Therion was concerned, the man could keep his secrets all he wanted. However, that stone was going back to Bolderfall with Therion regardless of what that scholar was hoping for. Orlick, they said his name was? That was all Therion needed to start doing a bit of searching on his own, and he saw no point in wasting any time getting right to it.

"So, Therion. Do you really think we'll find the dragonstone here?"

Therion nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw a familiar face manifest in front of him, and a moment later, he realized Tressa was standing in roughly the same spot where the two men had previously been. He did his best to hide how surprised he was that he had let her sneak up on him as he spoke next. He needed to stop getting caught up in his own thoughts and actions; that was what got him into this situation in the first place, wasn't it? Caution was the name of the game, and it started with Tressa. "That's the question of the day, isn't it? Won't know until we ask around," Therion told her simply. Even if he knew about Orlick, there was still a lot he didn't understand yet, and the best way to figure that out was to just start searching.

Tressa sighed and shook her head. "I suppose for you, that means hanging out in the alehouse, eavesdropping for rumors and the like... If you ask me, I think it's better to just talk to people. You're more likely to get an honest answer that way. In my line of work, you can't afford to chase after every wild rumor you hear. You have to find people you can trust."

Therion revealed an apple under his cloak that he had grabbed while at the nearby fruit stand. Tressa resisted the urge to glare at him for indulging without paying once again. They had gone through this song and dance enough times though to know that Tressa wasn't going to do anything aside from glare daggers at him while he did nothing to right his wrong. "Eh. Visit enough alehouses, and you learn to separate the wheat from the chaff," Therion said simply, taking a bite out of the side of the apple. "And in my line of work, it's not wise to make too many friends. They tend not to last." The fool's bangle jingled its agreement around his wrist.

Tressa's posture grew stiff, almost like she was upset by something he had said. He could guess rather easily what it was that had left her agitated. "I see," she said stiffly. "I guess that means we're both cut out for our own trades."

Therion let out a small snort. "I guess you could say that," he commented before taking another bite of the apple. Even if the search for the dragonstones was frustrating, at least he could take a small amount of joy from poking fun at Tressa every once in a while. He glanced down at her, his visible eye narrowing. "What brings you here anyways? I would have thought you would be with the others right now."

"Oh, right," Tressa said with a light smile, her previous worry starting to melt away before it vanished completely. "Alfyn was able to figure out how to get the discount at the inn. Cyrus and Olberic are handling that, so we're all getting settled into our rooms yet. I wanted to take you back so you can see where we're staying, and after that, we can actually start the search for the dragonstone."

Therion nodded his understanding. "Lead the way then," he told her. Tressa nodded before turning on her heel and starting off in the direction of the inn. Therion trailed behind her carefully, doing what he could to listen for anybody else who may have been discussing the strange scholar that lived in the mansion just outside of town. He doubted any leads would fall into his lap the way the previous bit of information had, but he liked to stay optimistic every once in a while, especially with a mission as frustrating as this one.

Unfortunately, the walk back to the inn did not yield any new information, and Therion was left to slip into the circle of travelers in the area seamlessly with nothing aside from what he had already heard. Granted, he already had a substantial lead, so Therion could only imagine that this was going to put him at an inherent advantage over Cyrus in terms of the scholar's search for information when it came to the shrines scattered across Orsterra. It hadn't been long since they arrived in Noblecourt, and Therion was willing to consider this a victory.

"Let's go on and get moved in for the night, yeah?" Alfyn questioned, gesturing to the inn nearby. Primrose nodded quickly, her every action tense. It was easy for Therion to figure out why; Primrose had explained she was born in Noblecourt, and since she was returning home for the first time in ten years, she was trying to ensure she wasn't found out by accident or coincidence. Meeting Arianna had been nice, but Therion could tell Primrose didn't want to repeat that this time they were in town if at all possible.

As soon as their keys were distributed by the innkeeper, the group was off, though Therion noticed one thing about their lodgings almost right off the bat. They only needed to get into two different rooms, and as soon as the door swung open to his room, he realized why. These rooms had four beds each, all of them scattered in different corners of the room. Therion winced at the idea of being around more people than he absolutely had to be, so he turned to look at Alfyn, silently demanding him for an explanation.

"There weren't enough available rooms for us to stay in pairs," Alfyn replied. "I figured it would be best if we just went in groups of four then. That was the best way to handle things. Besides, it's not going to cost us too much. Apparently, there's a way people in town get discounts for their relatives, and hearing about that was all it took for these two rooms to cost about as much as the four did back in Stillsnow."

Therion still wasn't too happy about the way Noblecourt was so overwhelmingly expensive, but he knew they didn't have much of a choice. He sat down on the bed in the farthest corner from the door since it offered the most privacy and seclusion at the cost of being far from the entrance to the room. He continued to enjoy his apple as he did so, one foot tapping absentmindedly against the ground. He was glad not for the first time and certainly not the last that he hadn't brought too much along in terms of physical items. It wasn't as if he had much to begin with to drag with him on a journey across the continent, but it was certainly more convenient than Alfyn having to organize his medical supplies before he was able to set out and see what the town had to offer him.

Therion waited until everyone was finished unpacking, and by that point, he had already mowed through the remainder of his apple. He tossed the core into the trash bin of the room before he looked to the other members of the group. The girls were already out in the hallway waiting for them, and Therion did a quick headcount in his mind to make sure he only had to say this once. Much to his surprise, he came up to only seven instead of eight, though Therion already knew who was missing.

"Where's Primrose?" Olberic asked, posing the question before anybody else could even think of it.

"She wished for some time to herself," H'aanit replied simply. Linde and Hägen were still by her side even when faced with the bustling crowds of Noblecourt, and Therion had to applaud their dedication. Or, rather, he would do that if he wasn't referring to a snow leopard and direwolf.

"So, what are we doing now?" Tressa questioned, her eyes flickering back and forth between Cyrus and Therion. "Should we go and check out a library to see if there's any information on the dragonstone there? Maybe we'll get lucky and actually find it on display there or something."

"We've got a lead on where to find it," Therion declared. "It's supposedly in a mansion on the edge of town being looked after by a scholar named Orlick. I doubt he's going to give it up so easily, but that's his damn problem, not ours."

"Wait... You mean we're going to be able to go and get the dragonstone without having to spend the evening in a tavern waiting for somebody to slip up and tell us about it?" Tressa inquired, her voice rising with excitement with each passing word. Therion nodded, though truth be told, her voice was already staring to grate on his nerves, not that he would ever admit that openly. Tressa squealed and clapped her hands together. "Yes! That means we're going to be able to see some real action soon!"

"Hopefully this man won't be as much of a problem as Rufus was. He caused all sorts of problem back in Stillsnow," Alfyn commented as he started to walk for the entrance of the inn. The other members of the group trailed after him.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Therion told him with a frown. "He apparently has guards making sure nobody gets in his mansion without his express permission, and that could spell trouble for us if we aren't careful."

"Of course it could," Tressa sighed. "Nothing can ever just be easy for us, huh?"

"When you're dealing with rich people, nothing ever is easy," Therion told her, not even bothering to censor himself. It wasn't as if any of them had enough leaves to fall into that category to begin with, but even if they had, he couldn't bring himself to care. Heathcote and Orlick both had more than enough leaves to their names, and they were already irritating Therion to no end despite him having not even met the latter yet.

Noblecourt was just as overwhelming and loud when they arrived outside, and the chatter of the people in the square was more than enough to drown out all potential conversation from their greater party of seven. Therion wove his way through the crowds easily, taking advantage of his lack in verticality to break through the bustling people around him without any issues. After a while, it was easy enough to figure out where they were meant to be going, and Therion used the marker in question as a beacon for his eyes to track.

The mansion just outside town was, in a word, massive. It was tall and imposing, seeming to cast a shadow over the path that led to its entrance. The mansion was clearly meant to be a step away from the rest of the town, and Therion sighed at that. He could already tell the man who lived inside was going to be obnoxious, and something deep in the pit of his stomach told him it wasn't going to be as easy to get inside as he was hoping. Then again, nothing seemed to be simple when it came to this mission. It hadn't been simple when he was being used as a punching bag by the ghisarma, and it hadn't been simple when he was robbing Rufus in the aftermath of the man's death either. If anything, this just felt like it was par for the course, another cherry to throw on top of the cake made of knives and irritation.

Therion watched the manor for a short while, and he saw the front door open as a guard walked out. He turned to look at the rest of his companions, gesturing for them to hide. Luckily, they were able to get the picture before Therion needed to say anything, and he ducked down behind the remnants of a tree trunk to see if there was anything he could glean from the guard. His eyes narrowed, and he watched every movement of the new arrival, scrutinizing his target for anything even slightly resembling information.

The guard looked around the area before he returned to the stairs leading up to the mansion. He shared a brief nod with both of the others who were looking after the front entrance, and Therion resisted the urge to wince. What kind of scholar had armed guards to look after his home? The answer was the same type of person that lived in Noblecourt to begin with, but he supposed ripping into Orlick from a distance wasn't going to help anyone. He was going to need a way to get around those guards if he wanted to have a chance to grab the dragonstone, and unfortunately, he could already tell that was going to be much easier said than done.

Therion examined the building as carefully as he could given his position, but he could already tell there wasn't going to be another door for him to slip through. It was either he went in through the front door or he didn't go in at all, and he somehow doubted his merchant trick was going to work out again after it had already only partially helped him back in Bolderfall. In other words, he was going to have to figure something else out. Why couldn't anything be easy for him these days?

Therion started to walk away from there, and he gestured for the others to follow him. "Come on," he said roughly, doing his best to keep from snapping at them but still struggling to keep the irritation out of his voice completely. "We're going."

"Where are we headed now?" Ophilia questioned, concern already starting to seep into her voice. She held tightly to the Lanthorn, and Therion could tell that Noblecourt was starting to stress her out already. At least he wasn't the only one who hated being here.

"The tavern. Somebody has to know something, and we're going to make sure they cough it up," Therion responded as he did his best to hold back a heavy sigh. He had been hoping they wouldn't have to resort to this, but it seemed as if the universe really didn't care what he wanted. He should have figured that out a long time ago, but he let his hopes go up anyways. Being around the other travelers was already starting to mess with his head. It was only a matter of time before he started thinking of feelings in a positive manner. Gross.

"I thought you said we weren't going to have to do that," Tressa whimpered, her expression slipping into something crestfallen.

"Times change," was all Therion could bring himself to say, barely managing to keep himself from admitting that he had been hoping it wouldn't end this way either. He knew saying that wasn't going to help anyone though, so he focused on putting one foot in front of the other as he lined the path to the tavern. He went there each time he was in Noblecourt not because the mead was particularly stellar but because he knew people with too much pride were bound to slip up when they had taken in enough alcohol. It was a perfect way for him to get information, and he wasn't going to pass that up.

Therion could feel Olberic's eyes on him as they walked to the tavern, and he allowed himself to fall into pace with the warrior carefully. Olberic looked down at him with a light frown. "You weren't able to find a way inside, were you?" he questioned.

Therion didn't respond to that at first, not really wanting to admit the fact that Olberic was right. He was in a bad enough mood as it was between being back in Noblecourt at all and having to put up with Rufus back in Stillsnow, and he would prefer to cut back on the unnecessary chatter as much as possible. "Tell me. How would you get into this building?"

"An interesting query..." Olberic hummed. Therion's gaze hardened on pure instinct as Olberic continued. "Were it a battlefield, I would seek out the weakest flank and strike, using the element of surprise."

Therion raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Would've figured you more for a full frontal assault," he commented. He didn't really believe that; contrary to the stereotypes about warriors with massive muscles, Olberic was more than strong in terms of strategy. Cyrus was the group's primary tactician, but that didn't mean the rest of them were clueless about it, and Olberic knew more on the matter than most others. Therion supposed that came with the territory of having been a soldier for so many years.

Olberic didn't rise to the bait Therion left behind, and the thief was left to wonder if perhaps Olberic knew Therion was trying to goad an unexpected response out of him. Therion wasn't entirely sure why he was bothering, but it did something to entertain him in a location he absolutely despised, so that had to count for something. "Of course I would consider that, too, were it necessary," Olberic told Therion simply. "But either way, reaching the center of the manse would be no easy task."

"Brute force can only get you so far, eh?" Therion snorted, and he found that he was quietly learning more about Olberic than he expected to that day. He didn't mind that, of course. At one point, he would have been much more upset about it than he was at present, but he knew things could have been worse. Olberic was hardly the worst person for him to talk to, and the warrior didn't seem to mind speaking with Therion either.

Olberic offered Therion a firm nod as he continued to speak. "Just so. The straight way of the soldier is not always the surest, nor quickest, path." Olberic smiled as he met Therion's eyes, mischief starting to gleam just beneath the surface in a way that most others would have found uncharacteristic, but to Therion, it just seemed like a natural extension of Olberic's regular demeanor. "Hence, this venture is best left in your hands. I'm most eager to see your skills in action."

Therion smiled to himself, but the action was bittersweet and muted. "Never thought I'd have an audience..." he confessed quietly, though he supposed this was only halfway true. He had seen an audience at one point in the past, but that was a long time ago, and as far as Therion was concerned, that was one string of events best left forgotten. That didn't mean he was able to completely release himself from his past, but he was still sure as hell going to try.

The group arrived at the tavern soon afterward, and as soon as the door was opened, Therion was hit with an overwhelming amount of noise from people chattering with one another about some subject or another. Therion saw Tressa and Ophilia wince at the sudden noise, but he did his best to carry on. "Split up and see if you hear anything about a scholar named Orlick," Therion instructed of them. Noblecourt had a larger tavern than most towns, something that seemed natural given just how massive the city was compared to a majority of the other settlements Therion had visited in the past. The tavern was almost on par with Sunshade or Stillsnow, as a matter of fact, and Therion did his best to not draw any internal parallels on that front. There was a small stage at the far end of the tavern as well, though that only made the situation worse as far as Therion was concerned.

Primrose would have liked to dance on that stage, Therion was sure. He could certainly understand why she had decided to hang back this time since it would have only brought her and the rest of them danger and trouble, but that didn't change the fact that he was still thinking about her. In a way, it was ridiculous. He hadn't been around this group all that long, but he still found himself thinking about what they did and did not like. Heavens above, being around people was starting to make him soft. Therion gritted his teeth to try and push the thought away even though he knew it wasn't going to be quite so easy to escape the truth of the matter. He slid effortlessly into a stool at the bar, not even bothering to check if his fellow travelers had split up as he instructed.

Two man appeared soon afterward, and they sat down in the two barstools just to Therion's left. He glanced at them out of the corner of his eye, but he didn't say anything on the matter. He was easily able to hear what they were saying even above the cacophony of the tavern, and he did his best to drown out all other noise to focus on their conversation specifically.

"How's business, my friend?" the first of the two men asked. He was noticeably older than his companion, not that he seemed eager to acknowledge it in the slightest.

"Not good, I'm afraid. I hope you're faring better," his companion said with a light cringe.

"I wish I could tell you so, but it's been hard lately for us too," the first man replied, releasing a sigh to punctuate the sentence.

"My condolences..." the second man murmured carefully.

The two men turned to the bar and prepared to order, and Therion resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Mine too," he muttered sarcastically. Business had been difficult for him as of late too, but he wasn't going to be whining about it to anybody else. That wasn't an option for him as long as the dragonstones were still out there, and the fool's bangle rubbed uncomfortably against his wrist as confirmation. "Moving on..."

Two other men could be seen at a nearby table, and Therion had to wonder if they had any consideration for others with how loudly they were talking. "I just don't get those people!" one of them proclaimed boldly. "Locked away in that manor, surrounded by guards..."

"It's strange, isn't it?" his companion said simply, and Therion found himself smiling behind his scarf. Now this sounded like something he could listen to for information. "Makes me wonder just what Orlick's up to in there."

Therion got to his feet and approached their table before sliding into the third chair, the only one left available. "Mind if I have a seat?" he inquired, asking the question primarily out of formality rather than actually meaning it. He was going to stay there either way, and he would figure out what they knew about Orlick one way or another whether they wanted him there or not.

"Not at all," the first man said, a smile on his face.

Therion held back a comment about Noblecourt's people and focused on the conversation at hand. "Can I get you two a drink?"

Both the men immediately lit up at that, and just like that, the pieces started to fall into place for Therion. The first man looked to him excitedly as he continued to speak. "That's mighty kind of you, stranger. What brings you here? You don't look like you're from around these parts."

"I'm a wanderer, going wherever my feet take me," Therion replied. Technically, that was true; his feet just so happened to be taking him on a mission this time around. "And there's nothing better than a tale ale and a good tale after a long day of traveling. If you don't mind my asking, who's this Orlick fellow you were talking about?"

"If you're that interested, we'll tell you all about him. Consider it thanks for the drinks," the second man told Therion with a wide grin.

The first man nodded. "Orlick's the talk of the town right now."

"He's a scholar, and one I daresay went off the deep end. Holed himself up in the building on the edge of town," the second man said, picking right up where his companion left off. "Word is he's doing some kind of research and hasn't come out since."

The first man shrugged. "I heard he's investigating a stone, but nobody knows what for."

"It definitely sounds like he's got a few screws loose," Therion agreed. Confirmation was the best way to get people to keep talking, and he was going to play that to his advantage in every way he knew how.

The second man laughed as he nodded. "You got that right! He's one you don't want to get involved with," he confirmed. He paused briefly before continuing. "Now that I think about it though... Didn't he have a research partner?"

The first man nodded after a moment of contemplation. "Yeah, I heard he was another eccentric one. I think he's still doing his research in town."

"What's his name?" Therion asked.

The first man thought for a long time before he spoke uncertainly. "Barnram? Barhand? Barham? Yeah, that's it," he replied. "He worked in that manor with Orlick, but they went their separate ways after a disagreement."

"I guess they were too much for each other to handle," Therion muttered to himself, refusing to acknowledge the irony behind his words.

"Sounds like it!" the first man proclaimed with a laugh. "Anyway, I hope that sates your curiosity, wanderer."

"It does. Thank you for your time, gentlemen," Therion said as he rose to his feet. He started off toward the door a moment later, a light smirk already playing at his lips from behind his scarf. This was just what he was looking for, and Barham was the perfect clue to lead him straight to Orlick. All he had to do was track the man down, and he could already tell that was going to be a breeze compared to trying to sneak into the manor.

Finally, it seemed like the pieces were coming into place. Thank the gods for that.

Woohoo for plot time! Yes!

I have to say that I really do like the faster pace of this chapter compared to what was seen back with Primrose's chapter two. Her actions were a lot slower and seemed to come with a detached, dreamlike haze, but Therion just wants to get things done. He's here for business, and he definitely knows it.

Writing for Therion is a completely different experience from working with everybody else, I have to say. I love writing for everybody because of how different they are, but Therion really is a step outside everything else. He's so different from those around him, and I love the way he carries himself with all of his snark and attitude. It's entertaining start to finish, and he really is a joy to work with.

That being said, next time around, we're going to dive right into his story next chapter and see what his next set of actions has to offer us from here! Until then, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Feedback is appreciated as always. Have a nice day, everyone!

-Digital