"Go on, lass! Use yer feminine wiles an' git tha' man werkin' fer ye! Kahahaha!"

This was the best option for what they needed, according to Nan. Ezra was very thankful that the town's interest in Nevin had begun to dwindle finally after the Goblin incident. Out of everyone in the town, the alchemist had been by far the best resource when it came to anything magic. The town's library, if one could even call it as such, had mostly useless material on magic and most of the travelling merchants that passed through often didn't carry spellbooks. And if they did, it certainly wasn't cheap.

So, Nevin it was.

After asking their 'landlady' Nan for advice on what to do to get someone's attention, the older woman had seemed almost shocked. Up until this point, Ezra had expressed little interest in anyone in the town, and now out of the blue, they were suddenly wanting somebody's eye? Not only that, specifically the, in Nan's words, 'attractive redheaded scholar who I wish would visit?' The Homunculi didn't wish to know why she wanted Nevin to visit, but could only affirm their decision. The woman had cackled madly, and dragged Ezra through some kind of extensive primping ritual to 'look their best for that man'. And with one last piece of advice about feminine wiles, Ezra was sent on their way in the night armed nothing more with 'beauty', a small lantern, and a haphazard plan.

Each step along the dirt road was carefully placed as Ezra didn't want to ruin the robe Nan let them borrow. It was a dark green in color, complete with a silver trim around the edges. The sleeves were long and loose, sliding past their hands and enveloping them entirely from view. Their hair was styled differently from their usual braid, with Nan specifically saying not to pull the green ribbon until they really needed to surprise the man. They didn't quite understand all of the instructions that the old woman had given, but the ribbon in the hair had been the most confusing. Wouldn't it just let Ezra's hair flow free? What does that do for impressing men, exactly? Such an oddity.

Now standing before the alchemist's shop, Ezra pondered for a moment if this had been a mistake. Talking to Nevin in the evening after a majority of the town had gone to sleep made the most sense, but what if he was in bed as well? It would be rather inconsiderate to bother him over a curiosity. But the answers were needed. If finding out their origin gave them a clue to opening their tome, even the smallest of hints, disturbing Nevin's sleeping pattern for a time would be a worthy sacrifice. The light from the lantern flickered slightly as Ezra paused for a long moment. After a few deep breaths, they used their free hand and quickly knocked against the shop's door three times and asked in a quieted voice,

"Nevin, are you here? I have an inquiry that only you can assist me with."