Chapter 747: The Search for a Name
Chapter 746: The Search for a Name
*We should start preparing,* Noctis said to Orion.
"Preparing?" Orion asked him.
*Surely you have not forgotten that we must remove the remnants of the black magic in Josiah and Sophia?*
Orion’s lips curved into a small smile. "I haven’t forgotten."
Noctis was quiet for a moment, and Orion could feel him weighing something, considering his next words carefully.
*We should start with Josiah.*
Orion turned from the window, his brow furrowing slightly. "Why Josiah first?"
*He should be used as the experiment,* Noctis replied. *Just in case something goes wrong, we will be able to correct it immediately before we try on Sophia.*
Orion chuckled at that. "I hope nothing like that happens. I promised Annabeth I would try to go easy on Josiah."
*Using him as an experiment is going easy on him,* Noctis pointed out dryly. *He could have been left to rot in the dungeons.*
Orion chose not to reply to that.
Instead, he asked, "What do we need?"
*First, we need a herb,* Noctis said slowly. *But honestly, I do not know if we will be able to find it. It was quite rare even in the past. And given that the world has changed so much since then...*
"What is it?" Orion asked.
*Its name is... Gureosom Vensiliun.*
Orion blinked. "Gureosom Vensiliun?"
*Yes.*
"Is there no other name?" Orion asked, his tone carrying a hint of exasperation. "Something that wouldn’t make my head ache just trying to pronounce it?"
*That is what we called it in the past,* Noctis replied. *I do not know the other name. If it has one, I never learned it.*
Orion sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I should have known it wouldn’t be as simple as I thought it would be."
He stood for a moment, considering his options. Then he turned, deciding to meet with Lysander.
He found him at the exact place he left him, reviewing a stack of parchments with a frown on his face.
"Lysander," Orion called out.
Lysander looked up, his expression shifting from concentration to curiosity. "You look like you have something to ask me... is this about Annabeth?"
"No," Orion said, shaking his head. "Have you heard about any herb called Gureosom Vensiliun?"
Lysander’s brow furrowed deeply. He set down the parchments and shook his head slowly.
"I have never heard of that name before," he admitted. "And I thought I knew most herbs, at least by their common names. But that one... it is not familiar to me."
Orion’s shoulders tightened slightly.
"Perhaps you should try the shrine. Or speak with Madam Tyler. She knows more about rare herbs than I do," Lysander told him.
Orion gave a curt nod and made his way out of the medical facility.
He made his way to the library. Madam Tyler was likely there.
Jacob greeted him immediately as he stepped in and directed him toward where the others were, although even without his help Orion knew where they were.
Tobias, Jarek, and Eldric sat at a table while Madam Tyler and Ronan searched through the shelves.
Orion’s steps carried him toward Sophia immediately, and when he reached her, he leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to the nape of her neck.
Sophia’s shoulders relaxed almost immediately, as a smile spread across her face.
"What are you doing here?" she asked softly, her voice carrying a hint of amusement.
Orion inhaled her scent, letting it ground him for a moment. "I came for Madam Tyler."
Before he could say anything else, a voice drifted out from behind one of the tall shelves.
"I have to question that," Madam Tyler said, stepping into view. "You made your way directly to Sophia when you arrived. You did not even search for me."
Orion straightened, then shrugged. "I missed her."
Ronan made an exaggerated gagging noise from where he stood.
Without even looking, Orion gave him the middle finger.
Ronan’s laughter echoed through the library.
Orion ignored him, instead resting his chin on top of Sophia’s head. He let the warmth of her presence settle into him, grounding him in the moment. Then he turned his attention to Madam Tyler.
"I need to ask you something," he said.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Do you know of a herb called Gureosom Vensiliun?" he asked her.
"Why does that sound gruesome?" Ronan asked.
Orion rolled his eyes. "Shut up, brother," he told Ronan.
"I’ll try," Ronan replied.
"So?" Orion asked Madam Tyler. "Does it ring any bell?"
She shook her head. "I can’t say for certain I know something like that. Perhaps if you can give me the other name?"
Orion sighed and then straightened.
"That’s where the issue is," he said to her. "I don’t have another name."
"What do you need it for?" Sophia asked him. "I can’t imagine you going around looking for a herb with a name that could likely give you a headache."
"That’s exactly what I said," Orion told her. Then after a pause he added, "Noctis requested I find it so we can get rid of the remnants of black magic from both you and Josiah."
Madam Tyler paused, and even Ronan did so, all humor gone from his expression.
"You can get rid of it?" he asked.
"Well, not me, but Noctis. And it is not a hundred percent certain, but he said he could try to get rid of it," Orion informed them.
"Why didn’t you say anything earlier, brother?" Ronan asked him.
"Because I had not yet told shorty," Orion told him.
"You could have hinted at it or something," Ronan argued.
"I had not told shorty, so I did not tell you guys, and I am sorry for that..."
"...you’ll pay for everything I purchase for a month as your apology," Ronan told him.
"Are you trying to get me bankrupt?" Orion asked him.
"Well technically, Orion," Tobias said, "you are not going to go broke from something as cheap as that."
"Whose side are you even on?" Orion asked him.
"Um... Ronan’s, brother. He and Madam Tyler have been here with us trying to find out more regarding the black magic in Sophia and Josiah too. If you had just told us Noctis had an idea, then perhaps there would have been less of Ronan pretending like he knew half of what was in the books he was reading," Tobias said.
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