The investigation now proceeds to Ianus's villa. They start investigating in the study, but have a brief interruption to play cat and mouse with someone else in the building... who turns out to be an investigator hired by the Golden Lion. His name is Jay Keenakutra, and he's a big bald man with an arcane tattoo across his forehead. Lucia guesses it's some sort of suicide tattoo - he can blow himself and everyone around to bits if he gets surly.
He doesn't seem to want to be helpful, or stay around while they investigate, but they are able to winkle a little information out of him - they should speak to the chancellor when they go to the Gold Lion. Evidence of his (or someone's anyway) handiwork is all over the house - any place that could have contained a secret hiding space has been either drilled into or pried open.
Further investigation turns up very little, aside from the painting of Mirella they knew to expect (though they didn't expect a nude). Lucia then scries the night of the murder in the study, and is able to get a fairly clear vision due to the strong connections. Ianus was apparently working late at his desk. In a stand on the desk was a peculiar golden orb. Mirella came in and they talked briefly before she started giving him a back rub... and then stabbed him to death. She then quickly returned with a duffel and took the orb as well as certain papers, apparently going after specific targets.
On the way out they run into the old butler coming back in. He's still keeping the house while the family works out who owns it. Asked about Mirella, he mostly classifies her as just another of the master's women, though perhaps a little more intelligent than most. Using addresses he provides, they also talk to the cook and the housekeeper about her, learning little more other than that she had a large locked jewelry case that seemed to be a prize possession.
They end up the day by going to the Glyph and Gargoyle, the local bar where Ianus met Mirella. The crowd there is mostly young glyph arcanologists, divided in general by their guild. Lucia is able to insinuate herself into one mixed-guild group, and learns that they believe Mirella was a spy for some other guild. She also learns something about symbology, or at least that they like to argue about it.
Ivar talks to the bartender, who remembers Mirella and says that she seems to have been very interested in Ianus, but not in anyone else. He thinks Ivar is a bodyguard of some kind. Baba tries to talk to some of the young women who frequent the bar looking to pick up arcanologists, but they're all edgy and her iron stare doesn't help. Sasha is even less successful - when she tries to talk to the young magicians, they find her way too reminiscent of Mirella... someone this beautiful is clearly a trap of some kind.
In the morning, they go talk to the chancellor of the Gold Lion, Baba in the lead. Sasha pretends to be a secretary, confusing everyone who expected her to continue to be a punk. The higher offices at the Gold Lion have air conditioning - big blocks of magically created ice, with fans.
The chancellor is not thrilled to see them or their imperial writ, but seems to recognize it as something he cannot resist. Baba is fairly kind and does not beat him with it severely. They learn that the guild doesn't really know what Ianus was working on, except that he believed that spells were just like people, and one could make a spell to target other spells... and had a way to demonstrate it. The guild knew about the golden orb, and had bought it for him. The chancellor presumes that to be the demonstration.
Questioned further, the chancellor admits that there may only be ten people in the city who could understand Ianus's notes, with most of them being at the top two guilds (the Gold Lion and the House of Waking Dreams). There are probably only a few people in Fiskaly who would be able to understand them either - section Unicorn is provided with some names from a big ledger the guild maintains. Unfortunately, the chancellor doesn't know where Mirella has taken it, only that it is apparently not for sale in the empire. He believes either a rival guild has these secrets, or they have left the country.
Returning to headquarters, the team gets a report that the Imperial Eye has turned up someone who has seen Mirella leaving the city - she apparently left by airship, en route to Oca. D is quickly briefed, and she agrees that they should give chase... a military airship is prepped and put at their disposal for the trip.