An Unexpected Homecoming

Duran received a posthumous letter from Maurice de Merlon informing him he had inherited Casa sus Baux. He left his home covenant of Etoile d'Argent in Ile de France with his manservant Guy, bringing with him his entire laboratory and all his possessions. These were loaded onto a riverboat and sailed up the Seine, then transferred to an ocean-going vessel for the voyage to côte-d'azur.

• Arrived and met Pèire
• Spilled some sulfur while unloading lab supplies
• Moved in. Duran annoyed Pèire by ordering simple meals, whereas Pèire regarded fine food as one of the perks of his job.
• Met Bernard.
• Set up lab in Maurice's old chamber.

• Feast. Met Martin, parish priest
• Robert offered to trade Casa sus Baux for a larger estate near Marseille. Duran demurred but didn't refuse outright.
• Pèire's efforts to be polite and diplomatic looked like divided loyalties to Duran. That's because Duran's social skills are weak.

• Noticed a book missing from the lab
• Found trapdoor in the roof leading to attic. Sent grogs to investigate. Cast Eyes of the Cat on grogs for first time.
• Grogs encountered scary illusions. Duran helped them identify them as trickery.
• Discovered a house faerie living in the attic. It likes yellow.
• Discovered trove of arcane tomes.
• Started offering occasional yellow items to the faerie to get it to stop swiping stuff
• Village cross was suddenly missing.
• Villagers admitted Martin had taken it to get it exorcised by the priest because he thought Duran's evil magic had corrupted it
• Duran sent Guy and Bernard after Martin. They found him lying by the roadside, robbed and beaten half to death.
• Grogs returned Marti to Duran's care. Duran cast weapon- and armor-enhancing spells on grogs.
• Grogs somehow caught up to the robber. He tried to fight and Bernard shot him dead.
• Martin recovered at the manor for the rest of the season