[img]https://i.imgur.com/F0im34k.jpg[/img]
[h1]Guillan - Upper District: Mansion, Dawning Soon[/h1]
[h2]Lautrec[/h2]

[indent]Looking inside the compartment, Lautrec had a hard time discerning what was valuable and what was personal junk. The former was anything that he could sell on the streets without much trouble, while the latter was some kind of invaluable item that only meant something to its owner, or at the very least, a very niche set of people. His predicament arose because all of the items seemed to be in the personal junk category, yet why would they be hidden and guarded so closely if they weren’t extremely valuable to others as well?[/indent]
[indent]He decided to pick up a moderately sized statue, around as big as a bottle, depicting a naked woman. The material seemed to be hardened clay from how the texture felt to the touch, and not some kind of valuable metal. Shaking it did not reveal anything inside either, at least not something that jiggles. Well, he could examine it closer once he was safely away from the place. If nothing else, since he’d already picked up a fair share of valuables, so it could serve as a memento.[/indent]
[indent]After securing the statue inside his bag, he quietly closed the compartment’s artistic lid, and heard the click. With the distraction out of the way, it was now time to plan his grand escape. It would be rude to the inhabitants if he was caught after all of his efforts, and he was a well mannered man.[/indent]
[indent]Lautrec stood there, thinking. He was standing there gathering his thoughts. His two legs were holding him up at that place while his brain worked its… It’s no use. He could not think of any way to leave unnoticed. The bathing chamber had no windows, just a pipe that served as ventilation, and it was about rodent sized. Now, some people could argue that thieves were a type of rodent, especially people that were displeased with losing their possessions, but Lautrec wasn’t fooled. Humans could only turn into ghosts upon death, not beasts.[/indent]
[indent]And then, the idea came to him. He went back to his trusty tub, and hid once again. He called upon the aid of Willow, and willed her to head towards the door that the guard was stationed at. Being a metaphysical manifestation, she easily bypassed the limitations of a primitive physical barrier in the form of a door. He knew this because the guard cursed loudly and called for backup, with a thud that could have been him falling on his ass. Things may not necessarily have happened in that order, as it’s always a bit hard to tell how things occured during hectic situations.[/indent]
[indent]He made Willow sink into the floor, and the repeated thuds from in front of his door signaled his chance to leave the room. The guard was giving chase, as you would when you see a levitating glowing sphere. Getting out of the tub after nobody came to inspect why Willow came from inside the chamber, Lautrec got to the door with swift steps and opened it slightly to get a better look. The coast seemed to be clear for now, but he heard the familiar bang of a gun firing. It was time to move and move quickly.[/indent]
[indent]He traced back his steps to the corridor leading from the Study, and although he had to hide once in a room as a guard rushed past him, his flight was mostly without incident. That is, until he stepped onto the familiar corridor and his heart skipped a beat. The security was just as tight as it had been when he first came in, but he did not have the luxury of dealing with them at his own pace. He saw the butler's back from the door leading to the Study. The way was closed to him, and he knew it. He turned around and ran, wanting to reach the opposite side of the house. If he was lucky and someone saw him, they’d think he was another guard hurrying to do his job.[/indent]
[indent]Someone did notice him, and even more shouting ensued. He could not focus on what they were saying though, as his whole attention was trying to find another escape route. He ran to what he gathered would be the western side of the mansion, and as he burst in through the doorway he grimaced. What greeted him was a set of stairs looking over a room on the first floor. Below him was a bedroom with bunk beds complete with chests at the wall, and around four very surprised guards that were currently hurriedly dressing.[/indent]
[indent]He grabbed the door handle and closed the wooden portal behind him as he now ran back where he had come from. The shouts were now coming from both behind him and from the front, so he made a quick turn at the next door to his left. He came to a large bedchamber with a very shaken looking woman and a pale man that had a very notable mustache. He recognized the man from the portrait in the Study as he darted past them. They were so shaken up by the whole ordeal that the man only started shouting after he came out of his stupor, by which time Lautrec was well into the adjoining room.[/indent]
[indent]The room turned out to be the Main Hall of the mansion, with two large staircases leading down onto the ground floor. The furniture was set up in a way that it would both serve as an adequate entry point and as a lounge, with cushioned sofas and tables suitable for tea or coffee. The whole place would have had a leisurely luxurious feel to it, had it not been for the hectic situation that was occurring all around. Some people just liked to make a big deal about everything.[/indent]
[indent]There were guards running up the stairs towards him on both sides, cutting off his escape. He opted to take the third route, and jump down from the balcony in the middle. Surprised yells rang out all around him as he landed on his feet, tumbled upon impact and came out unscathed and running dearly towards the entrance door. As he did so, the man guarding the door stepped in his way, attempting to cut him off from his escape.[/indent]
[indent]Without breaking pace, Lautrec took out a satchel of bits in his pocket that came loose with a tug, and launched the silver bits at his opponent’s face with a swing. Flinching from the unexpected situation, the man brought up his arms instinctively to shield his face from the incoming impromptu projectiles, and closed his eyes. While this was just a temporary distraction, it was enough for Lautrec to get past the man, swipe the keys from where he dropped it onto the floor and get to the door.[/indent]
[indent]Lautrec practically pounced onto it as he fumbled with the keyhole, and to his delight, the door gave way. Stepping through, his delight turned to despair, as he came into bodily contact with a very surprised unit of Constable patrol that came to investigate the nearby commotion. One of them still had a hand raised as if he was about to knock, but it quickly lowered onto his sword hilt, and the others took on a defensive position as well after assessing the situation.[/indent]
[indent]With Constables around him from the front, and the house guards from behind, Lautrec was now well and truly caught. He took the initiative and lowered himself onto his knees and showed that he was no threat, before one of them could cut him down in a fearful moment. As he was lamenting his bad luck, a thought came to him and he started ruefully laughing, mostly at how idiotic he was. He forgot to throw a pinch of salt out the window that he had climbed in from, to ward off bad luck. No wonder things turned out this way…[/indent]

[h2]Status: Caught[/h2]