"Well, one of them was but the others did not seem to take kindly to this discovery."

"I suppose that's the best I can hope for. I'll send Anevia."

He provides the time and the place.

"Thank you. One more thing before you go — I'm hearing reports that the Prelate is no longer guarding the large rift he was previously stationed at. Reports from patrols near the rift, to be clear, not reports from anyone who knows where he is."

"Signs that he was violently removed?" Blai asks.

"None that they saw, but they're none of them experienced trackers. I expect they'd have noticed if blood was spilled."

"I can keep an eye out - or did you have something more comprehensive in mind -"

"That's what I had been imagining, I just thought that you should be aware of the situation, such as it is."

Nod. "Any other errands for the day?"

"The necromancer remains the highest priority. If you have extra time, our next highest priorities are—" She has a list. "We intend to move on the Garrison tomorrow unless we have specific reason to delay. I intend to have a final planning session an hour before sundown; please prioritize returning in time to be present. I've been coordinating informing other involved parties, though if you happen to see the Prelate please do inform him."

"Understood."

They can all have lunch, if lunch is on offer, and then go looking for the necromancer.

Lunch is on offer! It's kind of mediocre, but it exists!

Their intelligence suggests that the necromancer lives above his shop, and will likely be in either his living quarters or his cellar, which is reportedly where he conducts his necromantic experiments. It's not far from the market square. They are authorized to break in if the entrance is barred. 

They are accosted by a swarm of aggressive, disease-ridden rats, and have to burn one of the Count's channels healing up afterwards, but they're otherwise fine.

Everyone should notify him as soon as possible if they seem to have contracted a disease so he knows to prep for that in the morning and moderate his enthusiasm for assignments accordingly.

Necromancy shop! Door?

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the door is barred.

Of course.

"Finnean, is a battering ram within your capabilities?"

"Let me see... no, it doesn't look like it. I could try a big axe if you want?"

Are the windows maybe easier?

Getting through will be a little tight, and there are some boxes and such hastily stacked on the other side, but they don't look that hard to break. The back window has the smallest and most-sloppily-stacked boxes.

May as well try the door first. "As swiftly as you can manage, please," he tells Lann (and Finnean), "it may be loud and alert the occupant." And he'll cast a Bless.

Now Finnean is a large axe!

He is really more of a bows guy than an axe guy, but he's got plenty of raw strength, and it's not like the door is a hard target to hit. 

The door is no longer an obstacle!

Behind the door, they can see a shop, with various crates half-packed throughout the room. In the back of the room, there's a flight of stairs leading up to his quarters, and another flight of stairs leading downwards towards the basement. There's a small rope strung across the entrance to the stairs down, with a sign hanging from it; the writing on the sign is too small to read.

"How fascinating. There appears to be a faint abjuration aura covering that area of floor, as well as a separate abjuration aura on that sign." Sigh. "It seems that our target's secondary topics of study are no more stimulating than his primary interest."

What in the world does she have against one particular sort of magical blob over another, Blai wonders, when it's unrelated to the utility of the spells - "Do either of these shed light on whether we should go up or down?"

"The aura on the floor appears to have been positioned in such a way as to be equally inconvenient regardless of which we attempt, but the sign suggests that our target considers it more important to protect the basement. However, I have not had the opportunity for extensive study of psychology, so my prediction may be incorrect. Paladin girl, would you care to make use of your Detect Evil-like ability?"