"Theriac" is the name if a mystical / fictional cure-all medicine, similar to Panacea. The term was widely used by travelling salesmen (con-men, more like) to promote and sell their miracle medicines, which were often just various laxatives and drugs combined.

I contemplated making Theriac a doctor, but since that "medicine" doesn't actually work and the main selling point of that hoax medicine was how good it looks on the outside, a model seemed more appropiate for a job.