The Duke sat in a large chair, crafted with the finest details of griffons and wyverns into the woodwork, padded with the softest of cloth. The duke's attire consisted of a collar fashioned with troll fur, wrapping thickly around his neck. Hanging over his right arm was a cape kept on with a golden chain that wrapped around his chest and connected to a hook on the other shoulder. The cape was embroidered with the Leland house symbol-a serpent coiled around a lance. His remaining attire consisted of a red shirt with numerous small gems placed along the center of the shirt down to the waist, a matching paints and heavy boots and gloves. Covering his face was a mask, a symbol that was common to the Orlesian Empire. The duke's mask was silver and covered most of his face except the right portion of his mouth and chin. The mask extended over the head with three thin strips and ended four inches past the man's head.<br/><br/>Tapping his foot with an impatient rhythm before he looked to his bodyguard as she spoke up. He had always trusted Jeanne to an extent, but with the recent troubles to his house his faith in her was beginning to doubt her. Still, she served him well enough. With a firm nod he spoke up, his tone harsh and raspy. "Yes, let them in. All of them. Let us see if our venture has born fruit." The door to the hallway was opened and those gathered were shuffled into the room, one at a time. The Duke took a moment, glancing over all those gathered before letting out a hateful snicker. "Elves...quite a few of them." He muttered, barely above a whisper, but his eyes said enough about his opinion of their kind.<br/><br/>Shuffling inside with the others were the dwarf and the crow, the pair finding a place near the fireplace. Durack lifted a mug of mead he'd acquired downstairs to his lips, chugging down the last few swigs of the sweet drink before putting the mug down over the fireplace mantle. He remained quiet however, eyes glancing over the others to feel them out, try and get an idea of what they might be like.<br/><br/>The Crow however, couldn't give a damn about the others judging by her demeanor. She found herself a nice seat near the fireplace, taking out one of her daggers and began to use the blade like a nail file, sharpening her fingertips into fine points, though she kept her eyes up on the duke. She was curious about the others, but more so about the promise of gold.<br/><br/>The Duke paused, looking about the group before letting out a small huff of disapproval. "Well...you will have to do." He muttered before folding his arms in his lap. "If you've questions, ask them now. No doubt you're all here to answer my summons, if so...you know the risks of this venture but no doubt have questions. Ask them now, I'll answer them all, and explain the course of this expedition."<div class="messageTextEndMarker"> </div>