The Queen smiled to him in a quiet manner but her expression schooled to a more guarded state on looking ath er court shortly after. She appeared to have her patience tested by some people in the court that day, which made it a good time as any to step up to the archmage's quarters. Nevertheless, the masked figure was brief in their nod at his question about being allowed to sit, gesturing at the available chairs before pulling one to relax in as well, facing Tehr and listening.<br/><br/><strong>"Divination has its merits, yet it does have its limitations."</strong>The arch-mage remarked briefly before seeming to fall into thought, listening to him carry on with his explanation. Nodding at the question about the duke of Wales, the masked figure watched Tehr seriously as the matter was explained, eyes closing behind the mask. Hum left the figure's lips before the arch-mage stood, moving to the desk and slipping the mask onto the table. That done, the man turned to face Tehr, taking up the said ring to look it up close without the mask on his face, those piercing eyes seeming to have become a brilliant shade of molten gold as he gazed upon the ring without the mask on.<br/><br/>The man's face and the rest of his head seemed smooth and shaved, skin pale, marked by a few partly healed old cuts that had left scars, and a lone tattoo along his throat for the permanent spell of tongues. The man's mask in itself seemed to house a pair of lenses over the eyes that Tehr could, on a mere glance, note to have added a glimpse of glow to a variety of objects in the room, the mask perhaps meant to aid in detecting magical auras, as well as reading of them.<br/><br/>Nevertheless, as the man regarded the ring seriously and thoughtfully he soon turned to look upon Tehr in a serious fashion once more, nodding his head in agreement.<strong>"I can use this as a focus to help locate the person in question, and given you have already sought to aid me before and have a good standing in court I am not planning to exact a price for doing so. I will cast the spell during my morning preparations, and I should have answers for you tomorrow by noon."</strong>He looked at Tehr seriously at the time, the voice seeming to shift towards the end. It had maintained a nearly neutral tone, shifting slightly to masculine without the mask and yet at the same time seeming a tad more feminine, as did the face of the arch-mage in its general appearance, a small but seemingly constant shift that might be a tad disorienting or intimidating after a while.<br/><br/><strong>"I have a request to make."</strong>He spoke seriously, gazing at Tehr for a moment.<strong>"If this book turns out to be the real deal, it runs the risk of corrupting me once studied. I am wary of doing so but allowing someone else to go ahead with it might either leave us unsure if it is real or not, or leave us with someone partly tainted and getting worse while we are still not sure if its real or not. I will examine the book myself, but if things were to go all sour, I'd appreciate it if you donned the mask at a few gatherings until the Queen had a good opportunity to send 'me' off on some dangerous mission that would prove my 'undoing.' Less dishonor to the crown that way."</strong>His expression was serious as he addressed Tehr so.