Tehr's step away from the workshop saw Angelique bow her head in the hallway upon seeing him, speaking in a calm tone of voice.<strong>"I have prepared a light breakfast to the lounge along with tea as per your words Master, having found Alex I imagined you two might be taking a bit of time with the shop talk."</strong>Her tone friendly and relaxed, but seeming at ease with things.<strong>"Of course if you are in a bit of hurry now and meal no longer is on your mind I imagine Lady Rosalyn will be up shortly, having only gone for a short rest after earlier, and the meal can hold for a while anyhow."</strong>She chuckled in a relaxed fashion, the scent of fresh bread and some roasted meat in the air present.<br/><br/><strong>"I have also seen to it that your horse Blondie has received a good bit of food including some apple chops the stablemaster seems keen to give her, and should be ready to go if you are heading off."</strong>Her expression seemed the same serene and beautiful, dignified servant she usually was around guests, but there was also a tug of amusement at her lips corner, suggesting she was amused by things, and a bit of mischief evident in her eyes but she kept her tongue in things at times, and while loyal to him had a mind of her own and right now she seemed to be taking delight in something she wasn't quite sharing right away.<br/><br/><hr/><hr/><br/>The journey towards the palace seemed to pass remarkably slowly at the time. It was actually getting quite busy outside, with people rushing about at the time on various business, a few horses trying to cross through the crowds here and there. A lone carriage passing had people grumbling about having to clear the way but they did so in a hurry to avoid being run over. The fact remained they looked a tad upset, especially when the passing black ebonwood carriage didn't show any noticeable insignia to it either, seemingly headed towards the gates in quite a hurry. From the direction of the palace at that.<br/><br/>The distance was hardly an extensive one to cross, but with the people getting in the way it took a bit longer than it had usually taken. Still, on reaching the gates and getting greeted by the guards on duty with a brisk nod and gesture to pass by as they held the gates for him, Tehr found the way far more clear. There did not appear to be a court in session, nor Queen seated on the throne at the time being, but the royal treasurer was rushing along a hallway scrolls bundled under one arm, followed by a pair of young scribes as well, seemingly muttering to himself.<br/><br/>Nearing the Arch Mage's quarters, Tehr came across a sight of a pair of young human lads, perhaps in fourteen or fifteen summers of age, trying to make an impression to the masked figure of the archmage in an otherwise quiet hall near his workshop area, the door open so that Tehr could easily catch the noise in passing and see the event taking place. The archmage himself was seated, while the two young lads seemed to be trying to impress the archmage with their own casting of a variety of cantrips, seeming to try and out-do one another.<br/><br/>One of them wore no insignia of a house but had a hard and determined look on his face, and seemed to favor more practical approach to magic, and went with minimal gestures and words while maintaining a measure of ingenuity, while the other bore the seal on his clothes of a not noble but wealthy house in town, fine silks adorning the lad and his expression a touch cocky but his cantrips working, with a flourish, and a precise pronounciation and gesturing at that, along with a fair number of 'by the book' tricks with prestidigitation in particular.<br/><br/><strong>"Good. Neither of you has been slacking off. Excuse us now however, I shall speak with you both in two hour's time, take that time to browse the books I have already given you."</strong>The arch-mage spoke in a serious tone, gesturing Tehr to enter while waiting for the two younger lads to take a look at him, and seeming to be trying to take a measure of him by their gaze, before bowing to the arch-mage a little and hurrying off. Meanwhile, the masked figure took a short breath before gazing up at Tehr properly.<br/><br/><strong>"I have been getting swamped with work, enough so that I will need to get another apprentice soon, but I apologise for that still. Now, I have taken the time to prepare and cast the spells to provide some answers. What I learned is as follows."</strong>The arch-mage's voice was completely even and serious, the gloved hand laying down a small map of the Spaniards territory, with a crimson line between the north and southern regions, between the loyalists of the crown and the renegades. Battlefields were marked clearly enough there, as were a few blue marks.<br/><br/><strong>"Divination is often annoyingly vague, but it did provide a few clear answers. The Duke is alive, he is relatively well, but he is beyond the reach of mere message spell right now."</strong>His fingers then tapped on the checkmarks in blue.<strong>"These are the places the divination pointed to, where the Duke has been earlier at least. One of them is a small elven wayshrine, that much is shown in history books. Supposedly lost in the forest, but more likely hidden so members of another religious group would not deface the shrine."</strong>The arch mage was tapping a blue cross on the northern side at that, then moving southwards, close to the battlefield.<br/><br/><strong>"There is an image of surprise and blood when divining with his name and connection, here in the town just south of the border. It is former halfling glen, but was taken up by humans when the short fellows left for other lands."</strong>There was a pause before the arch-mage tapped the last cross further south, towards a region where a port-town opened up to Mediterrean ocean, but a bit of way from there, at a forest.<strong>"The last is of a man without a horse, moving with the cloak wrapped up tight around them, through the old elfpaths."</strong>He paused at this, sighing wearily.<strong>"The fact I cannot pin-point the man by magic but merely impressions of where he has been where there's been a larger effect of some sort tied to him suggests he is at least protected against magical scrying to some measure, a simple non-detection wouldn't go to this length. Nevertheless, it is at least some answers, and I have told you of the impressions in the order I received them, and if I were to follow them I'd wager there's a fair chance the Duke may be at or soon reaching a port town, and hopefully on the way back."</strong>His eyes didn't leave Tehr while he said this though, and while his tone was even, there was a certain bit of tension evident in him.<br/><br/><strong>"I prefer not to make wild guesses without proper proof or at least a good reason for a theory, but the elven paths in those woods are not the fastest to travel but the hardest to seek for one not familiar with them. I am aware of the lore the elves have of them, and find it a touch alarming that someone would be travelling through them. Whatever the man has come across, I'd wager he's got a tale to tell on return."</strong><br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">ooc</div><div class="spoiler_body">Considered trying to write a bit for Christina greeting Alex back at the house but somehow it felt a bit clumsy in this post, but I can add some of that to the next post if you'd prefer that going on at the side as well.</div></div>