Emil was at a loss for words, and felt a mixture of unease, awe, wonder, all combined with a slight fluster as the sage entered the room. He didn't quite know what he was expecting- perhaps, an older, plainer, 'sagely' woman perhaps? Unlike the plain prettiness of the maid who had led them in, the sage Genevieve was dressed as opulently and regally as the home she inhabited. Catching himself staring, Emil was quick to lower his eyes, fixating his gaze intently on a knot of wood on the table at which he sat, glad that the orange and shadows of the fire and candlelight masked the flush of his face. It was not that he was unused to women- well, he was, having devoted much of his life to the brotherhood like order of the Edessan Knights and his training, Emil had little time for frivolities; but the women he was used to speaking to were often younger noblesse, as opposed to the rather mature figure of Lady Genevieve. 

She spoke of events that had occured before Emil was born, further increasing his unease around her, the woman must have been at near twice his age, to be able to actively participates in events that had happened years before he was born. She spoke for a time about her order, and how she was purposed with ridding the world of the evils that inhabited it. She then moved onto her reason for calling them here, to help her retrieve an item that had been stolen from her, an artifact of great power that would aid her in her efforts to destroy evil. Her cause was, as far as causes went, as noble as they came- for what else was the point of causes if not for destroying the evils of the world, whether they be injustice, the preying on the weak, or the malicious monsters of the wildernesses. 

The large man Ajax, seemed unimpressed, even amused by the request, and replied with questions of his own, as well as a request for compensation. A part of Emil found the man to be rude, brusque, and had half the mind to berate him for making such comments about the sage and her order. Though the other part of Emil admitted that the man Ajax had solid, if not coarse, reasoning behind his statements. The possibility of inciting the man's anger so early on in their probable journey together was also a rather staunch deterrent. Emil was already out of his element, it was best not to cause trouble amongst those whom he would likely be considering allies in the days to come. 

"What is this artifact, exactly?" Emil added, "What does it do?" 

Emil was unsure how to proceed- should the accept the quest, how would they find something without knowing what it would appear to them as? Knowing the risks and dangers it posed would also allow their small band to prepare accordingly for whatever challenges they might face.