Alfred's eyes widened a little in surprise at the Knight's tale of crusade and conquest - that being, crusade against Sussex, and the conquest of his attempt. It was impressive that he had survived - even Alfred Grimm would have thought twice about confronting druids on their home territory. Not quite impossible, but more than daunting. His talk of pagans was concerning in its tone, however. Alfred resolved to try and keep a lid on his own views, for now.

Then, he suppressed a chuckle - a practice he had become adept at during his time at court - at the sight of Concordia. A spy, apparently, but also a spy with no taste for the wilderness, and no love of the darkness in the heart of the woods. He trusted that she would prove useful - but he trusted equally that when she did, it would probably not be at foraging for food, lighting fires, or stalking prey in the forest.

"I am Alfred Grimm, and I serve as advisor in all things arcane to our mutual liege lord, Ser Giles. I come from England, where I was originally trained as a Mage and had originally practiced as a magician. I am also familiar with the pagans you speak of, Ser Hugo - druids, mostly. Their connection to the natural world is remarkable, and it makes them fearsome opponents on their own land. Your crusade was brave, and your survival very impressive."

For a moment, he paused, stretching and turning away from the now empty bowl on the ground by his feet. He had been stretching often over the course of their journey, more to feel the rainwater on his skin than anything else. He was no Druid, but magic was as natural as anything, and most mages draw great enjoyment from the environment. Alfred was no exception.

"I follow the Hermetic tradition of sorcery, and am also capable of arcane study, ritual magic, summoning, and some degree of alchemy." He drew a hand up in front of him, closed his fingers into a fist, and then gently spread them again to reveal the warm glow of flames in the palm of his hand. "Perhaps most importantly, I am quite adept at counterspelling. Should we encounter other mages whose goals counter ours," the flames went out, their bodies turning green as their presence on the Annwn plane was dispersed, "I should be able to handle them." He smiled broadly.