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Background

Mage Boden will give you this quest when you talk to him in his shop in Kalrathia (Kalrathia, #2), provided that you ask him about the "matter" he brings up.


Walkthrough

Mage Boden will ask you to look for his apprentice, Darek, who recently went missing while investigating some ruins near the Morden city of Darthrul. Boden will tell you that Darek might have had a research journal with him, and he'll ask you to track that down as well. To help you out, Boden will give you a golden mirror (Quest Item 68).

You'll discover the ruins right where Boden said they'd be (#1). Inside, you'll find several statues that should look familiar. The statues are part of a puzzle, but the puzzle is basically a repeat of the one from the primary quest The Lost Azunite Artifact. That is, after placing the golden mirror onto one of the statues, you'll need to rotate the statues so that they direct a beam of light into the right place. However, in this case there are actually two right places -- the doorways to the north and west. If you can direct the beam of light into one of the doorways, then you'll open the door and be able to enter the room beyond. The apprentice is in room #2, and a nice bit of treasure can be picked up in room #3.

Figure 1	Figure 2

The easiest way to solve the puzzles is to work backwards. Figure out which statue could direct the beam of light to a doorway, and then work from there. But if you don't have the patience for that, then you can simply look at the solutions shown above. Figure 1 shows how to position the statues to open the apprentice's room, and Figure 2 shows how to position the statues to open the treasure room.

Note: You can also find the greater chant of casting (Chant 60) and the greater chant of fighter power (Chant 61) in the room with the apprentice.

When you reach Mage Apprentice Darek, he'll inform you that Boden has been working with the Morden, and that when Darek figured out what was going on, Boden locked him into this puzzle room to keep him out of the way. As proof, Darek will give you the journal of the mage's apprentice (Book 35), which is actually a ledger of Boden's dealings with the Morden.

When you return to Mage Boden, no matter what you say to him, you'll expose him for the traitor he is, and he'll attack you. Once he's dead, Darek will make his way to the shop, and, if you talk to him, he'll thank you for your help, and he'll drop several items onto the ground for you, including the unique ring spellbinder. Then Darek will take Boden's place as Kalrathia's magic merchant, and the quest will end.