The hermit's eyes grow wide as he begins to speak.
Lighthouse Hermit tells you, "Ah, I do remember now. I didn't think it would take this long, but no matter - you are here. If you will but listen to my story, I will reveal a great secret to you."
Lighthouse Hermit tells you, "I once was the greatest and most feared arbalister in all of Dereth. I once had everything a man could want from this life, and I have enjoyed all that I have experienced over the long years."
Lighthouse Hermit tells you, "But decades of adventure and excitement have caught up finally, I'm afraid. I find myself unable to see the bull's-eye any longer, thanks to the slow dimming of my sight. And more often than not I find the string to be too powerful for these feeble hands to draw or load."
Lighthouse Hermit tells you, "However, a ghost of the past still stirs in this old body. And before death's final arrow tears through the dark night in search of this weary target, I must see to it that my secret becomes known -- it is with you I entrust this knowledge."
The old hermit shifts his position, and begins to talk with a slow and deliberate voice.
Lighthouse Hermit tells you, "I have seen with my own eyes the devastating power of magic; how easily a burning fireball can send the most skilled archer to his demise!"
Lighthouse Hermit tells you, "It has long been said: "The only way to combat magic is with stronger magic." Before you sits an old man who has come to understand what this truly means."
Lighthouse Hermit tells you, "I obtained certain artifacts and studied about old, forgotten magic. I devised for myself a way to empower my crossbow with a powerful, arcane device - a fetish, one might call it."
Lighthouse Hermit tells you, "Any missile weapon may be empowered similarly. Be warned - the magic is strong, and thus irreversible by any process I know of. I will tell you all I can remember soon enough. But today I have talked long enough."
Lighthouse Hermit tells you, "Travel now to Aerlinthe Island. Find the old ones, the ancient diamond behemoths roaming that enchanted, volcanic isle. Retrieve the ancient diamond relic, and return to me. I should more clearly see the past when I am again holding a piece of it."