[ well, kaveh thinks. it's not a particularly odd answer in turn, though it does say quite a bit about what sort of person this is, to deny something that the very room has laid bare. it's pride, kaveh thinks, as he considers the young man up and down, concern furrowing a thin line down the centre of his brow. in the aftermath, the story had come clear: alhaitham had not been the only one who was looking into sachin. and kaveh, well, it was beyond kaveh to meddle in the affairs of state and religion, but given that they have neither of these things here, perhaps there was a responsibility after all.

that, and this young man knows nahida. ]

It evidently is. The city doesn't bring in people who have nothing. [ kaveh says, with a thin wisp of a sigh. it seethes between his teeth. ] Come. [ he gestures with a hand. ] We ought to leave this room before this city decides that nothing isn't good enough of an answer. I know that it hasn't accepted it any other time. You don't want to be in here, right? Well, neither do I.