[ A master snoop! She is not completely immune to flattery, and she laughs - but she can't help notice how he reacts to it, just that slightest internal wince, and Nina remembers: he's still here on his own. ]

As it turns out, I'm not quite here on my own. [ Her smile doesn't fade, although it does grow smaller, revealing an incredulous soft happiness. ] Matthias Helvar is here too. You may have met him, ridiculously tall, isenulf with one eye at his side, running around and herding those mole creatures?