[ Tzilan watched Saralegui a long moment more before nodding. 'I am very discreet.'

Heaven help the young man if he wasn't. But it was a good first step... Trust had to be given first if it were ever to be reciprocated. ]

I came to this world with as mediocre a sum of wealth or esteem as any other outworlder. I've been, in secret and when currents and other factors are favorable, going out to see in hunt of ships carrying valuable but untraceable cargo. The captain, crew, and all living souls aboard, I kill.

I return the cargo in segments to port, here or elsewhere, under the painstakingly-built guise of a commodities merchant. It's ow I was able to afford a manse of such impressive size in this area against the mountain-- usually reserved for blue-blooded native families. It's the first step, growing wealth, but soon I mean to leverage it to buy my way into local politics as a magistrate of the port.

One step on a path that I mean to take me to the governorship of the city.