[ Sylvain earns a short laugh for that one though he's just as tempted to follow it up with a roll of his eyes. Claude doesn't doubt for a second there's a bit of truth in there somewhere - on either end of the conversation, especially given that they're still having it or that he's willing to continue it rather than finding some polite way to decline it like he might've been tempted to otherwise. Now's just the opposite, and now if only he could dismiss it as idle curiosity and nothing more.

Probably better to not think about that one, though. It'd be the same as making things too easy, and where's the fun in that or in not playing along? ]

I never said anything about begging, but if you're going to volunteer to do it then I'm certainly not going to complain. [ He should probably finish his drink too, and now's as good of a time as any to do so which conveniently doubles with letting that statement hang out there a bit longer. ] Is that part of another lesson somewhere on your list of them? Or just another way to contemplate your supposed ranking?