Aurin smirked at the compliment. Most of his smiles were crooked like that, but one got the sense that he was sharing a joke with them rather than making them the butt of it.
"Sometimes you have to make your calculations quickly," he admitted. He had become quick when it came to the calculus of the deal. So many aspects were difficult to quantify, to monetize, but he was content to cede actual coin for hooks and favors. If Ivar Shipper thought being generous and magnanimous was a good way to win his good humor, it was certainly a start.
"I never was much of a one for schooling," he admitted, "but I figure quickly, and I remember quite a bit. He wasn't a regular when I still worked here, but people tend to share their secrets with bartenders and such. Never underestimate the allure of an ear without judgment and a shoulder to cry on. And a steady source of intoxicants." He laughed.
Aurin had learned mostly from observation, though he had begun to read books from time to time. They gave him more context to draw upon when it came to being a bullshit artist. And for all that he occasionally rolled his eyes at the artistic director of the theater, he was learning quite a bit from him, at least in terms of art and aesthetics, drawing his own connections to the song and dance of the courtesans and what he knew from before Kalzasi. He could at least approximate the veneer of education and sophistication when the need arose.
"Have you checked out Ale'Ephirum yet? For magical supplies and... hm, information about those who practice magic in Kalzasi?" If he had or if he hadn't, Ivar might be the right person to send there for information, being of the same cut of cloth as those who identified as mages, unlike Aurin who just saw himself as a man with varied tricks up his sleeve.
"Sometimes you have to make your calculations quickly," he admitted. He had become quick when it came to the calculus of the deal. So many aspects were difficult to quantify, to monetize, but he was content to cede actual coin for hooks and favors. If Ivar Shipper thought being generous and magnanimous was a good way to win his good humor, it was certainly a start.
"I never was much of a one for schooling," he admitted, "but I figure quickly, and I remember quite a bit. He wasn't a regular when I still worked here, but people tend to share their secrets with bartenders and such. Never underestimate the allure of an ear without judgment and a shoulder to cry on. And a steady source of intoxicants." He laughed.
Aurin had learned mostly from observation, though he had begun to read books from time to time. They gave him more context to draw upon when it came to being a bullshit artist. And for all that he occasionally rolled his eyes at the artistic director of the theater, he was learning quite a bit from him, at least in terms of art and aesthetics, drawing his own connections to the song and dance of the courtesans and what he knew from before Kalzasi. He could at least approximate the veneer of education and sophistication when the need arose.
"Have you checked out Ale'Ephirum yet? For magical supplies and... hm, information about those who practice magic in Kalzasi?" If he had or if he hadn't, Ivar might be the right person to send there for information, being of the same cut of cloth as those who identified as mages, unlike Aurin who just saw himself as a man with varied tricks up his sleeve.
