Roland was quiet for so long likely Ardyn thought he might not even speak again. When he did finally speak, it wasn't with what he wanted to say. "There was a man," he began but immediately looked troubled. Half the words in the short sentence were questionable and troublesome and distasteful.

"There is a sorcerer, named Walter by some. Most know him only as The Man in Black in my world. If I was the hero of my story then he was the villain and you remind me of him in many ways."

Roland went quiet again, though this time only for a few spans of breath and another sip of coffee. "That is no compliment, I speak straight. You make me wonder if he too at some point served what he thought was a greater good."