Jigano grunted acknowledgment of the answer to his first question as he stood to look back at the distance from the bridge, then sighed to himself as he knelt to move the assay spikes again, shifting it a bit more to the side of the path - or where the path would be come spring and the melting of all the snow. The Shrine wasn't meant to be in the way of things, or to force people to stop at it, after all, but he still wanted it near enough to the bridge to draw upon the ambience of the skull-like stones.
He was content to let Sunjata smoke downwind and think about how much - or little - to tell him, seeing no point in pressing matters. Not when they were both blighted, and not when it was a potentially painful part of the other man's past. When Sunjata spoke again, however, the tone of his voice drew Jigano's attention back to him and the bard paused to regard the other man solemnly.
"Whoever lived," he repeated softly, the faintest frown furrowing his brow. "What form did this trial take, that it was so deadly? What did it have to do with preparing young men to make laws to govern a country with?" Not, he noted, young women.
For a place supposedly built on law it all sounded very... barbaric. And that, to a man whose country had been ruled by actual barbarians. Still, as the Arbiter's son Sunjata had clearly survived the first trial. And he seemed young enough that it was unlikely the second would have been needed before Caido had changed the path of his life.
"That, at least, sounds more civilized... if a bit of a bureaucratic nightmare," the bard murmured, lips quirking towards the shadow of a smile at the description of the parliamentary set up.
He was content to let Sunjata smoke downwind and think about how much - or little - to tell him, seeing no point in pressing matters. Not when they were both blighted, and not when it was a potentially painful part of the other man's past. When Sunjata spoke again, however, the tone of his voice drew Jigano's attention back to him and the bard paused to regard the other man solemnly.
"Whoever lived," he repeated softly, the faintest frown furrowing his brow. "What form did this trial take, that it was so deadly? What did it have to do with preparing young men to make laws to govern a country with?" Not, he noted, young women.
For a place supposedly built on law it all sounded very... barbaric. And that, to a man whose country had been ruled by actual barbarians. Still, as the Arbiter's son Sunjata had clearly survived the first trial. And he seemed young enough that it was unlikely the second would have been needed before Caido had changed the path of his life.
"That, at least, sounds more civilized... if a bit of a bureaucratic nightmare," the bard murmured, lips quirking towards the shadow of a smile at the description of the parliamentary set up.
