Valdis caught a sense of longing in his words, a sick sort of longing, an obsession. Unlike Guillermo, the people she left behind were perfectly capable of going on without her. Humans were resilient in that way.

"There aren't many of us here, but we are competent enough to keep this place running so far. I certainly hope you can add to that."

The outward appearance didn't match anything else she could sense. That saying 'don't judge a book by its cover' definitely applied here.

"Have you seen the...bar yet?"