Layland really, really should have walked away. The entire reason he tripped was because he wanted to avoid Cian. He found himself pulling a chair closer and dropping into it though. He listened carefully to what Cian had to say and watched his face carefully. He was looking for signs of a lie, or delusion. Something that could be detected in the face, but Cian's voice held no lie in it.

"You're right, this does sound ridiculous to me. Are you really trying to tell me that what you do is...magic?" he asked. "Not false trickery and illusion? Look, if you're tying to mystify me into liking you, it's not going to work. I'm a man of science. There's just absolutely no way that magic can exist." His words didn't come out as forceful as they should have. Doubt had room to worm in, even though the existence of magic would destroy everything he thought about the world. It was impossible, but he couldn't explain what he had seen. "No, of course not. When you say magician, you mean illusionist. You just don't want to tell me how the trick is done."