"Yeah, I mean..." He jangles his bracelet. "If you get sick of bodice-busters from the library, you can always look through old public records of people talking about things. You get... bored," he's genuine, but there is some self-deprecation in his tone. "And it pays to keep an eye on what people are willing to talk about as they're being recorded."

Another shrug, a moment to appreciate the warm glow from the wine... "You might even figure out what someone finds valuable. Bet them that. The Augur's... she's like a kind of cursed, giant bag of holding in a way. You have sex the way it wants you to, you get the thing you want. Someone wants a new lute but is too nervous for it... you help them out. Or you get one for yourself and make them bet you for it."

How about that for layers of complexity?