Pyrus gives him a look that's half amusement, half smugness, with a slight touch of patronizing the Despot might not see. "Rankar, you're to smart to try and give me orders. But you're also smart enough to know I have the city's best interests at heart. To keep the mines operating, to keep you in power, and to maintain the status quo. Isn't that why you hire mercenaries in the first place, to keep things as they are? I like things the way they are here, and I find myself in a position to contribute to keeping them that way. Besides, it never hurts to have another friend in the Realm, does it?"