[And now is when he probably should snap at him a little, or at the very least gently point out (if he has it in him to be gentle at all) that the worst possible conclusion is sometimes the correct one - that it's possible that this entire exercise is some sort of sick game for whomever's holding them here, and if that's the case then all the hostages will probably die once everyone in this mansion has because sometimes people are just terrible excuses for human beings and sometimes the correct response to a question like the one Palaeno just posed really is "pure sadism." It's not often that one sees things like that, but once in a while you'll come across a case that serves to remind you that sometimes? People just suck like that.

Honestly, when Kristoph himself was indicted it was most certainly an instance of "sometimes people just suck," and he put everyone through those particular paces twice.

But as it stands he just...pauses for a moment, and he considers, and he smiles a bit and quite simply doesn't, because he's clearly feeling a bit charitable today.

It won't kill him to spare the guy's feelings for once in his miserable goddamn life, because it's entirely possible that this guy's feelings are what spared his miserable goddamn life yesterday.]

Ah, that's another valid point - it does still beg the question of what we're supposed to do now, but we'll sort through it, I'm sure.