[Oh. He didn't expect Sayaka to actually answer him. Good to keep in mind, at least.

He picks up a bottle of standard sleep aids, rather than the super strong stuff.]

If you think about it, it is very similar to last week's incentive. So if you considered last week's incentive, then considering this week's becomes all the more easier. We've all been in this high-tension environment for well over a month now. Of course people are going to start building relationships. Some, more strongly than others.

[He glances Sayaka's way as he says that, handing her the pill bottle so she can take however many she needs. He'll be counting, though.]

Even the most stalwart resisters of incentives are bound to be tempted by a way out without losing what they've built here.

[He takes the bottle back while holding back that trademark bitter smirk of his. Since Sayaka brought up the incentive, he's here to be Real about it.]

So what you're saying is, you've found yourself tempted but don't like the added pressure of choosing favorites. There is a simple solution to that then, isn't there?

[...haha oh wow.]

I was simply going to tell you to suck it up and not act if you're that concerned about leaving one extra person for dead with the rest of us. But sure, you could also go the convoluted route and piss us off for the headache of an ensuing trial.

[...]

Yeah, I figured. Well, at the very least you now also have me preventing you from actually using them for anything else.

[Witness and all that.

As for the second bit...he ends up shrugging.]

I'm not going to laugh or call you an idiot for being enticed by an incentive. I'm just pointing out what the obvious implications, and what the consequences will be if your plans were to go south. Thanks for liking me enough to not want to try to get me killed though, I suppose.

[Wow.]

[Sometimes, Rideaux has the awareness to know when his being Himself doesn't quite hit the mark. At the very least he knows he's not at that point with Sayaka.]

...I realize that. Still, good for you to have that, considering what has happened.

[He says it like there's no one here he'd say the same about.]

[Rideaux's kind of private about this sort of thing, so Sayaka's not in the wrong to be curious. Though he'd usually brush it off, he'll relent a little bit here.]

I suppose I do.

[Since Sayaka makes a habit of going to the bar after trials, she might have noticed Rideaux and Yuri there together on more than one occasion.]

...Yeah, it is.

[He sighs, letting his shoulders droop.]

I know this may sound ridiculous, but he is the first true friend I've had. Because of my life experiences, I have never been a fan of the idea of having friends. He has helped me see the merit in giving the space for such relationships.

So I was being serious when I said it's good that you like everyone enough to not consider the incentive further.

[Rideaux looks up at Sayaka there, his expression a little dumbfounded. Like something's clicked, in a sense. He wonders if that's what Sayaka discovered for herself when she made friends here too. Was it the same for her back home, with the job she had?

...Well. It gets him to smile a little bit in the end.]

"Freeing", huh. That's not a bad way to put it.

[Rideaux has had little opportunity in his life to truly "cherish" anything, but...he finds himself agreeing that this should be one of those things.

...ah, right. It's getting late.]

No problem. Happy to be a proper doctor rather than a coroner at any opportunity. [Rideaux...] You too, Maizono.