I wish the two things were mutually exclusive - charm and intelligence, and megalomania. It'd have made my life endlessly more pleasant, if not strictly easier... [He actually manages a chuckle, though it's a very dry one.]

We weren't a a peaceful or loving people, Mr. Carsen. Our entire existence was, in a way, a mistake. A blind clinging to glories and wars as dead as every one of us... but it had grace notes in it. Now and then. Enough that I hope we can be a cautionary tale, rather than something to forget.