"I think that if you are a Dwarf and commit so many crimes that no one will - take your money and promise to pay for your crimes - anymore then someone can kill you," says the other Elf uncertainly. "But I do not think they do usually."

Nelen nods. "Do you - have - things that say which jobs a person can do -"

"Which jobs a person can do?"

"Amenta has seven. Someone will be born and you already know if they will be allowed to - make computers, or do art, or dance. There are seven groups of things you can be allowed to do."

" - we don't have that. That sounds - are you ever wrong about what they will want to do?"

"It's not about what they want to do. The castes - the groups of things - are how they are even if you want to do something else."

"That's dumb."

"How do you make sure you have the right amounts of all the jobs?"

" - well, if you can't find anyone to do something, you offer more money for it. And maybe make announcements about how it's important and underserved and how admirable the people who do it are, some people like being admirable more than they like money. The Dwarves only do the money thing but that's because they're Dwarves."

"What if no one wants to do it anyway?"

"I don't think that happens? Most people will do things for a lot of money and admiration."

"Oh."

"If they won't, I don't really see why not letting them do other things would work."

"They can't get money any other way. It's different to want money when you don't have any than to want more money when you have some from doing something else."

"Oh. Huh. I think maybe we would just build machines to do something that no one wanted to do even for money."

This seems to be frightening for some reason!

Faerval is very confused about what frightens this poor alien. 

Well, at least he doesn't run away? Although he does glance at the exit.

"Why is that one scary?"

"...sometimes people want to do that on Amenta and they want it in a scary way."

"Oh. Well. No one here wants it in a scary way."

"Are you sure?"

"I mean, I don't know what a scary way would be. But pretty sure."

"It's - complicated."

"Your world sounds complicated."