cowboy_r: Calling a snail escargot doesn't stop it from tasting like a salty loogie.

That was very hard to translate. Sythyry's form of Ketherian is the high-class language for food: it's already effectively French.

Bard: "Calling a snail 'snail-in-Mrasteian' doesn't stop it from tasting like a salty loogie." The words sound nearly the same, like 'snail' and 'snale', so I had to say "in Mrasteian".

Sythyry: "Yes, it does. If it's prepared by a Mrasteian chef, a snail tastes like a salty loogie containing an incendiary combat spell."

Bard: No, that's the wrong shade of meaning. Perhaps 'snail-in-the-Nice-Language? At least the words are more different.

Sythyry: Then it would taste like a salty loogie prepared in the Umtangeian style, would it not? I do not specifically know how they cook snails. Plum vinegar perhaps?

Bard: "No, that's getting more wrong. "Calling a 'snail-in-Umtangeian' a 'snail-in-Ketherian'" might be more accurate."

Sythyry: "Is it supposed to taste like a familiar and comforting salty loogie?"

Bard:"No, that's not what he's getting at."

Sythyry:"Actually, I have had Mrasteian snails. They don't seem nearly as mucus-like after they've been deep-fried in spicy batter. Though I daresay the same would go for actual mucus as well."

Bard:"No, he's speaking metaphorically. He's saying, 'Even if you call an unpleasant food by a fancier name, it is still an unpleasant food'."

Sythyry:"That makes no sense. He's obviously talking about snails, since I was talking about snails. And snails aren't an unpleasant food."

Bard:"I don't believe he likes to eat insects either."

Sythyry:"Tell your friend with the refined sensibilities that he should try them deep-fried in spicy batter."

Bard:"He's not asking for recipes. I think he's making a point about fancy language not covering up an underlying noxious reality. Probably related to the various dancing that the wizards were doing avoid using some unpleasant and accurate words about the wars they were planning to start."

Sythyry:"Which is all very well, and I certainly appreciate the sentiment, but why is he insulting snails in particular?"

Bard:"..."