Swamped

"So where'd you pick up what you do know, then?"

He puts the bowl down.

"Maybe you haven't heard. Marshguards tend to have troublesome pasts. And we don't go around talkin' about them."

"So, what? You got in trouble with the law by taking the dirty stuff out of water?"

"It's not your business what I did, what they say I did, or whether there's a difference between the two. That's my old life, and I couldn't go back to it if I wanted to."

Well. The direct approach doesn't seem to have told you much. Although now you're really wondering just what could have happened. He must have done more than just distill water, but what?

Or should you even bother with trying to question him about it? Maybe you should change the subject to something else.