but avle made propitiatory noises about velzna 's having lost its right to guide the rasna , and how much progress rome had made towards becoming truly civilised under an etruscan ( or at least half-etruscan ) ruler , and the difficult moment was passed , though master would sometimes find himself thinking of it , later , when he was supposed to be thinking of something else , and wonder whether he was as transparent to others as he was to caile , and how the general 's training had never managed to smooth off the roughness he 'd been born with .