Zelos seems to have learned a thing or two from Kratos about avoidance, and Pepper resists the urge to roll her eyes. This is serious, so she doesn't grin back.

Instead, Pepper looks him right in the eye with a sort of grim determination, and says, "I know you didn't just pretend to betray Lloyd. You actually betrayed Lloyd to try to make him hate you enough to kill you, and he wouldn't do it. Now, I don't know what happened to bring you to that point, and I'm not going to pretend I do. I'm not going to guess, either, because your life isn't a game. I don't need to know you at all to know that."