Merlin might as well have been speaking Mandarin, or some other language that Zacharias did not know, because he made about as much sense when he was speaking English. Which Zacharias was happy to tell him.
"That doesn't make any sense at all," he said. "Which, I imagine you're well aware." Either Merlin was daft, or he was playing at daft, and the latter seemed more likely. And if he was playing at daft, well, it had to be for a reason.