Re the question of whether GW the "translator" might embellish the words of Latro or Severian in any way: Soldier of Sidon is dedicated to Sir Richard Burton, who in the late nineteenth century produced translations of The Arabian Nights that were substantially more colourful in diction than the original Arabic texts. Although Burton was a much more scrupulous translator than certain others, who added entire episodes to the Nights and tacked on extra erotic detail, sometimes to unintentionally hilarious effect.
--Nick Gevers.