Finding out what the range actually is

Guessing is what makes this conversation uncomfortable. Before you name anything, find out what the role pays: published salary bands where the law requires them, current ads for the same title at similar organisations, national graduate salary surveys, and — most usefully — people doing the job, who answer this question far more often than you would expect if you ask politely and specifically.

What you want is a range and a reason, not a single figure. "Roles like this here seem to run between X and Y, and I am asking about the upper half because of Z" is a position somebody can respond to. A number with nothing behind it is a wish.