Vur leaned back in a plush red seat. His legs were fully extended, but they were nowhere near leaving the edge. The seat was as wide and as long as a bed as if it were made specifically for a giant. If an adult dragon were to curl up on top of it, there’d be enough space to accommodate their whole body. Vur reached over to the side and placed his hand into a bowl. He retrieved a piece of red meat and stuffed it into his mouth. Juices leaked out from the corners of his lips and left two lines heading down towards his chin. He wiped at his mouth with the back of his hand and licked the liquid that had accumulated.

Stella flew down from her position in the air and landed on Vur’s shoulder. “This is very strange,” the fairy queen said. “Does a dragon live here? What’s going on? The chair is large enough for a dragon to sleep on. The door is tall and wide enough for a dragon to walk through. The bed is even big enough for you to roll over several times in your dragon form.” She glanced at the bowl of meat by Vur’s side. “And there happens to be behemoth bear meat lying around? It looks like this place was practically made for you!”

“That’s because it is,” a voice said from the room’s entrance. The voice sounded raspy like an old man speaking with a cold. A well-dressed man walked into the room. His clothes covered every inch of his body, and a mask covered his face. “It’s an honor to finally meet you, Your Majesty. My name is Ed Edward, but you can refer to me as whatever you’d like.”

Vur stood up to see over the edge of the seat. After taking a look at Ed Edward, Vur sat back down. “Are you that lady’s grandpa?”

“That’s right,” Ed said and ascended a ladder at the base of the seat. With that, he could see Vur from where he was standing; however, he remained on the ladder, not daring to approach any further. “Did she say good things about me? Truth be told, if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be here right now. I owe you my existence.”

Stella blinked and turned her head towards Vur. Judging from the expression on his face, Vur had no idea who Ed Edward was either. Stella cleared her throat. “What exactly did Vur do to save you?”

Ed reached up and grabbed the edge of his mask. He took it off, revealing a face with no skin. “As you can see, I’m dead,” Ed said and put the mask back on. “Thanks to your benevolence, even after dying, people don’t truly die anymore. I had one foot in the grave and had just about lost all hope when I discovered what your religion had to offer. Thanks to you, I have a second lease on life, and I will never forget that.”

Vur picked up another piece of bear meat and stuffed it into his mouth. Upon seeing that, Ed sighed. “Although there are plenty of downsides to being an undead like being unable to feel warmth or the pleasures of eating, I’m still grateful,” he said. He shook his head. “I’ve lived a fulfilling life, bringing the Edward family past its previous peak of prosperity. However, my children and their children are … incompetent. If I let them run the family, it’ll end within the next three generations.”

Vur chewed and stared at Ed without saying a word.

Ed cleared his throat. “Forgive me for rambling,” he said. “If there’s anything you need, just let any of the servants know. I’ve informed everyone to treat you better than they would treat me. Of course, you can personally tell me to do things as well. My granddaughter told me you wanted to meet the Dragon Slayers. They’re an unruly bunch; if you’d like, I can order a few guards to protect you during your meeting.”

“There’s something you can help us with,” Stella said after seeing Vur pick up another piece of meat. He seemed to be more focused on eating the bear meat, and one of Vur’s golden rules was to keep his mouth shut while chewing. “Do you have an armadillo? Your king wants to eat one, but don’t cut it up! It has to be alive.”

“An armadillo?” Ed asked. “I’m not personally aware of the items being sold in our auction, but I can get my butler to check for you. I wasn’t aware you liked eating armadillos, or I’d have prepared some alongside the bear meat.”

Vur swallowed and placed his hand into the bowl. It was empty. He licked his lips before nodding at Ed. “You’re not bad,” he said. “If the researcher figures out a way to make fleshy bodies for skeletons, then I’ll have him make one for you too.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty,” Ed said and bowed, taking his hat off and bringing it to his chest as he did so. To Stella’s surprised, his head was full of hair.

“Is that a wig?” the fairy queen asked. “It’s very realistic.”

“Thank you,” Ed said and placed his hat back on his head. “If you’re interested, I can introduce you to the man who made it for me.”

“Grandfather, are you in here?” a voice asked from the door to the room.

“I’m here,” Ed said and turned around. He almost had to shout to be heard. “What’s the matter, Chelsea?”

“The Dragon Slayers aren’t listening to me,” Chelsea said and stamped her foot. “Who do they think they are? This is the Edward family’s territory, and they’re acting like they own the place! When I ordered the guards to apprehend them, those brutes attacked and crippled our people!”

Ed’s body trembled, and he glanced at Vur. “I apologize, Your Majesty. It seems like I’ll have to handle this myself. Although I’m not as strong as I was in my youth, I’m still strong enough to teach some upstart adventurers a lesson.”

Vur licked his fingers clean before standing up. “Your people are my people,” he said and narrowed his eyes. “I don’t let others cripple my people. Bring me to the Dragon Slayers.”