A day later, Vur was sitting in a hollowed out tree with the phoenix matriarch perched on a branch above him. Lulu had to remain outside due to her size, but her head poked into the tree, taking up half the space. The dwarves were making themselves at home in the holy lands of the elves, but there wasn’t much left of it after the fight between Vur and the phoenix. One of the only places that remained untouched was the great hollow tree and the matriarch’s well-hidden nest.

“You said you wanted to talk?” Vur asked, tilting his head. Lulu’s hangover cure had knocked him out for a day, but it worked wonders for his headache and aching muscles. “Well, let me ask you a question first. Did you burn any fairies recently?”

The phoenix matriarch blinked. “No? If I did, it wasn’t intentional.”

Vur frowned but didn’t say anything.

“I’m serious,” the matriarch said. “Phoenixes are honorable. We don’t lie.”

Vur’s frown deepened as his eyes narrowed.

The matriarch cleared her throat, bringing one wing in front of her beak. “I don’t kill for no reason. I love all kinds of life. Why would I burn fairies?”

“Fine,” Vur said, leaning back. “I believe you.”

“I still don’t trust her,” Stella said as she emerged from Vur’s tattoo. She wrinkled her nose at the phoenix before sitting on Vur’s head, crossing her arms and legs.

The matriarch looked at Stella then at Vur. “Was there anything else you wanted to ask me?”

“No,” Vur said, shaking his head.

The matriarch nodded. “Then…, do you mind if I ask you a few things?”

Vur waved his hand, indicating for the phoenix to speak.

“You said you were just passing through and I happened to be in the way,” the matriarch said, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. “Why are you kidnapping the elves? Though I only know a few personally, the elves offer me tributes from time to time. You could say they’re under my protection.”

“I’m fighting a war against the humans,” Vur said. “I’m the dwarf king.”

The matriarch stared at Vur. Her head swiveled, and she stared at Lulu. Lulu shrugged, and the matriarch’s gaze returned onto Vur. “Pardon? Did they redefine the term dwarf while I wasn’t paying attention?” The matriarch raised one wing when Vur opened his mouth to speak. “Wait, don’t answer that. The more pressing question is why did you invade the elves if you’re at war with the humans?”

“I preemptively invaded the elves just in case they chose to attack us at a critical time,” Vur said. “Apparently, everyone hates the dwarves, so I have no allies. Which is why I’ll conquer the whole continent. You won’t need allies if you have no enemies left to fight.”

The matriarch rubbed her head with her wing. “That doesn’t sound right,” she said. “But I’m no good at war stuff, so I can’t criticize you.” She shuddered, ruffling her feathers. “Forget it. I’m curious how you two are related to Kondra. You don’t respect her at all.”

“I don’t know a Kondra,” Vur said, crossing his arms.

“Don’t say that,” Lulu said. “She’s going to be your mother-in-law soon enough.”

Vur’s brow furrowed. “Huh?”

“Yeah,” Lulu said and nodded. “She’s my mom.” She scratched her head when a blank look appeared on Vur’s face. “I decided you’re going to be my mate. Is that a problem?”

“Yes,” Vur said and spread his arms out. “A big problem. I’m already married.”

“That’s okay,” Lulu said. “You haven’t made any eggs yet, right? I’ll just chase her away and claim you as my own. Where is she?”

Vur scratched his head. Could Tafel beat Lulu in a fight? Probably not. He sighed. It seemed like he’d have to have children earlier than expected. “Not telling. And I also don’t know.”

Lulu blinked. “You don’t know where your mate is? Aren’t you afraid of things happening to her? Like her falling in love with another person or, say, a stray meteor falling on her head?”

“I trust her,” Vur said with a snort. “And she’ll be fine if she’s faced with a meteor.”

“Darn.” Lulu scowled. “She’s that strong, huh? Looks like I’ll have to be underhanded instead of upfront.”

The matriarch cleared her throat. “I have another question,” she said. “What are you going to do with me?”

Vur frowned at Lulu before meeting the matriarch’s gaze. “What do you want me to do with you? I was going to kidnap you and force you to imprint my wife.”

“Was?” the matriarch asked. “Meaning you’re no longer going to?”

Vur nodded. “I don’t need to kidnap you anymore,” he said. “But I’m still going to make you imprint my wife. She wants to get stronger to beat someone up, and I want to help her since she won’t let me beat that person directly.”

The phoenix sighed. “But you said you didn’t know where your wife was,” she said. “Does that mean you’ll come back later?”

“Unless you want to come with me?” Vur asked. “I’m sure I’ll find her after I conquer the continent.”

“I have to watch over my eggs,” the matriarch said. She shifted her weight while rustling her feathers. “I promise I’ll stay here until you return with your wife. Though I don’t like the idea of imprinting someone just because they want strength. If she’s not someone worthy of an imprint, I refuse to do it.”

“She’s worthy, don’t worry,” Vur said. “I also want you to stay out of the war between the dwarves and the humans—that includes not helping the elves resist us. And I also want some more fire for Sheryl.” He glanced at his shoulder and poked the runic sun. “Sheryl?”

A fireball crawled out of his shoulder. “I, I’m good for now, Vur,” Sheryl said and hiccoughed. “But do you mind turning off your dragon aura? It’s making my headache worse.”

Vur blinked before nodding. “I’ll ask for more fire the next time we meet,” he said to the matriarch before standing up and dusting off his pants. “Right now, I have a continent to conquer. But I’ll check in with Auntie first to see if she learned anything.”

“Ah, before you go,” the matriarch said. “Do you happen to know the green dragon Nova?”

“Huh? You know my grandpa?” Vur asked, tilting his head.

A strange expression appeared on the matriarch’s face. “Out of curiosity, does your wife happen to have horns?”

“Yes.”

“Purple eyes?”

“Yup.”

“Pale skin?”

“Uh-huh.”

“A talking sword?”

“Swords can talk?”

“Never mind,” the matriarch said. “What’s her name?”

“Tafel.” Vur raised an eyebrow at the matriarch’s crying expression. “What’s wrong?”

The matriarch hung her head, covering her face with her wings. She mumbled, “I lost to my son-in-law.” She sighed and looked up towards the sky, lowering her wings. “Since when has the world become so dark?”