Book 3: Chapter 110 (1/2)

Vur sat cross-legged on top of a boulder. Leaning against the boulder, Alice and Mr. Skelly were sitting with their backs straight, their arms crossed over their chests. Thousands of sheepmen surrounded the boulder, kneeling in a circle. Ahead of the Vur, the sea of sheepmen parted by shuffling to the sides without standing, and Tafel and Mary came into view, led by an entourage of halberd-wielding sheepmen.

“Alright, Vur,” Tafel said, her voice hiding a sigh. “What’s going on?”

“These sheepmen were on a mission to kill a dragon, but once they saw how strong I was, they gave up and decided to become my followers instead,” Vur said. “I think I’m going to put them in Konigreich. That way, Auntie can keep an eye on them.”

“On a mission to kill a dragon?” Tafel asked. “And they gave up? Just like that?”

“Well, they are sheep,” Alice said and shrugged. “If you can convince one of them, the rest follow. It’s funny actually.”

Tafel glared at Alice before redirecting her gaze onto Vur. “Shouldn’t you be more upset at them for wanting to kill a dragon?”

Vur scratched his head. “You can’t help what you want,” he said. “It’s how you act on what you want that determines whether or not you’re a bad person.” Vur nodded, and the sheepmen nodded with him, their heads bobbing up and down like waves in a red ocean.

Tafel blinked. Then she brought her hands up to her eyes and rubbed them with her fingers. She let out a breath as she lowered her arms and took another look at Vur. She blinked again before frowning. “Vur? Did something happen to you while I was gone?”

“I became the ruler of these sheepmen?”

“Other than that?”

Vur tilted his head. “No. Why?”

Tafel bit her lower lip. “It’s just that … you said something quite uncharacteristic of yourself,” she muttered. Wind whistled as she took in a deep breath. “Actually, never mind. It’s nothing. So, you’re treating these sheep things…, err, people, these sheep people as your subjects now? Is that a good idea? Do you even know what they eat?”

Vur blinked. He turned his head towards a sheepman with prominent horns that curled like a ram’s. “What do you eat?”

The sheepman bleated and cleared his throat. “Grass.”

Vur nodded at the sheepman and turned his head back towards Tafel. “They eat grass.”

“Okay,” Tafel said and held up a fist. She extended her pointer finger. “Their mission in life is to kill a dragon.” She raised her middle finger. “They follow strong people.” She raised her ring finger. “And they eat grass.” Her three raised fingers wiggled as she moved her hand towards Vur. “What else do you know about them other than these three things? You can’t just assimilate new citizens like this.”

Vur snorted. “That’s not all I know about them.”

Tafel raised an eyebrow. “Oh really?”

“Really,” Vur said. “I know they’re red. And when they die, they dissolve. That’s five things.”

“We also know they can speak,” Alice said. “That’s six.”

“You stay out of this,” Tafel said, glaring at Alice again.

Vur furrowed his brow. “Are you mad?”