This is quite literally the fastest time I've ever written this many words. Ten whole pages in a mere 5 days? I can't believe it either! I don't even think I had this motivation while I was writing R.U.N haha.

Anyways, as I said in my earlier journal, I wanted to write this story as a big celebration for reaching 1000 watchers, as well as a giant "thank you." I've been considering taking my stories more seriously, and as such I've done a ton of experimenting in this story, such as going for a much slower writing pace while trying to find my own unique writing style and what not. As such, I'd Really appreciate feedback and suggestions for how you'd want the story to evolve! Do you want romance? Force-feeding? Additional characters? Hell, I could probably throw in some slob if there was enough demand for it!

For now, please enjoy the story of a bounty hunting fox turning in his latest contract to someone he never would have expected: an extremely obese dragon who will broaden his perspective on life... and then some!

Edit: Fixed several typos (Thank you Mustoshi!)

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Robin Lee Forthwind was the best bounty hunter he knew. He could say that freely, for he didn’t know many others. As sly and cunning as his species implies, the fox had a knack for setting traps and outsmarting his prey from the moment his father taught him how to tie a knot, who would later wake up to find both paws tied behind his back while Robin raided the cookie jar. His skills only improved from there, the young kit discovering how to make basic rope traps by himself only a year later. On top of that, he was extremely athletic and good looking, as someone who regularly looked for trouble would have to be. He could run across town without breaking a sweat, lift barrels as heavy as himself, all while looking incredibly dashing with his sparkling blue eyes, red and white smooth-as-silk fur, and a blinding smile.

“So why the hell can’t I catch this guy!?”

Robin had to bite his tongue to prevent himself from complaining further. Patience was never his strong suit, the fox finding the need to praise himself mentally in order to stay still for more than half an hour. Normally he would arrive at the scene of his ambush a mere 10 minutes before his prey, but this time was different.

The willey vulpine silently reached into his tunic and pulled out the wanted paper, as he had done so numerous times today. “Wanted: Skunk by the name of Sylvester. Reward: 5,000G” He read to himself, not bothering to look over the other important details etched on the yellow paper. He stared at the sketch of the skunk instead, the image of the short and lumpy mustelid etched in his memory. “You’re worth more than 10 normal contracts combined, you know that, buddy?” Robin whispered to the portrait, his tail swishing behind him. “In exchange for your freedom, I get a chance to finally find a better place to live. Seems fair to me, what do you think?”

No response.

“I agree, I do deserve more notoriety around here.” Robin chuckled and stowed the parchment away. Oh, he was so close to fame and fortune, he could almost taste it! But now wasn’t the time to day dream; he needed to be vigilant, just in case…

Snaaaap “Aaaaaiiiieeee!!”

“Gotcha!’ Robin cheered as he sprang up from his cover behind the bushes, darting through the numerous trees before rounding in on the source of the noise. A skunk was flailing around, dangling by his ankle on a rope attached to a tree. But this wasn’t any skunk.

“Well well well, haven’t your parents told you it’s dangerous to wander around the woods alone?” Robin couldn’t help but rub in his victory. He knew it was not characteristic for a handsome rogue like himself to tease those less fortunate than himself, but it was all he could do to prevent himself from pushing the tied up skunk and watching him swing like a pendulum. “You never know what kinds of traps lay buried beneath the leaves, my dear Sylvester!”

The fox’s grin grew wider as he saw the skunk go rigid after mentioning his name, confirming his thoughts that this indeed was the target of the wanted poster. Sylvester’s eyes grew as wide as dinner plates while he slowly spun facing the fox, his lower lip quivering. “Puh-puh-please, take anything you want! Wallet, garb, it’s all yours, just let me go!” He whimpered, shaking not only the rope, but the branch of the tree he was attached too.

Robin rubbed his chin for a moment, as if pondering the offer. “Hmmm, you strike a good bargain, my good sir. What I wouldn’t give to try on a pair of torn-up robes two sizes too small,” the fox snorted, unable to keep a straight face. “Sadly, I’m afraid that’s a no go. That is, unless you have five thousand gold on hand.”

Sylvester’s black face went as pale as his white stripe. “F-f-five thousand...did...did he send you?”

“If he is the fine chap who is paying for your capture then yes, he sent me indeed. Now, do me a favor and tuck your head in for a bit, will you? Your bounty says ‘Alive Only’ and it’d be quite the inconvenience if you were to break your neck.”

“My what?” The skunk barely had time to process those very words. To his horror, Robin had stepped forth bearing a knife, and with a single swipe severed the rope dangling the mustelid, sending him sprawling onto the forest floor.

---

“I’m getting paid, I’m getting paid, I’m getting paid.”

Robin had to keep reminding himself that, or else he would have pushed Sylvester off a cliff by now. In his eagerness to turn in the skunk and claim his reward, the fox had managed to forget the oh-so-important detail of where to turn in his captor. Instead of being at the town prison or right to someone’s doorstep, Robin’s reward was instead waiting for him at the side of a mountain overlooking his hometown. Unfortunately, whoever filled out the Bounty forgot to give clear instructions as to what particular part of the mountain they were expected to go to. Instead of going on a spending spree with the 5000 Gold he was expecting, Robin spent the greater part of the afternoon hiking instead.

And nothing makes a hiking trip worse than having an out-of-shape, whiney companion.

“Pleeeeeease slow down, sir, my feet hurt! Can you loosen the rope a bit, I have an itch on my tail, and I kinda need my hands free to do that. I reaaaaaally don’t wanna be here, can we pl- woaaaah! See, I almost tripped and fell just there! I wanna stop, just for five minutes!”

Robin groaned at every whimper and whine Sylvester made, the rope in his paws growing heavier with every second. He would have loved to knock the skunk unconscious by bashing him in the head with the handle of his pocket knife, but that would make scaling the steep hill even more troublesome if he had to carry the portly mustelid as well. He was strong, yes, but not that strong. “You know, we would get there a lot faster if you’d stop your babbling and start telling me where to go. You obviously must know where this fellow lives, considering you’ve robbed him once before.”

It wasn’t the first time Robin demanded his client's location, nor was it the first time Sylvester furiously shook his pudgy head. “I told you, I don’t remember! I sorta just stumbled upon it, alright?”

That answer always irritated the fox, but he knew better than to respond.He had to conserve his energy if he was to survive this trip (without brutally murdering the most annoying mustelid in the world). But, to Sylvester’s credit, the mountain certainly did look devoid of a cabin or a hut, or any anthro made structure for that matter. Was it possible he was being punked, and that the skunk he had been literally dragging around for the past two hours was in on the joke as well? The thought alone really brought Robin’s blood boiling, to have anyone get the upper hand on a wily vulpine such as himself was unthinkable! Gritting his teeth in rage, the fox grabbed a nearby rock and hurled it at the mountain wall… only for the rock to disappear inside the wall!

“What the…?” Robin rubbed his eyes, certain his anger and exhaustion was playing tricks with his mind. What had once been a solid wall of rock was now the gaping entrance to an enormous cave, large enough to swallow up his house and have room to spare! It was also seemingly as deep as it was tall, with no end in sight as far as Robin could tell.

The vulpine was stirred from his stupur by an aggressive pulling on the rope. Turning around, he saw Sylvester squirming and trying to hop away far more energetically than before. “W-we should go, now! You don’t know what’s inside there!”

Robin saw the tears welling up in the skunk’s eyes and almost felt bad for the poor thing. Almost. “What, and miss out on an opportunity of a lifetime? Sorry bud, I’m staying put until I get my gold!”

The ground started to rumble, and Robin suddenly wished he hadn’t said what he just said. The rumbling grew more intense, the source of it growing closer from within the cave. The fox could barely hear Sylvester’s mewling over the sound of his own heartbeat, whatever was coming towards him was massive, possibly capable of eating the both of them in one bite!

Robin’s worst fears were confirmed as he finally noticed the creature’s glowing yellow eyes, and before he knew it he was face to face with a monster of his own worst nightmares!

It was a dragon, and a massively obese one at that.

The horrified fox had to crane his neck back in order to take in the enormous drake in all its glory. It’s rustic red hide quivered and wobbled longer the beast stopped walking, while its large golden underbelly shone in the sunlight like a barn-sized bowl of vanilla pudding. Robin couldn’t help but wonder how many of him could fit inside that large dangling paunch and felt the hairs on the back of his neck prick up when he calculated more than 10.

The dragon looked between the fox and the skunk, who was looking seconds away from passing out, and back to the fox again, its bulbous neck wobbling. “I see you have captured the thief.” He spoke in a deep yet gentle voice, his puffy red cheeks bobbing with each syllable.

Robin was caught off guard by the drake’s voice, not expecting someone so beastly and corpulent to sound so… regal. “Erh...I...Uh…” He turned to face the crying skunk, remembered the bounty page stored in his tunic, and nodded. “Eh, yeah, I did. He’s all yours.”

Robin predicted the dragon to do a number of things, dashing out to gobble up the both of them being one of them, but certainly didn’t expect the drake to smile. It was a rather unusual grin, partially due to the creature’s narrow beak-like muzzle and the abundant pudge located on its face, but it certainly felt no less genuine. “Excellent. I’m pleased to see I was right to place my trust in someone else for once. Please, follow me. Your reward is waiting for you inside.” With that, the dragon slowly turned around to shuffle inside and Robin, never one to refuse the orders of a dragon, following closely, dragging the now-unconscious skunk behind.

This was a trap. Robin knew he was doomed the moment he stepped foot inside the cave, yet he was too much of a coward to turn around and flee due to the fear of the gigantic dragon chasing him down. He was no knight or warrior, or anyone strong enough to tackle a drake head on. He was a mere bounty hunter, one who purposely steered clear of high-profile assignments for murders and POWs and only went after small time thugs like thieves or tax-evaders. The only weapon he carried was his pocket knife, and that was more likely to get lost in the dragon’s folds than it was to pierce his blubbery, scaley hide! Suddenly Robin realized why Sylvester was so terrified of returning here and felt pity for the poor skunk, his own bravado and confidence having fully left him.

The cave’s light dimmed as they progressed deeper into the cave, unlike the fox’s sense of foreboding. He could hardly make out the dragon’s broad backside after a while, and was soon forced to rely on hearing alone. Even so, all he could hear was his own thundering heartbeat, Sylvester being dragged along the floor, the dragon’s heavy footsteps, and the occasional glorp as the latter’s sagging belly occasionally bounced against a stalagmite. “E-er, excuse, dragon, sir, how much further do we have to go?”

“We’re here.”

“What?”

Fwooomf!

The cave suddenly lit up as the dragon let out a small burst of flame, forcing Robin to shield his eyes from the light. After his eyes adjusted a bit, the fox slowly lowered his arms to look at the source of the light… and nearly bruised his jaw due to how fast it hit the floor.

They were in an enormous space within the cave, the ceiling tall enough for the dragon to stand at his full height without his horns brushing against the top. It was also surprisingly wide, well over 50 feet, to the point where even the obese drake didn’t look so large in comparison. Despite all of this, the room still felt absolutely cramped due to the sheer amount of desserts and treasures scattered about!

“Woah…” The fast-talking fox was rendered speechless at the towers of treats filling the room. Dozens of enormous boxes and crates labeled “Dan’s Apple Strudel” or “Krazy Mike’s Kringles” or any variation of the name surrounded the stunned vulpine. Many of these boxes were already partially opened, their contents lay strewn about on the floor. There certainly wasn’t any secret as to how a dragon managed to grow so fat, that’s for sure. However, what really caught Robin’s eye was the towering mountain of gold of jewels, all of which glowing from the light of the fire like some divine hill.

“You’ll have to excuse the mess, I wasn’t expecting visitors so early.” Robin turned around to find the dragon standing by an oven built into the stone wall, placing a teapot-shaped rock besides it. “Had I known you would have finished the contract this quickly, I would have lit the torches on the wall and sweep the floor. Hopefully this oven will make due as our primary source of light tonight. Please, to make yourself at home, though. I shall have tea out in a moment.” The pudgy drake turned his head to smile at the fox, gesturing towards the stone table in the middle of the room.

Robin wasn’t sure he could take any more surprises. Solid rock turning into a magical cave entrance, his benefactor was a massively obese dragon, and now said dragon was actually a homeowner (well, caveowner) who wanted to keep him over for tea?! Weren’t dragons supposed to vicious fire-breathing monsters? “This has to be a trick, I’m sure of it,” the fox mumbled to himself, but even he couldn’t see why the dragon would set up such an elaborate ruse for something as simple as the fox’s life. Nonetheless, he figured playing along would keep him alive for a little longer, and did as he was told.

The table, oddly enough, was shockingly similar to a typical round table he’d find at the local pub, even if it was made of stone and lacked any chairs. Using a box of unopened “Dale’s Donuts” as a seat instead, Robin sat by the table and waited, wondering what a dragon was doing with anthro-sized furniture. Hell, a better question would be how a dragon got a hold of so much food and money! Did it devour a king and made off with an entire nation’s worth of riches? Would he find a crown somewhere in the pile of gold if he looked hard enough?

Robin subconscious turned his head to stare at the mountain of wealth behind him, but quickly snapped back to attention when he heard the dragon waddle back from the oven. “Tea is ready! It’s a little warm so make sure to blow on it first before you take a sip. Hold out your cup please.”

“My what?” Robin frowned and looked at the table before noticing two small cups in the middle of the table. “Oh.. uh, sorry. The stone cups kinda blended in with the stone… everything.”

To the fox’s surprise, the dragon smiled gently, a quick chuckle escaping his lips. “Fair enough, I suppose I could use some interior decorating. This must all look rather drab to creatures like yourself.” The drake smirked, carefully tipping the large tea kettle over Robin’s cup, a steamy green liquid pouring out.

Robin carefully drew his cup back, finding it odd to be referred to as a ‘creature’ by a dragon. “You don’t eat creatures after all, you analyze them”, the fox thought to himself, wondering if that was the reason the drake had been gazing at him all this time. As Robin thought those words, said dragon yawned and slowly settled onto his stomach, his broad flanks spreading out along the cave floor. It was quite the sight, seeing so much of the ground suddenly vanish beneath a layer of gold scaley pudge, but Robin figured he shouldn’t comment on that. He wasn’t sure if dragons were particularly sensitive about their figures or not.

The tea was most certainly drugged. Robin was certain of this, yet he decided to bring the drink to his lips and take a sip. Expecting a disgusting amalgamation of leaves and dirt (Robin wasn’t exactly a tea drinker), the fox was pleasantly surprised to find the drink simply tasted like warm water with a hint of almonds. Surely if the tea was drugged, it would have tasted far more repulsive or heavy, wouldn’t it? His stiff shoulders relaxing, Robin slowly drained the rest of his cup and sighed, closing his eyes. He heard that tea was great at relieving stress somewhere before, and sure enough he did feel a little calmer.

For a few seconds.

When he opened his eyes again, Robin gasped as the dragon’s fat head filled the majority of his vision, his broad grin forming dimples in his chubby cheeks. “How is it?” He asked, sounding like a very deep-voiced child showing off his favorite toy.

“O-oh, uh, it’s very… mellow.” Robin said, desperately trying to rack his brain for any tea-related compliments. “It, uh, goes down easy, and… has a pleasant aftertaste. Thank you, Mr. Dragon, sir.”

The pudgy drake gave a blank stare in return, before gasping and leaning back, holding a paw to his muzzle. “Oh dear, how terribly rude of me. It seems in all of my excitement I forgot to properly introduce myself. Please, call me Thylodeus.”

Robin nodded, mouthing the word several times to himself. “That’s a pleasant name you have there, Theo..Tylo...Th-”

“Thylodeus”

“Yeah that. My name is Robin Lee Forthwind.”

Thylodeus nodded in return, his grin returning. “Such an interesting name. Are you aware you’re named after a small bird, by any chance?”

Robin nearly spat out laughing. What kind of ridiculous question was that? “Heh, yeah I’m quite aware of that, thank you very much. Not all of us are born with cool names like Thylod..Thelo…”

“Thylodeus”

“Yeah that.”

Thylodeus chuckled, his thick neck wobbling. “Fair enough, friend. Well then, Sir Robin Lee Forthwind-”

“Just Robin, please.”

“Yeah that,” the dragon winked before continuing. “Allow me to bestow upon you my deepest and sincerest gratitude for apprehending that thief. A little under a week ago, he managed to not only discover my cave, but also make off with some of my treasure as well. Alas, the greedy fool most likely spent that wealth by now, but the paranoia of having another creature know of my whereabouts has given me many a restless night. If your town were to discover a dragon was roosting so close, I’m afraid things might have been unpleasant for both parties involved.”

While Thylodeus spoke, he filled the fox’s cup, seemingly well aware that this topic was quite stressful for both parties indeed. “As thanks for returning him to me so quickly, could I be so bold as to offer you some sweets to go with your tea? As you can see I’ve had quite the fair share myself.” Without waiting for an answer, Thylodeus reached over from where he lie and grabbed a small box of treats next to him, using his claw to easily flip open the container and poured what looked like eclairs onto the table.

Robin was at a loss for words. So many emotions had flooded over him in the past 10 minutes alone, he wasn’t sure he had the energy to add grateful to the list. The eclairs, while a little smooshed, were some of the finest quality pastries the fox had ever seen! Just smelling them told him that these were the very same treats served in noble tea parties, where each individual pastry cost as much as a baker’s dozen of the more common pastry. Well, Robin was certainly no noble, but he didn’t know any noble who had dined with a dragon before!

“Thank you very much, Thy… Theo.” The fox grinned as he took a bite of the pleasant pastry, moaning in delight as he brought the cup of tea to-

“YAAAAAIIIIEEEE!”

Robin yelped and jumped in his seat, spilling the rather hot tea over his front. Just as Thylodeus had forgotten to introduce himself, the fox had completely forgotten about Sylvester ever since arriving at the dragon’s den, despite having dragged the skunk the entire way. The portly skunk had shot upwards screaming as if awakened from a horrible nightmare, staring wide-eyed at the drake while gasping heavily.

“Well well, it appears the thief has finally awakened,” Thylodeus commented in his usual cheerful tone, although his eyes narrowed dangerously.

“T-t-t-thief..?” Sylvester mumbled, before rolling onto his knees and bowing before the dragon. “I’m s-s-sorry, your highness! I-I needed the money… f-for my family, and-”

“You don’t have a family.” Both Robin and Thylodeus responded simultaneously, both of whom stared at the other in shock. “Do you know this skunk, Robin?”

“Erm, not quite. You see, ever since I noticed his Wanted poster, I’ve been tailing him around town for… three-ish days? I’ve seen where he’s been going, and-”

“You’ve been stalking me?!” Sylvester shouted in indignation, before cowering yet again before the dragon’s gaze. “One more word out of you and I’ll place you in a very dark prison.” Thylodeus growled, his enormous stomach grumbling.

Already assuming the drake was thinking about eating something other than pastries for once, Robin shuddered softly and continued. “Y-yeah, I have. Gotta figure out when to catch you when you were alone and what not, memorize any patterns, and what not.”

Sylvester looked absolutely appalled and disgusted at the thought of having someone follow his every movements for the past three days; contrariwise, Thylodeus was noticeably impressed with the fox’s tactics, leaning his large head in closer. “Fascinating! I thought only drakes such as I were capable of such clever stratagems! You must be well regarded as an excellent hunter in your village!”

For the first time in his life, Robin was actually embarrassed at the sudden praise and, in a very uncharacteristic manner, tried to downplay the compliment. “W-well, that is my job, after all. I’m a bounty hunter, I track down others who have committed a crime and capture them… for a fee, of course.”

“Fascinating!” Thylodeus’s grin widened enough to show off his sharp teeth, but for some odd reason Robin didn’t feel very threatened. Quite the contrary, he felt himself relax even further as the dragon rested his pudgy muzzle on his arm and settled into a more comfortable position. “Please, tell me more about your profession! What strategies have you used to track down your prey?”

Robin told him every strategy he knew, and when the dragon asked about the different criminals he captured during his career, Robin told him about them too. The atmosphere in the cave seemed to lighten up considerably as the fox casually explained his profession to the dragon. Well, “explain” would be putting it lightly, it was more akin to bragging than anything, but surprisingly that little detail didn’t seem to matter! Thylodeus ate up everything Robin said with gusto, showing no signs of boredom or annoyance whatsoever! How ironic that the first person to let the fox drivel on for so long would be the fire-breathing monster he assumed was trying to eat him not so long ago!

The snacks and tea certainly help contributed to Robin’s better emotional state. The beverage was simply fantastic; the more he drank it, the calmer he felt, and Thylodeus always insisted the fox drink more of it.Meanwhile, the sugary sweets paired stupendously with the tea, each treat that passed his lips tasting more delicious than the last. Sure, many of them were a little stale, but even the stalest of said pastries tasted far superior to anything Robin had ever munched on before. He was starting to see how the red and gold dragon ended up so incredibly fat.

Speaking of which, Robin wasn’t the only one enjoying the treats. Well, Sylvester was allowed a snack or two during their exchange, but it was Thylodeus who was consuming the grand majority of the sweets. The large dragon would occasionally reach for a container of treats to pour into his open maw, or bury his muzzle in a mound of sweets, gulping down large enough mouthfuls to cause his throat to bulge. He would say “please don’t mind me, continue with your story,” before doing so, as was the proper thing to do before stuffing your face silly, but every time he did so Robin would inevitably trail off as he watched all that food disappear into the dragon’s belly, watching it grow ever so slightly, making him imagine if it were just a little bit bigger, a little bit softer…

Robin soon lost track of how many hours he had spent in the dragon’s den, as well as how much tea he drank or pastries he devoured. All he knew was that he had eaten one too many, his stomach only choosing now to tell him that he was as stuffed as a teddy bear. With a quite belch, the fox groaned and patted his stomach, feeling it press against his tunic rather uncomfortably tight.

“Are you alright?” Thylodeus asked in response to the fox’s grunt, tilting his head.

“Y-yeah, just bwurp ate a lil too much,” Robin mumbled as he rubbed his belly, noting not only how taut and round it was, but also the sheer amount of crumbs coating it. Just how much did he eat?!

“Ah, I understand that feeling all too well,” Thylodeus agreed. Once again, Robin found himself staring at the drake’s stomach, seeing how much rounder it was before they started eating. “I’m afraid it would take a while to brew more tea. That usually aids me with indigestion.”

“That’s quite alright, I think I should take my leave now anyways,” the fox smiled sheepishly. “If I try cramming anything more into me I’m afraid I’ll burst.”

Thylodeus gasped and held a claw to his maw. “Oh dear, I had no idea you creatures were so delicate! Very well, let us finish our exchange.” The rotund dragon drew himself to his feet, looking much more sluggish than Robin remembered, and waddled past the fox towards the towering pile of gold. “Your reward was 5,000 Gold, correct?”

“Yes sir,” Robin confirmed, although he wasn’t certain there was any Gold in that stash. Well, of course the pile was gold, but not the same kind of Gold as was used for currency in his hometown. He was, however, certain that just a handful of those gold coins would be worth around as much as 5,000 Gold at home.

So imagine his surprise when Thylodeus handed him the equivalent of two handfuls. “There you are. This should cover your service, yes?”

“Um..um..um..” Robin sounded like a broken record player. With this much gold, he could almost afford to move up an entire social class! This was more money than he would make in five years as a bounty hunter, without any vacations! For the first time in his life, the fox found himself saying words he didn’t know he knew. “I can’t take this, it’s too much money.”

The dragon chuckled and pushed it towards the fox, almost knocking him out of his seat. “Consider it a tip for your excellent service then. Perhaps I may need hire you again should our skunk friend decide to run off again.”

“A-alright then…” There wasn’t much more that needed to be said. He wasn’t going to refuse a dragon, now, was he? However, as Robin started filling every pocket he had with gold, he couldn’t help but glance at Sylvester, who had been sitting silently beside the table the entire time, doing his best not to speak. “Er, forgive me for asking, but what is it you exactly you plan on doing with Sylvester?”

The skunk perked up at being mentioned and opened his mouth, before quickly closing it again after remembering the dragon’s threat. Noticing Sylvester’s thought processes, Thylodeus chuckled. “Well, I wasn’t planning on eating him, if that’s what you were afraid of. He would most certainly ruin my figure.” Robin didn’t know whether to laugh at that or not. “For now, I shall keep him here with me until I figure out what to do with him. As for you, you are free to leave.”

“Thank you, Thyol… sir.” The fox stood up slowly and groaned, weighed down by so much gold and food.

“No, thank you, young Robin.” The chubby drake smiled as he lay back down, watching the fox walk off. “Please, feel free to come visit whenever you’d like. I have more than enough tea and treats to share with you!”

Robin nearly collapsed as he stepped out of the cave into the night, completely exhausted after today’s events. It was a chore just to keep one foot in front of the other, even if most of the trip was downhill. Logically speaking, he shouldn’t be alive, but here he was with a full wallet and a fuller belly, having made friends with the fattest and kindest dragon in the whole world.

The fox grinned once he saw the lights of his town, clutching his gold-filled pockets joyfully. He had won! He cheated death and came out all the richer! There was nothing stopping him from renting a room at the fanciest inn in town and spending the night on a soft mattress instead of a creaky bed. Hell, he could afford a good long soak at the local hot springs while he was at it! But, even as he set out to do all of that, he couldn’t get the image of Thylodeus’s smiling face out of his mind.