What burns me is not that the upstart has built a castle more splendid than the Sultan’s. It’s that he has left a window for the Sultan to finish. He mocks my master! He will never match the splendor! Where did he get such magic?

There’s a demon at work underneath this display of power, and I’m going to get to the bottom of it.

The Vizier in Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp, Blue Fairy Book. Picture by Leon Bakst.