The Longman Alchemist

From Introduction: The wizards of Inkstvarrr have no great works to their names. Most are merely amateur alchemists, toiling away on projects they hope will help their king regain some measure of his line’s former glory. They were entirely overshadowed when Valkolov the mind-wizard arrived with her floating island fortress, but still they remain loyal. Truthfully, their one main advantage is that they have friends in strange places. One of those friends is colloquially known as the longman alchemist, even though the wizards just call him Alvert. He is clearly not human, more closely resembling a giant caterpillar, but he is a jovial friend to this band of wizards, trading his magical wares with them for what they consider to be more-than-reasonable prices. If not for the longman, how could they develop so many new arcane devices? He is the most reliable retailer they know, and they are always happy to see him return to the island for business.