Najm al Din el-Malk, a.k.a. Nu'man al-Halak, was a male Human in the late 23rd and early 24th centuries. He was an alleged smuggler, arrested for arms trafficking, but eventually released due to lack of evidence. El-Malk then relocated to Deneb V, and changed his name to Nu'man al-Halak.

On Deneb, al-Halak took a wife, and had two sons, Baatin al-Halak and Samir al-Halak. Also on Deneb, he first met Mahfouz Qadir, head of the Asfar Qatala crime syndicate, and the two went into business together.

When al-Halak's wife died of Denebian fever, he hired Dalal as a housekeeper, secretary and nanny for his children. Shortly after, he would be away from home for long periods of time on "business." Al-Halak also took a lover at this time, who tried to fill the role of mother for his children, but was never accepted as such. She eventually left him.

Four years after the death of his wife, Nu'man al-Halak was killed when his ship mysteriously burned up in the Deneb sun. His son Samir would later say the cause of his death was "a business deal gone bad." Years later, Qadir made Samir vow to relinquish all claims against him; Samir agreed, saying whatever agreements Qadir had made were with his father, not with him. (TLE novel: Well of Souls)