Seeing the stunned Old Man Kun, Azel frowned.
"Are you all right, Old Man?"
"Of course I'm fine!" old man Kun called out with veins in his head. His face is red. It looked like he was really mad at Azel.
Azel saw Old Man Kun then shook his head lightly. He smiled with a pitying expression.
"And you don't look like a bad person, old man. Why are you doing this?"
Hearing Azel's question, Old Man Kun took a deep breath. He then looked down with his eyes closed.
"That's this old man's problem. You don't need to know about it."
Azel ignored the dirty floor and sat down. He sheathed the dagger and closed the jar of honey. The young man looked at the old man in front of him without saying a word.
"You are very stubborn, Prince Azazel."
"Do you want to talk about it now?"
Seeing the smile on Azel's face, Old Man Kun let out a long sigh.
"If you want to know, promise me one thing! No matter how you torment me, I won't say it if you don't promise me that one thing."
"Tch! You stubborn old man," Azel said with a smile on his face. Seeing the old man's determined gaze, he asked, "What do you want? Money? Power? Or what?"
"Save and protect this old man's family!"
"I refuse!" answered Azel firmly.
Azel's words made the old man surprised. He thought that after begging with determination, the young man in front of him would soften up. Old man Kun didn't expect that the Prince who was always regarded as trash was actually strong, firm, and ruthless.
"Do you want to know why I refused, old man?" asked Azel in an indifferent tone.
Seeing the young man's cold face, Old Man Kun nodded slowly.
"Because that only adds to the burden on me. If you want me to save your family, of course I will support you. To protect your family, it is none of my business.
Do you know how valuable my protection is? It's really expensive!
Not to mention, I don't want your family to become spoiled and useless. But if you and your family want to become slaves of this Prince. Hehehe... I won't treat you badly!"
Hearing Azel's explanation, Old Man Kun became even more shocked. A genuine smile appeared on his old face. He shook his head, completely confused by what was going through the 8th Prince's head.
"This old man has a wife and three children. Two sons and a little girl. I hope you can save them, Prince Azazel."
Azel stared at Old Man Kun for a while. Seeing the sincere expression on his face, he nodded.
"I can't guarantee that everyone can be saved because the person holding your family as hostage is clearly a cruel person. But I will try my best and as soon as possible."
"It is more than enough." Old man Kun nodded lightly.
"Then, explain why you have to mess around at this useless Prince's place."
Seeing Azel's indifferent gaze, Old Man Kun once again nodded.
"I don't know the reason, but it was the Bathory Family who ordered me to mess with you."
Hearing that, Azel's eyes narrowed.
"THE BATHORY FAMILY!"
Seeing the surprised look on Azel's face, the old man was astonished. He couldn't help but say, "So you guessed it, Prince Azazel."
"No? Who is the Bathory Family? Why have I just heard about it?"
Old man Kun's lips twitched as he stared at the blank expression on Azel's face. Since his reaction was quite strong, he thought the young man had expected it. he didn't expect that the prince didn't recognize him. The old man didn't know whether to cry or laugh.
'Shit! Can't you respond in the usual way, Prince? You make this old man's fragile heart uncomfortable!'
Realizing that Azel was waiting for him, Old Man Kun took a deep breath before explaining.
"The Bathory family was a family of three Marquis in the South Duchy. To be more precise, one of the two remaining Marquis."
"Marquis..." Azel stroked his chin while contemplating something. "Why is that person targeting me?"
"According to this old man, there are three reasons why they are trying to mess with you, Prince Azazel.
Firstly, because among the eight territories under the Southern Duke, yours is the most fertile, wide, and rich. Moreover, the family seemed to have coveted this land for quite some time.
Second, because the Bathory Family is a family of pure Vampire races. Seeing that you 'spoil' and treat a Dhampir well, they may resent what you're doing. For them, you have broken Vampire tradition.
Third ..."
"There may still be someone behind the scenes. That person told the Bathory Family to take care of me." Azel took a deep breath after saying that.
'Really hateful! I've been in a remote corner to live. Why are they still targeting and making things difficult for me? Why is living in peace so difficult? shit!'
Azel cursed inwardly. But he suddenly snapped out of his reverie when he heard Old Man Kun's words.
"This old man has done his job. Please keep your word, Prince Azazel. This old man will die for betraying the Bathory Family. I have one last request."
Seeing the slave mark in the shape of an inverted cross in a rose, Azel's eyes narrowed. The slave mark lit up, the curse was clearly about to take effect.
"Please kill this slave! In death, this old man wanted to become a knight under the Prince who was executed for treason. Not a slave of a cruel family who was thrown away."
The cell room fell silent. The thin flames in the candles danced. Azel's face was expressionless, the two irises of different colors gave off a cold glint. A calm voice then resounded within the cell.
"Then... goodbye, Old Man."
***
Coming out of the dungeon, Azel looked indifferent. Looking at the orange sky in the afternoon, he let out a long breath as he closed his eyes.
"Are you all right, sir?"
Camellia's voice sounded, clearly the girl had been waiting for him to come out of the detention room.
"It's fine. Camellia, please clean up the rest."
"As you wish, sir!"
After saying that, Azel immediately turned around to leave. Carrying a bundle of black cloth, the young man immediately walked towards the main building of the Castle. Meanwhile, Camellia smiled gently when she saw the lonely back walking in the distance.
Arriving at his room, Azel sat on a chair near the study table. He leaned back while closing his eyes.
"What should I do now?" muttered Azel in a soft voice.
Azel thought many things in his head. Since the matters with the knights had been fixed, he would take care of other fields. the knights matters still needed time to see the results, so the young man was in no rush.
"After Camellia returns, I will ask her for the results of her investigation on agricultural matters." Azel decided to go to the next stage.
Azel's territory was famous for being vast and fertile. As it is currently still unstable, approaching communities in privately managed areas is clearly important. After all, a good leader is one who can keep his territory stable.
Strengthening knight power, controlling the morale of the citizens, making the people of the region more prosperous and secure, and so on.
There is still too much that needs to be done!
****