The Extra Wants To Live

Kurtval's mind raced. He had been prepared for negotiations, but this seemed different. More personal, somehow.

"What kind of help do you have in mind, Prince Carl?"

Carl smiled, his eyes twinkling with a mixture of mischief and determination.

"I need loyal knights, skilled and dedicated, to form a strong foundation. In return, I can offer support and opportunities for your family to regain its standing and influence. Hilfin, for example, could be a valuable asset in this regard."

Kurtval's eyes widened. "Hilfin? But that's... How can we..."

"I understand your concerns," Carl interrupted gently.

"Hilfin is officially under Fardin, but I have control over its resources. I can ensure that your family benefits from its wealth. But more than that, I need people I can trust. People who can see the bigger picture and are willing to take risks for a greater reward."

Kurtval felt a glimmer of hope. This was an unexpected opportunity, but also a dangerous one. "What would you require from us, Your Highness?"

"Commitment," Carl replied simply. "Loyalty and the willingness to work hard. I need knights who are not just skilled, but also understand the importance of strategy and politics. Your family has the potential, and I can provide the means."

Kurtval was silent...His mind wa racing very quickly as he comparhand Carl's words.

Originally, He was here talk about his niece, Catherine, to Carl but situation was turned quickly whithout giving Kurtval chance to talk about original topic.

Kurtval took a deep breath, and glanced at Carl.

"Your highness, Before I gave you reply of mine, There is something I like to ask."

Carl raised one of his brows and gustured him to continue with nodding his head.

"I apologise if my words anger you in some way but I must say this." Kurtval paused and glance at his niece, Catherine, who was looking him at anxious eyes.

"My niece, Catherine's skills are outstanding, but I think her personality is the most special of all. In this vast land of the empire, how many knights are willing to fight for the 4th prince, who has no power or background like you?"

Everyone becomes silent at those words as they held their breath tight, be it Catherine, Kurtval son or his servent.

Kurtval should be excueted on the spot for those words that he just uttered, Kurtval knows the consequences of his words but even so he still said it.

Catherine anxiously glance at Carl who has no emotions on his face, He was just blankly staring at Kurtval with poker face.

If Carl's orders her to kill her uncle she...She just whished that Carl won't gave Death sentence as punishment.

Anything but that.

Everyone's held their breath and we're waiting for Carl's reaction.

Soon a smile comes to Carl's face.

Carol spoke with a smile on his face.

"What you said is true Lord Mold, I feel a little sorry. It might have been better if she had gone under someone more powerful than me."

At Carol's quiet words, not only Catherine but also Kurtval felt their hearts pounding.

This is something he can say because he considers Catherine to be greater than his own worth.

Before the royal family, no noble would ever speak like that. No one!

Kurtval took a moment to process Carl's response, his tension slowly easing. "Your Highness, your humility is unexpected and admirable. It speaks volumes about your character."

"Haha, I'm not that great."

Already in his mind, only 'Prince Carl' remained from 'the powerless, sickly, and incompetent 4th Prince Carl'.

Come to think of it, from the time she first met Kurtval, Carl had always politely called him 'Lord Mold' and treated him with great respect. Even if Kurtval came on time, he made the prince, Carl, wait.

What does the 'Lord of Mold' mean to Kurtball, a member of the fallen family who barely clings to the upper echelons of the nobility?

"Lord Mold. I have nothing now. So the only thing I can promise is something about the future that I don't know what will happen."

Carol changed her childish face and spoke seriously.

At that moment, a charisma that can captivate people who even he does not know flashes in his eyes.

Kurtbal seemed to be captivated by Carol's vivid eyes.

"But I will not abandon the strong pillar that supported me through difficult times."

A strong pillar!

Kurtbal seemed to see a tall, thick and strong pillar supporting the center of a huge palace.

Karl captured Kurtval's spirit and whispered to him, like a devil tempting humans or like an apostle of God spreading the truth.

"Lord Mold, I need a sword I can trust and entrust with my work. It's not that I have no choice but to follow, but I need a sword that truly believes in me and follows me."

Carl's low voice struck Kurtval's head like thunder and stirred it up like a storm.

"Even though I can't give you anything right now, I will never forget it if Mold is with me. If I abandon the one who endured this difficult winter for me, who will believe in me and fight for me?"

"Well, that's…"

As Kurtval stuttered and tried to say something, Carl grabbed Kurtval's large, rough hand, which was twice his size, and squeezed it tightly, like the mouth of a snake aiming for the throat of its prey.

"I trusted Lady Catherine and met the Lord Mold. And seeing you, I feel like I can entrust my future to you."

Kurtval was completely out of breath at Carl's extremely appealing words.

No, who in this world recruits talent like this in the first place? Powerful nobles value face and dignity the most.

When recruiting talent, the biggest consideration is 'How much is it?' It's like, 'How much can I buy you?'

The highest compliment is that they will give you what you want as much as you want.

Because everything is just a pure transaction for mutual benefit.

He doesn't say this in detail and ask people to work hard for him.

'Take a taste of recruiting Three Kingdoms knowledge talent.'

Carl was thinking about the 'three highs and lows' in Lucas's memories.

Of course, Lucas had never read the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He just knew some famous things.

So, even though it was a struggle, all he could think about was that he had to work hard to attract talented people.

But he couldn't deny that it was of great help now. Carl didn't know much about how the nobles of this world recruited talent.

This was because in the original work, Adrian recruited talent by acquiring them through special events or by exploiting their weaknesses.

Still, he knew that ordinary nobles would not behave like this.

In any case, Carl really didn't have anything he could promise Kurtval right now.

In the end, all Carl could do was appeal to emotions such as affection and charity.

But since Carl had nothing to say about the cause, all he could do was hold on like this.

And one couldn't help but swell with emotion when the royal family treated a fallen noble family with such great regard and embraced it.

"Yes, Prince Carl."

Kurtval forgot all that he had thought about and spoke with determination, his eyes burning. "I will do my best for Mold, Your highness."

After hearing the affirmative answer, Carl smiled as brightly as a blooming flower, tightly grasping Kurtval's hand and patting the back of his hand.

"Thank you. It's really reassuring to hear Lord Mold say that."

"The Mold edge is still very weak. I will do my best to be of Prince Carl's strength in the future."

"Haha. It still gives me strength."

Carl's demonic charisma that possessed people made him seem like a very large and powerful person to Kurtval, and his small stature at the same time aroused a very sad pity for him.

How could he refuse when Carl held him so desperately?

In this way, Kurtval ended up swearing his family's loyalty to Carl while he was out of his mind.

If one looked at it from a distance, they might think Kurtval was crazy.

It's not that wrong.

But unfortunately, the only people who listened attentively to the words of this shabby group were the people involved:

Carl, Kurtval, and the members of the Mold family whose hearts were puffed out with pride.

Not only Catherine but also Bester and the young servant, their hearts filled with pride, and their shoulders straightened.

It's probably only after he breaks up with Carl and wakes up from a deep sleep that he will realize something is wrong.

'This is it.'

Carl thought to himself as he persuaded Kurtval so earnestly.

Anyway, the Mold family was obtained, and after looking at it, Carl thought about sending them to Hilfin.

It didn't seem like the Mold family was good at the dark world or had a snake inside them

He decided to spend some time to understand what they were like, and when confident, send them to Hilfin to manage the silver mine.

It would be good to make Mold and Hilfin watch each other with caution and suspicion.

And since Carl possessed both of their weaknesses, it would be difficult for them to plot and betray him.

One word from Carl and Fardin would be hanged.

And this was Kurtval, who cared deeply for Catherine like his daughter. She couldn't betray her master, Carl, who held the power over Catherine's life and death.

Truly, Carl planned to use anything that could be used.

It was none of his business whether he was criticized or pointed at.

One had to live their life to be criticized or pointed at.