Chapter 3

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Kuk and Old Hill brought several short-whiskered fish. These fish were not large, the biggest only half a catty. Originally, Kuk caught something that looked like an eel, but Old Hill said it couldn't be eaten, so they had to let it go. Actually, Kuk didn't mind; it was just an eel, and there would be plenty of time to catch more later.

Captain Quif's home was inside the castle, but they entered through the back door. The back door of the castle was narrow, only wide enough for one adult to pass through. After all, it was for defensive purposes. Kuk was very envious of such a castle. This castle was much larger than the royal castle in England on Earth, but it was said that the construction cost a lot of gold.

"Captain Quif, we are here to disturb you," Old Hill said humbly, handing the fish to Quif's attendant. Captain Quif had two attendants because he was a knight. Knights were registered combatants of the empire, and the number of knights a noble could have was strictly limited. The number of attendants a knight could have was also strictly limited. Captain Quif's rank allowed him to have only two attendants. Of course, these attendants' food, clothing, and housing were all provided by Quif, along with their salaries. Since Quif was a knight of Viscount Locke, all of Quif's expenses were managed by Viscount Locke. So, being a noble wasn't that easy.

"Haha, Old Hill, you're still as slick as ever. If you had joined the guard with me back then, with your agility, you could have made a name for yourself," Quif said, patting Old Hill's shoulder affectionately.

"Quif, don't bring up the past," Old Hill quickly said.

"Sigh! It's all because of women," Quif sighed, not sure if he was lamenting Old Hill or something else.

"Kuk, from now on, call Quif Uncle. Once you join the guard, you must listen to Uncle Quif. Your father was a coward, but since you've joined the guard, don't be afraid of death. The Hilton family has no cowards," Old Hill patted Kuk's shoulder.

In fact, a large part of Viscount Locke's subjects were familiar with each other. When Viscount Locke was still a baron, Old Hill and others had already followed him. As for the higher-ups, it was said that Viscount Locke came from a prominent noble family, but Kuk didn't understand much about it.

"Uncle Quif," Kuk politely bowed to Quif.

"Hehe, good! good! My son isn't as sensible as Kuk; he just likes to play all day," Quif chuckled.

"Quif, you're joking. Your son is the companion of Viscount Locke's eldest son at the noble school, which is much better than this countryside," Old Hill quickly said.

"Hehe, that's true, but there's no help for it. I am already a follower of Lord Locke, and my son was born with the Locke family's mark," Quif sighed, clearly not as rosy as it seemed.

Kuk was full of surprise, muttering to himself, "Not only does he provide my job, salary, and wife, but he even takes care of my son. This job has a future! It has a financial future!"

"Little Locke, don't be surprised. Lord Locke said today that there will be a bloodline test tomorrow. This is a rare opportunity, but it's all predetermined. If you have other bloodlines, Lord Locke might let you activate your bloodline talent. To be honest, I have one-tenth barbarian blood, which makes me very suitable for the warrior profession," Quif said, leaving Kuk in the dark, but interrupting someone's conversation in this world was very impolite.

"Yes, back then, you successfully activated your talent, making many people envious. That's why Lord Locke valued you and promoted you to the head of the guard," Old Hill sighed.

"Hehe, Little Kuk must be curious, but don't worry. You'll understand when the time comes. There will be detailed explanations. Actually, we also know very little about these things," Quif explained with a smile, seeing Kuk's curious expression.

"Thank you, Uncle," Kuk quickly thanked him.

"Alright, Quif, I'm leaving. If I stay any longer, the castle will close," Old Hill stood up and said goodbye to Quif.

"Hehe, take your time. I still need to prepare for tomorrow's journey. It's going to be a couple of weeks!" Quif also stood up and said to Old Hill.

Old Hill and Kuk walked silently on the road. Kuk could see that although his father and Quif were familiar, their current statuses created a huge gap between them, making their interaction somewhat awkward. Quif's wife never came out, and Kuk understood.

"Father, don't worry about me. I'll take care of myself. You should take care of Mother and my sister," Kuk said with a smile, stepping forward to Old Hill, who had a hunched back.

"Hehe, yes, I have your mother, and that's enough," Old Hill smiled happily when Kuk mentioned his wife and daughter.

"Father, I recently discovered a very simple way to catch fish. Do you want to know?" Kuk asked mysteriously.

"Is there a simpler method than a fishing net?" Old Hill asked in surprise.

"Of course!" Kuk knew a lot, like fishing and using the fish's preference for water currents to create fishing methods. As he talked to his father about these methods, they walked home together, and it was already getting dark. Only a few weak candle lights could be seen from inside the castle, while the rest was pitch black.

"Quif, have you arranged the schedule for tomorrow?" Viscount Locke, wearing a nightgown and holding a silver fork and knife, asked Quif.

"My Lord, I and Chief Yuri have already arranged it," Quif answered, bowing and looking at his feet.

"Hehe, that's good. How many are willing to join the guard this time?" Viscount Locke asked with a smile.

"Only five, and their families are not in good shape. Only Kuk's family is a bit better," Chief Yuri also bowed and answered.

"Sigh, two thousand people, with four hundred young and strong men, and my guard has less than fifty people, and only five knights, including myself," Viscount Locke explained with a bitter smile.

"My Lord, that's not bad. The neighboring Viscount Feilu only has one knight, and that's his wife's guardian knight. His guard has fewer than twenty people!" Quif quickly consoled him.

"Hehe, what kind of noble is he? Just a merchant. His nobility can't be inherited, but my title is a hereditary one earned through military service," Viscount Locke said disdainfully.

"But in half a year, it will be the head of the family's birthday. My Lord, you need to start preparing a gift," Chief Yuri said with a worried look.

"Sigh, the head of the family's birthday is a must-attend event, but what kind of gift can I give from this remote place?" Viscount Locke swore.

"My Lord, should we visit Lady Lori?" Chief Yuri suggested weakly.

"Lori is a mage. Is it worth wasting a favor from a mage?" Viscount Locke asked irritably.

"Or, we could invite Lady Lori to see if there are any children in our territory with magical talent. If there is one, wouldn't that be... Besides, Lady Lori is about to start taking on magic apprentices, right?" Chief Yuri suggested again.

"Good, let's do that. If there are none in our territory, we can go to others. After all, we are doing this for Lady Lori. I'm sure those damned guys around us won't dare to anger a noble mage," Viscount Locke's eyes lit up after hearing this, and he said.

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